Florence, Wednesday 21 May, Day 28

A beautiful crisp sunny morning in Ravenna as we trundled down through the old city watching the people getting started on their day, an impeccably stylishly dressed woman getting onto her bike, people everywhere in the little cafés enjoying their morning espresso, two old people meeting by chance on the street and exchanging kisses on both cheeks. Ravenna gets our vote for best place yet.

The train was lovely too, rolling through the cultivated country side, vineyards, crops, veggie gardens, charming Italian country houses, all looking pretty good in the morning sun.  Fast train from Bologna whizzes you onto a very different but still beautiful landscape of the hills of Tuscany.

Florence, being one of the top tourist destinations in the world, is not surprisingly jam packed with tourists. After lunch we headed over to check out the Duomo and the Baptiser with its famous Gates of Paradise doors by Lorenzo_Ghiberti. There was a dense crowd around the doors, composed almost entirely of people either taking selfies with the doors behind them, or being photographed standing in front of them

After dinner we headed on for a stroll down by the Piazza Della Republican with its high end fashion shops and the Piazza Della Signonia with its gallery of wonderfully florid statues, on down to the Ponte Vecchio, just in time for sunset. At least I think there was a sunset over there somewhere.

We are staying in a great Albergo on a medieval street. No cars, a great Trattoria next door, Laundromat directly opposite, lovely gelati shop in the little square round the corner, a mini mart that sells bananas - even a tattoo shop and a plumbing supplies shop. A great neighbourhood, and we are looking forward to going with the flow and enjoying this extraordinary city.