Saturday 20 July 2013
Well it was an early start (0800 hours) for us all this morning. Andrew had organised a coach to take us down to Florence for the day. I didn't love the hairpin bends and curvy roads on the way down the mountain but thank goodness it didn't take too long.
Once we arrived in Florence we had a few hours to wander around and look at the sights or go shopping. Most of us had been there before so just enjoyed strolling around and taking in the sights and beautiful buildings. Of course we went to the Ponte Vecchio and the Duomo. Michelle, Norm, Cameron and I did contemplate going in to the Duomo but the queue was quite long so we are thinking of heading back to Florence one day next week and getting in queue early as it really is a beautiful building both on the interior and exterior.
The beggars are still around as are the pick pockets and also large amount of African "refugees" shuffling up to you to sell you genuine Rolex or genuine Louis Vuitton bag... I made sure I had a gelato (yum yum) and a cappuccino. The cappuccino wasn't too bad but Melbourne is still the coffee capital!!
Once we all met up we were then taken to a huge shopping outlet just out of Florence. Apparently a very popular destination for both Italians and tourists. I was keen to buy something special if I saw it but I didn't. Yes there was an outlet for Prada, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, etc but nothing appealed to me and judging by lack of shopping bags for the rest of the crew they felt the same as me.
That evening we were taken to the town of Porciano (village next door) (
http://www.summerinitaly.com/guide/porciano-di-lamporecchio) to experience their annual festa! It was fabulous! The location was this beautiful public area located next to a very old and gorgeous church (of course) on the mountain hill side. Gardens were beautiful and they had band set up on stage and huge dance floor which overlooked the valley below. They had set up a long table for the Australians in the most perfect location overlooking the dance floor and the lights of the valley below. Weather was warm and balmy and it was just wonderful. We were fed sooooo much food, course after course, that I thought my stomach was going to explode. Couples from the village and surrounding area got up and danced (ballroom style) through out the night. Apparently it is very competitive amongst the locals to be the best and there was certainly some very good moves on the dance floor and a bit of showing off! We loved it. It was so lovely to be a part of the local community rather than attending a touristy event. We were very lucky to be a part of it and won't forget such a special night. None of us got up on the dance floor but we did briefly consider (only for a short time) to hit the dance floor and do a "Kath and Kel" style dance... as the locals certainly knew the "Aussies" were there and in town!
