Rome and Florence tour

Day 1

The first part of our first day in Italy was devoted to travel from Rome to Florence. We were travelling by car but that will be another story for another time.

We entered Florence through Michelangelo Square. As soon as you enter the city and see the dome of the Duomo you can say nothing but just WOW!

Duomo in Florence

We parked the car in Michelangelo Square. Parking and riding in Florence will also be another story for another time. We got to the hotel by taxi. When riding down to the old city you immediately get the feeling that Florence is a unique city and your visit is going to be special.

Our first day in Florence was devoted to checking into the wonderful hotel, shopping and a night walk around the city. But let’s relate the facts as they actually happened.

Day 2

Tuscany

I would call the second day of our trip “flavour of Tuscany”.

Tuscany is one of the most beautiful and exciting corners in Italy. You can safely devote a few weeks to the trip around Tuscany and be sure that every day you will discover new and wonderful corners of the city.

Tuscany is Siena and Pisa, sea and unforgettable hills, Florence and spirit of Renaissance. But as for our trip we decided to focus on Florence and Rome. However, when we were in Tuscany we couldn’t help but spend a day there.

Hills of Tuscany

We rented a car just for that very day. By the way, we could manage without it as Tuscany has a well-run public transportation system. Besides, you can see ZTL signs in every city of Italy.

We spent the second day in Pisa, San Gimignano and Siena. Of course, we gave each of the cities just a quick once-over and took a few road trips in Tuscany. But I think it was enough for us to feel the flavour of Tuscany.

The town of Pisa was our first destination in Tuscany.

Day 3

We devoted the third day of our tour in Italy to seeing Florence. We left the hotel quite early in the morning in order to manage to see as much as possible. But we obviously failed to see more in a day and a half that we devoted to the city because Florence is an ever-living source of wonderful discoveries.

We started our day in Palazzo Pitti where we visited both the museum and the Boboli Gardens. After a walk along the neighbouring narrow streets we continued our excursion to the Duomo and then made our way to Dante’s House.

Dante’s House

Dante’s House is a small ancient building located not far from the Duomo and Piazza della Signoria. There is also an old church nearby in which according to the legend Dante first caught sight of Beatrice, whom he chose as his muse for his “Divine Comedy”.  It is not known for sure if they are the very same building and church but they really look rather old.

As soon as we made a short walk from Dante’s House to Piazza della Signoria we were caught there for two reasons. Firstly, we were impressed by numerous pieces of art and secondly, we were caught in the rain. Luckily we could shelter from the heavy rain under the roof of Loggia del Lanzi.

Along toward evening we attended the Basilica of Santa Croce. That day in Florence was extremely intensive but wonderful and unforgettable in spite of everything including heavy rain.

Our day ended with a walk across the Bridge of Santa Trinita and Palazzo Strozzi to Piazza della Repubblica. In Piazza della Repubblica we had a wonderful supper in the Giubbe Rosse. Though the restaurant was aimed mostly at tourists it offered nice food and impressive view of the square.

Piazza della Repubblica – Florence

I remember wonderful atmosphere of the evening. Musicians playing and filling the square with music, the scent of rain in the air – all this made the supper very exciting. Especially memorable was fantastically delicious dessert.

The supper was followed by wonderful performance of a street theatre and street clowns. It was really a fantastic and unforgettable day. I took a few hundred photos of Florence. But I would like you to learn a little bit of everything.

The first attraction we visited was Palazzo Pitti.

Day 4

We started our fourth day in Italy with moving from Florence to Rome. The road itself will be another story for another time. By 12:00 a.m. we already checked in at the hotel and at about 13:00 p.m. we set off for our first trip around Rome.

Our hotel was located nearby the Colosseum. Due to this fact we felt all the power of Rome from the first moment. Our first trip passed by the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and Altar of the Fatherland. So, from the very first moment we found ourselves in the midst of ancient Rome’s history.

We started our first day with visiting Tiberina Island. Right near the island not far from the bank of the River Tiber you can see the Theatre of Marcellus and two survived churches. After visiting the remains of ancient Rome we passed through the Roman Ghetto and the Great Synagogue of Rome.

Tiberina Island

Not far from the Roman Ghetto you can see a small but special fountain called “The Turtle Fountain” (Fontana delle Tartarughe). After the fountain we passed through the narrow streets full of stores to Campo de Fiori Square noted for its statue of Giordano Bruno.

Not far from Campo de Fiori there is another square called Piazza Farnese. It’s rather big but cosy with “home-like” atmosphere. After a short rest in the square we made our way to Torre Argentina Square and then to the Il Gesù Church where our first day in Rome ended.

Piazza Farnese

In the evening after a short rest at the hotel we went to enjoy panorama of the Trevi Fountain under night illumination. It was already 10:00 p.m. but there were crowds of people near the fountain. I hope you will appreciate my photos of Rome and the Trevi Fountain in particular.

Let’s start with Tiberina Island.

Day 5

Our second day in Rome was fully devoted to Vatican. In next articles below I will tell you about Vatican and attractions we visited there.

Here is a short description of our day. We visited the Vatican Museums, St. Peter’s Basilica and its dome, St. Peter’s Square from which we went to the Castle of the Holy Angel. Special attention should be paid to the amazing bridge Ponte Sant’Angelo through which we passed to Navona Square.

We finished our day in Rome near the Colosseum and the Forum trying to take photos of the night city and sometimes we succeeded.

But let’s relate the facts as they actually happened starting with Vatican.

Day 6

Our third day in Rome or the sixth day in Italy was also “thematic”. It had been one of our goals and one of our website’s goals to create routes which could allow us to illustrate a particular theme without covering long distances.

That day was devoted mostly to ancient Rome. We started our trip from Venice Square, continued it through “Altar of the Fatherland” to the Capitoline Hill. A great part of our day we devoted to the Roman Forum and the Colosseum. And only late at night we visited San Pietro in Vincoli church.

Let’s start with the Capitoline Hill.

Day 7

Our seventh and the last day in Italy was called “between the roman pearls” in the guide-book. It’s really a nice and right name. We walked a lot that day but every step was worth of it.

We started the day in Villa Borghese regarded as one of the most popular and beautiful parks in Rome. Then we walked down to Piazza del Popolo in the corner of which you can see a small but rather interesting Museum of Leonardo da Vinci.

Through Via Babuino we reached the Spanish Steps, then moved towards the Pantheon and finished the tour in the evening near the Trevi Fountain.

As you can see that day was full of exciting historical sites. Our day ended with a wonderful supper in Navona Square. But let’s start with Villa Borghese.