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Italy - Day 8 - Florence

We only had one full day in Florence, so we wanted to make the most of it. Getting up at a reasonable hour, we made our way down to the market for some breakfast. There were lots of baked goods, a truffle omelette sandwich, and plenty of fruit for Zoe, all of it fresh and delicious.



Fueled up and good to go, we made our way to the first stop on our list, Giotto's Bell Tower. On the way we saw some street art, bought Zoe a new hat, and Zoe mailed out one of her first postcards. Arriving in the square, there were hundreds of people packed around the bell tower. No matter how far away I stood, I couldn't get the entire structure in frame, but it was awesome to see up close.



We continued our trek south past the carousel towards the bronze boar. People were lined up to take pictures, rub it's snout and drop some money into the fountain for luck. Once our pictures were taken and our luck secured, we made our way through the leather vendors to check out some more buildings and fountains.



After that we made our way to a photobooth. It is incredible to see that so many of these booths are just out in the open, surviving the elements and providing such great pictures! We snapped a few strips and then took a quick snack break before continuing on with the day.



We continued our trip south, crossing the river on an old, stone bridge that was covered in stores. There were lots of jewelry and ceramic stores. We went into a few of the latter and picked up a few souvenirs. Continuing the long, hot journey to Boboli Garden, it was only after we arrived at the closed gate that we learned the garden is closed on the first Monday of the month. Someone was super tired after all that walking, so she was carried to the next photobooth on the list.



Once we added a few more photobooth strips to our collection, we decided it was time to head home. As we passed by an open door, we spied a rainbow hammock set up inside of a building. When we got closer, we found that children were able to take off their shoes and roll around in it, which Zoe was quick to do. From there we decided to take the long way home past a hotel that had a photobooth. What we didn't know was the the hotel also had indoor swings. After collecting a few more strips for the day, our path home led us past some more street art.



A short rest brought us to dinner time, so we went out to eat. The food and drinks were, again, excellent. Zoe stared down a small portion of spaghetti and meatball, but a bite was never taken. After the meal there was still time for late night cartwheels, gelato, and a little door hanging before heading home.



And that brought our one, full day in Florence to a close. The Flickr album has even more pictures for you to see, so be sure to check them out!

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