This morning we got up, grabbed breakfast at the hotel and headed over to the Uffizi Gallery, the most well known museum in Italy. Even though over 1.5 million people visit the Uffizi each year, only 650 people can be inside at any time, so we had to book our reservation in advance. One of the most intriguing facts was that the Uffizi was built in 1560, over 200 years before our country even came into existence. In 1743, the last surviving member of the famous Medici family bequeathed the family’s entire art collection to the citizens of Florence and had them showcased in the Uffizi. It took us several hours to walk the halls of the museum lined with Roman statues and visiting the galleries containing priceless works of arts by many great masters - Botticelli (his “Birth of Venus” is housed there), da Vinci, Michelangelo, Rembrant, Raphael and hundreds of others.
The first picture is a view of the Ponte Vecchio bridge from the Uffizi Gallery (you weren’t allowed to take pictures of any of the art work so you won’t be getting any shots of those…). And above is just outside the Uffizi gallery, art is everywhere!
For the rest of the afternoon, we split up by couples to explore Florence. After a brief lunch at an outdoor café, Adam and I spent our time wandering through the small, picturesque street and meandering through the stalls at the local markets. Like the previous day, we stopped to watch mimes, various street performers and artists painting various Florence scenes. Adam and I then headed to Leonardo Da Vinci’s museum which was pretty cool for Adam. He is very interested in the mechanical side of things. It featured replicas of Da Vinci's work.
This morning we got up, grabbed breakfast at the hotel and headed over to the Uffizi Gallery, the most well known museum in Italy. Even though over 1.5 million people visit the Uffizi each year, only 650 people can be inside at any time, so we had to book our reservation in advance. One of the most intriguing facts was that the Uffizi was built in 1560, over 200 years before our country even came into existence. In 1743, the last surviving member of the famous Medici family bequeathed the family’s entire art collection to the citizens of Florence and had them showcased in the Uffizi. It took us several hours to walk the halls of the museum lined with Roman statues and visiting the galleries containing priceless works of arts by many great masters - Botticelli (his “Birth of Venus” is housed there), da Vinci, Michelangelo, Rembrant, Raphael and hundreds of others.
The first picture is a view of the Ponte Vecchio bridge from the Uffizi Gallery (you weren’t allowed to take pictures of any of the art work so you won’t be getting any shots of those…). And above is just outside the Uffizi gallery, art is everywhere! 
For the rest of the afternoon, we split up by couples to explore Florence. After a brief lunch at an outdoor café, Adam and I spent our time wandering through the small, picturesque street and meandering through the stalls at the local markets. Like the previous day, we stopped to watch mimes, various street performers and artists painting various Florence scenes. Adam and I then headed to Leonardo Da Vinci’s museum which was pretty cool for Adam. He is very interested in the mechanical side of things. It featured replicas of Da Vinci's work.
All of the couples met up in the early evening to enjoy our last dinner in Florence.
We sat at an outside restaurant and then Joey, Adam, Anne Marie and I raced up a steep incline to reach the Piazzale Michelangelo. It was a tough climb but we were rewarded with beautiful views of Florence as the sunlight faded away.
(Below features Adam's magnificant picture taking skills)
The view was breathtaking.
We took some pictures and then treated ourselves with gelato (crème caramel flavor - mmmm…..so good!) At last, it was time to pack up our things and get ready to catch the train in the morning. Venice, here we come!
Wow--those pictures are amazing! Yeah, I think Florence is my favorite, too!
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