Finally, the sun came out to shine today. After staying in all day yesterday, I couldn't wait to get outside. I had planned on visiting friends at their house today, but instead we decided to meet at the Giardino di Boboli (Boboli Gardens) behind Palazzo Pitti. My friend has three kids and they needed some time in the sun and fresh air. With my tessera (card), I'm allowed to go to the gardens as well as museums all year long for free. It is such a treat to visit anything I want multiple times. And especially now when the city is rather quiet.
Today was a busy day for me just because I spent all day inside yesterday. I went to the gym, picked up groceries at the market, cooked lunch, made another dessert (torta al limone), did some work, and then headed out to Giardino di Boboli.
The Giardino di Boboli is immense (about 45,000 sq. meters); we only saw a part of them in about two hours. When you walk into the entrance there are stairs that lead to the Anfiteatro (amphitheater) at the back of the courtyard. In the Anfiteatro, there's a large fountain. Then, there are more stairs that lead up to the Vasca del Forcone ("Fishpond of Neptune".) White stone benches are sprinkled around the path in the shade. And then, another set of stairs lead up to the Statua dell'Abbondanza ("Statue of Abundance"), which overlooks the Amphitheater and the Palazzo Pitti.
Behind and to the right, there is another small staircase, that leads to a small rose garden with a fountain (shown in my picture), called the Il Giardino del Cavaliere ("Garden of the Cavalier"). To the left of the fountain is the Casino del Cavaliere which now houses the Porcelain museum. While we only saw about 10 people since we entered into the gardens. Once we reached this rose garden, there were at least another 15 people sitting on the wall that overlooks a hilly valley.
Il Giardino del Cavaliere felt like an entirely different place for this was the first time we couldn't see the downtown area of Florence. I could, however, see San Miniato (which is near Piazzale Michelangelo) to the left, next to the Il Casino del Cavaliere.
I didn't realize how quiet the Giardino di Boboli was until we got back outside and heard the buses, cars, motorini (scooters), and people talking. The Giardino di Boboli allowed me to escape to the Tuscan hillside where life is peaceful and beautiful.
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