After staying in Paris for two weeks and a few days in Matera, I was happy to arrive back in my beloved city where I could celebrate my birthday. I took Friday off so that I could visit Florence with my beau who came to my beloved city for the first time. I was excited to show him around and visit Florence again because I haven’t been able to do so in a long time. I made a mental list of all that I wanted to see in my beloved city and show to my beau.
He arrived on Thursday night and the first thing I did was take him to a terrace bar where we watched the sun set behind the city buildings, turning the cloudy sky vibrant shades of purple and burgundy. The next morning, I took him to my favorite café, Giacosa, where we had a brioche (pastry) and a caffè with one of my closest girlfriends.
I took him to see my favorite church, Orsanmichele, and we walked around the city so he could get a good feel for it. We met up with a few other friends of mine throughout the day, but mostly kept to ourselves. We went to the mercato (market) to buy food for lunch. I wanted him t see what my life is like in Florence: a bit slower and more time dedicated to seeing friends and eating.
On Saturday, we went to the top of the Palazzo Vecchio where I took many photos of my beloved city. Just last year, I had gone up the torre (tower) and loved it. It had been closed for a long time, but they recently opened it to the public. It’s a joy for me to be able to admire my beloved city from different places (terrace bars, piazze, and torre).
We left for Paris together on Sunday, but we still found time to walk around the city and take in its energy before grabbing a taxi to go to the airport.
My birthday weekend was special for many reasons, but especially because I was able to truly indulge in the pleasures of my beloved city because I haven’t been able to do in a long time. I never forget how special Florence is, but I realize now that I need to take advantage of the time I spend in Florence to appreciate it more.
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