Florence-Steak & David

Riding the trains to and from every city in Italy is a treat. Just sitting back and looking out the window is great. It is the prefered way of travel for sure. Don't have to pay attention, get gas, or use your blinker. Its great. That said, there is always some characters on the train. Going from Bologna to Florence, I had the pleasure of being next to two unique ones.


The train from Bologna to Florence is only an hour. Ma and I wer just sitting back relaxing when an asian woman behind us began talking. She was speaking to a German or Russian woman who wasn't seated across from her but two sets of seats ahead of her. How they met, I don't know. All I know is that at one point, their conversation was terribly hilarious.


The Asian lady worked for Shell and the other woman lived in San Diego. When the Asian lady was asked if she had ever been to the U.S. she responded:


AL 'No. But I have a friend who works in...um...Misery'

G/RL 'Where?'

AL 'Mis-ery. Miss Erry'

G/RL 'Ummm...Not New York'

AL 'No, no. Misery'



At this point my ma and I were looking at each other wondering wheter or not this was serious. Barely anyone else on the train is speaking and here you have two women practically yelling across seats trying to figure out where some other woman works. I began laughing. I looked around to see if anyone else thought this funny but either they did not or they couldn't understand. Finally the Asian lady pronounced a little differently...



AL 'Miss Or E'

G/RL 'Ohh, Missouri?'

AL 'YES!'

Then the Asian lady said to 'look her up' when, and if, the other woman goes to Asia. I really don't understand when people say this. Is there some giant, 50 foot, address book in most airports or something? Have I not been told where the secret white pages is with everyone's number in the world? Give me a break. Stop with the 'look me up' phrase and just write down your phone number and email address on a nearby napkin.

We got in late on Thursday night so we just ate and went to our hotel. The next morning we went to the museum that houses Michelangelo's David. The line was only 15 minutes long. I didn't know which room David was in but when my ma told me to 'look up' as I turned a corner, I was blown away.



It stands at the end of a hallway under a glass roof. Even from a distance it is huge. As I walked toward it, it became more and more impressive. Standing beneath it was truly special. Seeing the veins in his hands and neck, as well as the size of his hands, is mind-boggling. Everything, the eyes, the toenails, the hair is just crazy. Highly recommend to see it if you are in Florence. Actually, its a must. One of the unexpected highlights of the David was seeing those who were there to draw it. Some were very impressive while others were not. There was one woman who's shoulder I got to look over and her drawing of the David was horrible. I honestly think a blind mule with no limbs could have done better



The rest of the day was filled with glances at the New York Times article entitled '36 Hrs in Florence' and doding toursit groups. This part of travling really gets me angry. Every other stree there is another group lead by a woman holding a one foot sign in the air so the group can see her. It reminds me of the Halloween parades I went to in lower school but with a lot less enthusiasm and more grumpy, old people. (Although, for the record, you would catch an occasional grandparent looking sour that they were there to see their grandkid be Batman or a fairy for the 4th year in a row)



We went to the open air markets, ponte vecchio, several piazza's, some museums, and the Duomo. Everything was enjoyable and all the restaraunts we went to were all very good. I had home made pasta with sausage and mushrooms one night while my mom had spaghetti with clams. (Of course pizza was thrown in there somewhere also). The lunch we had right before we left was absolutely great.

We went to a place that is only open for the afternoon and I got roast beef and ma got her veal chops. (She had been absolutely fiending for these the whole trip). Got some crisp french fries with it. Oh man. One thing on the menu that caught my attention in addition to the roast beef, was the steak. Florence is known for its steaks and their size and when I saw the server bring it out, I was shocked.

These steaks are GIGANTIC. Again, like most things in Italy, you have to see it with your own eyes. To better help some of you with the size, its like the size of Max Menke (for you Head Royce folk) or Gabe Gonzalez-Kriesberg's head (Wesleyan folk). It is utterly ridiculous. Next time I'll go, I'll have to get it.

Following a great stay in Florence, it was off to Venice to conclude my 10 day, 3 city trip of Italy with ma.