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Lines

Today I took the day for myself. The ladies wanted to “do a little sightseeing and shopping,” which I took to mean too much shopping for my taste. So I got up earlyish and took a look at a map.

The first thing that I wanted to do was get to David, but by the time I got there, there was a huge line that didn’t seem to be moving. I didn’t feel like waiting in line for a long time so I skipped it and headed south.

The Duomo is supposed to be the best thing in Florence, and it does have a beautiful facade. It could use a good scrubbing though. I had to wait in line for probably 20 minutes to get in the Duomo, but it was moving the whole time. The inside of it was massive. Huge. Still, it wasn’t really decorated at all so it didn’t take to long to get in and out.

You can also climb to the top of the Duomo for views of the city from 100 meters up, but I had to wait in another damn line. This one wasn’t really moving at all and I ended up in it for like an hour. At the back of the line a group of American girls were debating whether or not to go up to the top or go to the David. I figured the wait would be better with them in line, so I told them the David line was worse. It worked for a while, but they weren’t willing to wait for the whole line. They chose to climb the tower next to the church with 80 meter views and no line. I only wanted the best.

The view from the top was amazing and I would wait in that line again!

Stop three for the day was the Ufrizze—the world famous art gallery here. I’d never heard of it. Still, it was supposed to be amazing (Michelangelo, Donatello, Rafael… When the ninja turtles are involved you know its good.) This line was another hour and a half, but there were plenty of people to complain with. It is really amazing how many Americans there are here. It is hard to believe we travel this much. I’m sure it’s equally spread between more nationalities, but it does seem like there are a lot here.

The museum was ok. My back hurt from carrying my bag around all day and standing in line, so that made me hurry through a little bit. There were a million people in the museum and I don’t know anything about art, so not a big loss there. I really wish I had a guide walking around with me. I try to listen in on the other English speaking guides and they always make what you’re looking at much more interesting.

After a couple hours taking in beauty, I was in the mood for a little wine. (It’s Italy…) I stopped by a liquor store and picked up a bottle of cheap wine and a cheap corkscrew. When I got to my hostel, I tried to open it, but the corkscrew broke when I tried to lift it up. I was furious, but the hostel had another one so I was able to get the wine bottle open. Once I had killed the bottle and had all my internet withdrawal cured (I finally got the password!), I headed over to Lizzy’s apartment to meet up with the ladies. We played some games then headed out to a bar. The bar they brought us to was a cool place that served beer in giant mugs. I got a few pictures of them, but they are on Christine’s camera so I haven’t been able to look at them yet. Playing at the bar was a decent Beetles cover band. We took off from here relatively early to try to get to bed.