thereforesamiam's Profile

I lived in Florence for four months last year and discovered that even though many sites are touristy, I stumbled upon a number of intimate and beautiful places.

Casa del Vino, on Via del'Ariento, sells the cheapest and most wonderful sandwiches and wine. I spent many lunches there chatting and getting to know one of the owners, Nicoletta. It is very local, and is behind all of the street carts at the San Lorenzo market. It is the one place I recommend to anyone traveling to Florence.

Gelateria dei Neri has the most divine Fig and Ricotta gelato.

I agree with anatomically, San Miniato al Monte has, in my opinion, some of the best views of Florence.

Museo Marino Marini has phenomenal modern and contemporary art, as does the Pecci Museum of Contemporary Art in Prato, about 20 minutes outside of Florence.

Pitti Vintage is a nice store across the Arno on Sdrucciolo dei Pitti.

Popcafe in Piazza Santo Spirito has a great, and mostly vegetarian, aperitivo in the evenings.

Mario's, behind the central market, is a popular local lunch spot during the week and has communal seating, so you never know who you'll end up next to. A friend of mine and I ended up having Carnivale dinner with a famous maskmaker named Agostino Dessi because of Mario's. His store is on Via Faenza. It's fascinating.

La Specola, the natural history museum of Florence, is a nice walk over the Arno, and was practically empty when I went there with one of my professors. It's easy to miss, so just make sure you look up for the banner. If you walk a little further, there are beautiful homes and gardens all over the place.

The Bargello and Orsanmichele are also exquisite museums to visit.

A little odd, but if you take Bus 25 the the second to last stop, you'll be in a little town called Trespiano, which has an amazing, sprawling cemetery, as well as many flower shops.

I truly miss Florence. What an amazing city.