Vacations are not for the faint-hearted

You think "I'm going on vacation.  Piece of cake.  Nothing but fun fun fun".  But it's actually hard work and the first day can really kick your butt!

We are in our cute flat in Florence and are looking forward to the next 4 1/2 days but oy it was not easy getting here.  And today was a bitch.

The journey was smooth in that everything took off on time and landed on time etc etc.  But that still means we were traveling from 4:45 AM Sunday morning until 9:45 (Phoenix Time; 2:45 local time) Monday, a full 29 hours in the same clothing, lugging the same 4 suitcases and (for the last hour) in a rain.  But we did manage to get to our new home for the next 4 days and it looked just like the photos on Air Bnb:

We're the 2nd set of windows on the top to the left of the window that is open.  Someday, we'll remember that "2nd floor" means 3rd floor because the ground floor is considered "0".  But we managed to lug everything up there.  Didn't manage to lug the suitcases up the small stairs inside the apartment.  Oh well

We did some walking around this evening and found out that everywhere you look you see great sites like this:

                                 

and swell buildings like this:

and got hopelessly lost several times.  And Florence has the tiniest sidewalks eveh!!!  Not even big enough for a small adult and so you wind up walking in the street and hoping the cars don't clip you.  Tired, hungry and wet = not a good combo.

But we did manage to find the amazing perfumeria started as an herb garden by the monks at Santa Maria Novella and developed into an amazingly gorgeous store with walls beautifully decorated and the lingering aroma of all its perfumes melded together (without being overpowering).  We needed to find food (fast.  We're not good when we're hungry), but a return trip has been penciled in.  I have 2 perfumes in mind right now. 

There are little vest-pocket restaurants all over the place, each one looking more inviting that the one before it.  But I may have to cook in one night because THIS little gem is about 4 or 5 doors down:

 

This is a store which sells freshly made pasta.  It's displayed in bakery-type cases like so:

 





Different types of pasta and at least two different types of ravioli.  I found a grocery store.  Now I have to get the fixin's to make sauce.  Oh yum.

And we learned that when people are being sooooo helpful to you because you look lost, they will ultimately be asking you for money.  Took us 15 euros to figure that one out. 

And so the first day ends.

Total steps since the journey began on Sunday morning (man, that Philadelphia Airport is huge):  16,255