The One That Got Away

Florence, oh fair Firenze, we just missed each other. Florence was a big, bustling city. The sidewalks were full of wealthy locals and the streets full of Vespa’s and Alfa Romeo’s. Our hostel, when we arrived, was incredible. Clean and modern, we felt pampered. The shower was immaculate. I showered simply for the pure joy of a perfect shower.
Charming little café’s and Gelateria’s lined the streets like the gold lining on fine china. This was the place were I fell in love. I fell in love with stracciatella. With an oh-so-creamy, light gelato base hugging rich, deep chocolate sheets. It was perfect. Sooo perfect. This was our appetizer. For dinner I had four-cheese gnocchi. Real, homemade gnocchi. I’ve never had gnocchi like this…it was fantastic.
We didn’t see much of Florence. We saw a cathedral- the enormous Duomo- that was visible at the end of nearly every street in our area. We walked around to find another gelato shop and enjoyed our awesome hostel.
Really, sadly, this was the extent of our Florence visit. Something is drawing me towards this city, though. Maybe it’s the fact that we did not get a chance to see other parts of the city, other districts with different cultures and kinds. Maybe it is simply a mysterious siren singing to me to come back. Don’t worry Florence; I’ll be back, eventually. But now, Rome calls, and Russell Crowe scares me, so I won’t keep all the gladiators waiting.