Italy - Day 4: Florence & Terni...

Once again, the weather decided to play havoc with my itinerary.

Originally, my Saturday was supposed to be spent on the Amalfi Coast, but the Amalfi Coast was being hammered with rain on Saturday, so I went in the opposite direction, north to Florence.

As much as I had planned for this to be a day trip (it's less than three hours from Rome), I could've spent, easily, two or three days exploring . If nothing else, that would've afforded me enough time to visit the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore.

The Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore...

The cathedral was started in the year 1296 and completed in 1436. When it was built, and for a long time after, the dome was the largest in the world. It remains the largest brick dome ever constructed.

But, as you might imagine, it's also very popular with the tourists (you know, people like me). So, the line literally wrapped around the building, and the wait to enter was almost three hours. It just wasn't possible to visit it with the other exploring I wanted to do. One day, however, I will return and visit. The outside of it almost demands that I do.

The line encircling the cathedral...

The line encircling the cathedral...

The thing about Italy though, is that if you want to visit an ornate church or cathedral, you really don't have to go very far at all, and this is certainly true in Florence as it is anywhere else. Instead of waiting on an impossibly long line, I opted to seek out smaller churches. You see, one thing all of these churches and cathedrals have in common is that they are spectacularly ornate so, photographically speaking, there are always subjects within walking distance.

One such church was the Badia Florentina, which is situated on the Via del Proconsolo in the middle of Florence. Rather unassuming on the outside, it's pretty stunning on the inside:

The interior of the Badia Florentina...

Another such church was the Chiesa di San Firenze, built in the year 1251. It's pretty ornate for a Franciscan church, but that just makes it all the more interesting.

But, of course, churches aren't the only things in existence to photograph. Any old building, a town square; even people can offer up a myriad of photo ops. This old guy was walking along with his wife, who was gabbing away on her cell phone:

Old Italian men make great subjects...

The town square was a vibrant place to be, with street performers (playing bluegrass, of all things), a carousel and any measure of this or that taking place. There were also the con artists and pickpockets, so mind your wallets.

 

 

I can only assume that the square was as lively as it was because it was a Saturday but, being that it's in Italy, it's a fair bet that the place is kickin' seven days a week.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to commit to the three or four days I'm sure it would take to properly explore Florence. I had another stop I wanted to make before getting back to Rome, and it was a bit of a drive.

The Cascata delle Marmore is a man-made waterfall; the highest man-made waterfall in the world. Its three sections total 541 feet. It was not all constructed at the same time and, in fact, took over two millenia to complete. It started with the construction of a canal in the year 271 BC, but wasn't finally completed until 1787.

It's awe inspiring to see up close, but don't forget to buy a poncho, as you will get wet.

The Cascata della Marmore...

Yours truly at the Cascata della Marmore in Terni, Italy...

A panoramic view of the Cascata della Marmore...

Now, while I opted to stay in the dryer reaches at the falls (after all, I had my camera gear to consider), you can certainly go exploring into places where you will get, well, soaked. We're talking head to toe, drenched to the bone soaked. One couple I saw looked like they'd been submerged, but they were smiling!

With my time growing short, I decided to pack up my gear, including my cool new bluetooth tripod/selfie stick. This was the first place I'd used it, and I love this thing. A friend's mother, in San Diego, is turning 90 this weekend, and I was able to use it to record a birthday greeting since I can't be there for the party.

This thing truly is a very cool product by Fugetek that will seriously up your selfie game.

Spend the $24 to get one of these things...

Being a photographer can certainly have its downside. For instance, I'll often get so wrapped up in what I'm doing that I'll forget to do things. Things like, I dunno'... eat. It was going for 5:00pm when I realized I hadn't had a single thing to eat since the small breakfast I had, so I decided to drive away from the main roads and into the countryside a bit to see if I could find someplace to eat.

Mission accomplished.

I stumbled across this little pizzaria called Il Ristoro Del Folle, not far from the Cascata della Marmore. The proprietor didn't speak a lick of English and I, of course, don't speak Italian. However, we shared that universal language of pizza.

Il Ristoro Del Folle

Now, having grown up in New York, I like to think I know a few things about really good pizza. More than a few people have asked me to compare pizza here in the United States to the pizza I had in Italy. Well, I don't know that a fair comparison can be made. It's very different, but also ridiculously good. At Il Ristoro Del Folle, the pizza I ordered had an almost paper-thin crust; nothing like you would find here. But the taste? Wow... it was so very good! Molto bene!

I ordered two cheese slices and grabbed a can of Coke from the cooler. All I had to do was point to the pizza and hold up two fingers; words need not be spoken. It was so good that, looking back at where he had the pizza laid out, I saw that there was just one slice of this delectable pie remaining, so I opted to relieve him of that, as well.

It's entirely possible that this could be the best pizza in all of Italy. It was certainly the best I had during my trip...

Three slices and a coke came to €6.50, or about $7.25 (US). I dropped a €2 coin on the counter as I left. Tipping, generally speaking, isn't required in Europe, but this was just such a fun experience I decided it had to be done. So, for less than ten bucks I had an amazing experience which completely transcended any language barrier.

The proprietor shouted out a hardy "Grazie!" as I walked through the door, and I was gone.

It took a little over an hour to get back to my hotel in Rome, and I was spent when I got there. I got to the task of downloading the 427 images I took that day, brewed some tea, and called it a day.

Sunday, you see, would be the longest day of the entire trip, and another adventure all together...