…Florence; City of Renaissance Beauty. Art, Food and various forms of different cultures are all around you. Rather than choose to be at a location right by the Duomo like many tourists, we chose instead to stay in the neighborhood of Santa Croce (10-15 minute walk from the city center) and the street of Via De’ Macci.
We made the right choice by staying away from the dead center of the city where we would have been greeted every morning by men trying to pawn off umbrellas or scarves to tourists. Instead to we woke up to a “locals” neighborhood. There is a great market around the corner for fresh produce and meat…a definite must visit during your stay.
Our Wonderful Host - Anja went above and beyond to ensure we had everything we need as this was the start of our first days in Italy. She even went so far as to walk us around and give us an orientation to the neighborhood. While the stairs to the apartment are a little daunting, the apartment and amenities were more then great. The amazing food you will eat and many libations you will drink certainly justify the walk up.
Anja in turn constantly checked on us to see if we had all we needed. Our apartment featured a view of the roof of the Duomo. If you opened your bedroom window which were gorgeous green shutters you could see the beautiful city street down below take in the fresh air and let the light in. Everything you could imagine about life in Firenze! In addition you may be privileged to hear the free entertainment provided by a nearby couple living in the area that will seem to bicker verbally in Italian everyday over some lovers quarrel…only then to make up a few hours each day… It reminded us of Moonstruck......Amore!
Before you commit to hitting up every restaurant or bar in the city center, experience Via De Macci for yourself. Every night seems to feature large groups of people congregating outside their favorite drinking establishment. Locals were kind and curious towards us. Special mentions go to Café Fiorintino (Café Florence) that’s on the corner to your right when you leave the apartment. It’s a dive, but a great local dive with food, cheap beer and cocktails and its open late. Check out Enoteca dei Macci OR il Pizzaiuolo on the street, whose staff were kind enough at 11:40pm to take pity on us as they were closing their kitchen to make us two amazing pizzas and offer a great bottle of their house red when they were desperately trying to close for the night.
From the apartment and Via De Macci, you can hit every tourist spot, every museum and famous place in your guidebook. More importantly, let Anja provide you a chance to experience life in Florence as a local away from the stress of tourists. You will be grateful for the experience.