So apparently I hurt my right foot more than I thought, which left me awkwardly limping around the city yesterday. I have consumed more "Moment" than I would have thought necessary or possible, but it doesn't really seem to help. I'm sure the cure for a strained muscle is to stay off of it, but hello, was I going to spend yesterday in Carla's apartment? However, I conceded to myself that walking to the other side of the city and then up the eighty million steps to San Miniato al Monte and Pizziale Michelangelo was just not going to happen, so I took the bus. The view from there is really unparalleled.
I also returned to Palazzo Vecchio, which I love from the outside and also from the inside with its crazy Vasarian decorations. I superbly heart Eleonora of Toledo's clothes in all of her portraits. I should also mention that Carla and my first stop last Friday was the amazing place of adventure known as La Specola, the world's most batshit zoological museum, where we and a group of Italian schoolchildren were having a wonderful time but mysteriously we missed seeing the aiy-aiy! We both forgot about it completely.
Two nights ago we had dinner with Justin at Pizza Italiano, where the crazy chef who makes the pizzas adores Carla, and he not only sang to us but made us both heart-shaped pizzas which I would totally have photographed if it wouldn't have made me feel like such a toolish tourist. When I got here on Thursday, it was so much more crowded and noisy than I remembered it being even in May--I guess the Florence of my memories was when we first arrived, quiet streets, no lines for anything. I opted not to revisit a lot of our old haunts, like the Uffizi and the Pitti, and even David's lovely derriere in the Accademia--the line is too long, and ten euro for something I used to look at for free on the way to the grocery store? Nah. Sean requested that I think of him in the Boboli Gardens (his favorite place) but alas, my lameness precludes me from getting there, and also it is raining today. Sorry, sweetheart--you'll just have to come back here yourself!
Let's see, what else...Justin is a huge Juventus fan, so after dinner the other night we watched the last part of the game between them and Napoli, which was 0-0 until Juventus scored in the last few minutes, so it was pretty exciting. I'm glad I've gotten the chance to see the real Justin, the goofy, talkative, joking Justin, and not just the polite but shy guy I remember when Carla was first seeing him. He came over for dinner last night as well, when Carla cooked for me her famous pasta alla vodka, except she didn't have any vodka so I guess it was just pasta alla panna but it was still gooooood. And there was also a lot of Prosecco consumption (which I have recently come to enjoy) and me demanding basically to hear the entire history of the island of Malta. Carla contributed a great deal, since she's been there several times and watched this movie "The Malta Experience" that's a giant history lesson. Justin mentioned that the British ruled the island for 100 years before leaving, but when I asked him if they resented them, he was surprised and said no, of course not, they loved the British, they brought Malta into the modern age. So I guess post-colonial angst has no place among the Maltese people.
Before dinner we'd met up with my cousin Sara to go for a drink as well. She's loving Florence (who doesn't?) but she lives with six other girls in one apartment! Dear God. Carla's apartment here (did I mention that walking up 99 steps does not get easier when your foot's killing you?) is actually meant for two, and while I'm sure it's doable it's pretty sweet for one person. The noise factor of being in front of the Duomo, however, is definitely a detractor.
I should end this and limp downstairs--I want to visit my favorite thrift store, look for a scarf in the market, and go check out the other huge bookstore I apparently missed when I was here. Tonight Carla's conservatory has a concert that Justin and I will be attending. Then, sadly, I depart tomorrow morning at 8am for Rome, and thence home at 2. I got an email from HEather at work to let me know my boss is closing the office early Friday for easter weekend, so I will be working 9-1 after being gone for a week. Paul is awesome.
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