Two days to visit Florence and many things to see, taste and do. A post to tell you all there is to do at low cost on a holiday in the cradle of the Renaissance, in Florence.
Firenze it is a city that you never stop seeing, although it is not gigantic. It is that every corner, every square, every alley offers something interesting for which it is worth making a stop. Not even those who have lived there for a lifetime will be able to say that they know it completely, but if you only have one day available, do not lose heart: I will try to tell you what are the things that you just cannot give up doing.
First of all, in Florence you have to walk: no laziness and comfortable shoes! You can walk around comfortably, perhaps starting from Santa Maria Novella station, arrival point for buses, trams and trains. From here, you have several itineraries available: go towards the Lungarno, continue on via dei Cerretani full of shops, take a detour to the characteristic Piazza Santa Maria Novella, where the brand new Museo del Novecento.
My advice is to head to the San Lorenzo market, because the early hours of the morning are the best to visit it. First of all they are reassembling the stalls, which are taken away every evening, as per tradition, and then you will avoid the mid-day crowd. Walking around the market at this hour is like creating a harmony with the city, which is waking up with you.
If you want to shop, you will find everything from clothing to leather goods to high quality foodstuffs Central Market, reopened this year after a long restyle. The lower floor has actually remained the same, it remains the most authentic soul of the building and is the right place for shopping: fruit and vegetable stalls, meat and fish stalls follow one another in that typical chaotic bazaar atmosphere, which you will find upstairs, where you can taste dishes cooked with the same products in a very lounge atmosphere.
Now your walk can only head towards Piazza Duomo and here's what you have to do now, stand at the point between the Duomo and the Baptistery, stop and raise your head: look, look, look! You will be enchanted in the veins of the marbles, in the meticulous inlays, in the formidable heights: it seems impossible that all this wonder suddenly appears in the dark streets of Florence.
If you want to enjoy the spectacle from above, you have little way to go: go to the Biblioteca delle Oblate and go up the stairs to the Cafeteria. You will find yourself in front of the spectacle of the Dome that rises on the disordered roofs of the city.
Go back to the Duomo and instead of going straight towards Piazza della Signoria, turn into Republic Square, one of the oldest and most lively squares in the city. Despite being in pure Risorgimento style, it has Roman origins and all the historic cafes overlook it, where culture lovers found themselves in the nineteenth century. So, if you don't mind putting your wallet in hand, sit down and enjoy a good coffee: the prices are not exactly cheap. Paszkowski or alle Red Jackets, but you will feel like real gentlemen.
For those who don't feel like spending, there are other things to do in this beautiful square. The first is a bit crazy, but it will make you children again: get on the carousel; one tells you that she did it at the ripe old age of 30 and had a lot of fun. If, on the other hand, you happen to be on a Thursday, take a tour of the flower market under the loggias: you will take some colorful photos.
And finally ... I will not tell you to go to Hard Rock Cafe, but to go to the post office, which is located in a historic building and has truly fascinating frescoes. It will be a much more nerdy experience, but certainly more in line with the Florentine spirit and moreover a good reason to send some postcards to those waiting for you at home.
From market to market, you will find yourself in that of the Porcellino, where you will be required to honor the fountain tradition. Rub the boar's nose, put a coin in its mouth and if it goes straight through the grates, luck will be on your side. Or at least, it doesn't hurt to try.
Now, you are allowed to reach Piazza della Signoria: stop to observe the relief with the reconstruction of Roman Florence, look for the commemorative stone placed at the point where Girolamo Savonarola was burned and pay homage to Biancone, which is not the graceful David placed near the entrance of Palazzo Vecchio, but it is that big man disproportionate in the Fountain of Neptune and teased over the centuries by the Florentines for his ugliness.
You cannot afford to visit the Uffizi Museum or Palazzo Vecchio in depth, if you are in Florence only for one day and indeed, at this point it is time to try Florentine street food: where? You are spoiled for choice! If you prefer a stuffed flatbread, I suggest you go down via de'Neri and choose the shop you like best; if you prefer a sandwich with Tuscan salami or a lampredotto (for the greediest, tripe is also worth trying) take away, go back to Dante's house and via del Corso, but keep in mind that The Brothers are a must: paninazzo and wine gottino for about € 5.
After lunch, cross the Old Bridge and do one
After the necessary rest, pass Piazza della Passera, home to an ancient brothel, towards San Frediano, the popular neighborhood so loved by the writer Pratolini. Here a walk through the artisan shops will allow you to discover what Florence really has to offer.
Greedy break? An ice cream at the Carraia or at Santa TrinitĂ , two ice cream parlors adjacent to the bridges of the same name. Not everyone knows that Florence is the city of ice cream, as Bernardo Buontalenti, in addition to being a sculptor and architect, he also invented the famous cream, which later took his name. Taste it and then take a leap to its fountain, located right at the intersection of via dello Sprone and Borgo San Jacopo, one of the most characteristic corners of the city.
Now I would advise you to return to take thebus 12 from Santa Rosa weir, right in front of the La Carraia ice cream parlor, and at that point you will pass Porta Romana, to get to Piazzale Michelangelo: here is Florence from above! What else to say? Here every word is wasted: enjoy the view!
Walk further down the square and you will arrive at the district of San Niccolò, which seems to have stood still in the Middle Ages, if it were not for all those little bars, where you can have an aperitif. Is it now? Of course yes, but no Spritz: in addition to an excellent glass of red wine, Florence is the home of Negroni.
This is where the famous cocktail was born in the early twentieth century, conceived by Camillo Negroni, who, tired of the usual American, asked the barman for a sprinkling of gin. Giacosa coffee, which is located in the elegant via dei Tornabuoni and is now owned by Roberto Cavalli.
For dinner, I recommend you stay in the Oltrarno and (obviously) try it beef steak, but Florentine cuisine also caters to vegetarians: the Pasta with tomato it is worth tasting. A very lively place, even for after dinner, if you still have the strength, it is Piazza Santo Spirito; with its central garden and the linear and bare church, it is full of people until late at night.
Last recommendation: look around! The walls, the road signs, the counters become works of art thanks to street artist Florentines: from Clet, who adds flowers and Biro men to access bans and one-way streets, to Blub, who equips Dante and the Duke of Montefeltro with masks and snorkels because “art knows how to swim”, passing through many many others.
