Generally a city has two or three things that brings tourists through it’s gates. Florence has many but today I found two and I’m ready to declare a winner.
Walking tour
Our morning was spent wandering through parts of Florence on a walking tour. Complete with guide with a flag and radio ear piece to hear the guide as we fell further behind. We were the typical tourists.
History lesson
Florence was the center of trade in the middle ages and considered by some to be the birthplace of the renaissance. The Medici family was big here. It felt as though our tour guide was constantly explaining that this building or piece of art exists because the Medici’s paid for it.
One of the highlights of our tour was Michelangelo’s David. This iconic statue was commissioned for the the Florence Cathedral but due to its weight (more than 6 tons!) it was not possible. It was placed in Piazza della Signoria which is a couple of blocks away from where we are staying. In 1873 it was removed and placed in the Accademia Gallery where we saw it today.
Size matters
David is an amazing piece and it is really huge. The way the public views David today was not how Michelangelo designed him. Since the piece was going to be in an elevated niche in the cathedral the public would be viewing it from below and afar.
Accademia Gallery contains several pieces or art but it also has a music history section that has the first piano and several other rare and historic instruments.
Where is this tour going?
After David the tour lost focus and we meandered around without investigating anything in any real depth. Our guide did point out her favorite gellato place and what dishes are traditional Florentine food. She took as past two sandwich carts that were selling a variety of beef sandwiches but the specialty was a lampredotto. She did not let us get a sandwich and I immediately thought about ditching the tour group. I should have.
Lampredotto
After the tour and after lunch (yep) I went to seek out one of these sandwich carts. Lampredotto is made with tripe from the fourth stomach of a cow. Our chef from yesterday’s cooking class told us about this tripe. She also mentioned not to ask the Florentine’s what was in their local dishes as they like to use all parts of the cow.
I stood in line to get my sandwich and waited until the sandwich god looked at me and said, “Prego”. This is confusing since the word Prego has so many meanings in Italian but at that moment the two of us had a sandwich connection. In my poor pronunciation I asked for the lampredotto. There was a follow up question which I think was “what do you want on it?” I have a rule for this. When ordering something new and especially in a foreign country I always respond with “everything”. I’ve found the everything is synonymous to how it’s supposed to be eaten.
David has left the building
First bite into this sandwich and David has lost to Goliath. My metaphor has lost any meaning at this point but the sandwich was damn good and better than viewing David. While I was eating at the counter an American woman came up to the counter and asked the chef what was in the sandwich. His reply of “beef” was not a lie but not exactly what the woman would consider beef. I wanted to chuckle but I needed another bite.
Do you have dinner plans?
I regaled Linda and Devin with tales of my sandwich experience but I could not interest them in one for dinner. I sent them on their way while I went to grab another lampredotto. I tried another vendor just to make sure the first wasn’t a fluke. It wasn’t. Just as good and I washed it down with a beer.
