We had been forewarned that today was going to be hot. Today is also a travel day for us. We are leaving Tuscany and heading for Rome. Our first challenge today is to find our way back into the centre of Florence to return our rental car. Yes it has on-board navigation. We don't know how to use it - it tells us where we are which is mildly helpful but I can't figure out how to plot where we are going. So by pure fluke and a fair few wrong turns we somehow manage to find the station. Yes! The office is just around the corner from there.
We then drag our luggage to the left luggage office at the station and by the time we hit the street car-free (no that isn't a spelling error) and bag-free we realise we only have an hour before our train. We can't walk to both the Ponte Vecchio and The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore; it just isn't possible. So we choose the cathedral. It was on Jeremy's wish list and in my opinion a sound choice. Unfortunately the very long entry queues mean that seeing the inside is out of the question for us. We get to admire this beauty from the outside only. I particularly love the colour of this lovely 15th century building. It is constructed from marble of white, pink and green and is just beautiful.
But midday is a bad time to be doing the circuit of the piazza in 37˚C and the girls aren't coping well so we high-tail it back to the relative comfort of Florence station. I hate that we didn't get to spend more time here but it just didn't work out.
We're on another fast train - this one is only about 90 minutes and the first stop is another Rome station. I discover later that the name of our station is from the name of the ancient Roman road it is located near Via Ostiense which is the road from Rome to the ancient Roman port of Ostia. Our partment for the next week is located close to where the regional line intersects with the Metro at Ostiense/Piramide. It is pretty handy to the centre of the city in a fairly quiet residential part of town. We lug our suitcases from the station and after several failed attempts at navigating the labyrinth of underground tunnels, finally pop out in a bus interchange area. Ok. So transport is all here.
After settling in to the apartment and having a bit of an afternoon rest we decide to head to the Colosseum at dusk - two stops on the metro. Late afternoon is a lovely time to wander around the Colosseum. Although it is still very hot, crowds are beginning to thin and the light is much softer casting a soft glow on the monumental stone site. Dinner of pizza outdoors overlooking the now illuminated Colosseum as dusk falls.
We then drag our luggage to the left luggage office at the station and by the time we hit the street car-free (no that isn't a spelling error) and bag-free we realise we only have an hour before our train. We can't walk to both the Ponte Vecchio and The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore; it just isn't possible. So we choose the cathedral. It was on Jeremy's wish list and in my opinion a sound choice. Unfortunately the very long entry queues mean that seeing the inside is out of the question for us. We get to admire this beauty from the outside only. I particularly love the colour of this lovely 15th century building. It is constructed from marble of white, pink and green and is just beautiful.
But midday is a bad time to be doing the circuit of the piazza in 37˚C and the girls aren't coping well so we high-tail it back to the relative comfort of Florence station. I hate that we didn't get to spend more time here but it just didn't work out.
We're on another fast train - this one is only about 90 minutes and the first stop is another Rome station. I discover later that the name of our station is from the name of the ancient Roman road it is located near Via Ostiense which is the road from Rome to the ancient Roman port of Ostia. Our partment for the next week is located close to where the regional line intersects with the Metro at Ostiense/Piramide. It is pretty handy to the centre of the city in a fairly quiet residential part of town. We lug our suitcases from the station and after several failed attempts at navigating the labyrinth of underground tunnels, finally pop out in a bus interchange area. Ok. So transport is all here.
After settling in to the apartment and having a bit of an afternoon rest we decide to head to the Colosseum at dusk - two stops on the metro. Late afternoon is a lovely time to wander around the Colosseum. Although it is still very hot, crowds are beginning to thin and the light is much softer casting a soft glow on the monumental stone site. Dinner of pizza outdoors overlooking the now illuminated Colosseum as dusk falls.
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