Scavenger Hunt Day Duo/Two

Sunday morning I headed to Il Duomo to hear Matens in Gregorian Chant. It was hauntingly beautiful and penetrated the cells of my body like the singing bowls. No cameras during mass. 

Then off to hunt destination number 1. 

Piazza San Lorenzo. 

And the Central Market. 

Lots of leather, Molly I could not get the film "Earthlings" out of my head. I think I will always eat meat, but I may grow weary of wearing it. I did not care for this market. 

Above the vendors, the Medici Chapel. 

The chapel is on the right. I ate lunch on the left by that umbrella. 

Cute little place that offered salad for a meal. That is for the Americans. Italians think it's strange to eat a salad as a whole meal. 

Lettuce, walnuts, pear, and cheese. Olive oil, vinegar and salt are brought to the table. 

Back through the Central Market. 

To the train station hunt destination #2. 

Which included the famous Pharmacy which I had already visited on M. V.'s recommendation. ;)

I went inside because I'll be taking a train next Sunday. 

And quickly found hunt destination 4. I'm getting better at this. I also bought a new and better map. 

Made my way to Piazza Signoria (5) where there are many statues, most of them male nudes and a community water pump to fill your bottle. 

I sat at one of the outrageously priced outdoor restaurants, ordered a Limoncello freddo/iced cold and watched the world go by. 

I didn't have my bottle with me.  Next time. 

I Don't know if you were keeping track, I just realized that I missed number 3, Piazza Ognissanti. I will have to go there tomorrow. 

Scavenger Hunt Day Uno

The assignment over the weekend is to go to ten designated places in Florence. I first thought, "oh, how easy."

Ha!

I began my journey toward number 10 Piazza del Carmine. 

Then switching back to find the Pitti Palace. 

Passed by some road construction. 

And stumbled onto a Sabado/ Saturday Farmers Market. 

Now this is what I came to Italy to see and do.  I bought fresh veggies for lunch and continued on. 

And found the enormous Pitti Palace (9 on the hunt) purchased by one rival family to out do another family and to appease a royal bride.

I ran across this shop with a ceramic Bernese Mt Dog. The shop owner could see tears welling up in my eyes and said yes to my request to photograph it. Oh Sami I miss ya! You would hate it here- the city dogs have no grass and are forced to do their business in the streets. Yuck. 

Still on my way to destination number six. 

Piazza Santa Croce.  Piece of cake because we had already walked through there a few times. The bleachers from last week's game were still up. 

Saw this beautiful home along the way. 

Ended up walking the length of a military compound of some sort. 

And finally found the 8th destination. 

This arch is on Piazza Beccaria. It's a rushing traffic circle and the only safe crossing is through the arch. 

Now to wind my way through streets toward the Ambrogia in Piazza Ghiberti. 

 A city planting project. The poor canines. Finally a piece of land and they're growing lavender and decorative tall grasses. Very pretty, but where do the dogs go?

This is it. I saw a dog happily frolicking in the brush next to this river beach.

And I did not believe the kind French man who said it was so, I had found number seven. 

Piazza Ghiberti all buttoned up and full of parked cars. During the week this place was bustling with fresh produce and crafted works. 

I needed my map at every street junction.    It was a full morning of trekking all over half of central Florence. I started to get the lay of the land. I will finish the hunt domani/tomorrow on Domenica/Sunday after mass at Il Duomo. 

Food vs Food

The Eco-gastronomy, sustainable food and food affordability conversations appear to be happening each in their own little vacuum. The challenge is to get them to collaborate. Where can they meet and agree?

McDonald's. 

It looks out is place to me. But maybe it's not. Since we all have to eat, perhaps all food has a place.

There is a store in Florence that sells nearly all locally made and/or sourced food and products. 

Is it over the top?  Just an Italian Whole Foods?

Up close these smelled of the fresh earth. 

What if a place like this was designed to be affordable and not lock out of the market the very same people who provide it?  This one is.  Why can't we have these in every region in the world. I think we can. 

Food is food is food is food. Sometimes it's precious. 

Sometimes it's just food. 

Sometimes it's celebrated. 

Florentine Steak, Toscana Bistecca. Four of us ate from one steak. You can see why. 

Biscotti dipped in holy wine. 

Today we heard a lecture on biodynamic farming. 

Not all food is created equal and today we learned why.   More later, it's after 8, time to eat dinner.