day 2: firenze/florence

after breakfast provided in the hotel, it was to florence by train...first class you. i could not get second class tickets because i was not able to book online due to problem with credit card transaction. damn it. so each ticket costs 15Euro more. the journey was less than 2 hours but it was really comfortable and the green landscape promised a good day and weather in florence.

in the first class coach, they give you newspaper, biscuits/crackers and beverages. the train was really full, everyone was heading to florence for the weekend i guess...mostly italians. i think it is a holiday weekend that week, they had a big celebration (something to do with madonna...not the singer ah) on monday and it was a public holiday.

aahh....beautiful tuscan landscape...a great escape in winter.

our hotel or hostel in florence is a private apartment floor with rooms. the big wooden door is the entrance to the 2nd floor where our "casa billi" is. we were given keys to the big wooden door and keys to enter the apartment. it was really safe and secure. the wooden door was really heavy that i had to use my body to push it everytime. a very spacious and clean room. we stayed in via faenza, a pedestrian street with lots of hostels and a young crowd. internet cafes and trattorias (family run small restaurants) dotted the street.

the afternoon was for shopping...at "the mall"...a group of designer outlet stores at the outskirt of the city. about one hour by bus and 30 mins by train. we decided to take the bus at the sita bus station. had to walked for a while before we managed to find the bus station. met a student from china who studied here who was on the way to the mall too. like us, it was also her first time.
they have shuttle services direct to the mall but our timing was not right, hence it was a DIY trip.
the mall was not big but if you know what you want and the brands that you are looking for, you will definitely not be disappointed because the prices here are to die for. it was very crowded on this saturday as many locals were doing their shopping as well. saw groups of singaporeans and taiwanese and japanese. no malaysians. brands here are tods, hogan, armani, pucci, ysl, valentino, yohji yamamoto, gucci, bottega veneta, diesel, burberry, and about 10 others. there were even queues outside gucci and tods. well, they stationed guards outside and once the stores got too crowded, they would stop ppl from flocking in. one can get gucci wallets for 70Euro only. where can you get it at this price? as for me, bottega veneta was my choice. got a sling bag.

there is another prada outlet in florence called spaccio and it is popular as well. too bad i did not have the time to make a visit. they only limit 100 into the store at one time as you have to get number. well, i have heard it is good...so will definitely go to florence again with a thicker wallet.

went back to florence when the day was already dark but it was not cold in florence. i love florence! had grilled pork chop for dinner. yummy. they had a lot of shops selling cakes and stuff in the city but we were too full to take in anymore. the desserts look really sweet though.

florence at night. the streets were bustling with people and vibrant with activities. the italians really do know how to enjoy themselves. on the left, basilica di santa maria novella opposite the railway station and piazza strozzi (??) lots of designer shops around this area. there was also queue outside louis vuitton. everyone in italy carries lv, prada, burberry, i had a good time ppl watching. trendy and stylish italians. everyone was slim and gorgeous. and the guys are good looking as well.

the famous cathedrale di santa maria del fiore. it took 170 years to complete. impressive.