Today we wandered the Oltrano neighborhood, south of the
Arno and made our way to the Santa Maria della Carmine, home of the Masaccio
frescoes Cappella Brancacci then over to the Pitti Palace for some
post-Rennaisance art.  The
relationship between art, its patrons, and their motivations is constantly on
view here.  We are fortunate that
the feuding families chose art as a battlefield and had such a magnificent set
of champions. But art is not all that 
Florence has to offer. 
There is food!  Yesterday’s
highlight was the gelato – we limited ourselves to canteloupe, apricot, and
extra dark chocolate but only because we were too late for that day’s special:
caramel and red Himalayan salt.  We
are going to continue sampling this regional delight!  We had a great meal last night at Mama Gina’s which may or
may not be the wonderful place Steve & Michele stumbled upon 8 years ago
when our trip to join them was interrupted by 9/11.

Our hotel is near the Ponte Vecchio with an amazing tower
where we can unwind a bit at the end of the day and enjoy views like this:

If you like travel blogs (or our extended family) be sure to
check out the Grubbs/Rider clan’s blog on their trip this summer: http://3generationsontheroad.wordpress.com/

Richard