I'm so excited to share some of our favorite moments in Florence with you! Florence is so full of history and art, and it was incredible to see many of the works that I studied in college, in person. We saw a lot of Raphael, Michelangelo, and Botticelli to name a few. Ahhh it was so amazing!!

The Airbnb we stayed at was INCREDIBLE!! Andrea, the owner is an artist himself and comes from a family of artists. They've covered the walls of their Airbnb with personal artwork, and even had little postcards with their digitized art for us to take home. It was the perfect start to our stay in Florence. We took lots of pictures inside this Airbnb because it was so beautiful and had many vintage pieces. One of our favorite things about this Airbnb was watching the stars from the sunroof above the bed. It was such a fun experience!

The Accademia

While in Florence, we visited the Accademia and Uffizi Galleries, saw the Duomo, and watched the sun set over Florence from Piazza Michelangelo. Walking into the room with Michelangelo's "David" was quite the experience! It's pretty breathtaking to see it in person. The statue is bigger than I thought it would be, and just like it says in the books, his demeanor changes as you walk around him. We spent a lot of time in this room!! I also took a couple pictures of a few of Michelangelo's unfinished works.

Uffizi Gallery

After the Accademia, we walked to the Uffizi Gallery while listening to Rick Steves Audio Tours on our Airpods (thanks for the recommendation Melissa!) There was definitely more to see in the Uffizi compared to the Accademia. Lots and lots of paintings! I wrote a big paper on Raphael's Madonnas last semester, so I loved experiencing that piece in person! (insert star eyes emoji!)

I'm also a big fan of Botticelli, and a few of his major works are displayed in the Uffizi: Primavera, and The Birth of Venus. They were beautiful, along with the view of the Duomo from the gallery.

The rest of the evening we walked around, watched boats pass by on the river, ate gelato, and kissed on a bridge because we could (no kid!!) haha

We realized we were starving, so we stopped by a sandwich shop that seemed pretty popular on the way to the Piazza, and it was worth it!

Even though our feet were destroyed from a day full of standing/walking, we made it up the hill to Piazza Michelangelo just in time for sunset. It was so peaceful and perfect. We tried to be completely present in that moment together, as the city and sky changed colors. I couldn't help but feel all the giddy feelings of someone in Italy with the love of their life! Just typing this I can almost transport myself to that moment with Braden's arms wrapped around mine, watching the sun set. It was MAGICAL.

My dashing husband!! He was incredibly patient with me throughout the trip as I worked on my film photography.

View from Piazza Michelangelo at sunset!

The next day we spent the morning at the Duomo and eating LOTS of amazing food from the Mercado Central. Actually, every single meal we had in Florence (except for the sandwiches), was from this amazing indoor market. You should check out their website because they have some of the coolest design and branding I've ever seen! The entire building was covered in illustrations, typography, and bright colors that unified the different vendors. It was a branding masterpiece. I guess that when you live in the center of art history, even your market is beautifully designed.

I will never stop talking about the Chocolate Gelato biscuit sandwich with sea salt that I had like 4 times during the two days we were there. Every bite was heavenly. Braden kept making fun of my reactions because it was that good. Like William, I had to verbally express how much I was enjoying it after every bite.

When we think about our time in Florence...we think DELICIOUS FOOD!! But Florence was much more than that. It was history, art, culture, and a glimpse back in time to the Renaissance. It inspired and fed my creative soul more than words can express! Now I'm ready to make some art of my own.

*Images mostly shot on Portra 400 Film, rated 200 ISO. Some digital + iPhone.