The gelati that saved Italy

Oh what a week we have had! As the predicted travel time from Barcelona to Firenze was 24 hours, we decided to do this in a few long-ish legs, with fly by stops in Avignon and Milan. Why? Why????

I was super-keen for Avignon. This is because it a) is a walled medieval city, but more importantly b) was the papal seat for a while, as the papacy was being argued over by several countries (and indeed, at times there were two vying popes, each being backed by their own country). So this struck me as very cool. My excitement struck Lisa as very old-person, and it struck variuos Avignon dwellers as bizarre.

Walled Avignon seems very pretty- windy streets, cobblestones, the usual hallmarks of medieval towns. But we also saw much more of Avignon on our scenic route to our hotel- several buses, highways, the river very briefly, and BOTH the train stations. We arrived at one, and directions to our hotel indicated it was close to the other. Only it wasn't. Bad directions. Confusion finding the bus we needed. Two hours to find our hotel. Need for immediate beer. Thus, no visit to the Palais de Pape :( However, I got to look at the outside very quickly before we caught our next train, and it was super-cool. Really big, with cross shaped arrow slots which match those in the town walls, remnants of coloured paint on the main wall, crazy bosses above the doors, and TWO space invaders on the back wall. I am so going back.

Milan had less going for it. When we first catching the metro towards our hostel and the train filled with excited Milanese singing football songs, we thought it was kind of cute and funny. When we couldn't get to sleep because Milan won the Champions League Final, and the Milanese wanted to shout and toot their horns and, I don't know, BANG KETTLES til all hours of the morning, it was less charming. Very little sleep, teamed with surly service and crappy facilities leads me to warn you all against the HI hostel in Milan. Actually, don't go to Milan at all. It's dirty, noisy, sweaty, and people expose themselves as they run past you on the street. Ugh.

After a pleasant, air conditioned trip to Firenze, the twenty minute crowded, sweaty bus ride, with very little knowledge of where we were to actually alight, came as a bit of a shock. The trudge up the 400m long driveway, on a very hot and humid day with our bags was also pretty unpleasant, although the greenery surrounding us, surprising in the midst of a city, did temper this a little. But then we arrived at our hostel and were a little impressed. It's an old Villa, an quite a bit of land now used for vines and camping. The building boasts frescoes, statues and a stunning view of 'rural' Firenze. It's a bit noisy, because it hosts so many guests, but the general area is a haven of quiet and green in an otherwise busy, tourist-packed city with little garden area.

Tomorrow (or maybe the next day) I plan to visit the Uffizi Gallery. Today was my churchy day- I visited the Duomo (amazing from the outside, and pretty impressive from the inside. Luckily it was free, but it was a 40 minute wait), the associated baptistry (amazing gold mosaic-work on the roof. This site has been used as a baptistry since the 4th century, and was where Dante was baptised. It's said to have been the site of a Roman temple to Mars before it was converted to Christian use) and the Basilica San Lorenzo (quite a bit of Donatello work, and a very cool medieval reading room/ library). It also turned out to be my David- replica- visiting day; I saw one in Piazzale Della Signorina, and another at Piazzale Michaelangelo, a square quite a hike up the hill, but affording amazing views of Firenze.

But the defining moment at which my faith in Italy was restored occurred on our first day, after Lisa was briefly lost (turned out that when she said 'Meet me at the roundabout', it was not the roundabout near the hostel... but it wasn't far away at all. Phew!). Her exploration of our immediate surroundings had led her to a glorious gelato store, whose flavours included Chocolate and Earl Grey Tea, Pear William, and the best Lemon gelati I have ever had. Simply amazing. And whose brilliant idea was it to combine chocolate and tea into a gelato flavour? It should have been mine... And if I ate this on a pancake, it would combine almost all of my favourite foods :) Viva Italia!