Florence, and more Cherry shoes

I know, I need to get the pic of my sweet Cherry shoes up. I got a few really cool comments on that last blog though. One of them was from Cherry Red. She pointed me to some cool shoes on Ebay, by searching for TUK. Yes, those shoes are awesome, thanks. But then I decided to broaden my search. If you haven't done that yet, go to ebay and search for "shoes cherry". I promise you, you won't be disappointed. I've already placed a few bids.

Ok, after heading over to Cherry Red's blog site, I noticed that she says she wouldn't live anywhere but California, EXCEPT Spain or FLORENCE. So I asked her if she'd been to Florence. Well, follow the link to her site in my comments, then check out her reply about her trip overseas. I'm seriously wondering if she's my long lost twin. She had the very same reaction that I did when I got off the train in Firenze. I mean, it was the first place ever that I felt "HOME", besides in Shane's arms. That's saying something major.

We took the train from Pisa, just because we wanted to be away from all the Navy people. They were mostly staying in Livorno, or heading to Rome. After months with these people, we wanted away. So Florence was the answer. Pulling in to the station filled me with such excitement. It was like I knew that I belonged there. We got off the train and just started wandering around, no direction in mind, no place to be, just enjoying being in Florence. We hit bookstores, we saw churches, and we walked. I got thirsty, and wanted cappucino. We stopped at this charming little cafe, with tables outside. You know the kind, with the big umbrellas. You see them in all the movies. Well, they really exist. We're sitting there at our table, birds are flying around the sqaure, the cappucino is amazing, and I half turn in my seat to see the statues. And I'm looking at the David. No, not a guy, I mean THE DAVID. Right there, across the square. Bigger than life. It was one of those moments that will be forever etched in my brain. This is something that I had always dreamed about, but never thought would actually happen, sitting in an Italian square, sipping cappucino with the man of my dreams, pigeons flying, perfect day, and having the David in the background. No, really, it was a dream I've had since I was a kid. And it came true that day. If I hadn't already known that I bleonged in Firenze, that moment would have sealed it for me.

After our coffees, we walked and shopped some more. There is an Italian leather brand, called The Bridge, that is amazing. I had to buy a shaving kit for Shane. He still has it. Of course, our main purpose of the trip was to find me a ring. He bought me the perfect diamond on the Ponte Vecchio bridge. Now, since he bought it there, it's not nearly as big as many rings that my friends have. But you know, just the memory of those perfect days, just seeing that bridge in my head, they more than make up for it. I couldn't love my ring more if it was a 5 carat perfect stone. In my mind, it really is - perfect.

Our hotel was amazing. It was one of those places where there was a sign outside the door, but you have no idea what it will be like inside. We just walked in, up to the front desk, and asked for a room. They gave us one. Room is an understatment. It was two floors. With a winding staircase. And a beautiful fresco. Really, the most gorgeous room I have ever seen. I cried when I left that room.

I've never taken Italian lessons. I spent my 4 years of high school in French class. I was fluent in Spanish as a youngster, but didn't keep up my skills. That didn't seem to matter. It was the weirdest thing, but I knew what they were saying to me. And before an hour, I was speaking back to them. I mean, I was talking Italian to these people, and they weren't looking at me like some dumb Americain butchering their beautiful language. I even had someone ask me if I was a native speaker, or had an Italian grandmother. No to both questions, but I was quite flattered.

Cherry Red also said that she was sad to leave Florence, even though she was heading to Nice. Well, I have to tell you, that's just what happened to us. Our next port was Cannes. My whole trip, I'd been looking forward to France. I'd taken the language in high school, wanted to fulfill my mom's dream of seeing the Eiffel Tower, already had leave papers in for Paris... And I couldn't stop crying on our train ride out of Florence. I just felt like I was leaving a piece of me there. I know that some people truly love Rome, and Venice captures many hearts. I understand that many fall for Paris, or Nice or Cannes. But for me, there is only one city where I long to be, only one place calls to me across the night winds. I can still hear the bells, see the glistening top of the Duomo, feel the breeze, smell the food, taste the coffee, enjoy the view of the Bridge... ahhh, Firenze. My heart aches to see you again!!

And that's why, when my dear sweet husband went looking for a wallpaper for me, what he found was "Florence under snow". It shows my beautiful city, under a blanket of soft white. Sometimes I close all of my open working windows on my screen, just to relive those few glorious days. I'll make it back there again, at least if Shane knows what's good for him. Until then, I think Bogart messed up the name of the city, because for me..."We'll always have FLORENCE".

(Just in case you were wondering, the pic above is called "Florence in the Snow". Shane sent it to me to use as a wallpaper. Now I can see the Ponte Vecchio all the time!)