Florence and Sienna

Let me just start by saying that the location of our hostel in Florence is incredible. We can practically see the Duomo and Campanile right outside our window. The oldtown part of the city is much smaller and warmer than Rome, as expected. We arrived here Saturday morning and begun our first day by going into the Duomo--a chapel with a huge dome skyscraper with famous paintings at the top. We climbed up the 400+ steps to a tiny steep inlet in order to get to the very top to see the view. Once we made it, however, the view was miraculous and we were able to see all of Florence.
After our view we walked over to the Accademia Museum and got to see Michaelangelo's David, along with various other artworks and sculptures. David was a gigantic masterpiece and represented Florence's freedom in regards to his fight with the giant Golliath back in the day. It is really exciting to see such famous and significant artworks in Italy that we have learned about in history or art classes back in school.
We had a gelatto break from this place called Grom that is actually supposed to be really famous and popular for its use of organic products and fruit. Then we had dinner in some touristy area at a Pizzeria which was fine and a nice break from walking.
Yesterday we spent the entire day attempting to do things but were unable to just about everything because nothing is open on Sunday. We wanted to go to the Uffizi museum, which is considered the best art collection in all of Italy, but due to the 2.5 hour long line we decided to make a reservation for Tuesday morning before we head out. We weren't able to eat lunch in the place we wanted because it was closed. The big outdoor market was closed, as well as most of the museums and exhibits. We ended up wandering around the city with virtually nothing to do, but still managed to have a good time entertaining ourselves. We thought that maybe this day had been a waste until we had dinner, one of the best eating experiences of our trip.
Rachel recommended we go to Il Latini, a wine bar and restaurant near our hostel. We arrived 10 minutes before it opened to find a huge mass of people crowded outside waiting to get in. We were let in shortly after they opened the doors and were seated with two other couples, with communal water, wine and bread for the table. We knew Tuscany is known for their grilled meats and steaks, so we ordered a veal chop for the main course that was some of the best, if not the best, meat we had ever tasted. It was such a fun experience and terrific food; we were so glad we took the recommendation, and we figured we deserved a nice long meal after our boring day.
We took a day trip to Sienna today on the train and saw another Duomo and Il Campo--their town square. Sienna is such a cute little town, sort of like a miniature version of Florence. We had a good lunch at a cute little place, described as peasant food at peasant prices, and we walked around a lot and went into all the cute little shops. We head to Cinque Terra tomorrow and are really looking forward to how beautiful we have heard it is. After that we go to Venice for a few days and then head off to Paris for a week where we were able to rent an apartment! More to come as soon as we are able.
J and E