Exploring Florence and Road Scholar orientation

(This is part of our series of posts from our six-week Road Scholar Independent Living and Learning in Florence trip to Italy in Spring 2025. We have an index to all the posts from that trip here.)

We spent most of today trying to get over our jet lag after crossing nine time zones yesterday. A decent night of sleep helped! Then this evening, our Road Scholar program officially began. We got to meet the rest of the participants (there are only 13 in total, including us) as well as the program director, group leader, and one of the language teachers. Tomorrow morning we all meet up for a walk to the language school and to get our bearings and learn how to get around Florence.

Our breakfast at the hotel included the happiest cappuccino I’ve ever had.

The hotel restaurant, on the sixth floor of the building, has this stunning view across the Arno into central Florence. At the left is Brunelleschi’s Duomo of the Florence Cathedral; on the right is the Palazzo Vecchio.

After breakfast and some time spent catching up on emails, we walked around for a bit before our evening program orientation. Florentines dress up more than RVers usually do. Here’s David trying to look dapper.

Lunch was panini (sandwiches, not necessarily pressed like they are in the U.S.) from Amici di Ponte Vecchio, a little shop nearby.

A sculpture of a person about to step off into the Arno, on the Ponte alle Grazie looking toward the Ponte Vecchio. We later learned that the sculpture is titled Common Man and it was created by French artist Jean Marie Clet Abraham.

Looking at the architecture of the piazza in the Uffizi Gallery. (That crane in the middle had been there for about 15 years…and it was finally removed just a couple weeks after we returned to the United States.)

The Uffizi is shaped like a long “U”. This is the short end of the building, where it faces the Arno.

There seemed to be even more tourists out today than there were yesterday, and many of them were speaking italian. We later learned that the days from Easter to Liberation Day (a national holiday, which was yesterday) and on to Labor Day (May 1) are known as “the bridge” in Italy and are frequently taken as a holiday. Many Italians travel to Florence for their vacation.

As we walked back toward the Ponte Vecchio, we got a good view of the rooms that hang off the side of the bridge, giving more floor space to the jewelry shops accessible from inside it.

Our Road Scholar program kicked off this evening with a group orientation and happy hour. Our group has only 13 participants. Francesca (speaking) is the program director, and Serena (seated to her left) teaches the beginners Italian course that Cheryl will be taking. Raffaela, our group leader, had not yet arrived at this point.

The Italians know how to do a charcuterie board! This was at our group happy hour after the orientation.

And of course, we had to try another gelateria after the happy hour was over.