First look at the Duomo, and studying with a view

(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.)

This afternoon we took advantage of what’s supposed to be the last rain-free day of the next week to walk into an area of Florence that we hadn’t yet visited. We did our homework and studying with a view of the Florence skyline, and enjoyed yet another delicious dinner at a restaurant recommended in one of our guide books.

Walking down Via Costa San Giorgio, our street, from our apartment toward the river. Usually you get to see the uphill view, so this is a different perspective.

From Via Costa San Giorgio, we bear right on Costa dei Magnoli to walk through a tunnel that takes us to near the Ponte Vecchio.

We passed a seafood restaurant that showed off its catch in the front window.

Our route allowed us to get our first close up look at the Cathedral Santa Maria del Fiore. It’s known as “the Duomo”, even though the domed cathedral is only part of the complex, which also includes a baptistry and a bell tower.

The entrance to Cathedral Santa Maria del Fiore.

The sheer size and opulence of the Cathedral just take your breath away.

Our destination was Caffè Verona, which occupies the top floor of the Museo degli Innocenti, east of the Duomo. We sat on the loggia at left. The building with the green dome is the Great Synagogue of Florence.

Cheryl doing her homework with a view of the Duomo in the background.

This bird came to visit us at the caffè. Cheryl’s Seek app identified it as–wait for it!–an Italian sparrow.

As we walked back toward home, the Duomo dominated the view down Via dei Servi.

Lorenzo Ghiberti’s monumental brass doors to the Baptistry of San Giovanni in the Duomo complex. These are copies made in 1990; the originals from the mid-1400s are now preserved in the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo.

The Cathedral and Giotto’s bell tower.

We stopped for dinner at Caffè Concerto Paszkowski in Piazza della Repubblica. The restaurant has lovely outdoor seating in the piazza, with live music in the evening.

Roasted vegetables with olive oil, herbs and burrata, one of our two main courses. It was nice to have something other than pasta for a change!

The other main course was Cheryl’s favorite, eggplant parmesan.

And for dessert, a pistachio & raspberry tartlet. Once again, we’re stuffed!