Florence

Best Attributes: White Architecture, Short Walking Distances, Local Food

Worst Attributes: Heavy Tourism, Claustrophobic Streets

Florence is a beautiful city. From the stunning white gold architecture to the ambient pizza kitchens, it's the best of both worlds. The food was classically Italian and there wasn't a fast food chain in sight. Restaurants like Gustapizza and Zaza's served local food and did a great job creating an environment that both tourists and natives could enjoy. While prices were steep in some restaurants, it wasn't too difficult to find a nice cheap meal here and there. To find a nice bar, restaurant or club (depending on the night), everything was a 5-15 minute walk away. Not only were these walks short, but they also showed Florence in all it's glory. Beautiful bridges, leather shops, and Italian music could keep you entertained at all times. There were also supermarket pop-ups in various places throughout the weekend, which gave me the opportunity to buy second handle leather apparel and wrist wear at a relatively low price.

While Florence was glorious, the tourism is definitely a major problem. I know, difficult to

complain about when you're a tourist yourself, but every area of the city was full of visitors from Germany, France and U.S often ruining the atmosphere and environment. The fact that the city is so small surely emphasizes this problem as the narrow streets cramp you between pedestrians, cars and the typical stone wall. Not to mention that Italians absolutely hate tourists. Nights out were accompanied by jeers and laughter from various groups of Italians, graffiti littered tourist destinations and bus stops with Italian phrases like "Get out" or "Leave".

Special shoutout to Madrey for letting me intrude on her and her roommates for the weekend. Certainly saved me some high demand dough and allowed me to experience a classic Italian villa. She was a great tour guide, showing me great restaurants, viewpoints and the Florenzi nightlife. Overall, I definitely recommend visiting to Florence. It's not known as a top 3 Italian destination, but I think it's criminally underrated and in need of some props.

Recommendations: Zaza's restaurant (classic Italian cuisine), Piazzale Michelangelo (a scenic hike and viewpoint), Leather Shops (highly touted industry in the Tuscany region)

Things that were weird:

Streets are so narrow that most cars aren't allowed in certain areas

One of the most renowned dishes is a form of raw meat (Florentine steak)

Alcohol was not served in supermarkets after 9pm