Walk to San Miniato al Monte

The sun was shining for us this afternoon on our walk up to S. Miniato al Monte. We crossed the bridge and took some back streets up to the hill. It was a steep climb but ice creams awaited us at the top, our treat from Miss Hanlon and Mrs Reed.

We enjoyed the view of Florence, halfway up from the Piazzale Michelangelo with ice creams and music from a nearby busker. Then we continued our walk up to the church at S. Miniate al Monte. This church is similar in style to the Duomo featuring polychrome marble panels in green and white.

We spent a whole hour enjoying the view and doing some sketching in the surprisingly warm breeze. We walked down the many steps and then back across the Ponte Vecchio, stopping at the S. Felicita church to see the frescoes. Before heading back to the hotel we went to see the inside of the Duomo.

Donning our scarves to cover our knees, we went inside to see the interior of the iconic building. The crucifixes and images were all shrouded in purple veils because we are currently in the middle of Passiontide, the name for the last two weeks of Lent. The crosses are covered until Good Friday. We had an hour to catch up on some sketchbook work before our tea at the Hard Rock Cafe, where we bought memorabilia in the adjoining shop.