@roamingmaddie

Category: italy

  • i cried over cheese in florence

    i cried over cheese in florence

    There are very few things I would change about my trip to Italy in December of 2024. Specifically, Florence was nearly 100% perfect from start to finish.

    However, there is one moment that stands out as potentially not being my finest. The night prior, we had the best experience EVER at our wine tasting and brought a bottle home. Obviously, this needed to be finished by the time we left Italy in just 3 nights (light work).

    The time is early afternoon and the vibe I was looking for was wine cheese cracker grape if you know what I mean. The person I was traveling with had the bad habit of leaning into the jet lag, so she wanted to take a nap. No problem! I would just run out and grab the snacks while she slept.

    I set out on my little walk with no set destination other than to find a block of cheese to gnaw on. Everything else I imagined this vibe with we had already, but I just needed the cheese. We are literally in Italy, this definitely would not be hard.

    I begin walking around the blocks and am casually window shopping as I go. After about 30 mins, I am starting to be a little confused about how I have yet to pass a single grocery or cheese store on this trek. After an hour, my concern turns into frustration.

    I texted my two friends who had studied abroad here asking about where I could find cheese and they jokingly responded along the lines of “anywhere”… Finally I was given the name of a grocery store. I maps-ed it and the closest was conveniently a full hour in the opposite direction of where I had walked 🙂

    I was honestly giving up on my dream of wine and cheese. I walked into LUSH to calm down and rubbed free lotion samples all over my body to try to distract from my failed cheese mission. Am I just stupid to think that walking around Florence for an hour that I would just stumble across cheese?

    I moped back to the hotel a different path from the one I had taken originally and, you guessed it, still did not come across a single vendor selling cheese. I did find this outdoor leather market which was cool, I guess…

    Outdoor leather market in Florence

    When I got to the hotel room I laid down on the bed with my glass of wine, cheese-less, and cried. I wasn’t actually that torn up, but I just REALLY wanted a piece of cheese </3 You just wouldn’t understand unless you craved parm reg as much as I do. The person I was traveling with certainly didn’t, LOL.

    Finally I got over myself and we made our way to dinner and everything was fine. But I will never forget my failed cheese mission and feeling so humiliated over a block of parm.

    p.s. I DID get my cheese when I made it to Venice and had my moment, so this is a life lesson that good things come to those who wait.

    Girl eating cheese in Florence
  • 3 florence must-do’s

    3 florence must-do’s

    Of the three cities I experienced on my 2024 Italy trip, Florence was by far my favorite. I loved the food, culture, shopping, and entire experience of this city. We got extremely lucky with the reservations we made in advance and places we stumbled upon.

    If you or anyone you know is going to Florence soon, you MUST include these 3 stops on your itinerary!!!

    wine, meats, and cheeses

    le volpi e l’uva wine tasting

    I will shout from the rooftops for the rest of my life that you HAVE to go to this exact place to do your Florence wine tasting experience. I found Le volpi e ‘uva from a different travel blog and this was genuinely perfect in every way.

    To book, call the number on their website in advance. For the excellent price of 35 Euro per person (2 person minimum), you get 4 generous wine tastings and a beautiful smattering of meats, cheeses, and accoutrement. If you are pleasant with the staff, they may even add on a slice on panettone to finish with 🙂

    You’ll know this place is the real deal when you walk in and everyone gives you side-eye glares of American tourists. However, once you let them know you’re there for your pre-booked tasting, the vibe quickly turns warm and friendly. The staff are super knowledgeable, engaging, and love to chat!

    I genuinely cannot reiterate enough that you will be missing out by doing a wine tasting anywhere else but here!

    2 plates of pasta in florence

    dinner at acqua al 2

    Our best dinner on our entire Italy trip took place at Acqua Al 2, per the recommendation of my dear friend Tyler who studied abroad here. Make your reservation ahead of time, as it fills up quickly every night.

    The ambience is beautiful with decorated plates covering the walls. Be forewarned, the menu is entirely in Italian and there is no wifi/service to use Google translate. We picked our entrees from the few words we recognized and hit gold with both meals.

    They garnish each plate with their famous blueberry compote and just YUMMMM. I am dreaming of this meal as I write this.

    aperol sprtiz with different appetizer bites

    drinks and bites at la menagere

    This restaurant x cocktail bar x home good store x floral shop was a little gem we stumbled upon while looking for a happy hour bev to hold us over until dinner. La Menagere is great ambience for pretty much anything you are looking for any time of day.

    We got aperol spritz’s and a little appetizer and it was perfect. It was busy but not packed at around the time we got there, so I’m not sure if you would 100% need a reservation. I would definitely come back here again for a full meal the next time I am in Florence!

    I’m not surprised that my 3 favorite experiences in Florence surrounded food and drink LOL. Italy is just like that. I hope you’ll be able to make these stops on your trip and can agree with me on how awesome these places are.