Thursday in Florence, Italy

This is one story in a series of stories that tell about a backpack trip to Europe in the spring of 1976 by myself in an effort to run away from the pain of a broken heart. (To read from the beginning Google "The Ramblings of an Aging Baby Boomer" and go back to March 27th, "I'll Never Find Love Again.")

Thursday, April 8, 1976, Florence, Italy

Today in Firenze (Florence) we saw the following: The Fountain of Neptune, Pitti Palace, Medici Chapel, Uffizi Museum (has twenty-five of the world's most famous paintings: Michelangelo, DeVinci, Botocelli, Rembrandt, twenty-one more), Loggia dei Lanzi, Piazza del Duomo, Michelangelo's David, a cathedral, and a synagogue. We also saw the Battistero which has a magnificent door made of brass that took over 28 years to make. Willem and I walked up to an observation point in the city, and he took some pictures of me with the view of Florence in the background. Then we walked along the river on the way back to our hotel. We stopped at an outdoor market, and I found a purse I liked (mine is falling apart), but I didn't buy it because it was too expensive. When we got back to the hotel, Willem pulled it out of his backpack and laid it on my bed. He said I could pay him back later.

Florence in the background

Willem and me by the river.

Charles told me today that Willem is falling in love with me.