Florence

Thursday finds us on our big day out. We drove to Florence and took the Park and Ride option, taking the tram in to the centre. We missed ithe centre on our first attempt because ChatGPT advised a station near to the Duomo that was only actually open in peak season. Consequently, we were heading out of town before we wondered if something had gone wrong. We got off the tram and got on a return one that stopped at the central point.

We had a couple of lovely hours walking round the city. It was quite busy so with dogs a little tricky, but we managed to see all the main sites, based on our collective knowledge of the place. So Duomo, Statue of David (he does have a infeasibly small you-know-what) and Ponte Vecchio. We then retired to a bar that turned out to be Irish, so I had a Guinness and Jane had a Hugo. Not her favourite. 

We then took the tram back to the park and ride and journeyed home. One hour thirty journey time, which we love as we have a story book on the go when travelling, Shanteram. It’s epic and feels just right for our adventure. 

After about 45 minutes on the drive back, the aircon started to become weaker, and a quick Google and an email to our van supplier confirmed that it was most likely needing a gas recharge. We asked our amazing AirBnB host, Romeo, and he has recommended a local garage that opens from 8am. I plan to get down there around 8am tomorrow to try and get it done while I wait. I will then visit the car wash next to Conrad to get the van clean (ish)  ready for travel day to Lago Di Tresemino on Saturday.  Other than that, our day will be a lazy day, with a few preparatory chores, to prepare the can, but otherwise a whole bunch of nothing but sleeping, reading and eating.