Firenze!...(or Florence to me and you)

Amongst all this work travel nonsense you very occasionally get to go somewhere pretty cool (i refuse to use to phrase 'business trip'....it just sounds too 1980's Gordon Gheko...ask your parents). 'Work travel' usually involves a 4am start, bleary eyed drive to the airport, queues, pushing, shoving, self check-in machines that don't work, security queues, belt off, laptop out, 'anything in your pockets sir?', racing through airports for a connection that should never have been booked so close, sweat, pleading, queues, yet more security checks, still nothing in my pockets sir, and no, i have no liquids, sitting next to a large sweaty man who also had a connection too close, crap food (although my friend jasmin adores aeroplane food...and this from the girl who owns one of nottinghams finest eateries), weak tea, £10 sandwiches, no legroom, kid behind kicking my seat, the seat in front of me reclined so far back that Newton would have had second thoughts (ask your great great grandparents), turbulence, bouncy landings, queues, lost luggage, taxi queues, long taxi rides...to finally begin a days work...long day, bland offices, over priced congomerately homogenous hotels, bar food, dining alone with a book, up at 4am back to airport and not actually realising what country you are in, let alone see any of it (i actualy had a 'moment', or 'episode' depending on which generation you are recently when i was in Bristol in the UK, it was a new hotel to me, and i woke up and i swear for 30 seconds i actually had no idea where i was, which country, which town, what day it was or anything, i tell you, i was a bit of a panic for a while, not a nice feeling)

however...

as i said, sometimes it can be worth it. (despite this trip being a 4am sunday start), i was off to Florence, Italy for a few days, more explanations for the whys another day. anyway, i had the sense to go on a sunday to actualy see a bit of one of the most beautiful towns in the world. also, my good friend Gwyn (see Milan) lives about 1.5 hours away from Florence, so she came and spent a lovely lovely day with me. we mooched, we drank coffee, we sightsaw, lunched, more coffee and generally just italianed around for the day (i think thats two made up words in one sentence)...was a lovely lovely day, and was ace to see Gwyn again...anyway, photos below...(or above)