AN ARTIST WENT TO FLORENCE (#4): The major benefit of working as a part-time Reservation Agent for Continental Airlines was free travel, so I asked Cathy where in the world she wanted to go. Without hesitation she replied, “I’m an artist, I have always wanted to go to Florence!” We left on October 30th, flying First Class from Tampa to Continental’s hub in Newark, then to Milan.
In Milan, we rented a car and drove to Florence, arriving in the late afternoon. Finding our hotel is one of the things we both remember best, but I’ll come back to that.
During our 4 days in Florence we saw all the major sights, ate wonderful food, and drank good wine. Our favorites places were the Ponte Vecchio, the Uffizi Gallery, the Duomo, the Galleria dell’ Academia with the statue of David, the Piazza della Signoria, and the Piazzale Michelangelo with its magnificent view of the city from a hill on the other side of the Arno River.
I knew my way around a bit, because had been to Florence in 1987 with friend Bob Shoemaker. Bob, an FSU Seminole, had come to Florence on a summer college program with Kathy Shoemaker and Tom Gribbin, so he had given me the insider’s tour. Bob, Cathy, Tom, and current Facebook friend Marc Huepenbecker were later to form Tom Gribbin & the Saltwater Band/Cowboys.
Although the sights were phenomenal, Cathy and I both agree that driving in Florence was what we remember the most vividly. There is something about panic or fear that makes a memory stand out in your mind.
Back to finding our hotel. As I mentioned it was late afternoon when we got to Florence. Our hotel was across the street from the Piazza Santa Maria, and we found the general area with little problem, but we couldn’t drive to the hotel. We kept circling that part of Florence, but just couldn’t get any closer. That eventing we discovered that the top 2 inches of our map showing the turn we needed to make were missing. As we kept circling, it was starting to get dark, and I decided to try a short cut. A man in a blue jacket and cap, waiving a Stop sign came running after us, shouting in English, “Sir, stop. That is a national monument. You can’t drive there.” Evidently I was starting to drive across a portion of the grounds of the Church of Santa Maria Novella, but it looked like a parking lot to me.
We showed him the brochure for the hotel where we were staying and he pointed across the Piazza. “We know, but we can get there from here!” And we were running out of time. He told us that in 30 minutes the entire area would be closed to traffic. Finally in desperation, I asked if he could call us a cab for Cathy, and I would follow the cab to the hotel. That worked and that was the panic portion.
Here’s the scary part. We were leaving Florence, to spend a night in the country before going on to Siena, and came to a very busy roundabout. From driving with Bob Shoemaker, I thought that vehicles leaving or entering a roundabout had the right-of-way. There was a bus in the roundabout coming from my left, and in my rear view mirror I could see a speeding dump truck. I wasn’t sure if I could squeeze in front of the bus, but I was positive that the dump truck didn’t have time or room to stop. I told Cathy, “Hang on,” as I closed my eyes and stepped on the gas. I still can’t believe that we weren’t crushed by the bus.
Sometimes you need to take a leap of faith. Like marrying someone you have only known for 90 days!
