Florence, Italy {2}

Our second day in Italy was spent very similarly to our first day-- lots of sightseeing! First up was Uffizi Gallery. I was most excited to see the Birth of Venus by Botticelli and it was stunning in person! Uffizi Gallery also offers some pretty cool views of the campanile, the duomo, and the Ponte Vecchio. Who know?

We made the trek over the Ponte Vecchio to check it out and grab lunch of burrata pizza and bacon, olive oil, garlic, and pecorino romano. Delicious. Followed up with gelato - mint chocolate for me and caramel for G.

We ended our sightseeing that day with a trip to Pitti Palace and the Boboli Gardens. The views were spectacular and the gardens were beautiful as well. 

Dinner that night was at La Giostra. I loved this place. The atmosphere, the service, and the food were all on point. The restaurant was fairly small and low-lit which are two of my most favorite qualities in a restaurant atmosphere. The food was definitely the best we had in Florence and up there for the one of the best meals we had in Italy. Confession: the menu was in Italian (the first menu we encountered that was entirely in Italian) and I ordered steak when I thought I was ordering a pasta dish but the steak was amazing so no harm, no foul. G had steak in balsamic and I had steak in olive oil and rosemary. So, so good. I would highly recommend this place if you are headed to Florence! The place was empty when we got there and packed when we left!

We ended with a nightcap at the hotel bar and then headed to bed for our last full day in Florence. 

Linking up with the ladies for Thoughts on Thursday!