Goodbye Florence. Hello Again, Rome!

Last night was my final night in Florence. I walked around for awhile in the early evening then headed over to the restaurant Joe recommended. I should have called earlier in the day to make reservations because they were completely booked up for the night. Bummer. I was really looking forward to a good meal. Didn't think it would be a problem as long as I wasn't too late. So I found someplace else and ended up spending too much money for not very good food. Oh, well.

I did find a church not far away in the area that was advertising a free concert that night. I walked inside to the sound of the most incredible organ music filling the small chapel. I don't know who they were playing, something very Judgement Day-ish, but it was amazing. I'm not sure how long I sat there for listening to it but the old lady next to me must have thought I fell asleep. She bumped my arm a couple of times until I opened my eyes.

This morning I caught an early train back to Rome. Dropped my bags off at the hotel and headed out right away. I went to the Botanical Gardens in Trastevere, because one - I like that stuff, and two - it wasn't too far away from the place I needed to meet up with the group for the walking tour tonight. This was a rebook of the tour I tried to take in Rome last Friday of Trastevere and the Jewish Ghetto. That one was cancelled because of the holiday. This one the tour guide was a no show for. I waited around for several minutes but didn't see any other confused tourists or anyone who looked like they were waiting for tourists. Bummer. But I liked the gardens. There were some terrific views of Rome from the hill by the Japanese Koi pond. I also stopped in a church and walked some streets in Trastevere, so not a wasted day by any means.

I think I am going to head back to that area tomorrow. There is supposed to be a flea market on Saturday mornings somewhere in there and I really want to try one of the restaurants in the area. The entire weekend should be beautiful, around 75 and sunny, so I don't want to spend too much time indoors.