Ciao, Italia

I can't believe that it is already my last day with Blake and Laura in Italy 😱 It FLEW. I don't know when we will all be together again, which is sad, but I know that when we are it will be a fabulous reunion ❤️

Today was the day to finish up the Duomo Museum parts and climb high for great views. 

We started with the Baptistry, headed for snacks and picking up gifts, hopped in line for the climb up to the top of the Duomo (463 steps, everyone.), lunched on gluten free pizza (because we were so surprised to find it in Italy), and then into the cathedral for one last church visit. 

On the outside, the Baptistry is the plainest of the 3 buildings, but the inside is incredibly ornate.  The golden mosaics and paintings splashed across the ceiling made our necks hurt, but the view was worth it.  The craftsmanship ceiling to floor was, of course, of the highest quality.

Baptistry Ceiling

Floor and holy water in the Baptistry

The climb to the top of the Duomo was literally breathtaking (hah).  Fortunately the sets of stairs were (kind of) broken up to give the climbers little breaks along the way.  The claustrophobia in the narrow staircases winding around the outside of the dome was real, but it made popping up into the sunshine sweeter.

View from Duomo of the Italian Country side 

Happy that the stairs are over

We thought we were done with climbing, but after lunch and going through the main church (surprisingly plain on the inside compared to the detail on the outside) and a brief rest and packing period back at the apartment, we trudged up to Piazzale Michelangelo to take in one last panorama of Florence. 

View from Piazzale Michelangelo

We were hungry and tired after the climb, and we knew where we could find a GREAT apartivo, so we rolled back down (almost literally) to Piazza Santo Spirito for drinks, food, and many laughs. 

Drinks! 

Grilled veggies are always a good find

Ponte Vecchio is beautiful at night. 

The old bridge at night

On the walk back home we stopped by Magnum Firenze where you get to build your own chocolate bar.  The combinations were endless, but I settled on vanilla ice cream with a dark chocolate dip, covered in dried cherry pieces, crushed almonds, and ginger salt.  It was delicious, and a combination that Blake deemed "very Teni." 

My Magnum bar

We only cried a little while thinking about how long it might be until we do anything together again.  It was an amazing week and I'm SO glad that our schedules synced up so well for the trip.  I'm going to miss the little sandwich shops and beautiful views of Italy, but I'm going to miss these girls even more. 

At the orange gardens

WPS forever🐗❤️