Florence
Italy by Philip Greenspun; created 1995
Bicycles.
That's the first thing you'll notice if you've come up from Rome. People in Rome
don't ride bikes because they would get killed by the cars. Florence is just a
little more courteous. Furthermore what seems like the entire tourist downtown is
off-limits to most traffic. Pedestrians and cyclists have most of the town's most
interesting streets to themselves, with occasional intrusions by
mopeds.
Julius Caesar founded Florence
in 59 BC as a retirement community for Roman army veterans. From the 11th century
onward, Florence prospered and grew. It was one of the largest cities in Europe
by1348 when the Plague killed more than half the population. Although there is a
lot of industry in and around Florence, its spirit seems to be reverting to its
retirement community roots. Tourists come here to look at the past; locals spend
their time restoring the past.
If you go back to Rome, don't tell your friends how much you loved it up here.
The Romans are convinced that all Americans love "Flahwrence" (as they
satirically pronounce it) far too quaintly. For their Florentine perspective, I
told a cab driver that I preferred Florence to Rome and was trying to say Rome
was too noisy ("troppo rumoroso") but struggled for the words. He finished the
sentence by saying that the problem with Rome was "troppi Romani" (too many
Romans).
