T and I woke up early, got showered and dressed, and planned to head to the market again for more bracelets and to see if we could exchange the belt he bough the day before for a different size.
Since our checkout was at 10 and our train departure at 10:48, we left around 8am. This was our first time getting out this early in Florence and along the way to our usual restaurant Caffe de Fossi, we found that every restaurant we passed was opened. We were worried the cafe wouldn’t be open that early, but we took the other restaurants being open as a good sign.
We made there in 5 minutes walking, and ordered the same meal as we had before. Me, a crepe, juice, and a cappuccino, and T, an omelette, juice and a cappuccino.
Once we finished breakfast we headed on to see if the market was open. I had read online it would open at 9 am, so I was hoping either they’d be there when we arrived early at 8:50 or at the least we’d get there early and be able to wait until they were ready.
Seeing the market from the early morning hours is different from the hustle and bustle of the late morning crowds. Instead of charm and attention grabbing gimmicks, we got to see the softer side of the vendors. As we wove through their moving carts, each moving their stock from storage out into the open place, they weren’t greeting us. They knew we were there, but instead they were focused on the task at hand. It was quiet. It was different. And it felt like we had gotten a special pass into seeing another side of their lives.
We found our bracelet stand quickly, but some young girls were had taken over its corner, debating on their desired colors. We opted to run and see if we could find the belt vendor. We circled the back of Mercato Centrali, and squeezed through a small opening between two carts. This man stand was all and only belts, so he was a little bit easy to spot among the other booths with knick-knacks, leather and scarves.
We saw his booth before we saw him, but luckily he was just around its corner. As soon as he saw T, he recognized him from the day before. T’s red beard and signature Raybans come in handy like that. The merchant was kind. I pulled the yellow bag from my purse and gave the belt to T who turned it over to the merchant. Helooked at the belt, and knew which one it was immediately. He pulled its twins from his stand and let T try on a 120 instead of a 125 and it fit perfectly. He even said if it didn’t fit he could make the adjustments to it right there to accomodate the needed size. We were so thankful he was so laid back and let us exchange the belt. In retrospect, we are also thankful it was the same man, because it could have easily been another employee manning the booth, because that’s exactly what we encountered at our bracelet booth.
When we returned to my favorite booth, it was bittersweet. The man that had helped us both yesterday and the day before wasn’t working. Instead it was a different man, and he had no smile to offer. Maybe it was better this way. I didn’t have to say, “Hello again, I’m back for a third time!”and there was also no chance in getting caught up in any casual conversation. Quickly, we bought B her requested bracelets and then I bought mine, and just as quickly as we had arrived, we were walking back to the airbnb, treasures in tow.
We met T’s parents back at the apartment, grabbed our things, and started on the 15 minute walk to the Santa Maria Novella train station. If you are walking to the train station, plan to pack only a carry-on sized lugggage. I repeat, pack only a carry-on size luggage. Otherwise you will have a hard time hefting a heavy suitcase up/down stairs and over cobblestone streets. It can be done, but it’s exhausting.
Santa Maria is a smaller train station than Termini, so it was easier to navigate. We purchased our tickets online. If you buy tickets there, remember to validate them at the train station, meaning, get them stamped with a date/time, or you will be fined when the train service person walks around checking tickets. Also note that trains tend not to show up before 10-15 minutes before their departure time. So if you’re at the train station early and don’t see your train under departures, don’t panic.
As soon we our bin (gate) number popped up on the screen, we were off. We found coach 5 and settled in. Another reason not to bring big luggage is that there’s no real convenient place to put it. T’s dad stood in the cabin entrance for the first 15 minutes. You’re supposedly able to check luggage somewhere, but who knows how that goes and our cabin was so full that there wasn’t anywhere to squeeze it in between the seats. Our smaller carryon luggage was easily shelved above us in the luggage rack above our seats.
I didn’t get sick on the train before, but I felt nauseaus by the end of this ride. It might have been because it was a speed train. Or maybe my body is just like, hey, we’ve done more traveling in the last two weeks than in the last two years and I’m done. I popped some chewable Pepto, drank some water, and closed my eyes. Luckily when this happened we only had about 15 minutes left of the ride.
When we arrived at Termini, we headed for Mercato Centrali again. We ate before heading out on the walk to our apartment. I got my final Ragu ball and T got a cheese and sausage wrap. After we all ate, we grabbed our luggage (emphasis: pack carry-on size if you’re walking and not spending the money on a taxi) and took on the cobblestone streets in the Roma heat.
We passed hawkers and panhandlers again. Oh, good ol’ Rome, alive with people trying to sell me selfie-sticks and other items I don’t need. We made it to our place finally where the host let us in.
We relaxed for a little bit before eating dinner across the way at al Tettarello Hostaria, heading the Colosseum to see it lit up at night, and a gelato night cap. I got milk cream and T got mango and pineapple (or ananas).
