Or, at least, that’s how it felt. 

Walking along any of the major streets in Florence can be like surfing.

You have to stay en pointe to ride the crest. If you don’t, you will likely get pulled down and out to sea by the undertow. Or, literally, pulled and pushed into the scrap heap.

Sometimes it feels a little bit dangerous.  Walking these streets is not for the faint of heart or the infirm.  A bicycle rider almost took me out when I dared to get out of my lane by a few inches.

Is isn’t always fun; if fact, sometimes it is a real pain in the neck or worse.  Then, other times, it can be exciting and rewarding.

But it is what it is and I know that complaining about the incoming flack of Florence’s turisti is a waste of ink.  No doubt it is unfolding just the way it is meant to unfold, but I can’t help feeling nostalgic for the Florence I remember from decades ago.

Back then, no store keeps spoke English. Now, no matter how try I hard to blend in and use my best Italian language skills, the storekeepers intuit immediately that I am American.  If I persist and converse in Italian, these kind souls invariably praise my good Italian, which is just one more indication that the Italians are by nature a convivial and kind people because I promise you that my language skills are rudimentary at the very best!

The main reason Florence was chaotic with tourists today is because this is a major holiday weekend in Italy. Tomorrow night, the night of January 5, is Epiphany Eve, an extremely important feast day on the calendario cattolico. Although nowadays the American devotion to Santa Claus has a firm foothold in the winter holidays in Italy, traditionally it is La Befana, an old woman who rides a broom, who delivers gifts to Italian children. Many Italians have tomorrow off from work for the holiday. It’s all about the children as you can see today in the Piazza della Repubblica.

Of all the things I saw and felt on this beautiful day today in Florence, it was the vision of this nonna tying balloons to sell to the holiday makers that most captivated me.

Buona befana, ragazzi!  I hope you get just what you wanted!