Wonderful way to experience Florence - First off, it was pouring rain, really really raining. We went to the Academia first, our guide was super knowledgeable about all of the art and not just David. The fun began when we started the walking tour of Florence. Everyone had umbrellas, the guide was such a trooper, she never gave up. Most of the people on the tour bailed and left at different points of the trip because of the rain. We stayed until the end, and were so glad we did. We learned a lot about the history of the city, the architecture and the art.

Private Academia Tour with Stefania - This was our second visit to the Academia but the first for our travel companions. I thought a private tour would be easiest to do as we had a limited schedule to work around. We booked the tour knowing we'd have an Art Historian as our guide and were looking forward to what we would see and learn. Our hotel was too far away from the Hotel pick up route so we were asked to met at the Academia via email. Stefania met us outside the Academia. She had a sign with my name on it which made it easy to find her! Stefania got us in quickly (skip-the-line-entry) and gave us all information about entering the security area then we were off on our tour. We began in the Medieval Painting area where she talked about the history of the collection, time periods it covered and the history of the building itself as a hospital originally! Stefania focused on a few highlights and gave us in depth information about art philosophy and the historical significance of the works we were seeing, the artists and their particular techniques. We them moved to the Instrument museum where she spoke about the Di Medici family and their influence on the city's business, arts and government. Then we moved on to the Sculpture rooms and learned about Michaelangelo and his sculpture techniques (which I hadn't learned about on a previous visit). We spent a good bit of time analyzing the famous "David" details and the philosophy of "mannerism"! This was fascinating to see it in his works. We then visited other sculptures and galleries with church icons with earlier works of art. This tour was the perfect length for us as we were still adjusting to the time change. Stefania was accommodating, warm friendly and made sure we could hear her. She was patient with our questions and so informative! I would highly recommend you request her if she is available! Thank you Stefania!!

Small Unique hotel near Miami Cruise Docks - We needed a hotel close to the cruise dock in Miami but not overly expensive. I booked the Boutique Hotel 439 nw 4th ave a renovated old building with mixed reviews. From the outside not so inspiring. But inside nicely renovated, a step back in time of a slower pace life. Quiet neighborhood. Small room but very clean and nice appointments. Comfortable bed good hot water and WiFi. The only negative was there were no restaurant or grocery stores within walking distance that we could find. We really liked it and will stay there again if we leave out of Miami instead of Fort Lauderdale.