9/20 working my way to Florence

Had to pee. Had to haul the bags down the elevator (thank goodness there was one!). A random guy in black got on with me and started chatting it up. Yes, I'm headed to Florence. No, I'm not checking my bags, just visiting the ladies room. Yada Yada. He asked me if I had 50 spare cents. Thinking he was some kind of gypsie I simply said "no, I don't." So this guys pulls a handful of change out of his pocket and tells me it cost 50 cents to use the bathroom at the bus station (a public bathroom expense in Italy that is used for who-knows-what because public bathrooms are nasty!). Feeling so bad, I assured him I could drum up the change, but you need exact change. This nice guy helped me navigate my way to the ladies room, just cuz he was a nice guy.

Same guy later spotted me outside and assured me that we were getting on the bus to Florence. After chatting with him onboard for a bit, I learned he was Luke from Rome who was working at a winery in the Chianti region. He was a scholar, a writer. Hmm. He tried very hard to convince me that 3 days was too long in Florence and that I should take a day trip to Venice. I wasn't biting, but he made me think anyway. He got off in his little town in Greve and I kept going to Santa Maria Novella--an icky city train station very similar to every other icky city train station in the world.

I started looking for a cab immediately and was fortunate to find one--with a smiling driver which is always nice. I was about to hop in when I realized I didn't have a suitcase to load! I had left it under the bus! I stranded the cab and ran back, fortunately meeting the bus driver and one of his friends who were thoroughly entertained by my absent-mindedness. I got the bag and walked up to the taxi cue where I immediately got in a car that took me right to the door of my inn. Perfect. Now...I only had about 45 minutes until my reservation at the Uffizi Gallery.