Florence

Other than being absolutely drenched in sweat due to the heat, the transfer from Rome to Florence went smoothly today. Our base for our Florence stay was conveniently located and Lara's competition and performance venues as part of the Leonardo Da Vinci Choral Festival were all within an easy 10-15 walk.

The opening concert in typical Italian style was rather chaotic. The venue although gorgeous (14th century ex-convent) was too small even to fit all the performers let alone spectators. The performers were apparently called up to perform out of order which caused a lot of delay from shuffling of people in very packed spaces. The music though was wonderful made to sound even better I was sure with the great acoustics. Some choirs were just phenomenal. Some of the European choirs made me feel like I was watching Eurovision. It was simply awesome.

Spoiled by Oma

Let's take a picture in front of the Duomo

Another impressive church Basilica Santo Spirito

Lara was allowed to spend some time with us in between concerts and she made use of the opportunity to score herself treats, new clothes and money! We ended the day with an evening concert at Basilica di Santo Spirito. The string group played superbly, better than the other Australian contingent if I may say so myself...