FRIDAY already! Mario´s, Centrale Mercato

Speaking Italian, and Norwegian dialects practicing at lunch. Bergensk (Bergens dialect), Trondheim, Oslo, Kolbotn mostly (for Norwegian). As tired and exhausted as I was I´ve been quite chuffed how often I´ve managed to mutter a bit of German, Italian and Norwegian. Course, the Norwegian is not very helpful or useful when speaking to an Italian--so must work on my timing, being able to pick the correct language box out of my atticy mind.

Am so thirsty! and still want some more of that mela gelato...uhm actually sorbet not gelato. Very refreshing.

For lunch we´re going to an extremely extremely local Italian place one of my fave places: Mario´s, on the corner of San Lorenzo´s, both caddy corner from Central Mercato:

The cod here comes from Norway,the stalls even have lots of tiny Norwegian flags and info on Norway saying the fish came from there. It is baccala, salt cod and other types.

Tiny, maybe about 12 small tables. Charming traditional features, old fashioned combination coat-hat-scarf hooks, shared tables, family run, tables along side the  galley style open kitchen...cash only. So excited. It was exactly where I wanted to go, before it was suggested:). So Italian and Norwegian only:). Must spend the morning studying a bit,). Maybe on the way up to Fiesole or the rink.

Mario´s:

Put your name on the list, then wait about half an hour. In our half an hour we walked over to the Centrale Mercado, to walk around til our name was called.

Walk this way, near the end of the communal tables are combination coat and hat/purse hooks to hang your misc items. Of course, my camera was in my bag, so didn´t take many photos til after we ate! oops. sorry,)

The open galley kitchen, we were talking back and forth with the guys cooking,) and sharing a bit of wine with them, as one of them had a birthday and one at our table was her birthday. We sang happy birthday in Norwegian, which then meant a round of happy birthday in Italian---same tune, both of them, as the US happy birthday song in English.

Close up of the coat hat purse hooks as I think they are pretty, and a very good design. Similar hooks in old traditional Norwegian homes, that I also like.

Mario´s is all Fiorentina. No Juventus.

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 As I´m a self-taught artist who is interested very much in seeing more art/design, ordinary everyday details. As much as I can, absorbing everything.. Enjoying Florence itself as a huge open air museum. Just getting on any city bus to anywhere in the city and enjoying the architecture along the way, and finding random obscure things, and on and on from there.

The weather is lovely, shame to be stuck inside, but still it is off season, and the only time I will be able to literally walk up and in to nearly any museum in a few minutes to see inside. Maybe tomorrow I will see a bit of a museum. There are so many to choose from! And the forts, or castles, or bits and pieces of Roman wall and fortifications. Just any random building has such fine, detailed lovely architecture, I can´t get enough or get bored, or see enough, just staring at all of them, even just ordinary homes. The shutters, the windows (3 pieces, glass with wood piece, wood piece, and shutter piece) in all so many similar but different. Some flip up, some flip down, some slide over, some open and slide, some open, some flip up, some do a bit of all of that, or either. The greens. Loden, variations of loden, forest green and variations, black green, grey green. The combinations of window features and styles and sizes, number of panes, etc. The times I just stare at any given line of similar buildings which as a glance look exactly alike, to just find all the differences and similarities which turn out to be more differences but subtle, slightly, barely.

This sounds like a similar Norwegian post I made of the red and other colors, details, styles etc of the homes I see everyday there.

Fascinating. So much so I can barely get past the outside of the buildings here. I can´t imagine anything inside the actual buildings to get more of my attention or interest than the outsides do already. But ok Botticelli....etc I really should not miss out on seeing actual Florentine art.

Friday. I´ve had a really great time with my family here! And appreciate the patience of my constant fascination of the outsides of the buildings here, taking photos, stopping to see the most finite detail, such as a bear fist door handle, or a Roman gate iron notch with a top hat hand on the edge, or the endless other things I´ve waxed lyrically on and yet on again over,).

The bored, yawns and appalled looks I get when I even mention that I actually plan out times to see specific bits and pieces of the Roman wall in specific areas of town, are amusing. ,)