On display

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Today’s theme is about what we can find in Florentine shop windows. Items and displays that might differ from what we are used to at home. Above Alice’s Masks in via Faenza. A bit overwhelming just to look through the window, not sure what to expect inside.

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Here and there you find elegant shops with copies of classic sculpture. Maybe not the easiest of souvenirs to bring home.

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Neither is this perhaps. Don’t know what security check would say about these Luccan machetes. But they look beautifully rustic and handmade. And frightfully sharp.

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Leather work is one of the traditional Florentine crafts and the quality is usually excellent. Here behind you can see not only nice painted vaults but the leather workshop.

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If a bag is not your cup of tea, then maybe this shop with replicas from the Duomo will catch your attention. Via delle Studio.

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This Luccan speciality, Torta Verde, is a sweet cake made of vegetables. Swiss chard or spinach, parsley and parmesan cheese are some of the ingredients. Looks and sounds like lunch, but is dessert. 🙂
Bilingual recipe here if you get cravings!

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A typical food and wine shop. Much nicer than the supermarket.

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Not sure what the decorator’s idea was here. “The only garment you need to cover yourself is our trendy leather bag”? Masaccio’s Expulsion from the garden of Eden (in Capella Brancacci, Santa Maria del Carmine) puts poor Adam and Eve right in the fashion spotligtht.

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And finally an Oltrarno antiques shop.
Extra bonus question for the heraldically inclined: How many lions hide in these photos?

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Fish or fleas

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This pretty 16th century loggia used to shelter the fish mongers in Mercato Vecchio.  It’s called Loggia del Pesce. See the fish in the medallions? The loggia was dismantled when the old market was torn down to give room to the grand Piazza della Repubblica. And in the 1950’s it was re-erected in Piazza dei Ciompi.

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I stumbled upon this lovely place one day at dusk, so please excuse the quality of the photos.

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There is no longer any fish to be bought by the Loggia del Pesce. But almost anything else under the sun is available here at the permanent flea market. Antiques of various quality, books, clothes…

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You can easily spend an hour here if you are looking for bargains or that special gift. It is such a nice break from the tourist shopping streets!

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The sun is setting quickly and I am off to explore more of the Sant’ Ambrogio area before dark. And yes, I did get a few gifts to bring home. I dug deep among the brassware and found some beautiful candleholders. Most satisfying!

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