Florence at Sunset

 Florence or "Firenze" is a beautiful town. I took quite a few day photos but found that my most rich images would be a sunset without the bright sunlight. So...I devoted my evening on Tuesday night to walk around and go find those famous bridges, which was only about a 10 minute walk from my hotel. 

 I love the rich colors at sunset and the reflection on the water. I took a break about this time and had some gellato sitting on the edge of the river right here. I met two really nice Australian couples sitting on the wall next to me and we chatted for a bit. They were a welcomed reprieve and mental distraction. Unfortunately a few minutes prior to this I believe I was slightly "targeted" as a potential theft for some very sharp looking men. I was quite shook up about it inside but didn't really know what to think of it, so I just let it simmer while I enjoyed the sunset and Australians kindness.  I'll tell you the story in a minute. 

 Those little spots on the river are not dust spots on my lens but rather bats circling all over the waters. 

 Love this one of the statue and a street light reflecting on it. 

So, basically the strange encounter happened before sunset when I was taking photos of the river. I turned around and a very nice old man, very well dressed waved at me and motioned to talk. I walked over to him...handsome gray hair, v-neck, pink cashmere  sweater....kind eyes. He reached out for my hands to get my attention and ask me questions in Italian. Of course I was thinking, 'oh, nice old italian man! how sweet....' He wanted to know how long I would be there and if I was alone or what...Basically the jist of his conversation was he wanted to see if I would like to meet him for coffee tomorrow and he mentioned the word, "apartment". As  if I would meet him for coffee in his house? Uh...no. I was very kind but wary and said I couldn't. He wanted to kiss me goodbye on the cheeks but it was definitely one of those, pull you close hugs - very forced.  Then as I was leaving he tried to hug me again. He suddenly became something different than what I originally thought and he seemed to be grasping in a sense.  Heeby Jeebies...but I just though, 'oh, weird good looking old man....moving on.'  It was a bit odd to me and I felt a little strange but just thought it was nothing.

 Then, I walked across the bridge with all the shops (forgot the name). People *everywhere*..groups, tourists, high school students all wearing look-alike t-shirts and hats to identify themselves.  I was taking more photos of the river...it was dusk, lots of people around. I turned back towards the street and my eyes met yet another man, this time younger but maybe in his 40s - handsome, beady eyes, sharply dressed - also in a cashmere sweater, only pastel green.  Imagine a moving, noisy crowd but he is standing still in the middle of it, looking at me - not around me or by me, but at me. Naturally, my eyes met his and in fact he looked very safe, kind and handsome.  He started to walk towards me and wave (similar protocol)...he acted as if he knew me and was very conversational about my photography. Wanted to know what I was doing in Florence...and if I was with the group of people I was standing next to (another high school group). One girl in the crowd locked eyes on me to observe our interaction even trying to talk to me; she could tell I felt uncomfortable yet a smile was smeared across my face.  I just asked the man what he was doing tonight and why he was talking to me , "can I help you?" I think he felt embarrassed and eventually walked off. The conversation was brief but it was another encounter only a block away from the other one where a stranger approached me in a bustling crowd. It was very surreal and I felt sick to my stomach the rest of the night just thinking about how slick and kind both of these men were...and in fact they looked like father & son. It was so odd. Thankful for God's protection and instincts, if indeed it was as I thought.  

 Despite my experience with the sharply dressed men in cashmere v-neck sweaters, I did like Florence! My favorite moment in the city was when I walked out of the Uffizi art museum after rooms and rooms of art work, and I heard a  street musician playing classical melodious guitar music echoing off the buildings. The sun was shining, the wind was blowing and that music....oh, that music was about the most beautiful thing I had ever heard. It literally bought tears to my eyes and I wondered...now, after all that art, why has this moment affected me so? Still pondering that...