It's not Fair!

FIRENZE.

Free parking all night even though the book tells us we should pay up until 8pm, last night. The German opposite leaves just before us and shows us the services which are hidden. I'm able to top up with water and empty the grey and black water tanks.

The journey down to Pisa is predominantly along the coast. A series of small towns means progress is sedate. The beaches don't look particulary good and the appear to be ones you have to pay to use.

Inland towards Pisa, we stop at large Carrefour in a town called Massa. Unsure when the shops close over Easter, we stock up on provisions to last until Monday night.

Arrived in Florence by 2:45pm. Struggled to find the Park4Night sight. Settled on a nearby square. Checked on the website subsequently and realise that we're OK. Our difficulty is that the original site has been commandeered for the weekend by a fair.

A local tell us that the centre of Florence is 20 minutes away but, of course, he says "It depends how quickly that you walk". We don't know how quickly he walks but we reckon it was 4 kilometres away.

After the solitude of the villages we encountered, the heaving mass of people pushing and shoving in the city came as a shock. Took in the sights around the Ponte Vecchio, the Uffizi (not bothering with the 3 hour wait, naturally) and the Il Duomo. A Cardinal was arriving at the same time, he was surrounded by bodyguards, a sign of the times, I suppose.

Back at the van, we find that the square is almost empty. A car with a a learner driver is driving around and looks close to the van on occasions. Once they stop, I realise there is no number plate on the vehicle.

There is a market in the square tomorrow, we make sure that our clothes are handy in case we have to make a sudden move.