Citizens of the World: A Stoic Podcast for Curious Travelers - Artisan Florence: Insider Guide to the Best Local Shopping Experiences

Episode Date: June 21, 2019

During the Renaissance, money flowed into Florence’s growing banking sector and the elite, including the Medici family, showed off their new wealth with art, palaces, and luxury goods.   “They started commissioning local artists to do gorgeous pieces of art that would adorn their walls to showcase at their latest dinner party,” says Nardia Plumridge, author of Lost in Florence. “In terms of the artisan culture, that’s been stemming from Florence for hundreds of years. You have these amazing workshops where people would make beautiful leather or jewelry in silversmith workshops. It still remains today...it’s something that’s very magical about Florence.”   Lost in Florence is a beautiful book that highlights the best of independent Florence, from food and wine, to hotels and shopping. As the Postcard Academy podcast has covered food and wine on previous episodes, I dedicated my conversation with Nardia, an Australian expat who spent years in Florence before moving to Bangkok, on Florence’s artisans. Learn where to find the best jewelry, clothes, perfume, stationery and more.   I’m your host, Sarah Mikutel. Did you know I host another show called Podcasting Step by Step? Check it out if you’ve been wanting to start a podcast. Every week, I break down ‘how to podcast’ with a little loving motivation to give you the skills and confidence you need to finally launch that show of your dreams.   Ready to travel? Sign up for my newsletter and get your free guide to cheap airfare.   Thank you so much for listening to this show. I know you’re busy and have many listening options, so it means a lot to me that you’re here. You are the best.   This podcast is brought to you by Audible. Not a member yet? Postcard Academy listeners can get a FREE audiobook and a 30-day free trial if you sign up via audibletrial.com/postcard   This podcast is also brought to you by World Nomads. Need simple and flexible travel insurance? Get a cost estimate from World Nomads using their handy calculator at postcardacademy.co/insurance  Do you ever go blank or start rambling when someone puts you on the spot? I created a free Conversation Cheat Sheet with simple formulas you can use so you can respond with clarity, whether you’re in a meeting or just talking with friends.Download it at sarahmikutel.com/blanknomore and start feeling more confident in your conversations today.

Welcome to the Postcard Academy. I'm your host, Sarah Micatel, and I am so happy to have Nardia Plumberage back with me today. On the Bangkok episode, Nardia shared all of her favorite places. But before living in Thailand, Nardia had actually lived in Florence for a number of years. And her book Lost in Florence has just come out, so I had to have her back on the Postcard Academy. Lost in Florence, is an insider's guide to the best places to eat, drink, and explore in Florence. So our kind of book, right. On this podcast, I've already talked a lot about the great food and wine in Florence with my friend Tony, who owns Taste Florence, the food tour company. In fact, I met Nardia through Tony. So today, we're going to focus a little bit less on the food and more on Florence's artisan culture.

even if you are in experiences, not things kind of person, and I would consider myself one of these people, I still love visiting and supporting local shops and admiring their craftsmanship. Florence is jam-packed with tourists and tourist trebs, and so it's easy to miss the more tucked-away boutiques run by locals, sometimes for generations, sometimes much longer than that. On this episode of the Postcard Academy, we are sharing all of the hidden gems. so you can have the best Tuscan experience possible. This episode is brought to you by podcasting step by step, my other podcast.

Have you ever thought about creating a podcast of your own? Well, every week on podcasting step by step, I share actionable guidance mixed with a little loving motivation to give you the skills and the confidence you need to excel as a world-class podcaster. Now into my conversation with Nardia. Welcome, Nardia. Thank you so much for joining me today. Thank you for having me. So your new book Lost in Florence is out. It is so gorgeous and I cannot wait to talk to you about it.

But first, I would love to hear about your very first trip to Florence. Wow, that's going back a few years now. But the first time I went to Florence was in the 1990s when I was traveling with my parents and my younger sister. We were doing kind of like the grand tour that a lot of Australians do because I grew up in the West Coast of Australia. So we went over for about five weeks. We did like, you know, the UK and Amsterdam and Belgium and Paris and ended up in Italy and Greece. And for some reason, I do have this very vivid memory of being in Florence on my 15th birthday by a complete default. And we're in like a chataria. And I remember there was like wood, sort of like wood paneled ceilings and just having this amazing dinner and just being sort of like drawn in by the magic of the city and thinking that night, one day I'm going to come back when I'm like an adult when I've grown up and left school.

And so it had a real impression on me from the very first moment. And I've been going back ever since quite regularly, actually, for about 20 years now. And then you lived in Florence for quite a while, didn't you? Yeah, and then I did. So it was interesting. In the naughty, the 2000s, I was living in London. I went to university there, and the younger sister of that trip was actually, by default, fell into a life in Florence for nearly five years.

She did that typical kind of, went for three months to learn Italian, first in Luca, and then Florence met a local chap in Ferenze and stayed longer. So it was great at the time because I would come over from London. I would spend time with her and I've got, again, more memories of being in our 20s, just running around Santa Croce and just really exploring the city as two young sisters would and had the best time. But yeah, it was still that little dream of mine to go back and live for a summer, which is what I promised myself at 15.

So eventually in 2010, I kind of packed up my house in London. I had a flat in the platform area and quit my job and within six weeks I was out of the UK and I just hired an apartment short term from September to November of that year in Florence. I took up drawing classes in San Fridiano and I did Italian classes at the British Institute in Piazza Stratzzi and I had three months of the best time which actually then turned into about five years. So three months slowly crept in as well and before I knew it, you know, years had passed. That's the way to do it.

That sounds like the perfect way to start your Florentine life. Yeah, three months wasn't enough. I thought a bit get out of my sister. But I left and went back to Australia for Christmas. So I just had that feel, that pool, that this sort of itchy feet of like, it's not done. I need to go back. And when I went back, then it actually took me until 2012 to really like sort myself out, get some finances behind me, find an apartment, which is always hard to find,

signing it and like a longer term lease in Florence. and I rocked up in 2012 and just went, I don't know how long I'll be here for, but I need to be here. And I can't wait to really, really get to know the city properly. Yeah, and you really did. And your book, Lost in Florence, is all about, you know, the places that you've discovered, like the hidden gems, the artisans that we should all know about. So how did Lost in Florence the book come about?

Well, the book here actually was an idea that actually stemmed a little bit before I moved out to Florence full time and it just stemmed for me basically traveling a lot. A lot of the time solo, but often to meet other people in different cities and doing my own bits of research, I found at least at that time, I couldn't find sort of a trusted resource, be it online or a guidebook that was kind of going a little bit deeper as a dive into the local culture and what to see and do. There's some obviously great brands out there doing travel guides that I find a really good nuts and bolts, you know, of like details of getting there and opening times of galleries, but they weren't really telling the stories of the locals.

Does that make sense? Like they kind of live at local kind of idea. And so when I went to Florence particularly, it made sense to start with Florence. And because I really, really am attached and adore the artisan culture that stems from there in the city, you know, these beautiful workshops and people keeping traditions alive, but with a modern twist, I thought people aren't really celebrating these people's stories and telling readers or travelers where to go to have that kind of all. experience. So that's where the idea of Lost in Florence was born to really share the stories and

the places that you really see by going a little bit off the beaten track. And that's where I feel you have the best Florence experience or adventures. This book is so necessary because Florence is such a gorgeous city, but it's so overwhelmed by tourists that it often seems like, whoa, this is just like an American Disneyland. Like what's so special about this? And you, this like this book really helps us find the independent places that we should be checking out. Yeah, it's interesting. A few people start using that term in the last few years about some of Disneyland for adults. I've heard that a few times and I understand what you mean. And I think the problem today is there's so much tourism in lots of countries in Europe and beyond,

especially Florence is one of them, that if you don't really know where to go, you won't necessarily have a wonderful experience. You can go to the three main piazza, the two main galleries, some for a awful tractaria for some cheap pastor and then leave and think, God, is that it? I thought there was so much more beauty, not just like tourists. And it is. There is so much more to see if you kind of know where to go. And part of the idea of the book beyond sort of celebrating the artisan culture

and wanting to share places with readers is I do also write about some of the key venues, you know, right the Ephizzi Academia, which is where the David statue is, because they are two main sites that people come for. But I've made a point in the copy and the text to highlight maybe some other rooms that are worth visiting that are off the beaten park within that space. So say everyone goes to see the Botticelli's at the Effizi, but then I recommend some other rooms where there's some beautiful paintings from the 17th century that I adore or even from the Renaissance that won't have so many people in it. And you might have fun just finding those rooms and discovering something else along the way. So that was some of a point to make. So although the book is very much tilted towards those independent places,

I still do cover some of the biggest sites, but trying to keep it a little bit more independent in terms of how you can have an experience there. So how did Florence become a city of artists and artisans? What's the history behind that? Yeah, no, it's a good question. I mean, look, it has a pretty illustrious history, Florence, and particularly in the Renaissance, which is a renounce force. So if you imagine, there was a lot of new money that came through from the banking sector,

which was established there in the late 14th century, before that was very much a textile city, which also had some riches. So you imagine all these people have new money. They want to showcase their wealth. So they started building beautiful big palaces. They started commissioning local artists to do gorgeous pieces of art that would adorn their walls to showcase after their latest dinner party. Like, look at this new piece of art I have.

And that's how the Medici family, who are the most famous family of the city, really came to create their collection, which is now in the Effizi Gallery and dotted in other palaces around the world. So it basically was new money, new rich families who want to showcase and show. show off and that's why so much gorgeous artwork was created there, which I guess we still do today in some ways. If people have a lot of money, they might pay a lot of money for more contemporary pieces of today to have in their homes to show off. But one thing that's kind of interesting is when the Medici line kind of sadly died out in the 18th century, it was one of the last ladies who basically had sort of a legal binding pact to say that the new ancestors who would inherit all the wealth of the city.

would not be able to let any of the great pieces of artwork leave the city, which is still a law today. So that's why you find Florence particularly has such a beautiful breadth of art and riches within the palaces because legally none of those pieces can like be taken away or sold off, which is quite unique to the city. Oh, well, thank you to that lady. So now it's open to the public. So we can go and enjoy it.

Exactly. So it's quite interesting because other. cities, I'm sure, probably had lots of beautiful artwork, but maybe if you go back to the heritage, you know, family sold things off to make a little cash or whatever happened. Everything got disbanded. But in terms of the artisan culture, again, that's been stemming in Florence for hundreds of years where, you know, you had these amazing workshops where people would make beautiful leather or, you know, jewelry in silversmith workshops. And I don't know really why it still remains today, but it's something that's very magical about Florence where, especially in the south side in Ultrano,

know, you can find these workshops where you'll find, you know, a girl or a girl or guy making, you know, beautiful jewelry, paper, leather goods, even fashion today in their little workshop, which is normally at the back of the room. And in the front of the space is their shop where they will sell their products. And I find that really unique in something I really focus on in the book Lost in Florence to highlight some great places to visit when you travel there. Yeah, let's talk about that. So when people think about Italy and fashion, they usually think about Muslim. Milan, but you say that Florence is a place for fashionistas to enjoy. So why is that?

Can we talk a little bit more about that textile history? You touched on it. And then I would love to hear about some of your favorites. Of course. Well, you know what? That's interesting. Again, like Milan today, we know is like the fashion kind of capital of Italy with all their runway shows and all that sort of stuff.

But actually, Florence has a longer history with fashion. So dating back again to the Middle Ages with their textile heritage through to the Renaissance where again, if you had a bit more money. the rich, the Nouveau-Riche would, you know, have nicer fabrics like velvet and other more kind of glitzy glamour fabrics to wear that really showcase their wealth. And then actually before Milan even had the fashion shows of today, Florence actually hosted those shows in Palazzo Pitti in Ultrano. In the 1950s and 1960s, it was the fashion capital of Italy. So if you have a little dive into the history there, you'll say that Florence has actually got quite a lot to tell. And in terms of today, we have like Gucci and Pucci and Fedegamo,

three big fashion houses that most people would know around the world that actually have their headquarters and have their history in Florence. And I still open today and have beautiful shops on Vyatuanaborne, that you can go window shop or if you've got a few spare euros, maybe take something away. And then on another level with the artisans, you have these great workshops where, again, you'll find these sort of like up-and-coming designers who are making beautiful products by hand. There's a shop I love if we dive into the shops.

One I really adore in sort of Santo Spirito area, San Fradiano, called Hello Wonderful, run by two Italian sort of fashion makers. And they not only design everything in house, they literally have their sewing machines in the shop. And they're cutting and sewing at the back whilst, you know, having a beautiful storefront showing off their latest kind of creations of very reasonable prices. So I have like a section in the book called Fine, which is like all the kind of shopping. is like the fashion and the jewelry and that kind of thing and highlights. It's about 30 plus venues I do some reviews on there. And Hello Wonderful is one of them that I adore. And in terms of fashion as well, there's another shop I adore by Poncevecchio called Boutique Nadine.

And again, it's run by another lovely couple of local Italians. And they have a lot of vintage fashion there and jewelry, but they also have their own line called Odette, which is Irina Makes, which is beautiful stuff for ladies, beautiful dresses and other kind of very feminine and whimsical pieces. So you can get like beautiful stuff from vintage to something new depending on your style. Are there any shops that you love for emerging designers? Well, both of those two I would definitely recommend because there's products in store that, you know, the girls are doing. Another one that comes to mind actually that I like on Borgo Pinti, which is in San Ambrosio, is called Fly. And actually what's really interesting about Fly is it's a shop front, but at the back through a door, it's actually a design, like a fashion design school.

And what they do is they actually have courses where people come and learn like the craft of couture. But then the students make pieces and they sell it in the shop. So again, if you're a fashionist and what like a one of a kind piece, go check out Fly or Borgo Pinty. It's quite a little find. Oh, that's so cool. Are there any sort of quirky personalities? is? You know what? When I think of quirky designers, I'm thinking more along the lines of, say, jewellery. There's this chap called Alessandro Dari, who has a store, the features in the book,

but it's on San, sorry, via San Niccolo. And he's a beautiful sort of, I don't know, how would I describe him? He's got a personality, but his store itself is sort of a museum in parts, showcasing this kind of crazy jewelry that would look better on the characters of Game of Thrones. But in his shop too, he also does sell little pieces like that are inspired by the church facades of Florence are inspired by crowns or princes that he sells. And he makes everything again in his shop and his workshop. So you can go in, see him at work under like a sort of a Bunsenburn, a kind of paraphernalia in his workshop. And then attached to that is this kind of museum-like space with lots of jewelry under sort of glass cabinets.

It's very kind of, yeah, it's got a little bit of a magical charm. And it feels a little bit like you're going back into maybe Florence of 300 years ago when you go into his his store. So again, you have these two different styles in Florence. You've got the very sort of almost feeling kind of classic sort of traditional stores. And you've got these kind of quite contemporary ones. So something for everyone. I do love buying necklaces when I am on holiday. But I have to say my style is much more classic, not Game of Thrones style.

do we. Maybe not go to Dari, but yeah. There's a bunch of others though, actually. For you, I would say there's a wonderful studio that has five sort of emerging designers from around the world called Ufichine Nora. And it's basically a block from Santa Spilito Piazza. You literally ring a doorbell and they'll open the door for you and you can go into this workshop which has their five different stations for the designers and they're all making their own kind of pieces like gold and silver to their own sort of, yes, specifications and creative kind of designs. But there's some, there would be definitely something for everyone there, but there's more some delicate jewelry within that space.

But again, there's so much fun just finding these places. And half the fun for me, which I recommend to anyone traveling to Florence, it's just, even go to these places, even if you just do some window shopping, it's not like the usual shopping experience you get in Paris or London. It's very Florentine. What does that mean exactly? Well, maybe I'm sort of twisting that into my own sort of terminology, but I just think Florence has this unique, especially artisan culture, which doesn't really remain that much in many cities elsewhere. I mean, I tried to find it in Rome, for example, and it's very far and few between.

But in Florence, you will find that kind of the studio come store kind of collective. Where you do, as I mentioned, have these, you know, modern artisans. They've learnt the traditions, be it like paper making the jewelry, like, you know, everything made by hand. and then they're kind of putting their own modern design twist on it. So I feel like that keeps it pretty exciting and makes Florence quite unique. So I call that a very sort of Florentine experience. Yeah. So are there certain areas of Florence that have a collection of these?

Yeah, it's good. We look all around the historic centre, you'll find them sort of popping up here and there. However, there is much more of a kind of collective in the southern districts on the south side of the River Arno. So that would be Santa Spirito, San Niccolo and San Francisco. and San Fridiano, you'll find most of them. And like I said, then they jotted around San Pedro, San Lorenzo, depending on the neighbourhood. But something I definitely want to do with the book Lost in Florence is I've kind of divided

the city into eight neighborhoods, five on the north, three on the south side of the river. And I've made sure that in all the chapters that there is a nice spread of people, you know, showcasing, you know, the wine bars, the food outlets and the shopping. So if you are sort of staying in one area, it's not going to be like the book saying, or you have to go, you know, to the other side of town to find this experience. You can find us sort of jotted around every neighborhood, which is kind of great. Where would you recommend for somebody who wants to pick up a new perfume in Florence? So I've got a couple of favorites, but one that always jumps out is a place called Aquaflo,

which is in Santa Croce area, just around the corner from the beautiful church of the same name. And what's really lovely about this place is first, just the experience and the ambiance. It's in a 16th century palace in the ground floor, in these three rooms, and just everything they've done with the interior decor to the lighting, just again has this very atmospheric feel almost like going back into Florence of the past. All their products are made in Florence, and they've got all these different perfumes you can try whilst you're there. But one thing you can also do, which I love,

is you can make a private appointment to get your own bespoke perfume made. So you sit down with a perfume master, and you will sniff all these different lovely sense and they make notes of what you are more drawn to and then they'll create your own special bottle that you get to take away that no one else will have. That sounds lovely,

perfect souvenir. I'm guessing we have to book an appointment like way in advance to get in there. I'm not sure how way in advance, but I would definitely recommend emailing them. And again, they're one of my fine sort of suggestions in the book. And I would definitely make an appointment

if that was something that you wanted to do before your travels. So you definitely know you've got that. happening. But if you didn't want to do something bespoke or your budget is a bit more limited, then buying something off the shelf, somewhere like aqua floor have beautiful perfumed soaps through to rooms sort of sprays and all sorts of little products that you can take away as a little souvenir. So that's definitely one that sort of sticks out. There's also another gentleman who's been around for years called Lorenzo Villareci and he has a place in San Niccolo.

and he's renowned also for doing bespoke perfumes, but he's also got a lovely store, again, another Palazzo. So if you want to just try things off the shelf. And they've told me, which should be opening soon this year in 2019, a perfume museum, which I'm kind of looking forward to seeing once in its jaws. Yeah. How about paper? The stationary in Florence is gorgeous.

Where should we head for some people? Paper. Yeah, no, paper's kind of, yeah. My favorite paper place is run by a lovely artisan called Erin called Il Tortio. And it's on via de Bardi, just not too far from Pontavecchio. And again, it's like this whole artisan thing I love so much about Florence, where it's a studio come shop. So again, there's a big wooden desk that Erin is handmaking these papers. She does a lot of that beautiful traditional marble effect, which is beautiful to see her sort of making that at work in terms of that. But she also does leather bound notebooks as well and everything's made by hand in the studio, which is also the store on display. So that's where I like to head. It's really

beautiful. Some of those papers as well are so gorgeous. I think you can just frame it. You know, just frame literally a piece of paper. Yeah. It looks like artwork. It's gorgeous. So yeah, go see Erin. It'll talk to you. So, Aaron, are there any other personalities who you just love going into their store and chatting to them or they've been in the business for like, 300 years. In terms of other places probably to recommend, just thinking of places with character, one of the places I love if you're in Santa Croce and not far from aquifloor perfume is the leather school of Florence, which again is very atmospheric. And it's run by the gory family who have been in Florence and running leather stores for over 100 years. And this particular school was set up in the

1950s after the Second World War for orphans so they could learn a skill, which was leather making. But today you can go there. And it's actually a leather store. school come shop and you can go and see like the latest you know designers at work learning the craft and it's at the back of the church of santa croce and they also have a beautiful shop there where they sell like leather bangles and beautiful handmade bags and even just like leather bookmarks if you want a little souvenir to take home and they're all done under this beautiful frescoed um so the ceiling where they've got the artisans at work so it's pretty again a very atmospheric experience that sounds gorgeous

Are there any other contemporary crafts that we should know about? Because I know that in your book you talk about there being a long tradition of certain crafts. And then today there are certain artisans that are doing a contemporary twist on them. Yeah. Well, so I guess just talking about leather now. So the leather school of Florence is very kind of more traditional in terms of its heritage and what they're making. And then you have some more modern designers. There's a store called Ben Hart.

They've actually got two outlets now in Florence. And that is a much more like, again, people often come to Tuscany for leather. and Ben Hart is definitely a store I'd recommend if you want kind of a bit more of a funkier design, a bit more contemporary design of a beautiful handbag or a leather jacket. And there's two outlets in the centre that you can find. That's something I would definitely send people to.

And I guess thinking even like leather shoes, I just mentioned, Yajou, they have a very contemporary twist to their styling. Everything's made in Tuscany, but they actually make bespoke shoes again. So if you want, you can customize them. You can go into the store, try on a different style, and find one that suits you. But then actually they also have lots of different samples of leather in store. So you can literally go through all the samples, go, you know what, I want this design,

but I want that orange leather and I want the pink trim. And can you do this kind of heel? And they'll get it made for you and ship it back to you free anywhere in the world. So if I'm visiting Florence and I want to buy something like typical Florence as a souvenir, what would you recommend? Oh, that's such a good question again. Well, I don't know, I'm a real foodie, and I love cooking. And so I always like to bring home things that are like for the kitchen that I can keep.

So for example, things that I have in my house from Italian travels is I have like a leather, I'm not leather, sorry, I said again, a marble chopping board, which is marble from Carrera, which is up in northern Tuscany, the same kind of marble place that they got the David statue, marble for Michelangelo. Yeah. And then I also have salt and pepper grinders made of, you know, olive. wood and there's a gorgeous little store actually in Piazza Chompi in San Ambrosio that again the artisans make knives and also kitchenware a very very small

store and they'll make like the pepper grinders from olive woods so they're kind of things I like to take home with me but otherwise let's think what else I mean obviously fashion is always a good one to bring you know beautiful if you want that beautiful leather handbag you could go as I mentioned to the leather school of Florence I actually recently very lucky girl purchased which was a gift of Fedegamo handbag, which I think is gorgeous, yeah, so lucky me, which is divine and, again, a real keepsake of like the kind of you can imagine having in five or ten years or longer, you know, hopefully forever and whip that little baby out. Again, beautiful, made in, you know, obviously made in Italy and has a Florentine heritage.

So they're the kind of things I would buy. Otherwise, you could buy artwork. I'm just thinking on a complete flip side. If you were like skipping around the piazza by the EFizi Gallery, you'll see a lot of artists having little, you know, they've got their easels out. Some of them do the caricature art, which I'm not really into personally, but some of them are just doing like lovely little watercolors. Yeah, I love buying local art, but I also love that most of your recommendations were

functional, like beautiful but functional at the same time. So I think that's perfect. You mentioned that you were a foodie. Are there any experiences that you can recommend in Florence that, visitors should have, whether it's food related or art related or anything related in the census, I guess. You know one thing I love about Florence. There's just so much to do, like if you have the time, like I say, from the classic to the

contemporary. And so something that jumps to mind that I would recommend, if you haven't done it, you should next time you come to Florence. There's a restaurant called in Fabrica. I don't know if you've ever been, but it's literally a restaurant in a Silver Smith Workshop. And they actually are a Silver Smith Workshop by day. And the upstairs is their kind of canteen for the workers. But come night, they get, you know, when everyone's sort of clocked off,

they turn it into a restaurant with a very simple menu, but very delicious. And because they make silver, they have like all these candelabras and candles and these silver goblets you drink your wine from. And, you know, you just go for dinner in like this kind of really beautiful restaurant that fits about 30 people, like 30 covers. It's very small, which literally is inside, you know, a Silver Smith workshop, which I think is really, really fab and very, again, very uniquely Florentine, or at least to the city. In terms of other foody experiences, in terms of just good

food, I love Il Santa Bavittorri in Santa Spirito, which has been around for about 15 years now. And they are very much sort of a Tuscan restaurant, but with contemporary twists on all their pastures and soups and other kind of dishes they do and have a very, very good wine list. So I love to run back there for a good food experience. And then depending on what you like to do, if you like to cook, there's always cooking classes that are kind of fun. I actually have in my, I don't know if you got to see in the book, I have four itineries I suggest on how to spend a day in Florence, which are themed. So there's one on a sunny day, a rainy day. There's Florence for foodies and Florence for fashionistas.

And in the foodie section, I sort of highlight a few places on where to maybe explore if you're a food lover. including a place I recommend to go pasta making, if that's your cup of tea or bowl of food. Oh my gosh, where should we make pasta? It's called Il Tabula. And again, it's on just a tiny little back street in Santa Spirito on the Ultrano. And they actually have a pasta making course in the afterno where you go and make a variety of different pastas and they make the sauces and you not only get to make it, you get to eat it. So I think it's a really fun way to spend a few hours. Learn a few new skills which you could take home with you.

That's a good serving here. And it's a good way to have, like, you know, your dinner or your lunch as well. You know, you don't have to worry about a restaurant on that particular moment. So, yeah. Yeah. Again, if you're a foodie, you know, that's kind of a fun itinerary to do. It starts off in the market in San Lorenzo and recommends we have a Trilamprodotto, which is a typical Tuscan sandwich.

It's a stomach sandwich that the locals love if you are that way inclined and adventurous eater. And, yeah, it talks about a bunch of other places to go for food. not just to eat, but even places to buy things for the kitchen and that kind of stuff. Nardia, these have been fantastic recommendations. Before I let you go, I would love to do a little speed round of your Florence favorites. Okay, fabulous. Let's go. All right. What is your favorite neighborhood in Florence? Oh, it's so hard. I would definitely say I'm a huge fan of the South Side.

I love San Niccolo, which is a lovely little quiet district in the southeast. I'm also partial descent in Brojio for a Morning Strong. They have a lovely market, which is a great way to, you know, early morning just to go for a coffee and find some nice local veg. How about garden? I love the rose garden. So again, that's sort of in the San Niccolo area, and it's really beautiful, especially in spring, where it has like over 400 varieties of roses that kind of bloom. And you get a beautiful vista of the city, which is ideal for pictures. How about cafe?

It depends where I am in town, but I love Cafe Jilly, which is in the heart of the city. Piazza Republica, which is about, it dates back to the 1700s and it's just got great coffee and pastries. But again, if I'm on the other side of town, St. San Ambrosio, there's Chibreo which is fantastic and they've got a little taratza, which is a beautiful spot to have a cappuccino sort of in the morning sunshine. That sounds perfect. How about restaurant? I mentioned ill Santa Beavatori before, which I love. Another favorite actually is the recently refurbished cantonetta Antonori. on Vietona Buorne, which is run by the historic wine family of Ansonori, and they've got great

food and obviously an incredible wine list. So that's another favorite for dinner. Are you an aperitivo fan? And if so, where do you like to go? Indeed. No, I do. Yeah, I think it's one of the best things that are Italy. You can meet friends, have a little drinks, nibbles, and just have a great social time without being too formal. But somewhere I love to take friends if they come to town is Sesto. It's the rooftop bar of the Western Exchelsa and at sunset is particularly gorgeous to watch the sunset over the Arno, the city and the rooftops and have a little spritz and enjoy some of their buffet, their Pervito buffet.

That sounds good. So is Spritz your drink of choice at a Peritiva? Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. I think so, no. I just like the classics. I don't really like going too off-peast, if I'm honest. I think we can't mess with what you know.

I agree. I usually go with simple Prosecco. Perfect. That easy. I'm a Campari spritz person. I should stress, actually, I'm not an upper-off spritz person, but it's a little bit more bitter. But yeah, it's still the simplicity of those drinks are the best.

How about wine bar or evening spot? I love the abasement bar, Rasputin, which is a speakeasy type bar in Santa Spiro show. It's not that easy to find because it doesn't have any sort of particular signage like a normal bar, but you have to know where to go, you ring a doorbell, and they open a little peeper and sort of invite you in if you have an appointment or they've got a seat and spare for you, go down the stairs. And it's just like a prohibition style, some 1920s bar with lots of sort of wood and exposed brick and some insane cocktails.

So yeah, I love that place. Rasputin, it's a late-night bar. So is there a way to get a reservation layer or do we need to know a passcode? Yeah, well, if you have a look in the wine section of Lost in Florence, There is a review for Rasputin and I give you the telephone number where you can call to book a seat before 11 o'clock every night. Yeah, because it only has 43 seats. So basically what I love about them, too, it's not like a busy bar where anyone comes. They'll only let enough people all have a seat come.

So when you're there and you have the seat and you're with a friend, you can have a good conversation. It's got a beautiful atmosphere without being too crowded or too hot. But yes, there's a telephone number in the book. What is your favorite museum or other cultural activity if you're not into museum? Yeah, oh my God, there's so many. There's so many. Look, I really love Palazzo Zorozzi, which is, you know, does a lot of contemporary exhibitions and some more classical ones depending on the exhibition they have going on in this beautiful Grand Palace right in the centre of town. But then if you want to go a bit more sort of traditional classic, I always recommend, I love Palazzo Vecchio. So that's, you know, the beautiful building in the main piaats of Signaria. It dates back to the 13th and early 14th century. And it's really lovely to go inside, see some of the grand old rooms. the old Medici apartments, and most importantly, climb the tower, which gives a beautiful views over the city, and it's pretty spectacular for photos. So, yeah, I would say, yeah, Palazzo Strozzi for contemporary art and Palazzo Vecchio for a more classical experience.

Where do you like to go to get pampered? Oh, la, la. I mean, there's quite a, yeah, if I'm, am I looking for a massage, which I always love after traveling, there's a place called Silatai in Vidisarali, which I always love to run to. If you like Thai massage, that kind of thing, which I'm a huge fan of spot. It's a good pamphos spot. I also, for any ladies, he'd love to get their manipedi's done. There's a place called Manabu on Borgo, Onisanti, which has a terrific set up for really good nail sessions. So I always run there too.

Where should visitors stay? I'm a huge fan of smaller hotels. So there's more sort of boutique and, you know, feel a bit more of a home away from home sort of stay. So there's a lovely duo I door called Betty Soldi and her partner Mateo have now three hotels in Florence at Astra Soprano suprano suites and then new place called Splendid Ultrano. So they're like three highlights I would tell people to run to. And also recently I just discovered through my contacts in Florence a new place called Palazzo del Morrow, which is near the bridge of Ponte Carraea. And that's only got six bedrooms all really sort of chicly done out. and great location and again just a really nice place to stay in the heart of the city.

You even include a hostel in your book, which looks incredible. Tell me about Tasso. Yeah. So what I wanted to do with the book too is in the nine section I have sleep, which is nine recommendations for stayovers, is to have a bit of a price point difference because everyone's different, right? Some people want something a few hundred euros and wants maybe the other end. But Tasso is, again, really interesting space.

It used to be an old school and it's been transformed. into a hostel in terms of just really lovely, but just simple rooms upstairs. And downstairs they have, which used to be the old school hall, is now their bar come entertainment space. They have live music, open mic nights, that kind of thing, downstairs, which is really, really fun. So, yeah, it's another good place to stay for a bit more of a budget in a fantastic location. And, yeah, it will definitely give you a unique experience.

Well, these all sound like fantastic experiences. So thank you so much for talking to me again, Nardia. Where can people find out more about you and get you book? Well, the best place to probably go first is check out the website, which is www. lost in Florence. And there I have not only a bunch of recommendations, some that we've talked about today, in terms of articles with all the contact details of venues. There's also information on the book with more information, more images,

and click-throughs to places to purchase, like Amazon, that kind of thing, depending on where you are in the world. So yeah, www. lost in Florence. Also pop over to Instagram, which is the at underscore Lost in Florence, because I always like to post about new places I've discovered and that kind of thing.

So it's a good way to keep up to date with anything new. Yes, and your website is dot IT for Italy and not dot com. So go to dot to dot T everybody. All right. Well, thank you again, Nardi. This has been really great. Thank you for having me. It's always good to chat.

Oh, my heart is aching, aching to be in Italy right now. I am in the UK again. It sounds like there is a hurricane going on outside of my window. I probably shouldn't say that because I am always defending the UK's weather to other people and saying it's not that bad, but today it's pretty bad. And so I'm feeling a little uninspired and like I don't want to get out of bed. My friend Crystal is in Naples as we speak, and I have been searching Google. both flights for last minute deals. Oh, this just didn't. She literally just texted me and is

heading to Rome. Well, that also sounds like the perfect place to be. As I've said before in the show, I am homesick for everywhere I'm not. So where are you in the world? Send me a photo. Visit postcardacademy.com and come say hello. I would love to find out where people are listening. If you're enjoying this show, please subscribe if you haven't already and tell a friend about it. That is the best way to grow the show. That's all for now. Thanks for listening and have a beautiful week wherever you are. Do you ever go blank or start rambling when someone puts you on the spot? I created a free conversation sheet sheet with simple formulas that you can use so you can respond with clarity, whether you're in a meeting or just talking with friends. Download it at

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