CHOCOLATE! If you…read morelove chocolate or anything sweet, the annual chocolate festival in Firenze is almost a dream come true! Every year for a week - typically Valentine's Day week - Firenze will host an open market that features chocolate artisans that sell delicious and tempting sweets. Hot chocolate, chocolate fruits, chocolate of every sort - Every booth has an eye-popping amount of different kind of chocolate that you may not even know existed! This is also where I discover this heavenly chocolate called "cremino veneziano" (Venetian cream) which is a multi-layer chocolate that quickly melts in your hand if you don't pop it in your mouth soon and literally melts instantly in your mouth. Oh why don't they make this in the US... In case you can't get enough sweets though, the festival also includes a chocolate cooking show and the booths also sell other non-chocolate sweets like €1 macaron! Sadly (and maybe fortunately), many chocolate items here are extremely pricey, although that's to be expected as artisan goods. For example, my new love "cremino veneziano" is a costly €4.5 for a mere 100 grams... Nonetheless, even if you don't intend to splurge on sweets, definitely swing by here to at least feast your eyes upon the sweets! You can even get a sample or two like how I met my cremino veneziano. While I would not intentionally fly into Firenze for this festival, I would recommend making a detour to witness sweetness if you are in Italy during this time! --- DOVE? WHERE? Typically, this festival is held in Piazza Santa Maria Novella, the church piazza in front of the train station. However, check the website or ask your hotel staff. We nearly missed the festival because it was moved in the last minute to Piazza della Santissima Annunziata, the northern piazza that is a bit out of the way from the typical tourist route. --- tl;dr version 1) CHOCOLATE! 2) Various sorts of chocolate and sweets to feast your eyes (and even sample) 3) Pricey so don't expect to going home in bags without splurging 4) Recommended detour if you're already in Italy

Delicious vegan options! I got the peach and passion fruit flavor. Some of the best gelato I've…read morehad so far on my trip!

I enjoyed the Firenze Gelato Festival very thoroughly in 2011. I was in Florence merely to be a…read moretourist, but this quickly turned into a gelato eating frenzy. First, I wondered through a piazza where workers prepared the tents and booths for the day. The offerings looked rather generic so I moved on. Finally, I came upon Piazza Pitti. As I read the gelato signs and saw some product, I knew I found my Firenze gelato home. Still, they wouldn't open until noon. What to do? I was determined to be first in line, so I started waiting at 10:45am. Finally, it was showtime. €7 got you a rechargeable card and 5 samples. Each additional €5 gets you 5 more samples. And all the sample were quite generous. I enjoyed rice and wasabi gelatos in dark green soy cones, porcini mushroom, ricotta di bufala, mandorla, la pera al pepe rosa, grom, chestnut, persiano with saffron, and so many more After €17, 14 large gelato samples, I was finished at the Firenze Gelato Festival. Cheers to Florence and it's delightful gelato culture. Hats off to their wonderful organization and card system. Each booth swiped your card and gave a receipt of how many samples you used there along with your remainder (genius!). Be aware of mass-produced, generic offerings, though. Look for the artisanal products. Your stomach and taste buds will thank you.

This event is still very controversial to my eyes, since they do fireworks in front of such an old…read moremonumental church and the sparks hit the facade during the whole time! But it's such a great show to attend to, the square is packed of curious eyes from all over the world coming to see the Explosion of the Cart! The origin of this celebration goes back more than 1000 years, for the victory of the First Crusade, but it was established as we see it today only on th 1494. There is this beautiful carved cart, very colorful, filled with fireworks that are lit up by a mechanical dove and the fire that comes out represents the sacred fire of victory. It is a spectacle to see and experience together with all the people of Florence. Come and see!

This one hurts a little bit to write about. I did a summer abroad program in Venice in 2010. That…read moreis when I first learned about Il Palio. It's a historic bareback horse race in Siena that dates back to Medieval times. It takes place twice a year. And it's a huge event. The town is split up into different sections and you root for your horse. Each neighborhood has a different name and various designs for their 'hood. It's a huge deal and a matter of pride. I returned to Italy this year and checked out Il Palio. It's really a three-day affair with all of these various customs and ceremonies. You'll see parades. You'll see singing. Chanting. It's a sight to behold. Since I'm not from Siena, I joined one of the neighborhoods and bought a scarf to rep my "hood." I took part in all of the festivities leading up to the race. The race takes place in the town square, Piazza del Campo. I showed up early to get a good spot. All of the pre-race festivities took place. The horses came out. They were about to start. It hadn't rained all day. But it started raining right then. They canceled the race. I was devastated. My one opportunity to see this even in my life had fallen apart right at the climax. It wasn't even raining that bad. But I understand that it was probably a safety concern for the riders and horses. I get it. While my experience was beyond disappointing, Mother Nature controls everything. Hopefully, you have better luck than I do. If you attend the event, I'm sure it will be a unique and memorable experience for you.

I was lucky to have stayed in Sienna for 1 month in August so I was able to attend the Palio…read moredell'Assunta which is held on August 16, in honour of the Assumption of Mary. Il Patio does held twice a year at Piazza del Campo one in July and one in August. 10 contrades out of the 17 will enter into the race which last less than 2 minutes. Don't hold your breath, it finished so fast before you realized it started. The Town Square just filled with this energy before the race, arrive a little early if you want to get a spot.. but trust me, doesn't matter where you are, you cannot really see much...because it is so crowded!! Personally I enjoyed the pre and the post race celebrations a lot more, just go around the different contrades and of course after the race to the winner for a great celebrations! Just imagine the first modern II Patio was held 1656.. over 350 years ago.... the tradition even dated back to the Medieval time.