Fiesole

The city of Florence is situated in a valley in the heart of Tuscany.  In the summers, as I have certainly noticed, it can get really very hot because of the geographical location, so it was a real treat to take a day to explore a small town just about 5 miles north of Florence in the hills, Fiesole. According to my guidebook, the village was settled around 7th century BC, and there are still Roman and Etruscan remains here.  

I walked up to San Francesco, a friary founded in 1399.  Apparently, the last Pope visited the friary and it was a great big deal because there were signs (in Italian so I only got the gist of what it was about) posted around the area.

I found a great place to take in views of Florence, feel the breeze from being outside of the city, and sip on a Tuborg -- a beer produced in Copenhagen which I've found I prefer over the common Peroni Italian beer.  

From the largest photo you can see the Duomo dome very clearly and get an idea of exactly how huge it is.