Florence''s oldest bridge | great actor | Westin Excelsior Hotel | Giancarlo Giannini

BREAKFAST "The Westin Excelsior Hotel has a buffet breakfast, but it tempts one to eat too much. The favorite Italian breakfast is, of course, a cappuccino and cornétto, or croissant. Florence has plenty of cafes for quick espressos and cappuccinos."

SIGHTS "We shot on Florence's oldest bridge, the Ponte Vecchio. Lots of crowds. Lots of sightseers. Lots of shops selling gold. Giancarlo Giannini, the great Italian actor, shot some scenes there. There are scenes where I'm walking along the riverbank, near the Ponte Vecchio, which we did the first day. I went to the Palazzo Vecchio a great deal. It's been the seat of Florentine government for nearly 1,000 years and a monument to the rule of the Medici family, whose patronage led Florence to become the leader of the European Renaissance. One day we had an exclusive tour, which included seeing the suspended ceiling above the Salone dei Cinquecento, designed 400 years ago by the brilliant architect and artist, Giorgio Vasari. Even today, architects from all over the world come to study from this master. We were also taken into the private studiolo of Francesco I de' Medici, where he collected his art and practiced alchemy. There was even a small room, where he secretly dissected humans for study. We were lead into the very private corridor, Corridoio Vasariano, a wedding present from Francesco [de' Medici] to his wife Giovanna D'Austria. The corridor connects the Palazzo Vecchio with the Uffizi Gallery, where they had their offices. It also passes over the Ponte Vecchio, so they could go to their other residence, the Palazzo Pitti, without being seen by the public. This raised, covered 'street' is chock-full of valuable art and history."