We arrived at 3:30PM on the Eurostar, which was more crowded than the last time we came. We walked outside and looked out at the canale, which was filled with boats passing by in each direction. Crowds of people were arriving at the station and more crowds were leaving the station.

I've been holding myself back from making comments about the leather shops all over Florence. I'm not fond of people sitting outside on their scooters or standing outside smoking cigarettes, checking out all the tourists (mainly women) as they walk by.

I went to an English bookstore in via dei Neri today and checked out a few tourist books and was happy to finally find one of Rick Steve's 2005 books. Almost every American tourist I see has at least one of his books. Last year, I read his suggestions for restaurants in Florence when we were in Milan and he mentioned a few restaurants that I've been too and enjoyed. So, I trusted his suggestions for Milan and was not disappointed.

Today Dave and I went to see the latest Star Wars movie. It was playing in English at the Odeon theater near Piazza Repubblicca. It seems that every English-speaking tourist or resident of Florence goes there to see movies. There were a few British mothers who brought their bilingual children and a few tourists seeking shelter from the rain.

Two nights and four baths later, we left Lucca this afternoon. We had a great time eating out and shopping. Our Bed & Breakfast was the greatest find. Each morning, they had a full buffet and also served us warm pastries and fresh fruit salad. They even offered to make any-style eggs and frittate (omelets) if we wanted.

We did our usual touristy favorites: walked around town, visited a few monuments, sat down on an outside terrace for an afternoon snack (coffee and dessert), shopped a little, looked for gifts, and had dinner.

After our short train ride from Florence, we hopped into the first taxi we saw. The taxi driver drove quickly through the narrow streets almost side-swiping a few tourists who were walking and looking at a map. And then we almost hit an elderly woman on her bicycle as she came out of a side street. The driver slammed on his breaks as we pulled up to a building and said, "Ecco ci qua." (Here we are.) I was relieved. I kept trying to look in front of him as if I could steer us from danger and lift his foot off the gas pedal somehow.

I decided to fully exercise my right to see a doctor whenever I want. I called my friend Yoshie yesterday and told her that I finally signed up and chose her doctor as my family doctor. I told her that I wanted to go and meet her, hand in my card, and just get a checkup.

This morning I went to La Posta (post office) to pay for my health care. I feel like I go to La Posta more than I'd like. Most of the time people who work there seem to be just counting the minutes until they leave. Today, one woman just sat at her computer and stared out at the crowd. She didn't help anyone except one man that came up to her. We all looked around at each other trying to understand what just happened as we sat there looking at the numbers in our hand.

I normally cut it a little close when I go to the market these days. I seem to fill up my mornings with writing and reading. So, I end up going to the market late at around 1PM or later. Since it closes at 2PM, I just make my way around to my ortolana (fruit and vegetable vendor) and then go inside. The outside areas usually close earlier because they have to take everything away somewhere.

We do everything right: we have screens on the windows that we open, we don't have any windows open after the sun goes down, and we turn on the mosquito repellent. Despite our best efforts, a few manage to come inside the house.

At the beginning of the year, we hired a girl to come and clean the house once a week. It's a bit of a luxury, but with my work schedule, I just don't have time. Sali, who is a young Philipino mother living in Italy for the past 10 years, works for my friend's sister as well. She's a hard worker and quiet.

Today is a holiday in Italy. I had to make sure I went to the market to stock up on food at the market yesterday. I'm pretty sure that La Standa will be open, but it will also be packed with people and not well stocked. I found out that today's holiday, Festa della Repubblica, was reinstated only a few years ago. It's the day when Italy decided to become a Republic.

I went out to dinner with a few friends the other night. And I was surprised that no one left a spot of food on their plates. I love food and I eat quite a lot for my size; however, I just can't finish every plate that is put in front of me.

Today we went downtown to have lunch with a Dutch friend of ours who was visiting Florence and us. We've been to all of our favorite restaurants at least twice in the past week. So, we went out looking for a new one today. Our friend was still looking to eat some more tortellini, which we hadn't had much luck in finding.