Photographing Florence 2

Last night it rained hard in the dark on the close-laned super-strada coming back from Pisa. At one point a big truck pulled onto the duel carriage pretty much forcing into the path of the car on our shoulder. All was well but it was a bit tingly.

This morning driving The Boss into work we passed someone who had not been so lucky. Driving on the narrow link road between Monteloro and Fiesole they had skidded off the road, hit a tree, and then the car had pivoted 90 degrees to end up in the middle of the forest, facing up hill on a 1 in 3 gradient with the front wheel ripped off.

We stopped and I gingerly descended in the wet leaf mold to check there was no-one in the car- my internal trauma lights blinking like mad. But the car was thankfully empty.

It was a day of magnificent light. The rain had left super-clarity and the weather was warm but not hot. Stunning visibility.

I drove down into Florence and wandered around the Duomo. Here is a selection of shots.

The woman in the red shoes was doing that 'pointing at the Duomo' thing. This was the third shot I took which fell out of focus. She was, well, very theatrical. Lots of echoes here but maybe they are just mine.

The Duomo - the whole church complex thing - it just so remarkable and yet so easy not to really look at. 

The second extra is a local cycling through the crowds, intent on getting somewhere - home for lunch, or a meeting or who knows what. This is cropped out to give more emphasis to the blurred movement between the dawdlers in front and behind.

I find myself wondering what the Chinese tourists make of it all. Its intriguing and full of perils.