We are staying at our favourite villa in Tuscany, Villa Podere Brogi, with the family; our children, their partners and our six delightful grandchildren.

One of the great benefits of staying in Tuscany is you’re not far from a myriad of cities and towns to explore. So, today we have decided to go to Florence. We have a small window as some of the little people will need an afternoon nap. There are 13 of us on this expedition. From past experience the best way to get to Florence is by train. So we set off from our villa to the local train station in Montevarchi, just 10 minutes down the road.

Purchasing train tickets is easy, on line or at the station. As we wait for our train to arrive, we hold the hands of the little ones, excited to go on a two storey train, that travels fast.

The train roars into the station with its pointy noise, and with much excitement everyone clambers aboard. In less than 40 minutes and many snacks later, we arrive in Florence.

1. Mercato Centrale in Florence

Our first stop for refreshments is at the Mercato Centrale. This fantastic market is about five minutes from the train station. Here, you’ll find vendors selling wine, fruit, meat, fish, cheese, oil and spices on the ground floor. Upstairs, the food court sells delicious prepared food, including fresh pasta, meat, pizza, dumplings, pastries and coffee, a truffle bar, fried fish and cold cuts and so much more.

We enjoyed coffee and pastries before embarking on our Florence tour.

Just as an aside, there is a great cooking school in the Mercato Centrale. Had I known about it, I would have booked one of their two hour cooking classes.

2. The Duomo (Cathedral Santa Maria Del Fiore)

The Duomo is an absolute must-see in Florence. It’s red-tiled dome and vast marble façade is impossible to miss as it dominates the Piazza del Duomo. It’s just minutes from the train station and market.

This enormous and complex church took 150 years to build. The first stone was laid in 1293, but the technology to construct the giant dome didn’t exist, so the building ground to a halt. Eventually, Brunelleschi was given the task to create the cupola, which is still the largest masonry dome in the world. The church was completed in the 15th century.

It’s the third largest church in Europe.

With the children in tow we made the decision not to purchase tickets to see the interior of the Duomo, however, if you do go inside you will get a whole new perspective to Florence’s Renaissance history.

3. Michelangelo’s David in Florence

Not far away is the Galleria dell’Accademia, home of Michelangelo’s David.

Five hundred years ago, at the age 26-year-old, Michelangelo carved David out of a single block of marble, even detailed the veins in his right arm.

We didn’t queue to see the original David, but we enjoyed looking at the copy of the David, in the Piazza della Signoria.

There’s a lot going on in this Piazza, including the Fountain of Neptune. The fountain is quite spectacular.

4. Gelato in Florence

Gelato became part of every outing. Their product is superb and the decision making is as much fun as eating it.

4. The Ponte Vecchio

The Ponte Vecchio is a medieval arch bridge over the Arno River. It’s the only bridge in Florence spared from destruction during World War II. The bridge is pedestrianised with predominately jewellery stores on either side. At one time the bridge housed tanners and butchers, which made getting rid of waste easy, dumping it in the river. Not good.

Our time is up and the train is calling us. It’s just a short walk to the station as all these magnificent sights are close together. We’ve only been in Florence a few hours, but we have loved the vibe and the sights. Brooklyn has memorbilia of David, The Duomo and the Piazza della Signoria, so he’s happy,