There’s always an aspect of holding our breath when we try a new airline, especially if it’s a lowcost one. Sometimes, though, needs must, which is why we found ourselves travelling from London-Gatwick to Florence on Meridiana.

We’ve known about Meridiana for a long time, but heard neither positive or negative things about it. Alas with most other airlines flying into Pisa (over an hour away by bus) or Bologna (90 minutes on the train), we bit the bullet.

Luckily, we had a rather nice surprise. Staff were friendly (though be warned, since it’s an Italian airline, they speak in Italian before English). They gave us a drink and cookies, which was not only free, but probably also better than the inedible snacks BA give out. ]]> juliab 2011-11-21T15:22:05-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2011/11/18/13597/710

Cute, right? Airy, pretty area of check in at Florence Airport?

Well yes, it is pretty, and cute, and airy. But what might surprise you is that this is Florence’s airport pretty much in its entirety.

Yup, one of the main tourist hubs of Italy has a teeny tiny gateway if you come by air. Welcome to Florence Peretola (FLR), which is fabulously close to town (about three miles from Santa Maria Novella) but also dinky in the extreme.

This is the entire check in area; downstairs there’s this, a bar, a newsagents and two other shops. Through the gates, there’s another café and a couple of other shops. Then some chairs by the (very few) gates. ]]> juliab 2011-11-18T13:59:07-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2011/11/14/152212/85

It was as we were walking through Florence the other day that we noticed something strange. In the middle of the designer shop area, there was a café. What’s more, it was a café bearing the name Roberto Cavalli. So we went in to investigate.

Turns out we’d found Caffe Giocosa, which Cavalli bought 10 years ago. It’s a normal Italian bar, it just happens to be particularly swish with hot waiters (although the clientele weren’t overly modelly) and has lots of animalprint hanging around, from its chair covers to its wrapping paper to its chocolates. ]]> juliab 2011-11-14T16:34:25-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2011/11/11/14423/682

It may not be much of an issue in winter, but in summer, in Italy, if you’re doing cultural stuff, you need to watch how you dress.

You probably already know that most Italian churches demand that shoulders and knees should be covered when you enter, and you also probably know that most of the major churches will vehemently enforce that.

But what we didn’t know until this week was that there’s an alternative to buying an overpriced shawl from an entrepreneur standing near the door—or, at least, there is in Florence. ]]> juliab 2011-11-11T15:40:01-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2011/11/9/8419/13739

Picture the scene: the end of a boring, two-hour flight from London-Gatwick to Florence on Meridiana. The plane is nearly full, the hour is bothersomely early, the turbulence has been hefty, and the cloud cover means that there hasn’t been a single thing to look at out the window for the entire flight. Oh, and we forgot to bring a book.

And then, approaching the airport for landing, we dip below the clouds and out of the ether springs Brunelleschi’s dome. And Giotto’s belltower. And the spire of Santa Croce. And the Baptistery and the tower of the Palazzo Vecchio. What a view. Sometimes this is why it's worth the trouble to fly instead of take the train.

Know of a more iconic landing view? Let us know in comments below! ]]> juliab 2011-11-09T14:55:02-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2011/6/19/235514/263
We hope the cast reviewed our guide to interacting with human statues

It is again safe to travel to Florence without unwittingly ending up an extra on Jersey Shore. That was fast. Just as it still seems like the eight-strong cast of the MTV show were settling into their Italian digs, they're already out. The eight weeks of filming for the fourth season wrapped this weekend and Snooki, J-Woww, The Situation and assorted other characters have already left the (historical) building, flying out of Florence and back to New Jersey.

That's right; while the Italy season debuts on MTV on August 4, the cast will be in the midst of the fifth season, to be shot back in their old stomping grounds of Seaside Heights, NJ. Their pay-per-episode estimate? Definitely over six figures, says Daily Mail. With that you think they could afford some nicer luggage (see their bags here). ]]> JetSetCD 2011-06-20T08:35:01-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2011/5/16/9534/32349

Somehow—no doubt thanks to MTV's greasing the cogs—the Jersey Shore gang has made it overseas to their temporary new home in Florence, Italy. After some logistical hiccups that delayed their arrival for filming their fourth season, Snooki, Vinnie, J-Woww, Sammi, Mike, Ronnie, Deena and Pauly D all dropped their luggage and picked up the Dirty Italian phrasebooks this weekend at their townhouse in centro.

Of course the Daily Mail is practically stalking the cast, breathlessly reporting on every store they stop in and every cobblestoned corner they turn, followed as they are are curious crowds.

Thus far they haven't done anything particularly interesting or culture-offending, but they are using paper maps. Like, umm, MTV couldn't get them smartphones with an international plan for this, where they could just bring up Google Maps? Perhaps seeing them attempt to fold a big paper map is part of the fourth season's humor? Whatever, we're bored now and unless J-Woww starts sleeping with Berlusconi, we're about to tune out.

[Photo: Splash/Daily Mail] ]]> JetSetCD 2011-05-16T09:53:04-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/