I see Mike with his friends, and we decide to go outside. I was a bit tipsy and he was drunk. And I say: 'Mike, we might go to Italy this summer!'
My friend Jacinta, whom i went to college with in Cyprus, invited me to go visit her in Florence. She said Mike was welcome too and that she could accommodate us in her apartment.
That summer Mike stayed at home in England, and i went back to my home in Cyprus. Knowing that we wouldn't see each other for 3 months or longer, we decided to book the tickets to Italy for October. It was Monday, after midnight when we arrived in Pisa, and we took the bus to Florence. I had already visited Italy with my family, that summer. We went to Verona and Venice. But Florence was something else, especially for art lovers like me. When we finally found Jacinta's apartment (yes haha we got lost), and walked in, it instantly felt like home. Jacinta hugged me and showed me around her apartment, which was very big and had the most beautiful view of the city. Jacinta turned the dining room into a living room for us and had bought food for us especially, which was so lovely of her. The next day, Jacinta showed us around in Florence, showing us the art school she goes to, the markets, the best wine bar and the bridges of Florence. In every little street we walked, there was always something new to see, i loved all the small antique shops, and cafe's and the people. We later had lunch with Lizzy, which was fantastic; everyone should try crispy Zucchini once in their life!
The next day, as we were walking around Florence with Jacinta, i saw a photography shop. It was so small, and it looked pretty old. The shop had antique cameras behind the windows, and i really wanted to go in and have a look. An old man was standing behind the counter and came to us and started making conversation with Jacinta. He said she was beautiful, and turned to me and Mike and asked us: 'Are you on honeymoon?'. Mike and I looked at each other and laughed and said: 'No, we're just on holiday here'. The man then said: 'You look like you're on honeymoon, because you look happy.' His eyes brightened and widened, when he told us this: 'The most beautiful love story was of me and my wife. Me and my wife were on honeymoon everyday. Because that was real love, and she was so beautiful. People are afraid of love these days.' My eyes started getting teary, so i looked away and forced myself not to start crying in front of everyone. He showed us a picture of her, and their daughter, and then showed us a book with his photographs in it, from the war in Florence. He said that they bombed the bridges, but that he kept the shop open because the Germans were good customers. He told us more stories about the war. We left way too early i believe, i actually wanted to stay with him for an entire day and listen to his stories. This man's name is Mario, and he owns the oldest photography shop in Florence. He tells his stories to most people who walk in his shop, and someone wants to make a movie based on him and his stories. There is an article written about him in The Florentine: http://www.theflorentine.net/articles/article-view.asp?issuetocId=7053
I will never forget this man, and i wished i had more days to spend in Florence, to spend one of them with him.
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