When my wife and I recently took our ninth trip to Florence, a good friend asked, “Why go to Florence again when there is so much ‘real Italy’ to see?” A fair question and a cause for reflection. Can “real Italy” still be found in the city where Dante Alighieri gave birth to the Italian language, but where English is now default in the historic center?

By “real Italy,” I mean the essence of Italian culture, notwithstanding regional variations, as it relates to family, religion, language, food, art, community and many other areas of life. Despite the “Disneyfication” and insufferable crowds in parts of Florence, “real Italy” exists in the everyday lives of Florentines.