According to the locals it is still winter here and the last week has been the coldest in a long time. Still, it’s cold mainly inside while outdoors the sun has been shining all day practically every day since I got here.

On Saturday in Siena this year’s edition of Strade Bianche was raced in a cold, dry setting, but the atmosphere was simply phenomenal. The inner town was as crowded as it was last year during high tourist season, which unfortunately meant it was impossible get a good spot at the Via Santa Caterina for the men’s finale; luckily this time around it wasn’t where the decisive move was made so it turned out the right decision to instead watch the race on the Piazza on big screen. Earlier that day I had an excellent spot at Le Tolfe to watch the women’s race amongst cheerful Italians and a noisy detachment of Dutchmen so I conveniently got to see both aspects of the finish.

Since I’m taking language classes in the morning I have to invest some serious thought into time management. It’s Italy so museums close rather early, around 18:30 for the Uffizi for instance. Which is brutal considering the ticket costs 20 €. They basically force you to come as early as possible if you intend to see all of it; which I did not so I’m going to have to return another time. The smaller Museo Galileo can be easily done in one afternoon, however. Another distinct advantage it has is that in violation of what seems to be a sacred rule of the museal profession in Italy, it also opens on Mondays.

As I expected, my inaugural visit to the Uffizi was cut short about halfway through. Out of habit I went for the Classical Era stuff first and spent most of my time there enjoying busts of emperors, elegantly dressed Roman ladies, scenes from mythology etc. etc. The Roman themed main gallery on the upper floor culminates in a renaissance copy of the Laokoon groups which I had almost to myself for a few minutes thanks to the off season scarcity of visitors.

On the road with the bike it’s been a chilly week as well, sunshine notwithstanding, with icy wind blowing in from the northeast. In theory it’s still winter even down here in Italy so I won’t complain. On Sunday I was surprised by snowflakes on the nearby Poggio dell’Incontro that I picked for the test ride after assembling the bike. The hills around Florence with their endless series of stunning vistas easily compensate for the somewhat suboptimal temperatures. Over here on the Oltrarno side of town the climbs are shorter and steeper than those at the opposite end of the valley where longer, gentler slopes are more common; in and around Florence there’s a climb for every taste, I very much enjoy that variety.

And there’s yet more to come.