Florence casts a spell in the way that few cities can, perhaps because of its sublime art; perhaps because of the views at sunset over the Arno; perhaps because of the way Florentine food and wine delight the palate. Maybe it's because the city has not changed much since the 16th century. Though …
Mary McCarthy famously described Florence (Firenze) as a City of Stone. This assessment digs deeper than merely the fact that the buildings, streets, doorjambs, sidewalks, windowsills, towers, and bridges are all cobbled together in shades of gray, stern rock hewn by generations of the …