Christmas In Florence

The official Christmas lights switch on in Florence doesn’t start until the 8th of December, during the feast of the Immaculate Conception. On that day the Christmas trees around the city will be switched on with the main event taking place at The Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fior whose huge tree is already casting a long yuletide shadow across Firenze’s impressive duomo. At the same time, exhibitions and events exploring various themes of light begin with photopgraphy exhibitions, light-themed activities and with light shows across the fronts of churches and even on the city’s central market – The Florence Light Festival.

However, the city is already lit with christmas lights of all shapes, from the beautiful traditional lights strung across Via Tournabuoni to the brightly-lit façade of Rinascente in Piazza della Repubblica.

Christmas in Florence is a slightly more laid back affair then what I’ve been used to in northern Europe, though Firenze is draped with wonderfully old-fashioned Christmas lights – and completely bereft of the advert laden crap that is tacked to London’s Oxford Street.