I am going to Italy on a vacation this winter. Unfortunately it's not in the cards to visit the Val Trompia, Gardone etc. area up north, but I wondered if there are interesting shops in either Florence or Rome that would be worth seeing--sporting arms, leather field gear etc. Any experiences or advice would be appreciated. Thanks Keith

Not much question you can see all the leather goods you want in Pisa or Florence. Don't know about shell bags as wasn't looking.

jack

If you like suffocating crowds, Vespa exhaust fumes, inflated prices and generally rude behavior, Florence is the place for you - but never again for me!

Forget the shopping experience. Enjoy the people and the antiquity. Stick to the smaller towns of Umbria and Tuscany. It's a wonderful country!

Good advice. Take me back to Castagneto Carducci and Donoratico.
The Appennines are great for bicycle touring; easier than the Dolomites; much much easier than the Alps.

jack

Florence was not my cup of tea either, my wife hated it. Rome is crowded with tourists but worth the effort. Florence is similarly crowded but not worth the effort - Although they have a great indoor central market. I stayed at Frances'Lodge, a 5 room B&B just outside of Siena for six days in September. Awesome views, great hospitality, surrounded by olive trees and vineyards and easy day-trips to all of Tuscany by car. Franco has Setters and used to hunt, Franca, his wife, made him give it up. Siena is big enough that you can dine well for a week never visiting the same place twice but neither too big nor too crowded. I'd highly recommend it.

I never did find any bird hunting opportunities but I did see hunters in the fields a couple times while driving. Have fun.

Agree with VV about Siena. Big group of us riding our bikes thru the Compo (large central square) in 2000. Had to get permission from city authorities. Big celebration and horse race held there yearly--the Palio. Local yelled at my wife:
"Giro de Palio" which I guess would mean tour or circuit of the steel ponies. Wild boar is the name of the hunting game.

jack

Women love Milano :
Ballini-Stivaleria Savoia-Via Vincenzo Monti 44 for pony riding attire and splendid custom-made riding boots.
Brigatti-Corso Venezia 15 for Continental and English hunting attire.
Lovely country, and deodorant is optional.

Agree with Gil: get a car and mosey through the little places of Tuscany and Umbria. Some have interesting gunshops. The people are warm, intimate, nothing like them anywhere. Doing it this winter is even better. Once the tourists go back to work, the country is yours. We go nearly every year March 20-April 11 or so.

In response to the above comments trashing Florence, and to offer a contrary opinion of support, I would have to say that Florence is my favorite city in the whole world. I could easily live there, at least part of the year, if I were well off. I have only visited four times, and admittedly, I am an artist and my wife is an art historian, but seeing as how Florence is the birthplace of renaissance culture, has amazing museums, buildings, and art everywhere of historical import, is stunningly beautiful, and has some of the best shopping anywhere, I find it amazing that someone wouldn't like it. Yes it's crowded, but that's because it is such a draw. Yes, Siena is also beautiful, Pisa, San Gimignano, Cinque Terre, Venice and Rome are amazing in their own way, but the sweet sublimity of Florence is in my opinion, unsurpassed. Where else can you visit an apothecary and purchase cologne made by Dominican monks (i.e., the dogs of God) since the 13th century (S. Maria Novella), or visit Dante or Michelangelo's house, dine on wild boar stew or Florentine steak, or....

Ok, I'm done.

Ah Fiorenza! Nice palace; got Art up on the wall. Nice bridge. Nice statue by Micky Angelo; nice tower. Could do a lot worse. I'd go back; walk sideways up the street; buy agua minerale con gaz and an orange; sit and smoke; watch the pigeons. Arezzo nice. Also got Art up on the wall.

jack

Keith,

I have never found a gun store in Rome or Florence. Perhaps, I just never looked in the right place. Both cities are beautiful and unique. Each has something to offer.

A couple of sites you might be interested in:

http://en.venere.com/
http://www.romesweethome.com/

http://www.greenlinetours.com/

Surprisingly, Beretta does not have gallery store in either city. They do have one in Milan.

I was in Rome about a year ago. We rented a condo in the Navona district and used the Green Line tours. I have been there many times, but it was the 1st trip for my wife. She loved it.

I agree about seeing the country side. The atmosphere is very different than the large cities.

If you want to hunt, the best chance would be a hunting preserve, this is one that I have heard good things about:
http://www.atvmondonuovo.com/

You may want to ask about gun stores over on Accurate Reloading in the European Big Game Forum. There are several Italians that post there.

Almost every town has a small "shooting" shop. Not many sxs but good place to talk to hunters. Boar hunting is a big topic in Tuscany. There are a few big stores somewhat like a Cabela's that sell guns and related paraphenalia. I found one not too far from Cortona but don't have the details at my finger tips.

Great art, yes - but once the new wears off the usual tourist sites, it's one of the most crowded and unpleasant walking cities in Europe. Just got back from our umpteenth stay with an artist friend who's been living in the heart of Florence for 40+ years (his apartment/studio is on the Arno overlooking the Pontevecchio). Even in late October the city is jammed, the traffic impossible, the motorscooters noisy and dangerous, the museum and church admission charges rapacious. Florence was once a lovely city, but alas, it has been loved to death. Go once to view the art, but go elsewhere for la dolce vita.

There's a lot more to a place than it's art and history. I have a great interest in both, but I've known so many people who visit all the churches and museums in a city but never really see the country they're visiting. They miss the culture.

What I really like is to eat the local food, drink the local wine, meet and talk to local people. It's hard to do that when everyone's from somewhere else and all the restaurants are tourist traps.

Universal instructions for getting anywhere in a mountain fortress. Ascendere e descendere. Try Pecorino Tuscana while you're there; drink some wine from a large bladder in a small automobile.

jack