How do you live in a tourist city? How can a student in Florence for only 4 months live here without their stay becoming one extended tour of major sights? The fear of feeling like an idiot when returning home for not having seen every famous palace tempts you to desperately follow the tour book’s advice. But we all know that real life isn’t sightseeing. So the question remains ...

It’s a little past 2 on a regular night in Florence. Along via de’ Benci and farther down past Piazza Santa Croce on via Verdi, people pour out on to the street as the bars and clubs begin to close. While some congregate outside to smoke and chat or stumble to the next place for more dancing and drinks elsewhere, others go in search of something different: a secret bakery. Just off via de’Benci, through the ...