Throughout my time in Florence, I relied heavily on my phone. The city is large and filled with many small streets, so navigation was often a challenge. Although I learned my way around the city much better by the end of the program, I sometimes still needed directions for even short walks. I also found myself relying heavily on the Uber app to arrange transportation to airports and train stations. When eating at restaurants, I would often use Google Translate to translate menus. Overall, my phone was incredibly helpful during this trip, but one Wednesday night, I decided to challenge myself.

Seeing the sunsets in Florence was one of my favorite parts of the experience. Many tourists flood Piazza Michelangelo to watch the sunset, which can make the experience feel crowded and overwhelming. Because of this, I challenged myself to find my own sunset spot without using directions. I decided to venture north of the city to an area called Fiesole. Along the way, because I was not glued to my phone for directions, I was able to appreciate my surroundings much more. The area sits high above the city, so I knew I would be able to find a good viewpoint. After an exhausting one-hour walk that was roughly 200 meters uphill, I found a small bench overlooking one of my favorite sunset views of the entire trip. One of the best parts was that there was hardly anyone else there, and most of the people I did see were locals.

This experience taught me to appreciate the journey just as much as the destination. Even if navigating without Google Maps took longer and occasionally caused me to get lost, exploring the city on my own was far more enjoyable and rewarding. Although having no guidance could be confusing at times, it also created opportunities for unexpected discoveries. Using directions can take away some of the immersive aspects of an experience by confining me to a single path. While navigating without technology can be challenging, it has the potential for a high reward, as demonstrated by my discovery of this sunset spot.