We had two rooms! This is the living room where Ursula slept, giving us a little privacy.
Today I get a little bit more inside to show off the hotel we stayed at our first night. With the un-Florentine name, JK Place, it's just ten steps from where the train left us off in Piazza Santa Maria Novella and a highly designed — but a totally comfortable and friendly — boutique hotel. It's a successful mix of old fashioned Italian architecture in a townhouse, paired with contemporary, European hotel chic (think marble staircase and wood ceiling, and a huge book of Helmut Newton nudes in the lounge). While not cheap, we booked through Smith Hotels and got a good rate (June seemed to have some deals)...
This is the entrance.
Downstairs there are two lounges. This is in the back where there's a television. Not good for children, but nice for couples wanting to hide away. Note the turned lamps against the wall - this is everywhere!
This is in the front and good for cappucino, wifi and collapsing after a walk. While very "done", I really liked the style here. It was comfortable and not edgy.
Ursula collapsing after a walk with Dali.
I loved the way they used these large lanterns everywhere.
The bedroom! This was a great night's sleep with sexy crisp sheets.
I liked the headboard design... it's a headboard with a linen cover that they swap out for each guest.
I thought it was a great idea for the home, by adding your own "runner" of fabric - a simple way to change the style of your headboard seasonally or for guests (and it protects the headboard).
This is the lounge on the roof where we ate dinner our first night. I love the deep banked seating and the huge umbrella that made it feel like an outside/inside room. Note the turned lamps here as well. They give off a good light.
Close-up of the very nice (and very high end) umbrella.
This is the Duomo from that roof lounge.
A view of our bathroom from the bedroom.
Finally, a close-up of the water mixer in the shower. All the showers here seem to do this - they set the temperature with one control and the flow with the other. This one, however, was particularly industrial in it's style and it felt like you were setting the timer on a huge clock.
>> JK Place
>> Previous Italy Post: Florence I
It would be hard tearing yourself away from this -- so what sort of place are you in now?
view mschatelaine's profile
ouch! I wouldn't want to leave! Gorgeous shots!
view dunklekatze's profile
Wow! I am drooling.
view leadingedge's profile
ah Florence - or Firenze as the italians call it :-) love it and your hotel looks nice.
view Anusha73's profile
I am not a bathroom designer-but oh, I love that sink. As for the lamps, I hope they're using low wattage or they'll wind up with brown spots on the wall.
view queenbee1230's profile
Beautiful place. Nothing at all like the crumbly little pensione rooms I always stay in when I visit. The one element that has been the same in every florentine pensione I've seen is to fill every available square foot of common area wall space with framed art. No unifying theme or standard of quality, everything from travel agency posters to oil paints side by side, nailed to every wall except bed and bath rooms.
Because I associate it with vacations in Italy I have come to find it endearing but it would make me crazy at home.
view Slim's profile
wow look how big she got!
view mariegael's profile
Is that a *hotel*? :-O
view LilyB's profile