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Only the barriers remain of the Fan Park in Santa Croce, the official tour shop is being “dismantled” in Piazza della Repubblica, while for now, nearby, the clock, turned on last March 22nd when there were 100 days left until the Grand Départ, remains in place, together with the large yellow jersey under the Arcone. In addition to the beautiful exhibition with Karl Kapinski’s giant marbles in Piazza Duomo, in front of Palazzo Strozzi Sacrati.
The Tour said goodbye to Florence after a very long celebration from Thursday, when the teams were presented, to Saturday with the catwalk through the streets of the city and the start of the stage from Viola Park.
But even if there aren’t the tens of thousands of people who accompanied the transit of the yellow caravan, in Florence it doesn’t really feel like a Sunday in late June: despite the blazing sun of the early afternoon, restaurants crowded and long lines in front of the ice cream shops.
A few yellow shirts and red polka dot hats (the colors worn by the best climber) to remember yesterday’s unforgettable day, but above all lots of umbrellas to shelter from the heat.
“It was a beautiful, colorful party. We had so many people in these three days – like at the Perseo bar in Piazza Signoria, where they are also quite used to crowds – And then compliments to the organization: once the cyclists started they immediately removed the barriers and everything went back to how it was before. They were very fast”.
Even on social media, the traditional polemical streak of Florentines seems to have taken a few hours off: very few critical voices, mostly related to traffic inconveniences, instead the emotion for a unique day and a postcard of the city that has truly gone around the world prevails.
Without forgetting the “wallet”: packed hotels in Florence and in half the province and a return calculated at several tens of millions of euros. A closing with a bang that adds to the great classics, Calcio Storico and Pitti as well as Firenze Rocks, to put a decidedly intense June to rest.
