Amore in Firenze

Public displays of affection are prevalent in Florence. In my experience, Italians are much more demonstrative about their affection than some other folks. A generality of course. Maybe it’s just that Spring is around the corner and love is in the air!

The weather has been beautiful, and with all the inspiration and beauty in the city, it certainly does evoke a romantic feeling. I started noticing a lot of PDA around me, and at first thought, maybe I was being overly sensitive (or attentive!) to these actions. After a few days though, I decided that this was not something that I usually saw in my everyday life.

Recently I saw on the news (in the US) a story about a woman who was taking photos of people sleeping on subways. There was a big uproar about whether she was "invading their privacy" or not. The general feeling was that since they were doing this in a public place, that it was not an invasion of their privacy. The photographer went on to say that she made every effort not to disturb them and to maintain their dignity. I guess she wouldn’t photograph someone snoring or drooling, I don’t know.

Anyway, based on that news story, I decided that it would be okay for me to photograph these public displays of affection. I realize it is risky. I try to be "covert" in my picture taking. Which even heightens the fun! Who knew I was such a voyeur? Anyway, I think some of the photos are beautiful, and I’m going to keep it up. I think it will make a fabulous "Coffee Table Book". Don’t you?

As soon as I get myself into one of these positions, I’ll have someone take a photo and put it in here. Don’t hold your breath!