Italy supprised me. I was expecting the culture and people, despite their loudness, to be refined like their art and architecture...unfortunatly nothing could be further from the truth. While the places were all amazing, Florence being on the top of my list, the people were rude, arrogent, loud and crass. Their cultural egoism is resting on the haunches of their predecessors that really did accomplish amazing things. The Italy of today is politically confused, culturally self-rightious, and economically drowning.
So in short my tips to you are: Enjoy Florence, it is one of the most beautiful cites in the world, the art and architecture there are second to none. But when it comes to the people...just do your best to ignore their big dirty heads.