This post will only be Florence, But on this trip I visited Florence, Sienna, and Bologna (I'll post another with Sienna and Bologna).  Florence was very similar to Rome in the way the city is laid out, there were definitely more people speaking english there than in Rome.  I got to walk on the inside of Il Duomo domes and climb to the top (this was an unreal experience).  visited a bunch of buildings by Michelangelo and some other famous architects.  There were a lot of opportunities to see the entire city from above.  Florence is know for this special soup they call "Ribollita" its essentially a vegetable soup with bread in it, I don't know what else they put in it but it is very good.

Before beginning the accent inside the dome

The inside of the Duomo (the painted figures are about 15 feet tall)

Il Duomo is very very large inside

and from the outside

Climbing inside the dome

There wasn't much stopping you from falling off 

Typical Florentine Style Church

Ponte Vecchio

Florence from Michelangelo's Piazza

Florentine Sunset

View from atop the Duomo