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A few ideas on what to do Sports available in town
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Used to the availability of plenty of sports in the States? It is not always quite so easy here, especially when you have only just arrived, and you should make the most of your student cards for cheaper charges (or ask your college about conventions and discounts). Tennis courts are fairly easy to find, it is often harder to find a partner! Check for your nearest court at the Cascine Park, or the sports areas around the Football stadium, or just below Piazzale Michelangelo.
Swimming too is an easily practiced sport though you often have to fit your times in with organised lessons (evenings are usually best). Some of the best indoor pools include the Amici del Nuoto pool, in Via del Romito, 38b (055.483951), the Fiorentina Nuoto Club Pool in Lungarno Aldo Moro (055.677521), the Rari Nantes Florentia in Lungarno Ferrucci 24 (055.6812141), the Paganelli Pool in Viale Guidoni 208 and the Tropos Pool in Via Orcagna 20a (055.678381), to mention just a few.
There are an infinite number of gymnasiums. It is worth hunting up the one nearest to you and getting a season ticket so that you can pop in and out and use the equipment when you have time. A lot of them also do courses in the martial arts if you are interested. There are also a large number of dance and ballet schools in Florence, though of course you have to choose the speciality you prefer.
Athletics are also fairly easy to practice. There is a brand new athletics stadium in the Campo di Marte complex (the Luigi Ridolfi), and if this is too distant for you, they can suggest alternative tracks.
Naturally football is possible, even for women, in Florence. You can, if you can find enough players, hire fields for a game, easier still if you play the local calcetto with fewer players...Enquire at the Campo di Marte Stadium about clubs to join for regular games.
Rowing is possible along the Arno, where there are two clubs, both extremely professional and qualified.
Hockey, madball and baseball are more difficult to find, though they are growing in popularity here. Basketball and Volleyball instead are both fairly common, though of course you need to join a club. Any large stadium and a lot of gyms have teams offering the chance of a game. Cycling is very popular and can be done of course when and where you like, though if you join a club, you can cycle in company. Take care to chain and lock your bike wherever you leave it, it might just tempt a bicycle thief!
Rollerskating is possible at the Asso Giglio Rosso in Viale Michelangelo, at Le Pavoniere (Park of the Cascine) and various outdoor spaces in the public gardens and parks. You can go horse riding at the City Riding Stables in Via Vespucci as well as at the Cascine. Ice skating is only possible around Christmas, when an outdoor rink is usually set up at Parterre.
Otherwise you can find almost anything from biliards to bowls (the Sir Francis Drake type), as well as weightlifting, boxing, rugby, softball, squash, golf, shooting, archery and fencing... We are not going to suggest any extreme sports for fear that your parents or teachers will blame us for accidents!
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