Exploring Florence on Foot

Following a suggested schedule is a great way to pass by specific monuments, experiencing the best of each area to save you time and energy while allowing you to discover things you may have never noticed, particularly as Florence is so rich in details,     1     and monuments that you might not know where to look given the many choices!

Here are the three self-guided itinerary routes you can follow, divided     2     by areas of the city:

· The Centro Storico: The historical area around the Duomo

· The Oltrarno, the left bank of the Arno river

· A climb up to Piazzale Michelangeloand San Miniato

Travelling on foot, as opposed to a bicycle or bus (most of the center is closed off to cars),     3     a pace that opens your eyes to various hidden treasures that you would not have seen otherwise. I always love learning about a city and seeing the sights by walking from one place to the next (when they are in a reasonable distance) while making short detours down     4     streets that catch my attention.

If you’re instead interested in a(an)     5     walking tour, take a look at this selection. I always encounter small shops, stores, and unexpected treasures of the city that I would have never seen. And these are     6     the small things that make a city special and beautiful by simply following one of the proposed walking tours below, you can explore Florence in a fun and active way without     7     any of the top sights!

If you have several days to see the city, consider taking the time to visit the inside of some of the main     8     and using a whole day’s time to complete the tour. I like to get started early when walking in the city center because it is clear of tourist crowds, AND it is much cooler AND the morning light is stunning (great for photos)!

Finally, my friend, a travel planner, together with me, strongly     9     a place for your walking schedule—the “Centro Storico” or Historical Center around the Duomo. This plan allows you to see all of the main sights and some of the smaller hidden places in between what is considered the heart of the     10     center. Consider just taking the walk and admiring everything from the outside if you are short on time.

Nowadays，traveling in China holds special     1    for many foreigners, especially teenagers. In their eyes, China is a country with a profound history and many     2    . Besides, China wins its fame for its various dishes from     3     regions and ethnic groups. More importantly，China has numerous     4     festivals, which reflect people’s wishes,     5    , faiths and attitudes towards life.     6    , Dragon Boat festival is celebrated     7     a patriotic poet, Qu Yuan. The common practice in Chinese Spring Festival is     8     and setting off fireworks, which can absolutely create a strong festive and joyful     9    . Traveling in China not only enables them to learn about China, but also offers a chance to     10     their regular life.

“Climate change is moving faster than we are,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said back in 2018 in his     1     to the UN General Assembly — a statement that in hindsight now rings     2     true.

The essential goal of the Paris agreement of 2015 has been to limit the rise in average global temperatures to no more than 2℃ above pre-industrial levels — a time period centered     3     on the mid-19th century. The aspirational or wished — for objective of the agreement is to     4     for a rise in temperatures that doesn’t exceed 1.5℃.

But with carbon dioxide levels in the global atmosphere topping 420 parts per million — the highest level in     5     history — the 1.5℃ target appears to many experts to be out of reach. A United Nations report in 2018 concluded as much, saying back then that average global temperatures will likely reach 1.5℃ above pre-industrial levels sometime between 2030 and 2052 if emissions continue rising as they have been.

With a 1.5℃ rise, about 4% of Earth’s terrestrial land area is projected to undergo a     6     of ecosystems from one type to another. With a 2℃ global temperature rise, about 13% is projected to undergo a shift. Across the American West, ecosystems stressed by diminished snow-melt, drought, insect infestations, and wildfire are     7     forests from the Rockies to the Sierra Nevada. Ten percent of iconic Giant Sequoia trees died in wildfires in the Sierra Nevada in 2020.

According to the UN’s 1.5℃ report, the world’s countries     8     the largest amounts of carbon dioxide have to turn things around soon: to limit warming to 1.5℃, global net greenhouse gas emissions from human activity must decline by about 45% from 2010 levels by 2030, and reach net zero by 2050. To limit warming to 2℃, emissions must decline by about 25% by 2030 and reach net zero by about 2070.

Despite the great     9     ahead, IEA chief Fatih Birol remarked recently that clean energy investments can still “shift the world on to a pathway to net-zero emissions by 2050”.

The path “is     10     but still achievable”, he said, “if we act now.”

Species are     1     at an high rate due to human activity. It is clear that human activity     2     all other species on Earth. As we humans depend so much on so many species for our survival, we would also     3     extinction. Thus, we should    4     to improve the situation. For example, we should     5     of endangered animals. Moreover, we should     6     change the way we live. In this way, we might be able to avoid THE SIXTH EXTINCTION.

A hungry polar bear seen scavenging (在废弃物中觅食) for food in a major     1     city in northern Siberia has been caught and     2     to a wildlife park for treatment. Experts say the animal,     3     thought to have wandered hundreds of miles from its natural habitat (栖息地) in the Arctic, instead may have been taken as a cub and raised in captivity (关押) by pelt traders. The polar bear was spotted wandering throughout the city, searching for food. Photos showed the animal walking slowly across a busy road with muddy paws, digging through rubble and trash and lying down from     4     exhaustion on the ground.

Wildlife experts were called to assess the polar bear and determine whether it could be taken back to the Arctic.

But after sedating (给……服镇静剂) the animal, experts said it was severely ill, at least partly from feeding herself from garbage     5    , and would need medical care, according to the Siberian Times. Experts developed new theories about how it came to be in the city, thinking that it may have been raised there by poachers (偷猎者) who intended to sell it for its pelt. The experts explained that it is     6     males, not females, that travel long distances, and said this polar bear was too clean to have made such a trip. It’s possible that poachers     7     the animal to avoid being caught and punished.

Polar bear poaching has been banned in Russia for more than 60 years. Still, it has been estimated that as many as 200 of them are killed each year. In February, local reports estimated that about 50 polar bears had taken over Novaya Zemlya, popping up in buildings, on playgrounds. As a result, officials declared a state of emergency, many people were too scared to leave their homes or let their children play outside, and     8     personnel were being sent to help cope with the situation.

Polar bears are     9    classified as a vulnerable species because of the ongoing and     10     loss of their sea ice habitat resulting from climate change. The International Union for Conservation of Nature estimates that there are 22,000 to 31,000 polar bears worldwide.