Florence: City of Art, birthplace of the Renaissance, home to Michelangelo’s David...

 

The Duomo in Florence was built with a huge hole in its roof where a dome was supposed to go, but no one at the time knew how to make such a tremendous dome that wouldn't collapse! It took about a century for someone to figure out how to do it. The colorful Tuscan marble façade with its intricately carved details was added centuries later.

We were disappointed that the Duomo's dome was closed when we were there. After all, this is the famous Brunelleschi's dome, an architectural and engineering masterpiece, and we had been looking forward to climbing up between its inner and outer shells. Lisa took solace in climbing Giotto’s bell tower instead, while Glen gave it up for an off day and took a nap at the base.

                        

It used to be that people couldn't enter a duomo unless they were baptized so, typically, separate baptistery buildings are located next to the duomos. This is Florence's baptistery as viewed from atop the bell tower.

One of the ten famous 3D bronze castings of biblical scenes, created by Ghiberti for the baptistry doors. None other than Michelangelo dubbed the doors "Gates of Paradise" because of the depth, realism, and artistry of these panels.

 

Few people of that era could read, so much of the art was intended to teach and convey religious lessons. The inside of the Baptistery is a prime example. Its 84 foot octagonal dome is completely covered with gargantuan mosaics that visually teach biblical stories. The face of the central Christ figure at the Last Judgment is said to be 26 feet high! He is surrounded by the Resurrected and the Damned souls, angels, apostles, and other holy persons. Opposite from Christ, the Devil is depicted as a hideous devourer of men, but somehow that photograph got deleted. Perhaps more than men are devoured!

A copy of Michelangelo’s David now stands where it originally stood outside the Palazzo Vecchio, surrounded by colorful cafes. We also saw the original over in the Accademia Gallery but we were told not to photograph there, so the closeup below-right of the copy will have to suffice. Hmmm, no, that’s our fellow tour member, Jack!

 

As in Venice, we had another local guide in Florence. An Art History major, his discussion of the artwork we saw inside the Uffizi Gallery made for a very interesting and educational time. It was surreal to personally view so many world-famous paintings housed in this Gallery, such as Bottecelli's Birth of Venus, Leonardo da Vinci's Annunciation, and Piero della Francesca's diptych of the Duke and Duchess.

The city view from the Uffizi's balcony cafe is artistic in its own right.

This is the famous Ponte Vecchio, Golden Bridge, which is lined with gold and silver shops - much to Mary's pleasure...

We knew from one of Rick Steve's PBS specials that he recommended i Fratellini's, this little "hole in the wall" shop where you can get good sandwiches and wine.  Our group stopped by for a bit of afternoon refreshment and now we recommend it, too! Instead of giving you disposable cups, they use regular wine glasses, which you place on a wall rack before you leave.

     

 

Another thing we recommend is the gelato (see the Florence Part 2 video at the bottom of this page for more). We started getting really serious about gelato in Florence. Glen feared that there were more flavors available than he would be able to sample during the trip, so he gamely gave up most lunches in favor of more gelato. As penance, we redoubled our walking, going everywhere on foot... From Ponte Vecchio to the overlook at Piazzale Michelangelo, the Bardini and Boboli Gardens, and the Pitti Palace.

Not everyone walks or bikes, some drive automobiles. Italian vehicles are generally small: size matters more when you pay something like $7/gal for gasoline. Also, their small cars are a better fit for their roads, many of which were built centuries before the automobile came along.

 

Florence was and remains a City of Art.

 

And good food.  This was supposed to be dinner on our own, but somehow most of us got together again, anyway!

 

 

Speaking of food, they say that you will return to Florence if you feed el porcelino. It was hard to get the coins to stay in its mouth, but Lisa figured out a way...

   

 

 

Click below to watch Florence Part 1/3 (3:46)		Click below to watch Florence Part 2/3 (3:19)

Click below to watch Florence Part 3/3 (2:04)