Bella Firenze ~ February 3, 2017
February 3, 2017
Firenze
Up early this morning for a quick breakfast and then a walk to the station where I used my fledgling Italian to request 2 round trip tickets to Firenze. The trains in Italy are wonderful! Fast, clean, quiet, and very inexpensive.
Our train arrives in Firenze -- it was the green one on the right!
So much to see in Florence, but we had to take things slow because of my badly sprained ankle. We decided that "less is more" and ventured off to the Duomo and then on to the Galleria Uffizi.
The cathedral was built by Arnolfo di Cambio beginning at the end of the 13th century. The Duomo stands tall over the city. Its magnificent Renaissance (15th century) dome was designed by Filippo Brunelleschi.
Statues of Bruelleschi (left) and di Cambio (right) can be seen outside the Duomo.
The cathedral was named in honor of Santa Maria del Fiore. It is a massive Gothic structure that was built on the site of the 7th century Church of Santa Reparata. Remains of the earlier church can be seen in the crypt of the current cathedral.
The cathedral was built by Arnolfo di Cambio beginning at the end of the 13th century. The Duomo stands tall over the city. Its magnificent Renaissance (15th century) dome was designed by Filippo Brunelleschi.
Statues of Bruelleschi (left) and di Cambio (right) can be seen outside the Duomo.
The cathedral was named in honor of Santa Maria del Fiore. It is a massive Gothic structure that was built on the site of the 7th century Church of Santa Reparata. Remains of the earlier church can be seen in the crypt of the current cathedral.
Although I have seen pictures of the Duomo in Firenze before, they did not prepare me for the grandeur and beauty of this place. I guess most surprising for me were the colors and ornate decoration. Clearing skies greeted up, and we saw our first glimpses of the Italian sun!
Every detail inside the cathedral was breathtaking, from the intricate marble floor patterns ...
to the paintings and sculptures, to the beauty of the candles shining brightly like a glowing tree.
Looking up to see the paintings on the ceiling of the dome, I was awestruck - trying to imagine artists lying on their backs painstakingly adding details. Just beautiful ... there aren't words to do it justice.
Directly across from the cathedral stands the baptistery. Historians believe that the baptistery was built over the ruins of a Roman temple dedicated to the God of War, Mars, dating back to the 4th or 5th century A.D. In 897 it was described as a "minor basilica," and in 1128 it was consecrated as the Baptistery of Florence. It is, therefore, the oldest religious monument in Florence. All Catholics in Florence were baptized in the Baptistery until the end of the 19th century.
I was taken with the octagonal shape and the cupola that sits atop the building. I could have stood and admired the geometrically pattered colored marble, white Carrara marble, and green Prato marble all morning long. It was fascinating to try to decipher all the different shapes.
On three of the four sides of the Baptistery there are large doors that are famous for their decorations. The oldest pair of doors are the bronze doors on the south side which were made by Andrea Pisano around 1330. There are 28 quatrefoil panels depicting scenes from St. John's life. Another pair of doors are by Lorenzo Ghiberti and show stories of the life and passion of Christ taken from the New Testament.
When we had exhausted our senses viewing the cathedral and baptistery, we meandered over toward the Ufizzi Gallery. I loved trying to capture images of the ancient streetscapes. The photo above represents my best (albeit meagre) effort.
Of course, I had to capture our modest snack consumed in a little coffee shop on the Piazza della Signoria, just across from the Palazzo Vecchio. I was proud to have ordered the entire thing in my fledgling Italian! We ordered a beer for Jeff and a "mezzo bottiglia d'aqua naturelle" for me. The little pastries were brought out with our drinks - a nice touch that we saw repeated throughout our time in Italy. 
According to my trusty guidebook, the Piazza della Signoria "has been the center of political life in Florence since the 14th century." It was to the piazza that the Medici returned in 1530, and it was the site of the Bonfire of the Vanities which was instigated by Saonarola (who ended up being burned at the stake in that same piazza in 1498 after he was denounced by the Inquisition as a heretic). The picture to the right marks the spot where he was burned.
To the right of the Palazzo Vecchio is the Loggia dei Lanzi, a kind of open-air sculpture gallery. It was designed by Orcagna in 1376. I love the curved arches and the collection of sculpture inside.
There are a number of beautiful sculptures found under these arches. All of my learning and teaching of mythology was resurrected as I looked at a variety of sculptures like this one by Benvenuto Cellini, the statue of Perseus holding Medusa's head. 
Once again the ceiling painting was amazing.
An "art shot" that seemed to work!
We call this sculpture "Say hello to my little friend!"
And Jeff named this one, "The King is not dead" (AKA "Elvis has not left the room")!
The sky is so dramatic as we snapped these shots of the Ponte Vecchio from the window in the upper gallery at the Uffizi.
Hercules and Nessus
The Uffizi collection really does take your breath away in a way reminiscent of my feelings when we viewed the sculpture collection at the Louvre. I think what I liked most was the scale of the gallery. There was "just enough" so that I wasn't overwhelmed in the way I was at the Louvre, where I felt that there was no way I could ever take it all in.
I think the other thing that I kept thinking about throughout the day was the Medici connection. I remember studying the Medici when I was in school, and it was amazing to think that we were walking where the Medici had walked all those centuries ago.
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