Into the Renaissance!

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I am happy that I can share pictures with you now. I borrowed a cable for my computer from Tina, so she gets a special shout-out on my travel blog! I found an internet cafe a ways down the road from our hotel (the hotel Cellini), but I knew I had to write a bit today. Some of the others went to a classical music concert, which sounded great, but Mary Donnen (an art teacher herself on this trip) has a few in mind for Florence.

So, Florence is indeed at the heart of the Renaissance. We have seen Michaelangelo's David and Bottichelli's "Birth of Venus," but we still have the Duomo and a few other things to get to before we head on to Sorrento on Tuesday. We arrived here in the early afternoon (and an early train ride from Ravenna secured that! We switched trains in Bologna, and the second one was like riding in the little cars like Harry Potter. We all liked that.) on Thursday, and we began to nativagte the narrow streets and mad traffic. It is touristy, but not exactly like Venice.

I have some good tidbits about walking from dinner in the rain, a wild umbrella taking off on the beach in Ravenna, and more (care to meet Giuseppi? You will.), but I must dash back to the hotel for the night. My internet time is running out, so sorry, I will have to catch you up later! At least you can start to view more of Italy through my ever-present camera!

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Photos

Beaching it
Some of us went to the beach near Ravenna on our free day there, and this is a shot on the (very hot) beach. The water was frigid, so I guess it evened out! :-) This was a memorable day...story to follow.

Front of Palazzo Vecchio
A copy of Michelangelo's "David" stood here, and nearby, standing in the piazza was to get a 360 degree kind of view of Florence. I took time out for this after being at the Uffizi all day.

Stop and pose!
This was taken on a walk back to the hotel from one of the various restaurants we had eaten at in Florence. It was near the Duomo, but only I could have told you that, I suppose! These are mostly the students and me, but Madina N. (Tom's daughter) and her friend Allie join us for a pose.

Me with the River Arno
I remember this as being quite a hot day, and one in which I went to the store across from the hotel to buy a two-liter bottle of water. Yet I had to stop to pose with the river as we walked back from Santa Maria della Carmine.

From Pizzale Michelangelo
On our free day in Florence, I took a bus tour, one of the stops being Pizzale Michelangelo. This picture was taken there, and as I rode the bus and came back into the city, I looked for more of what I envisioned to be "Tuscany." This was better seen on the train ride to Naples, though.

A bit of Tuscany outside the window
One of my better pictures from the train as we sped from Florence to Naples. I knew that the Tuscan sun had to hit something besides my face and arms! :-) We would be taking a bus from Naples to Sorrento, and so after Naples, we bid the trains arrividerci.