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Published: September 26th 2009
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Daanng
The famous tower of the Piazza delle Signoria as seen from MY WINDOW. Aw yeah. Day 3:
The train ride to Firenze (Florence), Italy was short and sweet, only about 2 hours. This time finding our hostel wasn't so bad because we had a map and directions. The 10 minute walk from the train station to the our place was a site-seeing tour of its own, as we recognized churches and monuments peaking out from above and between neighboring buildings. I couldn't wait to get settled in and explore! The location of the hostel is almost directly in the center of town so one could virtually go in any direction and find something to see. This made it difficult to decide where to start and what to see first, though it didn't matter much because you really can tour the city in a day if you really wanted to. Since we've got four days here we decided not to rush things and take it slow. The small size of Florence makes it incredibly tourist-friendly. Everyone walks. And so did we, much to the sacrifice of sore and aching feet.
One of the first stops was the Duomo (the previous Duomo is also called the Milan Cathedral). This is perhaps the largest building in
Ferrari
Our rental. No big deal. historic Florence and is the most prominent when you see the cityscape. The amount of detail and ornamentation on this church is amazing. Though seemingly not as large as the Duomo in Milan, what makes this building more impressive is the dome that sits atop it which is unlike anything else in the world (more on that later). We're saving the tour of the inside for later. Next stop was the Piazza delle Signoria. Any sculpture enthusiast would love this place. There's an open air sculpture gallery displaying many famous sculptures including The Rape of the Sabine Women, the statue of David (not the original one), and others that I don't know the name of. We spent a good long time here just to soak in the scenery and to appreciate our surroundings. Onward to other notable piazzas and squares, crossing the elegant bridges that spanned across a river, and rested at a large green park with a fountain. This reminded me of Drumheller Fountain on campus at UW. Homesick much? Yeah I am. The rest of the evening was spent cruising the streets for food and beer which was wonderful... until the beer got warm.
Day 4:
Bridge
One of the many bridges spanning the river. Makes me wanna row a boat or something. Is it only the fourth day? I feel like I've been gone forever! Woke up early this morning to the bustling streets below with vendors setting up shop. We wanted to get inside the Duomo before there was a crowd and didn't regret having to wake up early. Honestly, I wasn't too impressed at first. But then I looked up. The painting on the ceiling left me flabbergasted. I impulsively let out "holy sh*t" (no intentions of disrespect). I just didn't understand HOW one is able to create such a work of art on the underside of a DOME. The thought of it still awes me. We realized that there were people actually walking above us at the base of the dome and immediately set out to find our way up. 10 euros and 463 steep steps later, we were up close and personal with Lucifer himself (the painting depicts Heaven and the holy, earthbound folk, and Hell and the Devil's gang). The view was crazy; look up and you see the details and brushstrokes of the painting and look down and you freak out about how high up you are and the little people down below. Nuts. We continued
Photo 5
At the Piazza delle Signoria. on the circular path and it eventually led us up INTO the dome. See, this is where the architect (of the dome), Brunelleschi, made the dome of the Duomo so revolutionary. First, the dome isn't actually perfectly circular, its octagonal. Secondly, it took some 4 million bricks to construct, still the largest masonry dome in the world. Thirdly, the dome is actually two domes, one on top of the other. The lower shell contains the painting while the exterior shell has a sort of lantern at the apex that lets light down into the church. I once read that you can even circulate BETWEEN the shells and I never actually thought I'd be able to do that! Once at the top you get a breathtaking 360 degree view of old Florence. Absolutely unforgettable. Definitely the highlight of my trip so far. Next up was to see the REAL David. I must admit, he's a good lookin' dude. Probably 20 feet tall, the statue is situated in an semicircular room with a large glass canopy that only adds to the impressiveness of Michelangelo's masterpiece, which is awesome. The museum prohibited cameras with guards on duty but I couldn't just NOT take
The Rape of the Sabine Women
The name of the sculpture sounds harsh but this has got to be one of my favorite statues (rape, is this context, suggests 'taking' or 'stealing' not like today's modern connotations). a photo. So I rebelled and sneaked a few clicks and felt like a badass afterward. No big deal. Last stop was Piazzale Michelangelo. The trek up to this viewpoint was like climbing a mountain. Not really, but wearing jeans and black t-shirt in 85 degree weather while hiking up a million and one stairs is just like it. Once there though, the view was definitely worth it. You can see all the major buildings all at once. They stand tall above the city. Florence is just great. Besides Seattle, Viet Nam, and my bedroom, Florence is one of my favorite places in the world. I've got two more days here. Since we basically saw most of the city already we might deviate from the itinerary for a day trip to Sienna. See you there!
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non-member comment
I never had the urge to go to Italy, but reading your entries, seeing the pictures, and sharing your feelings of excitement makes me want to go visit! I'm so happy that you are having such a great time! Continue being a badass and take more amazing pictures (just don't get caught - we can't bail your ass out). Seems like you've been gone a long time. I miss you. Pathetic, huh? Take care and love you much!! -4