Italy Day 4: Florence
We left for Florence in the morning. We took a high speed train from Rome to Florence that took about an hour and a half. After we found our hotel and dropped off our bags we started wandering around the town. We got checked in to our hotel and went to go see David. We purchased advanced tickets (like everywhere else we went) and just like everywhere else, it was a good thing we did! The advanced tickets allowed us to pretty much walk right in!
Locks Not Allowed
This is a great example of irony. This sign says "It is not allowed to put locks on the railing", yet there are hundreds of locks on the railing put on by people locking their love and throwing the key off the bridge into the Arno river.
Piazza di Santa Maria Novella
On our way from the train station to our hotel to drop off our bags we walked through the Piazza di Santa Maria Novella. On the north end there is this Basilica, the Basilica di Santa Maria Novella. This plazza was different from all the other's we have walked through in Italy because there were a bunch of street vendors selling things from meals to spices to bread and more! We took note of it and went back several times.
Duomo Dome
This is the dome to the Cupola del Brunelleschi in Florence.
Cattedrale di Santa Maria
This is the most famous church in Florence, the Duomo. Katherine and I didn't go inside and we didn't do our research, so I don't know why it's so famous other than that it's massive and you can see it from various points in the city.
Duomo Front
There were a lot of people in front of the Duomo in Florence. The line to get in to go to the top was massive. This was the one thing we didn't plan for. We stood in line for a little bit but then gave up because we would rather go see other things. Katherine found a picture of the Duomo from on top of a hill and made it her goal to go find where that picture was taken (for me to take photos - isn't she great?). After several wrong bus stops and walking a lot farther than we should have, we made it to that hill - but those photos are much later.
Green Marble
One cool thing about this church is the use of the green marble from Prato, Italy.
Brunelleschi's Dome
The famous dome on the Cathedral of Santa Maria in Florence, Italy is the largest dome in the world. The dome is 45.5 meters in diameter.
Window
This is a window on the Cathedral of Santa Maria in Florence, Italy.
Marble Statues
There were a lot of small marble statues above doors and windows on the Cathedral of Santa Maria in Florence, Italy.
Giotto's Bell Tower
This is the bell tower for the Cathedral of Santa Maria in Florence, Italy.
Tall Bell Tower
This is Giotto's Bell Tower, part of the Cathedral of Santa Maria in Florence, Italy.
Up the Tower
This is the view looking up on Giotto's Bell Tower in Florence, Italy.
Holy Doors in Florence
Katherine posed in front of a lot of holy doors on our vacation through Italy. This one is in front of the Cathedral of Santa Maria in Florence, Italy.
Intricate Work
I know it is hard to get the scale from this photo, but these columns are maybe 6 inches in diameter. These types of columns were several feet tall and everywhere along the Basilica - every window, door, just everywhere.
Santa Reparata
This is a statue of Santa Reparata on the Cathedral of Santa Marin in Florence, Italy.
Guild of Wool Merchants
This is the symbol for the Guild of Wool Merchants, a wool guild that started in Florence during the late middle ages. It was part of the Arti Maggiori (the greater trades) of Florence.
Searching for Utopia
This sculpture is part of the Jan Fabre exhibit which was in Florence while we were there. We had no idea that this wasn't a permanent sculpture.
Gold and Shiny
This sculpture is part of the Jan Fabre exhibit which was in Florence while we were there. We had no idea that this wasn't a permanent sculpture.
Fountain of Neptune
This is the fountain of Neptune in the Piazza della Signoria in Florence, Italy.
Fading
I can't remember where I took this photo. I know it was somewhere around the Piazza della Signoria in Floence, but looking back on my photos around this one I'm not sure which building we were in.
Gone Fishing
The Italians really like their sculptures with angels holding fish.
Heaxagon
This pillar is located in one of the buildings near Piazza della Signoria in Florence, Italy.
Medici Lions
This sculpted lion made of marble was created in Rome in the 16th century. This one and another similar sculpture were sitting on the sides of the entrance to Loggia dei Lanzi in the Piazza della Signoria in Florence, Italy.
Fierce
This is the other lion in the set of two Medici Lions in the Loggia dei Lanzi in the Plazza della Signoria in Florence, Italy.
Menelaus supporting the body of Patroclus
This sculpture depicts a scene from the Iliad between Menelaus and Patroclus. The two statues behind the one in the center are Barbarian prisoner Thusnelda and a Roman woman called Sabine (left and right, respectfully).
Perseus with the Head of Medusa
This bronze sculpture is depicting the scene that Perseus beheads Medusa. I don't know a lot of Greek Mythology, but this is one that I do know!
Facing the River
These apartment buildings and hotels are right up against the Arno, the river that runs through Florence, Italy.
Gelato!
Katherine and I had gelato two times a day all 9 days we were in Italy. That's a lot of gelato... But this was one of the cooler places we went (and most expensive). They had a giant wall that was a fountain of chocolate with their logo in the background. It was really neat!
David
This was something that we couldn't miss on our trip to Italy. Even though neither Katherine or I are very artsy people, we knew we had to see Michelangelo's David.
Katherine and David
Katherine standing in front of the famous and iconic David, sculpted by Michelangelo that was finished in 1504.
Looking Towards Rome
The story of David and Goliath is the accomplishment of David defeating a much stronger opponent, Goliath. When this sculpture was unveiled in 1504 it was placed with David looking towards Rome. Even though Florence wasn't as powerful, this statue was a warning to Rome to not mess with Florence.
Giant Hands
David's hand are unusually large because this statue was meant to be placed on top of a church. Most sculptures that are to bee looked up at have oddly disproportionately large hands and heads so that the proportions look correct from the ground.
Michelangelo
This is a bronze sculpture of Michelangelo that is inside the Accademia Gallery in Florence, Italy.
Bacchante With Fawn and Panther
This is a plaster model of a real marble sculpture that was sculpted by Francesco Pozzi.
Katherine & the Plaster Models
The Accedemia Gallery had a room full of plaster models from famous Italian sculptures. At first, Katherine and I though that these were all marble statues and we were amazed. It's still pretty amazing that you can create replicas this well.
Room of Plaster
This is a room inside the Accedemia Gallery in Florence, Italy that is filled with plaster models.
Crucifix
This painted crucifix was made in 1340 by Bernardo Daddi. It is painted in tempera and gold on wood. It is inside the Accedemia Gallery in Florence, Italy.
Blue Mountains
The mountains in Italy, specifically in Florence, reminded me of the mountains we have back home in Colorado - because of how blue they are.
Scattered Clouds
It was a perfect evening, just enough clouds to make the photos interesting and to make the sunset change colors just a bit.
Down the Arno
This photo is looking down Florence's river, the Arno.
On top of Florence
Busy City
Florence was pretty packed in terms of how close all the buildings are to one another.
Duomo From the Hill
This is the perspective that we were looking for of the Duomo. Since we didn't go up the Duomo, we decided to find a cool place to take pictures of the Duomo!
Climbing the Flag Pole
I like the fake monkey on the top of the flag pole on this bell tower in Florence, Italy.
Getting Darker
Katherine and I were at the Piazzale Michelangelo for about an hour and a half (until my camera battery died and I didn't have my second one charged). I kept taking photos as the lighting changed. This photo was taken right as they turned on all the lights in the city and started lighting up the churches.
As the Sun Goes Down
This is a picture of the Cathedral of Santa Maria in Florence, Italy during sunset.
Lit Up
The Cathedral of Santa Maria was the last building to be lit up at dusk in Florence. Ass soon as it did, I started taking a ton of photos since there was still a little bit of sunlight left.
Street Lights
This was my favorite picture that I took in Florence, and arguably my favorite photo of the whole trip. Taken during sunset, this photo looks down the Arno in Florence, Italy.
