Florence
The night of December 25th my parents, Matt, and I all climbed aboard an overnight train to Italy. We pulled into Florence around 6:30 am. We stopped into our hotel for a quick clean up, then headed out into the quiet streets of Florence.
Our first stop was to the Uffizi Museum where we saw one of my personal art favorites, "The Birth of Venus." Next we climbed the hill in the Oltrano district for an amazing view over Florence from the Forte di Belvedere. We finished out our day at the Royal Apartments of Palazzo Pitti. Some of the most beautiful curtains I've ever seen...
On the 27th we began with a trip to the Galleria dell' Accademia. Here the famous sculpture "David" by Michelangelo is housed. Pictures do not do justice to this enormous piece of stone - David stands 14 feet high and weighs several tons. But all I could notice was how big his hands were.
We went next to the Museo di Storia della Scienza where we saw some classics. It was a fine collection of Europe's oldest in measurements, scales, and other scientific devices. Though the highlights were definitely the telescopes of Tuscany's own Galileo.
After a quick stop for gelato, we were on to Santa Croce. This church not only has some amazing tombs, Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli just to name a few. but also contains fantastic relics such as St. Francis of Assisi's robe.
We had time to write out a few postcards and have dinner with my folks before Matt and I were on the overnight train back to Zürich. My parents left the next day for Rome and will be there through the New Year. Matt and I are already entertaining again. Dave, Matt's friend from Chicago, arrived yesterday morning.
It's feast or famine sometimes for company over here, but were glad to have our loved ones around, no matter how tired we get :)
An overlook of Florence from Forte di Belvedere
The view from Ponte Vecchio
A look onto Ponte Vecchio from the Uffizi Museum
The Duomo and Campanile
Inspiration for the Statue of Liberty - tomb of Niccolini in Santa Croce
The tomb of Michelangelo in Santa Croce
Above is the framed lens from the telescope Galileo used to discover Jupiter
Our first stop was to the Uffizi Museum where we saw one of my personal art favorites, "The Birth of Venus." Next we climbed the hill in the Oltrano district for an amazing view over Florence from the Forte di Belvedere. We finished out our day at the Royal Apartments of Palazzo Pitti. Some of the most beautiful curtains I've ever seen...
On the 27th we began with a trip to the Galleria dell' Accademia. Here the famous sculpture "David" by Michelangelo is housed. Pictures do not do justice to this enormous piece of stone - David stands 14 feet high and weighs several tons. But all I could notice was how big his hands were.
We went next to the Museo di Storia della Scienza where we saw some classics. It was a fine collection of Europe's oldest in measurements, scales, and other scientific devices. Though the highlights were definitely the telescopes of Tuscany's own Galileo.
After a quick stop for gelato, we were on to Santa Croce. This church not only has some amazing tombs, Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli just to name a few. but also contains fantastic relics such as St. Francis of Assisi's robe.
We had time to write out a few postcards and have dinner with my folks before Matt and I were on the overnight train back to Zürich. My parents left the next day for Rome and will be there through the New Year. Matt and I are already entertaining again. Dave, Matt's friend from Chicago, arrived yesterday morning.
It's feast or famine sometimes for company over here, but were glad to have our loved ones around, no matter how tired we get :)
An overlook of Florence from Forte di Belvedere
The view from Ponte Vecchio
A look onto Ponte Vecchio from the Uffizi Museum
The Duomo and Campanile
Inspiration for the Statue of Liberty - tomb of Niccolini in Santa Croce
The tomb of Michelangelo in Santa Croce
Above is the framed lens from the telescope Galileo used to discover Jupiter
posted by Jill Nachtman at 9:15 PM
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