When rushing through Europe, a quick stop in Florence is a must.
After touring Vatican city the day before, our tour group started off the Florence visit walking along the highway by the beautiful Arno River and eventually coming to a view of the Ponte Vecchio, a medieval arch bridge over the river.
We opted not to go into the Ponte Vecchio and just zipped through the side of the Ufizzi Gallery on the way to the Palazzo Vecchio.
Palazzo Vecchio is the fortress-like town hall and museum of Florence overlooking the Piazza della Signoria and is marked by its 300-foot bell tower . The David by Michaelangelo (a replica) stands right outside the Palazzo Vecchio.
Piazza della Signoria is the main square in Florence and center of political life. It is said that it has seen many events like the Bonfire of the Vanities (where authorities publicly burned condemed items in 1497) and the return of feared Medici rulers. This square is filled with statues with stories, some of which are housed in the Loggia dei Lanzi.
The Loggia dei Lanzi serves as an open-air sculpture gallery in a corner of the Piazza della Signora. The statues within tell a lot of stories.
Afterwards, we went through more winding streets to see the Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore, the cathedral of Florence. The huge structure is impressive, in finishes of pink, green, and white with the world’s largest brick dome. It is said that both Michaelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci had done work on this church. It was so big up close that we couldn’t take a shot showing the whole place.
Outside the cathedral is the Baptistery of St. John with exquisite bronze doors which came about as a result of a design contest conducted by the merchant’s guild of the city in 1401. A 22-year old artist named Lorenzo Ghiberti won over Donatello. It took him more than 20 years to make these doors (about 30+ doors). Michaelangelo had commented that the doors were so beautiful that “they would grace the entrance to Paradise.” Since that time, the doors were called Gates of Paradise.
A short walk away is the Basilica di Santa Croce (Basilica of the Holy Cross) is a Franciscan church (said to be founded by St. Francis himself) and serves as the burial place of big Italian folk like Michaelangelo, Machiavelli and Galileo.
We had a steak lunch at Baldovino Pizzeria (which was terribly overpriced but tasted good).
We were fortunate enough to visit a bazaar in front of the Basilica di Santa Croce as well as what could be the best place for a gelato before heading out to our afternoon destination – Pisa.
Read the Pisa story here or see the complete 10-day trip itinerary here.