The last few days have been a great way to end the trip in Italy. From Rome on Sunday we traveled by train up the coast for about 5 hours to the Cinque Terre. This a national park in the north on the Italian Riviera coast on the Liguerian Sea. The train ride was filled with coastal views (sort of like taking the coastliner up PCH), Italian villages, and fields and fields of sunflowers and grapes. We stayed in the quiet town of Vernazza. It was 2 1/2 days full of rest, laying out on the rocks, enjoying the water, kayaking on the glassy water. The small town has a variety of delicious restaurants. We ate delicious sea food and spaghettis. Anthony hiked around between the 5 towns (hence cinque terre) for a while when Amanda and I went kayaking. We enjoyed the chance to rest after long days of walking and busy crowds in Rome.
On Tuesday, we headed to Florence (Firenze to the Italians) by train. It's about a 3-4 hr. train ride (depending on if your train is on time.. ours wasn't) We got in around 1, and then I headed off to explore the birthplace of the Renaissance on my own. I bought a Firenze pass which gave me access to all the museums I wanted. It also gave me front of the line access. While it was a little pricey for my one day, it is good for 3 days and includes transportation and 2 hrs of wifi in selection spots of the city, so it ends up being a good deal. It's sort of like a fastpass at Disneyland. You get to cut the line, but still have to wait in the firenze line, which isn't too bad. My frist stop was the Galleria Academia to visit the David. Wow. Pictures don't do the size of the statue justice. The statues that line the hallway leading to David are also impressive. They are Michaelangelo's figures being "released" (in other words, they are only partially completed. The different figures are interesting to look and try to determine what his goal was. After seeing the marble releases and David I headed over to the Duomo.
This spectacular church is absolutely beautiful. While I've seen quite a few churches on the trip, this was my favorite outside so far. The mixture of green, rose and white marble with the statues and beautiful red brick dome create a wonderful exterior view. I headed to the ticket office picked up my ticket and then began my cupola adventure. My climb to the top of the dome was a long one. I knew it was some 400 steps to the top, so I popped in my ear buds and pumped in my music as I began the ascent with hundreds of my new friends. By the time you get to the top, you are so thankful for the fresh air breeze. This was especially true yesterday with the weather in the mid 90s and the humidity somewhere between 50-60%. Between the walking around the cities and the stairs (I've probably climbed close to 2,000 stairs in the last 5 days) I think I'm getting repaid for skipping the gym last month! :) The climb up the dome allows you to be between the interior and the exterior of the dome, so you can see the hering bone pattern, Brunelleschi used which is cool. The view is spectacular! You can see for miles and overlook the red brick roofs of Florence. After spending a few minutes catching my breath and taking in the view, I began the descent back down my 400 steps. This dome is what Michaelangelo used as his blueprint for St. Peter's.
My next stop was the Battisteria (Baptistery). This is right across the piazza from the Duomo. It is here that the famous doors of Paradise and New and Old Testament doors made of bronze are located. In 1401, Florence held a contest to design the doors of the Baptistery. Ghiberti won and Brunelleschi lost, but don't feel bad for him, that meant he got to design the duomo's dome instead. Ghiberti's doors are large and depict Biblical stories including Joseph and Benjamin, Abraham and Isaac, and Jericho. Inside the Baptistery, it is just as impressive with painted ceilings and walls. This is where Dante (among others) was baptized (yes.. Dante from Dante's inferno).
After grabbing a gelato, something Florence is famous for, I headed down to the Piazza Signoria where the famous Palazzo Vechio (old palace) that has a large clock tower is. I walked around then continued on the Uffizi Museum. This museum is filled with amazing works by artists like Michealangelo, Raphael, Titian, da Vinci, and other artists from the Roman times onward. It was a long walk through the museum. The museum itself is its inspiring piece of art. There are painted frescoes, portraits of the Medicis (the family who sparked the Renaissance with their interest in art) and beautiful tiles. There are no pictures allowed in most of the museums so I unfortunately had to take mental pictures. It was amazing to see in person some of the art that I teach on in World History in our Renaissance unit. The details in the paintings are incredible in person. So well worth it!
After my long afternoon of exploration, I headed back to the hotel to pick up Amanda and Anthony for dinner. We walked down to the piazza in front of the duomo and baptistery and ate dinner at an open air cafe there. It was beautiful to watch the sun set and the colors change on the church. After dark, I stayed down there and enjoyed people watching, taking night pictures, and catching up with home via wifi! :)
Today we said goodbye to Italy as we head to Greece for the next 3 days. We are taking a train to Rome, and then catching our flight to Athens in Rome.
pictures to come later... (airport wifi's not the best for uploading pics)
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