Florence, Italy

I had eggs for breakfast for the first time in a long time, and dang, they were good. Too bad they weren't fresh from my own backyard!

I headed to the Uffizi Gallery at 8:30 am hoping to be able to get a ticket without a reservation. Rick Steves had me all worried that it was impossible to get in before 4:00 without one.

I walked right in. He must only travel May-September. For €6.50 I was headed in to see the greatest collection of Italian paintings anywhere by Giotto, Leonardo, Raphael, Caravaggio, Rubens, Titian, Michelangelo, and Botticelli. The paintings are displayed in the U-shaped building in mostly chronological order, from the 13th-17th centuries, making it easy to see the changes that the Renaissance brought. The corridor connecting all the rooms is lined with hundreds of sculptures lined up bust, bust, statue down the long halls. There are all styles...Florentine, Middle Ages, Renaissance, Baroque, etc. I learned more from the hour and a half I spent in that museum than I have in every art/humanities class I have ever taken combined!!

Some highlights included Gothic altarpieces (and their explanations); Filippo Lippi's Madonna; the whole Botticelli room including the Birth of Venus and Spring;The Adoration of the Magi and the Annunciation by Da Vinci; and Michelangelo's only completed painting, the Holy Family.

I used an audio guide, and I'm so glad I did. It gave me behind the scenes information that I never would have known or thought about or been able to see in the paintings. It's like...ok...you see someone on the street. Big deal. Happens all the time. You learn someone's name and it takes you a few times to even remember it let alone care. You learn some fun facts about someone and they become more memorable and interesting. You learn intimate details and develop a friendship with the person and suddenly you care a lot. That was my experience today but with the paintings...does that make sense? I have never, ever been artsy fartsy in any way, shape, or form...but Florence has changed me. I think I finally understand art and its purpose and meaning. It literally spoke to me today. I know I'm getting creepy, but listen. I like to learn. A lot. And today I learned about the Renaissance...something I've heard about for ten years now, but today I SAW the Renaissance. I saw the Gothic altarpieces that are just like the ones that have been in the billions of churches I've visited. I saw how the people in these paintings are ordinary, worldly, detailed, and symbolic. They're unrealistic and straight to the point.

Then, I saw the Renaissance. I saw the painters attempting to capture perspective and dimension. I saw them thoughtfully painting individual people. I saw how the Madonna in Filippo's painting didn't need a halo (like those in the Gothic paintings) to show she was holy. It was in her face. Her beauty says it all.

I saw the shift away from Madonna and on to Venus. I saw the Birth of Venus which is described as the purest expression of Renaissance beauty. I saw Da Vinci's paintings which showed real, natural people..he showed their inner personality.

I saw naked people. Lots of naked people. They slowly got more and more naked as time went on. But it was okay because until I got to the Venetian Renaissance art it was all just innocent, pristine beauty.

I learned that Lorenzo Medici (the Magnificent), Botticelli, and Michelangelo were friends and poets on top of everything else. They believed that the beauty of the world around them was a reflection of the God who created it. Isn't that beautiful? I learned that Michelangelo's last name is Buonarroti. Isn't that cool? I learned a lot of stuff that you don't care about. But that's just because you haven't learned enough about it to care. I never thought I'd care about old art and artists, but I do now.

The Uffizi Gallery courtyard is filled with artists, souvenir stalls, and statues honoring the famous Florentines such as Michelangelo, Dante, Machiavelli, Galileo, Lorenzo the Magnificent and Amerigo Vespucci. As I was thinking about how cool it would be to be important enough to have a statue of me, I saw a statue move. I realized there was a person dressed in "marble," standing as still as possible, pretending to be a statue. There was a place for money in front of him. I came back three hours later and he was still there, staring straight ahead. Creepiest thing ever.

After that life changing experience I headed to another one at the Galleria dell'Accademia. This museum holds Michelangelo's David..the Renaissance statue of the buff, biblical, and very naked shepherd boy ready to take on the giant. You turn the corner from the entrance and WHAM!! The biggest and bestest statue you ever could see.

He's at the end of the hall under a dome built especially for him. The light shines on all 14 feet of him so perfectly. I learned about David. I learned that Michelangelo was just 26 when he made him, and that he was the only sculptor up to the challenge. He was given a big block of marble and worked free hand to create the big beauty. David was supposed to be for the Duomo, but for reasons I can't remember he ended up guarding the entrance to the Town Hall, the Palazzo Vecchio, for 350 years. There is a replica in his place, and I saw that yesterday, but because of the other huge statues and tall, ornate buildings it just doesn't look as awesome. The original in the Accademia is LEGIT.

He is relaxed but alert, sizing up his enemy. The stone is in his right hand and the sling in his left. He's confident. He's got this. He can take this guy. I love that he has no armor...it's just a God given body and wits. He's amazing. Absolutely amazing.

There are also some unfinished sculptures: Prisoners, St Matthew, and the Pieta. Those were cool because it showed the process of sculpting and had figures coming out of big blocks of marble. Michelangelo said that the sculptor was a tool of God, responsible only for chipping away at the stone until the intended sculpture emerged. What a guy.

I left the Accademia and walked through town, across the river, and to the edge of town to see a most excellent view of the Duomo and Florence. There are church steeples and domes poking up every ten feet...it's just unreal. All of it. Everything.

I still have one more life changing experience to tell you about today. One word: Gelato. Gelato is an edible art form. Italy's best ice cream is in Florence. It's a souvenir that can't break and won't add weight to my bag. I had never tried gelato before today, but I have always been an avid ice cream fan. Let me just tell you, Florentine gelato did NOT disappoint. I tried two different gelaterias today: Grom and Vivoli's. Grom was recommended by Rick Steves (no, I do not worship him, I swear) and a few people online, and Vivoli's was recommended by the lady that I talked to that works at my credit union. When I called to let them know I'd be using my card out of the country she ended up giving me some tips...Vivoli's was her biggest tip. It was the most amazing thing I have ever experienced. I'll probably walk all the way back there for more tomorrow. She was totally right. It won the battle. SO good.

I ate my gelato while strolling through the streets of Florence. I saw more attractive men as well as lovey dovey couples. Italians walk so slow but drive so fast! I said "ciao!" to the shop workers stepping outside on their porches for a smoke. I wondered why America is not pedestrian friendly and wished it was. I caved and went more than window shopping and bought myself a new shirt. I couldn't resist any longer. I think a bag might be next :/ I returned to my hostel, ate Florentine pizza for dinner, and got settled in for the night.

Overall, Florence has been more than a success. My time here is not over, but I just have learned so much here. You really cannot judge a book, or anything, by its cover. There is so much more to everything than what you see. You have to try everything once. You have to learn about people, places, and things in order to really know what you like. You have to see for yourself, you know?? Everything in Italy been exactly what I imagined and more. The vespas, the gelato, the guys, the art, the beauty, the pizza. It's all so..perfecto!!

This was a really cheesy and probably boring post, I apologize. Come to Florence and you'll understand!!

“My soul can find no staircase to heaven unless it be through earth's loveliness.”
-Michelangelo

PS no pictures were allowed in either museum. I did sneak some of David, but I just got the paintings from the Internet.

The policemen

GELATO

Vivioli's Gelato

GELATO

Birth of Venus

Duomo

View of Florence

View of Florence

Filippo

GELATO from Grom

Uffizi Gallery with construction

DAVID

Palazzo Vecchio

Lorenzo the Magnificent

Ponte Vecchio from inside the Uffizi Gallery

Giotto

DAVID

GELATO

Famous doors

Michelangelo

Uffizi Gallery

Florentine Pizza

Da Vinci

Fake statue man