Florence, Italy

We caught buses 12 & 23 to the station this morning as Roberta had made a reservation for us tomorrow at the Uffizi Gallery and it had to be paid for at the tourist office.

With that out of the way we started our first day in Florence by going to the Duomo Cathedral. This 13th century cathedral is the fourth largest in Italy (and actually it’s the 11th largest in the world) and is absolutely amazing from the outside as it is covered entirely by a marble façade (built in the 16th century). The dome inside contains frescos of Judgement Day and some of the stained-glass windows were designed by Donatello, but otherwise the interior is quite non-descript. There is meant to be an incredible view of the city from the top of the dome. We didn’t climb it considering the view from our own campsite.

Duomo, Florence, Italy

Duomo, Florence, Italy

Duomo, Florence, Italy

Next, we walked to the Santa Croce. This church was built in 1288 and houses the tombs of Michelangelo and Galileo, as well as a monument to the Italian writer, Dante.

Santa Croce, Florence, Italy

Just outside the church is Museo Santa Croce, which is currently holding a Salvador Dali exhibition – so of course we went in. I’d say Dali is my favorite artist as his imagination is wild and his drawings superb, and this collection was no exception. Some pictures had explanations with them which made them all the more interesting and understandable. My favorite section was a series he did based around the Bible and the Lord’s Prayer. After all the straight-forward religious art we have seen, it was great to see it in a different perspective.

When we finished here it was lunch o’clock so we found a small trattoria to have lunch in.

Revitalized, we headed back to the Duomo to go to its Baptistry – supposedly the oldest building in Florence. The most famous part of the building is its northern door. This bronze door has the Gates of Paradise carved by Lorenzo Ghiberti – 12 scenes from the Bible.

Baptistry, Duomo, Florence, Italy

Our next stop was the Galleria del l’Accademia – home of the famous David by Michelangelo, as well as other sculptures and paintings by this artist and others (including Botticelli). The David is the masterpiece though, and it takes you by surprise, as there is no build up to it. You just turn the first corner and there it is. I also found out that this is the character from David & Goliath – ignorant me had no idea.

Michelangelo's David, Galleria del Academia, Florence, Italy

After the Accademia we found an internet place and sent messages for the next hour.

Our last stop for the day was Ponte Vecchio – a 14th century bridge which is full of silversmith’s and goldsmith’s shops – expensive ones at that. The bridge was the only one of the cities to survive Nazi bombing in World War II.

Ponte Vecchio, Florence, Italy

We caught the bus back home and had another cook tent meal before heading up to the bar for a couple of drinks and a game of cards to end the day.