Tourist Day in Florence: Take 2!
Over the past seven weeks that I have been in Florence, I
have gotten fairly familiar with the city. So much so, I think I may be falling
in love with it. I have gone to visit the Basilicas of Santa Maria Novella and
Santa Croce, the Uffizi Gallery, and the Bargello, but there is one place that I
have yet to explore…the “Big Red Dome” (aka the Duomo/the Cathedral of Santa
Maria del Fiore).
Sam, Courtney, and I decided that enough was enough and we
had to go explore the Piazza del Duomo and all that it has to offer.
We went through the Opera di Santa
Maria del Fiore Museum where we saw some of the original statues that stood
outside of the Duomo, the second of Michelangelo’s three Pietas, and the Gates of
Paradise (the original doors of the Baptistery that face the enterence of
the Duomo). The10 panels that make up the Gates
of Paradise depict scenes from the Old Testament—they are simply wonderful.
Fun Fact: One of the major guilds
of Florence held a competition between the artists in Florence to design the
north door of the Baptistery. The finalists were Lorenzo Ghiberti and Filippo
Brunelleschi. Ghiberti won because his Competition
Panel showed more depth and perspective than Brunelleschi’s panel.
Brunelleschi was so upset he fled to Rome. While there he studied the
architecture of the Pantheon. He later returned to Florence and designed the
famous red dome of the Duomo, which he credits to his time spent in Rome.
After the museum, we decided it
was time to climb Giotto’s Bell Tower. 414 steps later we made it to the top!
The view was beautiful and provided a very interesting perspective of the
Duomo.
The Baptistery is one of the
oldest buildings in Florence. The inside of the building is rich with color and
beautiful frescos. The decoration of the dome is striking with its coloring and
gold accents. (Oops! I didn't snap any shots of the Baptistry)
Finally, the Duomo. We walked
inside and were able to see some of the beautiful pieces of art within the
church, and ventured underneath where there are old Roman remains. My favorite
part, though, was climbing up to the top of the dome of the Duomo.
463 steps later…
My favorite church in Florence, Santa Maria Novella.
After our adventures at Piazza del Duomo we all went out to dinner where we met a new friend, Hailey. Good food, good wine, great company! Once dinner was over, we ended our night by heading over to a local bookshop to check out some locals play a little jazz.
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