I'm back!
This was my last day, and they (ivo and marisa) had the exam after lunch, so i decided to catch a bus and head to Firenze (Florence). I was extremely curious to see the landscapes of Tuscany... when i arrived i couldn't see anything because it was already dark.
I saw some wonderful landscapes, houses on top of great hills, endless vineyards and lots of green everywhere.
The city itself, was a lot different than Siena, which was to be expected, being the capital of Tuscany. It was a lot more urban, and it felt like a modern city with some spurts of history here and there. Unlike Siena, which has a tottally opposite feeling. The whole city is history, and you find patches of modern culture here and there, inbetween historical buildings and piazzas.
Check out the photos...
this is just a sample of what i saw, but being on a fast moving bus it was hard to get the camera out on time and take the photo. *sighs* i suck.
This was the first stop in Florence. It's the church of Santa Maria Novela
what i love about italian churches is that their fronts are always filled with delicious details, such as this
this was called the Batistério (Baptistry), just a few feet away from the Duomo of Florence.
I made a video, but haven't put it into my computer yet, so i can't show you the proximity.. a few things i recorded on video instead of taking photos... :-\
this was the exit/south door... wait until you see the eastern one ;)
here it is. it's all bronze.. it's also called Porta del Paradiso. It was made by Lorenzo Ghiberti and I overheard a tourist guide saying it was considered the starting point of the Renaissance.
the detail was breathtaking... i filmed the panels one by one but took photos of some details... here's two of them.
(found this and this on the web, interesting if you wanna see the surroundings)
another one
Michelangelo once said the doors could be the doors to paradise. more info
The panels symbolized many biblical events... Here's a few of them, in no particular order (sorry, can't find a complete list)
- The Story of Joseph
- Discovery of the Golden Cup
- Isaac Sends Esau to Hunt
- Drunkennes of Noah
- Creation of Adam and Eve
- Killing of Abel by Cain
- ...
Going into the Baptistry, a detail of the entrance door
the ceiling on the baptistry, with Jesus
higher angle.
a detail, probably inspired by Dante's Divine Comedy. I could be totally wrong, though.
the altar
one side of the Duomo
same side
inside the Duomo, looking east
looking west
this came out blurry.. but it that painting reminded me of Minas Tirith ;) hehe i know, i'm such a LOTR nerd.
the Duomo's cupula
a detail
the altar
i found this weird... i know lots of european churches have hidden tombs and stuff beneath the floor, but a gift shop? That was a new one. ;)
The palazzo vechio. The tower is pretty similar to the one in Siena, but i think Siena copied Florence on this one.
do you recognize the dude on the left? (it's just a copy :P)
i loved this fountain.. that's Neptune over there..
here's a closer look at Michelangelo's David
i have major bad luck... i found several monuments going under severe restauration.. but that's a good thing, right? they're being taken care of. :) It's weird, i don't see this in Portugal.. ;P
(here's how the Loggia dei Lanzi, in Piazza della Signoria looked like in '98)
This was the best i could do, given the circumstances. This is the statue of Perseus holding Medusa's head, by Cellini (1544). One of the most impressive of the Loggia
I was blown away by this one. It's Hercules fighting the centaur Nessus, by Giambologna (1599).
Their expressions are impressive. Imagine watching this upclose.
(it's a tad blurry :-S)
The Rape of Polyxena, by Pio Fedi (1866)
Rape of the Sabines, by Giambologna (1583).
Piazzale degli Uffizi, this street was adorned with many statues and on both sides you could find the galleries of the Uffizi, which is a museum that contains some impressive master pieces.. to see the online catalogue, go here.
This guy was intriguing.. i didn't notice him till i was passing by.. loved the concept. specially since all around there were statues of men, on pillars. :D haha
The tower of the Palazzo Vechio as seen from the Piazzale degli Uffizi.
Here's one example of the statues of the great men from Firenze, Leonardo Da Vinci.
The Ponte Vecchio (which is italian for Old Bridge) upclose and personal. :D
Ponte Vecchio is famous for the jewelry stores and the street that links Palazzo Vechio to Palazzo Pitti. A question jumped to my mind.. hasn't anyone ever thought of robbing every store in that bridge? It's gotta be to most valuable bridge on the planet.
The Ponte S. Trinita from the Ponte Vecchio
This is a detail of the previous photo.. check the iron bars. People write their names on locks and put them there! Like, "eternal love", or "eternally binded"... They just don't know they clean them up every year, at most. Romantism is dead. :(
The Palazzo Pitti.. i heard it has the most amazing gardens, but i was running late and i had a bus to catch, so i couldn't go in, even if i wanted to pay an arm and a leg to do that. :P
Ponte Vecchio from the Ponte S. Trinita I
Back to Siena, shower, had dinner in the residence and then went up to the city centre.
Here's a photo of me and Marisa that night... the flash was too strong and too close.. we got all white and stuff... :|
(i got a pic with Ivo, but it's on Marisa's digital camera. I won't get it till august.)
Some spanish dudes were singing a few feet away.. they can go on singing for hours..
The night was pleasant, and we had plenty to drink. I made one mistake though, i mixed beer and red wine. That's always a deadly combination for me... towards the end of the night i started throwing up.. used that "vortex" of the Piazza del Campo i talked about, and my trip back to Rome was... hmmmm... peculiar. I caught the bus at 6am and was asleep most of the 3 hours, so i got to rest a bit and i was better when i arrived. I stayed at my other friends' house, Sara.. she was nice, she helped me to endure the sickness :-S Thanks Sarah.. specially for the plastic bags.. i didn't end up needing them after all ;D hehe
Oh, Guess what? The flight got delayed again. Let me tell you, Lisbon is impressive from the air. I should have disregarded the security requests to turn off all electronical equipment and should have snapped a photograph... do you guys take pictures on landings/takeoffs? Everytime i've asked, they always say no. :|
Anyways, i wish i had gone for more than 4 days, but still, i had an amazing time. Loved Italy, loved Siena and loved the Erasmus environment. I'm seriously considering going at least one semestre, eventhough they told me it's hard to leave just when things are getting (literally) hotter.. if i do, it'll be on the 2006/2007 school year.
I want to take the chance to thank both Ivo and Marisa for the wonderful company.. you guys rock.. and the selfish part of me wants you to get back, but the bigger part wants you to stay and have fun these final weeks. Clear up the exams and head south to the where the most beautiful beach in the world is in the Sardegna, and guess what... it's on the coast!! :P buahahhahahah *points at ivo*
Grazie, Ivo!!! Grazie, Marisa!!! :D
Saturday June 25th ¤ Sunday June 26th ¤ Monday June 27th ¤ Tuesday June 28th