New Year's In Florence

For our final week of 2013 we shifted time periods by traveling from Ancient Rome to Renaissance Florence. Like Rome, Florence was in the holiday spirit with festive lights decorating the small streets and a beautiful tree and cresche scene next to the Duomo. Our quaint apartment was located minutes from the Duomo, and we could even see it from our bedroom windows! We enjoyed the new atmosphere Florence provided us as a city rich in Medieval and Renaissance history and art. Although we had visited the city earlier this semester, we were able to explore and enjoy it more with our parents. Our two biggest museum visits were the Uffizi Gallery and the Accademia. First of all, we were amazed to see how many people were waiting in the massive line to get into the Uffizi Gallery, which wrapped along the building and seemed to go on forever. We luckily already had tickets, but we still had to wait in a line to get in because it was so crowded! The collection was well worth the wait, with works including Botticelli's "Birth of Venus," various works by Giotto, Cimabue, and others. We also visited Florence's most loved work, Michelangelo's "David." While we knew and loved learning about him in high school Art History, seeing "David" was a whole other experience. We spent lots of time walking around "David" and viewing him from different angles, which is extremely important for admiring just how incredible the work is. We even had an intellectual art discussion with our parents about whether or not David is depicted before or after the slaying of Goliath (while the information board in the museum said after, we both believe it is definitely before!). 

We also visited three of Florence's most beautiful churches: Santa Maria Novella, Santa Croce, and the Duomo/Santa Maria del Fiore. The marble decorations of all three churches were absolutely incredible, and it's hard to imagine that they have been around for hundreds of years! When inside Santa Croce we visited the tombs of some famous Florentines: Machiavelli, Galileo, and of course, Michelangelo. We appreciated how his sepulcher included sculptural, painted, and architectural decorations, which perfectly describes him as an artist. 

Santa Maria Novella

Santa Croce 

The altar of Santa Croce.

Michelangelo's tomb in Santa Croce.

And directly across from Michelangelo's tomb was Galileo's tomb!

All of us decided to take the long journey up to the top of the Duomo. For some odd reason we thought it was only 200 steps to the top, when in fact it was 463 steps (to be exact)! Although overcast when we finally finished our steep climb, the views were still beautiful as we looked onto the city. Another gorgeous viewing point was Piazzale Michelango, a park on top of the hill on the other side of the Arno river. We traveled up the hill on one of our most beautiful days in Florence, and we were able to see other towns outside of Florence and get a glimpse of the Tuscan countryside. 

The incredible interior of the Dome.

Look at the view!

Ghiberti's "Gates of Paradise" within the Duomo Museum.

The interior of the Baptistery. 

The view from Piazzale Michelangelo.

While we stayed in Florence we took two day trips, one to the Tuscan hill town of Siena and the other to the wonderful sinking city of Venice. The delightful town of Siena surprised us with its charming streets, impressive main piazza, and its striking cathedral and duomo. When we entered the Siena's Cathedral, we were enthralled by its beautiful floors, filled with impressive mosaics. The amount of detail that went into the flooring itself was unbelievable! After touring the cathedral, we went up to a viewing point in its museum where we had an impressive view of the surrounding countryside! 

Siena Cathedral

Inside the library of the Cathedral. 

Views of the city of Siena.

We braved the weather in Venice, where it was gloomy and raining the entire time we were there. It was still a beautiful place to visit and to see how it compared to all of the other Italian towns we had visited. After touring St. Mark's, Piazza San Marco, and Ponte Rialto, we meandered the "streets" (alleyways) of Venice, strolling over bridges here and there and walking into various stores to appreciate the beautiful Murano glass. Although it was extremely cold and rainy, we made the most of our day in Venice! 

Saint Mark's Cathedral

Trying to stay warm in Venice!

Looking down the Grande Canal from the Rialto Bridge.

While in Florence we celebrated New Year's, Italian style! After meeting up with one of our friends, who is also spending the year abroad with us, and her family, we ate at one of our favorite restaurants, "Ciro and Sons." We enjoyed a multi-course meal which included "Florentine steak," a typical beef dish of the region. We then walked the streets as they began to fill up with young Italians getting ready to ring in the new year. Firecrackers were going off in the streets, vendors were selling bottles of prosecco and blinking headbands, and people were everywhere. We have never experienced anything so lively; it was absolutely incredible! After a while (and when a couple firecrackers went off a little too close for comfort), we retreated to our apartment to continue to watch the festivities from there. At midnight it was madness in the streets, fireworks began to go off in all directions, even in the street right across from us! We had a perfect view of these fireworks, and we're glad to have been able to experience New Year's in such a vibrant and fun-loving way!

Megan is excited to try Florentine steak!

Fireworks! Happy New Year's Firenze!

After our New Year's week in Florence, we made our way back to Rome for one last night of vacation with our parents. We had so much fun showing them around Rome and exploring Florence, Siena, and Venice with them. While it was sad to see them leave, we're excited for our next adventure!