Monday, May 21, 2012

We woke up to rain this morning, but by afternoon it was mainly sunny. We got caught out in a downpour late in the afternoon, but the good news was that we were only half a block from the hotel.

We had breakfast at our usual time (early) and met our guide at 9 AM and set out walking. We were shown a few watch towers built by wealthy families to keep them (and their servants) safe if fighting broke out inside the City walls. The entrances were on the second floor, reached by ladder, and then the ladder would be pulled up so no one else could get in. Of course these lower levels are now used for shops and, I suppose, places to live. We also passed near the spot where Dante lived.

We wandered through a few more piazzas before we reached our first destination of the day – the Bargello Museum. No, not that kind of Bargello. It originally was a barracks and prison. Now it holds magnificent works of art, including some by Michelangelo and Donatello.

We had a lovely Tuscan lunch and then a bit of time to explore on our own until we met for our next tour. We wandered down to the Arno River and got our first view of Ponte Vecchio.

Our next programed stop was at the Baptistry. We saw a short film on the history of Florence (I think it was mandatory because of our exclusive tour) – both Pat and I had trouble staying awake for it. The Baptistry is an octagonal building. Seven of the sides represent the seven days of the week and the eighth represents the ‘eternal’ day where the sun never sets. We were able to see places in the Baptistry that are usually off limits to visitors. We had a magnificent view of the floor mosaics and the baptismal font, although the first baptisms were done by immersion.

Someone (who clearly is more knowledgeable than I am) commented that the altar was in the nave opposite to where it should be. We were told it was so that after baptism you would go through the Gates of Paradise into the Duomo church.

We climbed a narrow, winding staircase (about 30 steps) to the first balcony where we were able to walk around the entire structure. There were another 20 steps up to the second balcony – this stairway was just as narrow and winding. It was between the two domes of the ceiling so rather interesting. After a view from the top we headed down the long and winding staircase. This time there were 50 steps without any breaks. The stairs were just as narrow going down and, in some cases, almost too dark to see one step ahead. It cured me of my desire to walk the 400+ steps up brunelleschi’s Dome.

Many of the galleries don’t allow photos and I find that gives me a certain amount of freedom. Rather than trying to get a good shot, I pay more attention to the places and pieces.

Pat and I wandered the streets a bit more before our next lecture, and we went almost straight to dinner from there. I did a bit of hand washing in the evening – Stacia’s tip about wrapping items in a towel and stomping on them worked great!

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