Florence
If you would like to follow my 15 day cruise then read the previous posts here:
Venice (1)
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Koper (2)
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Sarande (3)
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Split (4)
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Catania (5)
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Amalfi (6)
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Rome (7)
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After our day in Rome, Florence was a whole new experience. We docked in Livorno early in the morning and got a train once again, but this time to Florence. The one hour train to Rome was an easy 4 Euro while the shorter 20 minute train ride to Florence was a whopping 20 Euro! We couldn't understand why the huge difference, but it is what it is.
This time there was no Red Sight Seeing Bus to take us around the old city. Florence is compact and is better walked on foot.
Straight out of the Firenze train station we were immediately greeted with gorgeous architecture. It's quite something to visit ancient city after ancient city. The Dutch colonised South Africa from 1652, around 373 years ago and South Africa became a sovereign state in 1910, 115 years ago.So our country is relatively young compared to anywhere else in Europe.
We wandered through narrow streets to the Cathedral of Maria Del Fiore, a masterpiece in the Piazza del Duomo. What makes the Cathedral special is the light and dark marble contrasting across the entire building.
The Baptistry of St John stands across from the front entrance of the Cathedral. Its gold leaf door is viewed by visitors from around the world. It is possible to enter both the cathedral and the baptistry for a fee.
Attached to the Cathedral is Giotto's Bell Tower. It is a Gothic monument made of red, green and white marble. One can climb the 398 steps to the top of the terrace to see the city views from above.
As you can see the Piazza was busy with tourists so we took a side street in search of the Da Vinci Museum and that's when we saw the most beautiful view of the Cathedral peaking through between the buildings. We got an excellent view of Brunelleschi's Dome topped with a lantern. The cathedral is being cleaned section by section to reveal the true bright colours of the marble.
We paid the ten Euro entry fee and slowly made our way through the Da Vinci Museum. Da Vinci was a visionary of his time and one of the most incredible inventors in history. He was well known for his inventions, like the cog, sails reformed to create lift (The early helicopter), aeroplanes, parachutes, and automated drummer, the first version of a rebreather for diving under water and so much more.
//:# (!worldmappin 43.77320 lat 11.25584 long Mediterranean Cruise: Florence (8) d3scr)
He is most notably known for painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome, which we attempted to visit on the previous day in Rome, but were stopped by a special church service at the Vatican. The museum held a smaller vaulted ceiling painted by Da Vinci pictured above.
Marble bust of Leonardo Da Vinci
We made our way through the busy streets to Palazzi Vecchio. It was understandably busy because this is the site of Michelangelo's statue of "The David".
The David
I momentarily lost my husband in the crowds which left me slightly panicky because I had no way to contact him. Eventually I spotted him standing on a step so that he could look over the crowded piazza to find me.
Once reunited we made our way to see the copy of the David out front of the Museo di Palazzo Vecchi. The real David is found inside the galley on an upper level and you can enter for a fee.
We cued to enter the Museo di Palazzo Vecchio and enjoyed the lower level with its many sculptures, beautiful architecture and vaulted ceilings. The details were endless.
We then entered a dark hall to find the walls made into screens with projections of the best of Italy and its many facets.
From the Museum we moved outside to the Loggia dei Lanzi which is an open arched building filled with sculptures.
We walked and walked through passages with statues Aristotle, Cellini, Galileo just to name a few. The crowds pushed us forward making it hard to take in every detail. Our time was also limited with needing to get back tho the ship by last call.
As we turned the corner at the end of this hall we came upon the River Arno edged with arches and typical Florentine architecture. The River Arno runs right through Florence and is the source of water for Florence.
But towering across the river is the incredible living bridge named the Ponte Vecchio. The bridge is built up with homes, businesses and restaurants. The tourists flocked to walk across it. I can't imagine living on a bridge over a river that could flood at any time or deal with the amount of people constantly blocking your way home.
Ponte Vecchio
Our last stop before making the walk back to the translation was in a tiny Cafe along the side of the Arno River. The barista didn't quite appreciate that we wanted takeaway coffees, but we explained that we needed to head back to the ship (And that we couldn't afford to pay 3 Euro for a coffee PLUS another 2 Euro just to sit down - each).
On the walk back we discovered the key to parking in Florence.
This would NEVER happen back home where roads are reasonably wide and the Black Taxi's would take these tiny cars OUT! If you're a SAFFA you'll get it. In Florence the problem is foot traffic and parking. There is no parking in the centre of the medieval city because it is not made for cars, only people. So parking is found on the fringes and nearer to the train station.
The final site the we passed on the way was the Basilica di Santa Maria Novella. It is a 15th Century Church which has been changed into a museum. The black and white marble echo the start of the day at the Cathedral of Maria Del Fiore. The grounds of the church are immaculately maintained and the trees sculpted. Once again you can pay a fee to enter the church / museum to see incredible paintings and frescoes by Gothic and Renaissance Masters.
We were now in a rush to get back to our ship Got the next train as soon as it arrived. We loved Florence, but were not fond of the crowds.
The next day we relaxed in Cannes, France! So follow along for so many more incredible days on our Multi-country Mediterranean Cruise.
A reminder that all blog income will be used to Fund my son's European Trip to climb at the EUROPEAN CUP in Italy and Switzerland in June and July (And then a whole new Travel Blog Series will follow as we visit Italy, Austria, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.)
