Stargate

Instead of a Fall RV trip, we took a trip to see Cousin Judy in Italy. As time permits, I will return to add more detail, but here is a brief description for family (click on picture for a larger view):

Florence is a beautiful and historic city (and one very large shopping mall). It was the birthplace of the Renaissance, home to incredible art, blessed with a multitude of museums, and appears to have a magnificent church on every corner. Two of the most apparent structures are the Duomo (red dome above) and the Palazzo de Vecchio (a little off to the left). Cousin Judy's apartment and shop were located between the Duomo and the also famous Ponte de Vecchio (bridge adorned with jewelry shops). Her apartment is near the red marker "A" below.

Can you imagine sitting out on this terrace, sipping coffee and taking in the beautiful cityscape? This is what we got to do each morning from Judy's terrace.

The inside of the apartment was not too bad either.

We start our sight seeing by visiting the very famous Duomo, more officially known as "The Cathedral of Saint Maria del Fiore"

Judy and I have the exact Italian heritage -- and who looks like an authentic Italian?

The most recent facade. Although Florence now rigorously protects its history, we found in the church museum that the church had a number of extensive remodels to stay modern (and show off Florence's talent, wealth and power).

The gold work glistens in the afternoon sun. It really looks like those halos are glowing!

Very famous set of doors on the adjacent baptistry.

The end of the first of many enjoyable meals at wonderful local restaurants . At about 9 p.m. we start with an antipasto, then a pasta, then a main course, then a dessert. This is all accompanied by fabulous red wine, then an after dinner wine, and at about 11-11:30 p.m, a cup of espresso. At home this would have been a sure recipe for disaster -- heart burn, difficulty sleeping, etc. Nope, we had no digestive fallout (and I was eating stuff I would never touch at home) and slept like rocks. We decided that all that red wine was good for digestion. I did gain 7 pounds in 14 days, but it was worth it. For a few days I kept a list of foods we had sampled.

View of the Arno River from Ponte Vecchio.

The initial shot of Florence at the top of the page, is from Piazza Michelangelo which sits on a hill overlooking the city.

This is the view of Piazza Michelangelo from the center of the city.

Since Florence was in constant battle with its neighbors, a huge wall was built around the city. You might have to enlarge the photo (click on it) to see the wall in the center.

According to my colleague at the university, what you see is one of the major physical attractors for women. Michelangelo was certainly on to something.

What a great view of the city and we enjoy afternoon cappuccino on a terrace cafe.

Right next door to the Piazza was a RV park. Most of the motorhomes were about the size of ours. We saw lots of rv's in Tuscany. How they can manage on the narrow roads with fellow Italian ~~maniac~~ drivers, I don't know. And the round-abouts can even confuse the native Italians.

One of the towers to look for potential invasions.

Meanwhile, downtown,

Next to the San Lorenzo Cathedral is a famous street market. Many of the locals are no longer thrilled by the vendors as they are almost all foreigners. The facade of the church (classic early Florentine) does not begin to capture the beauty of the interior. We arrive too late to take the tour.

For Disneyland lovers, walking around Florence lent to the impression that we had been transported into a Walt Disney production. The streets and alleyways curiously wind and twist -- adorned with colorfully decorated shops.

Doesn't this building (on edge of Ponte Vecchio) remind you of something out of disney movie? I kept waiting for the face to talk. You don't see it? O.K., it might have been a jet-lag hallucination.

A tale of why it is good to speak/read the language of the country you are visiting. Here we are back at the Duomo. It had been so crowded the first day, we did not get a chance to see the interior of the building, especially the frescos on the interior dome. The lines into the building were long, but we picked a time of day when one of the side entrances had a relatively small backup. We got into the building, paid a fee, looked briefly at a sign in Italian, and were directed up a very narrow stairway. We assumed this would take us to a balcony from which we could see the fresco work.

And low and behold (click to enlarge) we were on a landing with a great view of the dome. Having seen the dome from several angles, we looked for the staircase leading down to the main floor. There wasn't any. The only way out was up! A long and narrow staircase went up to the top of the dome. A guide later told us it was 463 steps up. For a gimpy person, this was not good news. We probably hold the record for the slowest ascent and even then it was a struggle.

Yes fans, we are standing on the very top of the dome!

On the way down, I could take a snapshot of how steep and narrow the stairway was.

The next day we returned to the church and found another entrance to the main floor, and it was free to boot.

We venture out into the Tuscany country side to Volterra with Judy's dear friend Mario.

Volterra is known for its Alabaster sculptures, but we also enjoy its picturesque streets.

Back in Florence, we visit Judy's shop.

Right next door to Judy's shop is one of the oldest churches in Florence.

Little stalls sprinkled the streets. Here is a vendor selling a Tuscany favorite - Lampredotto (or more commonly known as "tripe" [which is the stomach lining of cows]). We did not try this Florentine treat.

Nondescript walls would daily bloom into these visual and tasty delights. Every nook and cranny of the city had some sort of shop.

Our guide took us to this cafe in the heart of the city and we returned several times for afternoon cappuccino and treats. One especially intriguing pastry was made from the dried carcasses of chianti grapes.

The Italians take a nice long lunch/afternoon break. From all the hiking (and wine consumption at lunch), I would usually collapse to regain energy for the 2 1/2 hour 9 pm dinners.

Ponte Vecchio is an ancient bridge (like over a 1,000 years old) that was originally filled with butcher shops but has evolved into a very pricey bridge filled with jewelry stores.

Click here for a panoramic view

This view is from the Uffizi Gallery, and shows the covered walkway that runs from the Plazzo Vecchio to the Pitti Palace (Vasari Corridor). It seems that in the 1500's the wife of the Grand Duke Cosimo did not want to have to walk with the common folk from the government palace to their residence. The odor from the butchers' shops on the Ponte Vecchio had to go so they were replaced by less smelly goldsmith shops -- hence the beginning of the very expensive jewelry shops we see today.

Below is the view of the walkway from the Pitti Palace across the river.

The tower of the Palazzo de Vecchio was the view from our bedroom window. At night, it was illuminated --- what a romantic vision.

This government building shows the emblems of the powerful guilds that were the source of power in Florence.

Standing in front of the Palazzo Vecchio in the Piazza della Signoria is a replica of the statute of David. Apparently this was where it originally stood but was removed to a museum for safe keeping.

Nearby is the Orsanmichele, an early very popular grain storage and market, was converted to a church after a venerated image of the Virgin Mary drew in crowds.

The Straw Market

The Straw Market

The famous Florentine Boar allows you to put a coin in its mouth. If it slides down into a catch drain, it is a sign that you will return to Florence. I score a bulls eye.

Our one bus tour took us through the Tuscany country side to San Gimignano (never to be pronounced correctly by either one of us). The towers attest to the history of conflict between communities that led to walls for protection from each other.

The view of the Tuscany country side from San Gimignano kind of reminds us of northern San Luis Obispo county.

Then on to Siena, a once fearsome rival to the power of Florence. The Duomo di Santa Maria della Scala was one of the most beautiful cathedrals we visited. The thing about bus tours is that there just isn't enough time.

The slopping Piazza Del Campo is the historic center of Siena. It is the site of a twice yearly horse race between/among the 17 wards of the city. Our guide tells us that seating is about as expensive as the Super Bowl. They take their horse races very seriously here.

On our return towards Florence, we stop off at a Tuscany winery.

Judy treated us to a one day tour of Rome on her day off. We took the fast train from Florence, taxi to the Spanish Steps, walked to the Vatican, took a compressed taxi cab tour of major points, strolled through the streets and then back to the train station for an evening train back to Florence.

Somewhere Alexa is looking at us.

Can you see her yet?

There she is right in the center.

Alexa and Judy partake of their favorite past time, SHOPPING.

We visit the Vatican. Much to our surprise, they let us in.

The Sistine Chapel was closed on this day, but we got to see the awe inspiring Pieta which is clearly a breath taking masterpiece even to an art hick like me. Parenthetically, there is another Michelangelo Pieta in Florence. The Pieta del Duomo sits in the Duomo museum which is more precisely called Museo dell'Opera del Duomo (Museum of the Works of the Cathedral). That unfinished work was quite powerful, but something was wrong. One of the figures looked odd and seemed to violate his notion that the figures are inherent in the marble and are freed by the sculptor (see Awakening Prisoner as an example). I found out later that Michelangelo had run into a blemish in the marble and abandoned it. An additional figure was added by the person who salvaged it -- hence the reason why it did not look right from the front. If you go back to the different views of the pieta, you can see what was wrong. Gosh, perhaps this is evidence that I learned something about art on this trip.

The famous Swiss guards.