Hi Everyone!
Today I visited the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, better known as the Duomo.
I started by climbing 463 steps to the top of the dome, a feat which is not for the faint of heart. The stairways are narrow, and incredibly steep near the top of the dome, and there is only one staircase for the last half of your journey, so you have to make way for people going the opposite direction you are.
It's worth the trip though, because the view from the top is amazing.
After descending the dome, I went inside the cathedral. The ceiling is beautiful frescoes, and there is a 24 hour clock at the rear of the church. The inside of the church seems rather sparse compared to some of the cathedrals in England, however the exterior of the Duomo has colorful paintings and green marble patterns, where the cathedrals in England are only the color of the stone. I tried taking a selfie inside, but apparently I'm harder to photograph in dim light than Harold is, because his selfie looked much better.
Under the church are the excavations of Santa Reparata, three churches dating from Roman times through the mid 1300's. This turned out to be my favorite part of visiting the Duomo. I thought the excavated remains were presented in a thoughtful manner. The remains stayed in their original locations, and as you wander through you can really see the size and scale of the different churches that had been built on the same site. I really loved this giant section of mosaic floor from the 5th century.
From there I visited the Baptistry. The Baptistry is a separate building because in the 1400's and 1500's you had to be baptized before you could enter the church. You don't expect the baptistry ceiling to be as stunning as it is.
There is a separate museum for all the treasures of the Duomo. I had fun wandering through statues and holy relics.
I'm going to take a moment to pat myself on the back for being an informed and prepared tourist. Pre-purchasing an all-in-one ticket allowed me to be in the first group to climb the dome. While other tourists were confused as to why they couldn't enter the excavations and baptistry, I scanned my ticket and was on my way. While the other tourists clustered around the baptistry doors trying to take pictures, I knew that the original doors were at the museum, where they are much easier to enjoy.
This afternoon I walked to the Piazzale Michelangelo, where I climbed many more stairs, again, for an incredible view of Florence.
Florence has an iris garden that is only open three weeks out of the year, and it happens to be open right now. I saw irises in so many colors; I usually see purple, sometimes white, but here I saw maroon, peach, and pale blue ones.
Harold was determined to find an iris that matched him. We were about to give up, when I saw this perfect one.
From there I walked back across the Arno river, where I had an amazing view of the Ponte Vecchio bridge.
I spent the rest of my afternoon at the Palazzo Vecchio. This is the second Medici Palace, and right next to the Uffizi gallery, what was the Medici Offices. The building is still used for official business today. The great hall was closed when I got there for an event, but the gallery above it is open so I was still able to see what it looks like.
I actually liked that the building was lit up in a non-traditional way, I got some interesting shots with colored lighting.
As I was leaving, the guests for the event were starting to show up in tuxedos and ball gowns. The square outside the Palazzo is a great place to eat a sandwich and people-watch. Everyone hangs out there.
While the Italian people may not be as regimented as the British, they are loads more fun. I came across this interesting spectacle in front of the Duomo on my way back to the hostel. The bride and groom were just passing by, and I'm guessing the guys are out for a bachelor party.
Today I visited the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, better known as the Duomo.
I started by climbing 463 steps to the top of the dome, a feat which is not for the faint of heart. The stairways are narrow, and incredibly steep near the top of the dome, and there is only one staircase for the last half of your journey, so you have to make way for people going the opposite direction you are.
It's worth the trip though, because the view from the top is amazing.
After descending the dome, I went inside the cathedral. The ceiling is beautiful frescoes, and there is a 24 hour clock at the rear of the church. The inside of the church seems rather sparse compared to some of the cathedrals in England, however the exterior of the Duomo has colorful paintings and green marble patterns, where the cathedrals in England are only the color of the stone. I tried taking a selfie inside, but apparently I'm harder to photograph in dim light than Harold is, because his selfie looked much better.
Under the church are the excavations of Santa Reparata, three churches dating from Roman times through the mid 1300's. This turned out to be my favorite part of visiting the Duomo. I thought the excavated remains were presented in a thoughtful manner. The remains stayed in their original locations, and as you wander through you can really see the size and scale of the different churches that had been built on the same site. I really loved this giant section of mosaic floor from the 5th century.
From there I visited the Baptistry. The Baptistry is a separate building because in the 1400's and 1500's you had to be baptized before you could enter the church. You don't expect the baptistry ceiling to be as stunning as it is.
There is a separate museum for all the treasures of the Duomo. I had fun wandering through statues and holy relics.
I'm going to take a moment to pat myself on the back for being an informed and prepared tourist. Pre-purchasing an all-in-one ticket allowed me to be in the first group to climb the dome. While other tourists were confused as to why they couldn't enter the excavations and baptistry, I scanned my ticket and was on my way. While the other tourists clustered around the baptistry doors trying to take pictures, I knew that the original doors were at the museum, where they are much easier to enjoy.
This afternoon I walked to the Piazzale Michelangelo, where I climbed many more stairs, again, for an incredible view of Florence.
Florence has an iris garden that is only open three weeks out of the year, and it happens to be open right now. I saw irises in so many colors; I usually see purple, sometimes white, but here I saw maroon, peach, and pale blue ones.
Harold was determined to find an iris that matched him. We were about to give up, when I saw this perfect one.
From there I walked back across the Arno river, where I had an amazing view of the Ponte Vecchio bridge.
I spent the rest of my afternoon at the Palazzo Vecchio. This is the second Medici Palace, and right next to the Uffizi gallery, what was the Medici Offices. The building is still used for official business today. The great hall was closed when I got there for an event, but the gallery above it is open so I was still able to see what it looks like.
I actually liked that the building was lit up in a non-traditional way, I got some interesting shots with colored lighting.
As I was leaving, the guests for the event were starting to show up in tuxedos and ball gowns. The square outside the Palazzo is a great place to eat a sandwich and people-watch. Everyone hangs out there.
While the Italian people may not be as regimented as the British, they are loads more fun. I came across this interesting spectacle in front of the Duomo on my way back to the hostel. The bride and groom were just passing by, and I'm guessing the guys are out for a bachelor party.
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