Leaving behind a cold and wet Rome, we arrived to a cold and wet Florence, and the prediction is for rain throughout my stay here, so will just have to make the most of whatever breaks there are in the weather - the joys of travelling through Europe in winter and early spring, I guess.
One thing that I have noticed in Italy is that designer-stubble is still in - at the train station this morning in Rome, looking around, I was the only man there without, and that included the policemen.
Florence (Italian: Firenze) is the capital city of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area.
Florence is famous for its history. A centre of medieval European trade and finance and one of the wealthiest cities of the time, Florence is considered the birthplace of the Renaissance, and has been called "the Athens of the Middle Ages". A turbulent political history includes periods of rule by the powerful Medici family, and numerous religious and republican revolutions. From 1865 to 1871 the city was also the capital of the recently established Kingdom of Italy.
The historic centre of Florence attracts millions of tourists each year, and Euromonitor International ranked the city as the world's 72nd most visited in 2009, with 1,685,000 visitors. It was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982 (honestly, I am starting to wonder if anywhere isn't a UNESCO World Heritage Site). Due to Florence's artistic and architectural heritage, it has been ranked by Forbes as one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
A famous author, who was more of a political thinker, from Florence was Niccolo Machiavelli, whose "The Prince" was a political "handbook", about ruling and the exercise of power - a read that I highly recommend (in the translated form, of course). Dante (author of the masterpiece "The Divine Comedy") was also from Florence.
While not from the city of Florence itself, Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci were also residents of the city at one time.
Florence is a delightfully compact city, and the accommodation is in an apartment just on the edge of the city centre in a typical old building - the walls are probably around 45cm thick! It is about 50m from the river (the River Arno), and about 15-20 minutes walk from the city, which heading along the river takes you straight to the famous Ponte Vecchio (Vecchio Bridge). Interestingly the walk takes you past the USA Consulate General building, right around the corner (the guards kept looking at me as I went past), a number of 5-star hotels, and the office of the Directorate the Antimafia Investigation - honestly!
I must admit, I really don't understand the Italian systems, but sometimes you just have to go with the flow (did anyone out there see that one happening?) and it all works out for the best; smile a lot, ask a few questions, be nice about it, and the Italians will happily help you.
That's me with David - I'm sure you can work out which is which!
Note to Vatican - that's a penis! I meant on the statue!
The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore (English: Basilica of Saint Mary of the Flower) is the main church of Florence; Il Duomo di Firenze, as it is ordinarily called, was begun in 1296 in the Gothic style to the design of Arnolfo di Cambio and completed structurally in 1436 with the dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi. The exterior of the basilica is faced with polychrome marble panels in various shades of green and pink bordered by white and has an elaborate 19th-century Gothic Revival façade by Emilio De Fabris.
The dome is the largest masonry dome in the world, and many obstacles had to be overcome to build it, as it has no buttresses to hold it together; at the time of building, there was no existing technology as to how to go about it, and even today, architects, designers, engineers and builders would have trouble reconstructing it. With 8 white curved ribs against red terracotta tiles, the dome dominates the Florentine skyline.
Of course, I took the opportunity to head inside the Cathedral while I was there.
The Uffizi Gallery, construction of which began in 1560, houses the artworks originally collected by the Medici family - and what an amazing collection it is. The gallery is named after the offices that it was originally going to be - as Uffizi is Italian for Office; it is in a u-shape, and the layout is by far the easiest to navigate and negotiate that I have been to on this trip - top marks there!
No photos are allowed, so you'll just have to imagine corridors lined with statues (one statue per two busts) - mostly of Roman and ancient Greek origins, and gallery after gallery of important works by the most famous artists including Leonardo da Vinci (his "The Annunciation" is a true masterpiece, and a sight to behold, that I loved); Michelangelo's "Doni Tono" which is stunning (particularly as Michelangelo was rated much more highly as a sculptor than a painter - tell that to the Sistine Chapel); Titian; Rubens; Raphael; Caravaggio; Rembrandt (including two self-portraits that I'm sure most of us have seen reproductions of over the years); Van Dyke; and of course Botticelli, including the famous "Birth of Venus" - amongst many, many others. Amongst my favourites were a series of fairly small but beautiful portraits by 15th Century Flemish artist Hans Melming.
I cannot rave about this gallery enough - if you ever come to Florence (which I already recommend) then you must come to the Uffizi - I think it is that good.
Although you can't take photos of the works (which is probably a good thing for my computer memory), you can take shots outside, and there is a good view of the Ponte Vecchio from one of the corridors, and of the Duomo from the roof-top café.