Today, October 25, 2024, DAY 1.
Hoping to write a blog every day during our stay at Florence. I had visited Italy before - destinations were Rome, Milan, Venice. This time we decided to explore only one city in Italy, Florence, the city of Art and Architecture. I find posting pictures here challenging. So for now, only the descriptions - will try to add pictures later on - hope that works.
Reached Florence from Toronto by KLM flight via Amsterdam - it took six hours to reach the Dutch capital, and from there, after waiting for three hours, we took another flight for another one and a half hours to our dream city, Florence.
The first day was visiting only Florence Duomo.
A bit of history of the Duomo Florence Cathedral:
The Florence Duomo, also known as Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral, is located in Duomo Square, its construction began at the end of the 13th century under the design of Arnolfo di Cambio, a famous architect and sculptor who loved the Gothic style.
The cathedral has a main nave and two side aisles plus a rear apse. When di Cambio passed away, the construction of the cathedral was postponed and was resumed in 1334 by Giotto who designed the bell tower. However, the construction was interrupted again in 1337 with his death. The construction of this magnificent project continued with Andrea Pisano and Francesco Talenti finalizing its construction in 1359. The Giotto’s Campanile is 85 m high and it is possible to climb to the top through its 414 steps from where it is possible to appreciate a wonderful view of Florence.
In the mid of the 14th century, Florentine artists put aside the Gothic style and incorporated the Roman style. The Gothic air of the cathedral was hidden behind the red marble of Siena, the white of Carrara and the green of Prato. The metalsmith Lorenzo Ghiberti and the sculptor Filippo Brunelleschi had the privilege of finishing the Cathedral of Florence
Brunelleschi sculpted the statues for the dome and designed an innovative project to make the Florentine Cathedral the largest of its time. Brunelleschi started with the construction of the project by 1421, the polygonal base had already been completed while the dome was completed 15 years later. The red dome of the cathedral was then the largest in the world, 45 m in diameter and 100 m high and soon became the symbol of Florence.
The facade of the Cathedral was destroyed at the end of the 16th century and Emilio de Fabris redesigned it, made some modifications and incorporated marble in different colors.
What is the Duomo Florence Cathedral today?
The Duomo of Florence, Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral or Florence Cathedral (in Italian: Duomo di Firenze) is the episcopal seat of the archdiocese of the city of Florence. It is one of the greatest masterpieces of Gothic art and the first Italian Renaissance.
This Florentine cathedral is one of the largest churches in Christianity with its 160 m in length, 43 m wide and 90 m in the transverse nave. The interior height of the dome is 100 m. It is also a symbol of the wealth and power of the Tuscan capital during the 13th and 14th centuries. Its name derives from the lily, the symbol of Florence and the ancient name of the town called Fiorenza.
Today, the Florence Cathedral can be surpassed in size only by the Basilica of St. Peter in Vatican City, St. Paul's Cathedral in London, the Cathedral of Seville and the Cathedral of Milan. However in its time, this cathedral was the largest in Europe, with a capacity for 30,000 people.
Day 2 Exploring the Art Gallery
Uffizi Gallery, Florence - can’t believe we are watching real work of Botticelli and Leonardo De Vinci ! Botticelli’s Venus - feels awestruck! These paintings take my breath away!
Finished today’s adventures with the dinner at an Indian restaurant (The Royal) - Peshwari Chicken, Basmati Pulao, Palak Paneer were the dishes we chose. Yesterday had a funny “Chilly Chicken “ dinner at “Tang”, a Chinese Restaurant. Small pieces of deep-fried chicken were covered by a mountain of red chillies. On the first day we found a family-run Italian restaurant close to the hotel - had tomato and mushroom pasta! All were good!
Uffizi Gallery
Yesterday was our Day 2 visit to Florence where we visited the world-famous “Uffizi” Museum. This museum houses brilliant masterpieces by the Renaissance artists like Botticelli and Leonardo De Vinci. Most prominent exhibits are the paintings “Birth Of Venus” and “Primevera” (Spring) by Botticelli, and “Adoration by Magi” by Leonardo.
Below is what I found the best interpretation (collected from internet) of the first.
The Birth of Venus is a painting by the Italian artist Sandro Botticelli, probably executed in the mid 1480s. It depicts the goddess Venus arriving at the shore after her birth, when she had emerged from the sea fully-grown. The painting is in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy.
Known as the “Birth of Venus”, the composition actually shows the goddess of love and beauty arriving on land, on the island of Cyprus, born of the sea spray and blown there by the winds, Zephyr and, perhaps, Aura. The goddess is standing on a giant scallop shell, as pure and as perfect as a pearl. She is met by a young woman, who is sometimes identified as one of the Graces or as the Hora of spring, and who holds out a cloak covered in flowers. Even the roses, blown in by the wind are a reminder of spring. The subject of the painting, which celebrates Venus as symbol of love and beauty, was perhaps suggested by the poet Agnolo Poliziano.
It is highly probable that the work was commissioned by a member of the Medici family, although there is nothing written about the painting before 1550, when Giorgio Vasari describes it in the Medici’s Villa of Castello, owned by the cadet branch of the Medici family since the mid-15th century. This hypothesis would seem to be born out by the orange trees in the painting, which are considered an emblem of the Medici dynasty, on account of the assonance between the family name and the name of the orange tree, which at the time was ‘mala medica’.
Unlike the “Allegory of Spring”, which is painted on wood, the “Birth of Venus” was painted on canvas, a support that was widely used throughout the 15th century for decorative works destined to noble houses.
Botticelli takes his inspiration from classical statues for Venus’ modest pose, as she covers her nakedness with long, blond hair, which has reflections of light from the fact that it has been gilded; even the Winds, the pair flying in one another’s embrace, is based on an ancient work, a gem from the Hellenistic period, owned by Lorenzo the Magnificent.
DAY 4 Academia Galleria
Day 3 was rest for me although my family visited the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Beautiful perfect weather - not warm, not chilly, pleasant and sunny! Visited “Academia” gallery today morning - it has the 17-feet statue sculpture of David by Michael Angelo - his signature creation. There are many unfinished works by him too - and many Renaissance paintings and paintings from before. I am not fond of war pictures, Madonna and the Child paintings are my favourites!
Had excellent breakfast of scrambled eggs, mushrooms, artichokes, cheese, carrot cake , and a lavish array of grapes, watermelon, pineapple, at the hotel lounge. Many kinds of fruit juices and many kinds of coffee are available - Italian coffee is so good I am getting addicted to!!! Breakfast is included with our stay in the hotel.
David is a masterpiece of Italian Renaissance sculpture in marble, created from 1501 to 1504 by Michelangelo. With a height of 5.17 metres (17 ft 0 in), the David was the first colossal marble statue made in the High Renaissance, and since classical antiquity, a precedent for the 16th century and beyond. David was originally commissioned as one of a series of statues of twelve prophets to be positioned along the roofline of the east end of Florence Cathedral, but was instead placed in the public square in front of the Palazzo della Signoria, the seat of civic government in Florence, where it was unveiled on 8 September 1504. In 1873, the statue was moved to the Galleria dell'Accademia, Florence. In 1910 a replica was installed at the original site on the public square.
The biblical figure David was a favoured subject in the art of Florence. Because of the nature of the figure it represented, the statue soon came to symbolize the defence of civil liberties embodied in the 1494 constitution of the Republic of Florence, an independent city-state threatened on all sides by more powerful rival states and by the political aspirations of the Medici family.
Day 5 Dinner at an Italian Restaurant
No museum visit for me today, but attending a pasta cooking class with my daughter in the afternoon. So it’s experiencing food adventures today - culinary story! It’s morning here - let me post some pictures from yesterday’s dinner at an Italian place. I will add more pictures after I am done with the class! Trying to remember the names of the dishes -
1. first one for me: basmati rice-cake with shrimps
2. Two: Mushroom Rissotto
3. Three: Linguine Pasta with shrimp
We had a salad - very refreshing - lettuce, goat cheese, olive, cucumber, tomato with Olive oil and balsamic vinegar dressing!
Day 6 - Culinary Adventure
Attended a pasta-making session at one of the culinary schools. We learned making three kinds of pasta and a dessert. Three kinds of pasta - Fettuccine, Ravioli with Ricotta and Spinach and Potato Gnocchi. Two kinds of sauces - Ragu and Sugo All’Agloona. And lastly Panna Cotta! The teacher was the funniest young man I have ever met! And lastly they served us a great dinner with all the dishes we had learned!
Breakfast is included in the hotel we are staying at. Noticed with excitement that they don’t only serve cereal, toast, croissants, cakes, all forms of eggs, plenty of a variety of cheese….but a dish with rice and vegetables. Every single day they offer veggies on the breakfast table - eggplant, artichoke, mushrooms, even slices of pumpkins. I loved Artichokes - I didn’t know how to cook them. Pineapple and Watermelon were the fruits they mostly served. There were sausages, and bologna slices too, which I am not fond of.
After breakfast I usually sit in the hotel lounge for some time when my family gets ready for their adventures, and the room gets cleaned. I don’t know why I feel like Virginia Woolfe’s Mrs. Dalloway when observing tourists from different states of Europe and other countries, mainly the USA. The weather this whole week is spectacular and pleasant here - we are lucky!
Day 7 Story Of David and Goliath
Today is the last day at Florence for now. We loved this city, this location, this hotel…so planning to come back again.
We visited Statue of David at Academia Galleria on the third day of our visit. I remember reading David’s story while in school, but just to make sure everyone understands the significance of this story, it’s here:
According to 1 Samuel 17, Goliath, a heavily armed Philistine giant, challenged Saul, the King, for 40 days to send out a man to fight him. No one would face this warrior until David, armed only with a sling and stones, volunteered. David hit the giant in the forehead with a stone and killed him.
David knew size doesn't matter, it's HEART, COURAGE, and COMMITMENT that matters. You can apply the same principle and same level of thinking to your life and the challenges you're facing. Think bigger than the challenge, be bigger than the obstacle, and act as if it's impossible for you not to fail.
King David was Israel's first important king who united the 12 Israeli tribes. An astute ruler who formed an alliance with Egypt, David was in power from around 1010–1000 B.C. until his death in 970 B.C. As a commander, David defeated the Philistines and spread Israel's borders eastward.