Day 6- Florence

Our sixth day in Italy was dedicated to all things Renaissance- the city of Florence! We took the train into the city, and headed straight to the Uffizi Gallery when we got there. (Actually, first we stopped for some breakfast at an Italian bakery and bought some bomboloni, which is basically the Italian version of a doughnut! Yum!)

The Uffizi Gallery is the premier museum of Renaissance art in the entire world! Not unlike the Louvre in Paris, the collection is so big that it is difficult to take it all in in just a few hours.... especially with three young children in tow. The U-shaped building itself was an amazing masterpiece of architecture, and the ceilings inside were so ornately decorated. As far as the art is concerned, Ethan and I struggled with appreciating it as much as, perhaps, someone with an art history background, might. But, it was still a worthwhile time. I think my favorite pieces that I saw there were two Botticelli paintings: The Birth of Venus, and Primavera (both painted in the 1480s). They were both larger than life... just amazing!When we left the Uffizi, we headed over to see the Ponte Vecchio Bridge. As you can see, this bridge is lined with shops. It was originally built in Medieval times when the shops were occupied by butchers. But today, most of the shops sell jewelry.

We also walked to the Pitti Palace. Originally built in Renaissance times, it has been occupied mostly by weathly Florentines, but was once used as a power base for Napolean himself.

After some lunch near Dante's home (as in Dante's Inferno), we headed over to the Accademia Gallery, where we had an appointment to see David.... that's Michelangelo's David, of course. I have to admit, David was impressive. At over 17 feet tall, he was certainly a sight to behold. David was carved by Michelangelo between 1501-1504. In 1504, the statue was unveiled to the Florentine Republic and, because of what it represented (David standing victorious over a larger opponent) it boosted the Florentine's confidence as they faced their own larger opponents of rival city-states.

At the Accademia, we were able to see other statues of Michelangelo including a series of his called Prisoners. It was amazing to see how the figures emerged from the stone. We were also able to see a incredible exhibit about musical instruments that the kids especially appreciated.

When we left the Accademia, we headed to see the Duomo. But, not without stopping for some gelato first. (And by the way, if you haven't seen how they display gelato in the window, this is what it looks like.) I know... tempting.

The Duomo is a magnificent centerpiece to the city of Florence. Also known as the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, this cathedral was constructed from 1296-1436. The cathedral complex also includes the Bapistry which is one of the oldest buildings in all of Florence (constructed between 1059-1128). One highlight of the Baptistry is the set of bronze relief doors created by Lorenzo Ghiberti.Ethan and Tim decided to walk up to the top of the Cathedral Tower to get a better look at the city. Here are a few of their photographs.We finished up our time in Florence with pizza for dinner. And no, we were still not tired of eating pizza!Over all, we enjoyed Florence, but I think we would have appreciated it more if we had a better understanding of the historical significance of this Renaissance city. The city itself was pretty neat, but I think we were spoiled by the charm of seeing Venice first.

My next post will be my last Italy post (sniff, sniff). Get ready to LEAN!!

Day 5- Cinque Terre

Our next day in Italy was a travel day. We had to drive from our agriturismo near Lake Garda to the west coast of Italy, since our next hotel was located outside of Pisa (about a 4 hour drive). We decided that we would travel a round-about way and go a little north on the west coast to see the Cinque Terre before heading south to Pisa.

We hadn't heard much about the Cinque Terre, except that a few friends had told us it was beautiful. We learned from our travel guide book that Cinque Terre (prounounced "CHINK-wah TAY-reh") means "five lands" in Italian. These five villages are located on the north-west coast of Italy along the Ligurian Sea.

Our drive to the western part of Italy was a lot more pleasant than we expected. The kids drove us crazy of course (we are clearly in the "are-we-there-yet????" stage of life), but the views were spectacular. We didn't expect to see so many mountains! And then there were MOUNTAINS! It was all I could do not to hang out the window to get better pictures.

Anyway, in our travel book, we learned that only one of the five villages of the Cinque Terre had public parking, so we set the GPS for the village of Vernazza. The other option was to drive to a city south of there and travel by train into the villages. But why do that when we already had a car to get us there????

We found out VERY quickly why people travel by train to get the the Cinque Terre. The roads were unbelieveably windy and steep. We learned the topography of the area VERY quickly. The villages are set on the coast at sea level, and you have to travel down the mountains to get to them. Windy, steep, and to top it all off- foggy! It was not a pleasant combination, and it made for a very stressful descent. The hairpin turns made the purple line on the GPS look like a big knot! I have to admit, I was scared, and I don't scare that easily. But, we had gone this far.....

We finally made it to the village of Vernazza only to find that the parking lot (yes, there was only one) was full. Thankfully, there was one spot left on the road. Ethan had to climb out of the passenger seat after parking it to make sure that we were over far enough, but we did it. We then had to walk about a mile down to the village (all the while thinking, we're going to have to climb back up this hill when it's time to leave!!)

This is what the road looked like behind me when we were walking (yes, that's what we drove down). You can even see the haze that was just starting to burn off as we got there. I was so intrigued by the Italians passion for growing grapes here, and amazed at how they would grow their vines even up the side of steep hills. Amazing! This is our "HOORAY, WE MADE IT HERE ALIVE" shot.As we walked into the village, we noticed how many people there were! There were tourists (particularly Americans) everywhere! I couldn't help but wonder how they all got here. It was at this point that we also noticed the train station. A train arrived, and even more tourists started spilling out. We would have spent more time kicking ourselves for not taking the train, but truthfully we were too hungry. Our first priority was food. We found a local pizza place and ordered a pizza margarita for the kids (cheese pizza), and a pesto pizza for the adults (this region is the birthplace of pesto, after all).

As I am sitting here typing this blog, my mouth is salivating at the sheer thought of this pizza. It was by far, the best pizza I ate during our time in Italy, and perhaps the best I have ever had in my life. The crust was a little crunchy and oily, the sauce sweet, the cheese all melty and smooth. But the best part was the pesto that they spread on top. OMG. I can feel a little bit of that warm basil-oil dripping down to my chin even now, wishing I was back there. It was THAT good.

After lunch, we walked further down the main street, which was lined with shops and restaurants. We eventually came to a little cove which gave us our first glimpse of the sea. Just beautiful. And then, a few steps further, the street opened up into a little harbor. There was a small beach where people were swimming, a breakfront protecting the harbor, and a church sitting right on the shore.Naturally, the kids wanted to play in the water. I told them that was fine as long as they didn't get too wet (I didn't have any change of clothes with me).
They stayed dry for all of one minute, I think. I couldn't be mad though... they were having too much fun!

After that, we walked up to the castle which overlooks the whole village. Back in the 1300-1400s, the Cinque Terre was terrorized by North African pirates quite often. So this castle served as the look-out for pirate raids.

As anticipated, the views were stunning. This is the view of the coast to the north, over-looking the harbor,and the village of Vernazza. Tim climbed the tower to get a better view. And just when I thought I had seen it all, I looked at the view of the coast to the south. It was so gorgeous. I decided then and there that this was one of the most beautiful places I had ever been to on earth. It made that crazy drive worth it.

After the castle, we topped up with some gelato of course, and headed back to the car. We decided to try a different route out of Vernazza to get back to the main highway to see if it would be any easier. It took a little longer, but the views from the road overlooking the sea were incredible.
The Cinque Terre was amazing! If you ever get to that area, I highly suggest you visit there. Just remember to take the train. Oooh, and have the pesto pizza!