DAY 18 – FLORENCE & THE STATUE OF DAVID

I got up early, anxious to see Florence. I wandered the streets for a while, popping in and out of shops – then found a café with an American breakfast (basically an Italian breakfast with added eggs and ham).

            Then I headed off to join a walking tour of Florence, since so many of the sites are packed into a fairly small area of the city. Our guide pointed out statues and buildings along the way, as we made our way to the museum that houses Michelangelo’s status of David. It’s definitely the main attraction in the museum, and we walked around to each side to notice the detail that this magnificent statue embodies.

            We then walked through the city streets, learning much of the history of the city – and a lot about the Medici family. And we could see the Duomo from most of the spots we stopped along the way – since there are restrictions that buildings cannot be built more than 3-4 stories high, to allow the Duomo to forever be the focus of the town. As it should be. The architecture is magnificent, and we walked around the Duomo and the adjacent Baptistry – and our guide pointed out so much of the history.

            Lastly we headed to the Piazza della Signoria and the Loggia dei Lanzi – and went through the history of each of the dozens of statues there. I’d seen pictures of most of these before, but it was spectacular to see them all in one area, and get to walk right up to them.

            And to wrap up my evening, I took a lovely gondola ride along the Arno River at sunset. There are beautiful stone bridges that cross the Arno River, and we gently sailed underneath their arches as Lupo, our gondolier, gently guided our boat along. People line the edges of the river, and we waved to them as we passed under. And a Old Italian Man breaks out into song each evening on one of the bridges, and the crowd joins in – so we were serenaded as we glided along.

            My sister recommended Florence – and she was right, it is beautiful.