Florence, Italy

It's time I finish this posting. The steps above are part of the 463 steps that lead up to the Dome of the Cathedral (Duomo). The first morning in Florence, I woke up and ran to the cathedral and went up the stairs. Since it was early there wasn't a crowd or a line. I was impressed with the woman with a leg cast and using crutches starting to descend back down after I had made it to the top. There aren't any handrails on the initial flight down. She was brave... or stupid!

Anyhow, the frescoes on the ceilings just blew me away. They were so much more vibrant than I was anticipating. They were started in 1570 and represent Judgement Day. The lower portion seemed to display hell and damnation (all kinds of creepy creatures, flames, skeletons and people in agony) then got a little more "heavenly" as you worked up.

This is the Baptistry and is dedicated to John the Baptist, the patron saint of Florence. It's the oldest building in Florence and is believed to have originally been built in the 5th century.... FIFTH CENTURY! It went under "renovation" in the 12-13th century. I can't get over how old these building are!

This is the Santa Croce Church where many of the cities men of"great importance" are buried (300 of 'em). Men recognized in arts, letters, science, politics and music.

Below is the Palazzo Vecchio. Construction began in 1298 (can you believe that???). Members of the Medici family lived here from 1540-1550 before moving to their residence at the Palazzo Pitti after which the Palace was used as the center of government for Florence, which it still is today. We received a private tour of the Palace by Lorenzo Bello, who is deputy to the Mayor of Florence and was responsible for getting the amazing hotel room for us.

These are some of the frescoes that adorned the Medici rooms in the Palace. I can't imagine waking up to this on a regular basis!

This is the Ponte Vecchio bridge; construction started in 1345. Under the Medici's, it was reserved for goldsmith shops- something that still seems to be honored today- mostly jewelry stores. It's also the only bridge to survive the mines of the Nazi's in WWII.

Even the street lamps are exotic in Florence. There was so much more there but I had to draw the line somewhere. I look forward to returning and actually going in more of the museums.