Jeannie's Travel Addiction

One of the many Davids in Florence.  This David stands 16 feet tall.

October 9, 2016

Florence was a quick 1 and 1/2 hours train ride from Milan and a wonderful way to spend my last full day in Italy.  Florence is all about David,  the Duomo , art and shopping.

Of course, I also found other distractions.

The Piazza della Signora  is home to The Fountain of Neptune which dates back to 1565.

Art comes in all forms in the Piazzas.

Loved this “Cupid with Dolphin”, 1470,  by Andrea Verrocchio which is on display in the……

Palazzo Vecchio, built in 1299,  now a town hall and museum, previously  by a few hundred years, the ruling family’s palace.

This would be an interesting piece to add to my patio.

Florence canines  come in various colors and enjoy tourist  watching.

The  McDonalds in Florence includes  beer in it’s choice of refreshments!

Though this was the better shot of the Duomo in Florence..

This shot was a more accurate depiction of the day – rainy and packed  full of tourists  bumping umbrellas with each step.

The Duomo ( Santa Marie del Fiore/ Saint Mary of the Flowers Cathedral), Baptistery and   Giotto’s Campanile (Bell Tower) in Florence are beautiful and these dreary day photos don’t do them justice.  The Cathedral was built from 1294 – 1436,  the baptistery  built  from 1059 – 1128 and the Bell Tower  in 1359.  As you can see these buildings were built very close to each other.  Sadly, the lines for entering these  buildings were  sooooo long, allllll day long, that I was never able to see the inside.

Despite the on-going rain, I was, however,  able to soak up the views (no pun intended) of the Ponte  Vecchio.   This “Old Bridge” spans the Arno River and was built in 1345, which replaced the prior bridge.  Small houses/workshops are built on the bridge, which was common practice in the Middle Ages.  Some of the  houses  also have extensions that hang over the river. In  1565,  Duke  Medici  built a corridor at the top of the bridge so that he would not have to walk on the crowed bridge or  with the commoners.  In 1593 Duke Ferdinand  I  replaced all of the houses/ workshops with gold smiths because they did not produce as much garbage or foul stench as the previous shopkeepers.    Today the houses on the bridge are  all  jewelry/antique  shops  and jammed  full of tourists. The Ponte Vecchio is the oldest bridge in Florence, even surviving WWII.

Parting shot across the Arno River.

(borrowed from the internet)

Thanks for reading!!