Firenze, Italy 3
We had tickets of the Palazzo Vecchio for 9am. Originally designed as the residence and workplace of the officials of the Florentine Republic in the 13th century to be a symbol of victory and freedom from the authority of the Holy Roman Empire, the palace has been the symbol of the civil power of Florence. During the 16th century, it became the government centre of the Medici. The building was also the residence of Cosimo I de Medici until he moved into the Palazzo Pitti.
Today the building still houses the offices of the Town Hall as well as the Museo dei Ragazzi that allowed us to see a series of the monumental chambers, including the Salone dei Cinquecento, or the Hall of the Five Hundred, the most emblematic room of the building.
The walls and ceilings of each chambers was beautifully decorated with splendid frescos of gods/goddess and heroes/heroins of Greek mythology, combined with mysterious Italian Renaissance grotesque frescoes. The self-tour in the palace was absolutely enjoyable.
The tour route led us to the balcony in the Hall of the 500. It was very nice to see the majestic hall again from the higher eye level.
The museum section of the palace was very large and there were so much to see. My neck was getting tired because the ceilings were always interesting to see.
The Stanza delle Mappe, or the Map Room was an amusing chamber without causing my neck pain. The map of Armenia is actually a hidden door and behind it, there is a secret passage leading to the dressing room of the Duchess Bianca Capello, the second wife of Francesco I. Professor Robert Langdon showed us the secret. The palace has a series of hidden passages that were built by the Medici to escape their enemies or to store valuables. Fascinating.
The palace museum was quite entertaining. I would like to visit it again when/if we come back to Florence. We didn't climb up to the tower. Maybe next time? The Piazza della Signoria in front of the palace is the most famous square in the city, known as an open-air sculpture gallery. At the entrance of the palace, Hercules and Cacus, which was covered for unknown reason and a copy of Michelangelo's David were standing.
On right side of the palace, Loggia dei Lanzi, an open hall that was built in the 14th century to hold both official and public ceremonies for the Republic houses several sculptures, including the bronze statue of Perseus.
On the left side of the palace, the Fountain of Neptune was placed.
The bronze Equestrian Monument of Cosimo I, about 10 steps away the Neptune, was covered, I guess, for restoration. The sky was clearing up at that point. The next destination was the Basilica of San Miniato al Monte.
We crossed the river again, watching Ponte Vecchio over there, and walked through a new neighborhood we hadn't been before.
The Basilica was located on a hill outside of the downtown area. Upslopes and steps, which somehow we face almost everyday during our trip wherever we go. Good for us!
We enjoyed the wonderful views of Florence from the lofty hight we earned. The weather cooperated with us nicely, too.
San Miniato al Monte was built in 1018 on the site of a 4th century chapel that was used to be a cave, in where Saint Minias lived as a hermit. He was the first Christian martyr in Florence, who became a victim of the persecutions of Emperor Decius during the 3rd century. According to legend, Saint Minias was beheaded in front of the Emperor, picked up his head, put it back on his shoulders, crossed the River Arno, climbed up the hill, lived in a cave on the hilltop and eventually died there. The name of the basilica stems from the story. The Saint's figure was in the golden mosaic on the marble facade along with Christ and Mary. The facade which is made with white and green marble in geometric patterns is the Florentine traditional style that started in the Medieval time in order to construct Florence’s visual identity by using noble, locally-sourced materials.
By the way in case of the Duomo, when its construction was consecrated in 1436, the facade remained incomplete and it was only in the 19th century when the current neo-Gothic style facade was completed. It is in geometric patterns but have an extra color, red in addition to white and green - the Italy's flag colors, which acquired a patriotic significance in a new way.
The dark interior hid many interesting points to see. For example, the trussed timber roof, a series of 13th and 14th century frescos, the marble floor with Zodiac circular symbols from the 11th century. It was worth visiting.
Behind the Basilica was a cemetery, called Cimitero delle Porte Sante. Opened in the mid-19th century, the graveyard was filled with decorative tombs and large private chapels, which was quite different from my ordinary image of a graveyard.
Going down the slopes was easy as usual. It became a summer day!
Lunch time! We tried La Buchetta, a restaurant offering traditional Tuscan cuisine. It was one of our B&B host's recommendations.
We ordered a pasta dish and a fish dish to share. Pasta was Pici Spacial. Pici is a traditional Tuscan pasta in a hand-rolled thick long shape and with a chewy texture. Because the pasta dish was spacial, it was served tableside with the waiter. He mixed Pici well in the hollow in the pecorino wheel so that the heat from Pici would melt cheese and pasta could be covered with cheese. He shaved black truffle over the pasta and cheese mixture.
Then he served the pasta in the bowl in front of me, garnishing it with more black truffle.
The tableside performance was so attractive. We didn't realize that we forget to take a photo of the fish dish until J served the half of the dish on my side dish. It was Filetto di Branzino alla Griglia con Spinaci, or grilled sea bass fillet with spinach. Delicious.
Since we enjoyed those dishes so much, we decided to have a dessert, too. We chose Mousse di Frutti di Bosco, Cioccolato Bianco e Pistacchi, or mousse of berry, white chocolate and pistachio. Lovely.
After the wonderful lunch, we decided to visit the Basilica of Santa Maria Novella. On our way there, we passed through the Piazza della Signoria. The square was as crowded as the morning.
Built between the 13th and 14th century, except the facade, the Basilica of Santa Maria Novella has been the main Dominican church in Florence. The proto-Renaissance style facade was finally completed in 1920. In addition to white and green, I could see pink-ish red color on the facade. Probably it followed the Duomo.
Frescoes painted on the huge interior walls of the church were splendid.
The two cloisters and the chapterhouse were also decorated with fine colorful frescos.
The weather was still fine and it was getting really hot. We walked a park that we found on Google map to take a break and relax. However, a flea market was being held and we couldn't find any spot to sit down.
We took more walk to a botanical garden called "Giardino dei Semplici" or the Garden of Simples. The garden was founded in 1545 on the orders of Cosimo I de’ Medici. Today it's part of the Museum of Natural History of the University of Florence. "
Medicinal plants were called "semplici" in the 16th century. So the name doesn't imply that the garden looks simple. Well, how did it look like? I would say the garden wasn't so complicated. Yet, it provided us a bench, surrounded by greens, and a peaceful time without tourists.
Azaleas (I guess) were nicely blooming.
We walked back to the downtown. Ciao, the Duomo!
In the evening we had a lovely dinner with J's relatives who were traveling Europe from the States at a restaurant in the city. On our way back to B&B, we passed through the Piazza della Signoria again. Buona notte, the Palazzo Vecchio!
To be continued...
