The
Uffizi Gallery, justly famous as home of a wealth of artistic masterpieces.
The outside has statues of famous artists/writers/philosophers. Here's Giotto, one of my favorite artists (he worked in the thirteenth century).
This is one of those guys who pretends to be a statue and then charges you when you take his photo.
These are several Medicis. I love love love the juxtaposition of these two.
Look up...
Look up...
Look out...
In Florence, you must always look up...
Here she is, Botticelli's Venus (from the 1480s). She's beautiful, much more pastel and luminous in real life than she is on pillows/magnets/postcards.
There's the Duomo, again.
The view from the roof.
The famous
Ponte Vecchio ("old bridge"), which dates to 1345 (although there were earlier bridges here). It has always been home to merchants--now there are jewelry and gold sellers in many little stalls.
There are seven bridges over the Arno--the Ponte Vecchio is the only one not blown up by the Germans during World War II.
And again, il Duomo.
This is the view from the Vasari Corridor, which connects the Uffizi to the Palazzo Pitti (more on that later!). It was built in 1564 and is lined with self-portraits. The view outside is lovely.
When you exit the
Vasari Corridor, this huge grotto is above you. The shield is the symbol of the Medicis, and variations of it are all over Florence.
This was all on day one of our visit...so much more to come!
1 comment:
Your beautiful pictures transport me right back to Florence. I like your "look up" admonition because it's so easy to miss the most beautiful art of all. I wonder how much I missed and, more importantly, how much I miss each day by not really looking fully around me.
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