Carpenter File 17: Florence, Pisa, Siena

When I got on the train for Florence I think it really hit me that I was going to tour Europe! I was so excited I could barely sleep at all (it was a night train)!!! When we arrived we found our "David Inn" hostel which turned out to be right next door to the Florence Cathedral. We were there for 2 days and saw an overload of incredible art, gorgeous architecture, and picturesque northern Italy. We started out at the Florence Cathedral. This was by far the most elaborately designed cathedral on our entire trip. The Marble mosaic work on the outside was so intricate! I can't imagine how long it took them to create it! And the Dome is just breathtaking! There is a little tower built right next to it that you can climb and get incredible views of the city and of the dome! It was quite a shock to go inside the cathedral and find it barren! All the artwork in the Cathedral has been carted off to museums...kind of sad. After the Cathedral we went to La Galleria de Academia. I saw Michelangelo’s DAVID!!! It was the most breathtakingly massive statue! The details were astounding. His hands looked like they could have moved at any moment. I think it was the most incredible piece of artwork in Florence! We also went to La Galleria Uffizi which houses Botticelli's Spring and Birth of Venus as well as countless other priceless works of art! It was amazing to actually see these pieces I have studied. Most of them are so much bigger than you would have ever expected! Besides the galleries we also went to La Piazzo di Michelangelo. An incredible square set on a hill overlooking the city. The pictures were incredible from there! After the hike up to the Piazzo we were pretty hungry and went to get some REAL Italian food! We went to the most adorably quaint restaurant. Just what you'd picture. Red & white check tablecloths with wine bottle candle holders and the best lasagna EVER! The food in Florence was great and in retrospect from all the places in Italy we went I think that Florence had the best gelato! I got some strawberry that was out of this world! I loved the city and it was an incredible start off to Europe. Next we went to Pisa for a quick day trip. The Pisa Cathedral, Baptistery, and Tower were well worth the trip. When we first walked through the arch to see the leaning tower I got huge butterflies in my stomach thinking "Am I actually going to see this!" The combination of the huge white marble buildings surrounded by extremely green grass made the sight breathtaking. You see there is almost no grass or greenery in the parts of Italy we went to so all the grass around the tower was fantastic! It was pretty hilarious though because there is absolutely nothing in Pisa but the tower! You get off the train get on a bus see the tower get back on the bus and back on the train. I think the whole point of going is to get the "Yes I've been to Italy; here I am pushing the tower back into place picture." But it was still a lot of fun!
From Pisa was got on a train headed for Siena. I love Italy because each town has a totally new flavor to it. They are all completely different even if you only travel one hour. Siena was really laid back and we got to do a lot of exploring down the narrow winding streets. This was my favorite part because I allowed me to see real Italian life with sunsets along the vineyards in the valley, cloths hanging on wash lines out of every window, and little old ladies bargaining for this week’s fruit with their local fruitaria (fruit stand). The Cathedral at Siena was also quite unique with its black and white striped marble columns and the extremely intricate marble floors that took over 400 years to create! Also there was a gorgeous view of the city from the top the tower. And Siena's central square was enormous! They actually turn it into a race track and have an annual horse race that is quite famous! I would have loved to see that! Anyway I think as far as atmosphere Siena was the best Italian town we went too because it was really laid back and relaxing and real. There wasn't nearly this touristy facade that permeates so many of the major cities. It probably helped that we went during the off season too!
Well that's part 1 of my trip - next Rome!
Picture Guide Top to Bottom
From Top picture to the Clocktower with the blue sky backgroud is Siena
The Grass pictures are at Pisa
Night Shot to the bottom is Florence