Our journey started off early Friday morning with a sleepy train ride to Firenze. Once we arrived, we dropped our bags off at the hotel and met up in a small piazza, where we were separated by school (the Arkansas kids were with Emilio). Our first stop was the thing I was most excited for in all of Florence: the Laurentian Library by Michelangelo at San Lorenzo. But, alas, our day started with disappointment as we were told the Library would be closed until the end of March. There has never been a sadder silence than that of the Arkansas students finding out we can’t go into one of Michelangelo’s greatest works.
We all just stood there with our jaws dropped, hoping it was a joke (it wasn’t). I assumed we would at least go into the church, which was closed on my last visit to Florence, but Emilio said we didn’t have time. Confused as to how we “didn’t have time” for one of the best Brunelleschi buildings of all time, I was a little bitter. Instead, we walked to a convent to see a fresco of the Last Supper. It was cool and all, but I had Brunelleschi on my brain. We proceeded onward to the Academia, where we saw David. Emilio then dismissed us for lunch, but who needs food when there are churches to see?
Jessica and I promptly power-walked back to San Lorenzo to ensure we had time to see everything. Oh my gosh, it was so worth it. The church is a beautiful example of Renaissance architecture, and its muted color palette really makes the space pop. We also got to see Brunelleschi’s Old Sacristy, which was exactly as I thought it would be: simple and perfect. Next we visited the crypt, where Donatello (the artist, not the Ninja Turtle) is buried.
Jess and I scurried to a cafĂ© to grab a quick bite to eat before our busy afternoon. Emilio first took us to a museum of Natural History at the University of Florence, where we saw lots of skeletons and what not. The next exhibit had tons of minerals and crystals from all over the world, there was even a few from Arkansas! Even though these things weren’t exactly related to architecture, they were important because Florence was a huge promoter of scientific study during the Renaissance.
After the science museums, we walked to the Loggia of the Innocents by Brunelleschi. We weren’t able to get in the corresponding Hospital, but we admired it from the outside. We walked onward toward Santa Maria del Fiore (the Duomo), but decided to go into the museum before climbing the tower. I had been to this museum with my parents, but it was great so I was happy to go back. Emilio taught us a lot about the sculptures that I didn’t know much about last time.
We didn’t spend very long in the museum because next was the main event: climbing the dome. This was closed on my last visit, needless to say I was so so so excited. Much like the stairs in the Bell Tower, the climb was very narrow, but it was only one-way traffic for the most part, which made it much more enjoyable. We stopped at the base of the dome to admire the large fresco painted above the crossing inside the church. Once we caught our breath, we continued on to the stairwell where the walls leaned in with the form of the dome. The final path was really steep and curved, but we finally popped out onto the top, surrounded by beautiful views of Florence and a stunning sunset to top it all off. Unfortunately, the dome was closing, so we didn’t get to stay up there for as long as we would have liked, but we made the descent, leaving the glowing sky behind us.
Our professors made reservations for dinner at their favorite authentic, Florentine restaurant. One of the traditional dishes is the Florentine steak, which we all ordered at the recommendation of our guides. Little did we know this steak was HUGE. It took up an entire plate. I checked the menu after I ate, only to find out it was the equivalent of 17 ounces. SEVENTEEN… AND it came with sides. I have never in my life even heard of a steak that big. Needless to say, we were stuffed afterwards… but that didn’t stop us from getting gelato.
Saturday morning allowed us to sleep in a bit (something that we were all thankful for after our dome hike the previous day). After breakfast we visited two palaces: one medieval and one renaissance. Both were beautiful, and it was easy to see the difference between styles. We continued on to a gothic church (my favorite), where we learned about all the frescos. We stopped for a cappuccino near the Palazzo Rucellai and I found another Laduree House, so of course I stopped in for a few of my favorite Parisian macaroons. I spent more than I should have, but I have no regrets.
Emilio then led us to Il Porcellino, so I got to take another picture, this time with my classmates. Taking a picture with the hog is like an Arkansas study abroad right of passage, and its something we all silently look forward to during our time in Europe. After snapping a few pictures, Emilio set us loose for lunch.
Our lunch break consisted of shopping (mostly because we were trying to save room for another big dinner that night). Florence is known for their leather goods, and one of the major leather markets is conveniently located right behind the Porcellino statue. I bought a new leather wallet and a scarf (not leather). We stopped for a small snack lunch to hold us over until the evening, but then ended up getting gelato from a delicious place recommended by my freshman roommate Ashley (really, we have ZERO self control).
After lunch we went into the Santa Maria Baptistery, which is where every citizen in Florence used to get baptized. The ceiling is composed of a shiny, gold mosaic, showing the Byzantine influence on Florence. If you look through the grills on the floor, you can also see ancient Roman mosaics. It’s a small structure, but it’s pretty darn cool.
Following the Baptistery, we went into Santa Maria del Fiore, which we learned was named as such because the plan resembles a flower (flower = fiore in Italian). After a quick walk through at ground level, we went into the crypt, where we saw Brunelleschi’s tomb, among many other tombs of course.
After we ascended from the crypt, Emilio gave us free time to climb the bell tower. Considering I did this with my parents last time, and considering we hadn’t seen ANY of the churches on my list, I decided to take matters into my own selfish hands and split from the group (sorry, mom).
I made my way to Santa Maria Novella. Outside, there was a huge Chocolate Fair going on. Everything looked and smelled delicious, but I didn’t have time to stop… I was on a mission! I popped in the church for a quick walk through and I visited the cloister. It was cool, and I wish I could have stayed longer, but I had to power walk across the center of town to Santa Croce… which was AWESOME. Not even in St. Peter’s have I ever felt so small. The ceilings were high, the light was pouring in from the west and the stained glass gently painted every surface in the nave. I was in heaven. I got to see the tomb of Michelangelo, and the Pazzi Chapel, both of which were amazing. Unfortunately I had to get back to the group before our next appointment, so I left wanting more.
Emilio met us at the Uffizi Gallery, where there wasn’t a line at all! I was so excited to see Bramante’s original drawings for St. Peter’s Basilica. After about an hour of talking about medieval paintings and sculpture, we were growing tired and uninspired. Emilio could tell we were losing interest, so he led us right to Botticelli’s Birth of Venus painting, which we all loved. We also caught a beautiful sunset from the window overlooking the Arno River and all of its bridges. He dismissed us for the day, and I panicked. What about the drawings?! I asked for directions only to find out that they are locked away in a drawer and only come out for special occasions. Here, I was at about the same level of disappointment as I was with the Laurentian Library. WHY IS EVERYTHING I WANT TO SEE UNAVAILABLE?! Anyway, we trudged back to the hotel, exhausted from our busy day, to rest before dinner.
We went to the same place for dinner before deciding we were too wiped out to go out and party like some other students were doing. Our feet were throbbing and after one beer we were nearly falling asleep at the bar (embarrassing, I know). We decided to call it a night early, and try our luck with nightlife some other time.
A group of friends and I got up early Sunday morning to visit the Medici Chapels, which wasn’t part of our itinerary (I’m still wondering how all of this important stuff got left out…). The Medici Family was a very rich and powerful family in the Florentine Renaissance, and they commissioned a lot of famous works, including the family tomb and Michelangelo’s New Sacristy for the church of San Lorenzo. Walking into the tomb, I was amazed that a single family had so much wealth and power.
Their family burial area is bigger than my family’s house. Every surface was covered in precious stone. Unfortunately there was some scaffolding, but it didn’t stop us from enjoying the space. When we walked into the New Sacristy, we fell into an awed silence. We had the sacristy all to ourselves, considering it was too early for most tourists. Michelangelo really killed it with this one. This might be my favorite place in all of Florence.
We met up with Emilio and the rest of the group to start our third day. It was a cloudy day, and pretty cold compared to the rest of the weekend. We visited some medieval castles and churches before ending up at an old palazzo that served as an art museum. This is where we saw Donatello’s David statue, which is much smaller than Michelangelo’s. By this point, we were all tired and hungry, so we broke for lunch. After two nights of some really fancy food, I was craving simple spaghetti (never thought I’d say that again). After lunch, we visited the Anthropological museum of the University of Florence. I have to say, it’s kind of weird being halfway across the world and seeing Native American exhibits. We continued on, increasingly slowly, to more medieval churches, after which Emilio gave us some free time.
We had an hour and a half to do as we pleased before having to meet up for our train home. So what did we do? Go to the chocolate festival of course. Eating chocolate covered strawberries with a great view of Santa Maria Novella was the perfect way to end the trip.
The past three days in Florence was a whirlwind and I can easily say my feet have never hurt this bad in my entire life. BUT I’m so glad I got to return and see all of Brunelleschi and Michelangelo’s masterpieces… and eat some delicious chocolate along the way. I’m sure I’ll be back to Florence some day for more leather goods and to climb the dome again, but for now, I’ll just be icing my feet, looking forward to my awesome spring break trip in just two weeks.
Number of (new) Columns Hugged: 7
Days Since Mexican Food: 63
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Read more from Haley at https://haleywalton.wordpress.com/
To find out more about the U of A Rome Center semester program for Architecture, visit http://studyabroad.uark.edu/romecentersemester/
