Florence

After Pisa, we hopped on another early train and headed to Florence. Our hotel in Florence was really interesting. It was a two story loft.

The El Duomo, the Bell Tower, and the Baptistery. I was making fun of Gavin, showing my shirt. He told me that he hates taking pictures in his coat because you can't tell that it's a new day, so he always opens it up when we take pictures. So I opened my coat and said, "It's a new day!".

The Bell Tower. This was one of Gavin's favorites.

Michelangelo called these doors the "Gates to Heaven" They were designed by Lorenzo Ghiberti and took 30 years to complete. Each bronze panel depicts a scene from the Old Testament.

Inside the El Duomo.

This clock had all 24 hours posted, not just the usual 12.

Looking up Giotto's Campanile.

Gavin went up by himself while I stayed safe on the ground. :)

You can actually see me towards the middle by the pigeons.

Gavin said he was able to watch the bells go off.

This is the entrance to the Galleria dell'Accademia, where Michelangelo's David is. It's very nondescript and we passed by it a couple of times before we found it. You weren't able to take pictures inside, which is a shame because it's a very impressive site. The building was built specifically for the David. The statue is very impressive and beautiful. Definitely a highlight of Florence.

After seeing the David, we went to the Florence leather market, which was a lot of fun.

The Palazzo Vecchio and the Piazza della Signori, which has several replicas of famous statues, including the David.

Gavin's best David pose.

Giambologna's The Rape of the Sabine Women.

Benvenuto Cellini's Perseus with the head of Medusa.

We walked up to the Piazelle Michelangelo, where the David was originally placed. Now there is a bronze replica where the original once was.

The Basilica of Santa Croce

The Fountain of Neptune in the Piazza della Signori.

The next day, we went to the Uffizi Gallery, which has several famous Italian artworks. The one I recognized was the Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli.

This is in the main stairway of the museum. This was the only place we were allowed to take pictures.

After the Uffizi Gallery, we went back to the Basilica of Santa Croce.

Gioacchino Rossini's grave. He was a famous Italian opera composer.

Machiavelli's grave.

Michelangelo's tomb.

Galileo Galilei's tomb.

The Cloisters.

The exterior of the Uffizi Gallery.

Those are all locks. No idea what they are for.

The Ponte Vecchio Bridge.

The Piazza de Pitti. It was bought by the Medici family in the 15th century and was used by Napoleon as apower base during the 18th century.

Gavin really wanted to head back to the

Piazelle Michelangelo to get better pictures of the Florence skyline, since it was so foggy the day before.
The San Lorenzo Church, which houses a lot of works by Donatello.

The Baptistry and Duomo at night.

The Florentine Boar in the Straw Market. It's supposed to be good luck to rub it's nose. The original boar was carved by a greek scuplture in the BC centuries and is either lost or destroyed. The scupltor Tacca made a broze copy and changed it to be a fountain. This one is a copy of the original bronze one.