After leaving Pisa we took our bus to Florence, called Firenze in Italian. We arrived in the last hours of sunlight, right as the sun was setting. It was amazing. Not only because we were back in a legitimate Italian city (after the trap that was Pisa) but because of the starlets.
Thousands upon thousands of little birds flying in giant formations, flowing, bobbing, ebbing and weaving. The small birds flew together in something so organic and natural that it was simply beautiful. We all stood dumbfounded as we watched the starlets go every which way, each one independent from the rest yet simultaneously a part of a much larger organized symphony of motion. And in this way, I was introduced to Florence.
As we proceeded to our hotel, I saw a college student that I had met in the General Assembly in the conference. I didn't mention this in the Genoa post so I will now. He was a Chinese national that was going to school at NYU yet was studying abroad in Florence. Pretty awesome. His ideas about traveling, and mostly studying abroad really positively influenced any decision I have about the matter. I personally have decided that I want to study abroad as well during my time in Stanford.
All that aside, we arrived at our hotel. I received my room assignment, and was lost. I looked around for room 28, but could not find it. Then I walked upa narrow passage of stairs, and found it. Yes, we had the penthouse. It was quite amazing, although I did have to share it with three other guys. For a European hotel room it was huge though, which was a very fun experience.
I opened the window to the hotel room, looked to my left, and there it was. Lit up by the city lights, massive and looming, was Il Duomo. I had seen it in books and on the computer, but there it was, within perfect site of my hotel room window.
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| Il Duomo from the hotel room |
Il Duomo. Its pretty amazing. The giant dome can be seen from almost anywhere in the city, in my opinion making it hard to get lost. It was right around the corner from our hotel, actually, our hotel was right around the corner from it. The dome is huge, just ridiculously large on top of an already large cathedral. The ornate decorations all around it are simply breathtaking. The inside is somewhat dull, yet it is undoubtedly one of the most spectacular sites I have ever been to.
On top of its sheer size it has deep cultural and religious importance as well. I really dont want to get into it, so if you are interested: look it up. But the gist of it is this: The Renaissance started there. Yeah, The Renaissance. Kind of a big deal.
Il Galeria di Uffizi was also quite incredible as well. Il Galeria is a large building and square along the river, and is known as essentially the political capital of the city. From what I understood it isn't the physical political capital but more of a symbolic one for Florence. The square is large, with various statues all around it: most notably the replica David by Michelangelo. The museum, or Il Galeria, is at one corner of the square, closer to the River Arno.
Il Galeria di Uffizi is essentially a very large and famous museum filled with important art pieces from mostly Italian artists. Now I am going to sound either snobby or uncultured here but I would rather be honest and harsh than lie and flattering. I was not that impressed by the art in Il Galeria.
I love art, I really do. I appreciate it on so many levels. I have been to the Hermitage in Russia and found the artwork there incredibly engrossing. Yet unfortunately for me Il Galeria di Uffizi did not impress me in terms of artwork found inside. I am pretty sure that 90% of the paintings in the Galeria were of Jesus on the cross or Madonna and Baby Jesus. And after walking around for an hour or so, every Jesus painting looked the same. I know this sounds so bad but honestly it was not as I expected or wished for. The highlight of Il Galeria was Birth of Venus. It is an iconic painting and seeing it in the flesh was by far the highlight of the tour of Il Galeria.
Il Ponte Vecchio, right next to Uffizi, spans the River Arno. And it is just awesome. Its a very old, very traditional looking bridge, covered with different colored and shaped buildings. The only thing on the bridge is jewelry shops, really really expensive jewelry shops. I loved it.
It just felt so Italian, and really looked the part as well. The bridge and the surrounding buildings along the river all had this look, that I now associate with this trip to Italy. People lock padlocks onto chains along and around the bridge, throwing the key into the Arno. This "locks" their love on the River. Il Ponte Vecchio was just amazing. It was just an awesome bridge that gave off an awesome vibe in a truly awesome city.
Florence was the best.
There is just something about that city that is hard to put your finger on, but makes so much sense when you feel it. THe only way I can describe it is simple: It is a grand city with a personal feel. It has the monuments and the large statues and the reputation as a cultural capital. Yet the city feels alive, it doesn't feel like a tourist location or an imperial palace. It feels like a bustling city full of real people, simply because it is.
If I could use one experience in Florence as an example for the entire experience of the city, it would be my meal at Trattoria Mario. Basically I was sick of eating little random panninis and I wanted a real meal one day. I asked the owner of our hotel where he would suggest we eat. He directed us to a place called Mario's, where "if you want authentic Tuscany, authentic Tuscan food" you would definitely go to eat.
We searched throughout the winding streets of the city, every building at least 3 stories high searching in the direction he told us to go. We ran across the market, the street vendors, interesting graffiti, the works. We found it eventually. And it was worth the journey.
We enter and its packed. Full of people. The tables are like benches, with everyone sitting together very communally and very close together. We are led to our seat by a busy waitress and as we sit she points to the menu on the wall. We have no idea what to get, like none. The waitress returns and asks us what we want in Italian. We have honestly no way to answer her so we ask her in a mix of English, Spanish, and bad Italian what she would suggest. She points at a dish that another older Italian man is eating to my left, on the same bench as us. We all say yeah, lets have that.
The dish comes out, and was it good. It was like a braised beef and potato dish cooked down in some sort of delicious sauce whose only ingredient I could pick out was red wine. We devoured it. It was just too good. We tried to hold ourselves back, enjoy the dish and appreciate where we were. It happened, briefly. But really it ended up that we were going to eat this dish down to the last drop of delicious sauce. In fact, I took a piece of hard bread and wiped up all the sauce from my plate, wiping it clean.
Trattoria Mario was amazing, and so was Florence. The people, the food, just the city in general was outstanding. I will never forget Florence.
In one of the markets, I touched a bronze statue of a boar. Legend says if you rub its snout, eventually you will come back to Florence.
I hope the legend is true.
Il Galeria di Uffizi was also quite incredible as well. Il Galeria is a large building and square along the river, and is known as essentially the political capital of the city. From what I understood it isn't the physical political capital but more of a symbolic one for Florence. The square is large, with various statues all around it: most notably the replica David by Michelangelo. The museum, or Il Galeria, is at one corner of the square, closer to the River Arno.
Il Galeria di Uffizi is essentially a very large and famous museum filled with important art pieces from mostly Italian artists. Now I am going to sound either snobby or uncultured here but I would rather be honest and harsh than lie and flattering. I was not that impressed by the art in Il Galeria.
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| Il Galeria di Uffizi |
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| Il Ponte Vecchio |
Il Ponte Vecchio, right next to Uffizi, spans the River Arno. And it is just awesome. Its a very old, very traditional looking bridge, covered with different colored and shaped buildings. The only thing on the bridge is jewelry shops, really really expensive jewelry shops. I loved it. It just felt so Italian, and really looked the part as well. The bridge and the surrounding buildings along the river all had this look, that I now associate with this trip to Italy. People lock padlocks onto chains along and around the bridge, throwing the key into the Arno. This "locks" their love on the River. Il Ponte Vecchio was just amazing. It was just an awesome bridge that gave off an awesome vibe in a truly awesome city.
Florence was the best.
There is just something about that city that is hard to put your finger on, but makes so much sense when you feel it. THe only way I can describe it is simple: It is a grand city with a personal feel. It has the monuments and the large statues and the reputation as a cultural capital. Yet the city feels alive, it doesn't feel like a tourist location or an imperial palace. It feels like a bustling city full of real people, simply because it is.
If I could use one experience in Florence as an example for the entire experience of the city, it would be my meal at Trattoria Mario. Basically I was sick of eating little random panninis and I wanted a real meal one day. I asked the owner of our hotel where he would suggest we eat. He directed us to a place called Mario's, where "if you want authentic Tuscany, authentic Tuscan food" you would definitely go to eat.
 |
| Trattoria Mario |
We enter and its packed. Full of people. The tables are like benches, with everyone sitting together very communally and very close together. We are led to our seat by a busy waitress and as we sit she points to the menu on the wall. We have no idea what to get, like none. The waitress returns and asks us what we want in Italian. We have honestly no way to answer her so we ask her in a mix of English, Spanish, and bad Italian what she would suggest. She points at a dish that another older Italian man is eating to my left, on the same bench as us. We all say yeah, lets have that.
The dish comes out, and was it good. It was like a braised beef and potato dish cooked down in some sort of delicious sauce whose only ingredient I could pick out was red wine. We devoured it. It was just too good. We tried to hold ourselves back, enjoy the dish and appreciate where we were. It happened, briefly. But really it ended up that we were going to eat this dish down to the last drop of delicious sauce. In fact, I took a piece of hard bread and wiped up all the sauce from my plate, wiping it clean. Trattoria Mario was amazing, and so was Florence. The people, the food, just the city in general was outstanding. I will never forget Florence.
In one of the markets, I touched a bronze statue of a boar. Legend says if you rub its snout, eventually you will come back to Florence.
I hope the legend is true.
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