We arrived in Florence (Firenze in Italian) early in the evening, and after we checked into our hostel, we still had some time before the tourist attractions began to close. We decided that the best choice for that evening would be to go to the Accademia to see Michaelangelo's David. It's the off-season, and since it was late in the day, we didn't expect much of a line. There was no line, in fact. Once we passed through the security checkpoint, we just strolled up to the window and bought our tickets. They were more expensive than we expected, €10,00 instead of €6,50, because there was a special exhibition. That turned out to be mostly photos of naked people in weird poses. I continue to be unimpressed with modern art. The David was quite a bit more impressive; there's a reason he's the thing to see in Florence. The statue is huge and incredibly detailed. He has his sling over his shoulder, rock in hand, and a look of determination in his eyes, all carved in white marble. It's forbidden to take pictures in the Accademia, so I wasn't able to get a picture of the real David, but the following day we found two replicas elsewhere in the city. The top one is in The David's original location in front of the Palazzo Vecchio. The second is in the Piazzale Michaelangelo. The Accademia also has a large collection of plaster models and medieval art, among many other pieces. Also on display, temporarily, I believe, was what was once a private collection of Russian icon paintings. That's exactly the kind of thing Russians hate; those don't belong in Italy, especially considering that Italy has so much artwork of its own. Sadly, I think we're all starting to get tired of it.
After the Accademia and a bit of exploring, we returned to our hostel, Plus Florence, and headed downstairs to make use of the free drink coupons we had been given. I still don't care much for wine, but I suppose it's the thought that counts. Along with drinks, there was dancing, foosball, and pool. I was the only one of our group who played pool. A busload of Australians and New Zealanders were monopolizing the tables, but I managed to get in on a game. Since I had no partner, I got to play with one of the Australians, Damian. It was a good thing, too; I haven't played pool in ages, so I needed someone to help me out. We ended up winning, somehow. I think I held my own because I had quite a bit less to drink than the others. The frequent Star Wars themed pep talks and the excessive high fives Damian gave may have helped as well. Since there were six of us and we're poor students, we booked a seven person room for about €15 a night, and we ended up with an Australian roommate, who was not with the bus group. Apparently, Australians are travel-crazy. We keep meeting them everywhere. Many American students dream of taking a year off after college to travel, but it seems like that's common practice, almost expected, for Australians. Anyway, our roommate, Ben, was pretty cool. He went to dinner with us Saturday night. Saturday during the day, we did quite a bit more exploring. Florence is bigger and much more of a tourist city than Siena. We got an early start, so for awhile we had the sidewalks mostly to ourselves, but as the day went on the shops, sidewalks, and tourist attractions became more and more crowded. Still, I don't think Florence had the same feeling of being overrun as Venice does. Perhaps there the tourists just have more room to spread out. We were able to use our Italian a little more there than in Venice, but we didn't need it as much in Siena. Mostly we just wandered. There were some big things we wanted to see and in between we just saw what we found. One of our first discoveries was the Florentine farmer's market, where we were able to sample fresh cheeses, wines, olive oil, biscotti, and other delicacies. The most popular stand was one selling various pasta sauces; I bought a few, but I think the flavors will be a surprise for the people who get to help eat them. Here are some pictures of the duomo. This was free to enter, but after the grandeur of the outside, the rather plain interior was a bit of a disappointment. I think my favorite part was the floor. Another one of the main attractions in Florence is the Ponte Vecchio (old bridge). It is one of the few remaining bridges with shops built on it (the Rialto in Venice is another). We just used the bridge to cross from one side of the Arno to the other; there were mostly jewelry shops, and there was nothing we could afford. A better stop was the Piazzale Michaelangelo, which is high on a hill and offers a great view of the city below. Here is the duomo from afar. Our last stop Saturday was the Piazza della Signoria, which is by the Palazzo Vecchio, where there are several sculptures on display. Aside from David, who is, of course, a Biblical figure, most of them were figures from Greek and Roman mythology. Here's someone fighting a centaur. (I wasn't able to find the name of this one.) The Rape of the Sabine Women.Perseus with the Head of Medusa.And this is The Fountain of Neptune.
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