The train left Rome on time. It slipped quietly out of Termini station heading for Florence & possibly on to Milan or Venice. The weather was bright & clear sometime in September.
Countryside passed swiftly, undulating in places where clumps of woodlands intermingled with large fields & a scattering of farm houses. Pine trees grew infrequently, the same as those grown in Rome, with spreading dark green heads & narrow trunks that bent or remained straight, resisting the wind. Several large hills appeared, dipping into deep valleys as the sun climbed higher, filtering through thin layers of scudding pale grey & pink-tipped clouds, floating high against a blue sky.
The train travelled smoothly toward Florence, the center of Italian Renaissance & once the seat of the powerful Medici family & with the outskirts of the city appearing, it pulled into the long Stazione di Santa Maria Novella on time, named after the Gothic church standing nearby.
Florence is a beautiful city, with a history of many artists, sculptors & architects, of galleries & museums, grouped comfortably within walking distance; where Grand Dukes maintained power, Kings ruled & resided. Compacted into some may think, an elegance of narrow streets & wider piazzas, buildings of warm browns & ochre, waited to be explored.
Many bridges span the Arno river of this Tuscan region, which is second in importance after the Tiber, flowing through the heart of Rome. The Ponte Vecchio, is a Medieval stone closed-spandrel segmental arch, with shops of mainly art dealers, jewelers & souvenir sellers each side.
A bridge first appeared in a document in 996 AD, destroyed by a flood in 1117, but after a reconstruction of stone, the bridge was again swept away by floods in 1333.
The economic concept of 'bankruptcy' originated here when a merchant unable to pay his debts, a table on which his wares were sold, was physically broken by soldiers & this resulted in the practice of 'bancorotto'!
On the south side of the River Arno stands the vast Palazza Pitti, (or Pitti Palace), close to Ponte Vecchio, formerly the residence of the grand dukes of Tuscany & later the King of Italy, built in the second half of the 15th century. Caravaggio's Sleeping Cupid & Raphael's La Donna Velata from the Medici collection are housed there amongst many other fine Italian works of art.
Palazzo Medici Riccardi's construction started in 1445 of Renaissance architecture for Cosimo de'Medici, with it's sumptuous interior consisting of almost decadent wall & ceiling frescoes. The accumulation of wealth of the Medici family included such items as silverware & ornaments of gold & silk, with the furniture, heavy in detail & decoration, was endless. The main hall is vast, containing around the edges, large marble statues depicting opulent design & interpretation.
Michelangelo's magnificent (biblical) David, sculptured in Carrara marble, was moved to the Accademia di Belle Arti Firenze, (Accademia Gallery), in 1873 & stands over five meters high. A Renaissance masterpiece, created between 1501 and 1504 & such a monumental achievement, it is evidence of a supreme comprehension of the male human form, proving an ability to achieve a balanced perspective of grace, strength & athleticism. Under the patronage of the Medici, Renaissance sculpture flourished in Florence.
This Tuscan city has a unique charm of its own, one that the enormity of Rome may lack. It was a center for Renaissance art & Brunelleschi (1377-1446), was one of the foremost architects & engineers of this Italian period. His other accomplishments included that of mathematics, engineering & sculpture.
Florence Cathedral (The Duomo), began in 1296 in the Gothic style, the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, the dome being engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi, dominates the skyline of the city. The interior exudes a quiet peace & unadorned with lavish decoration in comparison with some churches in Rome.
Looking down from the perimeter of the dome, the Tuscan hills are not far away & the rooftops charmingly terracotta in nature, earthy & not lacking in character. The exterior of the Cathedral is faced with polychrome marble panels in various shades of pinks & greens, bordered by white & the basilica is one of Italy's largest churches. The dome was once the largest in the world. It still remains the largest brick dome in the world & is part of the UNESCO Heritage Site.
Spending a little time strolling across the Ponte Vecchio spanning the River Arno, is an experience within itself, butcher shops once inhabited the small buildings, but now there are many jeweler's shops each side (with small interior spiral staircases), art dealers, souvenir sellers, some with heavy carved dark wood paneling.
From the banks of the river it is possible to see the haphazard supporting structures under the shops that hang precariously over the river, many with rotting & patched up timbers & a few steel supports added in a vein attempt to keep them from tumbling into the river. But perhaps with the next intense flood, the entire bridge would wash away downstream.
There is an abundance of main & backstreet shops selling quality leather goods, which are often made locally, the traders being kept in reasonable business with shoppers from all over the world breathing in the rich smell of leather near the open doorways.
The quiet vibrant atmosphere of Florence, compared to that of Rome, is significantly aesthetic, due to its size & comparative ease of travel within the city. It's many narrow alleyways & streets lend themselves to a softness of browns & light blue colours appearing to reflect off the ageing buildings, with shadows falling in places, exuding a warm glow in early morning & late afternoon. There is a subtlety of light moving throughout the seasons giving Florence, with its galleries, palaces, churches & many restaurants, a unique individuality, a timelessness. It's beauty & history are many centuries old relating to the lives of artists, sculptures, architects & the many people who ruled from this city.
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