A Georgia Girl in Germany

After our Vatican tour, we loaded back on our bus and headed north to the Tuscany region of Italy for our final stop -- Florence. We arrived late enough in the day that we didn’t have much time to enjoy the city. We first walked to the Basilica di Santa Croce -- Basilica of the Holy Cross, which is the principal Franciscan church in the city. It overlooks the Piazza di Santa Croce, which still had booths set up from the city’s Christmas market (albeit they were shuttered and locked down). It’s also where some of the most illustrious Italians are buried, such as Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, Dante, Gentile and Rossini.

Unfortunately, the basilica was closed when we arrived, although Benjamin enjoyed jumping up and down the stairs in front of the basilica. It was a perfect way for him to burn off some energy before our long, overnight bus ride back home.


The façade was beautiful, especially in the glow of the moon perched just above (see the first photo). The basilica is the largest Franciscan church in the world and includes 16 chapels inside it. Construction began in 1294 and consecrated in 1442 by Pope Eugene IV with the building’s design reflecting the austere approach of the Franciscans. I would have liked to have seen the inside though.

There was a statue of Dante in front of the basilica, almost as if he were looking down, scowling at the kids while they chased each other on the steps for a few minutes.

From there, we walked a few blocks to a huge leather and jewelry shop. I had been looking at cameos the entire trip (especially in Pompeii where we saw someone actually carving a cameo at a factory), but didn’t find any that seemed to jump out at me. That wasn’t true for MacKenzie and Benjamin, who found a slew of nontraditional cameos. MacKenzie really wanted me to get her one of a dog. I was surprised to see the wide variety of animals and other images available -- from dogs, cats, horses and even one of a panda bear!

We passed on the cameo purchase, but Zachary did pick out a matching necklace and bracelet of red leather and silver hearts for me -- as my Christmas present. What a wonderful gift and memento of our trip!

After perusing through the leather shop, we took a short, but quick, walk to the Ponte Santa Trinita to get a glimpse of the world-famed Medieval Ponte Vecchio bridge over the Arno River. The Ponte Vecchio is noted for having shops built along it, which were initially occupied by butchers but now occupied by jewelers, art dealers and souvenir sellers. The bridge is believed to have been originally built of wood in Roman times. After being almost completely destroyed by a flood in, it was rebuilt in 1345. During World War II, the Ponte Vecchio was not destroyed by Germans during their retreat of Aug. 4, 1944, unlike all other bridges in Florence. This was allegedly because of an express order by Hitler. Access to Ponte Vecchio was, however, obstructed by the destruction of the buildings at both ends.

On our way out of town, we stopped in the Piazzale Michelangelo to see a copy of Michelangelo’s David and for a wonderful panoramic view of the city below. On the left is the Tuscan Gothic tower of the Palazzo Vecchio -- Old Palace -- that serves as the town hall and overlooks the Piazza della Signoria. On the right is the Duomo cathedral. This cathedral took six centuries to complete and is in the appropriately-named Piazza del Duomo. When it was completed, its dome was dome was the largest in the world -- a distinction that lasted until Michelangelo outdid the Duomo with his design of St. Peter's Basilica. The cathedral itself is the third largest cathedral in the world and the de facto center of Florence.


After a dinner stop just outside town at the Three Pines restaurant, we loaded back on the bus and settled in for the night. I’m thankful that the kids and I can sleep pretty well just about anywhere -- including in somewhat awkward-looking positions on the bus. The kids were certainly tired after our five-day whirlwind tour of Italy, but I think they all enjoyed the trip.

Labels: Benjamin, Italy, MacKenzie, Travel