Goboogo : Florence

Saturday, April 28, 2012

Top 10 Florence Travel Guide

Florence is so much more than a city. The past of this small community on the banks of the Arno is forever intertwined with invention and progress. The Renaissance began here, advancing all forms of intellectual inquiry and creation. The Medici, essentially the world's first modern bankers, built a Florentine empire with a strong patronage for the arts. Once the center of the banking and art world, it now exists simply as a quiet city in the Tuscan hills. Florence has come down gracefully from its apogee unapologetic and ready to just be. It forges on ahead with shops full of artisans; architecture that has shaped our conception of beauty, and an art scene that may never be eclipsed. The Florence experience serves a welcome respite from the supercenter and highway lifestyle. Florence is more than a city. It is an ideal from which every other beautiful city should be measured.

Once you have arrived in Florence, the beauty can be overwhelming. I do not have a cure for Stendhal Syndrome, but I do have some experiences for you to enjoy while exploring this old town.

Saturday, February 6, 2010

She Said Yes

No better way to start the day than with a gigantic morning sugar rush. We hired a taxi to drop us off at Santa Croce Piazza, and luckily, happened to stumble upon a chocolate market in full swing. I felt like I was at costco, except everything was made of chocolate. Free samples, yum. Kristin ordered a cookie with little chocolate candies on top, but what appeared to be a cookie was actually solid white chocolate. Very rich.

An assortment of truffles

I 'll have that one and that one and that one...

Check out the chocolate camera at the right and some machmalo, what what

Colorful candies

This was a serious chocolate market, seriously like 4 rows

No shortage of offerings, we did not see anything twice

yum yum yum yum yum yum

Are those Tapirs?

crunch crunch crunch crunch crunch

More More More!

Fondente Mandorla! We had some of this, some coffee truffles, and about 10 samples of other varieties

Ribbet, this market made us forget about the cold

Gelati Al Limone

Looks like a cookie, but SOLID white chocolate

After nearly contracting diabetes during our morning chocolate free for all, we turned the corner for the more serious and entered the Basilica de Santa Croce, which is a gigantic church and tomb. It houses the bodies of Michelangelo, Galileo, and Machiavelli. Very famous dudes. It is also a tomb for other wealthy and famous Florentines. The walls are very old and sort of whisper the past in very cold hushed tones. A definite sense of spirituality exists within the basilica, and every now and then you pass through eerie cold spots. You can just sense that it is an extremely important place and sort of bigger than the here and now.

Outside the Basilica

A noble lion guarding the premises of Santa Croce

The Courtyard of the Basilica Santa Croce

Oh us? We just chilling.

I do not know the stories behind these, but they are interesting

An entrance

Underground tombs

A corner of the church

An empty courtyard

A door to the holy

The tomb of Galileo at left

A tomb

The tomb of Michelangelo

Facing the front the altar in Santa Croce

The tomb of Machiavelli

To call these walls ornate would be an insult

Satined Glass Windows

These churches have interesting side temples that are so interesting

A chapel off to the side

This room was really cold

The exterior of Santa Croce Basilica

A very cool stationary shop that makes every thing by hand

We took a leisurely walk towards the Arno river while mulling over our options. Thankfully the rain had ceased, but for how long? We had been subjected to our fair share of downpours and extreme weather conditions, and quite frankly, were tired of this nonsense. We tried to plan a day that would involve as little exposure as possible, but before we knew it, we were walking the trails of Boboli Gardens, far from cover. Lucky for us, the rains did not come. We enjoyed taking in these gardens, which is essentially the backyard of the Medici. These gardens span a gigantic area of fountains, trees, and mazes directly behind Pitti Palace, the home of the Medici. It does not take along to realize the excessive wealth of the Medici, as this place is beyond elaborate in every way. Just check out the pictures.