When we planned this vacation, we billed it as a "learning vacation". Our visit to Athens was no exception to the rule. As interesting as it's been, I'm pretty sure we're close to having our fill of touring ruins! John did a great job planning our tours, and this one proved to be just as good as the others. We met Danny and Athena bright and early to meet our driver, Dimitris, who narrated our tour through the city. With his knowledge of the city streets, he got us to the Acropolis before the masses engulfed the place. For that we were more than grateful!
The Acropolis, which means "high city", was a sight to behold. Ancient Greeks rebuilt the Acropolis in the 400s B.C., after it had been destroyed by the Persian invasion. This amazing example of Greek architecture was a four building temple in honor of Athena, the protector of Athens. While the other structures (Erechtheion, Propylaea, and the Temple of Athena Nike) were beautiful, the main event here was the Parthenon. The structure is enormous, but the architectural tricks used in these ancient times is the real show stopper. Slight bends and curves were built into the marble steps and columns so that it would appear to be level, while also being functional, draining rain water. Without these tricks, the Parthenon would appear to sag, but instead it is unwavering and perfectly balanced (or so it appears to the naked eye). Not only was this a place of worship (housing gigantic statues, including one of Athena), but it also served as the city's naturally, well-protected treasury. Restoration on all of the temples is ongoing, and we were lucky enough to finally see people working on some ruins!
After the neck breaking walk around the Parthenon we ventured to the other temples. None were nearly as overwhelming, but were interesting in their own rite. The Erechtheion holds its own stories and character. One of the porch's columns are actually carved into ladies, or Caryatids. Beside the porch is an olive tree. Although a replacement, it represents the tree Athena planted here during her battle with Poseidon. The Temple of Athena Nike was tiny compared to the others, but the history behind it is better than the rest (in my opinion). This was the first structure atop the Acropolis to use intricately carved Ionic columns. The temple was mostly used for worshiping Athena (hence the name). Athenians believed the protector of their city ensured their victory (nike) and the temple housed a grand statue of the goddess. At one point, Athenians broke the wings off the statue so that Athena couldn't leave Athens, and so would have no choice but to stay and protect their city. This changed the name of the temple to the Temple of Wingless Athena.
Although these sights were impressive, I truly believe the beauty of the Acropolis lies in the platform with the Greek flag proudly hoisted. The stripes in the flag represent the nine syllables in the phrase "Freedom or Death" in Greek. This was certainly taken seriously during WW II. During the Nazi invasion in 1941, an evzone (elite Greek soldier) was ordered to remove the flag. Without hesitation he took it down and proceeded to wrap himself in it. In a final act of Greek pride (and Nazi defiance) he jumped to his death. This flag can been viewed from almost anywhere in Athens. Due to modern building codes, one must apply for a special permit to build a tall building. The building code's sole purpose for existence is so that everyone in the city can view the Acropolis. The flag is a lot of things, but perhaps this one is most importantly a reminder of Greek sacrifice for indepencence.
We had a little time left before we met up with Demitrius, so we took the time to climb Areopagus (also known as Mars Hill). Paul is known to have preached to the Athenians here. Of course there were plenty of tourists getting photos of themselves preaching to whomever pretended to listen. Aside from the tourists, it was quite the view and moving to think that I was standing on the same hill from which Paul preached. You can see tourists behind John playing Paul. We made the short decent down the hill and met up with the rest of our group. As impressive as the Acropolis is, it's almost unbelievalbe that it only takes up seven acres.
From the Acropolis, Dimitris took us to the top of Lykavittos Hill for a quick photo op. We got some pictures and hopped back in the car in search of the Roman Agora. We got there, spent about 20 mintues, and were on our way to another Agora. There isn't a whole lot to say about the Roman Agora. It was a small marketplace and there's a pretty tower which depicts the eight winds. Now, to the Ancient Agora.
The Ancient Agora began as an open marketplace, but evolved through time under the rule of various emperors. Our first visit was to the Stoa of Attalos, which was a shopping mall in its hayday. It is a reconstruction and houses a museum. The museum displays a collection of artifacts from the Agora going all the way back to the 3200s B.C. Some of the artifacts prove this truly is where democracy was born. There is a voting machine which chose the city council (lottery style, similar to our jury duty system). Also included in this section are many ostrakan, votes cast on shards of pottery to ostricize tyrrants and corrupt leaders. There were some fairly famous names on some of those precious pieces of pottery: Themistocles and Aristides. As we stolled through time we even saw something to reminded us of the FTG family: ancient BBQ pits and grills.
The next notable ruin was the Temple of Hephaistos. It was built during the golden age of architecture and is one of the best preserved temples in Greece. The temple was named for the Blacksmith God, and two bronze statues were placed in the center of it: one of Hephaistos and one of the infamous Athena. Through time the temple served as a place of pagan worship, Christian worship, and recently, a Greek icon. Departure from the temple took us to the Statue of Hadrian. Now headless, this statue is of the Roman emperor, Hadrian (who ruled in 120). This picture is of his breast plate and depicts Romulus and Remus with the she-wolf who raised them. Of course, above them is Athena. Although Hadrian was not an Athenian, he marveled at their culture and was grateful for all he learned from them. He poured plenty of money into the city, and so many things were named after him, including an entire neighborhood.
Finally, time for lunch! Dimitris promised us authentic Greek food and he did not disappoint. When we arrived at the restaurant we were happy (but not necessarily surprised) to see other tour groups from our ship. After a short lesson with Fontaine, I felt pretty confident in what to order. Nick and Fontaine ordered plenty, and shared what they had. The meatballs were good, but the artichokes were out of this world! After a quick stop at the bakery beside the restaurant we were on the road again, this time to the National Archaeological Museum. It's a top notch museum and took us chronologically through time. Unfortunately, we didn't have enough time to get through the entire thing. One thing of particular interest was the special exhibit: The Antikythera Shipwreck. The famous shipwreck (thought to have wrecked between 60-50 B.C.) was recovered in 1900, 1901, and 1976. Considering the wreckage was submerged underwater for almost two millenia, the artifacts (sculptures, a piece of the hull, pottery, and much more) are unbelievably well preserved. Most interesting is this sculpture of a boy. As you can see, half of his body was preserved burried in the sand, while the other half deteriorated in the sea.
Next on the agenda was watching the Changing of the Guard. How very cool! The changing we watched took place in front of the Parliament building and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. These young soldiers change every hour and their cadence and intricacy of the change is remarkable. The evzone guards sport a skirt with 400 pleats (representing the 400 years they were under Turkish rule) and a red cap (representing bloodshed) with a long black tassel (representing the tears shed for those lost). Much like the Vatican guards, these stonefaced men stand guard through all hours of the day, and remain focused even when photocrazed tourists stand tight up against them to have their pictures taken. We topped off the excursion with what else? Shopping! A quick trip to the Plaka secured my much coveted postcard and a bronze statue of Athena the goddess for Athena the Aussie.
Although exhausted from the day of touring, there was still plenty of fun to be had on the ship! After a quick dinner we met Danny, Athena, Nick, and Fontaine for Happy Hour and Guess that Tune (Motown). We did fairly well, but didn't come close to the perfect score of the table next to us. More drinks at the Molecular Bar (talk about some well thought out recipes) promised an interesting evening for all. We soon found ourselves poolside with Nick and Fontaine, along with our favorite Cruise Director staff member, Dustin. Greek dancing ensued, which soon turned into a mix of oldies and contemporary. Needless to say, after the long day, we slept well.
Today marked our last day in Turkey. At about 9:30 the ship pulled into the port of Kusadasi, on Turkey's western coast. Kusadasi is a resort town, very popular with foreign tourists and Turkish vacationers. We were not here to relax, however. Kusadasi is also the access point to the ruins of Ephesus, an ancient Greek/Roman town. After getting off the ship, we had about an hour to kill in Kusadasi. Everything within walking distance of the dock was tourist shops, so we just meandered until 11:00 when we met our vehicle and tour guide, Emre, from the company Ephesus Shuttle. We shared the tour with Nick and Fontaine, Dwight and Maria, and Peter and Margot.
After about a half hour drive, we arrived at our first stop of the day, The House of the Virgin Mary. This house is in a secluded location on a mountain above Ephesus. It is believed that St. John brought Mary here for protection a few years after Jesus's death, and that she lived the last years of her life in the house. A number of popes, including John Paul II and Benedict XVI, have visited the site. It is a very serene location and a mass occurring outside the house made our visit even more spiritual. After visiting the house we lit candles, drank water from the spring near the house that is said to be some of the purest water in the world, and left wishes on a wall to be burned by a priest. I greatly enjoyed this visit and found it to be a very meaningful experience.
After descending down the mountain, we entered the ruins of the ancient city of Ephesus. Recall how I said we had a half hour drive from the port. Ephesus used to be a port town which was situated on the coast. Over time, the nearby river silted up the area and pushed the ocean further away. These ruins are actually the third incarnation of the city, as it had been moved twice due to this silting. The issue is still occurring to this day. The ruins of Ephesus (which are only 18% excavated) are a sight to behold, a sprawling town of marketplaces, temples, houses, and more. The site makes the Roman Forum look like a bunch of pebbles comparatively. There were three places in the ruins that were highlights. First was the Terrace Houses, the houses which the rich of the city lived in, still under excavation. The second was the Library of Celsus, a reconstructed facade of the library of the city, which was, at its time, the third largest library in the world. The third was the Great Theater, where Christianity was preached by St. Paul; he was beaten for it. The picture to the left shows a lion mosaic on a floor of a child's room in the Terrace Houses. The pictures below show us in front of the Library of Celsus, and also the Great Theater.
After leaving the ruins of Ephesus, we got some takeout Turkish food from the shop outside the site and ate it on the bus as we headed to our next site. It would have been nice if we had been given time to eat at a non-touristy Turkish restaurant instead, and this was one of only two disappointments with the tour. Our next visit was to the Basilica of St. John. This set of ruins is the site where a church was built to honor St. John. This church was ordered by Justinian during the decline of Ephesus, and so it was built with reused materials and was devastated quickly by the passing of time. We saw the baptistetry, the area where the altar was, and also the tomb of St. John. Of course, the bones of St. John were removed from the tomb and are now in Italy. We then made a quick stop at the Temple of Artemis, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, which is now nothing more than two pillars. The picture to the left shows one of the pillars (complete with stork's nest on the top), with the Basilica of St. John in the background.
On our way back to the ship, we encountered the second disappointment of the tour. We were suddenly taken to a carpet shop, a stop on the itinerary which was not discussed at any point prior to about 5 minutes before arrival. For a little bit of credit, the shop we were taken to is the one shop that Rick Steves recommendes in his guidebook for buying carpets in the Ephesus/Kusadasi area. We were treated to a nice demonstration on the making of rugs, Turkish drinks, and a very non-pushy salespitch. We endured the ritual and then headed back to the port. We had an early dinner, checked out the hot glass show on the ship, then retired. It was overall a very enjoyable day, and I cannot imagine a more impressive archaeological site than Ephesus. tomorrow brings Athens, and what is sure to be an interesting look at the history of the world.
Today began our two days in Istanbul, Turkey. This overnight visit to Istanbul was one of the primary reasons we chose this particular cruise, so I was greatly looking forward to the day. We met up with a couple in the morning to join us for our tour of the historic part of the city. We had booked a tour with the company Private Tours in Turkey, and our guide met us outside the port at 08:00. Unfortunately, our originally booked guide was unavailable due to a family situation, but another guide, Hale, filled in for her. We hopped onto the city tram, which easily whisked us away to the historical core of Istanbul, the area known as Sultanahmet. Our first stop was the Hippodrome, a square which is situated over an area originally built by Constantine for chariot races in Constantinople. The obelisk shown to the right was originally an Egyptian obelisk, carved in about 1500 BC. The part of the obelisk in Istanbul is only the upper third, as it was chopped in pieces for transport to Constantinople.
Following our walk through the Hippodrome, we entered the famed Blue Mosque, which was stunning from both inside and out. As is customary in mosques, we removed our shoes and walked on the carpet in the mosque in socks or barefoot. The mosque was built in the early 1600s and received its name due to its ornate blue tiles on the inside. According to Hale, the building was originally to be constructed with golden (altin) minarets, but this was too expensive, so the sultan ordered six (alti) minarets instead.
Next on our tour was Hagia Sophia, a museum which was built as a church in the sixth century by Justinian (a rebuild of an earlier church by Constantine which was destroyed). When the Ottoman Empire took control of Constantinople in the 1500s, it was repurposed into a mosque and the Christian mosaics were plastered over. In the twentieth century, it was secularized and turned into a museum. Since then, work has continued to reveal the Christian mosaics, and as such, the church is an incredible example of both Christian and Islamic art and design at the same time. This can be seen in the interior picture below. The second picture shows the exterior.
A short walk away was the sprawling complex known as Topkapi Palace, the former palace of the Sultans. We explored a number of different sections of the palace, but the most notable included the treasury (filled with a huge number of jewels), and the Harem. The Harem was the part of the palace in which the Sultan lived, along with the his mother (who served as the de facto queen, as almost all sultans did not marry), servant eunuchs, concubines, and his favorites, who were the women chosen by the Queen Mother to keep company with the Sultan and bear him children. The entire Topkapi Palace was overwhelming, and we easily spent the most time here of any site of the day. The picture to the left shows just one of the courtyards of the Palace.
After the Topkapi Palace, our tour guide pointed us in the direction of a nearby restaurant which served cuisine which she described as "the same as we would cook at home". We all ordered far too much of the delicious food, and took a much needed break from all of the walking.
Our next stop was the Underground Cistern, which was built in the sixth century (during Justinian's time) in order to provide fresh water to the blue bloods of the city. Turns out it didn't really matter what the blue bloods did with their water, since most of it was poisoned with lead from the aqueducts (built using lead) and drank from lead cups. The term blue blood refers to the more noble people of the city, whose fairer skin meant that their veins appeared blue below their skin. The working class and slaves had darker skin from being in the sun, and as such, their veins appeared green, and they were called green bloods. The cistern was an extremely peaceful place, which included some neat architecture, as well as some very cool carvings of Medusa which were transplanted here. It is an interesting take on early recycling, as all of the columns here were used from other structures.
Our final stop of the tour was the Grand Bazaar. We found the bazaar to be overwhelming, and a large mismash of the same goods over and over. Since nothing has price tags, you are forced to speak to the shopkeepers to try and determine the value of goods and compare pricing; a tedious task, when even saying hello to a shopkeeper can then make it difficult to extract yourself from conversation with them. Even with these difficulties, we did our part to stimulate the Turkish economy with a few choice purchases.
Following the Grand Bazaar and approximately 8 hours of touring, we hopped back on the tram and made our way back to the ship. We parted ways with Hale, who proved to be a wonderful tour guide. We were quite pleased with the insights she provided and the little tricks she used throughout the day to save us time in lines and elsewhere.
We took a brief rest in our room, and then made our way back out in what at that time was a relatively steady rain in order to take in the modern side of Istanbul. There is a pedestrian friendly street, Istiklal Street, which according to RS provides a nice counterpoint between the Istanbul of the past and present. We originally planned to take a taxi, however, after one turned us down (for reasons unknown to me), we found our way to the funicular, which proved to be a cheap and easy way to reach Taksim Square (on one end of Istiklal Street). By the time we reached the Square, the rain had died down and we wandered the street for about an hour, shopping for books for Sarah, among other things, and also securing some baklava. The very busy pedestrian street had a number of upscale shops and was a whole different world compared with Istanbul's Old City. We were very glad to have made the journey. We hopped on the funicular and took the short walk back to the cruise ship. One very late dinner later, we rested for the the night, ready for more Istanbul in the morning.
I'll be honest. Yesterday was interesting, but I hoped today would be much more fun. In our experience, the further south we've traveled the less we've enjoyed the cities. Luckily today placed Rome only slightly below Florence, with Venice way out in front. It's not like we didn't enjoy Florence and Rome, but Venice was just amazing. The early morning trip to the Colosseum and surrounding ancient city was full of fact finding, but also shed some light on modern Roman society.
A few interesting tidbits about the Colosseum:
- The Colosseum was the world's first domed (awnings stretched about a third of the way to the center by sailors) stadium in the world.
- Gladiators were much like today's sports stars, with loyal fans and even sponsors.
- This is where the word "vomit" originated. Hallways to the seats were called vomitorium. It was said that all 50,000 spectators could enter or exit the Colosseum in about fifteen minutes, essentially vomiting out its contents quickly and efficiently. Certainly not like Beaver Stadium!
- Often times POWs and criminals were forced to perform their deaths based on well known stories (ie: Hercules).
- We might assume spectators were assigned seating based on social class, and this is true. The emperor and other VIPs had thier names carved in their seats, which were ring side. The next level up seated those of noble birth. Plaebians, free Romans, sat in the next level. In the highest level (think nosebleed section) were the foreigners, slaves, and of course the women. But it was more complex than that. All admitted had a ticket made of broken pottery with the appropriate entrance, section, row, and seat number. Very organized!
While touring, we saw groups of children dressed in activewear. From the view inside the Colosseum, we found that our instincts were correct and there was an outdoor volleyball tournament going on just a few blocks away. After the tour, the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure came bursting through the streets. It was inspiring to see how many people were running for such a good cause. It's quite admirable to participate in such an event. But to have the opportunity to do so with such a magnificent backdrop is like icing on the cake!
We continued to the Roman Forum, which was just a short walk away. As we made our way to the Temple of Julius Ceasar, we passed by the Temple of Romulus (still with its original bronze doors). According to legend, Romulus and Remus were raised here by a she-wolf. Back to Ceasar...Ceasar's temple wasn't as grand as I thought it would be, but I guess that's what happens sometimes when you're looking at ruins! Most interesting regarding the temple was the mound of dirt behind it. This is the spot where Ceasar's body was burned after his assassination. Romans leave flowers here in honor of Ceasar's personification of the city of Rome. He was the first Roman to become a god. It's amazing how the grandeur of what was once the heart of Rome is reduced to ruins. Along our RS audio tour, we learned more about Roman culture and government. As our tour came to a close we came across the Arch of Septimius Severus (six stories tall). Although Severus was an efficient emperor, the downfall of Rome was eminent. (Thank you, J.K. Rowling, for including Roman history into your books.) Another point of interest were the active archaeological sites. Since it was Sunday, no one was digging. Disappointing, but still very cool to see!
We stopped for a bite to eat, then walked to the market at Campo de' Fiori. Here we bought [what we hope will be] some great pasta and locally made candy. We also made a new friend, who in this picture has moved onto the next person to beg for food. We began the RS Heart of Rome walk. It took us from Campo de' Fiori to Piazza Navona, which is built on an ancient race track.
Next was the Pantheon. As we arrived it began to rain. It was pretty cool to see the rain sprinkling through the occulus overhead. From there we went in search of Rome's most famous gelateria, Giolitti's. They had some original flavors there, ranging from champagne to biscotti Oreo (which John got). I landed on a mix of orange and pear, an interesting combination. The gelato was good, and so were the prices! We made our way to the conclusion of the guided walk: the venerable Trevi Fountain. The fountain was enormous. So enormous such that no matter where I stood, I couldn't capture it entirely in a picture. We both threw coins into the fountain, in hopes that it will bring us back to the city.
Tomorrow we leave for the cruise. We had a wonderful, memory making time in Italy, but I am very excited to get on the ship, relax, and not pack again until we're headed home!
Our day began with a late start, thanks to the late night at the opera. Another lesson learned: sleep is just as important as play! Of course that meant we missed something on our tight itinerary (Bargello). Once we had breakfast, the first stop was the Uffizi Gallery. The museum took us through the Rennisiance. Although I've seen art from this period, it was interesting to see how it evolved all in one gallery. Of course, the stand out pieces were beautiful (Birth of Venus and Holy Family). The gallery bookshop was when I hit the jackpot! There were books! Not just the kind of books you would expect, but children's books of all types (and in many different languages). No more searching for my Italian children's book (and I got another in Italian just for fun). The next search for books will be in Greece and Turkey, but not until the cruise.
We did a little roaming in the direction of our next destination: lunch. Another page out of RS's book and we were more than pleased! Cantinetta dei Verrazano is a quaint little restaurant, pasteria attached. We shared a plate of crostini and the tagliere di focacce (sampler of focaccia sandwiches); both were absolutely amazing! The real gem here was the service. Jonathan, the manager, was ever so helpful and very entertaining. An avid Red Sox fan, he was eager to talk sports and catch us up with what was going on in the American sports arena (baseball, hockey, basketball). We got a history lesson on the origin of the term "yankee" (Every Red Sox fan's next favorite team is the Yankees, right?), while Jonathan recommended some good wine. Actually, these were our first ordered glasses of wine. The finishing touch was our exit past the bakery counter...with purchase, of course (a shortbread cookie with chocolate filling and a meringue cookie--very good)!
I'm not sure what we were thinking, but next on the list was climbing the campanile. Ugh, how ridiculous! What cruelty to trek up 413 (the tower is 270 feet tall) stairs for fun. Who does that?! I'll tell you who--we do (and what seemed to be about a bazillion other tourists creating jams in the very narrow staircase). Once at the top, the view was beautiful and we were less inclined to complain about how much our legs hurt after the eleven and a half minute, steep, and narrow climb. After the much easier climb down, we went in search of some well deserved gelato.
As many of you know, John is a peanut butter fiend. He hasn't experienced withdraw symptoms yet, but I'm expecting them any day now. Each time we stop to check out the gelato selections, he's disappointed there isn't a peanut butter flavor. I suggested he begin looking for Nutella flavored gelato, since that is the spread of choice here. After lots of searching, we finally found some! He enjoyed it, but I could tell he would've preferred peanut butter. I passed on the gelato and tried some lemon sorbetto. It was good, but I think I'll stick with gelato.
A short break to shed what we accumulated throughout the day, and we were on our way again. The short walk to the Accademia was refreshing, as was the short line (thanks to the reservations John made). Once inside the congested museum, we listened to the RS walking tour. Michelangelo's David left me speechless. I know you can't possibly imagine such an instance, but it's true! Again, picture taking was not permitted, but this one time I may have bent the rules. (I don't think it said anything specifically about phones, and I turned the flash off). Unfortunately, tickets for the museum were €15 and the only notable piece was David.
We continued on with the RS Renaissance Walk. This took us through the Piazza del Duomo and the Piazza della Signoria, ending at Ponte Vecchio. I suppose the Ponte Vecchio could be compared to the Rialto bridge, but I'm not so sure. Yes, they are both bridges with great views and shops lining both sides...but this one just had gaudy touristy junk and expensive jewelry (talk about one extreme to the other). The Rialto had varied goods and was less crowded.
Anyway, it was time to explore! We came across another gelateria, Caffe delle Carrozze, with some interesting flavors. Finally John found his peanut butter! I chose an eclair-like flavor with bits of chocolate and pastry dough in it. We were both content with our choices. We began meandering through the streets and ended up purchasing a watercolor painting of the bridge from a local artist. Our travels ended up taking us to the Pitti Palace. Unfortunately, they were already closed.
Our dinner plans took us to Golden View Open Bar (another RS suggestion). The restaurant sits along the Arno River and has a beautiful view of the bridge. The vegetable risotto I had was wonderful, and John had his first taste of fresh pasta (gnocchi in a Gorgonzola and cream sauce with arugula). The food was great and the decor was...modern (in a good fun, interesting way). So began our final walk "home". Along the way we shopped at H&M (which allowed dogs?!), appreciated some Italian street painting (excited for Arts Fest already!), and got some gelato to share (amaretto, yum).
We've visited two Italian cities so far...I think it's safe to say that Venice is our favorite. It has more of a homey, small town feel to it (because it is). I like the fact that no matter where we went, we had no choice but to buy local products from locals. Here you need to be more discerning and really search for that experience.
Definitely looking forward to a full night of sleep in preparation for an early morning rise to drag our luggage through the streets to the train station. Watch out Rome, here we come!
Today marked our first travel between two cities, a train ride from Venice to Florence in the morning. Of everything involved in our trip, one of the things I was most anxious about was the train travel, in particular navigating the stations. We were up very late in St. Mark's Square the night before, and I had trouble falling asleep, presumedly due to my worry about the travel in the morning. So what ends up happening? We slept through our alarm... giving us approximately an hour to get showered, finished packing and get to the train station. Luckily, we managed to succeed, even with a few minutes to spare. The train ride was wonderful, and my fears were unfounded. Navigating the stations was superbly easy. I only wish that long distance train travel were more well developed in the United States. The ease and convenience makes going to the airport seem like cruel and unusual punishment.
We arrived in Florence and took the 15 minute walk to our B&B, Soggiorno Panerai, which included passing the famed Duomo. More on this later, as at this time we were solely focused on arriving and unloading our luggage. We were greeted at the B&B by its supremely friendly owner, Albena, who showed us a room and then told us she had a second room at another location around the corner and that we could pick which one we wanted. She told us it was a "very pretty room" and she was ever so correct. The second room is also closer to the train station, a plus for when we head to Rome on Saturday. So, we took the second room and she generously helped us move our luggage from one building to the other, while pointing out the directions of all the major sites. Once we were settled, she whipped out a map and marked all of the sites, as well as a number of recommended restaurants and other locations. A tremendously helpful woman who got our time in Florence off on the right foot.
About noon, we set out for the day, with our first stop being the Mercato Centrale, a large indoor market. After browsing we ended up with some delicious choices. Sarah had a slice of pizza (center of picture), I had some type of panini (rear left of picture) and we topped it off with our first Italian cannoli. An enjoyable, cheap meal which we enjoyed in the piazza outside the market.
Our first historical stop was the Medici Chapels, a facility designed by Michelangelo in order to house the tombs of the ruling Medici family of Florence. This was my highlight of the day, with the main room having beautiful statues, a wonderful ceiling, woodwork, etc. Unfortunately pictures were not allowed, and while many people appear to ignore these directives at the museums, we have, for the most part, obeyed them.
Next stop, the Baptistery, a thousand year old building (the oldest in Florence) next to the Duomo. The Baptistery was not originally Christian but, as you can tell by the name, it was converted. The most famous feature of the Baptistery is its bronze doors with 3D scenes designed into them. Following this we explored the Duomo. The dome consists of 500 steps in order to reach the top, which we decided against taking part in. I have plans on getting us up the only 400 step Campanile on Friday.
After the Baptistery and the Duomo, we headed to the Duomo Museum, which includes a number of impressive items related to the dome, including models used by the builders, etc. Our favorite piece in the museum was Michelangelo's Pieta, which a group of art students also enjoyed, as they were sitting on the steps in front of it, creating drawings of the work.
The below pictures are, clockwise from upper left: Baptistery doors, Duomo and Campanile from the ground near the Baptistery, inside of Duomo knave, and Michelangelo's pieta in the Duomo Museum with art students.
Following all of that, it was time for some gelato. Sarah had crema/melon and I had bacio nero, or black kiss. The photo shows our gelato being scooped. Next, after a short rest in our room, we headed across the river to Oltrarno, the less hectic side of town. At the recommendation of our hotel owner, we headed to dinner at Trattoria La Casalinga, a restaurant which we could tell would be good by the line of locals waiting for it to open up at 19:00 when we arrived at about 18:50. It didn't disappoint, some pasta for Sarah and some steak for me.
Next stop was just a half a block down the street, to St. Mark's Anglican Church to see some intimate opera, in this case, La Bohème. The operas are performed (in Italian) in the knave of Florence's English speaking church with a small cast (in this case four performers and a pianist) and a minimal set, and the audience of less than 100 is sitting just feet away from them. We were sitting in the second row. You can see Sarah in the picture, which I took from behind the "stage" (made up of the table on the left and furnace on the right) before the show began. We spent time chatting with Virginia, the girl sitting next to us (a student?), who is traveling Europe by herself staying in hostels. A very interesting perspective, and she shared some tips for Rome, which she had recently left. The opera was beautiful, and was a very enjoyable, but late evening. We of course topped off the evening with gelato (panna cotta for Sarah, cookies for me). The cookies gelato is probably my favorite at this point. So ended our night. Tomorrow...our second and final day exploring Firenze.
Our first day in Venice was a resounding success in which we soundly defeated jet-lag and had a productive day with only a few minor changes to our originally planned itinerary. Our flight landed at approximately 09:00 local time (six hours ahead of Eastern time) and we briskly went through customs, rode the bus to Venice, walked to our B&B, and arrived at approximately 10:15. After an extremely helpful briefing from Stacy, the B&B owner, and quick showers, we were on our way by noon. From wheels down to sightseeing in three hours after an international redeye is what I call a success.
Our first stop was for a quick bite to eat. There is a small cafe outside the B&B which we stopped at, and it was totally uneventful. The food was edible, but that's about all that I can say about it.
Next was our "Venice Orientation". We hopped on the vaporetto (essentially a water bus) and popped on our headphones for Rick Steves' "Grand Canal Cruise" audio tour. Rick Steves is a name you will hear frequently throughout our blogging, as a significant part of our trip planning was based on his guidebooks. The audio tour was a narration of the 45 minute ride from one end of the Grand Canal to the other. It introduced most of the major sights that line the canal and allowed us to get a strong sense of direction for the city (all while getting to rest and relax on a boat). To the right is a view of the Rialto Bridge from the vaporetto.
We departed the vaporetto near St. Mark's Square and wandered about until we ended up at La Salute Church, a beautiful domed church with a number of altars inside and gorgeous architecture. In the picture to the left, you can see the church in focus behind us. From there we visited the Gallerie dell'Accademia, which housed an incredible collection of Catholic paintings depicting mostly Saint Peter and Mary. For some reason, the fire alarm went off during the last half of our time there. It was quite bothersome.
At this point, we were both running out of steam and looking for dinner. Our only criteria was that it had to be nearby. We needed some fuel before more walking. Luckily, a restaurant listed in the RS guidebook happened to be right outside the Accademia. It also happened to be right along the Grand Canal, which made for nice views (seen to the right). The food was better than lunch, but we still hadn't found any culinary masterpieces... until after dinner.
With our batteries recharged enough for a bit more exploring, the new goal became gelato. RS recommended a place called Grom, which was not too far from the Accademia. We got there and hemmed and hawed over the flavors which were only listed in Italian. Once we sucked it up and just picked something, we tasted success. This gelato was pitch perfect, and a sorely needed treat to wind down our day. We had intended to take a gondola ride after the gelato (around 20:00), but jet-lag finally got to us. We hopped back on the vaporetto and headed back to the B&B. We will need to charge our batteries well, because a gondola ride has just been added to the already packed itinerary for tomorrow.
