Florentines are beginning to fear a repeat of the flooded Arno from 1966, and you can see it in their faces as they stare at the roaring water from these many days of pelting and unrelenting rain. As stated earlier, it doesn't bother me too much since I'm spending lots of time inside of museums.
The first stop of the day was to the Museo Nazionale del Bargello. The building was formerly the headquarters of the chief magistrate, which position was later abolished by the Medici, and the palace was given to the police chief ("Bargello"). Luckily for mere mortals like me, this is now a museum with the most famous and beautiful sculpture from the Gothic and Renaissance periods. It was Italy's first national museum (outside of the Vatican) and was created in 1865.
This buff fellow is Oceanus, by Giambologna. I carefully angled the camera to allow this as a PG blog.
I don't recall which sculptor created this, but it could be entitled "Not tonight, dear."
These sculptures are in the outside courtyard, hence my being able to take photos. Inside, there are works of Donatello, Michelangelo, Giambologna, Brunelleschi, Cellini and many others.
I have noticed on this trip that the artists loved to paint little baby St. John playing with little baby Jesus. Were they buddies? Did their moms have a playgroup?
Here is Jason, showing his capture of the Golden Fleece from the dragon. This was done by Francavilla.
These sculptures are remarkable, not just for the artistry, but also for the expressiveness and individual personality given to the subjects by the artists. For instance, there is a Bacchus carved by Michelangelo (when he was just 22) that clearly shows that Bacchus was blotto. There is also a "David" created by Donatello that must be a transvestite, with long hair, a girlish hat, and a very mischievous expression.
Wine appreciation class was good, especially as I was the only student, so I got quite the personalized class. Afterwards, I went to the recommended wine shop, Alessi, and purchased a couple of bottles to try to safely bring home, one Vino Nobile and one Chianti Classico. This chianti is nothing like the stuff we drank in high school at Cellar Anton's in Greensboro.
With a furious storm brewing - including winds, driving rain, and lightning - it seemed like the perfect opportunity to climb the Campanile (bell tower). They have a nice lightning tower complete with a cross, so who's to worry?
Although not terribly artistic, this shot of the Baptistery was at least taken from an interesting height.
On this little window, I discovered a couple of locks, probably left there by yet another desperate guy trying to prove his love for an Italian woman playing hard to get.
Here is proof that I almost got blown off of the bell tower. Where was Quasimodo when I needed him?
This is probably my favorite shot of the day.
It was taken while the storm was moving across the city. I love how it almost looks like it is partially done in sepia. This is copyright protected, by the way, and it is how I will make my fortune.
There were so many nice photos, that I put them into a little album rather than posting them all here, and hopefully this little experiment will work:
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