FLORENCE and TUSCANY
Our destination in Tuscany was Villa il Crocicchio, an agriturismo near Reggello. Agriturismos are working farms that supplement their income by renting rooms and operating restaurants. Ours grew grapes and olives and was set among beautiful Tuscan hills. On the way, we stopped at the American WW II cemetery near Florence, which was very moving. As we entered the cemetery it was raining pretty hard. An American who administers the cemetery came aboard the bus and spoke about its history. Before he was finished, the sun was shining. We saw no other rain on the entire trip. I knew Rick Steves was an important figure in European tourism, but I had no idea he was that powerful!
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Our group at dinner at the agriturismo.
In the morning, Paul drove us into Florence, home of the Renaissance and the greatest art in the world. We were led around town by an outstanding local guide and art historian. She guided us through beautiful central Florence and the Uffizi gallery. The Uffizi collection is so exhaustive and glorious, our guide was able to point to various works of art to show how not just art, but civilization itself was reborn from the Dark Ages and grew through the Renaissance.
Florence's baptistry doors, sculpted by Ghiberti and labeled "The Gates of Paradise" by Michelangelo
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Basilica of St. Mary of the Flower, or as it is more popularly known, the Duomo, after its historic dome, built in 1436 by Brunelleschi. Its construction marked the rediscovery of a lost art, as it was the first dome built since the Pantheon's, 1500 years earlier.
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In Italy for thirty years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and the Renaissance. In Switzerland, they had brotherly love; they had five hundred years of democracy and peace and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock. Orson Welles
Even though central Florence is now pedestrian-only, pollution was damaging Michelangelo's masterpiece, so the original was moved into its own museum, the Accademia. This very accurate copy was erected in place of the original.
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After the Uffizi, it was time for lunch and Molly insisted on buying our meal since today was our 30th anniversary. Our guide recommended a nearby sandwich shop and a gelato shop that was also close. We both had herring sandwiches, which were very good, especially since it was the first time one of our children took us out to eat!
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After lunch we walked across town to the Basilica di Santa Croce, called Italy's Westminster, because of the many Italian heroes entombed here, including Michelangelo, Galileo, Dante, Machiavelli, and Rossini. It is also the home of the Florence Leather School, established after WW II, to teach a skill to boys orphaned by the war. This led to Florence becoming a world center for leatherwork and fashion.
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