Florence

Sometimes there is an interesting synchronicity to trips. Aliza had been reading Irving Stone's 'The Agony and the Ecstasy,' a biography of Michelangelo in the form of a story. On the train from Rome to Florence, where we were going for our day off, she got to the part of the story where Michelangelo carves David. So, of course, we had to go see the real David, but first we had to cart our packs across town, through mobs of tourists and blazing hot sunlight, to our hotel. First we strolled down to the river and went for wine and sandwiches. We didn't know where to find David, so we went to the Palazzo Vecchio and did a tour of the museum there, where they gave us directions to go see David. It was hard to imagine that someone had lived in the Palazzo Vecchio, the Medici palace, with all its amazing frescos and sculptures. We walked past the Duomo and marveled at all the colors of stone and the intricacy of the design and detail. It's still hard to imagine it being built one stone at a time, and the master plan that had to have been in action to coordinate all those plans and all those people. We arrived at the museum that now holds David, went through the security and metal detectors. Although we had seen replicas of David (there is one on display in Florence), we were still so amazed at his size and the immensity of the undertaking. It's hard to believe Michelangelo could know that David was inside that particular stone and then bring out all the life and detail. The veins, the muscles were pulsing with life, as if the stone were actually alive, and the perennial concept of David existed in collective understanding, therefore retained as a living concept in the youthful sculpture....

Florence has such a charm and interesting character, it's history so rich and vibrant.