Weekend with Andy

I was a music minor in school, string bass to be exact, and that was where I met Andy. He is 2 years older than me and plays jazz guitar like a boss. So naturally he is also a great bass player. He and Jimmy, a jazz bass player, were best friends and loved teasing me. They called me a freshman until I graduated, and just loved messing with me. I was totally fine with it to be honest- I figured it must mean they liked me, or at least thought I could handle it. :)

So Andy and I gotta have a reunion! He  is undertaking a 3-month backpacking trip and just started about a week ago. It was great timing for us to meet up in Florence. Jeremy and I loved the company and he could get some advice from us (whether he liked it or not!). 

So Saturday we slept in until about 11- absolutely necessary after our day and staying up a little late. Then we had the last of our breakfast groceries and headed out to the leather market with Andy and Victoria. 

It was a very successful trip. We each got something. Andy got sunglasses, Jeremy a wallet, Victoria a computer bag, and I got an adorable little black purse. 

After that it was already lunch time, so we got kebabs at the same place as our duomo day. I don't know if I mentioned this before but Turkish kebabs are not shish kebabs- there is no stick involved. They are basically wraps with spicy sauce, veggies, and shaves of slow-roasted meat. They're awesome. 

Then we headed to the Piazza Della Signoria, near the Palazzo Vecchio, which was on my list of things to see. The square outside houses an amazing sculpture collection. It's where the David was originally, and it's still home to a lot of great originals and a David replica. 

David

Then we paid to go see the inside of the Palazzo Vecchio. This has historically been, and still is, the center of a lot of government business in Florence. The "Room of Five Hundred" has always housed the parliamentary body. This was our first stop, and it was beautiful. Huge paintings by Vasari adorn the walls and the "Labors of Hercules" statues line the sides. The whole room is a work of art. 

The rest of the palace houses other works of art, apartments, and views. The building itself is gorgeous. 

They even have Dante's death mask- a plaster replica of his face right after he died. 

One of my favorite rooms was the room of maps. These old maps are surprisingly detailed and beautiful. 

There was also a nice view from one of the windows. 

After that tour, Victoria left and the three of us spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around, sitting in the shade, and having good talks. We went out for an easy Italian dinner and headed back to the hostel, where we drank wine and met up with the Milan guys. We all decided to go out and see Florence at night. We headed back toward the Palazzo Vecchio and also saw the Ponte Vecchio. 

We were supposed to meet up with the guys after they ate, but they never showed. So we walked around the Piazza Piti and then called it a night. 

There may have been some gelato on the way back. :)

The next day, Sunday, Andy really wanted to go see Michelangelo's David. It was on my list too but i honestly probably wouldn't have spent the money if he didn't want to go. So we went to the Galleria Della Academia and waited in line. The line was short thankfully, so we only had to wait about 30 mins. 

There were no pictures allowed in the museum, which we knew going in. It was both a blessing and a curse. I don't have as much to share with you, but I got to really take it all in and absorb the objects. It was a really good trip. 

First we saw some sculptures, a few unfinished Michelangelo pieces, and paintings. Most of the paintings were from Florence churches and were beautiful, important works that had been wonderfully restored. They had a small collection of musical instruments- though not as large as Milan's collection- which was also cool. But then we went straight to the main event. 

The David. 

(Thanks google images)

This was truly an emotional experience. He is an absolute wonder to see. Sculpted by Michelangelo himself and placed in the Piazza Della Signoria for a couple hundred years, he was moved into this room (built especially for him) in 1873. The subject is David after defeating Goliath, with his slingshot slung around his back. 

Everything about this statue is amazing. The musculature. The details of the veins. The fact that one leg appears to be holding no weight and yet is holding thousand of pounds of marble. The expression on his face. Even Vasari, the painter and architect of the Room of Five Hundred, once said that if you saw David, you need not see any other sculptures. Just wow. 

So THAT was amazing. 

After the museum we stopped for a snack. I got 2 pastries and wanted 467286 more. 

We stopped by a little church after our rest called Chiesa de S. Margherita, or more commonly Dante's church. I told you the story of Dante, and Beatrice... Remember? Well this is the church both of their families attended, and where they supposedly met at age 9. This is the church where each of them got married to other people. And this is supposedly the church where Beatrice is buried. I don't think the last part is true, but legend says it is. And there is a basket in the church where you can write your wish for love to Beatrice and she will answer you. We just went for the atmosphere and the Dante art. 

Our final stop of the day was the Piazzale Michelangelo, a square on the hill across the Arno river. It was a very easy walk up the hill and the view was awesome!

Andy :)

We found a shady spot to sit and real for a while before heading back into the city. 

We decided to head to Venice on Monday, just for the day, since Andy was leaving and we felt we had tackled Florence. We looked at train times an found an 8:30 that got us there at 10:30 and a train back leaving Venice at 7:30 to get us back at 9:30. It was perfect until the first train was sold out, and the best option was the 10:15 to get us there at 12:15. We decided to do it, since any time in Venice would probably be better than no time in Venice. The reservations were €10/person/direction. Not bad but still required (in Italy). 

It was Andy's last night, so we went out for dinner again. I got a massive calzone and finished it with the boys' help. After that we took a walk and called it a night. 

Having Andy around was great. Always something to talk about and something one of us wanted to see. It was a very relaxing weekend. We slept in both days, never rushed anywhere, took long walks and ate good meals. 

I am excited for him, just starting this adventure. I can't wait to hear all of his stories at the end!