After the leaning tower we headed into Florence, with the first stop at gorgeous Piazzale Michelangelo. This piazzale is on a hill that overlooks the city, and the views are fantastic! Below are some birds eye views from this area.
Next stop was a visit to the museum L'Accademie to see David (the real one, not one of the 2 replicas around town). Here is David & his story...
After this we had a stop at Santa Croce before having free time for lunch. Santa Croce is an absolutely stunning church that is famous for being the burial place for the great and good in Florence. Michelangelo is buried in Santa Croce, as are Rossini, Machiavelli, and the Pisan-born Galileo Galilei, who was tried by the Inquisition and was not allowed a Christian burial until 1737, 95 years after his death. There is also a memorial to Dante & Leonardo Da Vinci, but their sarcophagus' are empty. Pictures do not do it justice...
After a quick bite to eat we had some free time to check out Piazza Duomo & Piazza Della Signoria (my fav spots). Piazza Della Signoria houses the Loggia dei Lanzi (If you saw in my Munich post the German copy of a square in Florence, this is the one) & lots of statues & fountains. You can compare yourself. Piazza Duomo is the home to the Cupola dei Brunelleschi, Santa Maria del Fiore & Giotto's bell tower.
After this, because of the long drive back to the port we had to leave Florence. This also was our last stop in Italy, so until next time Italia, CIAO!
