Florence

Probably my favorite city during spring break. I spent four nights living with friends from New York. As expected, I ate loads of pasta and gelato, saw several churches/museums, and walked much of the city several times over. Florence is relatively small in size so it's easy to cover most of it on foot. It's very tourist-y, but I didn't mind since there were still plenty of sites to see. However, my friends said that as a result, they never use any of the Italian they learn since most everyone, including shop owners and waiters, understand English.

The NYU Florence campus over James's shoulder. I was absolutely stunned when I saw all the grass and trees. You have to understand, coming from NYU, our conception of a campus never includes unencumbered plains of grass where you can just sit and enjoy the beauty. Apparently, it's a donated villa so there are multiple buildings on the sides. It has more of a collegiate feel than NYU, with the campus and with the fact that everyone recognizes each other. As you can tell, I was really impressed and started questioning why I hadn't chosen to study abroad in Florence. The only downside is that the campus is nearly a 45-minute walk from my friends' dorm. It's on the opposite side of the city, but like I said, it's a small city and you can cross much of it in only 45 minutes.

The Duomo, the most obvious sight in Florence. As someone told me, you never need a map in Florence, just figure out where the Duomo and the river are and you'll know where you're going. Officially called Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, it is the central church (Duomo) of Florence. So each city has its own Duomo, which took me a while to understand.

Brunelleschi's dome is the largest masonry dome in the world, to this day. You can climb into the dome, but for some reason, it was closed during my visit. If you go to the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, which is across the square from the Duomo, they have Brunelleschi's working models and his workers' tools. I highly recommend this museum. There is so much art, sculpture, and architecture both outside and inside the Duomo that you need a museum to explain it all to you. Otherwise, it's just a cool big church, but the museum really opened my eyes to the ongoing work to the Duomo over the centuries by Michelangelo, Arnolfo di Cambio, Brunelleschi, Lorenzo Ghiberti, etc.

The inside of Brunelleschi's dome. I'm not sure who painted it, but the interior also has many cool paintings and stained glass windows. However, relative to the exterior, the interior is much subdued. As the museum explained it, the donors to the Duomo wanted to display their wealth to the rest of the world, but they didn't need reminders inside their own church. You can also go down into the Duomo's crypt where Brunelleschi is buried. However, it was also closed for some reason. Bad week to come see the Duomo.

Another view of the Duomo, now from the Piazza del Michelangelo. This piazza was one of my favorite spots in the city. It's a trek to reach there, but the views of the River Arno, Florence, and the nearby mountains are fantastic.

In this picture, you can also see the Clock Tower (Campanile), which is the tall building near the Duomo, and the Baptistry (Battistero di San Giovanni), which is the rounded building next to the Campanile. Both these buildings are in the Piazza del Duomo. Like Piazza San Marco, you can spend your entire day in this square.

The Campanile is supposed to offer amazing views of Brunelleschi's dome and the rest of the city, but the line was too long. If you do want to go up, go early in the morning. Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise adorn the Battistero. Like many other pieces, the ones you see today are copies while the real ones are located in the Museo dell'Opera in order to preserve them. In addition, the sculptures above eye level on both the Campanile and Battistero are noteworthy.

A random person in the Piazza del Michelangelo (We'll take a break from the history for a moment lol). It was quite windy up there so he was actually zooming along in the parking lot. I've never seen this before. Anyone know what it's called?

The Basilica di San Lorenzo. As you can see, there's no facade, but I really liked the interior (Unfortunately, you're not allowed to take pictures). It has a sharp gray and white pattern between the columns and walls, which I surprisingly liked. This church was the Medici family's parish church so there are incredible paintings and artwork on the walls. Many of the Medici are also buried in this church.

This church is right next to the Leather Market. You could say that all of Italy is a Leather Market, but on the adjacent streets, there are a crazy amount of jackets, bags, shoes, etc. just hanging from flimsy stalls. However, as I was walking by, Lady Gaga was blaring from one of the shops. Wherever you go, you can't escape American pop music.

The Basilica di Santa Croce. I like this picture because it clearly shows the difference between the marble facade and the wooden church. I didn't realize that the two are separate entities. As you can tell from the Basilica di San Lorenzo, a church can exist without a facade. In the case of the Duomo, the facade can be rebuilt, as it was after di Cambio gave it a shot.

Galileo's tomb in the Basilica di Santa Croce. For me, that was the church's main attraction. Machiavelli, Michelangelo, Ghiberti, and several other figures I didn't recognize are buried in this church. I was slightly disappointed by Brunelleschi's cloister, but definitely check out the Pazzi Chapel and the overwhelming artwork towards the front of the church.

A David outside the Palazzo Vecchio. The real David by Michelangelo is in the Academmia Gallery. I went to the Gallery at noon and the line stretched two blocks so I didn't bother waiting. My guide book recommended reserving tickets for both the Gallery and the Uffizi since they're supposed to be jam-packed with tourists. I didn't get a chance to see either museum, but my friends recommended them.

Ponte Vecchio from the next bridge. The Ponte Vecchio has many jewelry and clothing stores on the sides of the bridge. Everyone in Florence asked if I'd seen the bridge, but after you see it once, it loses its novelty.

However, one thing that doesn't lose its novelty is the gelato. I don't even know how many cups I had, but they were all delicious. For one sitting, I had cafe gelato, which is much stronger than the coffee ice cream of the States but is quite good. My advice is to try a different flavor every time you go. Also, a friend said never to go to a place that sells gelato and other things; go to the stores that specialize only in gelato since it has to be good. However, it won't be a problem finding them since there's a store nearly every other block.

Also, the nightlife in Florence was really good. It was the only city over spring break where I really went out, but it was a lot of fun. One of the Florence residents lost his wallet one night, but otherwise everything went well. The drinks can be expensive (London or New York prices), but the nightlife is certainly active even throughout the week. It's funny to see the Duomo deserted at night, especially when it's so crowded during the day.