There were a few small stands selling coffee and pastries under large trees on streets. Italian drink a whole lot more coffee than anybody else in the world. Everyone praises the strong taste of Italian espresso, but I could care less, because I don't drink coffee, period.
Our hotel situated on a small street a few hundred feet from the Arno river. After dinner, My wife and I and our newly formed group of friends decided to go for a stroll on the sidewalk along the river toward the city old town. It snakes thorough the city quietly.
During this time of the year, the water level was very low. I saw barely a few feet of water flowing lazily under the The Ponte Vecchio bridge. It's hard to imagine that there were times the river flooded the bridge about a good 20 to 30 feet above the water level.
We headed toward the old town roughly about 5 km from our hotel. We had no idea what the name of the plaza, in which there was a large and beautiful statue of a man vs a lion. There were a few bars, coffee shops, and restaurants with a rowdy crowd. We did not stay for long. We just wanted to explore the surrounding area, but it was dark with not enough street lights to make out of directions. We finally walked back to our hotel using the river sidewalk. Tomorrow would be a very exciting day for us.
We could see the magnificent dome of Basilica of St. Mary of the Flower from far away. People still call it The Duomo. The cathedral complex, located in Piazza del Duomo includes the Baptistery and the free standing Giotto's Tower. These buildings dominated the center of the city.
I had never seen a basilica dome that large in my life. I think it the largest in the world even in today standard. Beside, it's a beautiful artistic man made dome that words would not do it justice. The dome looks a thousand years old at least. But later on, we were informed that it was actually completed in 1436 after more than 15 years of tremendous hard works.
The basilica itself is enormous. The distance between the entrance to the other end of the dome stretched for more than five hundred feet. Its 3 humongous bronze doors stood more than 30 feet high. Above them, the half moon shape windows adorned with mosaic decorations. I could only recognize the middle one as the statues of Christ enthroned with Mary and John the Baptist. On top of the facade is a series of niches with the twelve Apostles with, in the middle, the Mary and Child.
Surprisingly, the interior is vast but empty with many statues depicted saints and some of the public figures of the old time. I counted 44 stained glass windows cover all around the building. The windows in the aisles and in the transept depicted saints from the Old and the New Testament, while the circular windows in the drum of the dome or above the entrance depicted Christ and Mary.
Soon I walked past the main entrance, I saw people looking backward behind me. I turned around to my surprise, there was a giant clock sitting on top of the door. Its circulation was divided into 24 equal parts with Gothic, Roman numbers laid differently with what we have on our clock nowadays. I couldn't find the explanation from anyone, and soon I forgot about it.
At the high altar, right in the middle, and directly under the dome is the twenty foot tall monumental crucifix. Right behind it is a huge picture of The Last Super, but I am not sure this is from the hands of Leonardo da Vinci. Again, no chance to ask, I'd let it slide.
There were many statues of figures whom I could not identify. There were at least a couple of tombs in the building. There were many more paintings along the walls and on the ceiling.
The only painting that stuck in my mind was the Last Judgement right underneath the dome. The word beautiful is no where near to describe it.
On the other side is the octagonal Baptistery building. It stands across from the cathedral and the tower. It seems to be older than the other two. The Baptistry has eight equal sides with a rectangular addition on the west side. The sides are clad in geometrically patterned colored marble, white and green marble inlay. The pilasters on each corner are decorated with white and dark green marble in a zebra-like pattern.
The exterior is also ornamented with a number of artistically significant statues right above the Gates of Paradise artwork. There are 2 doors consist of 28 decorative panels, with the twenty top panels depicting scenes from the life of St. John the Baptist. The eight lower panels depict the eight virtues of hope, faith, charity, humility, fortitude, temperance, justice and prudence. I did took note after listening to our tour guide who spoke very good English. There is a Latin inscription on top of the door, but I forgot the meaning of it.
There were a group of bronze statues above the gate depict the beheading of St John the Baptist. It is a super artwork in most of the tourists' eyes.
There was some restoration works going on, so the interior of this building was off limit.
Standing adjacent the Cathedral and the Baptistery, the tower is one of the showpieces with its rich sculptural decorations. This slender structure stands on a square plan with a height of more than a couple of hundred feet. I counted at least five levels to made up the height of the tower. There are more statues than I could count on each level of the structure.
All in all, I love this city for its rich history, energy, and importance.
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