// Ballad of a Thin Man and a camera //: Florence Michelangelo

It’s Florence in its entire Renaissance! So I have taken the train up to the beautiful town of Florence, it had taken me an hour and a half; well worth the trip when in Italy. For those who are not sure of Florence’s significance, it was here where Michelangelo created the sculpture of ‘David’ and it is a motherland of Renaissance art. The Renaissance is a period from which it is said the Medieval stages transcended into the Early Modern Europe stages. The Renaissance in Florence and Rome was a great period in which there were many cultural changes with a greater focus of art, architecture and cultural wealth.

As soon as I dropped of my lightened luggage, I seriously just walked in a general direction to everyone else, no map, no directions; this was of course in search of food. Before you know it, I was sitting in the heart of the city, surrounded by roads and building from the Middle Ages, enjoying a typical European breakfast of coffee. From there I walked outside to find a gigantic church towering above, the church called 'The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore'. This church, like many other churches that I have seen throughout Europe, was constructed with such authenticity in the architecture, every aspect being completed with great detail. Just keep in mind that these buildings had been built with no electricity or electrical light. This making the Duomo even more impressive with its painted ceiling. Walking inside the church, you instantly feel the coolness sweep over you, this might be because the entire interior is pretty much layered with expensive marble. I forgot to mention in my latest blog post, that there is a Roman bath made from the most expensive marble on earth, that belonged to Emperer Nero and his wife Poppaea Augusta Sabina; who bathed in milk. It is said that one block of this marble is worth 90,000 Euros in todays value (an estimated $113,519 Australian dollars). After the visit to the church, I literally just walked around for hours, finding neat little cafes and gelato, before eventually finding the Ponte Vecchio bridge.

I think Florence for me, has been the most beautiful city so far; one reason being that Florence remains as Florence. It has not emerged as a super contender against the powerful cities of Rome and Milan, but instead; rest quietly under the sounds of the large church bells that ring on the hour. Florence was the home of magnificent artist, including Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raffael, Donatello, Sandro Botticelli, and Masaccio. I'm sure you know a lot of these artists by there first name.

You can still feel the vibe of great artistic talent that scatter the city. I think the artists mentioned earlier, wanted to capture the great renaissance and the up and coming wealth of art and culture. There are sculptures all around the city that are hundreds and hundreds of years old, and just like art, gives the city great culture and brings it meaning.

Speaking again of Michelangelo, this morning I woke up early to meet with 'David' himself. Standing in the room and building made just for him; stood a most empowering figure, perfect in every way. The size of David is absolutely amazing, and the body posture, well in all the sculptures so far, I haven't seen something so fluent and natural in pose. The statue of David by Michelangelo is unlike others statues of its time. Usually, David has been presented in a victorious pose, usually standing over the giant; decapitated, with the head of the giant in his hand. Reading of Michelangelo's portrayal, seems that he wanted to indicate that David was not just pure strength (with the help of God) but in fact, won the battle due to the intelligence and thought. The body itself is so perfect in every way. One sculpture describing Michelangelo's David; speaking of how there is no other statue in the world you need to see after you have seen this one. I agree, and that’s why it is the most famous sculpture in the world.

David

by Michelangelo

Florence, Italy

The only reason I have a photo of David, is that I genuinely did not know there were no photos allowed; and there I was standing right in the middle with my SLR.

On a side note, on the way home I noticed I did not have my wallet in my back pocket. After a frantic search through my bag, I realised it was forever gone, assuming I had been pick pocketed while walking through the huge market. Distraught, upset, angry, cursing, and running back to my hostel to cancel all my cards (I also had 150 Euros and $55 Australian dollars in there). On arrival, the receptionist asked if I was "Hoek". My wallet had been found at the museum and I needed to pick it up. I ended Florence on a good note. Offered the museum money but they would not take it, so I had a huge meal to celebrate my newfound wealth.

Off to Amsterdam in the morning, the place of origin. Going to visit where my Dad grew up and his old family home. I will keep you posted.