3 Weeks In Tuskany / Day 1
In May 2014 we went for 3 weeks to Tuscany in Italy. This area is world famous for wine, good food, its beautiful landscape and long history. More than enough reasons for us to spend some time there. This travel report can never list all sights and points of interest … there are just too many. I want to give you a rough idea about our travel route and share some info about special places which we came across during our trip.
From our home in Munich it is an 8 hour drive to the northern part of Tuscany. We passed by Florence and went straight on to our first accommodation. We choose to stay outside of the cities and found a lovely wine farm few kilometres southwest of Florence. This was our base for the next 3 days from where we explored the splendid city of Florence, drove on small winding roads to Volterra and checked out the famous Chianti area.
Our first day in Tuscany we started in Florence. If you want to see and vist all the famous spots and museums you will probably need more than one week. There are just so many things to see … We decided to get a first impression only and spend one day in Florence. For sure we need to come back and have a closer look to this beautiful city with all its sights, treasures and beautiful museums. No matter how short your time is, in Florence you must see the famous Duomo with its amazingly beautiful exterior … and it is sure worthwhile to climb the tower and the dome roof. When taking the hike up you can appreciate the double dome system of Brunelleschi and his herring bone pattern brickwork that made the dome possible. From the top you have an outstanding view of Florence - not to be missed.
Few steps away from the Duomo is the Baptistery. It is one of Florence’s most important religious buildings and is dedicated to his patron saint, John the Baptist. Most extraordinary of all is the interior of the dome, entirely covered with mosaic showing the Angelic Hierarchies, Scenes from Genesis, Scenes from the life of Joseph the Patriarch, Scenes from the life of Christ, Scenes from the life of St. John the Baptist, and the Last Judgement. Famous is also the the third Baptistery door with ten large golden panels showing some of the principal scenes from the Old Testament, from the Labours of Adam and to the Meeting of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.
Walking the streets of Florence is great It is a nice walk to the Piazza Michelangelo and the Piazza di Signoria with its fantastic statuary on display around the Palazzo Vechio. It is also a pleasant walk across the old bridge “Ponte Vecchio” and if you feel a bit tired by now a good place for some small snacks and tasting the famous Tuscan wines is just round the corner:
to be continued ... check my Travelogues
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