Saturday, May 31, 2008

Venice!

After some fumbling with the train schedule, myself and a few other girls managed to make to to Venice for the day. The hassel and confusion were totally worth it though!

When we first arrived, we immediately took a water taxi to the Murano glass factory. For those of you who don't know, the factory is on its own island so that the rest of Venice wouldn't have gone up in flames back in the day.

On the island, we got to see some of the most beautiful glass that I've ever seen, and we were also able to see how the glass was made. That was a great experience, and it was simply breathtaking at how someone could mold such beauty out of what used to be a glob of molten glass.

After the factory, we took a gondola ride, which I'm sure was the highlight of our trip to Venice. We were really able to see the beauty of the city during the gondola ride, and I took a lot of pictures(over 300) of the city. Hopefully I will be able to upload them soon.

I think that so far Venice was the highlight of my trip. I just got back from the city and I already want to return.

Friday, May 30, 2008

Siena

Wow I got wet!

Today we went to Siena, and it poured! I think everyone got soaked on this trip as Siena is a fairly hilly city and there were several places where the streets were like rivers. Fortunately I was still able to get a few nice pictures, and we were able to see the church that holds the head of St. Catherine.

We also got to see some of Doccio's paintings in Siena, which was also great. I wish it wouldn't have rained though, maybe we would have had more time to go and look around at the city, which I remember being quite beautiful when I was last there.

Otherwise I'm having a great time! And I can't wait until tomorrow because myself and three other girls are going to Venice bright and early!

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

The Duomo

The Duomo is a point in Florence that many recognize, and it's also a point that is fairly easy to get to and helps when you're trying to find other places in Florence.

Today I got to go inside the Duomo and it was really an amazing sight! It puts many of the cathedrals back in New York to shame.

Much of the group decided to climb the stairs to the top of the dome, but I opted to instead visit the Baptistry, and I was glad that I made that choice (I believe I will go to the top of the dome eventually, I still have a lot of time here in Florence!), I got to see some wonderful artwork on the Baptistry ceiling from the 1100s. I think I must have looked at that ceiling for 10 minutes straight at one point!

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Pisa

Yesterday the group went to Pisa and we got to look at the leaning tower, along with the Duomo and the baptistry in the city.

Even though I've seen the leaning tower before, it's still pretty unreal to see it leaning like that. Each time I went to take a picture of it, I kept tilting my camera so it would straighten out. Unfortunately I wasn't able to climb to the top of the tower, but it was still pretty nice to see it :)

Spending time in Florence like I am is great though. I'm learning my way around the city and I'm finding some great places to eat along with some great places to just sit around and admire the city.

I'm having a great time so far, and I can't wait to see even more.

Sunday, May 25, 2008

The First Two Days

I was so busy that I didn't get a chance to update until today!

Anyway, we arrived in Florence pretty tired. I think our total traveling time amounted in excess of 12 hours with our layover, but it was worth it all.

Florence is a beautiful city, much more beautiful than my memory has served me these past three years since I've been here last. We've already looked at some churches and the artwork is breathtaking, and I won't be able to describe it properly here...look forward to pictures once I return!

So far I know that this trip has only scratched the surface of what we'll see, and I can't wait to learn about and see more of Florence.