Siena and San Gimignano

We started today off with an early coach trip to Siena where we walked through the picturesque streets to the Siena Duomo. It shares some common features with Florence's Duomo but also many differences which were nice to compare. We had some time to sketch inside the Duomo before heading into the Piazza del Campo where we found lunch and had some time for shopping. After a short walk back to the coach, we drove on again to San Gimignano.

The sun came out as we arrived in San Ginignano where we were free to wander and submerse ourselves in the village.

It was a buzzing tourist destination in the centre so we found time to walk to the outskirts where we could enjoy beautiful views of the Tuscan country side. We had some time for ice cream from the winner of Tuscanys best ice cream and headed back to the coach one again.

There was no singing on the coach on the way back to Florence because everyone was so tired from our busy day. We had a late tea at La Republica restaurant and packed before getting an early night.

Sketching at Brancacci Chapel

The Uffizi Gallery

An early start this morning allowed us to walk to the famous Uffizi Gallery. After a long two-hour wait we were finally inside the gallery, we made our way up some stone stairs to the main part of the gallery.

During a steady stroll around the gallery we came across the Botticelli room where the famous 'Birth of Venus' is kept. A few rooms down we stepped outside onto a lovely terrace where we could see the tops of the houses and the dome of the Duomo.

Whilst sat outside in the warmth of the sunshine we enjoyed some admittedly overpriced drinks; however we thought it was more for the view. Then we made our way to the exit where we came across some Leonardo Da Vinci artworks which were striking. We all then made our way back to Palazzo Vecchio where we saw the statue of David and then made our separate ways to our choice of restaurant.

Palazzo Medici Riccardi

After visiting the Santa Maria del Carmine, we crossed the Ponte Vecchio and saw the many gold shops along the way. We stopped for lunch in the Piazza di San Lorenzo and nearly everyone enjoyed a Pizza and Gelato.

We had a short sketchbook session drawing anything we could see from the square and then crossed the road to the Palazzo Medici Riccardi. This international gothic palace in the heart of Florence was designed by Michelozzo di Bartolomeo for Cosimo de' Medici, the head of the Medici banking family and took 40 years to build between 1444 and 1484.

We walked around the palace and courtyards focusing on the Medici Chapel, painted with the 3 biblical kings from the nativity and featuring both the Medicis and the artist, Benozzo Gozzoli. We also went into the Galleria painted by Giordano. This has many Greek gods and mythological characters painted on the ceiling. We all sat down to sketch different elements of the ceiling and then headed back to the hotel.

For our evening meal, we walked to the Tirraballa Restaurant and saw the Florence railway station on our walk home.

 

Walk to San Miniato al Monte

The sun was shining for us this afternoon on our walk up to S. Miniato al Monte. We crossed the bridge and took some back streets up to the hill. It was a steep climb but ice creams awaited us at the top, our treat from Miss Hanlon and Mrs Reed.

We enjoyed the view of Florence, halfway up from the Piazzale Michelangelo with ice creams and music from a nearby busker. Then we continued our walk up to the church at S. Miniate al Monte. This church is similar in style to the Duomo featuring polychrome marble panels in green and white.

We spent a whole hour enjoying the view and doing some sketching in the surprisingly warm breeze. We walked down the many steps and then back across the Ponte Vecchio, stopping at the S. Felicita church to see the frescoes. Before heading back to the hotel we went to see the inside of the Duomo.

Donning our scarves to cover our knees, we went inside to see the interior of the iconic building. The crucifixes and images were all shrouded in purple veils because we are currently in the middle of Passiontide, the name for the last two weeks of Lent. The crosses are covered until Good Friday. We had an hour to catch up on some sketchbook work before our tea at the Hard Rock Cafe, where we bought memorabilia in the adjoining shop.