A peak into Renaissance

Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Botticelli all left their mark in the world here in Florence, the cradle of Rennaisance. Florence is a walking city, we could easily stroll between the top sights and they were the Accademia Gallery in the late morning and the Uffizi Gallery in the afternoon today for our introduction to the Renaissance.

"David", Michelangelo's personal best sculptor, stands tall (16ft) and larger than life and leaves a lasting impression on the viewers' mind. You do not have to be an art conossier to be able to appreciate this majestic sculptor which took the master 3 years to complete in 1504. 

Michelangelo's unfinished "Prisoners" statues are a contrast to David, with the rough forms struggling to free themselves from the stone. The Accademia is stuffed with other notable works including sculptures by the master's students. What a revolutionary influence in the world of art and architecture did a handful of highly talented artists had is mind blowing. The short guided tour helped us skip the hours long line to get in and the passionate Italian guide shared some interesting stories about the cynical personality and life of Michelangelo. 

We had to try the much acclaimed, supposedly the best pizza in Florence at "Gusto pizza", a modest hole in the wall place. We shared the "Gusto special pizza", which was delicious for sure; I am skeptical about the "best" title, nonetheless!

We parted ways after lunch, Chinmay was off to see the Galileo museum and I hung out near the Duomo and the streets nearby, mostly window-shopping, browsing and shopping for some gifts. We met up at the Uffizi gallery, where Rick Steeve's audio guide helped us get oriented to the overwhelming collection of art and sculptures to some extent. There are some 60 or more rooms and magnificent marble corridors, built in the 16th century as the Medici's private office complex ("Uffizi"). The collection of Renaissance art at this place remains unmatched in the world, after all you are in the birthplace of Renaissance. It is amazing to see the progression of the pre-Renaissance Gothic art form, where paintings lacked depth and dimensions to the beginning of Renaissance and all the refinement and "three dimensional effects" in art that it brought along. One needs an in-depth interest, knowledge, time and curiosity in art to be able to fully absorb even more than half of the marvelous collections of art by the numerous extremely talented artists at the Uffizi. 

The rest of the evening was spent enjoying the lively vibe at the Piazza de Signoria with its several statues making great photo props. The orchestra played live music with the audience comprising of mostly people like us and an outstanding stage with all the statues in the backdrop. It was a perfect summer evening in Florence for Chinmay and a much awaited opportunity to update my blog for me before I started forgetting the details that matter a lot to me!