Europe 2015

I caught a #22 bus and 15 minutes later was in the middle of Florence without a map or a clue where anything was. First rule in travelling is follow the crowds, so I did. I passed dozens of shops selling leathergoods (florence is famous for its fine leatherwear, be it clothing, jackets, handbags or gloves) and dozens of shops selling pizza or pasta or paninis for the hungry hordes later in the day. I turned a corner and almost had to sit down at my first sighting of the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Flowers, or Il Duomo of Florence as it also known. I was faced with what I consider to be the most stunningly beautiful building I have ever seen, and I was left not knowing where to point the camera. Building the Duomo was started in 1296, and took 140 years to finish. But then it wasn't really finished because the outside wall remained bare until a competition was held in the 1870's to design and build a facade to make the outside look special. They picked a winner and it rook over 10 years from 1876 to complete the present day stunner of a facade. It is all done in shades of green and pink marble bordered in white, but the detailing in every square inch is exquisite. I walked all around it but could only capture a fraction of it on camera. Finally I spotted a queue and stood in line for 10 minutes expecting to be able to get inside and have a look around. When I got to the head of the queue I was told in Italian that I had to buy a ticket at another place somewhere around the corner and then I could join the line again, but not to see inside, only to climb the hundreds of stairs to the top of the dome. Well sorry, but that isn't going to happen this trip. I was also told in Italian the to view the inside come back in an hour and join a different queue. So I kept walking, and following the crowds until I came to a square filled with statues, and longer queues, and then I saw the famous Ufizi museum 2 hour queues starting to form further up the road. So I kept walking until I reached the river, and was drawn to go and have a look at the Ponte Vecchio (Italian for Old Bridge) The old bridge is old. It was built in its present form in 1345, and has always had shops on either side of a walkway. For a long time (until 1593) it was full of butchers shops ( because it was easy to dump what couldn't be sold into the river below the shop). The were kicked off the bridge by one of the Medicis in 1593, and their place was taken by Goldsmith Jewellers. In the center of the bridge is a memorial to Benvenutu Cellini. One of Florences most colourful characters of the 16th century who was amongst other things a master goldsmith, sculpter, musician, and author. The bronze statue of Perseus holding Medusa's head (in my photos under wow) could be one of his. Many of the women I have known (especially one called Leone) have had a thing about gold and jewels so I decided to take a few photos of what is available on the Ponte Vecchio ( just in case you ever find yourself in Florence, with nothing to do....

My first sighting of Duomo in the distance

The most beautiful building I have ever seen

hard to capture, it is huge

from the top

to the bottom

another try

walking around it

lining up for entry

getting closer

at the door

the amazing detail in just 1 square metre

my best shot of the dome

and the bell tower

one of the living statues hanging around

at least they feed them

a powerful bronze of Dante

one for the ladies

and another

this is the city of Michaelangelo's David

wow

art for art's sake, eh Keith

my first view of the Ponte Vecchio built 1345

walking along the Arno river to the bridge

one shop window out of dozens

another

another

another

another

last one

view downriver

bust of 16th century Benvenuto Cellini

view upriver

the shops are housed in medieval buildings

walking the bridge

another view

Florence shops also full of finest leatherware

St Peter was martyred during the reign of Emperor Nero in 64AD, and his body was buried with other Christian martyrs. A church was built over the remains in the 4th century, and this church was replaced by the present St. Peter's Basilica in the 16th century. Half way through the 120 years that it took to build, Michaelangelo, at the age of 70, was asked to supervise the design and construction, and the church as it stands today is as he envisaged it. Bernini spent fifty years from 1626 in working on embellishments to the inside, especially the throne of St. Peters, which is the focus of the apse, and the strangely beautiful baldacchino which acts as a canopy fot the high altar. The baldacchino seems almost too bulky, with its four columns of twisted bronze modelled after similar columns in the Temple of Jerusalem. In reality a bulky baldacchino was needed to fill the huge empty space under the central dome, and be a centrepiece which drew the eyes as soon as one entered the nave area. There are about 100 tombs within the church. As well as the tomb of St Peter ( below the high altar) there are those of scores of Popes, and deposed Catholic royalty such as the Stuarts (Bonnie Prince Charles and his kin) It was a scorcher of a day when I joined the line which snaked its way around St. Peters square. I stuck with a bunch of Chinese and took about an hour to get through to the security checks where they xrayed the bags. Once inside the first impression was this place is built for giants, it was such a big interior space. First I followed the crowds to the chapel where the exquisite Michaelangelo carving of the Pieta is held behind glass. it reminded me of being in the Louvre and trying to look at and take a photo of the Mona Lisa over the backs of twenty other people all trying to do the same. Same as, same as. This was the first of what I considered to be the three treasures held in this place. The second was the unbelievably strange looking baldacchino which dominated the nave. At least it was only bronze and not gold. At least it didn't have cherubs and angels all over it (only bronze leaves and bees I am told). It was to my eyes a unique piece of understated sculpture, and a wonderful piece of theatre. The third was the amazing bronze statue of St. Peter enthroned holding the keys of heaven, which was in a prominent position in the church, and had a constant line in front waiting to touch it. It has been dated around the fifth century, and over the centuries pilgrims have just about worn away the left foot of the statue. It was only a statue, but it had a remarkable presence in the church. The rest was all pomp and circumstance (Popes and more Popes). I walked out of the church and was immediately hit by a wave of heat coming off the square so I headed for a shady spot and ate a wicked bakery item I'd brought with me for lunch ( a huge danish pastry filled with gooey chocolate) and drunk a couple of bottles of icy cold water from a fountain. I thought I'd check out the Castel di Sant'Angelo before heading home. This started off by being the mausoleum Emperor Hadrian built in 130AD for him and his family. The church took it on as a castle refuge for Popes under seige and a secret passageway from the St Peter's to the castle was built and used several times. It then became a church prison and is now a museum. The present Archangel Michael statue at the top of the castle was erected in the 17th century. Legend has it that the Archangel appeared above the castle sheathing his sword, as a sign of the end of a plague in 590AD , and a statue has been in place on top of the castle ever since......

The end of the queue

getting closer after an hour

the place is starting to look gigantic

those pillars are enormous

from the entry down the nave

another angle

looking down the nave

further down the nave

bellini's beautiful baldacchino above altar

side view of baldacchino at high altar

michaelangelo's pieta- behind glass

ceiling details

looking up into dome

popes everywhere you look

and another

and another

paintings in various chapels

another pope

the apse with st.peter's chair

another angle

angels everywhere

and saints

another chapel

beautiful chapel painting

unknown saint

another group

and another

one of the chapels in use

bronze of st. peter enthroned

line formed to rub or kiss the foot

another view

the complete setting

another pope

one more

goodbye St Peter's

icy cold drinking water

ate my lunch in the shade of the pillars

inside this wing

looking across to sant'angelo bridge

crossing sant'angelo bridge to castle

statue of st michael on top of castle

castle sant'angelo

st michael sheathing his sword

looking across to st peter's dome

Well the joke was on me that day. I went online and paid $20 extra to skip the line, but when I got thereat my appointed time of 11,30, there was hardly anyone in the line to skip. Never mind I reckon I got my moneys worth anyway, seeing as how this had to be one of the best museums I have visited so far. It was difficult choosing where to look and what to focus on, the floor, the walls, the ceiling all demanded your attention at the same time. It was a wonderful assault on the senses. You were at times carried along by the crowd, and the museum did a great job of herding everyone through dozens of rooms and galleries, up stairs, and down ramps, from level to level in this incredible storeroom of treasures, without it feeling cramped or rushed. I spent more time than many in the rooms full of modern art that had been donated to the Vatican, and felt vindicated when I spotted the Dali's and Chagall's, but there were scores of artworks that I didn't photo that could have been just as important or famous without me knowing. The rooms that had walls and ceilings painted in the middle ages by Raphael and others impressed me too but in a different way. The sheer volume and quality of work involved in painting these rooms was incredible. They were a taste of what was to come as they led the way into the Sistine Chapel, where absolutely no photos allowed or you'll be yelled at by the Guards, and asked to leave. I have to admit when I first walked into the space, it was an emotional moment and I choked up and struggled to hold back the tears. Don't get me wrong it wasn't the most amazing sight ( like a sunset, or a garden, or a view across a valley), it's just that there was so damned much of it to look at, and it was painted using another level of skill than was shown in the previous rooms painted by other lesser masters of the art. God and Adam pointing fingers was only a small piece of work in the middle of hundreds of similar vignettes on the ceilings and walls. But the colours were so comic book bright, after their big clean up. In a way the very big chapel brought to mind a huge version of a teenagers bedroom. One who had been allowed to stick Marvel comic book pages all over his ceilings and walls. It literally overwhelmed the senses... I walked out of there in a daze and did something I haven't done before, which was buy a CD of the Vatican museum, by the museum, so I can relive the experience again and again. By then I'd done a days walking, and headed home to put my feet up. St Peter's at the Vatican can wait for another day...

The walls of the Vatican

The entry point

entry ramp

all roads lead to rome anyway

up we go

walk like an ?

egyptian

egyptian

greek or roman gallery?

more

courtyard setting for statues in alcoves

crowds around it so must be famous?

roman

hungry lions

like this

and this

and this

and this

marble sculpture

the lit ceilings are a feature throughout

hundreds of cabinets for stored treasures

showing cabinets opened

ceiling detail

another

another

another

another

30+ rooms of modern art

and more

more

more

more

Francis Bacon painting

more

Salvador Dali

and again

and again

Marc Chagall

and again

and more

more ceiling details

Raphael painted walls

more

ceiling too

more

more

ceilings too

more

another ceiling

and more

and more

and more

and more

cartography room

amazing cartography gallery

and more

ceiling detail

a gallery full of ancient bits & pieces

miles of galleries

ancient carpets

unbelievable rooms

view from window

Even pharoah broke into a sweat at 30+degrees

egyptian

marble mosaic flooring

view from window

exit ramp

its a long way down

detail on exit ramp

Even the shop has amazing ceilings

got to walk past the merchandise

and more

and more

incredible inlaid table

I love this one

one of my favourite treasures

Today I visited the mother of all Catholic Churches. It is called the Archbasilica of St John the Baptist, and is the cathedral seat of the bishop of Rome ( the Pope ). It was declared a house of god in 324, but because of fires and earthquakes destroying previous buildings, this version of the basilica was built in the 17th century. The larger than life statues of the 12 apostles were individually commissioned in 1704 and 1705. It definitely has the wow factor and was the residence of early popes until the vatican took over that role in the 16th century.

The St John Baptistry, just up the road, has a different kind of splendour. from the outside it doesn't look like much, but as you walk through the door you just go wow, how beautiful is this place in its simplicity of design and ornamentation (compared to what you have just seen at the basilica.) It is where local christenings, funerals, and weddings have taken place for hundreds of years.

I just looked through the doors of the Scala Sancta (the holy stairs), across the road. It is where pilgrims ascend a set of stairs on their knees, repeating a special prayer. The reason is that the marble steps that can be seen between the risers of the wooden stairs are supposed to have been brought to Rome from the palace of Pontius Pilate. This means that they are the actual steps up which Jesus's feet walked or were dragged up as he was led to be condemned by Pilate. All in all it was a pretty special day, which made up for the fact that I missed getting off the bus at the right stop to connect with another one, and took an extra hour to get home again. Tomorrow I get to tackle the crowds, the heat, and the aching feet on my Vatican Museum Marathon..

Archbasilica of St John the Baptist.

the nave

one of twelve colossal statues of the apostles

another

another

and another

intricate marble mosaic flooring

looking down towards the 14th cent. baldacchino

base of the baldacchino

wall with organpipes

opposite wall with organpipes

a papal burial tomb-six in all

the papal cathedral in the apse

the papal chair

ceiling above the papal cathedral

another chapel- seven in total

amazing painted panels

looking back to entrance

many painted alcoves

another

just a green door

now you see the size of the door

The Lateran obelisk taken from Thebes in 357 AD

erected here in 1588

St John Baptistry built 315 AD

the baptistry font

in the centre of marble columns

leading up to beautiful cupola

grate on the floor

baptistry chapel

with plain windows

lovely painted walls

and again

La Scala Sancta/ the entry on other side

I don't really have anything lined up to see in this city of a thousand museums and churches. I'm not really bothered about climbing around the wreck of a Colosseum in 30 degree heat. I am waiting for the NZ$50 ticket to get me into see the Vatican on Thursday, and the one place I really wanted to see, the Borghese Gallery, is fully booked out for the next two weeks. This Sunday just happens to be a free museum day in Italy, so I am spoilt for choice of museums to see on that day. Even Tripadvisor has let me down. Most of their top 100 attractions are churches and basilica in all shapes and sizes, or really overpriced private tours of said churches and basilica. Soooo, for the last two days I wandered the streets of inner Rome looking for inspiration, but what I mostly found was perspiration and sore knees. It is a hard road finding the half way decent photo. The big disappointment for me was the Trevi Fountain, which is undergoing a 2 million euro facelift, and has been for the last 12 months. Well all I can say is "Nobody told meee" The bits where the scaffolding has been removed look amazing so when it is finished it will be once again a stunning sculptural masterpiece. The pride of Rome..

looking downstream at Tiber Island

The Ponte Palatino crossing the Tiber

ponte sublicio 1917

bridge here since 670 BC

12th century church excavation in Piazza Venetia

closer look at wall fresco

Teatro di Marcello built 11 AD

Ruins of the Teatro Marcello

A partial ruin

another partial ruin

and another

Arch of Janus 4th cent AD

Temple of Hercules 2nd century BC

unusual monument to 19th cent poet G.G. Belli.

a representation of one of his poems

street market in Trastevere

more market

500mtrs of street stalls

ending at the Basilica di Santa Maria piazza

basilica

another shabby-chic Roman building

when in Rome find some shade and sit down

didn't know it was another 1675 church

walking on scaffold above trevi fountain

Trevi fountain clean up

same

st. vincento e anastasio by trevi fountain 1650

spanish steps

too hot to climb them

side view of spanish steps

1627 fountain of the ugly boat

in front of the spanish steps

Column of the immaculate conception 1857

moses, david, isaiah, & ezekiel at the base