The day commenced with breakfast overlooking the streets of Florence from my hotel. It was going to be another hot one, may be not quite as hot as it has been, but still warm. So the plan was to get an early start, beat the crowds, heat and head off to see the statue of David housed in della d’Adacemia, just north of the Duomo.
As you can see, I was not the only one with this idea, so when I arrived at around 8.15am (opening time) the queue was already a few hundred metres longs.
Turns out there are two queues, one for reserved tickets and one for non-reserved (me). So I joined the masses in line awaiting my turn to enter.
It took about an hour or so to gain entry but since it was in the shade it wasn’t too bad.
This is of course what everyone has come to see, Michelangelo's statue of David.
It is the centre piece of the museum at end of a long hall once you enter.
As you can also see it is the major draw card of the museum. You kinda wonder what Michelangelo would think of all the interest his work still generates today.
The della d’Adacemia has other exhibits including sculptures and
artworks. In all I spent about 90 minutes working my way through everything inside.
My thoughts were then to try the Uffuzi but again with a non-reserved ticket the wait was going to be over two hours of not only waiting but also standing around. Thus, I decided lunch was a better option and I headed back to my hotel to cool down before joining the line for the Duomo.
On the return trip there was a huge golden turtle in the square as you can see above. Not something you expect to see. Luckily, I had my camera handy.
After cooling down I returned to the Duomo and joined the queue for entry. The good thing about the main Duomo entry is that it is free, you just have to line up. Luckily, the line was on the shady side of the structure and I only had to wait about 30 minutes.
Although the Duomo is huge it is quite bare inside. Visitors don’t have complete access to all areas but there is enough to get a really good idea.
There is not a huge amount to see here but glad I did line up to check this one off my ‘to-do’ list (being the fourth largest church in the world apparently).
If you want access to the top of the dome or the bell tower of the Duomo then you not only need to line up (in the sun) but also pay a fee. Not for me this time so, after a recommendation from a neighbour in the Duomo queue I headed south across the river to Saint Minato al Monte.
On the way I took a break from the sun at Saint Croce but as there was a paid line for entry I decided to continue on.
There is a very steep climb once you are across the river to Piazzle Michelangiolo which has sweeping views of the whole of Florence, and something I’d highly recommend is worth the effort (you can of course also take a bus).
From there you need to continue climbing to reach Saint Miniate si Monte.
but the views continue to get better.
After a final flight of stairs you enter one of the most unique churches I have been in.
The lower entry level appears to be for the congregation, while the upper level is for the alter. Directly below the alter is a crypt, which contains a holy relic of the martyr St. Miniatus is on display.
Pictures of the crypt are not permitted but you are free to photography elsewhere.
Although it is fair way from the city centre and up a very steep hill I am really glad I followed the recommendation and came to have a look. It is really worth a visit as it is a very different structure with many striking features that I haven’t seen elsewhere.
From there I headed back across the city back to my hotel to call it a day with the sites of Florence. All that left to do was to grab another magnificent Italian dinner, topped off with a grande gelato and prepare for tomorrows transfer to Modena.
