Day 9: Florence

We saw so many amazing pieces of art today. We got to the Accademia around 8:30am this morning and we were able to enjoy Michelangelo’s “David” without any crowds. It was so big! And spectacular!
We visited the Medici Chapel next and saw a few more of Michelangelo’s statues. We headed back to the Air BnB and cooked pasta for lunch. It was the same brand of pasta we buy at Costco, so that was  pretty funny.
Then, we headed over the Ponte Vecchio Bridge to the Pitti Palace, former residence of the Medici’s. Also, Napoleon planned on/did live there at some point. Then,  the Austrian House of Lorraine took over. Napoleon and the Lorraine’s were responsible for several renovations in the 1800’s. More amazing art was housed inside, including several Raphael’s. Each room of the Royal apartments were decorated in a different color. It was extravagant and a bit jarring.
Around 3:30pm we made it to the Uffizi. I was surprised to find out that up until fairly recently few people went to the Uffizi to see the Renaissance art. Visitors came to see the ancient Roman sculptures. Times have changed! Even though we arrived later in the day, there were still several tour groups that we couldn’t seem to avoid. Still, the art was amazing and I am so glad I was able to visit this gallery. We saw a couple of works by Leonardo. They also had a special exhibit about work he did on the nature of water. So, we have successfully completed our Ninja Turtle Challenge.
Rain started lightly falling in the evening. Fortunately, we had planned ahead and brought our rain coats. The walk “home” wasn’t too bad, despite the mid-30 degree weather and rain. We made a quick dinner and all had hot showers. I took over 400 pictures, so I spent most of the evening going through those. Exhausted again, but a very memorable day.