I found a restaurant next to the hotel on tripadvisor. It seemed to be chicken-themed, with pizza and chicken-related specialties. The environment was good, but the service fee was 20%, which was a bit of a rip-off. Most restaurants charge 10%-15%. I feel that the cost of living in Italy is still much higher than in the United States.
Accommodation, food, and supermarket shopping are all expensive. Think about it, America is simply heaven! Yunluo and An Chuyu spend an average of about 50 euros per meal here, and drinking mineral water also costs money. An Chuyu usually orders a glass of wine. But to be fair, Italian food is well-deserved, pizza and pasta.
Compared with what Yunluo and An Chuyu had eaten in China, it was still much more delicious and worth tasting. After eating, we went back to the room to pack our luggage and prepare to welcome the brilliant Renaissance culture! Although this trip to Rome left many regrets, it was also a complete success. The impression of Rome was that it did not feel like a modern metropolis at all, and the ground was paved with stones.
The winding paths and the unique and unique buildings on the street all show the history and cultural heritage of this small town. Yunluo really likes this kind of authentic preservation, which is full of flavor! What kind of surprise will the next destination bring to Yunluo and An Chuyu?
Yunluo is not very interested in the Florence described by Xu Zhimo, but Florence, as the birthplace of the Renaissance, is the city I look forward to the most on this trip. I strongly recommend watching the BBC documentary "The Godfather of the Renaissance - The Medici Family" before departure. If you don't know the Medici, you don't know Florence and the Renaissance.
This is a magical family, a legend that has never been seen before and will never be seen again. The train ticket was almost 9 o'clock. As mentioned before, I forgot to check the station when I bought the ticket and ended up buying a ticket from Tiburtina. Instead of the Termini station next to Yunluo and An Chuyu's residence, fortunately Tiburtina is also very convenient.
It was only a few stops away by subway, and luckily I chose the hotel based on the principle of convenient transportation. But when I got to the station, I found it was still early, and the platform on the first floor was cold and windy. Yunluo and An Chuyu just wandered around upstairs and entered a convenience store called farmacrimi. I bought two pacifiers.
A bottle of Nuxe Fresh Cream (31 Euros). There are two major operators in Italy. One is called Italian Railways (similar to the Ministry of Railways in China), and the other is a relatively new private company called Italo. When I booked the ticket on Ctrip, I didn't look carefully, I just looked at the time and the price.
Later, it was discovered that Yunluo and An Chuyu had taken the first two trips with Italo, which had a big discount. The last trip was with Trenitalia, with full-price tickets. As far as trains are concerned, Italo's trains are really not good, Yunluo told An Chuyu. The speed is not fast, but the body of the train feels like it's shaking a lot, and it makes me dizzy.
An Chuyu said that it was probably because of the poor sealing. Yunluo and An Chuyu said that the trains in China are actually very advanced in the world, with advanced technology and comfortable seats. Later, the Italian Railway train from Venice to Milan felt much more luxurious, spacious and comfortable. It was worth the full price. The scenery along the way was beautiful.
After going abroad a few times, Yunluo and An Chuyu are used to the gray weather. In fact, blue sky and white clouds are the natural norm. Domestic pollution has completely isolated Yunluo and An Chuyu from the atmosphere, which is really outrageous. We also saw a caravan camp on the road. The life of foreigners is really too comfortable.
This is Yunluobi's lifelong dream. We soon arrived at Florence Santa Maria Novella train station (smnovella for short), named after the Santa Maria Novella church opposite. You can see it as soon as you go out, it's very beautiful. Yunluo bought two Florence Passports online before.
It was said that it could save us the queues at the Accademia Gallery and the Uffizi Gallery. I thought it was not expensive at the time, so I placed an order. I checked the official website and found that it was exchanged at a newsstand in Piazza Santa Maria Novella, so Yunluo told An Chuyu to go get the card first and then check in. As a result, I dragged my suitcase and searched for a long time. I finally saw the newsstand.
I showed them the printed order, and they replied that they no longer do business with this store. Sweat! I looked at the order page carefully again, and found that it was exchanged at a window in the train station. I went back to exchange the ticket but found that there was no one there, so I went to check in at the hotel first. The hotel was in a very good location, but it was really the most difficult hotel for Yunluo and An Chuyu to stay in this time.
The storefront looks like a small convenience store. Pushing the door, there is a narrow corridor. A small room next to it is the front desk. After completing the formalities, I entered the room. It was amazing. This is comparable to Singapore last time. It is too small. However, I recalled that I booked this accommodation too late, and there was only one special room left.
It does seem to say that it is a mini hotel, but I didn't expect it to be so mini... The bathroom is also extremely small. I guess all three-star hotels in busy areas are like this. If you want to be cheaper and have a better stay, you probably have to choose a more remote area. Yunluo and Anchu's time is definitely not allowed, so they have to sacrifice quality.
After settling in, I went to Florence. Florence is so small that you can walk around it. Of course, you will have a weak leg because you have to visit so many attractions. I passed by Santa Maria Novella but didn't go in. I took some photos outside. Street performers can be seen everywhere.
We walked all the way to the banks of the Arno River. Speaking of the Arno River, it is well-known, the mother river of Florence, and one of the most important rivers in central Italy. Over the past thousands of years, perhaps the buildings and humanities along the road have undergone a lot of changes, but this quiet river is definitely the same as it was during the Renaissance.
For this reason, walking along the riverside is like traveling through history, feeling so close to that era. The style of Florence's neighborhood is somewhat similar to that of Rome, with winding alleys and unique houses on both sides of the street. Yunluo and An Chuyu crossed several streets and came to the Piazza del Comune in Florence.
The Piazza della Signoria is also called the "Piazza della Signoria". It was the seat of the Florence Municipal Government in the past. There are many fine sculptures on the square, the most famous of which is Michelangelo's David. However, the David here is a replica. The original is now in the Academy Gallery. I was deeply impressed by this place after watching the BBC documentary.
When the Medici family lost power and were expelled from Florence, Michelangelo betrayed his benefactor and built this immortal sculpture for the city government, which was placed at the entrance of the city hall, symbolizing strength and rebirth. When the Medici family returned to Florence, they forgave Michelangelo and re-employed him.
Perhaps this is what is called the aristocratic mind! In the center of Piazza del Comune is the Palazzo Vecchio, also known as the Palazzo Vecchio, which is the town hall of Florence and is still in use today. There is a very tall bell tower in the palace, symbolizing the center of power. There is a museum and a 500-seat meeting hall inside.
When Yunluo and An Chuyu entered, they thought they didn't need tickets, so they ran upstairs. As soon as they pushed the door and saw the shocking murals, they were kicked out and asked to buy tickets. Later, they thought that they didn't have enough time, so they didn't visit. But after returning, Yunluo watched Dan Brown's "Inferno" and regretted it very much.
In the story, the words cercatrova on the frescoes of the Hall of Five Hundred are mysterious and fascinating (it is said that the frescoes cover the masterpieces that Leonardo da Vinci was commissioned to draw), and Dante's death mask is also collected in the museum. In addition, there is a secret passage across the Arno River in the Palazzo Vecchio to the Pitti Palace. It was built to facilitate the work of the Grand Duke Medici.
So this attraction once again became a big regret for Yunluo and An Chuyu when they returned. Here is a picture of the 500-person meeting hall that I searched online. The next attraction, the Bargello Museum, was not originally in Yunluo's plan, but since watching the BBC documentary, he has been obsessed with a sculpture in the collection, Donatello's "David".
Although this sculpture is not as famous as Miye's work of the same name, its coquettish face, graceful posture and bold shape bring people an extremely shocking visual impact and touch. It is also the first nude sculpture in the Renaissance, full of erotic suggestion. However, the Medici family tolerated this hot-tempered but talented artist.
This treasure was left to the world. For this reason, Yunluo specially added this art gallery. In fact, he just wanted to see her beauty. The Bargello Art Gallery is relatively hidden and easy to miss. Yunluo and An Chuyu found it with the help of navigation. This place was originally a prison. There were various torture chambers on the first floor, and prisoners were hanged outside the window on the second floor for public display.
The color tone of the whole building is indeed rather gloomy. The collections on display here are mainly sculptures. The Uffizi is mainly paintings. In fact, Yunluo really doesn't understand the sculptures, but he absolutely admires the sculptor. It has always been difficult to imagine how a hard boulder can be chiseled into a tangled and lifelike shape. What if the hand shakes and breaks it?
What a high-level job. Yunluo couldn't wait to go to the second floor to find the shadow that had haunted Yunluo's dreams. It was really there quietly, beautiful and magnificent, but Yunluo originally thought it was about the same size as a human, but the actual size was much smaller than Yunluo imagined, especially after seeing so many giant sculptures, he felt it was so slender and weak.
It makes people feel pity~ There are many famous sculptures on the first floor, such as Michelangelo's Bacchus. Arriving at the museum feels like chasing stars. Everyone's eyes are completely following those shining names, and the connotation of the works is no longer the most important basis. Walking out of the Bargello Museum, the goal is to go straight to the landmark of Florence - the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore!
The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore is the symbol of Florence, the tallest building in Florence, and the fourth largest Catholic church in the world. My initial knowledge of this cathedral actually came from a BBC documentary, and I also remembered the name that was as famous as the cathedral - Brunelleschi, the designer of the giant dome.
In the first episode of the documentary, this architectural miracle is introduced. After the main building of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore was completed, no one had the ability (or the courage) to put a cap on it, because the task was too incredible. However, after the Medici family came to power, they dared to entrust the unpopular eccentric architect Brunelleschi to achieve this grand goal.
Finally, it took Brunelleschi 14 years to complete this miracle, which used architectural methods to build the dome without scaffolding, and the hollow structure allowed people to climb to the top. His feat also consolidated the political status of the Medici family. The entire facade of the church is made of dark green, pink and white marble.
There are many exquisite reliefs, dazzling. The shape of this church is quite peculiar, here is a three-dimensional picture. The dome is a symmetrical structure with one large and two small ones, and the rectangular corridor extends out. The church can accommodate 15,000 people worshiping at the same time. The church's ancillary buildings include the baptistery and Giotto's bell tower.
There is an RPG game called "Assassin's Creed". An Chuyu strongly recommended playing it before the trip. Because the story takes place in Florence, almost all the scenery has appeared in the game. If you are fascinated by the protagonist's perspective, then the moment of dream realization has come! In short, Yunluo loves Giotto's Bell Tower, which is exactly the building of Yunluo's dream!
Unfortunately, there are too many tourists. Compared with the magnificent Baroque decorations in Rome, the interior of Santa Maria del Fiore is a bit plain, but it is not an exaggeration to describe it as low-key luxury. The gorgeous stained glass and the heavy marble floor with simple patterns all make people feel the profound heritage.
There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!
Yunluo and An Chuyu rented a guide at the entrance, but the Chinese explanation was terrible. It felt like a mechanical retelling using translation software, without any color, so they just listened to it casually. Opposite the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore is its annex, the Baptistery of San Giovanni. This octagonal building is most famous for its golden gate.
Although it is called the Golden Gate, it is actually made of brass. After more than 600 years, it is still lifelike. Michelangelo praised it as the "Gate of Heaven". There are ten reliefs on the Golden Gate, all of which are based on biblical stories. In order to protect the cultural relics, the management department hid the original in the cathedral. The one that people see in the baptistery now is a 1:1 replica.
In the book "Inferno", the Baptistery of San Giovanni is also an important place, but when Yunluo and Anchu met there, the baptistery was under renovation and the whole building was fenced off. Only the imitation of the Gate of Heaven was exposed for tourists to appreciate. Yunluo saw the Gate of Heaven in the "Bible Stories" he bought before the trip, and he was fascinated by this place at that time.
It takes an artist twenty years to create a piece of art that satisfies him. This is a lot of patience and perseverance. Yun Luo expressed his deep admiration for him. The next stop is the Medici Palace, which is the residence of the Medici family. Brunelleschi, the designer of the dome of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, was commissioned by the Medici family to design it.
Brunelles tried his best to focus his talent on this great work of art. But after the design was completed, Cosimo de' Medici abandoned the plan on the grounds that it was too high-profile and luxurious. It is said that Brunelles thought this was a stain on his artistic talent, so he was furious and tore up the entire construction plan.
It also made Yunluo and An Chuyu regretfully miss the chance to see the masterpiece of artistic genius. Although Cosimo Medici finally expressed regret. But from a political perspective, this is the legacy passed down by his father, and it is also a helpless move for the family to protect themselves.
The Medici Palace that Yunluo and An Chuyu saw now was simple and low-key in both appearance and interior, and did not feel like the most powerful family in the area. Logos made up of several balls could be seen everywhere (people with trypophobia might feel uncomfortable), which was the family crest of the Medici family. In order to gild themselves, they made up some stories about the family crest.
For example, the ancestor of the family was a strongman hero. Later, historians analyzed that their ancestor should be a pharmacist, and the ball in the family emblem represents the meaning of pills. The interior is also relatively simple, with some murals on the walls, mainly praising the family's merits. After visiting the Medici Palace, today's itinerary is basically over!
It is said that Florence's T-bone steak is super famous, but Yunluo didn't have time to research which one is good, so he just found a place to eat, thinking that it is available everywhere. He saw a steak on the menu and ordered it, but found out it was not the steak after it came. However, the physical consumption was too great, and he really didn't have the energy to work hard on eating.
I just wanted to fill my stomach and go back to my room to sleep. When I passed the train station on my way back to the hotel, I looked out the window again, but no one was there. So I decided to pick up the Florence card the next day. After returning to the room, An Chuyu asked Yunluo if he had arranged to watch an opera. Yunluo said that the famous theater had not had any performances for Yunluo and An Chuyu in the past few days, and he was unwilling to accept that.
I found an opera in a tiny church and thought that since I was here, I might as well experience the classic. So I paid an expedited price and booked an opera for tomorrow, which was on the other side of the Arno River. The play was the famous "Madame Butterfly", so I followed it:).
The original plan was to visit the museums, some churches, and finally go to the Pitti Palace on the other side of the river to watch an opera in the chapel there at night. But after discussing with An Chuyu, we decided that we had already been to the Bargello Museum, which is mainly dedicated to sculptures, yesterday. If we went to the Accademia Museum today, it would be purely for star chasing, just to see the honor of David's original work.
I didn't think it was worth it, so I decided to give it up. In this way, I spent the morning at the church, and planned to visit the Uffizi in the afternoon and go to the Pitti Palace in the evening. I went to the train station window to get my card first! Finally, someone was there and handed me a firenzepassport booklet and a very beautiful Florence travel brochure.
Unfortunately, it was in English. Yunluo didn't read the instructions carefully at that time, thinking that I could buy tickets first by showing the booklet to the museum. It was really toonaive, or the preliminary work was not done well! I will talk about how tragic it was later. The first stop was the Medici Chapel, but Yunluo didn't plan to go there. (To be continued...)