Two Italian Renaissance Cities
Travelling in winter means your days are short, and the sun sets at 4.30 pm. So you choose either to wake up early or plan to do very little during the window period between breakfast, lunch and evening. We spent two days in Rome and one day in Florence. It was not easy to decide on what to do in such a short time. Besides, the restricted driving zones in these cities meant the car was out of bounds and we had to take the public transport instead.
Rome
WIth google maps, getting around was a breeze. It shows you directions, modes of transport and travelling times. You buy a one-day pass for 7 Euro per person at the Tourist Information at Rome Airport, Fiumicino, if arriving on an international flight. This allows you unlimited metro, bus, and train travel within Rome for 24 hours from validation when you board your first mode of transport. We chose the option that involved less walking ( to avoid the cold ) and more bus rides.
The Vatican Museums
It is good to make contingency plans and so we did, by allowing for two days in Rome. The Vatican Museum was unexpectedly closed at 2.30 pm ( normally 3.00 pm for last entry ) on our first day. Thankfully we had one more go at it. Ticketing in Rome has a rather interesting tier structure. You can join the queues ( usually long ) outside, buy online ( for a surcharge ) or buy from one of the many “tour-agents” carrying placards bearing ” skip the line “. We were about to pay online when one enterprising agent approached us and enticed us with a package that includes entrance fee to the Vatican museum, a guide, and a ” short-cut” to St Peter’s Basilica ( which is free, but has snaking queues ) The additional charge came up to about 10 Euros per head ( more if the agent corners you before you checked the rates online ) There are also concession charges for students and those below 18 for different places of interest, so read the fine print carefully before booking.
It’s always recommended to do your reading and lots of homework before your trip. Thanks to http://www.romewise.com/vatican-museum-must-sees.html#vatican-museums-staircase ( photo credit and commentary ) I realised too late that this spectacular double helix staircase is intended as the exit from The Vatican Museums and if you are there with a tour, you typically go from the Sistine Chapel into St. Peter’s Basilica, thereby missing this entirely ( like us ).
But if you go on your own, here’s what you need to know in order not to miss this iconic staircase:
As soon as you come up the escalators, you will see to your right a large gift-shop. Go into that gift-shop. because that is where the staircase is! DO NOT go down the staircase, because once you exit the museums, you are out, and there is no re-entry. After taking your selfies, head back towards the escalators where you arrived, and towards the rest of the museums.
We also did not see the Pinacoteca, a small gallery of paintings, which contains Raphael’s last work right before he died – The Transfiguration, to stories of the Gospel of Matthew, and depicts the dual human and divine nature of Jesus Christ. This painting inspired Michelangelo’s “The Last Judgement”, on the wall of the Sistine Chapel. ( Good thing we saw that! ) A detailed explanation of The Transfiguration can be found on http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/famous-paintings/transfiguration-raphael.htm
We were first introduced to the Pinecone ( Pigna ) Courtyard. This large pinecone made of brass, was part of a former Roman fountain which sprouted water from the top, that was relocated here. The two bronze peacocks were copies of those decorating the tomb of the Emperor Hadrian, now the Castel Sant’Angelo.
Smack in the centre of the courtyard is this eye-catching fractured sculpture of a “Sphere within a Sphere”. It depicts an enormous metal sphere with a cracked surface which reveasl an intricate interior with another cracked sphere. It is part of a series of bronze sculptures on this theme that can be found in prime locations all over the world such as: the Headquarters of the UN in New York; Trinity College, Dublin, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Gardens Washington D.C. , Tehran Museum of Art, Iran.
Before we could marvel at the wonders of the Sistine Chapel, there was a lot of explaining to do
Finally…You will be cautioned to remain silent and to respect the peace in a sacred space, and men in uniform will bellow repeated chants of “no photography”. Yes, spoilers all around.
Michaelangelo Buonaroti was a renown sculptor but a reluctant painter. Yet, who was he to say no to the Pope of his day? He worked at it alone, having fired all his assistants, standing up, over a period of four long years. The strain to complain that “I’ve already grown a goiter from this torture,” and he wrote in a poem that his “stomach’s squashed under my chin,” that his “face makes a fine floor for droppings,” that his “skin hangs loose below me” and that his “spine’s all knotted from folding myself over.” He ended with an affirmation that he shouldn’t have changed his day job: “I am not in the right place—I am not a painter.”
His agony ultimately became the ecstasy for millions of people who continue to gawk under his ceiling paintings. Cardinals from around the world would gather in the Vatican Museum to elect the next leader of the Roman Catholic Church. Smoke billowing from the Sistine Chapel would indicate the decision has been made.
St Peter’s Basilica
An ageing Michaelango was appointed as the chief architect in the rebuilding of St Peter’s Basilica, by the same pope. One of Michaelango’s most iconic works, the Pieta, ( carved when he was only 24 years old ) is housed here. A Pieta is a sculpture of the Virgin Mary holding the dead body of Christ on her lap or in her arms.
Feel like some exercise? It is possible to climb all the way up to the top of the Dome, at a fee. You can choose to walk all the way up 551 steps or take the elevator to the roof level (saving 320 steps), and walk up the rest. The entrance cost is Cost 7 Euros for elevator, 5 Euros for stairs. We were contented to stay grounded to enjoy the view, nonetheless.
The Colosseum
This imposing structure stands as a monument to Roman imperial power and their extreme cruelty. It was a huge amphitheatre for emperors and their guests to amuse themselves watching people fight each other and with animals to their deaths. This was the largest in the Roman world ( amongst the 250 amphitheatres spread across the Empire ) which has a capacity of 50,000.
The Roman Forum and Palatine Hill
Beneath the sprawling ruins once stood temples, government buildings and monuments at the heart of Rome.
Elsewhere in Rome
There was a bit of romance, of nostalgia, of quirks, and quacks.
There was so much to do and so little daylight hours in the two short days we had. Our coins in Trevi would guarantee us a return trip to this historic city another time.
Florence
Florence is the birthplace of the Renaissance, and there is a pervasive sense of the ethereal in the ( cold ) air. It was difficult to give up visiting the Uffizi Gallery but I had to accommodate the whims of two others whose tastes were not entirely artistic. Michaelangelo’s David, at the Accademia, however, was non negotiable.
Michaelango was only 26 years old when he embarked on his Masterpiece on David in 1501 which was completed in two years. It depicts David before his battle with Goliath, bearing his slingshot. David looks tense, in deep concentration. He stands relaxed, but alert, resting on a classical pose known as contrapposto with one leg holding his full weight and the other leg forward, causing the his hips and shoulders to rest at opposing angles, giving a slight s-curve to the entire torso.
The Accademia is also home to Michaelango’s Gallery of the Slaves, a series of four sculptures which were unfinished.
In 1505, Pope Julius II commissioned Michaelangelo to design his tomb. The artist hand-picked the marble from Carrara as choosing the right stone for the sculptures of the tomb was crucial – he saw the statue as already pre-existing within the marble and his job was to set it free. The work was suspended in 1506 when the Pope directed that Michelangelo work on painting the Sistine Chapel instead, and diverted funds meant for the tomb, to building St Peter’s. The tomb remained unfinished at the time of the Pope’s death in 1513.
Piazzo Della Signora
This is a square in the heart of the city with many open-air statues, including a David look-alike. Each of the statues, today replaced by identical copies, bear witnesses to significant historic moments.
Florence Cathedral
This is the Santa Maria del Fiore, or as the locals know it, The Duomo. It took more than 140 years to complete because part of the dome’s roof was left exposed for years. The man who designed and built the dome, Filipo Brunelleschi, had no previous architectural training. He was a goldsmith and had never built anything in his life before this!
Other Sights in Florence
To be continued in the next entry of Tuscany….
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