We woke up early last Thursday and headed to Florence, the city of the Renaissance. There was a fair amount of traffic due to the rain, but we arrived safe and sound after a long bus ride. The girls checked into the Hotel Adriatico; the boys stayed at the Rivoli. We were at our hotels for only a few minutes before heading to the Accademia to see Michelangelo’s David, perhaps the most recognizable sculptures in the world.
Despite the rain, we left the Accademia for a walking tour of the city. One of our stops was Piazza della Signoria. There, we saw such famous works as the Fountain of Neptune, and Perseus with the Head of Medusa.
Dinner followed at the Adriatico.
The students then had free time to explore the city. The rain didn’t hold them back.
We headed to the Uffizi the next morning. “Uffizi” translates to “offices” and it was here that the Medici family governed the city-state of Florence. It now houses the most important paintings of the Renaissance.
On our last day, we left Florence and headed to San Gimignano, and then to Siena. San Gimignano is famous for its towers, built by rivalling families to show off their wealth. However, I think we were most impressed by the views of the Tuscan landscape.
We got back to Lanciano by midnight. While it was nice to be back in town and off the bus, it was sad to think that this was our last overnight trip of the semester.