Today is kultur day, Uffizi style. If you are interested in art, really interested, you will already know what the Uffizi Gallery is. I wasn't, and didn't, prior to a year ago. If you are curious, Google it and you will get an eyefull. This place is probably the greatest single repository of Renaissance Art in the world. The masters represented here at the Uffizi are present in other collections such as The British Museum in London and The Hermitage in St. Petersburg, but not in the quantity or the quality represented here in The Uffizi. After all, Florence (Firenze) was the birthplace of the Renaissance and the Medici family (wealthy bankers in the day when Firenze was a mover and shaker in the civilized world) had the power to commission original works by the likes of Leonardo Da Vinci and Michaelangelo, Ruebens and Botticelli, etc.
Without going into all the details, such as waiting in line for over two hours - in a snowstorm, it should be sufficient to say that we suffered for art today, and our dose of culture. Snowstorm is an exageration, but in all seriousness it was snowing albeit in small flakes drifting slowly down. Eventually we got into the gallery and then spent several hours in the exhibits. Even for the likes of me, the value was certainly there and the experience was not to be missed. Jan loved it and got much more out of it than I, though we were both armed with guidebooks and audio sets.
Following our visit to the Uffizi, we moved on down the narrow cobbled streets to the Galleria Accademia. I mentioned yesterday that Michaelangelo's original statue of David was there, and we went to see it. Again, Google it if you want the full and effusive description of this marvelous sculpture, carved from a single block of marble that no other scuptor of his era would touch. Though photography was banned, Jan managed a couple of non-flash pictures. They were marvellous, and seeing them brings the whole wonderful experience back to us. We walked around behind the statue, a look that is seldom published in the art books. What becomes clear is that the statue's left hand holds one end of the sling that David used to kill Goliath, while his right hand holds the other end of the sling and a rock, ready to throw again if the giant is not dead. I could never figure out what those hands were up to, but it is clear now. I had heard that the statue's right hand was in larger proportion than other parts of the body, but now I don't think so, I think it is in proportional size considering what the hand is holding.
A great day. Tomorrow, by train to Roma.
