Safari across Europe – Part 2
Florence, Venice
By Dr Shamim Ahmed
Our next destination was Florence. The journey by train took about one and a half hours through picturesque countryside.
Florence has many impressive sights and attractions. A Renaissance city in the heart of Tuscany, it boasts of some of Italys best museums, beautiful churches, and interesting streets and squares with elegant buildings and shops.
The most popular site is the Duomo (cathedral), or Cattedrale de Santa Maria del Fiore. The huge Gothic Duomo exterior is painted red and has several elaborate doors and interesting statues. Nearby is the grand Romanesque Baptistery of Saint John, which contains Ghibertis Doors of Paradise. Equally fascinating is the Campanile, the bell tower at Piazza del Duomo, for great views of Florence and its surroundings.
The citys most famous square is Piazza della Signoria, the heart of the historic centre. The square has some important statues, including a copy of Michelangelos David. The piazza has been Florences political centre since the middle ages and the citys town hall, the medieval Palazzo Vecchio, is situated there. Inside the palazzo are elaborately decorated public rooms and private apartments that can be visited. Around the piazza are dozens of cafes and restaurants.
We spent a few hours at the famous Uffizi Gallery. It is rated as one of the top 10 museums in the world. No wonder! The Uffizi holds thousands of paintings from medieval to modern times and has many antique sculptures, illuminations and tapestries. It houses the most important collection of Renaissance art and we were overwhelmed to see works by Michelangelo, Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael.
A visit to the Accademia Gallery was highly rewarding. Michelangelos David, probably the most famous sculpture in the world, was awesome, as were his other sculptures. The gallery also holds important paintings and sculptures from 13th-16th centuries.
We then took an hours train ride to historic Pisa.The Leaning Tower of Pisa is the most famous image of the city, it is one of many works of art and architecture in the citys Piazza del Duomo. Interestingly, the towers tilt began during construction, caused by an inadequate foundation on a ground too soft on one side to properly support the structures weight. The square also houses the Duomo (cathedral), the Baptistery and Campo Santo, a monumental cemetery. We strolled in the city square, relished coffee and headed back to Florence in the evening.
Our next stop was Venice the nearly two-hour journey by train was really fascinating.
The city is sited on hundreds of small islands that are separated by canals and linked by bridges. We cruised through the almost six-kilometre long Grand Canal, one of the major water-traffic corridors in the city, in a vaporetti (waterbus).
The cruise along the canal, lined with great Renaissance palaces, houses, hotels and restaurants, was a totally different experience. The weather was extremely inclement. It was raining occasionally. The water was rough. However, we braved it and after an hour, we finally reached historic St Marks Square.
The place, which Napoleon called the drawing room of Europe, is breathtakingly beautiful. As we strolled, we did not fail to appreciate the grandeur of Saint Marks Basilica _ blending architectural styles of East and West. We walked around the square, browsed at the shops and enjoyed snacks at a restaurant owned and catered by a Bangladeshi.
Then we were caught by surprise. Little did we realise that flood water had engulfed the entire city, and we had to wade through knee deep cold water to reach the hotel. An experience in itself!
We were told that exceptional tide peaks, which occur periodically in the northern Adriatic Sea, are responsible for the occasional flooding of Venice. The city is also sinking _ about one to two millimetres a year on average, a new study shows.
The next morning, we took a waterbus to reach Marco Polo Airport, named after the famous Venetian merchant and explorer.
To be continued.
