September 24 Firenze (Florence)	I ride in the front seat of Lisa Alpine's rental car, Jen Leo and Christi Phillips in the back. We are going to spend the afternoon in Florence. It's still raining, but we're determined to catch at least one museum and the open-air market. By the time we arrive we are car sick (not a commentary on Lisa's driving) for the roads from our villa are small and curvy, though banked extremely well, and smooth. The Italians demand good roads for their consistently nimble driving style. The first thing I saw in Florence was a BMW scooter with a roof and a seat complete with head rest and seat belts, plus a trunk! Everyone else thought "B-O-R-I-N-G" but I was thrilled and made them take my picture anyway. Where are these in San Francisco?
Maureen Wheeler testing her Lonely Planet: Tuscany, with Cathy Miller looking on. "Where is that David?" Not in the index, not in a museum list. Uh on... somebody at LP is in trouble now!	Jacqueline Harmon Butler piloted the other car with Cathy Miller, Linda Watanabe McFerrin and Maureen Wheeler. We looked in our collective guidebooks and split up in to SIGs (Special Interest Groups): leather shopping SIG, museum SIG, and open market SIG. Lisa and I opted for all three.
Alison Wright and her bruschetta	We ran across Alison and Maureen in the street snacking on bruschetta, slices of bread covered in olive oil and various toppings, including chopped tomatoes, grilled eggplant, mozzerella, and salt and pepper.
	The cobblestoned streets of Firenze are charming, but when you walk around the corner and see the duomo you literally stop in your tracks, the collection of huge buildings in pink, white and green marble is so overwhelming. We consulted our LP: "When you first come upon it from the crowded streets around the square, you will likely stop momentarily in your tracks, somewhat taken aback by the ordered vivacity of its pink, white and green marble facade." We had seen the duomo from the hills above Florence, a huge (huge!) dome in the center of the city. The Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore was designed by Brunelleschi (he won a public competition for the honor) and begun by an architect from Sienna named Arnolfo di Cambio in 1296. It wasn't completed in their lifetimes, taking over 150 years to finish. Tourists of all nationalities sat in the square, lounging or taking photos of one another, for it was again one of those lengthy Italian lunch breaks (12:00-3:30) and there was nothing to do but to gawk at marble inlay, copper doors, and the sky which had turned blue, charmingly dotted with white puffy clouds moving quickly over the sky giving one the impression of the world moving underneath. It was too much to consider seeing in one day, so we chose to follow Jacqueline's group into the Cappella Medicee, the burial temple of the powerful Florentine Medici rulers. Inside the domed building is a ceiling mural in panels: The Garden of Eden to the crucifixion to the creation of heaven and hell The attched capella (chapel) was the first architectural work of Michelangelo, a simple, surprisingly stark little attachment to the rich hues and opulent decor of the Medicee tomb. It holds three amazingly beautiful sculptures: Dawn and Dusk, Night and Day, and Madonna with Child. "When I think of Florence this is is really the place I think about," said Jacqueline, looking around at Michaelangelo's chapella. "It really says 'Florence' to me.".
Photo by Lisa Alpine	Stopping for a coffee at a small, copper and glass bar, we had cappucino and made friends with the digital camera.
Photos by Lisa Alpine	by LISA ALPINE Perhaps, I remember laying on the floor of the Chapelle Principe the cold marble agianst my back Carlita and I studied the murals high above, way into the cielo . The pictures started to reveal the story of corruption from Eden. Expelling Adam and Eve because Eve was so insistant about giving Adam that God Damn apple of knowledge. It was downhill from there. Hell and fighting appeared on earth and humans prayed for guidance and upliftance from their torment and confusion, well, then God sent us his only son whch we of cource botched up and in the next mural he gets crucified and who is to blame but the Wild Writing Women... I mean, Eve. Anyway, we lay on the cold floor and were told an amazing story of Eden to Hell and then redemption. Very colorful story. My next favorite moment in this full day was the espresso served up at the counter by a jovial Florenzi man. Strong, black, creamy with steamed whole milk and a sprinkling of bitter chocolate. In the marketplace I bought cut chenil scarves for only twenty dollars which others had paid $50 for in Venice. Florence is cheaper than Venice... why? Oh, then I saw a man with a mischevious smile. I took his picture. His hands were tarnished in black from handling and sorting coins. Was he a beggar counting his take for the day? Or was he melting this bounty for a statue of the virgin? Who knows? His smile illuminated me. < previous | next >

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