week five: on top of the world... err... duomo???

6 October 2009

So K and I were supposed to meet F this morning to go to the Cascine Market… an open air market in the center of town… for whatever reason, however, neither K, nor I, nor L (his wife!!) could get a hold of him… so, K and I took the opportunity to go visit the Duomo… yes, we already went there for class with L, but, that was only to see the inside of the church… K and I wanted to climb to the top and see the city view and the frescos on the dome up close… so, we rushed over in hopes that our early rising would prove not to be in vain… lucky for us, there was no line (and I would say that we went straight up, but really, with over 450 winding stairs in an old medieval building, it was a trek…)

When we finally got to the top (honestly, I was getting a little motion sick with all of the turning!) the view was breathtaking… €8 to climb to the top of a building does not sound worth it until you see this view…

Being up there really made you feel as though you were on top of the world… from the ground, the top of the dome looks tiny… like you could fit maybe 6 people up there… try 60… it was huge (though it took some internal convincing to get me to the edge to look down… I don’t mind heights, but this building is how many centuries old??) and it was breathtaking. I still can’t believe that it was created in the 1400’s… to think that Brunelleschi created the means to make such a magnificent structure exist and last for so long is awe-inspiring…

You think looking out over NYC is amazing from the top of the Empire State Building? Try looking out over Florence in the soft glow of the morning sun… out over the city and into the Tuscan hills… I could see everything… Fiesole, San Miniato, San Lorenzo, Santa Maria Novella, the Gardens, the Arno, the hubbub of the Ponte Vecchio, and the twisted streets around Santa Croce (K and I even found our flat!) We must have stood up there just staring and taking random pictures for over an hour… It was the best last-minute-early-in-the-morning decision ever… I still can’t believe I’m here… looking out and seeing this: is overwhelming.