Florence, DAY 2
	Thursday, April 3
			Well, despite all of my mental efforts, I am sick.  I got lucky--I don't have it nearly as bad as the four others, who still are throwing up every ten minutes--but not lucky enough to not be miserable.  Unfortunately, they are all stuck in the hotel and will have to miss the Uffizi Gallery today, and also the famous statue of David, but I managed to get myself out the door because this was one day I was not going to miss...
				It was a cold and rainy day in Florence as our group made its way along the Arno river toward the heart of the city.  The Uffizi was founded in 1581 by the Medici family and is the most important museum of the Renaissance in the entire world (despite what the French say about the Louvre--but who really cares what they say, anyway!).  When we arrived, we found a huge line at the entrance, which we were told is a regular occurrence.  Fortunately, Dr. Edwards had already reserved the $13 tickets, so we were able to walk right in.  The museum's top floor houses the famous art collection, and we began with the 13th century room, which houses the famous altarpieces known as the "Maesta", or "Madonna Enthroned".  The three works, by Giotto, Duccio and Cimabue show the Madonna holding a baby Jesus on a throne, with angels surrounding the scene.  You can really see the progression from one work to the next, and by the time Giotto painted the scene, a sense of depth began to really emerge.  He included a base in perspective below the throne, and his angels are portrayed bunched up and overlapping, as opposed to the other two works, which simply have angels hovering in the air in a very flat and unbelievable pose.
			As we continued to the Early Renaissance room, we noticed that the artists had started to really experiment with depth, especially in Uccello's "The Battle of San Romano", which depicts a frenzied battle with soldiers clashing head to head as they ride their horses.  Another set of famous paintings in the room are of the Duke and Duchess of Urbino, who are painted in the profile with a real sense of landscape in the background, a characteristic of art that was just beginning to come to fruition.  Next, we entered the room dedicated to Filippo Lippi, who is known as the painter of the Madonna with a veil.  His mastery of painting is evident in the many works which display Mary with the thin material just barely covering her face.  My favorite room, the Botticelli Room, contains his famous "Birth of Venus", which was definitely the highlight of the museum for me.  The painting, done in 1485, depicts the love goddess as she is being born out of a large seashell.  The god of the wind is on the left side and is blowing the beautiful figure of Venus toward the shore, where another figure waits with a robe to clothe the nude goddess.  On the adjacent wall is another of Botticelli's famous works, "Primavera", which depicts the coming of spring and is meant to be read like a story.  The girl on the right is impregnated by Zephyr and as the scene moves from right to left she sprouts and blossoms with the changing season.  On the left side is a cluster of women who represent the three loves of human nature, and the entire scene takes place in a thickly wooded area.
			The next room in the museum is known as the Da Vinci Room and is dedicated to the man considered by many to be the greatest artist of the High Renaissance.  His unfinished work, "Adoration of the Magi", provides a little glimpse of just what went into one of the master's works before it entered the painting stage.  The highlight of the room is Da Vinci's "Annunciation", which depicts the angel's holy announcement to the virgin Mary.  The work is very stylized and includes the use of architecture and landscape, as well as shrubbery in the background.  Another of my favorites in the Uffizi was the "Madonna with a Long Neck", by Parmigianino.  The painting was done in the Mannerist period and is very strange in appearance because of the elongated features of the Madonna and her misshaped child.  Overall, the Uffizi was very really interesting visit, and I am glad that we had the opportunity to see it.  I'm pretty sure I would have skipped out on it during free travel, because of the cost and the long wait, which would have been a shame.  And, it was definitely a plus to have Dr. Edwards as our guide.  He really brought the tour to life and gave meaning to what might have otherwise been meaningless to me.
			After departing from the Uffizi, our group made its way across town to by far the highlight of our trip to Florence.  Our destination was the Galleria Dell' Academia, the Academy of the Fine Arts.  The building was designed and constructed solely for the display of the world famous statue of David by Michelangelo.  Created in 1504, the statue was carved out of a massive piece of marble by a then-29 year old Michelangelo and it had previously stood outside the Piazza della Signoria before its move.  As we entered the museum, we first saw the chalk copy of the "Rape of the Sabines", as well as a corridor filled with unfinished sculptures by the Renaissance master.  It provided a unique look at the sculpture process that Michelangelo went through, and after seeing them I have an even greater appreciation for the artwork that he created.  Michelangelo once said that the real skill of an artist is in seeing what is already inside the marble, before a single chunk is chipped out.  Finally, at the end of the corridor, we came to the much larger than life statue which is the centerpiece of the museum.  The David took two and a half years to complete, and is absolutely perfect.  The unpolished work depicts the young man, holding his sling and looking on as he prepares to fight Goliath.  This is a departure from most other artists who always depicted David after his victory over the giant.  The detail of the veins, fingernails, facial expression and hands are unbelievable.  Interestingly, he is also depicted as uncircumcised, as the artist did not want to focus on the Jewish nature of the figure, but rather on the human form and its beauty.
		After a walk around the statue, we were through for the next few hours, so we decided to just explore Florence on our own.  The weather was horrible and cold, but we managed to make the most of it as we walked around the town and stopped by the various merchants' stands and bought souvenirs from the trip.  At 5:00, we met up with the rest of the group at the Duomo and caught a bus for the HUF campus, where we enjoyed a few hours of fellowship and dinner with our friends.  It was great to see the villa--I've heard so much about it.  It was really beautiful, and very cool because of its age and location, but I am glad that we have the Artemis here at HUG.  I think it would have gotten old having to spend an entire semester without the ability to really spread out and have space, like we have enjoyed here in Porto Rafti.  It was especially great to see Michael Fonville, who is looking pretty hairy, and talk to the students about their travels and share in some of our experiences.  After a traditional Italian dinner, we had a brief devotional and then I got a ride back to the hotel with Dr. Edwards as I was still feeling under the weather.  On the way back, we stopped at the Piazza Michelangelo, which offered a commanding view of the skyline by night.  The Duomo and the river were both lit up and looked absolutely magnificent.  After a few minutes and a few pictures, we headed back and I slept pretty restlessly for the next 12 hours or so.
			Most of the students had another morning to enjoy the city, but I stayed in bed, like the rest of the sickos, and then at one o'clock we headed back to Rome for our flight back to Greece.  Amy and Jim stayed in Florence with Vicki and couldn't rejoin us for a few days.  Reflecting back on it, our trip to Italy was amazing.  It was definitely right up there with Egypt.  I know that I will never forget Rome and the Colosseum by night, as well as the massive cathedral of St. Peter's.  Florence was amazing, especially the giant red Duomo and the unforgettable statue of David.  I am so glad that we got to come here as a group, because I know that during free travel we will not have the kind of time or resources that we had with Dr. Edwards.  He was a wonderful guide and his love for Italy really showed in his tours.  There will always be a special place in my heart for Italy, however I think I will stay away from Roman pizza from now on...