Florence in Mary Magdalene

Florence in Twelve

Due to Donatello

Attempting to stay with 10 pictures per country, I could not do it because of Donatello's Mary Magdalene. I have adored her since a child, the only Biblical figure I related to. She made sense because of her suffering and her strength. Her life was real.

Michelangelo's Florentine Pieta or The Lamentation Over the Dead Christ
Duomo Museum or Museo dell Opera del Duomo

I was the only one in this room and circled the statue over and over. The hooded figure is Nicodemus (some say Joseph of Arimathea). It is said that Michelangelo used his face to portray him. He worked on the sculpture for 8 years and abandon it because of impurity in the marble. The women are Mary Magdalene and Mary his mother. Michelangelo was nearing 80; his life was running out. (1475-1564) In the face and body language is a sad resignation as living and dying become one reality...

Donatello's Mary Magdalene (wood)
long-haired, sinewed-body, exhausted, emaciated, toothless, alone

I didn't catch how the museum had faced her until I saw this picture.

Couch-surfing experience. Home-made spaghetti in the Tuscany Hills, overlooking Florence.

Patrizia picking figs at her dad's olive orchard. I ate bowls of fresh figs and was given two bags to take back to the hostel. No runs.

Arno River
Florence in the evening

Many high climbs for view. Duomo and Giotto's Belltower in center. Giotto was said to be the ugliest man to walk the streets of Florence. I climbed to the top of the Duomo as well, 463 steps. This view is from Piazzale Michaelangelo where another of the beautiful fake David's stands.

The original wooden Pinocchio revealed himself. No lie.

Impossible to capture the pink and green marble of Santa Maria del Fiore or Duomo.
Everything has at least two names in Italy.
Rome Roma
Florence Firenze

Okay. 12 Florence and 1 Pisa thrown in. I undershot the shot every tourist aims to hit. I took the train from Florence to Pisa for the day. Because I forgot to validate my ticket before I sat down on the train, I was charged 40 euros or $60!! I was not a happy camper but blamed my self because I didn't want to be The Ugly American. I did know the rules.

Florence and motor-bikes. Couch-surfing Javier gave me a ride on his bike into the Tuscany Hills. He had been to school/taken classes in Colorado through the School of Mines. A mining engineer, he was very surprised that I had worked as a mucker at Climax Molybdenum Mine in Leadville.

I park and move on to Scotland.