Florence

Copy of Michelangelos David
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Florence is a beautiful city that is rich with history. Michelangelo and Machiavelli are buried in Santa Croce Church. Leonardo da Vinci worked on the Mona Lisa in a local hotel and they leave the shutters open to indicate the room where he stayed.

Signoria Square is amazing with all of the sculpture on display.   A copy of the famous David by Michelangelo is in front of the Palazo Vecchio where the original stood until the weather began to take a toll on it.  The original is now in the Academy Gallery and worth the wait in line.  The marble statue of Hercules and Cacus by Baccio Bandinelli (1536) stands near the copy of David. There is also a copy of the Marzocco, a lion with the Florentine lily (the original is in the Bargello).

Florence is an amazingly beautiful city that is full of history.

Baptistry and Duomo
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Ponte Vecchio, the oldest of Florence's bridges, is one of the city's best known images. (in 1565, Cosimo I de' Medici, Duke of Florence, had the famous Corridor built on the upper side passing over the shops. The Mannelli family who owned a tower at the southern end towards Pitti Palace, did not want to give the Duke right of passage. So the corridor had to be deviated, as we can still see today, around the tower.

Recommendation:  After returning home I found at http://www.italyguides.it/us/italy_travel.htm that you can download voice guides to your ipod of sites all over italy.  That would have been really nice to have in several places.