Day 6 Florence

everyone drives a bike
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Last night we arrived in Florence for the first of 2 nights we get to spend in this fantastic city. I didn’t sleep very well because of my cold but that didn’t keep me from being ready to go the next morning. We woke up and went into the city. The first stop on the agenda was Brunelleschi’s dome at the Florence Cathedral. He won a competition in the 13 c to cover the large dome. The dome houses the structural ribs between the shell and roof. Rumor has it that there wasn’t enough wood in northern Italy to build all the scaffolding to support the dome during construction. We climbed all 463 steps up to the top. It made you dizzy winding up the narrow stairwell. The view from the top was so amazing. I could have sat up there all day soaking it all in. The terra cotta roofs were beautiful all spread throughout the city. I felt very close to our architecture history professor Marian Moffet from up there. She taught us about all these wonderful places and written our book. The photos she showed us during class were all taken with her own camera and she had endless stories about her experiences. She passed away a year or so ago and I was one of 3 that receive a travel scholarship in her honor. I hope she knows how much she inspired each of us to explore for ourselves.

the dome
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We had a few hours of free time after running all over the place checking out buildings. Emily, Kate and I went to visit the Pazzi Chapel. It was nice and we took many photos. We hunted for the best ice cream, as this was a daily ritual. Then we shopped in the leather market for a while. I found a small leather handbag that I could afford and a belt.

For dinner we all ate together at this cute place to celebrate out last night in Firenze (florence).