Ryan's Jumpinig Place in Florence

There is a museum in Florence called the Pallazo Vechio that our guide book said was nice but not on the list of the must-sees.  Therefore, since we are towing a rambunctious three year old boy through these museums, we decided to skip it.   But, off in one corner of the square in front of the Pallazo is an outdoor terrace that houses some pretty amazing statues.  It is on the walk between two of Florences true must-sees, the Duomo and the Uffizi, so we quickly discovered it upon arriving in Florence.  The rest of the world calls this open air museum the Loggia; Ryan calls it "The Jumping Place."

We head there pretty much everyday, usually after just finishing our daily helping of gelato.  At first, Shelley and I would head from statue to statue, staring in awe and snapping pictures.  And there are some pretty awe-inspiring sculptures here like "Herclues and the Centaur" and "Persues and Medusa." It is unfathomable how these artists could make muscles and veins ripple in stone.  To amuse himself as we looked, Ryan began climing onto the stone benches around each statue and, you guessed it, jumping off.  Pretty soon, it became evident that this was his favorite place in all of Florence.

The rest of the world calls this open air museum the Loggia; Ryan calls it "The Jumping Place."

So, now we finish our gelato in the square (the guards don't allow any food in the Loggia but most of the time they don't mind the jumping), then we ascend the steps to Ryan's personal ancient art filled playground.  Shelley and I, weary from all the walking and the carb overload that is Italian food, sit on the steps along the back wall next to whatever statue Ryan has decided to jump off of (the last few days it has been "Hercules and the Centuar) while our little ball of energy jumps to his heart's content.  I think everyone needs a Jumping Place, somewhere where they can find new and creative ways to express themselves.  Ryan's Jumping Place sure has improved our time in Florence