Higher and Higher, Baby!

We've officially started our third week, all is well, so I made a tiramisu for the students to celebrate this marker. Note that I do not have my appliances with me, and the hand-held mixer whipped more cream unto the kitchen splash board (it's earned its name!) than in the bowl. The dessert, nonetheless, was good. (So I am told; didn't have any. If the plate is to be split 28 ways, one more person makes the difference between a satisfying portion and a mere taste.)

Before the Disappearance

The next day, Urie and I decided it was high time to climb the cupola of the duomo (cathedral). So, to prep for our adventure, we watched a documentary about the building of this structure (the largest standing dome in the world to date) on Brunelleschi's insane/ingenious scheme to cover the hole left by a lack of architectural knowledge. (Anyone interested? Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fL04WjCZMk. From that link, you can watch volumes 2-4 [badly filmed from a television, somewhere]).

If you don't want to watch but are still interested, here's the low down: The diameter of the cupola is half a football field; the cupola itself  is 108 feet high (but from ground floor to top, it's 278 feet high or 460 steps of convoluted hallways and staircases to climb); it contains more than 40,000 bricks, and was built in 16 years from 1420 to 1436.

The Dome in Question

But first, we had to go to the tower (another part of the cathedral), and warm up to the tune of 414 steps to reach la campanila di Giotto.

La campanila di Giotto (inside)

Testing His Courage.

Spiderman-like

Down, Down below. 200 Feet Above

Well Worth the View!

Then came the climb to the top of the duomo, which requires a walk through two walls that go around the periphery of the structures and moves us in circles until the top is reached.

In between the Walls of the Cupola

The Herrringbone Pattern: Part of the Secrets of the Cupola

Reaching the top (for the second time--considering we'd been on the tower top first), we were getting a little "winded" (and it was very windy!):

Urie Emerges

So Tired!!!

          

Walking the Periphery

Of course, having inspected all we could at the top, we then went down  (faster than the ascension!) and visited the inside of the duomo, the basement of which contains the tomb of Giovanni de' Medici (the one who started the dynasty, though he, obviously, had predecessors); Roman ruins and artifacts; and templar grave markers. 

Inside the Cathedral

Ceiling of the Cupola

Giovanni De'Medici

Roman Ruins

as well as the baptistry, which houses an array of interesting mosaic works and three more Donatello sculptures.  (Donatello's main patron was Cosimo de' Medici.)

Ceiling of the Baptistry

Wall of the Baptistry. Amazing Details.

Donatello's Work

Guess Who?

How about This Guy?

After such grand efforts and more than 1,000 steps conquered (including ours at home!) is it any wonder that we decided to skip swimming? Instead, we stayed home and watch the first part of a magnificent documentary on the Medici family. The first part reconstructs the story of Cosimo Medici (son of Giovanni) who was a patron the arts and sciences, and sponsored Brunelleschi, Donatello, and others, and whose nephew and progeny did the same for Da Vinci (for a brief period), Michelangelo, and many others. The link to this one is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FFDJK8jmms&list=PL554l0EbSianiKr94zlblTjluyhnGlZss

All in all, we are in constant learning mode. Tomorrow, we get to visit the basicila  della Santa Croce where one finds the sepulchers of Galileo (minus his head, middle finger and thumb), Michelangelo, Macchiavelli, Rossini, and other illustrious artists and scientists of Italian renown.

Italy is a country so filled with art, architectural design and beauty that it's amazing its inhabitants find the time to work at all and go about everyday tasks.  I would spend mine in the museums!