College of Saint Benedict

May 16, 2010
Written by Beth Hanson and Calleigh Brown

Florence. Today we visited the beautiful city of Florence. Upon our arrival, we were greeted by Bernardo, our fabulous tour guide. We saw a variety of magnificent statues and enchanting architecture from the 1200’s - 1500’s. 

Leather. Florence is infamous for their leather products. Many of us decided to purchase beautiful, leather goods to support the Florence economy. A variety of colors and prices were available which allowed us to practice our bartering skills.
Oh no gypsies! Warning us to watch our pockets/purses, Bernardo educated us on the workings of gypsies. He provided us with the code “G.I.A.” which stood for GYPISES IN ACTION to warn us to protect our belongings. 

Renaissance Arts. Leonardo Divinci and Michelangelo (not the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle ?) were prominent contributors to the art of the world. Both were citizens of Florence during the same time period, but were not friends. We also saw the window of the room in which he created the Mona Lisa. 

Explanations by Bernardo. Our friend Bernie enhanced our knowledge of the town by providing historical information combined with international humor. He was a shorter Italian man but he had a lot of spunk which kept things interesting throughout the tour. 

Nice weather. FINALLY there was SUN!!! We did not have to carry our umbrellas while we toured Florence. People were happy to leave the city with slight sunburns!

Churches. Florence is home to the third and the tenth largest cathedrals in the world. At that time, they battled with Sienna to win the title of largest church in the world. After 140 years, the additions ended because Sienna ran out of money and Florence won the bragging rights. During free time, some of us decided to take a 414 stair climb to the top of the Giotto’s Tower. The view of the city was absolutely breathtaking. 

Early morning to ROME! Now it is time to pack up our belongings and prepare to leave Montecatini and head to Rome. 

Ciao!