Italy Galleries

Florence - Ponte Vechio : The Ponte Vechio is one of Florence's signature attractions. In the time of the Medici, the bridge was lined with Butcher Shops ... and the waste from the process simply fell into the river. In a masterstroke of urban renewal, Butcher Shops were forbidden and these shops now mostly sell jewellery and high fashion silks. This bridge is terrifically photogenic. Every season, every weather condition seems to give the bridge a different personality. I could show you several dozen, but here are two of my favourites.

Florence - Ponte Vechio

The Ponte Vechio is one of Florence's signature attractions. In the ti ...

Updated: Feb 24, 2008 8:29pm PST

Florence - Duomo : The Duomo was built almost 700 years ago. It features a dome designed and frescoed by Brunelleschi. Together with the Baptistery out front and the Campanile next door, it is the largest of Florence's landmark attractions. Its size is problematic for a photographer. It is so big it's hard to take a photo and see it all, unless you use an ultra-wide lens. And then, all the corners of the photo curve together and you get something out of Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind. So the whole time I was in Florence, I was in the hunt for a different perspective on this fantastic cathedral. You have all seen the classic postcard view, here are some different looks.

Florence - Duomo

The Duomo was built almost 700 years ago. It features a dome designed ...

Updated: Feb 24, 2008 8:43pm PST

Florence - Piazza della Signoria : The Piazza della Signoria is the center of modern and historic Florence. It is a huge plaza surrounded by historic buildings, cafes, and restaurants. By day it is filled with tourists individually, and tourists travelling in packs (tour groups.) A great place to people-watch and the place where a number of my Italians Gallery photos were taken. By night, there are talented buskers singing (mostly) or performing in various ways. The acoustics for the singers are terrific. Many are singing cover songs for Simon and Garfinkle or John Denver ... better than they sang them themselves. Fun! Lively! Safe! Recommended!!! The Palazzo Vechio and the Ufizzi Gallery border on the square. Neptune's Fountain (wherein I was arrested many years ago with a number of fellow students posing for a nude group photo) is in the Piazza. A few copies of the infamous photo still exist, but they're difficult to locate. Savonarola was twice-executed here in 1498. I like this place. History Buffs: Okay, back to Savonarola ... He was a Dominican friar who, towards the end of his life, had great charisma and exercised great influence over the people of Florence. Probably as a result of fasting, he experienced hallucinations and came to believe Florence needed to saved from itself. Specifically, he raved against the excesses of the time characterized by the proliferation of expensive art and conspicuous consumption. He convinced his followers to destroy much of the art in an act known as the "Burning of the Vanities." In the end, he ended up on the wrong side of a political dispute with Pope Alexander VI (arguably the most corrupt Pope in history) and was sentenced to be executed. A wooden board walk was built from the entrance to the Palazzo Vechio to the center of the Piazza della Signoria and gallows constructed at its end. Savonarola was marched to the gallows, hung by the neck, but before he could suffocate, he was burned to death by a fire constructed below the gallows. To this day, there is a stone plaque commemorating the execution, laid among the paving stones of the Piazza.

Florence - Piazza della Signoria

The Piazza della Signoria is the center of modern and historic Florenc ...

Updated: Feb 24, 2008 9:05pm PST

Florence - Palazzo Vechio : If you travel to Florence, be sure to see the Botecelli paintings in the Uffizi Gallery, and the Michelangelo sculptures including the David in the Academia. After that, your next stop, in my opinion, should be the Palazzo Vecchio. Originally this was a Medici Palace. When the new palace was built across the river (The Pitti Palace), the old palace became the Palazzo Vecchio ... literally "old palace" in Italian ... and was turned to administrative purposes. It remains full of Medici art work ... frescos, mosaics, paintings, sculpture. Of all the sites in Florence, this is the one I come back to over and over again. Highly recommended!! After the Medicis moved, they needed a way to go from the Pitti Palace to the Palazzo Vecchio without mixing with the riff raff. They built a covered walkway from the Palazzo Vecchio, through the Uffizi, across the Ponte Vecchio, and down the street to the Pitti Palace ... probably a half mile ... at least 10 minutes walking. Today for an extra fee, you can tour the walkway including the art hung on its walls. And you can tour the Palazzo Vecchio itself, including an extra price "back stage" tour which I recommend. According to Unesco, 60% of the world's most important art is in Italy, and half of that is in Florence ... most bought and paid for with Medici money. And it's a good thing, too. The last heir to the Medici fortune married an Austrian prince. When she died, she willed the entire fortune to the City of Florence on one condition ... Nothing could be removed from Florence. Had she not done this, most of what you'd travel to Florence to see ... would be in Vienna.

Florence - Palazzo Vechio

If you travel to Florence, be sure to see the Botecelli paintings in t ...

Updated: Feb 24, 2008 9:34pm PST

Florence - Santa Croce : After the Palazzo Vecchio, the Church of Santa Croce was my most visited site in Florence. It is in the neighbourhood of my apartment. It tends to be uncrowded since it's a bit off the beaten track. It's impressive yet inexpensive. And like most churches in Florence, photos without flash are allowed. There's another reason, but I'll save it for later.

Florence - Santa Croce

After the Palazzo Vecchio, the Church of Santa Croce was my most visit ...

Updated: Feb 25, 2008 3:53pm PST

Florence - Santa Maria del Carmine : Another neat church that's off the beaten track is Santa Maria del Carmine. Except for the last photo, all images are of frescoes from the Brancacci Chappel. The last image is from a chapel just across the church from there.

Florence - Santa Maria del Carmine

Another neat church that's off the beaten track is Santa Maria del Car ...

Updated: Feb 25, 2008 4:20pm PST

Florence - Streets : One of the joys of visiting a place for an extended period is that you come to recognize its texture. There's a texture to things, to life, to a culture. These pictures illustrate the texture of Florence for me.

Florence - Streets

One of the joys of visiting a place for an extended period is that you ...

Updated: Mar 08, 2008 11:35am PST

Scoppio del Carro : In the weeks leading up to Easter, I kept hearing people talk about the "exploding of the cart." I came to understand it is a centuries old tradition with a long and rich history. Google the title of this gallery and you'll find lots and lots of references to the history and the tradition. In modern Florence, it's an excuse for parties, parades, and pyrotechnics. Easter morning, thousands of people gather at the Duomo. The warm up acts are parades, marching bands and flag throwers. Then this elaborate cart is drawn into the space between the Duomo and the Baptistry by a team of oxen with red bows adorning their tails. A wire leads from the high alter in the Duomo out the front door to the cart. At the stroke of 11:00, the Bishop of Florence lights a rocket powered dove. it comes shooting down the wire to the cart, pauses briefly, and goes shooting back into the Duomo. (You can just barely see the dove starting its return in the middle photo.) If all has gone according to plan, fireworks mounted on the cart explode. It's quite a show. The cart is in surprisingly good condition for all the abuse it gets this one day a year. If you go, get there at least 2 hours ahead of time to get a place near the cart to watch. Alternatively, watch it from a friend's apartment overlooking the ceremonies, as I did.

Scoppio del Carro

In the weeks leading up to Easter, I kept hearing people talk about th ...

Updated: Feb 25, 2008 4:51pm PST

Florence - Italians : When I travel, I take pictures of "the sights." Often, I strive to capture them without people in the photo because the people are distractions. For a couple of years now, I have also tried to capture candid photos of the people who make up part of the texture of the places I visit. While I was in Florence, I hardly went anywhere without camera in hand. Here are the Italians. I use a Digital SLR camera. It gives me the opportunity to switch lenses for different conditions and subjects. But it's big and heavy compared with today's small point and shoot cameras. As a result, it's hard to be unobtrusive shooting candid photos of people. With only one exception, none of the photos below are posed. Mostly, the people I was photographing were unaware I was taking their picture. You'll see a few where my subject was obviously aware, and sometimes you'll be able to tell how they felt about it.

Florence - Italians

When I travel, I take pictures of "the sights." Often, I strive to cap ...

Updated: Mar 08, 2008 10:58am PST

Florence - Windows : I am not sure how to boil down the idea of Italian "style." But one manifestation of that style is evident in the display windows of Italian stores. I became fascinated with this notion and took literally hundreds and hundreds of store-window-photos. Here are some I like.

Florence - Windows

I am not sure how to boil down the idea of Italian "style." But one ma ...

Updated: Mar 08, 2008 11:42am PST

Florence - Ufizzi : Okay, you aren't supposed to take pictures in here and the photography police are very diligent.

Florence - Ufizzi

Okay, you aren't supposed to take pictures in here and the photography ...

Updated: Mar 08, 2008 11:51am PST

Florence - Cars : When I think of Italian cars two conflicting cars come to mind. There's the Ferrari and its super sleek, super powerful cousins. And there's Fiat (short for Fix It Again Tony, or so they say). While in Italy, I certainly saw sleek sporty cars like the Ferrari. and I saw a lot of Fiats. But the cars that really captured my imagination were the hyper efficient micro cars. Obviously, there's a bunch of them on this page. Enjoy!

Florence - Cars

When I think of Italian cars two conflicting cars come to mind. There' ...

Updated: Mar 08, 2008 5:08pm PST

Bologna : As you may know, my daughter, son-in-law and I all ride Ducati motorcycles. Therefore, I felt it necessary to make a pilgrimage to Bologna where Ducati manufactures their bikes. I made two attempts at the trip, only one successful. On the first attempt, the Italian train workers called a strike shutting down the trains between Florence and Bologna. The second attempt was successful. Except for one, these photos are all from the Ducati museum. The last is from a giant billboard advertisement outside the factory gates. We did get a chance to tour the factory, which was great fun. But there were no pictures allowed in the factory itself. Ducati is an interesting company with an interesting history. Originally it was a conglomerate making radios, electronic equipment, bicycles, ... well all manner of stuff. Unlike most businesses which tend to diversify, Ducati narrowed and narrowed its product lines and now, all they make are motorcycles and motorcycle paraphernalia. They also run a successful motorcycle racing team. Check out www.ducati.com.

Bologna

As you may know, my daughter, son-in-law and I all ride Ducati motorcy ...

Updated: Mar 08, 2008 5:22pm PST

Fiesole : Fiesole is a small hill town about 30 minutes from Florence by city bus. It is a popular weekend destination for hiking and walking. There are a number of nice restaurants for a weekend family outing. And there are a couple of very nice churches. Before Roman times, the Etruscans built a small town on the site and there are still Etruscan and Roman ruins there you can visit. I like this place.

Fiesole

Fiesole is a small hill town about 30 minutes from Florence by city bu ...

Updated: Mar 08, 2008 5:30pm PST

Lucca : About an hour and a half from Florence by train lies the little town of Lucca. There are a couple of nice churches to visit. There are a number of tall towers to climb including one with a big tree growing on the top. There are wonderful gardens and parks. It is such a pleasant and picturesque place, I have to recommend it to anyone travelling in the area.

Lucca

About an hour and a half from Florence by train lies the little town o ...

Updated: Mar 08, 2008 5:38pm PST

Venice : During the last week of April (2004) and the first week of May, my wife and I enjoyed 2 weeks of perfect work/personal life balance. 3 days working and 10 days vacationing in Italy. The basic itinerary was a weekend in Venice, 3 days working in Rome, and 7 days vacationing in Tuscany. While in Tuscany, we stayed at an Agritourismo near Montepulciano and had the use of a rented Alpha Romeo. So no packing and unpacking, just a week of short day trips in and around Tuscany including Montepulciano, Monteriggioni, San Giminiano, Cortona, Assisi, Vinci (as in Leonardo da), Montalcino, Monte Oliveto Maggiori and San Antimo. We made many wrong turns on the narrow winding roads. We got lost a few times but only once seriously. We ate and drank our way through one of the most scenic parts of Italy, if not of all of Europe. All in all, a terrific couple of weeks. Make sure to click on the thumbnails below to expand them.

Venice

During the last week of April (2004) and the first week of May, my wif ...

Updated: Mar 08, 2008 5:44pm PST