Palazzo Pitti

Sunday was our last day before class begins. We went to the Palazzo Pitti, named after Luca Pitti, a Florentine banker in the mid 1400's. The palace was bought by the Medici family about a hundred years later. Napoleon used the palace as a power base. It is now the largest museum complex in Florence. Alexandra took us through the galleries, selecting a few pieces to talk about. She makes everything personal and fascinating. I took some photos of some of my favorites.

On the way home our path was blocked by a parade; I couldn't help trying to capture shots of the young boys in their Florentine outfits. And then we caught a city bus and dined at a restaurant up in the hills, where we finally saw some green. Florence's narrow streets are lined with tall medieval buildings, there's no sunlight for gardens or trees. But get out of the city and it's lush and dense with green. Absolutely gorgeous. We stopped at an overlook and took pictures of Florence from above.

Tomorrow: class begins.

Royal