SELF-GUIDED EXCURSION

Llittle history:
The Romans founded Florence in the first century B.C.; it began its rebirth after the decadence of the Barbaric ages. In the Carolingian period, and reached the highest pinnacles of civilization between the IIth and 15th centuries, as free city, basking in a happy stability amid Imperial and Papal authorities, overcoming the unfortunate internal dispute between Guelph and Ghibellines. In the 15th century, it came under the rule of the Medici family, who later became the Grand Dukes of Tuscany. This in fact was the period when the city was at the height of its glory in art and culture, in politics and economic power. That of the House of Lorraine succeeded the Grand Duchy of the Medici in the 18th century, when in 1860 Tuscany became part of the kingdom of Italy of which Florence was the capital from 1865 to 1871. In this century, this city has once more taken up its role as an important center for culture and the arts. Florence has retained an extraordinary wealth of art treasure, a glorious witness to its centuries of civilization. Cimabue and Giotto, forefathers ofitalian painting, lived here; Arnolfo and Andrea Pisano, renovators of architecture and sculpture; Brunelleschi, Donatello and Masaccio, innovators of the Renaissance; Ghiberti and the Della Robbia; Filippo Lippi and Fra Angelico; Botticelli and Paolo Uccello and universal men like Leonardo and Michelangelo. Their work as well as that of many other generations of Artists up to the present time-are collected in the many museums of the city. The Uffizi, the most select picture gallery in the World; the Galleria Palatine, with its "golden age" paintings-Florence was the fountainhead of the Renaissance , the city of Dante and Boccaccio .For 3 centuries ,the city was dominated by the Medici family. In Florence the city of Dante, the Italian language was born. With Petrach and Boccaccio the study of literature found its main center here. Humanism brought new philosophical ideas and a full appreciation of classicism. Macchiavelli inaugurated the new political science: Galileo and his school created and developed experimental science. As far back as Charlemagne, Florence has had a University, which today includes numerous faculties and a wide range of institutes with a specialized Center for foreigners. Academies and arts schools, scientific institutes such as the "Osservatorio Astrofisico" at Arcetri, the Institute of Research in Electromagnetic wanes, the Center for Nuclear Medicine, all contribute to the intense activity of the city and this particular field, so too the foreign universities and various centers ofHistory of Art and popular cultures.

Events in Florence
Throughout the year a series of events are held in Florence, which are varied enough to suit most demands. Foremost among these, in the city were modern beginning with Florence Musical May" and going on to Summer and Winter operatic organizes numerous trade events over the year. International exhibitions in the contemporary art and in the particular aspects of antique art are organized- Some of the typical traditional events are Football in Costume, the Burst of the Cart, the Feast of St. John etc. Florence is well known for its highly refined craftsmanship evolved over centuries of tradition, and for the elegance and good taste of its creation.
Florence hospitality has been praised as far back as the 13th century, travelers praised
the pleasant and comfort Dozens of restaurants and typical "oratories", in the town
center and the surrounding hills, offer the pleasures of gastronomy which is based on
simple and healthy fare: tasty soups, roast and grilled meat (the famous Bistecca and
grilled chicken). Tuscan wines produced in the Chianti and surrounding areas, deservedly famous, accompany the cuisine: the red wine which is full-boiledd and full-flavored; the white wine which is lighter; sweet wines and the "vin santo.

The top of Museum are:

Uffizi Gallery
055/238-85.www.uffizi.firenze.it Admission 12.000L Mon-Fri 8:30
am-9pm; Sat. am-midnight; Sund 8:30am-8pm. Bus: 23 or 71. Walking down the hall looking through the high windows you can see the views of Florence .
In the Room 2: here you'll meet up with those rebels from Byzantium, Cimabue and is pupil Giotto. One of the great works in the center of salon is Giotto's masterful Ognissanti Maestà'.
Room3:lok for Simone Martini's Annunciation, full of grace, and Madonna and Bambino of Fra Angelico.
Room 8: here you'll find the Coronation of the Virgin of Filippo Lippi.
Room 10 to 14:These are Optically rooms, with his finest works: Venus on the Half Shell Allegory of Spring or Primavera is a gem .Room 15:here you'll come across one of Leonardo da Vinci unfinished paintings, and also here hangs Leonardo's Annunciation.
Room 18: the most beautiful room in the gallery, with its dome of pearl shells contains the Venus of the Medici at center stage .
Room 19: this room is devoted to Perugino.
Room 20: this room takes you into the world of German artist who worked in Florence.
Room21 .-you'll see important Venetian painting .
Room 22 :it contains a cavalcade of northern-Europeans . Room23 : Correggio and Mantagna dominates this room . Room25: the star here is Michelangelo and Raphael. Room 27 : this room is devoted to works by Andrea del Sarto . Room 28 and the rest : WE see the works of Titian Veronese Tintoretto ,Rubens ,Caravaggio.

Galleria dell' Accademia
tel: 055/238-8609. Admission 12.000L Tues-Fri 8:30am-
Midnight; Sun 8:30am-8pm. Bus: 1,6,11, 17, 20, 25, 31, 32, 33. There is many
paintings and sculptures: Michelangelo's colossal David is so overpowering in is majesty. The gallery also displays Michelangelo's statue of St Matthew, also same painting of
minor importance

Palazzo Pitti and Giardini di Boboli
055\238"85.Palatina 12.000L Tues-Fri 8am-9pm ;Sun 8am-8pm. Modem Art Gallery
8.000L ; Argenti 4.000L ; 8:30am-1:30pm; closed the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Mon and the 2nd and
4th Sunday of each month. Boboli Gardens 4.000L June-Sept, 8:30am-7:45pm; April May
and Oct, 8:30am-6:45pm; Nov-Mar' 9am-5:45pm; closed the 1st and last Mon of each
month. Palazzo Pitti is one the greatest artistic treasure troves , with painting gallery,
works of Titian, Rubens, Raphael, and Andrea del Sarto. Palazzo Pitti was a private
residence, was once the home of the Kings of Savoy, when they presided over a unified
Italy. Reopened in 1993 after restoration.
The Boboli Gardens, behind the Pitti Palace, a great landscape artist : Triboli. The garden are filled with fountains and statues.

Bargello Museum
, a short walk from Piazza della Signoria. 055\238-8606. Admission 8,060 L. Tues-Sat 8:30am-l:50 pm 2nd and 4th Sun of the month 8:30am-l:50pm; lst and 3rd Mon of the month 8:30am-l:50pm. Closed Jan 1, May 1st, and Christmas. Bus A, 14, or 23. This is a 1255 fortress palace whose dark under-ground chambers resounded with the cries of the tortured when it served as the city's jail and town hall during the Renaissance. Today the Bargello is a vast repository of some of the most important Renaissance sculptures , including works by Michelangelo and Donatello .

St Mark's Museum.
Piazza San Marco 1. 055V238-8608. Admission 8.000L Daily 8:30am-l:50pm. Closed I51,3"1, and 5^ Sun of the month; 2"1 and 4^'Mon of the month;
Jan. 1, May 1, and Christmas . Bus: 1, 6, 7, 10, 11, 17,20. This state museum is a handsome Renaissance palace whose cells walls are decorated with frescoes by the mystical Fra Angelico, one of Europe's greatest 15^-century painters.

The Duomo, Campanile & Baptistry
. In the heart of Florence at Piazza del Duomo and Piazza San Giovanni. Il Duomo 055\230-2885. Cathedral free; excavation 5,000; Cupola 10,000. Mar-Oct, Mon-Sat 8:30am-6:30pm. Off-Season, Mon-Sat 8:30am-5:30pm. Bus: B, 14,23, 36,37. 71.

The Duomo
, graced by Filippo Bnmelleschi's red-tiled dome is the crewing glory of Florence and the star of the skyline. The Duomo is one of the world's largest churches in Gothic style: Volunteers offer free tours of the cathedral every day except Sunday 10 am to 12:30pm and 3 to 5pm., most of them speak English, if there many of you and want to confirm their availability, call 055V271-0757.

Giotto's Bell Tower
055\230-2885. Admission 10.000L Daily 8am-7pm. Closed Jan 1, Easter, Sept 8, and Christmas. Bus: B, 14, 23, 36, 37, 71. If we can believe the accounts of this contemporaries, Giotto was the ugliest man ever to walk die streets of Florence. It's irony, then, that he loft to posterity Europe's most beautiful campanile but he died before its completion witch was carried out by Andrea Pisano.

Baptistry
055\230-2885. Admission 5,OOOL. Mon-Sat 9am-lpm. Bus: B, 14,23,36, 37, 71. Named after is patron saint, Giovanni, it's the oldest structure in Florence , you can see the three sets of bronze doors by Lorenzo Ghierti.

Duomo Museum;
055V30-2885 Admission 10.000L. Apr- Oct Mon-Sat 9am-650pn. Bus: B, 14,23,36,37. 71. The premier attraction is the restored panels of Ghiberti's " Gates of Paradise.

Piazza della Signoria
is one of Italy most beautiful squares, with the Fountain of Neptuno. " Palazzo Vecchio :055\276-8325. Admission 10,OOOL, Mon-Wed and Fri-Sat 9am-7pm; Thurs and Sun 9am-2pm; July 15-Sept 15, Mon and Fri 9am-11 pm. Bus: 23,
71. The secular "Old Palace" is Florence's famous and imposing palazzo, is filled with frescoes and sculpture.

The Ponte Vecchio:
was built in 1220, is closed to vehicular traffic. The little shops sell everything from the most expensive of Florentine gold to something simple.

Basilica di Santa Croce
located in Piazza Santa Croce 16. 055\244-619. Church free;
cloisters and church museum 8,OOOL. Church Mon-Sat 8am-6:30pm; Sun 3-6;30pnL Museum and cloisters Thurs- Tues 10 am-7pm. B: 13,23, 71. Thing of this as Tuscany's Westminster Abbey. This church shelters the tombs of everyone from Michelangelo to Macchiavelli, from Dante to Galileo.

Santa Maria Novella
in Piazza Santa Maria Novella. 055-282-187 church free, Spanish chapel and cloister (ire 5,000. Church mon-fri 7am-noon and 3pm-6pm- Spanish Chapel and Cloister Sat-thurs 8am-2pm BUS 6,9,11,36,37 or 68. Near the rail station, is one of Florence's most distinguished churches, began in 1278 for the Dominicans. It its geometric façade, with bands of white and green marble was designed in the late 15th century by Leon Battisti Arberti. The church borrows from, armonizes, the Romanesque, Gothic, and Renaissance styles.

Piazza della Signoria
is one of Italy's most beautiful squares, it was the center of secular lives in the days of the Medici, and is today a virtual sculpture gallery.

Shopping in Florence
Florence isn't a city for bargain shopping Most of the visitor interested in gold or silver jewelry head for Ponte Vecchio. The Street for antiques is in Via Maggio or Borgo Ognissanti. The better shops are many on Via Vigna Nuova, Via Porta Rossa Via degli Strozzi. Intrepid shoppers head for the Mercato Nuovo, two blocks south of Piazza della Repubblica. Mercato Centrale San Lorenzo near the rail station. Check the map for directions.