Europe: Day 14, May 14, Pisa & Florence, Italy

We left Montecatini-Terme and drove to Pisa.  Of course the most recognizable feature of Pisa is it's leaning tower.  The leaning tower is a bell tower accompanying a nearby church.  The tower really does lean.  It is obvious from outside and inside.  The tower itself is very attractive. I like its design, and while I have no expertise in such things, I liked it compared with the many bell towers we have seen. Candice and I climbed the stairs to the top.  We were the only ones of our tour group of forty people to do so.  

As we walked into the tower it was a obvious the floor was not level.  There is a system of counterweights and other engineering features designed to keep it from leaning further.  We were told the system has actually straightened it a little.

As the building was being built it began to lean.  They continued the construction anyway until it was completed.  So the lean of the building began well before it was completed.

This is our view from up on top of the Leaning Tower.

 Some of those little people down below us are
 Keith & DeAnn, Mike & Linda, and Ray & Mary Helen.

We next drove to Florence, or Firenze, as the Italians call it.  Florence is considered the birth place of the renaissance. It is the birthplace and hometown of Michelangelo, and many of his works of art are kept in the city.  Probably the most famous of his works in Florence is his statue of David.  When we were here in 1989 we saw the statue.  It is no longer on display. They now have an exact copy on display instead. 

Both Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci Are buried in Florence. And, probably, a lot of other folks as well.  Christopher Columbus was born in Florence.  Firenze, was at one time the Capitol of Italy.

We only had the afternoon so were limited in what we were able to see.  We did go into what is probably our favorite church of the trip. Obviously, St. Peter's cathedral in Rome is much more spectacular and ornate, and filled with works of art, as are nearly all other churches we have seen on this trip. Actually, the thing that struck us about this particular church, which is called Santa Maria de Flores ( Saint Mary of the Flowers), was its simplicity. It was, by comparison, simple and less ornate.  That appealed to us.  I thought it had a better feeling than the others.  I thought it proved the thought that more isn't always better.

While in Florence, we made our way to Vivoli, maybe the best gelato place in Italy. When we came in 1989, Rosalie Payne told is to be sure and go to Vivoli's. We did, several times.  We brought back a cup from there.  Miss Payne taught at the high school in Blanding.  When we got home, Marilyn and I filled the cup with frozen yogurt and knocked on Rosalie's door and handed it to her.  She took it with a questioning look on her face. After some prompting she looked closely at the cup and begun to shout.  She wanted to know how we has brought gelato all the way from Italy. Of course as soon as she said it she realized it could not be done.  But for a second or two she was excited.  We have another cup with us and hope to do the same thing again if we can find her place in Price, where she now lives. Marilyn wants us to bring her some as well.  It is now packed in our suitcase, hopefully, not melting :).  My guess is that Kristi would take some as well, as long as it's stracciotelli (or however it is spelled).  

Our time in Italy has come to an end.  On to Switzerland. Just a couple of random thoughts about our time so far.  The Netherlands, Belgium Germany and Austria were beautiful and, as I mentioned earlier, beautifully manicured.  Italy is pretty as well. But less well manicured.  

Throughout Europe we have seen many large modern white wind mills like the ones at the mouth of Spanish Fork canyon. Sara, or tour guide, has mentioned several times about rivers that were polluted at one time, but have now been cleaned up. From what she has said, the Europeans are very concerned about the environment and have made great strides in cleaning up their water ways and probably, everything else. She also mentions services provided by the government. She also talks about government control in their lives. She seems to appreciate the services and security that come from the government, but seems less than thrilled about all the control imposed by the government. However, she seems somewhat ambivalent about government and the benefits and lessened freedom that come from it.  But she seems resigned to the status quo.  It's all she's ever known. She talked about their socialized health care system. She said it was a good system and thinks it is the only way to go. It has been interesting to listen to her take on things.