Today was essentially a lazy day for me. My roomie and the majority of the other girls in our group went to Venice or Cinque Terre so it was just me and the apartment! It was pretty nice - got up late and made myself a breakfast of true pain perdu - not the American cream-filled kind, but the authentic kind (thanks to a random discussion by my French teacher this past semester) which involves the end of a shriveled baguette, one egg, and a lot of milk. Voila! Mini french toast bites! Then with a little butter and some strawberry jam...well needless to say, it was a lovely beginning to my morning.
Then, after fiddling around here on the blog (just put up some of my videos! just click the link under our picture over there ->), and trying to figure out our mini washing machine (yes, I did finally get it to work), I then headed out to the Pitti Palace. We've actually already been here - I posted about it previously - but our group only got to see a few things so I decided to go back and really take it in.
(though I just found out that there's another whole level of old carriages that I definitely didn't see today...so I guess another trip will have to be in the works! Good thing it's free with my museum card!)
First, I walked through the Boboli Gardens since it was such a beautiful day out. It was a STEEP climb to get up there, but then again, what isn't anymore these days...good old hilly Tuscany.
The garden really were just gorgeous though, and a perfect blend of manicured lawns and wild overgrowth.
...nice view of the Duomo!
...this little guy was especially enjoying the shade...he barely even noticed the flock of pigeons. lol!
So, after feeling like Mary Lennox in my own personal Secret Garden, I moved back towards the palace. I only snapped a few pics before one of the guards came yelling at me that it was FORBIDDEN to take photos. But here are some from the rooms of various ruling figures who lived in the palace.
It really sucks, because there was soooooo much I saw and wish I could share photos of my own!
I saw the Palatine Gallery which houses over 500 paintings from the private collections the Medici and their successors - which include numerous portraits and other works by artists like Peter Paul Rubens, Caravaggio, Titian, Van Dyck, etc.
I also saw the bathroom that Napoleon had made for him during his short residence...his tub was very tiny, I might add.
But the artwork just continued...there was an entire floor dedicated to modern art of Italian artists (mainly around the turn of the century - impressionistic, pointillism, even a few fauve-inspired paintings), and tons of sculptures. Then I went into an exhibition featuring a TON of Japanese art - paintings, prints, manuscripts, pottery, woodworking, samurai swords and armour, kimonos, maps...the list goes on. My favorite piece out of that collection was this famous work: The Great Wave off Kanagawa from circa 1830-32
I'm not sure if it was the original print or not, but it sure looked legit to me! ...it was very cool.
I also wandered into the Treasury Gallery and it was just like it sounds - full of treasures!
There were a couple of rooms dedicated specifically to carved ivory sculptures that were so tiny yet so detailed! Here are some images I again snatched off of google...since Italian guards hate me.
Also in the gallery were literally thousands of pieces of jewelry. There were diamond necklaces that looked like they weighed a hundred pounds, tiny gold earrings in the shapes of pitchers with gold chains like water spilling out of them, there were coral, amber, emerald, & ruby pins, rings, and clasps, I saw some pocket watches, and there were even a couple of crowns!
Then there were the rooms dedicated to the silver and gold dishes, candlesticks, relic cases, and altar pieces for churches that looked like they might collapse with the weight of precious materials. Oh and did I mention the ostrich-egg jewelry boxes, medieval horn-cups, huge pearls made into tiny animal figurines, the lapis-lazuli pitchers, or crystal-cut bowls? And to top it all off, there was an area full of cameo pendants, some of which were as tiny as the tip of my pinky-finger yet managed to feature mythological scenes with perfectly-proportioned figures (who were even in contrapposto!) and architecture that included crown molding and niches for statues!!!!
I was of course blown away but kind of disgusted as well....I thought I could make tiny things...haha! Just kidding!!
But really, it was amazing in there and I am truly stunned at the level of time and skill it took these artists - who had nowhere neart the microscopic technology like we do today - to make such absolutely magnificent and miniscule works of art.
...tiny rooster made out of a huge pearl
...gold snail? why not!
...it was funny, as I was gaping at this particular set of rings, I heard a French woman behind me say the word for "buy"...ah if only my dear, if only.
Alrighty, so I need to stop bemoaning my lack of talent and fortune and move on...
So, after my 3 or so hours in the palace, I headed back home. I first stopped in our little grocery store though to pick up some ingredients (namely pancetta - which was only 1 euro!!!, and some more pasta sauce). It was exciting too, as I was walking in I noticed a couple standing a few front from the entrance who were kissing like they were starving...I mean they were GOING AT IT! They even dropped a grocery bag in their grabbing at each other. I mean...talk about amore!
...oh you Italians, you.
Well, here's that dinner I made...it was so good even if it will add more to my food toddler. Ah well...
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...till next time!
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