The heat didn't let up, but we found various solutions! Visiting places like the exceptional Santa Maria Novella church with that superb facade part designed by Alberti, the interior so cool and impressive, then off to Santa Croce, the Franciscan's church that contains that incredible chapel painted by Giotto...rewarded after all that art we repaired to Vivoli ices for some of their confections, rice pudding being my personal favourite. In Piazza della Signoria we revisited that moment in March 2020 when the group gathered and I had to announce that instead of starting our Florence week we were going to hot-foot it to catch the last-but-one BA flight out of Italy, and here we are again, well done to the brave 2020 group who came back!
Off to Settignano, to visit the Villa Gamberaia, where some enterprising members of the group discovered the swimming pool...slightly envious of their chuzpa, I kept my suit on!
Orsanmichele, Brancacci Chapel Charles Cecil's fantastic art studio for those who wanted to take advantage of the offer of two long classes in the particular style of art practised by Charles...much much more, the Palazzo Pitti, the Beato Angelico paintings in the monastery of San Marco, re-designed by Michelozzo for Cosimo de'Medici, Michelangelo's superb statue of David, all 17 foot and 6 tons! Plus his 'slaves', to be able to see his work-in-progress
