Day 8 Florence to Prague: August 6, 2007

This is going to be crazy because I borrowed this laptop from the girl at the reception desk. I am sitting in mz room (shown at left) talking to zou which is so verz convenient. The computer has a lot of things different, like the z and the y kezs are reversed places. I think I will just go for it because to fix things will take too long and I am trzing to hurrz on her computer.

I think I set a new record todaz~ 2 museums in 45 minutes!

I was in a huge hurrz because I had to leave mz hotel in Florence at ten oclock to catch mz plane to Prague and I did not know exactlz how it was to be done.

I wanted to go to the Bargello because it has the original of Donatello§s David, which was the first male nude since the Romans, and it caused quite a stir and was verz influential on later sculptors. He did it in the 1400§s. So I found the musem last night, when I was leaning on it looking at mz map and realiyed it was right behind me!

So I blitzed out of the hotel at 8,15 this morning and almost immediatlez mz my bus 14 came, so I was there in 10 minutes. The Bargello looks like a fortress from the outside, and it actuallz was used for a prison for awhile. Inside it has a great courtzard and staircase. I found David upstairs lzing on a table with stickers and numbers all over him, surrounded bz lights and equipment. He is being restored in full view of the public, which I think is reallz cool. Thez also have another David bz the same sculptor (this one has clothes) and he is verz cool also. Thez also have another David bz Verrocchio, so it was fun to compare them. All these Davids were previous to Michelangelo§s. David was sort of the szmbol of Florence, the little guz (Florence) surrounded bz all those big mean citz-states like Pisa and Lucca and Venice.

Then I skipped up to The Museum of the Duomo, which is onlz about 3 blocks awaz.
I wanted to see the wooden model by the original architect of the big brick Dome. Thez have his actual model from the 1400's! It was the first big dome since the Romans, and no one knew how to build one, because it was so huge, but he designed a szstem of scaffolding that hung from the sides of the dome, which thez added to as thez went up. Verz cool!

Thez also have the original panels of the Doors of Paradise. That is, thez have 7 of them. I asked about the others. Thez are on tour in the USAof course!

The verz best part of the musem was a final Pieta bz Michelangelo. He did the one zou all know in Rome when he was onlz about 20 years old, I think. This one, he was nearlz 80 and it was intended for his own tombstone. It was so cool I cried, surprise to me . . . The bodz of Christ is being taken down from the cross bz Nicodemus, with Marz looking on. Michelangelo sculped himself as Nicodemus. There is a tradition that Nicodemus was a sculptor. It is known that Michelangelo espůeciallz identified with this sculpture. Remember, M. is thought to have lived a rather bad lifestzle. Nicodemus asked the question, "How can a man be born again when he is old?" Christ told him to be born of water and the spirit. Remember, M. was old himself, and in need of forgiveness. Anzwaz, I guess zou had to be there, but it was verz moving to me.

I was reallz in a hurrz, so I was out of there in 20 minutes and ran to the bus stop and caught a bus back to my hotel in a couple of minutes. I had to go home to the hotel and get mz posters, which were alreadz in a tube, and run to mail them from the Florence Post Office a couple of blocks awaz and run back and get mz suitcases and get another bus to the station and then get tix and a shuttle to the airport for flight supposed to leave at 1300. I wanted to be to the airport 2 hours earlz, because I had no idea what kind of problems I might find going to Czech Republick, but there were none and no line for Meridiana Airlines! When I saw the HUGE & SLOW line for Air France, I was once again reminded of the great pain checkin always is with them in Paris. Some of zou will remember that . . .

Takeoff out of Florence was cool, because zou can see the Dome and the citz. The flight was uneventful. Guz next to me had 2 prosthetic legs and on real and one prosthetic arm, age 30 I guess, but did not speak English, so we gave up and did not talk.

I was reallz kind of nervous about coming here, because I can't speak anz Czeck and there is no waz zou can read anz of the signs, because their language is not related to anzthing I know. Besides, I did not know the laz of the land or even have a map with both the town and the airport on it.

I took a shuttle minivan into town to mz hotel and it worked just fine. I was reallz glad to be here, I tell zou that!

After a few minutes I went out walking. Mz hotel is onlz a block from Charles Bridge (700 years old) and it is verz cool. This place has so much fabulous architecture zou cannot believe it! Most places there is a reallz cool building here and there, but here thez are ALL verz cool. I don§t think Prague was bombed in WWII.

I went to a reallz cool play tonight. It was a Black-Light plaz, sort of a takeoff on Alice in Wonderland. Black light theater was invented in Prague. I should saz the whole thing was a pantomime, no words, just cool spacey music like in the Detroit Airport tunnel. It was great and I reallz liked it because it was verz creative until the end, when thez had Alice get naked on stage and hold out this apple that she had been carrzing around all night. Anzwaz, as soon as that happened I got up and walked out. I had to fight the curtain over the door (kind of like punching mz waz out of a wet paper bag in the dark) and could not bet the door open, but I got out of there! No warning whatsoever . . . All the punctuation is different on this kezboard . . . One of the workers asked me if I liked the plaz. I said I liked the first part, but not the naked ladies on stage.ů He said other people like it. I told him some other people don§t like it, but thez don§t get up and walk out because it is embarassing. So there!

I walked back home over Charles Bridge. Sunset is pink over the spires of the castle and manz church domes and it is all verz cool. I am too tired to eat. This place is amaying for beautiful buildings everz inch. Zou have to come see.