Clear blue sky
Sunday, July 25, 2010
This morning when I woke up, I was happy to see the clear blue sky. Because of the cool winds that have been blowing since yesterday, the smog has lessened, making the colors in the city even more vibrant. For at least a month, I hadn’t been taking any foto (photos). Besides the heat, the colors were also muted and didn’t inspire me much. I also like to enjoy the city without carting my macchina fotografica (camera) around so I can just take in the city without thinking about what would make a good foto. On my walk to Piazzale Michelangiolo today, I decided to carry my macchina fotografica with me so I could take some foto now that the brilliant colors of the city have returned.
I thought I would take at least one or two foto on my way up the shady viale (large avenue), but enjoyed the walk instead. There were fewer cars and more biciclette (bicycles) going up and down the street.
I stopped just outside the campeggio (campground) before the piazzale. There is a small shaded area with a few benches and a statue. I had never seen the front of it so I walked up and discovered that it was a statue of Anatole France. Below it was a plaque mentioning the 19th century French writer’s book “Le Lys Rouge” (The Red Lily). Perusing the book on-line, I found a quote on my beloved city that I appreciated, “The sky of Florence is light and subtle, and feeds the beautiful ideas of men.”
I continued my walk to the piazzale where I took some foto of the city in all directions. The air was so clean that I could even make out the trees along the neighboring hills.
I was surprised that there weren’t more people on a Sunday morning, but lately the city has been a little quieter with August just around the corner. Today felt like the perfect day to be touring Florence: cleaner air, cooler temperatures, and lovely colors all around.
I was so excited to see my foto when I got home, and chose a view of the city that I enjoy. It is the view I see every day on my walk and without any people or cars around, it was even more special to me.
