Capturing different facets of Florence

Today I decided to go take a few photos of my beloved city. I haven’t taken any this week, but felt in the mood to do so today. With clear blue skies and some clouds drifting by, the conditions for me were perfect. Right before lunch, I headed down the Arno away from the Ponte Vecchio. I crossed Ponte alle Grazie and walked past Piazza Demidoff. A few people were heading up to Piazzale Michelangiolo by taking the stairs on the other side of the wall in San Niccolò, but I followed the clouds to Piazza Poggi where I thought I could take a few photos of Florence.

Living in Florence :: Capturing different facets of Florence

Because the fountain had so little water coming out, I decided to walk back down to San Niccolò and walk down via di San Niccolò instead of the lungarno (street along the Arno). The streets were quiet and virtually empty. A rarity during the year, but completely normal in the summertime when people go away to spend the last few summer days along the beach.

I walked across Ponte alle Grazie again and thought I would head to the Duomo by taking via dei Benci. At the corner of the lungarno and via dei Benci, I took the photo shown here. It's certainly not a unique angle of the city, but I love this view of San Niccolò with the ripples in the Arno, the overgrown vegetation, the vibrantly colored palazzi (buildings) and the blue sky with a few clouds passing by.

Instead of going to the Duomo, I decided to visit Santa Croce chiesa (church). I hadn’t gone to take photos in a while, but was disappointed when I saw that metal bleachers were being set up and the piazza was closed off. It’s only been a few days since I haven’t walked through the piazza, but sometimes things happen quickly here.

I walked up Borgo de Greci and turned to left to get to via dei Rustici. The entire time, I looked up at the buildings and through alleyways to see if there were any pictures I wanted to take. I love finding new things that I didn’t notice before or a monument from a different perspective. I could never get bored of my beloved city, but because I live here and see it every day, I try to search out ways to capture Florence in a different way. I feel sometimes as if I’m holding a diamond in my hand and turning it to see each of its facets. Not just to admire it, but also to appreciate it more each day.

Share your comments for this blog post on the Living in Florence's Facebook page. Grazie!

Back to Top