Inspiring – Page 6 – Finding Florence

I Wish I’d Been Here When: My Home Was a Nunnery

Artwork from my apartment’s walkway depicting angels and other religious imagery. Image courtesy of apartment building.

By Isabel Pellegrino

My apartment used to be a convent dating back to the 15th century. I can’t help but wonder about the way the nuns lived here. I wish I was able to go back in time to better understand their lives and how they perceived Florence and its future.

I wish I had been in Firenze when nuns gathered in my apartment’s kitchen. In the 15th century, my apartment was a convent. It is hard to picture this space as home to a religious community. While I try to embrace the Italian culture in all of it’s beauty and class, I am not sure the way I live could ever be compared to the grace of a Renaissance nunnery. Yet, here I am. Through an old wooden door, rod iron gates and a few flights of stone stairs, you will find us cooking and practicing our Italian; sometimes we feel like it’s the best we can do to connect with those who occupied this space before us.

During the 15th century, Florentine convents were evolving from small communities to large institutions, according to historian Sharon T. Strocchia in her book “Nuns and Nunneries in Renaissance Florence.” It became common practice for highly- educated unmarried women to congregate in convents. As a result, nunneries became hubs for research, academic dialogue and political influence. As I sit at the kitchen counter of my apartment, I dream of traveling back in time to speak with these women. I can see them now gathering around tables with their noses in books and crosses around their necks. Question after question would flow from me: What is it like to be women leaders of a religion often dominated by men? What do you see your legacy as? What does Firenze mean to you and your faith? How can I honor your lives in my time?

But more than anything else, I wish I had the chance to roam the Florentine streets with them and see the city through their perspective. In the midst of the Renaissance, I wonder how they felt about the art and how it influenced their faith. I wonder if they had any idea of what the convent space would become in the centuries afterwards. While I will never have a time machine during my fleeting few months in Italy, my roommates and I have pledged to take time every day to be grateful for our apartment and our lives in Italy. When we sit around our dinner table and discuss culture, religion, politics and philosophy, it’s almost as if we have been transported back in time by the everlasting art of conversation. I like to imagine the nuns doing exactly this, just centuries ago. Our apartment bridges our times together. So maybe, we aren’t all that disconnected after all.

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Renaissance Reminiscing: Arte della Lana

Coat of Arms of the Arte Della Lana, the guild of wool merchants during medieval and Renaissance Florence. Produced by Andrea della Robbia. Photo by Jastrow.

By Bailey Hubacher

If I could travel back in time through this history of Firenze, my first stop would be the Renaissance due to strength and importance of the textile industry.

As both a Fashion Merchandising and Journalism major, I’ve always been interested in the beauty of Italian history. Now, this may sound cliché, but I wish I could have experienced Italian life during the Renaissance period and not just because it was one of the first cities in Europe to experience the beauty of the era. So let me break it down:

During the Renaissance, there were merchants, bankers, and an entrepreneurship tradition that worked together to make some of my personal all-time favorite fabrics: wool and silk. I am obsessed with the textiles in today’s fashion industry, but I can only imagine the beauty and craftsmanship that went into the early wool and silk industries. The whole process of carding, spinning, dyeing, and weaving wool into beautiful garments is amazing, and back in the day artisans made wool that you can only dream of today.

The textile industry in Firenze during the Renaissance made up a lot of the wealth and the city was dependent on the textile workers who specialized in the manufacturing and trading of wool. In fact, one third of the Florentine population was involved in the wool industry. Firenze during this time had guilds and for those of you who don’t know them, guilds were corporations established in the Middle Ages that basically governed the arts and professions.

The guild of the wool merchants was one of the most powerful in Firenze, and alongside the guild of bankers – who, in turn had their own financial networks – they were the powerhouses of wealth during this time. It was an era of prosperity and growth as well as the creation of beautiful art and literature. Who wouldn’t want to experience everything the Renaissance had to offer? It was during this time that some of my favorite fabrics of silk were introduced: lampas, brocades, and velvets. The silk industry experienced an expansion during the 15th century, which was much later than wool, but still a prominent part of this time period.

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A Morning Walk in Florence

Texts and Photo Essay By Logan Hillen

One wouldn’t think to get up before the sunrises, but it is an experience that no tour guide can show you in the middle of the day. At 5am the streets are bare and free of any crowds, street vendors, or locals. All there are is you, and the street cleaners. This leaves a person free to enjoy every inch of the sights around them, uninterrupted and worry free. To see the Duomo, usually flocked by hundreds of people, completely empty is an overwhelming image and going at 5am gives you the opportunity to walk around it and take in the sight from bottom to top in its entirety. You can admire it in complete and utter peace.

Then after you have finally taken in the beautiful sight, you can head to a pedestrian-free Ponte Vecchio. Here, around 6am now, you have an entire bridge to yourself to scan the horizon uninterrupted from both sides of the bridge. If you face East, you can see the sky painted with a rising sun and the beautiful colors that follow. Getting up and taking a walk around the city before it wakes up is one of the best ways to explore Florence.

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Life in Florence: Festival of Lanterns

Locals gather in Pz. Santissima Annunziata for the Rificolona festivity. Photo by the author.

By Mikey Dombrowiecki

When it comes to studying abroad, sometimes it’s not as easy as it seems. For most of us, we tend to experience one common struggle: culture shock. This blog post describes my way of becoming more connected with the Italian culture through a local Florentine event.

It has now been about two weeks since I have arrived to Florence, Italy to complete my semester abroad. When coming abroad, I knew the lifestyle and culture here would be different than what I am used to in my charming little beach town in Ocean Grove, New Jersey. Little did I know this adjustment would be bigger than I could have ever imagined – one can infer that I was experiencing severe “culture shock.” So, I figured I would take matters into my own hands to find a way to break away from my homegrown routine begin to act like a Florence native. While browsing around for things to do, an FUA professor introduced me to the idea of attending the “The Lantern Festival,” called “Rificolona.” Unsure of what exactly it was, I figured I should have an open mind and attend as it was located only a few blocks away from my apartment.

Modern-day Rificolona lanterns. Photo by Carmen Collins.

I ventured off on my own to attend the festival, and found myself piled in with hundreds of locals who were also gathering to participate in the festival. Aimlessly wandering around, I later ran into some of my classmates and together we walked around and explored. We also quickly grabbed some of the lanterns to avoid being just tourists. Halfway through the evening, I spotted my boyfriend Kyle, his roommate, Brenden, and their Italian host dad, Marco. Marco was kind enough to invite the boys to the festival so they authentically experience Italian culture. As the festival went on, I found myself engaging in conversations with Marco. Never missing a beat, he explained to me every ounce of the background and importance behind the festival, including the vivid memories from his childhood and how he came to the festival every year. He now brings his own kids, who are ages eight and ten.

A homemade lantern at the Rificolona festivity. Photo by Carmen Collins.

Simply explained, the Festival of Lights is in honor of the Virgin Mary – the celebration of her life. The event originated in the 17th century, when farmers would make a pilgrimage into the city to pay tribute to the Virgin Mary’s birthday at the basilica of Santissima Annunziata. Centuries later, this still remains the location for a Florentine tradition that gathers the city’s residents for an illuminated evening.

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Breaking Cultural Barriers: Humans of Florence

Texts by By Olivia Hagen
Photo essay by Ashley Sterling

The courage to work up a phrase in another language can be unexpected rewarding, as Olivia Hagen discovers on a sunny day in Piazza Santa Croce. Set to the background of Ashley Sterling’s “Humans of Florence” photo essay, this piece is bound to make you reflect on how we can turn cultural barriers into rich discoveries.

For as long as I can remember, I have struggled with stepping out my comfort zone. Thus, part of the reason why I chose to study abroad was to force myself to try new things, reach new limits, explore the world and meet new people. Although it was not easy, once I broke the barriers that were holding me back, I found myself and an endearing friend.

Dipou has been in Florence for 2 years. He has been working at a leather shop by Hotel Botticelli for about a year and has said that his favorite thing about working in Florence is talking to the people and children in town.

As I walked home from my Travel Writing course, sweaty from the scorching Tuscan sun, I decided to visit my favorite gelateria and grab myself a refreshing cup of pistachio. Clenching the cold sweet in my hand, I stumbled through the Florentine streets feeling disoriented, watching flashes of people rush by me. Walking through the streets, I began to miss the sense of “belongingness” I had at home, longing for the embrace and comfort of my friends and family.

Feeling homesick and lonely, I walked over to the Santa Croce Basilica. Just then, a young girl sat next to me and began writing in a tattered leather journal; she had dark black hair. I watched her as she observed her surroundings, scribbled in her notebook, smiled to herself and repeated. I wanted to talk to her and introduce myself, but I was too nervous. Then, I was reminded that before I came to Florence I was going to step out of my comfort zone…and I did.

Cecile has been living in Florence for 15yrs. Her favorite place in Florence is the Santa Spirito Area, and the Arcetri observatory. She has been working at Hotel Botticelli for 13 years. Her favorite part of the job is being able to speak different languages and to meet people with diverse mindsets and cultures.

“Ciao! … Come va?” I attempted to communicate in Italian. She looked at me with large eyes and a half smile. Oh no, I thought, thinking I still had gelato on my face or that she simply thought I was crazy. There was a long pause and then she burst into laughter. “I’m sorry!” I responded, “I don’t speak Italian very well.” “It’s fine,” she giggled. “I’m Sara, nice to meet you!”

Once I broke the ice with my useless Italian, Sara and I began conversing. I learned that she was 27, lives in Florence and is studying to be a school teacher like myself. When questioned about her journal, Sara informed me that even though she has lived in Florence all of her life, there is always something that inspires her to write, which makes her fall in love with Florence all over again. Minutes soon turned into hours as Sara and I talked, unable to catch our breaths, sharing our love for travel writing, early childhood education, and the same pistachio gelato flavor. I was shocked to discover how similar Sara and I were, despite the fact we live on two opposite sides of the world.

Ashely has always the dream of studying abroad and came to FUA for 6 weeks. She really enjoys seeing Florentine architecture and the vibrancy of the city.

Meeting Sara and breaking the barriers has been one of the best decisions I have made during my journey abroad. Not only have I developed a precious friendship, but I gained a stronger appreciation of the world and the people in it. Although Sara and I live very different cultures, the unique connection that we shared will be carried with me when I leave the place I am now confident in calling my second home.

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Boboli Gardens Photo Essay

By Stanley Chen
Photos by the author

This mini photo essay explores the great and small details of one of Florence’s most magical green spaces, starting from the above panoramic shot that fully captures how the garden and the city are entwined. Created for a Street Photography course by FUA study abroad alum Stanley Chen, these gorgeous shots show a resplendent and luminous Boboli Gardens.

The Boboli gardens, a site that formerly housed the famous Medici family of the Italian Renaissance era, is a large open-air museum that contains many forms of green architecture and represents what many would consider an ideal Italian Renaissance garden.

Though Neptune’s fountain, also pictured above, is one of the principal fountains, the garden is abundant with sculptural surprises such as this grotesque male harpy on top of sea creatures in the Isolotto section:

Another site of interest is the Giardino del Cavaliere, which sits atop of a wall built by Michaelangelo. A lovely hedge maze arranges flowers and shrubbery in sprawling yet geometrically harmonious deigns:

The hedges leads to the entrance of the main building, the Casino del Cavaliere built in 1700 and where the last Grand Duke Gian Gastone de’Medici kept rooms. The building today hosts the Porcelain Museum of the Pitti Palace museum complex, a showcase of porcelain works from many of the former ruling families of Tuscany:

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A Main Monument Secret: Duomo

By Shelby Olson

Throughout my time in Florence, I was not only able to discover the nooks and crannies of the city but make new and at times peculiar discoveries about the large, main monuments everybody knows and loves. I entered what I would call the “tourist phase” and saw anything and everything there was to see but reminiscing on my stay in Florence, I really didn’t know a lot about the places I was visiting. For example, did you know a ball-shaped decoration fell off the Duomo and there is now a marble slab to commemorate it? Me neither.

In January of 1601, Florence experienced a thunderstorm and lightning struck the golden sphere on top of the Dome’s lantern, causing it to detach and land right next to the church. To this day, there is a circular marble slab to signify where the ball landed when it fell off. The sphere, commissioned to Verrocchio in 1468, was made of bronze and weighed almost 2000 kilos (approx. 4409 lbs). Andrea del Verrocchio, it should be mentioned, ended up inheriting the Duomo’s architectural project after Brunelleschi’s death in 1446. The weight itself can show the large impact this ball had upon touchdown. Prior to falling off in 1601 and definitely restored in 1602, the ball had proved be unruly on other occasions – electricity-related problems due to thunderstorms had already been documented at least twice in the 1500s.

Turns out I was not the only one who didn’t know about this “fallen ball.” I decided to visit the Duomo to see the marble slab itself and watch if anybody else would notice it. During my hour of sitting there, not a single person stopped to look at it or take a picture. Rather, I was getting weird looks for taking a picture of this random circle on the ground. This taught me that when you are visiting an important monument, there is so much more to see than its beauty and you should learn everything you can beforehand.

Next time you are visiting the Duomo or simply walking past it, make sure to venture to the back side of the Duomo to check out this marble slab. It may just be a circle on the ground but it holds much significance and you may be one of the few that knows about it. If you learned one thing from this, remember to research the places you are visiting beforehand because you may learn something the tour guide doesn’t tell you.

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People of Florence

By Chantal Boynes
All photos by the author

Recent Street Photography student Chantal Boynes captures the people of Florence through this gorgeous photo essay on the diverse individuals that make up our city.

There are hundreds of stories that I could have written for this article about the different people walking the streets of this beautiful old city everyday. Each person is at a different point in their lives, coming from different countries, backgrounds and languages. Each individual has their own story to tell and this photo series captures just 1 second of the 2,228,800,000 seconds in the average person’s life. With this we can catch a brief glimpse into the lives of some of the People of Florence.

Warrior Monks in Medieval Tuscany

By Jessica Rowe

The abbeys of San Galgano and Sant’Antimo have rich histories that are worth experiencing firsthand. Located outside of Siena, these off-the-beaten-path sites will make you feel like you’ve stepped into a different time.

This summer, students and faculty took a trip to the abbeys of San Galgano and Sant’Antimo on one of FUA’s Educational Field Trips (EFT). The EFT excursions are always well-organized, planned on a student budget, and full of educational information it might be hard to find out on your own. San Galgano and Sant’Antimo were chosen as an EFT location because they are full of historical and cultural significance. Instead of being normal tourist sites students may visit on their own, they are out of the way places that still hold on to a feeling of spirituality. Students are brought to the abbeys to gain a deeper understanding of spirituality and how it can be either connected or disconnected from structured religion.

We met at the Santa Maria Novella train station at 7 a.m. to depart for San Galgano. The trip quickly became unique as instead of heading to a busy city, we were headed out into the countryside. Large fields rolled past, some green and some gold, bringing us further away from the built environment of Florence. When we got to the first stop, our tour started at the Rotunda of Saint Galgano. It holds the tomb of Saint Galgano and the famous sword in the stone. Now, you’re probably thinking, as I was, that King Arthur wasn’t from Italy. But it’s a different sword in the stone with a lesser known tale behind it. As the legend goes, Saint Galgano heard voices calling him to the place where the rotunda now sits and there he saw a vision. He wished to renounce his knighthood so he drove his sword into the stone. For years, people tried to steal the sword but it was said to be guarded by a wolf. Inside the rotunda, the bones of a man who was eaten by the wolf are displayed.

Further out sits the Abbey of San Galgano. It was started in 1218 when the hermitage became too small to contain all the monks and pilgrims. The abbey is built in classic Gothic style and has no roof. It did, at one point, have a roof but the abbey was very poor and resorted to selling the roof piece by piece for money to keep it running. Nowadays, the abbey is funded through ticket sales and event bookings.

We stopped for lunch at Tenuta di Paganico, a local winery, before going on to Sant’Antimo. This abbey was under construction from 1393 until 1526, however it was in 781 that the idea for the abbey was formed. As the story goes, Charlemagne was returning from Rome when most of his court and army caught the plague. The Emperor had a dream where an angel told him to harvest a specific grass, dry it, mix it with some wine, and have his soldiers drink it. When he did so, everyone was cured. He vowed then to build an abbey.

Currently, the abbey houses a group of monks from the Benedictine monastic community of Santa Maria di Monte Oliveto Maggiore. These monks are referred to as Olivetan monks and their order was founded in 1318 by the Sienese Saint Bernardo Tolomei. They go about their days by focusing on prayer, reading and studying, and work. They are known by the white colour of their robes which symbolizes their devotion to the Virgin Mary.

Shelby, a student who attended the trip as an academic field learning activity for her Italian language class, arrived at Sant’Antimo with her group as a service was in progress. After it ended, the class saw all the nuns continue their prayers in the many different spiritual locations inside the abbey. She enjoyed the chance to get a look at what the abbey is currently used for and what it meant to the people who lived there.

After a long day, the trip came to a close and we headed back to Florence. Overall, I had a good time on the trip. I learned a lot about the two abbeys and saw some incredible architecture. I would recommend visiting these two abbeys and the EFT excursions to anyone looking for a fun day trip from Florence.

For more information on EFT trips:

EFT – FUA’s Educational Field Trip Logistics Team
Corso Tintori, 21, Firenze
Phone: 055/244664
E-mail: sld-eft@fua.it

studentlifeflorence.it/educational-field-trips-mission.html

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