Bargello

I still need to make a post about Venice and Ivrea, which were absolutely awesome. But since I've been up to my neck in school related activities all week, I haven't had any time to do it. And now I'm off to Barcelona, so it will have to wait even longer. But it will come.

Anyways, this morning we went to the Bargello for my Florence of the Medici class, and it's been one of my favorite tours so far. I saw two of my favorite pieces, Michelangelo's Baccus (a classical depiction of Matt Miller after a night of drinking for free at Joshua Tree) and the one pictured above, Pollaiolo's Ercole e Anteo. It's really only about a foot tall, but the story behind it and the action captured in the statue really stood out to me. When battling Anteus, Hercules must keep him off the ground, for when he touches the ground, Anteus grows in strength tenfold. So Hercules lifts him up and basically squeezes him to death. Pollaiolo did such a great job of depicting the struggle, the agony, and the sheer strength here. It's definitely one of my favorites.

Tomorrow it's time for Barcelona. I can't wait. It's just me, John, and Conor. We're going to need a lot of energy for the nightlife there, and I'm pretty weary from three straight weeks of intense traveling and school, but this will be my last push. Then I have a couple weeks to recoup. I always like to finish strong, so this weekend shouldn't be a problem.