The Zaitz Take A Mediterranean Cruise

Did you know? - Giotto’s Campanile is a free-standing campanile that is part of the complex of buildings that make up Florence Cathedral on the Piazza del Duomo in Florence, Italy. Standing adjacent the Basilica of Santa Maria del Fiore and the Baptistry of St. John, the tower is one of the showpieces of the Florentine Gothic architecture with its design by Giotto, its rich sculptural decorations and the polychrome marble encrustations.

This slender structure stands on a square plan with a side of 14.45 meters (47.41 ft). It attains a height of 84.7 meters (277.9 ft) sustained by four polygonal buttresses at the corners. These four vertical lines are crossed by four horizontal lines, dividing the tower in five levels.

In Giotto's campanile there are seven bells:

• Campanone("biggest bell"): 1705, diameter 2 m, height 2.10 m, c. 5300 kg, note A2, cast by A. Bruscoli e C. Cenni
• La Misericordia ("mercy bell"): 1670, diameter 1.52 m, 1817 Kg, note C3, cast by G.Santoni
• Apostolica: 1957, diameter 1.25 m, 1200 kg, Note D3, cast by P. Barigozzi
• Annunziata: 1956, diameter 1.15 m, 856.5 kg, Note E3, cast by P. Barigozzi
• Mater Dei ("God's Mother bell"), 1956, diameter 95 cm, 481.3 Kg, note G3, cast by P. Barigozzi
• L'Assunta, 1956, diameter 85 cm, 339.6 Kg, Note A3, cast by P. Barigozzi
• L'Immacolata, 1956, diameter 75 cm, 237.8 Kg, Note B3, cast by P. Barigozzi

Did you know? - The three huge bronze doors date from 1899 to 1903. They are adorned with scenes from the life of the Madonna. The mosaics in the lunettes above the doors were designed by Niccolò Barabino.

They represent (from left to right): Charity among the founders of Florentine philanthropic institutions, Christ enthroned with Mary and John the Baptist, and Florentine artisans, merchants and humanists. The pediment above the central portal contains a half-relief by Tito Sarrocchi of Mary enthroned holding a flowered scepter.

Did you know? - The octagonal Baptistery stands in both the Piazza del Duomo and the Piazza di San Giovanni, across from the Duomo cathedral and the Giotto bell tower (Campanile di Giotto). It is one of the oldest buildings in the city, built between 1059 and 1128. The architecture is in Florentine Romanesque style.

The Baptistery is renowned for its three sets of artistically important bronze doors with relief sculptures. The south doors were done by Andrea Pisano and the north and east doors by Lorenzo Ghiberti. The east pair of doors was dubbed by Michelangelo "the Gates of Paradise".

Did you know? - Florence Cathedral is built as a basilica, having a wide central nave of four square bays, with an aisle on either side. The chancel and transepts are of identical polygonal plan, separated by two smaller polygonal chapels. The whole plan forms a Latin cross. The nave and aisles are separated by wide pointed Gothic arches resting on composite piers.

The dimensions of the building are enormous: length 153 metres (502 ft), width 38 metres (124 ft), width at the crossing 90 metres (295 ft). The height of the arches in the aisles is 23 metres (75 ft). The height from pavement to the opening of the lantern in the dome is also 90 metres (295 ft)

Did you know? - Piazza della Repubblica: It is a square in the centre of Florence, location of the cultural cafes and bourgeois palaces. Among the square's cafes, the Giubbe Rosse cafe has long been a meeting place for famous artists and writers, notably those of Futurism.

Did you know? - Piazza della Repubblica marks the site of the forum, the centre of the Roman city. The exact present site of the Colonna dell'Abbondanza marks the intersection of the axes of the cardo (now via Roma, via degli Speziali and via degli Strozzi) and decumanus (now via il Corso).

Foundations of a thermae complex on the south side and a religious building were found in the 19th-century demolition of the warren of medieval streets that had encroached upon the site. Via del Campidoglio and Via delle Terme, for example, were named after the archaeological remains beneath them.

Did you know? - Caffè Giubbe Rosse is a café in Piazza della Repubblica (13-14r), Florence. The giubbe rosse of its name are the "Red Shirts" of Garibaldi's forces during the Risorgimento, a badge of honour for liberal Italians, reflected in the silent allusion of the waiters' red jackets.

The café has a long-standing reputation as the resort of literati and intellectuals. Alberto Viviani defined the Giubbe Rosse as "fucina di sogni e di passioni" ("a forge of dreams and passions").

The Giubbe Rosse was the place where the Futurist movement blossomed, struggled and expanded; it played a very important role in the history of Italian culture as a workshop of ideas, projects, and passions. "We want to celebrate love of danger, of constant energy, and courage. We want to encourage going in aggressive new directions, feverish sleeplessness, running, deathly leaps, slaps and blows"

Did you know? - Today piazza della Repubblica is alive with historical literary-cafès where scholar, artists (like the members of futurism) and men of culture meet each other: Caffè Gilli, Paszkowski, Caffè Giubbe Rosse, and Caffè Gambrinus.

Did you know? - Piazza della Signoria: It is the focal point of the origin and of the history of the Florentine Republic and still maintains its reputation as the political hub of the city. The impressive 14th century Palazzo Vecchio is still preeminent with its crenellated tower. The square is also shared with the Loggia della Signoria, the Uffizi Gallery, the Palace of the Tribunale della Mercanzia (now the Bureau of Agriculture), and the Uguccioni Palace (16th century, with a facade by Raphael). Located in front of the Palazzo Vecchio is the Palace of the Assicurazioni Generali.

Did you know? - Originally called the Palazzo della Signoria, after the Signoria of Florence, the ruling body of the Republic of Florence, it was also given several other names: Palazzo del Popolo, Palazzo dei Priori, and Palazzo Ducale, in accordance with the varying use of the palace during its long history. The building acquired its current name when the Medici duke's residence was moved across the Arno to the Palazzo Pitti.

Did you know? - Above the front entrance door, there is a notable ornamental marble frontispiece, dating from 1528. In the middle, flanked by two gilded lions, is the Monogram of Christ, surrounded by a glory, above the text (in Latin): "Rex Regum et Dominus Dominantium" (translation: "Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords".

This text dates from 1851 and does not replace an earlier text by Savonarola as mentioned in guidebooks. Between 1529 and 1851 they were concealed behind a large shield with the grand-ducal coat of arms.

Did you know? - Michelangelo's David also stood at the entrance from its completion in 1504 to 1873, when it was moved to the Accademia Gallery. A replica erected in 1910 now stands in its place, flanked by Baccio Bandinelli's Hercules and Cacus.

Did you know? - The Fountain of Neptune is a fountain in Florence, Italy, situated on the Piazza della Signoria (Signoria square), in front of the Palazzo Vecchio.

This work by Bartolomeo Ammannati (1563–1565) and some assistants, such as Giambologna, was commissioned on the occasion of the wedding of Francesco I de' Medici with grand duchess Johanna of Austria in 1565. The assignment had first been given to Baccio Bandinelli, who designed the model but he died before he could start working on the block of Apuan marble.

The Neptune figure, whose face resembles that of Cosimo I de' Medici, was meant to be an allusion to the dominion of the Florentines over the sea. The figure stands on a high pedestal in the middle of an octagonal fountain. The pedestal in the middle is decorated with the mythical chained figures of Scylla and Charybdis. The statue of Neptune is a copy made in the nineteenth century, while the original is in the National Museum.

Did you know? - The task of the Florentine Civic Museums is to conserve and enhance the city’s art heritage, making it available for public enjoyment in the broadest and most democratic manner possible. They represent a public service, with cultural and social functions, and a right of the citizens.

The Florentine Civic Museums are made up of a wealth and exceptional variety of collections mostly housed in ancient buildings: the Museum of Palazzo Vecchio, the Museum of Santa Maria Novella, the Firenze Com’era museum in the convent of the Oblates, the Fondazione Salvatore Romano in the refectory of Santo Spirito, and the Museo Stefano Bardini that reopened in the Oltrarno district in April 2009 after 10 years’ work of renovation and rearrangement.

Did you know? - The Ponte Vecchio ("Old Bridge") is a Medieval bridge over the Arno River, in Florence, Italy, noted for still having shops built along it, as was once common. Butchers initially occupied the shops; the present tenants are jewellers, art dealers and souvenir sellers. It has been described as Europe's oldest wholly-stone, closed-spandrel segmental arch bridge

The bridge spans the Arno at its narrowest point where it is believed that a bridge was first built in Roman times, when the via Cassia crossed the river at this point. The Roman piers were of stone, the superstructure of wood. The bridge first appears in a document of 996.

After being destroyed by a flood in 1117 it was reconstructed in stone but swept away again in 1333 save two of its central piers, as noted by Giovanni Villani in his Nuova Cronica. It was rebuilt in 1345, Giorgio Vasari recorded the tradition in his day, that attributed its design to Taddeo Gaddi, besides Giotto one of the few artistic names of the trecento still recalled two hundred years later. Modern historians present Neri di Fioravanti as a possible candidate.

Sheltered in a little loggia at the central opening of the bridge is a weathered dedication stone, which once read Nel trentatrè dopo il mille-trecento, il ponte cadde, per diluvio dell' acque: poi dieci anni, come al Comun piacque, rifatto fu con questo adornamento. The Torre dei Mannelli was built at the southeast corner of the bridge to defend it.

The bridge consists of three segmental arches: the main arch has a span of 30 meters (98 ft) the two side arches each span 27 meters (88 ft). The rise of the arches is between 3.5 and 4.4 meters (11½ to 14½ feet), and the span-to-rise ratio 5:1.

Did you know? - The Ponte Santa Trìnita (Italian for Holy Trinity Bridge, named for the ancient church in the nearest stretch of via de' Tornabuoni) is a Renaissance bridge in Florence, Italy, spanning the Arno.

The Ponte Santa Trìnita is the oldest elliptic arch bridge in the world, the three flattened ellipses giving the structure its celebrated elegant appearance. The outside spans each measure 29 m (95 ft) with the centre span being 32 m (105 ft) in length.[1] The two neighbouring bridges are the Ponte Vecchio, to the east, and the Ponte alla Carraia to the west.

The bridge was constructed by the Florentine architect Bartolomeo Ammanati from 1567 to 1569. Its site, downstream of the equally remarkable Ponte Vecchio, is a major link in the mediæval street plan of Florence, which has been bridged at this site since the thirteenth century.

The wooden bridge of 1252 was swept away in a flood seven years later and was rebuilt in stone and destroyed in a flood in 1333. The bridge of five arches constructed by Taddeo Gaddi was destroyed in the flood of 1557, which occasioned Ammanati's replacement.

Four ornamental statues of the Seasons were added to the bridge in 1608, as part of the wedding celebrations of Cosimo II de' Medici with Maria Magdalena of Austria: Spring by Pietro Francavilla, Summer and Autumn by Giovanni Caccini, and Winter by Taddeo Landini.

Did you know? - The original Ponte alle Grazie was constructed in 1227. It was rebuilt in 1345 with nine arches, making it the oldest and longest bridge in Florence. Two of the arches were filled in during 1347 in order to widen piazza dei Mozzi.

Structures were built on the bridge, much as can be seen on the modern Ponte Vecchio but these were eventually abandoned and were removed in 1876 to make way for railway track.

In August 1944, the bridge was destroyed by the Nazi army as they withdrew before the advancing Allied forces in World War II. Following the end of the War, a competition was held to create a new design for a replacement bridge.

The winning design, the work of a group formed of architects including Giovanni Michelucci, Edoardo Said, Riccardo Gizdolich and Danilo Know and an engineer, Piero Melucci, feature four slender piers with thin arches between them. The new bridge was completed in 1953.

While the new design is harmonious with the surrounding city, its modern design and construction materials do not reflect its predecessor.