Discover a Masterpiece Named Florence
Rich in history and eye-popping beauty, explore Italy’s Renaissance city
By Pauline Frommer
Special to MSNBC.com
Updated: 7:45 a.m. MT July 30, 2007
“The greatest concentration of universally renowned works of art in the world is found [in Florence]”, noted the United Nations World Heritage commission in 1982, when it inducted the city’s historic center. They might have added that the greatest tourist logjams in the world are also, arguably, in Florence; if Goliath had encountered Michaelangelo’s “David” in 2007, he would have had to wade through a crowd as densely packed as that in a Tokyo subway car to get to him. So while there are few travel destinations as rich in history and eye-popping beauty, Florence can no longer be fully appreciated year round. Instead, take the following daylong itinerary between late October and early April, when this Renaissance epicenter weaves her charms peacefully.
