Uffizi Self Portrait Collection | Florence Rose Garden | Pisa: Tower + Botanical Garden/Museum

Uffizi Self Portraits​

  Getting back to the Uffizi for a second time, I got to see their amazing collection of self portraits that goes back 600 years.  I had wanted to see a John Singer Sargent self portrait, but it wasn't on display or is perhaps at another museum; I think I've seen it previously at the MET, but I could be wrong about that.
  Anyway, I got to see some other great ones, including Raphael, Bernini (painted not sculpted!), Velázquez, Alma-Tadema and Frederic Leighton.   Alma-Tadema and Leighton both had amazing self portraits and I'm including photos here.

Lawrence Alma-Tadema (1836–1912). Self portrait dated 1896.

Frederic Leighton (1830–1896), Self portrait dated 1880.

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Florence Rose Garden

  Another great stop not too far away from where I'm living is the Giardino delle Rose.  Most of the roses are past their prime now in August, but it was still a peaceful place to sketch and walk around.  There are some interesting Japanese elements to the garden which were really nice too.

Great view of Florence from here!

Interesting sculpture.

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Tower of Pisa

  Pisa is about an hour from Florence, but watch out because the train system here is pretty hectic.  Most of my trains have been delayed or cancelled.  Regardless, we made it to Pisa!  The tower is such an iconic monument and a place that I really wanted to see in person.  I'd say the lean is more prominent in person and impossible to capture in a photo.  You can climb the tower, but we didn't attempt it because of the heat.

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Pisa Botanic Garden

  One of my favorites places in Italy so far was the Pisa Botanic Garden and Museum.  It's a part of the University of Pisa and dates back to 1543.  As a garden enthusiast, I really enjoyed this place and all of the interesting plants and trees.  It's a place for students and people to study so all of the plants are labeled and divided into areas.  Some of the plants and flowers were like something from an alien planet.  There's also a museum where they have a great collection of specimens and historical information.
  I would definitely recommend this place to anyone who's going to Pisa.  Entry was €4 and it's a short walk from the Tower!

I loved this cactus area.

Pretty cactus flower.

Very interesting lacey flower.

Huge lily-pad sort of plant.

The color of these were great.

Monet would like these!

Magnolia tree from 1787!

Monet would also like this bamboo.

Collection of models made from plaster and wax.

Painted plaster model of a mushroom.

A specimen collection with some oddities.