... but maybe some Stendhal Sniffles. A week in Florence can induce them, and we haven't even seen everything yet. Today it was the Accademia and the David. No photo can ever do it justice; only by walking around it can you truly contemplate the mystery of Michalengelo's genius.
And this only a day after visiting the Uffizi Gallery to see all it had to offer. Parts of it can disappoint - thanks to a Mafia bombing several years ago and various crazies who have tried to slay personal demons by damaging masterpieces (including the guy who took a hammer to the David's toes), there are too many great works protected by thick glass barriers that are so poorly lit they reflect more than they reveal - but the sheer wonder of the place can still overwhelm you. The room holding Botticelli's "Birth of Venus" and his "Primavera" alone is enough, and then you discover the rooms with the Raphaels and the Da Vincis and the Filipino Lippis and the Giottos and the Rembrandts and you realize you've barely touched the surface of what's there.
