Sometimes something special sneaks up on you. And other times it stops you in your tracks. When I was in Florence I knew that I would have to see the David statue by Michaelangelo. I mean, it’s the DAVID. I was staying in an AirBNB right next to the Florence Duomo in the Piazza del Duomo and the Accademia Gallery where the David is located less than a 5 minute walk from my apartment. The Accademia Gallery is really unassuming - it’s tucked into a building on a dark street. So when you walk in and you see the paintings, sculpture and you round the corner and right smack in the middle of the long hall stands the David, it’s breathtaking. (Insert “Take My Breath Away” by Berlin)

Michaelangelo’s David - Addademia Gallery, Florence

As you approach the area of the gallery where the David stands, you walk through the Gallery of Prisoners - these are incomplete marble sculptures that Michaelangelo started but never finished and they’ve been interpreted as forms that are imprisoned in the marble. It really shows the process of sculpting and leaves you wondering what these statues could have been if they were completed.

Unfinished marble sculpture, Gallery of Prisoners, Michaelangelo

Looking forward in the gallery you see the David. Beautiful. The craftsmanship is something to behold and I don’t think that pictures or videos can ever do it justice. The statue is much bigger than I thought it would be and the detail is outstanding.It’s amazing the way that Michaelangelo was able to capture movement and the illusion of layering with stone. I must say, standing there brought tears to my eyes. I don’t know how long I stood there for, but it seemed like forever and also not long enough.