ART ATTACK: THE UFFIZI

When it comes to art museums, there are many great ones in the world but a few that rise to the top of the pantheon because of the sheer number of legendary works that can be found under their collective roofs. I'm talking about places like the Louvre, MOMA and Florence's own Uffizi.

Probably the most famous painting in the Uffizi is "The Birth of Venus" by Botticelli. How many times have you seen this one in an art history book or a parody of it somewhere? For me, that number is in the high thousands, so to finally stand face to face with this masterpiece was a particular thrill.

Photos are not allowed in the Uffizi (which is a real drag for someone trying to write a travel blog), but I managed to sneak a few and only got yelled at a few times.

We also saw another Botticelli classic: "Primavera" (or "Spring")...


"Venus of Urbino" by Titian...

"The Annunciation" by Leonardo da Vinci...

And Caravaggio's "Bacchus."


Works by Michelangelo, Raphael, Fiorentino and countless others were also on display, but I was just not quick enough with my trigger finger to snap shots of those.

One note if you are planning a visit to the Uffizi: make sure you book your tickets online in advance! This will allow you to jump way ahead of the queue of people that gather early in the morning to get in and save you hours of wasted time standing in line.