Ponte Vecchio

During the daytime this is a heaving mass of tourists, some trying to cross the river, others browsing in the shop windows which line the sides of the bridge, displaying jewellery and other over-priced touristy stuff. It never ceases to amaze me that, given the cultural overload of this astoundingly beautiful city, that some people actually visit...to go shopping! By night it is a whole lot quieter! The current bridge was built in 1345 and played some kind of defensive role. In1565, when the Medici relocated to the Pitti Palace, they had a corridor built on top of the goldsmiths' shops to enable them to move between their two palaces without having to mingle with the riff-raff; an early form of social distancing!

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