Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore: Il Duomo di Firenze

 When I first arrived in Florence for the semester, I knew that there was one landmark that I wanted to see and; furthermore, experience via attending a mass in. I have had a chance to attend numerous masses in the chapel of Santa Maria del Fiore; better known as "il Duomo." il Duomo has been one of the most impressive landmarks I have seen while in Florence.  I have also had the privilege of attended two masses inside of the Cathedral. One thing that impressed me while inside the cathedral was the artwork which was present on the inside of the actual dome, the meticulous detail of the artwork reminded be similarly to the artwork present on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome.

One thing that I found extremely impressive was the acoustics inside the cathedral; in addition, to the fact that during the masses, the celebrant did not use a microphone. During the masses, both the voice of the celebrant as well as the somewhat "hypnotic" sound of the organ music resonating throughout the entire cathedral the sudden feeling of chills ran down my spine. For me, attending masses in the cathedral is a very tranquil and calming experience.

During my visit to the Baptistery, I was in awe as to how it was more intricately and heavily decorated when compared to the actual Cathedral itself. For example, on the ceiling, an impressive gold décor can be seen; in addition to the actual interior of the Baptistery which contributes to the overall cathedral's sense of divinity. Another thing that I found fascinating was that as people were baptized inside the cathedral, each person was systematically entered through the baptistery's façade; thus, they were baptized. After the baptism, each person was “granted access,” into the actual Cathedral itself.