Happy Friday travelers!
One of the most important things about going on an educational student tour with EA Tours is the wealth of information you’ll learn from our knowledgeable city guides. With each city you visit, they’ll be there to provide a brief overview of the city’s history and the major factors and/or events that shaped these cities.
For those who’ve been following the blog lately, you already know that this past March I accompanied a student tour to Italy. While there, we visited the charming city of Florence. One of the highlights on any educational tour to Florence is a visit to Santa Croce.
After having a looking in the crypt and church, I ventured out into the courtyard and into the smaller rooms which are like their own mini museums. One of these rooms was dedicated to the Great Flood of 1966 that struck this pleasant Italian city with enormous force. The flood of the Arno River killed numerous people and damaged a large number of masterpieces of art and rare books. It’s widely considered the worst flood in the city’s history since 1557.
That is why for today’s photo, I wanted to show you how high the flood line reached. It was pretty surreal to stand in front of the pole and visualize where the water topped.
The flood had lasting impacts of Florence both economically and culturally. However, through the combined efforts of not only the Florentines but other Italian citizens and foreign donors, known as “Mud Angles,” the church and city worked together to cleanup and restore the works of art.
I hope that if you have the chance to go on an educational student tour to Florence that you’ll visit Santa Croce and see for yourself the place where the Great Flood of 1966 hit the hardest. It’s certainly worth a look.
Have a great weekend,
Kate.