Florence's enthralling churches

Whether you are Catholic or not, the churches in Italy inspire awe.
This one - the Basilica of the San Miniato al Monte - is atop a hill
above the Pizzale Michelangelo, home to monks and a stunning cemetary
with marble crosses, angels, anguished humans, winding vines.

Inside the church is a soaring ceiling with wooden beams painted with
colorful figures, elaborate paintings and a mosaic tile floor hundreds
of years old and astonishingly intricate. There is no admission cost,
but the greeter offered us a helpful pamphlet in English and showed us
the donation box, a happy trade.

The church was filled with solemn organ music, and over the hills
below, bells rang out at noon. It left me with a sense of calm that
the frenzied piazzas below lacked.