Well, we're almost there... one week from today I'm leaving Florence! I'll be happy to be home, but I'll definitely miss it here. The downside to this is that I've been very busy, so I haven't had time to write about what's happened online. I have notes in my notebook though, so I'll type them up at some point! For now, I'll just write a brief review and elaborate later when I have more time.
Paris was amazing... Hannah and I went to the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs Elysees (shopping street), the Christmas Market, and Notre Dame on our first full day there. Our next day we went to the Louvre (which of course took a while), Sacre Coeur basilica, and a bit of in-town shopping. The last day brought us to the Musee d'Orsay and the Oscar Wilde exhibition inside before we left. All said, it was an awesome trip, and I have many more stories that I will (hopefully) post soon, as long as I get time. Otherwise, feel free to just ask me about them.
The past week has been fairly busy as well. We don't have Italian Language class (that ended a week ago yesterday), but we had a final exam for our culture class and are working on a project for our World Literature class. In the latter we went to the Medici Chapel and to the Musee dell'Accademia on Tuesday and to the Bardini Gardens to read Boccaccio yesterday (in honor of our last class and a national holiday today). Everything's winding down! However, that means I should be out doing things, so I'm off!
08 December 2011
25 November 2011
All Roads Lead to Rome
Thanksgiving week; despite a slow start with two of the last Italian classes I'll have here and two cancelled classes, I've had a good week so far. As I mentioned in my last post (very recently added, so check it if you haven't), I went to Rome! It still feels great to say it -- I went to a city that everyone hears about with thousands of years of history, that I never would have expected to be able to visit. I'm still in awe.
Despite a lack of Thanksgiving celebration in Italy (it is kind of American by nature), our school gave us Wednesday through Friday off. As such, half our group decided to take a trip to Amsterdam. While I'm sure they are enjoying their time in whatever way they can while there, I decided not to join them. I hope to hear stories from their trip, but I wanted to have some fun on my own. I got back from Venice and planned a stay in Rome for a night. As the others were packing their bags I now had my own luggage to pack!
Wednesday morning called for an early start: in order to make the most of my time in Rome I suffered through a 5AM alarm clock to reach a 6:40 train. the 4-hour trip wasn't too bad; I spent half of it asleep and half of it reading and ended up in the train station before I knew it. Well, that's a lie, but it still wasn't bad.
My hostel was only a few streets from the train station, so I took a map to find my way. A very friendly British gentleman showed me the hostel and, though the hostel was closed for a few hours for cleaning, invited me to drop my bag for the day. I did this happily and went outside to get lost.
I've discovered over the past month or two that getting lost is the best way to visit a city. By doing so, one can discover the roads that get one somewhere or nowhere. one may have to circle a place a few times or backtrack upon reaching the outskirts of the city, but it ultimately makes you open your eyes and learn the city when you travel without a plan or map. It is in this way that I stumbled upon the Trevi Fountain; a famous tourist attraction, it is nonetheless an astounding sight and a relaxing fountain to sit beside. In keeping with legend, I threw money into the fountain over my shoulder, allegedly securing the fate that I will return to Rome again. I hope it comes true.
Wandering through the city without aim is astounding. without meaning to, I found the pantheon, the Vittorio Emanuele II Monument "Il Vittoriano" (colloquially referred to as the "wedding cake" because of its strange appearance), the Column of Marcus Aurelius, Piazza Navona, Chiesa del Gesu, many palaces, and the various buildings that now house museums, offices, and dwellings. Before long I found the main road to the Vatican City. I walked this way until I reached the Tiber. After admiring the bridge for a few minutes I continued on, walking down Mussolini's Via della Conciliazione into the city. Walking into another country has never been easier.
I walked around the obelisk and into line to go to St. Peter's Basilica. The church (as I'm sure you can expect, given my other descriptions) is amazing. Giant statues, brilliant frescoes, an ornate apse, an under-the-floor crypt slightly visible through various decorated grates, and of course the monuments and relics typical of these places greeted me inside. After exploring for a while, I decided to climb the dome. 551 steps brought me to the top, from where I could see (despite the crowds of people there with me) all of the city. It's a gorgeous sight.
Leaving the basilica I continued my aimless wandering. The weather had changed to rain, but I nonetheless continued to get lost with the intention of making the most of my time there. After getting back to Il Vittoriano I followed the Via dei Fori Imperiali to the Ancient Roman Forum ruins (which I saw from the outside, as they had already closed -- but it was still an amazing site) and the Colosseum. I also only saw this building from the outside for the fact that it had already closed, but the same opinion applies here. the ancient construction is breathtaking from beneath, and quite amazing even from a distance.
I continued my walking, going back to the Roman Forum and then up to the Pantheon, this time with the intention of going inside. The building from almost two thousand years ago still stands in excellent condition, displaying the perfectly designed dome with the oculus open to the sky. rain fell into the center of the building, where it escaped through a drain system. The building contains more decoration (as always) and the tombs of Raphael and Vittorio Emanuele II (the man who unified Italy in 1861, if you didn't know). The columns and fountain outside are quite a nice sight as well.
That night was quite fun. After returning to the hostel I shared the evening with the other guests, people who were visiting from Australia, Turkey, Poland, Spain, Portugal, and Brazil -- though I imagine there were more that I didn't meet. We enjoyed a fun night in town and a friendly, relaxed breakfast the next morning before I headed out to explore the piazzas.
My first destination on day two was Piazza del Popolo. Spacious and bright, the piazza contains an obelisk in the center (Romans loved the power suggested by other ancent cultures, Egyptian included) flanked by four small lion fountains and a palace to the North. I did not go this way, though, as my next stop was the Spanish Steps, where I would have been pick-pocketed had I not been watching my bag as a friendly man came up to me and wove me a bracelet, his friend watching from a distance and waiting for me to let my guard down. I avoided trouble, though, and went back down the steps and past the ship-shaped fountain at the bottom to Piazza Barberini and Bernini's Triton Fountain, the Quattro Fontane (which appears as four fountains at the corners of each building at an intersection), and the Piazza della Repubblica. This last piazza was marked by a brilliant fountain, the Fountain of the Naiads, that features a large spout of water coming from Glaucus in the center and four smaller spouts from naiads and horses around him. This is a brilliant fountin and one of my favorite surprise works from this trip.
I finished the trip with a visit to Santa Maria della Vittoria, a beautiful church that's one of the hidden gems of Rome, the front garden at Palazzo Barberini, and the Baths of Diocletian. I then returned to the train station to board my train back to Florence, wrote on the train, and returned to cook dinner.
With four of my friends here in Florence (two who hadn't gone anywhere and two who had just returned from Paris and London), we decided to cook our own Thanksgiving dinner. We made chicken, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, dinner rolls, wine, and a chocolate chip cookie cake. It was a glorious feast and we were all quite full by the end of the evening, leading to a quiet night in. All in all, it's been a wonderful vacation thus far!
Despite a lack of Thanksgiving celebration in Italy (it is kind of American by nature), our school gave us Wednesday through Friday off. As such, half our group decided to take a trip to Amsterdam. While I'm sure they are enjoying their time in whatever way they can while there, I decided not to join them. I hope to hear stories from their trip, but I wanted to have some fun on my own. I got back from Venice and planned a stay in Rome for a night. As the others were packing their bags I now had my own luggage to pack!
Wednesday morning called for an early start: in order to make the most of my time in Rome I suffered through a 5AM alarm clock to reach a 6:40 train. the 4-hour trip wasn't too bad; I spent half of it asleep and half of it reading and ended up in the train station before I knew it. Well, that's a lie, but it still wasn't bad.
My hostel was only a few streets from the train station, so I took a map to find my way. A very friendly British gentleman showed me the hostel and, though the hostel was closed for a few hours for cleaning, invited me to drop my bag for the day. I did this happily and went outside to get lost.
I've discovered over the past month or two that getting lost is the best way to visit a city. By doing so, one can discover the roads that get one somewhere or nowhere. one may have to circle a place a few times or backtrack upon reaching the outskirts of the city, but it ultimately makes you open your eyes and learn the city when you travel without a plan or map. It is in this way that I stumbled upon the Trevi Fountain; a famous tourist attraction, it is nonetheless an astounding sight and a relaxing fountain to sit beside. In keeping with legend, I threw money into the fountain over my shoulder, allegedly securing the fate that I will return to Rome again. I hope it comes true.
Wandering through the city without aim is astounding. without meaning to, I found the pantheon, the Vittorio Emanuele II Monument "Il Vittoriano" (colloquially referred to as the "wedding cake" because of its strange appearance), the Column of Marcus Aurelius, Piazza Navona, Chiesa del Gesu, many palaces, and the various buildings that now house museums, offices, and dwellings. Before long I found the main road to the Vatican City. I walked this way until I reached the Tiber. After admiring the bridge for a few minutes I continued on, walking down Mussolini's Via della Conciliazione into the city. Walking into another country has never been easier.
I walked around the obelisk and into line to go to St. Peter's Basilica. The church (as I'm sure you can expect, given my other descriptions) is amazing. Giant statues, brilliant frescoes, an ornate apse, an under-the-floor crypt slightly visible through various decorated grates, and of course the monuments and relics typical of these places greeted me inside. After exploring for a while, I decided to climb the dome. 551 steps brought me to the top, from where I could see (despite the crowds of people there with me) all of the city. It's a gorgeous sight.
Leaving the basilica I continued my aimless wandering. The weather had changed to rain, but I nonetheless continued to get lost with the intention of making the most of my time there. After getting back to Il Vittoriano I followed the Via dei Fori Imperiali to the Ancient Roman Forum ruins (which I saw from the outside, as they had already closed -- but it was still an amazing site) and the Colosseum. I also only saw this building from the outside for the fact that it had already closed, but the same opinion applies here. the ancient construction is breathtaking from beneath, and quite amazing even from a distance.
I continued my walking, going back to the Roman Forum and then up to the Pantheon, this time with the intention of going inside. The building from almost two thousand years ago still stands in excellent condition, displaying the perfectly designed dome with the oculus open to the sky. rain fell into the center of the building, where it escaped through a drain system. The building contains more decoration (as always) and the tombs of Raphael and Vittorio Emanuele II (the man who unified Italy in 1861, if you didn't know). The columns and fountain outside are quite a nice sight as well.
That night was quite fun. After returning to the hostel I shared the evening with the other guests, people who were visiting from Australia, Turkey, Poland, Spain, Portugal, and Brazil -- though I imagine there were more that I didn't meet. We enjoyed a fun night in town and a friendly, relaxed breakfast the next morning before I headed out to explore the piazzas.
My first destination on day two was Piazza del Popolo. Spacious and bright, the piazza contains an obelisk in the center (Romans loved the power suggested by other ancent cultures, Egyptian included) flanked by four small lion fountains and a palace to the North. I did not go this way, though, as my next stop was the Spanish Steps, where I would have been pick-pocketed had I not been watching my bag as a friendly man came up to me and wove me a bracelet, his friend watching from a distance and waiting for me to let my guard down. I avoided trouble, though, and went back down the steps and past the ship-shaped fountain at the bottom to Piazza Barberini and Bernini's Triton Fountain, the Quattro Fontane (which appears as four fountains at the corners of each building at an intersection), and the Piazza della Repubblica. This last piazza was marked by a brilliant fountain, the Fountain of the Naiads, that features a large spout of water coming from Glaucus in the center and four smaller spouts from naiads and horses around him. This is a brilliant fountin and one of my favorite surprise works from this trip.
I finished the trip with a visit to Santa Maria della Vittoria, a beautiful church that's one of the hidden gems of Rome, the front garden at Palazzo Barberini, and the Baths of Diocletian. I then returned to the train station to board my train back to Florence, wrote on the train, and returned to cook dinner.
With four of my friends here in Florence (two who hadn't gone anywhere and two who had just returned from Paris and London), we decided to cook our own Thanksgiving dinner. We made chicken, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, dinner rolls, wine, and a chocolate chip cookie cake. It was a glorious feast and we were all quite full by the end of the evening, leading to a quiet night in. All in all, it's been a wonderful vacation thus far!
More to Say! So Much More...
So another two weeks have gone by before I took the time to write another update. It's been a busy few weeks, so I'll try to remember everything that's been happening.
The aforementioned Lucca trip was quite fun. We wandered through the town (similar to Florence and such, but much less urban) and saw a few nice churches, then we wandered along the top of the wall! The city's wall, easily five or six times my height, circles the perimeter of Lucca and is wide enough for vehicles to drive across it without disturbing the rows of trees that line the road. It was a gorgeous walk! Following that we wandered back into the city (now from the far side) until we reached the National Comic Museum. It was an entertaining visit with plenty of comics from Italy and even France. Next time I get to Lucca I may rent a bicycle to ride around the wall.
The next day I went to Milan with Florence For Fun, a local tour group for students. We saw the Duomo, gorgeous and ornate and one of the biggest in the world. We spent some free time wandering around the city and then went to La Scala Opera House. It was a gorgeous theatre which we looked in on from the private boxes. After that we went to the opera museum, largely comprised of photos and trinkets from prominent opera singers. From there we headed to the fashion district to see the streets reserved for the best designers, from Gucci to Armani to Dolce & Gabbana and more. It's a very high-profile district, and it was quite nice to wander the streets. We finished with a visit to an older part of the city and the long bus ride back.
Tuesday we went to the gardens at the Stibbert villa in the northern part of town. we wandered through the garden to find a nice table to sit at and... oh yeah, celebrate my birthday! Our professor brought cookies, chocolate, wine, and bread while we discussed Dante's Divine Comedy (which makes for a wonderful afternoon) and then a break to play Calzio (real football -- ahem, soccer) in the park. It was quite a great day, followed by a nice quiet night in with everybody, enjoying my birthday.
Wednesday brought us into the Santa Croce Basilica, the one we walk past daily and of which we frequently sit at the steps to watch people. This old Franciscan church was designed for the common people of Florence, allowing everybody to attend mass despite wealth or poverty. It's a gorgeous church and the burial place of such great people as Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, and Rossini. For the poor of the 16th century, this must have been an amazing opportunity. We finished of that day with some VIP treatment at a nearby dance club in honor of my birthday, so the celebration continued!
Thursday was refreshing, bringing me up to Fiesole for the third time, this time with class. We hiked to the place of Leonardo da Vinci's test flights for his flying machines and discussed Petrarch over a picnic much like Tuesday's. We watched the sunset while listening to love poems by Petrarch and came back to town.
With the weekend ahead of us, we took a trip into Venice. The city is gorgeous! the roadways are narrow and tall as there are no cars in the city. Instead, transportation occurs along the waterways in private boats, taxis, water buses, and of course the traditional gondolas. We spent the first night wandering the city, getting lost while visiting piazzas and artisan workshops and talking to a particularly kind mask maker. We visited the basilica and then went back to our hotel for the night, allowing us to wake early and take a water bus to the basilica to explore the inside and see the brilliant gold-covered ceiling. As always, it was a gorgeous church to visit.
Though I'm still a week behind, I will leave you here. My next update, describing my solo trip to Rome, should prove to be quite long and detailed.
The aforementioned Lucca trip was quite fun. We wandered through the town (similar to Florence and such, but much less urban) and saw a few nice churches, then we wandered along the top of the wall! The city's wall, easily five or six times my height, circles the perimeter of Lucca and is wide enough for vehicles to drive across it without disturbing the rows of trees that line the road. It was a gorgeous walk! Following that we wandered back into the city (now from the far side) until we reached the National Comic Museum. It was an entertaining visit with plenty of comics from Italy and even France. Next time I get to Lucca I may rent a bicycle to ride around the wall.
The next day I went to Milan with Florence For Fun, a local tour group for students. We saw the Duomo, gorgeous and ornate and one of the biggest in the world. We spent some free time wandering around the city and then went to La Scala Opera House. It was a gorgeous theatre which we looked in on from the private boxes. After that we went to the opera museum, largely comprised of photos and trinkets from prominent opera singers. From there we headed to the fashion district to see the streets reserved for the best designers, from Gucci to Armani to Dolce & Gabbana and more. It's a very high-profile district, and it was quite nice to wander the streets. We finished with a visit to an older part of the city and the long bus ride back.
Tuesday we went to the gardens at the Stibbert villa in the northern part of town. we wandered through the garden to find a nice table to sit at and... oh yeah, celebrate my birthday! Our professor brought cookies, chocolate, wine, and bread while we discussed Dante's Divine Comedy (which makes for a wonderful afternoon) and then a break to play Calzio (real football -- ahem, soccer) in the park. It was quite a great day, followed by a nice quiet night in with everybody, enjoying my birthday.
Wednesday brought us into the Santa Croce Basilica, the one we walk past daily and of which we frequently sit at the steps to watch people. This old Franciscan church was designed for the common people of Florence, allowing everybody to attend mass despite wealth or poverty. It's a gorgeous church and the burial place of such great people as Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, and Rossini. For the poor of the 16th century, this must have been an amazing opportunity. We finished of that day with some VIP treatment at a nearby dance club in honor of my birthday, so the celebration continued!
Thursday was refreshing, bringing me up to Fiesole for the third time, this time with class. We hiked to the place of Leonardo da Vinci's test flights for his flying machines and discussed Petrarch over a picnic much like Tuesday's. We watched the sunset while listening to love poems by Petrarch and came back to town.
With the weekend ahead of us, we took a trip into Venice. The city is gorgeous! the roadways are narrow and tall as there are no cars in the city. Instead, transportation occurs along the waterways in private boats, taxis, water buses, and of course the traditional gondolas. We spent the first night wandering the city, getting lost while visiting piazzas and artisan workshops and talking to a particularly kind mask maker. We visited the basilica and then went back to our hotel for the night, allowing us to wake early and take a water bus to the basilica to explore the inside and see the brilliant gold-covered ceiling. As always, it was a gorgeous church to visit.
Though I'm still a week behind, I will leave you here. My next update, describing my solo trip to Rome, should prove to be quite long and detailed.
11 November 2011
Another few weeks
I guess I need another one of these posts sooner or later. Between the tour of Palazzo Vecchio's secret passageways, the trip to Torrigiani garden, Palazzo Davanzati, and a weekend visiting Fiesole and Pisa, it's been a pretty eventful few weeks. I'll try to mention most of it, but feel free to ask me if you're curious about any of the trips and I'll gladly tell you all I can remember!
I'll start with Palazzo Vecchio - the Old Palace. when it was constructed (which happened in parts, a bit at a time) there was a need for potential escape routes. As such, these passageways were built into the walls. On our tour we got to visit them and see the secret rooms contained therein. Up the passageways we found secret rooms - one for Cosimo and one for Francesco - as well as Francesco's studiolo, a place where he studied alchemy and adorned the walls and ceiling with paintings representing the elements, the seasons, the humors, the sexes, and other such patterns and thought. It's a gorgeous room, really. Also, the paintings covered secret compartments in the room, each with some simple riddle explaining what was located within. Anyway, beyond that we went into the ceiling and saw the construction that went into the huge ceiling and that has lasted for almost half a millennium.
Torrigiani Garden was absolutely gorgeous. We got a tour from the Torrigiani son who is in charge of the garden, and he was the best tour guide we've had so far. He was really funny and his English was strained but he was really relaxed at the same time. We walked along the paths to see more elemental symbolism and a tower in the center. The garden itself is private, so entry is only permitted by prearranged tours such as ours, and even they were only recently started. There was also a lot of symbolism about the garden as an enclosed place and as a spiritual center, so feel free to ask me about it sometime. I won't bore you with it right now; there's more to talk about!
Palazzo Davanzati was a fairly typical palace museum visit. The palace is maintained in a condition similar to that in which it was originally designed - we saw the bedrooms, sitting rooms, kitchen (on the top floor), and any other rooms one would expect. It was a fairly strict staff - we were not allowed to take photographs, so I do not have any visuals for this one. We also got in trouble once or twice, but we still had fun.
Last weekend turned into a busy weekend of travel that was planned on short notice. On Saturday I went with Amanda, Ian, and Eric to Fiesole (the Etruscan city just north of here and a 1.20 euro, 20-minute bus ride each way) to explore something outside Florence. It turned into a great day: the rain held off, we saw the town of Florence from high above, got some wonderful photos of the clouds, and went for a lovely hike. We explored the woods of Fiesole where Leonardo da Vinci tested his flying machine (though we didn't actually find the location) and a few of the old mining caves (which were apparently restricted, but we only saw those signs on our way out... oops). We had a wonderful hike and a great time out in the woods away from civilization, then came back and relaxed in town for a spell until the bus arrived.
Sunday's trip took me and Amanda to Pisa with an 8AM departure... I guess I survived it more or less. We left the train station and promptly got lost in the city, crossing the Arno (which is much cleaner than our part of the Arno... I'm pretty jealous), finding a beautiful park, and ending up outside the walls on the opposite side of the town from the duomo and the leaning tower. That gave us a lovely walk straight across town on the directions of a confused-looking girl and to the famous tower. However, 15 euros seemed a bit steep for a walk up the tower, so we settled for observing it from the outside. We did, however, wander inside the duomo, which was quite pretty. After that we went back to the park to sit and enjoy the sun and then went to the river to sit and enjoy the sun! From there we returned to Florence to find that people were still asleep at 3PM.
Well, there's the extent of my excitement up to Sunday the 6th. Monday was a fairly quiet day, marked primarily by a tour of a few artisan workshops (Taddei for some beautiful leather boxes and change purses and I Mosaici Di Lastrucci for mosaic-esque works done by filing and piecing together stone to create beautiful art that looks like an oil painting - look them up!). Tuesday held a trip to the Uffizi gallery (finally!) to see the famous paintings and sculptures of Florentine artists. Wednesday was quiet, with a small field trip to a pastry and coffee shop across from my apartment (what a surprise! but it was actually delicious) and to the open-air market (where I should start shopping for fresh produce and meat if I get the chance and a list...), followed by a work day at the British Institute Library, where I was actually able to get ahead on some of my homework. Yesterday we went to the Boboli Gardens again to read some of Dante's Inferno and discuss it, then to Piazzale Michelangiolo to continue after the garden closed (though we just barely missed the sunset up there). Today was a trip to Lucca for me, Ian, Professor Tom Kealy, and his son Joe, which I'll probably tell you about another time (but walking on the old wall was really fun, and I'll probably go back there again).
That's all for now, but I'm going to Milan tomorrow (at 8AM, again...) so I'll have more stories next time I remember to update!
I'll start with Palazzo Vecchio - the Old Palace. when it was constructed (which happened in parts, a bit at a time) there was a need for potential escape routes. As such, these passageways were built into the walls. On our tour we got to visit them and see the secret rooms contained therein. Up the passageways we found secret rooms - one for Cosimo and one for Francesco - as well as Francesco's studiolo, a place where he studied alchemy and adorned the walls and ceiling with paintings representing the elements, the seasons, the humors, the sexes, and other such patterns and thought. It's a gorgeous room, really. Also, the paintings covered secret compartments in the room, each with some simple riddle explaining what was located within. Anyway, beyond that we went into the ceiling and saw the construction that went into the huge ceiling and that has lasted for almost half a millennium.
Torrigiani Garden was absolutely gorgeous. We got a tour from the Torrigiani son who is in charge of the garden, and he was the best tour guide we've had so far. He was really funny and his English was strained but he was really relaxed at the same time. We walked along the paths to see more elemental symbolism and a tower in the center. The garden itself is private, so entry is only permitted by prearranged tours such as ours, and even they were only recently started. There was also a lot of symbolism about the garden as an enclosed place and as a spiritual center, so feel free to ask me about it sometime. I won't bore you with it right now; there's more to talk about!
Palazzo Davanzati was a fairly typical palace museum visit. The palace is maintained in a condition similar to that in which it was originally designed - we saw the bedrooms, sitting rooms, kitchen (on the top floor), and any other rooms one would expect. It was a fairly strict staff - we were not allowed to take photographs, so I do not have any visuals for this one. We also got in trouble once or twice, but we still had fun.
Last weekend turned into a busy weekend of travel that was planned on short notice. On Saturday I went with Amanda, Ian, and Eric to Fiesole (the Etruscan city just north of here and a 1.20 euro, 20-minute bus ride each way) to explore something outside Florence. It turned into a great day: the rain held off, we saw the town of Florence from high above, got some wonderful photos of the clouds, and went for a lovely hike. We explored the woods of Fiesole where Leonardo da Vinci tested his flying machine (though we didn't actually find the location) and a few of the old mining caves (which were apparently restricted, but we only saw those signs on our way out... oops). We had a wonderful hike and a great time out in the woods away from civilization, then came back and relaxed in town for a spell until the bus arrived.
Sunday's trip took me and Amanda to Pisa with an 8AM departure... I guess I survived it more or less. We left the train station and promptly got lost in the city, crossing the Arno (which is much cleaner than our part of the Arno... I'm pretty jealous), finding a beautiful park, and ending up outside the walls on the opposite side of the town from the duomo and the leaning tower. That gave us a lovely walk straight across town on the directions of a confused-looking girl and to the famous tower. However, 15 euros seemed a bit steep for a walk up the tower, so we settled for observing it from the outside. We did, however, wander inside the duomo, which was quite pretty. After that we went back to the park to sit and enjoy the sun and then went to the river to sit and enjoy the sun! From there we returned to Florence to find that people were still asleep at 3PM.
Well, there's the extent of my excitement up to Sunday the 6th. Monday was a fairly quiet day, marked primarily by a tour of a few artisan workshops (Taddei for some beautiful leather boxes and change purses and I Mosaici Di Lastrucci for mosaic-esque works done by filing and piecing together stone to create beautiful art that looks like an oil painting - look them up!). Tuesday held a trip to the Uffizi gallery (finally!) to see the famous paintings and sculptures of Florentine artists. Wednesday was quiet, with a small field trip to a pastry and coffee shop across from my apartment (what a surprise! but it was actually delicious) and to the open-air market (where I should start shopping for fresh produce and meat if I get the chance and a list...), followed by a work day at the British Institute Library, where I was actually able to get ahead on some of my homework. Yesterday we went to the Boboli Gardens again to read some of Dante's Inferno and discuss it, then to Piazzale Michelangiolo to continue after the garden closed (though we just barely missed the sunset up there). Today was a trip to Lucca for me, Ian, Professor Tom Kealy, and his son Joe, which I'll probably tell you about another time (but walking on the old wall was really fun, and I'll probably go back there again).
That's all for now, but I'm going to Milan tomorrow (at 8AM, again...) so I'll have more stories next time I remember to update!
29 October 2011
How could I forget Cinque Terre?
Yes, it's true: in writing my last post, I forgot about this event which I have cited as "the best day of my life so far" on multiple occasions. I blame the concussion. Anyway, this day was amazing. It started at 5:30, which I was not okay with initially. We met in the train station and got on the first train. After transferring to the second (we were to take three trains), we heard rumors of a train strike. They're not too uncommon here, so of course we began to get concerned. After we reached the next station and got on the final train, we discovered that the strike was, in fact, happening that day, and it would prevent us from riding the trains until 5pm. This left us in the town of La Spezia with nothing to do. Fortunately, Professor Tom Kealy was determined to get us to Cinque Terre.
After asking around, Tom discovered that the best way to get us where we needed to be was to take a bus out to Portovenere, from where we could take a ferry out to each of the villages. The bus ride was uneventful, though it was nice to finally see the water after having spent so much time inland.
The ferry was probably the best mistake that could have happened to us. After reaching the port we realized that this ferry was a tour out to the Cinque Terre, stopping at each one (Cinque Terre means Five Lands, signifying the five villages along the coast and hillsides). We sat on the top level of the ferry in the open air and watched the water and the villages as we passed by them. At one point a water helicopter came out to pick up water, spraying it in front of us and causing a rainbow. At another point, we ended up in the middle of a pod of dolphins! The dolphins came up to the side of the ferry and started jumping alongside us!
After circling the dolphins a few times to allow everyone a decent photo opportunity we finally ended at Monterosso, the farthest village. It is a decently populated, compressed village with an abundance of tourist-oriented shops. Here we stopped for free time to wander the village, get lunch, sit on the beach, and dip our feet in the water of the Mediterranean. I had a panini, dessert of gelato, and skipped a stone eight jumps. After an hour or so we began our hike.
Our hike didn't last long before we decided to take a break. The reason? We discovered a rock outcropping down a side path to jump across the rocks and see the coves in the ledges up close! We made our way down and explored the rocks for a bit. Yulia even jumped into a particularly deep part of the coastline from the higher rocks! I dunked my head in the water to cool off (and moreover because I dunked my head in the Mediterranean -- how many of you from back home have done that?) and then we continued on our way.
The hike was breathtaking. I'm sure you can find pictures online (or on my facebook page) of Cinque Terre. It's gorgeous. The walkways are extremely narrow: we had to pass others going the opposite direction multiple times in areas where one would need to get off the path and onto a ledge or tree's trunk to allow space to pass. The views, though, were amazing. We were on the side of the hills facing the sea, of course, so most of our hike was lined by water on one side and earth on the other. occasionally we walked along a vegetable garden, an old well, or a brook in a small valley. It seemed to take forever, though! Fortunately the guys and I packed shorts, so we changed partway down the trail and were much happier for the last half of the 90-minute hike.
As we neared the village of Vernazza, the views were gorgeous. We were high above the village, allowing an amazing sight of the entire town with the sea as backdrop. The trail took us right into the middle of town -- one minute we were flanked by rock ledges, while the next saw us walking past someone's door. We sat by the sea for a few minutes and then wandered around town in search of food. We found a lovely little to-go pizzeria, whose food we took out onto the rocks to eat and watch the beginning of the sunset. Our viewing experience, however, was cut short by our dash to the train stop -- had we not made it to the train in time, we may have been stranded in the little town until almost midnight, returning to Florence around 2am. Despite this, we had a wonderful time. The train rides weren't even too bad, especially with company to talk to and Vonnegut to read.
As a small side note, I'll mention that the evening was the perfect ending to this superlative best day; sitting on the steps of the Basilica of Santa Croce, I enjoyed people watching and sharing discussions about literature and philosophy with my companions.
After asking around, Tom discovered that the best way to get us where we needed to be was to take a bus out to Portovenere, from where we could take a ferry out to each of the villages. The bus ride was uneventful, though it was nice to finally see the water after having spent so much time inland.
The ferry was probably the best mistake that could have happened to us. After reaching the port we realized that this ferry was a tour out to the Cinque Terre, stopping at each one (Cinque Terre means Five Lands, signifying the five villages along the coast and hillsides). We sat on the top level of the ferry in the open air and watched the water and the villages as we passed by them. At one point a water helicopter came out to pick up water, spraying it in front of us and causing a rainbow. At another point, we ended up in the middle of a pod of dolphins! The dolphins came up to the side of the ferry and started jumping alongside us!
After circling the dolphins a few times to allow everyone a decent photo opportunity we finally ended at Monterosso, the farthest village. It is a decently populated, compressed village with an abundance of tourist-oriented shops. Here we stopped for free time to wander the village, get lunch, sit on the beach, and dip our feet in the water of the Mediterranean. I had a panini, dessert of gelato, and skipped a stone eight jumps. After an hour or so we began our hike.
Our hike didn't last long before we decided to take a break. The reason? We discovered a rock outcropping down a side path to jump across the rocks and see the coves in the ledges up close! We made our way down and explored the rocks for a bit. Yulia even jumped into a particularly deep part of the coastline from the higher rocks! I dunked my head in the water to cool off (and moreover because I dunked my head in the Mediterranean -- how many of you from back home have done that?) and then we continued on our way.
The hike was breathtaking. I'm sure you can find pictures online (or on my facebook page) of Cinque Terre. It's gorgeous. The walkways are extremely narrow: we had to pass others going the opposite direction multiple times in areas where one would need to get off the path and onto a ledge or tree's trunk to allow space to pass. The views, though, were amazing. We were on the side of the hills facing the sea, of course, so most of our hike was lined by water on one side and earth on the other. occasionally we walked along a vegetable garden, an old well, or a brook in a small valley. It seemed to take forever, though! Fortunately the guys and I packed shorts, so we changed partway down the trail and were much happier for the last half of the 90-minute hike.
As we neared the village of Vernazza, the views were gorgeous. We were high above the village, allowing an amazing sight of the entire town with the sea as backdrop. The trail took us right into the middle of town -- one minute we were flanked by rock ledges, while the next saw us walking past someone's door. We sat by the sea for a few minutes and then wandered around town in search of food. We found a lovely little to-go pizzeria, whose food we took out onto the rocks to eat and watch the beginning of the sunset. Our viewing experience, however, was cut short by our dash to the train stop -- had we not made it to the train in time, we may have been stranded in the little town until almost midnight, returning to Florence around 2am. Despite this, we had a wonderful time. The train rides weren't even too bad, especially with company to talk to and Vonnegut to read.
As a small side note, I'll mention that the evening was the perfect ending to this superlative best day; sitting on the steps of the Basilica of Santa Croce, I enjoyed people watching and sharing discussions about literature and philosophy with my companions.
28 October 2011
Okay, I'll admit that I'm bad at this.
According to my last post, you haven't heard from me here in two and a half weeks. Logically, that should mean that I have some crazy and exciting stories to tell, right? Unfortunately, I can't remember half of them right now! Maybe when I'm not concussed I'll have more to share.
yes, you read that right, I have a concussion. I remember taking a break from writing my project for class to go upstairs and listen to music with the guys. I even remember headbanging to a metal/dubstep song that came on. I just don't remember when that headbanging caused a chair to become violent with my right eyebrow. According to accounts from the others, I was a pretty gruesome sight last night. Fortunately, the gash has healed a bit and is minimally blended with my eyebrow, but my head is pretty blurry right now.
Anyway, I guess I'll share a few stories that I can remember. Monday we went to the Accademia to hear a few lectures on women and art. While our stay was interrupted by the test we had in Italian class, it was still a great chance to see Michelangelo's David without the crowd that I'm sure is typically surrounding it. The lecture we heard wasn't bad, though it was difficult to try to translate it when I only know half the words she was saying. The main point I got out of it was that she is definitely a first-wave feminist.
Wednesday was another day, another art exhibit. This time it was a modern exhibit at an art school! The exhibits were designed with Giorgio Vasari, a painter, architect, and historian who was born five hundred years ago. His biographies of Italian artists are famous for being a kind of start to art history, as well as an extremely valuable resource in the field. The exhibit (whose artists we got to meet) was set up in the classrooms. A brief rundown of the exhibits: a photo installment featuring images of Florence, the frame of a house with videos of deteriorating things and an explosion of household items suspended by string, a video projected onto hanging sheets of a victorian woman holding lilies while paper lilies surround the projection, and Bill Viola's "Acceptance" -- a video of a woman being sprayed by water from behind as she goes through a metaphorical life from birth to death. the other part: more cool installments and a lot of paintings.
After seeing the exhibits, we got to go downstairs to see their printing presses from 1860 and 1862 -- the years before and after Italy unified. I thought that was pretty cool. The presses were pretty cool to see in person, too.
Our trip on Thursday took us to an exhibit for which we've been seeing the signs all over Florence: Denaro e Bellezza. Money and beauty. Because usury was banned by the Church, bankers couldn't charge interest on their loans. This led them to engage in a system of trading which would then allow them to earn a profit when goods were sold and resold. That was the theme of the exhibit, and it was very beautiful and probably worth a pretty penny. Among other things we saw many artifacts including florins (the money of the time), a very intricately designed ivory comb, and some of the cloth that would have been used in the aforementioned trade system. There were also some pretty pictures that included Botticelli's Venus and a number of representations of the historic burning of Savonarola (look it up if you haven't heard of it, it's worth knowing about).
There's another exhibit at the Palazzo Strozzi called Declining Democracy. It's free on Thursday nights, so maybe I'll tell you about it next week. I hope to, at least.
Well, I think I've written enough for now. I've been working on my project on Dante Alighieri, so maybe when that's done I'll tell you about it. Or I'll just post my essay. You want to read an essay, right? Don't worry, it's not long.
yes, you read that right, I have a concussion. I remember taking a break from writing my project for class to go upstairs and listen to music with the guys. I even remember headbanging to a metal/dubstep song that came on. I just don't remember when that headbanging caused a chair to become violent with my right eyebrow. According to accounts from the others, I was a pretty gruesome sight last night. Fortunately, the gash has healed a bit and is minimally blended with my eyebrow, but my head is pretty blurry right now.
Anyway, I guess I'll share a few stories that I can remember. Monday we went to the Accademia to hear a few lectures on women and art. While our stay was interrupted by the test we had in Italian class, it was still a great chance to see Michelangelo's David without the crowd that I'm sure is typically surrounding it. The lecture we heard wasn't bad, though it was difficult to try to translate it when I only know half the words she was saying. The main point I got out of it was that she is definitely a first-wave feminist.
Wednesday was another day, another art exhibit. This time it was a modern exhibit at an art school! The exhibits were designed with Giorgio Vasari, a painter, architect, and historian who was born five hundred years ago. His biographies of Italian artists are famous for being a kind of start to art history, as well as an extremely valuable resource in the field. The exhibit (whose artists we got to meet) was set up in the classrooms. A brief rundown of the exhibits: a photo installment featuring images of Florence, the frame of a house with videos of deteriorating things and an explosion of household items suspended by string, a video projected onto hanging sheets of a victorian woman holding lilies while paper lilies surround the projection, and Bill Viola's "Acceptance" -- a video of a woman being sprayed by water from behind as she goes through a metaphorical life from birth to death. the other part: more cool installments and a lot of paintings.
After seeing the exhibits, we got to go downstairs to see their printing presses from 1860 and 1862 -- the years before and after Italy unified. I thought that was pretty cool. The presses were pretty cool to see in person, too.
Our trip on Thursday took us to an exhibit for which we've been seeing the signs all over Florence: Denaro e Bellezza. Money and beauty. Because usury was banned by the Church, bankers couldn't charge interest on their loans. This led them to engage in a system of trading which would then allow them to earn a profit when goods were sold and resold. That was the theme of the exhibit, and it was very beautiful and probably worth a pretty penny. Among other things we saw many artifacts including florins (the money of the time), a very intricately designed ivory comb, and some of the cloth that would have been used in the aforementioned trade system. There were also some pretty pictures that included Botticelli's Venus and a number of representations of the historic burning of Savonarola (look it up if you haven't heard of it, it's worth knowing about).
There's another exhibit at the Palazzo Strozzi called Declining Democracy. It's free on Thursday nights, so maybe I'll tell you about it next week. I hope to, at least.
Well, I think I've written enough for now. I've been working on my project on Dante Alighieri, so maybe when that's done I'll tell you about it. Or I'll just post my essay. You want to read an essay, right? Don't worry, it's not long.
11 October 2011
I'm Still Here!
Hello everyone,
My apologies for my extended absence from this blog -- I do, however, have a few excuses! For one, I've been sick, so I haven't done much lately. For another, I've been doing a lot of cooking and general hanging out, so I've been fairly busy despite not doing much of note. But anyway, I'll try to keep the updates coming now that I'm feeling better again. we are taking a trip to go hiking at Cinque Terres on Friday, so there will definitely be an update from that trip!
Moreover, it's funny to consider that I've been here for almost a month. Though it's been easy to get accustomed to life in Florence, it still doesn't feel like a third of this trip is already gone. I'll be back home in just over two months... and I only have a month and a half of Italian Language class left!
Anyway, no video right now, but once I do something worth talking about I will upload another video. For now, ciao!
My apologies for my extended absence from this blog -- I do, however, have a few excuses! For one, I've been sick, so I haven't done much lately. For another, I've been doing a lot of cooking and general hanging out, so I've been fairly busy despite not doing much of note. But anyway, I'll try to keep the updates coming now that I'm feeling better again. we are taking a trip to go hiking at Cinque Terres on Friday, so there will definitely be an update from that trip!
Moreover, it's funny to consider that I've been here for almost a month. Though it's been easy to get accustomed to life in Florence, it still doesn't feel like a third of this trip is already gone. I'll be back home in just over two months... and I only have a month and a half of Italian Language class left!
Anyway, no video right now, but once I do something worth talking about I will upload another video. For now, ciao!
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