February 14: Le Isole di Vetro e Merletto

February 23, 2011August 12, 2024Leave a comment

Well, I have made it home safe and sound, and am busy getting readjusted to the American way of life (and making lots of appointments for my neck). I can’t say how strange it is to walk into places and speak English! and while I’m sad about the lack of really amazing food, it is nice to be home with my cat.

Since last entry, I went to Bologna for a few days, then returned to Florence for the weekend before going home. Lack of reliable internet means a big backlog of photos to post and things to talk about, so I’ll try to share them all over the next few days!

The fog that I mentioned last entry persisted, and if anything, it was even thicker on Monday. It’s not the kind of thick-as-pea-soup fog that rolls along the landscape in discrete banks; it’s more of a haze, I suppose. It doesn’t significantly impede visibility when navigating on foot or along the canals of the island itself. But when you follow the canals to where they empty out into the sea, or when your vaporetto turns out of Canal Grande and you look out to the horizon—nothing. Just the emerald-green sea stretching out and into the mist.

Between Venice proper and Murano, there’s a small island called San Michele. The whole island is enclosed in a brick wall, with towers and domes reaching up from between the cypresses. San Michele is a cemetery, and there must be hundreds of thousands of graves there. I got quite lost on it, actually, but it was completely beautiful, with flowers of every kind and color adorning the thousands upon thousands of headstones, and a mystical sort of silence broken only by bird calls.

No photos were allowed on the island itself, but I got a few from the boat.

The next stop was Murano, home of hundreds of glass workshops and a Glass Museum that includes Roman-era glass artifacts as well as artwork and functional pieces from the 16th through 20th centuries, and explanations of various glass-making techniques and materials. Naturally, no photos were allowed in the museum (and most of the shops had big signs saying “NO PHOTOS”).

The character of Murano is similar to Venice proper when it comes to the layout of the island and the style of buildings, though it appears less well-kept.

The central part, where the largest canals intersect by the main piazza and the bell tower, showcases this glass sculpture that is actually pretty ugly. I much prefer the chandeliers.

But there is plenty to appreciate about Murano, and it is definitely not limited to the glittery show room displays.

From there, I caught another vaporetto to Burano. It’s a long ride, with nothing between the two islands but miles of fog-veiled ocean and rows of pylons to mark the way, and it is slightly disconcerting (but also really cool) to look back and see that the island you’ve just come from has completely vanished behind you.

Burano’s claim to fame is lace, and the island’s main tourist attraction (other than lace-shopping) is a Lace Museum. The museum is currently closed until spring, which would have been nice to know ahead of time, but I am not bitter, because Burano also surprised me in a good way.

Look at the buildings! I’ve never seen anything like this in Italy, but the buildings are all such bright, varied colors. The entire island is like this, with just about every color you can imagine.

Literally every street is like this.

While I am admittedly not very knowledgeable about or interested in fashion or textiles, and perhaps made some tongue-in-cheek remarks about lace in my trip journal, I will admit that Burano lace is pretty stuff.

It is cool, for lace.

Next on our agenda is Basilica San Marco and the view from the bell tower, so hold tight–when I am a little less jet-lagged, I will post that for you.

Ciaociao!

February 12 & 13: La Regina dell’Adriatico

February 15, 2011August 12, 20242 Comments

I left my home in Florence on Saturday morning, having packed about half of my things and left the rest (mostly souvenirs and wine bottles) at my host’s place to pick up next weekend. It didn’t take me all that long to get to Venezia, changing trains once and watching the subtle changes in the terrain—green Tuscany with its hills swimming in mist, Emilia golden under patches of snow and brambles—until suddenly, we weren’t on land at all, and to our left and right there was nothing but water and wooden pylons, stretching out and disappearing into the fog.

After pulling into the station, you walk out the doors and down the steps, and then… water.

I mean, obviously Venice is full of water; canals are the first thing that people think of when you mention the city. I’m not sure why it was such a shock—but it is certainly beautiful. It’s beyond beautiful.

There are no cars. None at all, unless you go to Piazzale Roma, the bus station, connected to the mainland via a long causeway. You might not stop and think, really, about the logistics and the mind-boggling reality of it, until you see a police boat, or a vaporetto (the boat equivalent of a city bus), or a taxi-boat. Or an ambulance boat. Seriously; the ambulances are boats! I don’t know why this made such an impression on me, I just hadn’t thought about it at all until I heard a siren (the ambulances have the same sirens throughout the country) and suddenly realized that it was coming from a boat. Hah!

Canal Grande is the main road, so to speak, dividing the island more or less in half. The vaporetti run mostly through this and around the circumference of the island, with a few making trips to the outlying islands as well. Branching off from Canale Grande are many smaller canals, some with sidewalks and some running right along the edges of buildings and residences.

The water is this amazing, luminous teal, much closer to green than blue. I’ve never seen anything like it. I don’t know what determines the color of an ocean—but it can’t be the canals themselves, because the water is this color all the way out to Burano, at least. Is all of the Mediterranean like this? It’s crazy!

If you keep walking in a given direction, you eventually hit the edge. Venice isn’t all that big, so it’s not difficult.

And I do mean the edge. The weather’s been a little foggy for the past couple of days, so sometimes it feels more like the edge of the world than the edge of the city.

Anyway, not every street is a canal—there are lots of canals, but there are just as many pedestrian walkways, some as broad as big streets. Or maybe I’m looking at this from the wrong angle; maybe the canals are the streets, and the dry “streets” are just really big, really busy sidewalks with names. Without any cars, it’s hard to say. But then, boats kind of are cars here. Gah! Worldview… so different! Cannot apply existing logic!

Anyway.

I took a walk around to Piazza San Marco on Sunday, in addition to several museums. The city museums are fairly expensive, but you can actually buy a pass that costs 18 euro and is good for something like twelve different exhibitions, all part of the Venice Civic Museum Foundation. This includes the good ones, as far as I can tell—several palaces and famous houses, the glass and lace museums on Murano and Burano respectively, Museo Correr by San Marco, and a natural history museum. The pass admits you into each one once and is good for six months, and considering that standard admission probably averages 8-10 euro for each museum, it’s a seriously good deal. I saw Ca’ Rezzonico (basically a showcase of 18th century Venetian noble lifestyle, plus a painting gallery) and the Museo Correr (a series of themed exhibits on the history, culture, and politics of pre-unification Venice, with lots of cool knicknacks, old maps, model ships, weapons, and an engraved narwhal horn). Afterwards, I hung around Piazza San Marco for a little while, but it was full of tourists and the weather wasn’t good enough to justify the long line for the belltower.

Up next: the islands of Murano and Burano!

February 4-13: Fiera del Cioccolato

February 13, 2011August 12, 2024Leave a comment

First of all, Venice is completely amazing, but you’ll get to hear about THAT next post.

Anyway, I don’t think that this entry requires a whole lot of explanation from me; suffice to say that Carnevale season is approaching, and all last week there was a Chocolate Fair in the piazza by the church of Santa Croce. Italian chocolate in all of its wondrous forms, plus other goodies like jams, liqueurs, and soft candies… for once, I’ll let the photos speak for themselves.

Yep, that is real chocolate.

And as a bonus, two photos from the neighborhood around my school:

And that is all for today!

January 23: Fiesole nelle Colline

February 12, 2011August 12, 20241 Comment

I can see that some of you have figured out how to access my Flickr slideshows and view my photos that way! Bravo, my friends, bravo. Obviously I haven’t been very timely about my posts here, and for that I apologize. That herniated disc has kept me from being especially productive. I am, however, feeling loads better now. I have also finished my classes and made it to Venice. You’ll get to see lots of photos from here! But first, we must backtrack to Fiesole.

It’s easy to get to Fiesole: catch the number 7 bus from central Florence and let it take you away from the busy sidewalks and the tightly-packed buildings, wind and rumble up the hills to the north of the city, and arrive in the quiet, open Piazza Mino, with the slope of the hill facing Florence on one side and the Duomo and belltower prominent on the other.

It was incredibly cold when Mom and I were there, and being on top of a hill, it was quite windy as well. During the hot summer months, Fiesole has been a popular vacation spot for wealthy Florentines for this very reason; even in Roman times, the rich kept summer homes here to escape the heat of the valley. It was once an Etruscan settlement, evidenced by the walls and artifacts preserved in its several museums; known then as Faesulae, it was conquered by the Romans in the early 3rd century BCE.

Speaking of the Romans, Fiesole’s oldest outdoor attraction is a Roman amphitheater and surrounding ruins.

Overlooking the rolling Tuscan hills, the theatre is more than two thousand years old and can seat that same number of people. Not only can you walk around in it, but it is still used for theatrical productions to this day!

Oh, yes, and our tour guide was a cat.

I’m not kidding. He was always either just ahead of my mother and me or right on our heels as we followed the paths through the ruins, occasionally going off the trail and giving us disapproving looks when we did not follow.

The other side of the ruins are a bit less interesting, but the remains of pillars and the foundations of buildings can still be seen.

Included in the price of admission to the theatre is a museum that contains Etruscan and Roman artifacts—art, coinage, and weapons, as well as human and animal remains. The gift shop had pots and pitchers made to look just like the ancient Etruscan ones.

From the side of the hill facing the valley, there was an unbelievable view of Florence, where the highest buildings in the city just barely reached up through the haze.

It’s probably an even better view when it’s clear, but whatever.

If you head all the way up to the top of the hill, you find the church and monastery of San Francesco. Beneath the church is a quaint but still interesting ethnographic museum kept by the monks, which includes ancient books and religious items, an array of art and curios from China (many sent home to Italy by Catholic missionaries), and Roman, Etruscan, and Egyptian archaeological findings (highlights include yet another mummy, and an in-situ Etruscan wall).

Lastly is Fiesole’s Duomo in the town’s main piazza. It is fairly drab inside and out, but like many of these old churches, there is a kind of serenity to the austere brick and stone. It is meditative in its simplicity—all the better to appreciate the mathematics of the space.

And that is all from Fiesole! I won’t divulge the contents of my next planned post, but if all goes as planned, it will make you want to lick your computer screen.

Until next time! Ciaociao!

January 21: Il Battistero, e Firenze di Notte

February 7, 2011August 12, 2024Leave a comment

My mother came to visit for a week at the end of January, but because I am doing this thing in a mostly chronological fashion, those adventures must be left for another time. I mention it because I went into the Duomo’s Baptistery while I was waiting for her to arrive.

The Baptistry sits at the west of the Piazza del Duomo and is one of the oldest buildings still standing in Florence. The structure itself dates to the 11th century; the bronze north doors, by Ghiberti, to 1401, effectively marking the very beginning of the Renaissance. The ceiling, a mosaic made of Venetian glass, was made in the 1200s.

Like the frescoes in the Renaissance dome of the neighboring cathedral, the mosaic depicts the Last Judgment.

The marble walls and almost all of the windows are gilded and decorated.

I left the Baptistry and went to meet my mother at the station. We proceeded to have a very busy weekend (including, but not limited to, the last day of a special Bronzino exhibit in Palazzo Strozzi, the lavish rooms and the Modern Art museum at Palazzo Pitti, and a day trip to Fiesole, which I will share with you soon), but because it’s all too much to write about at once, I will beg once more for your patience and tide you over with some shots from the last few weeks of Florence by night.

The Arno after sunset:

Piazza Santa Maria Novella:

Palazzo Vecchio, from Piazza della Signora:

The streets begin to clear as the temperature drops:

Piazza della Reppublica:

It’s not hard to see why I love this city so much.

Ponte Vecchio ed il Giardino di Boboli

February 5, 2011August 12, 20241 Comment

Well, it’s been so long that I can’t even remember the date that we went to the Boboli Gardens, but the photos have been sitting on my harddrive for ages. Anyway, as you can surely see, I am, as a matter of fact, not dead; I slipped a disc in my neck two weeks ago and thus haven’t been able to do much photo editing or much photography. Or much of anything at all. I am on the mend at last, though.

The Boboli Gardens are the ultimate back yard, constructed behind the palace where the Medici family (and many subsequent rulers of Florence and Tuscany) resided. They span 11 acres and include sculptures, terraces, and cats.

I didn’t photograph a whole lot of greenery, being generally more interested in the preserved art and sculptures.