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Wednesday, March 28, 2001

So, we are finally in Italy - along with England, France and Greece a major objective of this journey.

But, as always when we reach a new country, some mental adjustments must be made, like flushing out old data to make way for new. The most immediate concerns are always money, language and driving habits. This time around we must toss out French franc conversions and the French language, driving habits remain to be seen.  With regards to money, now we are dealing with Italian Lira. 2000 Lira equal $1US. 2000 Lira equals one dollar!!!! Sheesh, is that devaluation or what? OK, that means 10,000 Lira = $5US, 20,000=$10. Sounded easy enough until we were confronted with the actual paper currency with so many zeros printed on it we couldn't figure out the denomination much less the equivalency rate, (and do be quick, the shopkeeper is waiting!) We thought 200 Pesetas per dollar was tough!! Try camping for three days for 145,000 Lira - how much was that again?

Then we dealt with language. Kindly remember we have been through three languages in a little over a month: Spanish, Dutch and French. That is a lot to deal with in 30 days time. Now we have Italian. Just similar enough to Spanish and French to disorient us completely until we (and the locals) have no idea what we are saying! It really gets funny, "Bonjour," no-no, not French: "Buenos Dias," no-no, not Spanish: Italian: "Buon Giorno." (I really must talk about the Italian language here. As much as I enjoy listening to the French speak - their language is so melodic, I love listening to Italian. It is so vital and full of life. Italian sounds so fun loving and the speakers are so expressive. With Italian you have no doubt what emotion the speaker is feeling, either by inflection or body language!)

The third issue, driving, remains to be seen. We only had to drive 20km into Italy before arriving in San Remo where we stopped for our first two days and that wasn't long enough to get a feel for the country. (Bruce, who is the main driver this trip, has been magnificent. Through different countries with different signs and customs he has been better than good - those of you at home familiar with his past driving habits would be in shock - he is a master!) Always these three concerns must be addressed as we hit new countries but after a few days we adjust to the current circumstances just as we are doing now.

Tuesday we took our bikes into San Remo for a look around. San Remo is the center of a flower growing region and a daily flower market happens here between 6-8am. (Unable to move that early in the morning, that is an event we were destined to miss.) San Remo became famous as a resort in the early 19th century when the mother of Nicholas II, the last czar of Russia, discovered it. That explains the exquisite onion domed church we found the previous day. There is a casino here too, a big, fancy, white affair. We were not allowed in the parking lot with our bikes, so we didn't get to go in and report on the interior. (That's a half million lira THEY lost out on!!!)

I hoped to find an internet spot where we could post our latest journal so we went to the APT (visitors information bureau) who helpfully directed us to one at Mailboxes, Etc. (another American import) near the town hall. Getting there gave us a chance to ride the streets of San Remo and see a bit of the town. It seems to take pride in colorful pastel buildings with complimenting shutters surrounding the windows. The side streets are very narrow, equivalent to alleyways in the states and they were two-way. One of the memories I have of Italy is the narrow streets and that memory came back sharply as we rode down them. San Remo seemed to be a resort a little past its prime with well-tended, mostly older buildings made up of Victorian-looking architecture. The sand beach, which is at least a couple of kilometers long, is private for a good part, partitioned off for use by customers of various business establishments.

At Mailboxes, Etc. we got our interneting done and as we left, a fair-sized weather system began to sprinkle on us. We had wash out on the line at home so we had to rush home to save it from a drenching. We got a good workout on our bikes that day, a pleasure since we hadn't had an opportunity to ride recently. A couple of hours after our return home the rain passed us by.

Thursday, March 29, 2001

We left San Remo, following the coastal road, Via Aurelia (a.k.a. S1). Parts of the Via Aurelia are over 2000 years old and it was fun to imagine that we were following one of the routes that Roman Legionnaires marched along in conquering the (then) known world. We passed several coastal towns and while clever, it was obvious we had left the wealth of the French Riviera behind.  Marinas harbored fishing boats, not yachts, the towns themselves looked a bit worn out although I must say, they were appealing in their use of colors. Almost all roofs are red tile, a striking view looking down from a hilly approach. The Italians in this area seem to have a fondness for pastel colored houses, especially ochre or salmon, with very green shutters, and they are surprisingly attractive.

Between San Remo and Imperia standing out along the hillside were plastic greenhouses, reminding us of Malaga, Spain and it's sea of plastic. We thought "oh no, not that again..." because really, Malaga just ruined itself with all that plastic, no matter how important the vegetables growing inside were to the economy. Here it was flowers growing, but still it wasn't very pretty. Imperia is a port town founded by Mussolini in 1923, by incorporating two towns on opposite banks of a river. Not much is said in the guidebooks, leading me to believe not much is thought of it, but I rather liked it. It was well kept, had lots of pretty buildings and a really cool-looking church, and seemed to be pretty affluent.

Somewhere along our route another storm arrived and we drove much of the 140km to Genova in a heavy rain. That limited our visibility a lot so we got down to the business of reaching the campground in Genova. The campground is in Pegli, once a suburb of Genova and a surprisingly pretty area with lots of green space. Following the instructions to get there we passed through a heavily urbanized area, up small streets that got smaller as we climbed a hill finally to break out into a beautiful wooded area where the campground lay. What a surprise! We expected some sort of concrete jungle and got Eden. A wet Eden! It was around 3pm and raining buckets so we opted to stay put and hoped to take the train or bus into Genova on Friday in better weather.

Friday, March 30, 2001

When we woke the rain had stopped but threatening-looking skies remained. Taking our time in hopes of more clearing we eventually made ready to go around 10:30. With directions to the train station, we began walking down the hill, occasionally poking our noses through fences to see what lay beyond them.

The strong pastel colors we saw in villages of the region have made their way to Genova so we were treated to colorful neighborhoods in a baroque style.

Without getting too lost, we made it to the train station, got two tickets to "Genova Principe" station and within 10 minutes of train travel, arrived in Genova proper. As usual in bigger cities, our destination was the historic center of town, usually found at the heart of the city.

Genova is a sea town with huge ports big in the container shipping trade. Genova claims Christopher Columbus as a native son and somehow has proudly managed to preserve his childhood home.

We exited the train station into a square and turning around, were astounded by the edifice containing the station. A big, columned front with statues and a large clock made a dignified statement about travel by train. Obviously trains were the important way to get around 100+ years ago.

We found ourselves on Via Balbi, a boulevard that contained some palaces on our must-see list. I don't know about you, but when I think palace I envision a grand building with sweeping lawns and gardens surrounding it. It was a different story here. About eight palaces, four on each side of the boulevard faced one another. They were huge buildings, built in the 1600-1700's by aristocratic families; their outer walls almost touched each other. It was like being in a crowded room! These had been converted to government buildings and we could walk inside some of them. Each had an open courtyard with an imposing staircase leading up to a second story. Various statues tended to guard the stairway and frescoes of a range of scenes (often classical) were painted on the walls and ceilings. And this was just the entryway! I would love to try and describe the outside of the buildings but honestly, every single building that was marked as a must-see was covered in scaffolding with plastic draped over it. Every Single Building!!! It is like Genova is a humongous building/reconstruction project. All through the old city concealing plastic balked our views. The Piazza de Ferrari, a large plaza with a big fountain and supposedly the heart of the social scene was blocked off with fencing and the road completely torn up. I don't know if they were repaving it or if a larger project was at hand. Four buildings facing the piazza were not covered up and were gorgeous with what appears to be both baroque and neo-classic architecture. (Don't you love the way I throw these styles out - you'd think I was a master of architectural design!)

We found the Porta Soprana; one of only two remaining city gates, originally built in 1155, and right next to it is the home of old Chris. Or at least Chris' dad can be documented to have lived there. After seeing so many massive (but scaffolded!) buildings, his little house looked like an outhouse for one of them. Still, it wasn't hidden by plastic and we quickly snapped a photo fearing they would start covering it up at any moment.

Passing through the Porta Soprana we entered a maze-like borough filled with tiny streets that you could wonder for hours, coming up for air (or direction) occasionally and find you had never left the area. Here too, the historical buildings were covered with the by now, very familiar plastic. Only the Duomo (that is Italian for cathedral - took me a while to understand that) of San Lorenzo was exposed but the streets surrounding it were torn up with some sort of rebuilding project going on. The Duomo is supposed to house a Roman cup used in the Last Supper and the platter upon which St. John the Baptist's head was presented to Salome, but we will never know because the church was locked up tight as a drum. (Possibly against the crowd of school kids cavorting around the church during lunchtime?)

So, what did we think of Genova, besides the obvious what-is-going-on-with-all-the-scaffolding? (Eventually we learned from two other campers that another European Economic summit is due this summer to be held here in Genova, consequently the major cleanup project.) We thought it very appealing. If ever those buildings get uncovered, it is going to be a beautiful city. There were fascinating buildings everywhere we looked with interiors demanding a peek, tiny streets begging to be explored, cafes and small bakeries inviting you to stop for a moment and sample their offerings. The look of Genova (and perhaps Italy in general?) is very different from France with its sophisticated Mansart rooflines. Genova enjoys color and ornate-ness. Genova is a billion buildings crammed into too small space yet surprising charming precisely because of that. Genova is laundry hanging out the windows down back alleyways, giving it a very human look. Genova is ornate and beautifully decorated entryways and courtyards found in the most unexpected places. I was pleasantly surprised, we hadn't planned to stop in Genova, the real reason we did was for a night stop on our way to Cinque Terre, which was too far a stretch from San Remo.

Saturday, March 31, 2001

We drove through Genova on our quest south, passing the huge ports and getting an eyeful of the city. It took us over an hour just to get beyond the city limits! Genova sprawls out along the coastline gobbling up small, previously separate communities. Staying with the S1 we followed the coast past the Portofino peninsula, bypassing the famous town once we learned cars were not allowed (it's like children or pets; Queenie's not welcome? We won't go.) We passed Rapallo, a largish beach resort town that looked very nice and continued south through beautiful inland terrain. That terrain was pretty hilly and we steadily climbed to the windy summit where we found the turnoff for Levanto, a beach town just north of the Cinque Terre (pronounced Chinka Terra) or Five Lands.

There were only two roads to Levanto, the more direct one of 12 km, or the one we unknowingly took winding all over the mountain, visiting every village in existence, passing marble quarries and vertical farmlands until finally we fell into Levanto where we parked ourselves at the Aqua Dolce camping ground. A 145km drive (that is about 90 miles) took us nearly 4-1/2 hours. (They don't call us "Speed Racer" for nothing!!) But it was a very scenic route. No longer are we the sole campers in the campgrounds, Italians campers are out in force as well as other nationalities. Levanto is the only campground open now that is convenient for the Cinque Terre, so it is definitely busy.

Sunday, April Fool's Day

The weather (...I feel like the English, whose favorite topic of conversation is weather...) is great. Except for that one day in Genova when it rained liked crazy, we have had hot, tank top and shorts weather for almost a week. Do I tempt the weather gods by daring to hope we have found lasting decent conditions?

All day Sunday we rode our bikes around Levanto, sharing the sun with the locals as they clustered together on the promenade. We rode to the train station to see if we could safely leave our bikes (yes). We found a piazza where a flag team (sponsored by our campground) practiced their routines before interested local onlookers. We rode up and down the narrow streets and familiarized ourselves with this small community in less than two hours. We found Levanto charming. (But may we suggest a visit before "high season" when the beaches are said to busier.)

Because it was Sunday and we suspected every tourist in the area would be converging on the Five Lands, we opted to hold off 'til Monday for our visit to Cinque Terre.

What is this Cinque Terre? Five small fishing villages perched on the cliffs and ravines of the coastline just south of Levanto. They are between 4-5 km apart and are accessible only by foot or train. It is only in the last ten years or so that they have been discovered by the outside world and they are refreshingly non-touristy (although how long they will be able to hold out from it all is questionable). Less than 1000 people populate each village and their economy is still based primarily on fishing, supplemented by wine production. Terraced vineyards squeeze up to the back of the villages as if pushing them from behind. The houses of each village are wedged together as they drip down the cliffs to the sea, and are splashes of color against the rocky land. Laundry drying from windows seem to wave at you in welcome. Tiny wooden blue and red fishing boats dot the small harbors and fishing nets splay out along the rocky piers. Cars are not allowed in the villages and the absence of their noise makes for a tranquil and serene atmosphere. You can sit on the pier for hours, watching the fishing boats returning home and the locals greeting them, and not feel the need to move on. It really does seem like a different world. Footpaths of varying difficulties connect the villages and hourly train stops are an alternative way to get around. We took the train to Riomaggiore and Manarola, then walked the beautiful 40 minutes to Corniglio where we again took the train to Vernazza, Monterosso and back to Levanto. We returned home and made a dinner of pasta and the regional specialty, pesto (the best!) and a stack of steamed fresh veggies. It was a perfect day.

We spent Tuesday repacking Queenie after mailing off, on a slow boat to Vegas, one more box of tourist propaganda, winter clothes and various odds and ends we wished to keep but not lug around anymore. Wednesday it is off to Pisa and the Tuscany region.

Wednesday, April 4, 2001

Today was a good day.

We left Aqua Dolce (a fabulous campground I would like to add - very friendly staff and good facilities) at 9:30 after wishing and singing to our 3-year-old neighbor, Paul, a happy birthday.

The day was clouding over, a good time to leave, and we followed the small roads out of Levanto, through hilly terrain filled with small villages and vineyards, to La Espezia, a port town about 30 km south of Levanto. Finding the S1 (via Aurelia) we turned inland a bit and continued our way towards Pisa.

Shortly after departing La Espezia we were startled by the sudden view of snow on the low hills to our left. It looked exactly as if we were in the snow capped Alps and yet this was extremely close to the shore, no more than 15k, and opening our windows we verified that it was warm outside, snow should have melted. Looking on the map we discovered we were in Cararra, the home of pure white marble quarries, and where Michelangelo often visited to select marble for his sculptures. The "David," his magnificent marble statue originated here. The "snow" we thought we were seeing was in reality the snow-white marble being quarried from the hillsides. This area is one of the oldest continuously used industrial sites in the world, having been in use 2000 years ago during the Roman era. Wow! Everywhere we looked, we saw semi-trucks with huge blocks of pure white marble on their flatbeds. They looked like giant sugar cubes. I can't imagine how there could still be any marble to quarry after all these years!

Pisa is only 53k from La Espezia, but it still took us the better part of 4 hours to arrive from Levanto. About 20K outside of Pisa we finally found a real, live super market and had to stop in for a peek, buying Pepsi, bread and a roasted chicken for lunch. Then we had a picnic in the parking lot as we watched military helicopters make touch and go landings over our heads to the airport just across the S1 from us.

Eventually we arrived in Pisa (I won the kiss for seeing the Leaning Tower first) and made our way easily to the campground. We haven't mentioned meeting the youngsters from Santa Cruz, Peter and Ana, whom we met in Genova and again in Levanto. They are on a five-month backpacking tour of Europe and we found them in the Pisa campground too. They gave us the quick skinny on Pisa (watch out for gypsies and if you are interested in Leaning Tower souvenir night lights you have come to the right place!). They were heading for Firenze as we arrived, having reached Pisa the previous day and perhaps we will see them there.

We settled in and, it only being 1:30pm, decided to check out the town. The campground is only 800 meters from the Campo de Miracoli (Field of Miracles) where the Leaning Tower is situated, so we jumped on our bikes and rode the three minutes to the piazza.

Pisa brags that its Campo de Miracoli is one of the most beautiful squares in the world, and it can't be far from wrong. Entering the large enclosure through an arched walled entrance, you are treated to the view of the cylindrical baptistery, the incredibly beautiful four-storied marble Duomo and the leaning bell tower behind it. Behind them is the Camposanto or cemetery, claiming to have soil from the Holy Land brought back by the crusaders. Each building is freshly cleaned (with no scaffolding in sight!) and makes a majestic quadruple statement to medieval architectural beauty. We had giggled to ourselves that once seen, the tower would appear smaller than our expectations, but it wasn't and the total scene was awesome! We did not expect the inclusion of the other three structures in our equation and our minds were blown. You gotta see this to believe it!

Then, once we found and dealt with internet access, we did the tours of the cathedral, baptistery and cemetery and continued with our dumbfounded-ness. The interior of the cathedral was stunning with 68 columns and multi-colored marble in evidence throughout. A mosaic depiction of "Christ In Majesty" in the apse, completed in 1302 survived a devastating fire in the 1500s along with a few other exceptional pieces of art. A magnificently carved marble pulpit depicting scenes from Jesus' life is one of them. This cathedral left us with our jaws firmly stuck on our chests; it was our first exposure to Italian religious architecture and I was so impressed I was ready to convert!!!!!

The baptistery, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, is very big with interior columns and a full-body immersion baptismal font. It too has an intricately carved pulpit done by a master. The leaning tower is beautiful with finely shaped marble arches surrounding all seven levels. A massive project is in progress now, trying to bring to a halt to the tower's slow descent to the earth. A big metal girdle surrounds one level and is held by cables while workers labor to stabilize the faulty soil causing the lean.

The fourth element of this composition, the cemetery, is a long arcaded marble building with a vast wooden roof, surrounding a courtyard. Extensively damaged by bombing during WWII it has been repaired but suffered the loss of most of the historic frescoes that used to cover the walls. Sarcophagi and memorial tombs line the walls now, many from the 1st to 3rd century AD. Some of the older sarcophagi were reused in later centuries. We couldn't quite figure how that worked: what, the bodies only got to stay there for, say, five centuries before being tossed out so someone else could use it? One of them was actually turned into a bathtub, for pity's sake!

Looking at the Campo de Miracoli we understand the centuries long demand for all that raw marble we saw on our drive. All four structures were built of marble and this was only spot in Italy.

As lovely as it was, we couldn't stay in the piazza forever, and a quick look around Pisa didn't do too much for us - it seems Pisa's total claim to fame (and it is justified) is the Campo de Miracoli. We took ourselves home (without encountering a single gypsy, but lots of night lights), had dinner and unintentionally got blasted drinking our first bottle Chianti wine!

April 6, 2001

After finishing up with Pisa, we determined to go directly to Firenze (Florence), only 84 km east. Have I mentioned how the Italian kilometers seem to pass by in the same mode as did the English miles? I swear England could boast the longest miles in existence (once, it took us 6-1/2 hours to go 39 miles!). Italy does the same sort of thing. Eighty-four km = 58 miles and they took us close to six hours to complete. When I mention such things, please remember we are driving along secondary roads. There are faster, more direct routes by way of the autostradas but they are toll roads and we vowed long ago not to take a toll road unless absolutely necessary. The secondary roads (often called national roads) are more scenic and relaxing.

I can now make a report on Italian driving. Their driving reputation is as the wildest in Europe and they are interesting. They like to make two lanes out of one; at red lights 4-5 cars will squeeze through before it is taken seriously; they use their horns with great regularity (often to our mystification) and have little patience. Bruce has adapted magnificently (again!) and neither of us feels they are as bad drivers as portrayed, once you catch their flow, you're there. Which is quite a relief, for eleven months we have heard horror stories about Italian driving and were a trifle nervous.

The stretch between Pisa and Florence took us past Lucca a town famous for its Renaissance-period defense ramparts, which still completely encircle the old city, and Pistoia the town whose metalworkers both invented and gave the handgun its name. Our approach to Firenze was made difficult by the fact that the navigator got completely lost (we shall mention no names). The driver learned that he was able to negotiate Italian cities (when necessary) as he negotiated this one about three times before we got lucky and happened onto the bypass road we wanted to reach the campgrounds.

Firenze has a huge square, known as Piazza de Michelangelo, situated on the heights overlooking the city. The view is stunning, showing off the red Tuscan roofs, the Duomo with its famous dome and campanile (bell tower), the Uffizi, Ponte Vecchio crossing the Arno river and every other landmark the city is known for. Our campground, Camping de Michelangelo, is literally right next door to the piazza. Location, location, location! This is the same place I camped thirty years ago in my little tent although in truth, I remember the piazza far better than I do the campground.

On that trip, thirty years ago, I fell in love (well, probably lust) with an Italian boy. I have great memories of the city and was anxious to share it with Bruce.

It was late afternoon by the time we were settled in. We walked up to the piazza and I pointed out to Bruce everything I could remember about the city. Returning to Queenie we made a dinner of lasagna and asparagus (in season right now and only $2/kilo). As soon as it was dark we hit the sack, pooped out from the day's drive.

(Authentic Italian food is going to be our downfall. We can't get enough of it. Fresh pastas, pesto sauce, tomato sauces, gelato - that world famous ice cream is a good as it gets. If I don't leave Italy looking like your stereotypical Italian mama-mia it will be a miracle! We have been shopping at the supermarkets and are delighted to find the food reasonably priced. We purchased four days of food, dinners, veggies, fruits and a couple of sundry items for less than $30US. One of our travel books talked of how you can buy your food in the supermarkets and go out to your camper and eat it - no more prep needed. We have finally found this to be the case in Italy. Lasagnas, various pastas and parmigianas, all in the deli and ready to serve - very scary!)

Friday morning after coffee and cocoa we went to the bus stop, just outside the gates of the campground, and took bus #12 into the city. We tried to buy our tickets (as we usually do) from the bus driver but he said something and gestured in a manner we took to mean the ride from campground to town was free. Good deal! Getting off at Pont alle Grazie we walked down to Pont Vecchio, the only bridge in Florence left standing by the Nazis. I wonder if the commandant didn't ignore orders to blow it; this is a very historical bridge, builit in 1345 and the only bridge left with buildings on it. It used to be where the butchers threw their refuse into the river, but in the 1500s one of the Medici's (Renaissance rulers of Firenze) ordered the goldsmiths to set up shop there and today we still have jewelers selling their wares from little shops that line the bridge. This is the only bridge I have every seen that still retains its buildings, once a common enough occurrence in Europe.

From Pont Vecchio we spent the day walking around the city. We visited Piazza della Signoria, the heart of political Firenze and home to some famous sculptures. Michelangelo's statue David used to be in the square. Cellini's beautiful bronze statue Perseus is here along with the Rape of the Sabine by Giambologna. Many famous Italian statues that you may not even know you know are in this city.

Firenze is the First City of Renaissance Art and no matter where you turn you will find masterpieces. From frescoes painted on the wall of an obscure looking building, to squares seemingly littered with sculptures, to the numerous churches housing works of art by the masters of the Rennaisance. We didn't enter one museum this day and we saw so many beautiful pieces of art that we were almost numbed!

The Duomo has the distinction of possessing the first dome to be built since the classical period (read Roman and Greek), the bronze doors of the Baptistery were done by Ghiberti who won a competition over the likes of Donatello and Brunelleschi (who designed the Duomo dome). The campanile was designed by Giotto, one of the earliest artists to be considered of the Renaissance.

We walked to the Piazza della Repubblica, once the market area, now known for it's cafes, and from there to the Palazzo Strozzi, a beautiful palace built in the early 1500s. From there we walked to the Arno and watched river otters frolicking in the water. Strolling along the Arno we reach Santa Croce, a church I wasn't familiar with, which houses frescoes by Giotto, a bronze tabernacle of the Annunciation by Donatello and the tombs of Michelangelo, Dante, Machiavelli and Galileo among other less illustrious souls.

Historical Firenze is a rather compact area so we were able to walk around and see a lot, but we have lots more to see: the Uffizi gallery, the Accademia (which houses the David), the Bargello-home to a fabulous collection of sculptures, several more churches, the Boboli Gardens; we will be busy here in Firenze. The city is not beautiful as is Paris, but is fascinating with its mix of Renaissance age and older buldings. The streets are narrow, curved, and many are still paved with Romanesque-type stones. Most buildings are three tall stories and higher and crowd the streets projecting an ancient atmosphere. There are no cleanup projects going on and the buildings show some wear but still the city has a dignified air to it.

After a full day of walking and gawking, we crossed the river to our bus stop and upon its arrival boarded. At the stop previous to our campground a man boarded wanting to see everyone's tickets. Uh-oh. We told the story of trying to buy a ticket from the driver, he replied - no-no, where is your ticket. We tried that tact again to no avail. He proceeded to tell us about the fine we were incurring for not having a ticket. (This reminds us of our Haarlem ticket story). We all got off the bus at Piazza de Michelangelo where we attempted to buy a ticket from him, again to no avail. He was determined to charge us the penalty fee of 75,0000( each (divide that by two for $US equivalent), but settled for one fine and we learned the hard way that ignorance is not bliss! So our advice to you is never, never, never get on an Italian bus (or probably any bus) without a ticket!!!! Muttering all the way back to Queenie, we soothed ourselves with a sinfully delicious homemade turkey filet parmigiana with tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella and steamed zucchini.

And now I have an enjoyable subject directed to all the women of the world who, beyond their initial bloom of youth, need a boost to their ego. Go to Italy! Italian men, no matter their age, seem to have an appreciation for older women. I haven't felt so attractive in years! I know Bruce thinks I am the best thing since the invention of the wheel, but it sure feels good to have unknown men look at you admiringly.

And while I am on that subject, thirty years ago when I was last here, I left with the strong belief that the Italian people were the best looking group of Europeans to be found. I am happy to report that belief has held up. The men and women in Florence as a whole, are just flat good looking! It is a pleasure to people watch in this city.

Saturday, April 07, 2001

Today the weather changed for the worse. We have enjoyed beautiful almost summer-like conditions for over a week, but today we got rain. Fortunately today was our first museum day so the rain didn't really matter.

Yesterday we purchased advance tickets to the Uffizi Gallery, one of the world famous museums of the same caliber as the Louvre. If you want to see Italian Renaissance art at its finest, go to the Uffizi. There were about 35 rooms stuffed with masterpieces by Raphael, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Botticelli, Titian, Giotto, Fra Filippo Lippi, Parmigianino, Bellini, Perugino, Caraveggio and many more artists I am not familiar with. Highlights were all of Botticelli's paintings including Birth of Venus and Primavera, Titian's The Venus of Urbino (considered by Mark Twain as the most obscene painting in the world - it was gorgeous!), Fra Filippo Lippi's beautiful Madonna and Child with Angels (my personal favorite), Michelangelo's circular painting Holy Family, and several paintings whose artists' names I did not retain. While the inventory was not as abundant as the Louvre, the quality was equally as fine. This was my first visit to the Uffizi and without a doubt I could return again and again and continue to enjoy what it has to offer. We arrived at 11:30 and left at 3:30 filled with admiration; these Italian painters were masters!

There was no way we could add to the success of the day and since it was still raining we chose to return to the campsite where we discussed what we had seen and laid out our course for tomorrow.

Sunday, April 08, 2001

Today we went to the Accademia of Fine Arts to see the David. Boy, that is a beautiful statue. Michelangelo sculpted it when he was a mere 29 years old and no copy of it will ever be able to simulate the real thing. It must be 18 feet tall and of white Cararra marble. There is an aura of perfection to that statue that defies definition. The four unfinished "Prisoner" or "Slave" statues he prepared for Pope Julius II's tomb are also housed there and they were a good contrast between finished and unfinished marble work. The Accademia also had a collection of paintings spanning the development of Florentine art. I don't mean to sound naïve but I cannot believe how much art was devoted to religious subjects. We are becoming experts on the Saints and stories from the Bible just from the art we are seeing. Rarely do we see art of a secular nature and when we do, usually it is from the late 1500s and involves portraits of the aristocracy. Before that time it is the Madonna and Child, the Crucifixion, the Passion, the Nativity. The Assumption is a biggie and so are the Saints and their martyrdom is. And what is the story of Noah's drunkedness? That is everywhere too.

After the Accademia was the Bargello, formerly a prison then home to the chief of police, it now houses a fine collection of sculptures including Michelangelo's first large freestanding work, Bacchus-a tipsy looking fellow, several pieces by Donatello, Cellini, Giambologna and other famous Italian sculptors. If you are into statues this is the museum to visit. The Bargello itself is a very interesting building to explore with a large courtyard whose walls contain a lot of coats-of-arms of past encumbents. We seem destined to irritate Italian officials, we tried having our lunch in the courtyard only to be told no-no-no-eating there. We packed up our sandwiches and tried quickly drinking our soda and again were told not to drink! So what...are we supposed to throw away a can of sticky liquid? Wouldn't it would be easier to drink it quickly? They sent us outside to finish our sandwiches and sodas then let us back in to see the museum.

The Bargello closed at 2pm on Sundays so next we returned to the Piazza del Duomo and watched the unlicensed hustlers of sunglasses, scarves, art prints and whatever pack up their wares and boogie everytime the police patrolled past, about a 10 minute circuit. They were very efficient in their ability to close up their cardboard display and table stands and melt away into the crowd, only to reappear as soon as the cops past. How they were able to sell anything was beyond us, why not just pop for a business license and quit running? We waited and watched until 3:30 when the church San Lorenzo was to reopen and walked up there only to find that this Sunday it was closed all day except for Mass. It was trying to rain again so we decided we had had enough and went back home to Queenie.

Wednesday, April 11, 2001

We spent Monday and Tuesday roaming Firenze, visiting a couple more museums and churches, all chock full of wonderful art from frescoes to paintings to sculptures. A French writer, Stendahl, once was so overwhelmed by the beauty of Florence's treasures that he was barely able to walk from fainted-ness. An actual medical condition, known as Stendahlismo now exists and Florentine doctors supposedly treat about a dozen cases a year. While we were not quite that carried away, we were greatly impressed with what this city has to offer.

The city streets fascinated me almost as much as the art. The historical sites of this city are within easy walking distance of each other and we got to experience a little bit of the layout of the city. Most of it was redesigned during the Renaissance but still there is an area existing since the middle ages when Dante walked these streets. Throughout the city I saw the same sort of layout that we see in small villages; the curving, narrow streets with buildings cantilevered, giving the impression of hulking over the streets. Most buildings were of Renaissance architecture (a refined, cultured design) with older rock-faced towers and houses interspersed. The city is not as colorful as the cities and villages in the north, but everyday buildings are much more impressive than in Genova, the only other Italian city we have visited.

Monday we visited the Museo dell' Opera del Duomo, housing works of art taken from the Duomo, Campanile and Baptistery over the years. It houses Donatello's wonderful statue La Maddalena, beautifully carved choir stalls by Donatello and della Robbia, Michelangelo's Pieta, sculpted when he was an old man and intended for his own tomb. The face of the top character is supposed to be a self-portrait. Somehow the carving displeased him because he broke off limbs intending it to be trashed, but it was repaired after his death and placed in the church. There were lots of other interesting offerings in the museum including explanations on how the huge dome (first since antiquity) was built.

Tuesday we visited San Lorenzo, the personal church of the Medici family. The front face has never been completed. It is astonishingly plain and has been so for over 500 years, Michelangelo drew up plans for decorating the front but they were not carried out. The inside is beautifully refined. One would never guess its loveliness from its exterior. The color scheme is white with gray marble columns and arches identifying little side chapels. There are frescoes and paintings and sculptures by artists whom we have learned to appreciate in our week here. We did not get into the Medici Chapel (a separate entry with a queue long enough to discourage us) so we missed other works, but we have seen enough to threaten us with Stendahlismo.

Eventually we made our way home to prepare for departure. We would have liked to stay in Florence for Easter and join those Florentine festivities but the Tuscan hilltowns await us and we must try to get to Rome by next Tuesday or Wednesday. Who knows where Easter will find us, but have a happy one yourselves and see ya later!

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