An experimental posting of two videos of the frescoed ceiling described in an earlier post. Enjoy!
Friday, October 31, 2008
Arrivederci Martha
Martha left this morning for Boston, and may be almost there by now. Yesterday we went to Santa Maria Nouvella, near the train station. When we left the apartment by cab it was pouring rain, with thunder and lightening. After buying Martha's train tickets we walked across the street and around the corner to the church, and here it is with blue, cloudless sky.
The church was a lovely space, with a variety of smaller chapels around the nave featuring fascinating frescoes by masters including a few figures by a 13 year old Michelangelo. Naturally, no photos allowed.
After our tour, we dropped into the Santa Maria Nouvella Pharmacia, which historically was part of the monestary, and now is the oldest perfunery in Florence. The place smelled lovely, and had all sorts of wonderful potions, candles, lotions, perfumes, teas and other goodies at astonishing prices. If they could bottle the scent of the store we would have bought it.
We wanted to get Martha's shopping done, so we headed back toward the center of town, stopping for lunch along the way. I am finding that most Italian food is not vey photogenic, but my lunch of raviolis with pumpkin sauce were unusual. Each of my four raviolis was the size of my palm. They were filled with riccota cheese and herbs, with a mild but hearty pumpkin sauces on top. Excellent.
Sadly, by the time we finishedl unch the bakery next door was closed, so we moved on to the Coin department store and the covered market (mostly leather, scarves and glass) near the Piazza de Republique. On the way home, as darkness fell along with torrents of rain, Martha finally succumbed to the Italian shoe spell, and bought two pair which just fit in her one suitcase.
Tom came back from work early, and we read and rested a bit before heading out for a special dinner in the hills above Florence with one of his colleagues. As a first course I had artichoke salad and percorino cheese -- a salad of shaved raw artichokes, arrugula and walnuts, with healthy shavings of cheese on top. I opted to skip the meats, and as a second course ordered a spaghetti dish with white grapes and duck breast, the most interesting pasta dish I have ever had -- not sweet, but not savory, and definitely unusual. Desserts were an apple tart, very light and flavorful, and a panna cotta with a very strong and rich chocolate sauce. A perfect end for Martha's visit. Ciao, bella!
The church was a lovely space, with a variety of smaller chapels around the nave featuring fascinating frescoes by masters including a few figures by a 13 year old Michelangelo. Naturally, no photos allowed.
After our tour, we dropped into the Santa Maria Nouvella Pharmacia, which historically was part of the monestary, and now is the oldest perfunery in Florence. The place smelled lovely, and had all sorts of wonderful potions, candles, lotions, perfumes, teas and other goodies at astonishing prices. If they could bottle the scent of the store we would have bought it. We wanted to get Martha's shopping done, so we headed back toward the center of town, stopping for lunch along the way. I am finding that most Italian food is not vey photogenic, but my lunch of raviolis with pumpkin sauce were unusual. Each of my four raviolis was the size of my palm. They were filled with riccota cheese and herbs, with a mild but hearty pumpkin sauces on top. Excellent.
Sadly, by the time we finishedl unch the bakery next door was closed, so we moved on to the Coin department store and the covered market (mostly leather, scarves and glass) near the Piazza de Republique. On the way home, as darkness fell along with torrents of rain, Martha finally succumbed to the Italian shoe spell, and bought two pair which just fit in her one suitcase. Tom came back from work early, and we read and rested a bit before heading out for a special dinner in the hills above Florence with one of his colleagues. As a first course I had artichoke salad and percorino cheese -- a salad of shaved raw artichokes, arrugula and walnuts, with healthy shavings of cheese on top. I opted to skip the meats, and as a second course ordered a spaghetti dish with white grapes and duck breast, the most interesting pasta dish I have ever had -- not sweet, but not savory, and definitely unusual. Desserts were an apple tart, very light and flavorful, and a panna cotta with a very strong and rich chocolate sauce. A perfect end for Martha's visit. Ciao, bella!
Halloween, Italian style
Until the past few years, there has not been a Halloween tradition in France or western Europe. But marketing being what it is, Halloween has arrived, sort of.
In France over the past few years we have seen some storefronts decorated for Halloween, suggesting that children will dress up, and that candy and treats and pumpkins are somehow involved. But it hs not been a big thing, and we read that most children who participate in Halloween attend parties rather than trick or treat, which is definitely not part of the local tradition.
In Italy we are seeing some bits of promotion of Halloween in stores, including constumes for sale and small toys and candy. We saw one store with trick or treat type bags, but in a size that might contain a bag of M&Ms -- so they haven't got the idea quite yet.
We discovered a few years ago that in Catalonia, a region in southern France/northern Spain, there is a tradition of witches emerging from caves in the spring, flying across the countryside barefoot on their brooms, dressed in spring greens and blues, sprinkling toys and candy for children. These witches are good, happy, smiling witches, and are welcomed by the children. Now we are seeing in Italy these same witches doing Halloween duty, in the fall, with a different color scheme, and toting pumpkins rather than candy and toys. A whole different sort of witch. Here is my favorite shop display. Note their bare toes, twinkling eyes and delightful smiles!
In France over the past few years we have seen some storefronts decorated for Halloween, suggesting that children will dress up, and that candy and treats and pumpkins are somehow involved. But it hs not been a big thing, and we read that most children who participate in Halloween attend parties rather than trick or treat, which is definitely not part of the local tradition.
In Italy we are seeing some bits of promotion of Halloween in stores, including constumes for sale and small toys and candy. We saw one store with trick or treat type bags, but in a size that might contain a bag of M&Ms -- so they haven't got the idea quite yet.
We discovered a few years ago that in Catalonia, a region in southern France/northern Spain, there is a tradition of witches emerging from caves in the spring, flying across the countryside barefoot on their brooms, dressed in spring greens and blues, sprinkling toys and candy for children. These witches are good, happy, smiling witches, and are welcomed by the children. Now we are seeing in Italy these same witches doing Halloween duty, in the fall, with a different color scheme, and toting pumpkins rather than candy and toys. A whole different sort of witch. Here is my favorite shop display. Note their bare toes, twinkling eyes and delightful smiles!
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
The Uffizi
Today was cloudy and warm, as well as very humid. Although we expected rain, it never happened. Tom went off to work again, and Martha and I pulled ourselves together and headed across the river, stopping first for lunch at the restaurant Tom and I found our first day. Then we rushed over to the Uffizi, where we had reserved tickets waiting. Again, no photos allowed, but we spent 2 hours taking in the pre-, early and full Renaissance paintings, featuring Raphael, Michelangelo, and Botticelli. Afterward, we enjoyed a gelato while watching a street performer dressed as cupid attract passerby for photos, and a darkening river scene from the Ponte Vecchio.
We were also treated to teh sight of a wedding party waiting for a cab at the Pitti Palace....
Back to Florence
Martha arrived from Naples Sunday, the same day we arrived back from Venice. Monday was a pretty quiet day with Tom back at work and Martha and I sleeping in, she exhausted from a whirlwind tour of Pompeii and I from the Nasty Cold. I got as far as the pharmacy and the grocery store, but late in the afternoon Martha braved the cold to go across the Ponte Vecchio to the heart of Florence for a long walk.
Tuesday we had reserved tickets for the Accademia, known for Michelangelo's David and not much else. Tom unfortunately had to work all day, but Martha and I headed out to the San Lorenzo market area to see how the sellers might tempt us, which was not very much. We found a rustic trattoria for lunch and had bowls of tasty penne and ragu, then set off for the Accademia.
Did I mention in was raining? A lot? The map got wet. Martha's GPS could tell us where we were but not where we were going. A wrong turn. Maybe several, who knows. About 45 minutes later we discovered that we had made a huge circle, and were even farther from our destination than when we started. When we finally arrived, to add insult to injury, the lines, even for reserved tickets, were long (and wet). The computers had stopped, so no one could be admitted. Finally, at almost 3:00 we were allowed in for our 2:00 reserved time.
One look at David and it was worth it, at least for me. Unfortunately, no photos.
After the Accademia, we headed off toward the Medici-Riccardo Palace, a really wonderful find. It is the home of the Medicis, featuring the remnant of the original garden that stretched for over a city block; a really cool computerized detail of the frescoes in the private chapel where you can stand in front of the giant computer screen and point at the figure you want identified, and a voice (in any one of several languages) will tell you what you are looking at; the chapel itself (limited to 7 people for 7 minutes at a time, but for us in the downpour, no waiting and no time limit); and a magnificent meeting hall with a gorgeous fresco on the ceiling and deightful putti (cupids) over the doors. Then a cab back to the apartment, where we collected Tom and found a terrific dinner on the next block (beefsteak for Tom, risotto with mushrooms for Martha, and papardelle with beef ragu for me).
Tuesday we had reserved tickets for the Accademia, known for Michelangelo's David and not much else. Tom unfortunately had to work all day, but Martha and I headed out to the San Lorenzo market area to see how the sellers might tempt us, which was not very much. We found a rustic trattoria for lunch and had bowls of tasty penne and ragu, then set off for the Accademia.
Did I mention in was raining? A lot? The map got wet. Martha's GPS could tell us where we were but not where we were going. A wrong turn. Maybe several, who knows. About 45 minutes later we discovered that we had made a huge circle, and were even farther from our destination than when we started. When we finally arrived, to add insult to injury, the lines, even for reserved tickets, were long (and wet). The computers had stopped, so no one could be admitted. Finally, at almost 3:00 we were allowed in for our 2:00 reserved time.
One look at David and it was worth it, at least for me. Unfortunately, no photos.
After the Accademia, we headed off toward the Medici-Riccardo Palace, a really wonderful find. It is the home of the Medicis, featuring the remnant of the original garden that stretched for over a city block; a really cool computerized detail of the frescoes in the private chapel where you can stand in front of the giant computer screen and point at the figure you want identified, and a voice (in any one of several languages) will tell you what you are looking at; the chapel itself (limited to 7 people for 7 minutes at a time, but for us in the downpour, no waiting and no time limit); and a magnificent meeting hall with a gorgeous fresco on the ceiling and deightful putti (cupids) over the doors. Then a cab back to the apartment, where we collected Tom and found a terrific dinner on the next block (beefsteak for Tom, risotto with mushrooms for Martha, and papardelle with beef ragu for me).
A last look at Venice
The staircase to the doge's palace. Imagine being a 70 year old pope a hopping up those steps -- the doge never came down. And by the way, the steps are steep, and there are four more sets once inside to get to the doge's receiving room.
The view from the bridge of sighs-- the last view of Venice for prisoners on their way from the doge's palace to their damp cells in the prison. The shiny blue on either side is advertising shrouding conservations work on the walls of the palace and prison.
The courtyard of the palace.
Our Rick Steves ipod tour noted that the statue on the left, of Mars, looks a lot like Paul Newman.
One of the famed Venetian masks.
Sunset at Piazza San Marco.
The basilica in the evening light. 
The gondolas in the early morning as we awaited our vaparetto to the train station. 
Goodbye to Venice.
More of Venice
The Piazza San Marco from the vaporetto in the Grand Canal. The basilica is the building in the center right in the distance; the fancy arches are actually a view of the side. The tower is the campanile, and the building in the front right is the doge's palace.
This is one of the innumerable small canals, which the Venetians call rivers; only the larger canals, such as the Grand Canal, are called canals.
The buildings that line the Grand Canals are the palazzos one reads about, the homes of the very rich and occasionally famous. Many are empty and boarded up, and others are clearly flooded in the lower floor. There is nothing about their outward appearance that suggests the magnificence of their fabled interiors.
Another small river in a very quiet neighborhood. We read that for 80% of Venice, there are no tourists, and when we got off the beaten track, we found it to be true.
Because we weren't feeling well, we were not able to see all that we would have liked. One sight we missed was the island or Murano, where the famous Venetian glass is made. However, it is sold everywhere. These are two of the glitzy shops featuring the extremely expensive Murano glass.
Yes, gondolas are everywhere. Once you have seen them a few times crowded with tourists, they don't seem romantic -- more like a donkey ride at the zoo. But pricey -- $120 a half hour.
But they are pretty.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Venice
Wednesday afternoon we left Florence by train for Venice, arriving at the train station for a late afternoon vaporetto ride to our hotel. It turned out to be wonderfully well located, just a short walk to Piazza San Marco. So after a brief rest we took a walk to Piazza San Marco and took in the night scene of the basilica and the square, then had dinner at our hotel.
Piazza San Marco is ringed with cafes that have small groups of musicians playing; they seem to have an arrangement so that only one is playing at a time, and their genres vary.
The Basilica in all of its evening glory.
One of the cafes in the piazza featuring a mucial group entertaining the few paying customers, and the rest of us freeloaders.
One thing we have noticed -- oddly, it is hard to find a good meal in Italy. Somehow almost every meal we have had in France was wonderful, even modest sandwiches or cafe meals. Here, we have yet to really have a good meal.
Our trip was somewhat marred by Tom having a bad cold that started on the prior Saturday. Thursday morning I woke up with the sore throat and congestion. So we took it easy, stopping to check at an internet hot spot for email. We then found ourselves at the basilica about noon with a very short line, and decided to go for it. We listened to the Rick Steves ipod tour, and paid for the extra tour of the famous bronze horses. We have noticed that many of the churches have free entrance, but they have placed rooms and collections in separate areas available only for a fee. In San Marcos, for example, there are three separate paid tours in addition to the church itself. One is of the altar! Hard to imagine that they can charge a fee to see the altar, but the altar itself is set apart and was not meant to be visible to the congregation. And of course, more and more the various churches and museums do not permit photography, so in those cases, you will just have to use your imagination.
Tom with the famous bronze horses. Of course these are copies -- the originals are inside and no photos allowed. Sigh.
A view of the piazza from the balcony of the basilica. The doge would greet the people of Venice from a spot between the two pairs of horses, and this is what he would see, but with more people and we assume fewer cafes.
Having crossed the biggie of our list, we rested up a bit, then headed off to find dinner, this time a walk into the center of the island for another unmemorable meal. Venice is a bit of a maze, since the streets are often dead-ends, and there may or may not be a bridge connecting the street to another block -- we were lucky to find our way.
Friday we started with a quick tour of the church nxt door to the hotel, which tunred out to be quite a find. One of the paid tours was of the crypt, featuringa small altar in the basement of the church which, as you can see, was surrounded by a few inches of water.
Then we walked to the Rialto Bridge, and then to the Rialto itself, the marketplace, just in time to see the fish market breaking down its stands. After a lunch we continued to wend our way as far as the train station, where we found a vaporetto going down the grand canal. Again we listened to the Rick Steves ipod tour as we made our way back to our hotel.
Saturday the colds were taking their toll, and we realized that we would not see nearly half as many sites as we would like. So we limited ourselves to the Doge's Palace and the related Correr Museum. The palace was magnificent, the museum only so-so. Having exhasuted ourselves, we had a nice dinner at a bustling restaurant, that had at least 6 people waiting in line to get in for the tnire time we were there. Sunday, back to Florence, where we have been joined by friend Martha who will stay with us a few days. It looks like we will be here until next Tuesday.
This photo is of the Bridge of Sighs, linking the Doge's Palace with the prisons; this provided the condemned to their last look at Venice before being locked in the unpleasant cells of the prison. It is hard to know what the actual bridge looks like, since here it is swathed in advertising which hides scaffolds we assume are being used for restoration of the exterior walls of the palace and prison.
My overall impression of Venice? I expected the dark, somber, mysterious Venice of the postcards and movies, the quiet and Byzantine-influenced architecture and canals. What was it really like? Disneyland for adults. It was plenty crowded, although not even a fractions of the summer crowds. It was almost a caricature of itself. I mean, gondolas? I don't know why, but even the canals and bridges were not particularly interesting.
Yup, gondolas, all over the place, and guys with funny little suits, striped sweaters and straw hats with long ribbons.
Meanwhile, my cold is taking its toll. Today I went to the pharmacia for some cold meds, and was rewarded with acetaminophen and ascorbic acid. (16 tabls for E5) We Americans like stuff to work, and somehow this seems like pretty lightweight medication. But I'm trying to be patient. Tomorrow we have the long-awaited reservations for the Accademia (Michelangelo's David) which Tom will likely miss due to work requirements. Stay tuned!
Monday, October 20, 2008
Catch-up time....
So, time to play catchup, and fill in the blanks for the past few days. Since Tom is taking the computer to work with him, my blogging has fallen off. Sigh. But my reading has picked up....I read "As the Romans Do" that I found here in the apartment, a not-very-good memoir of a family's relocation from Marin County California to Rome, but it did highlight a few interesting cultural insights. Now: "Mistress of the Vatican", about the sister-in-law of a pope who seemed to control the Vatican. Next: "The Aspern Papers" by henry James, about Venice....
Saturday we took the day completely off work, and drove out to San Gimignano, a well-preserved hill town, one of those Tuscan villages that Frances Mayes is so lyrical about. (In fact, her town, Cartona, is not too far away.) The ride out was a bit exciting, since the GPS was programmed for the STREET San Gimignano, so we had a bit of a wild goose chase at first. but we figured it out and were on our way.
When we arrived, we found quite the touristy trap, but not too crowded and charming. We visited one church (not in the mood to pay E5 each to visit the other), and invested in two espresso makers, since Tom has become attached to the one here, and had a terrific lunch -- lasagnette (fattish noodles) with wild boar sauce, the local specialty, for me, and rabbit remoulade for Tom.
The Tuscan countryside. 
San Gimignano is known for its towers, a sign of prosperity where merchants stored their inventories. There were many, but after the plague the town lost its independence and was taken over by Florence that insisted that it take down all but four of the towers.
A walled Tuscan village -- about 1000 years old.
But still growing.
No cars!
A local specialty that will not fit in the overhead compartment.
But these will!
Even though it was late in the day, we continued our country tour in Volterra, another walled city. We visited the main church, took in the views, and enjoyed an expresso and pastry before heading back. Again, an exciting trip with the GPS on the autostrada. As we arrived in Florence, the directions we were given seemed not quite right, and we were searching for a place to pull over to re-program the machine when it suddenly announced that we had arrived at our destination. Tom took a look around and realized that in fact we had. We are not quite sure how that happened, but we were indeed just ooutside tha parking garage across the small street from the apartment. Go figure.
Volterra. Note the battling TC dishes and antennae!
The exterior of the church, opening into the side of the altar....
The front door of the church.
The Etruscan gate, the most famous feature of Volterra.
Tom and I stopped in to watch an old fellow working on alabaster, the big noise in Volterra. Note the blurry, ancient dog -- who decided at that moment to start barking at us, so no better picture, I'm afraid. maybe next time....
Sunday was a bit of a blur, since Tom's Saturday coughing turned into an ugly cold. So we did an errand or two, but basically he worked and napped, and I read.
Monday we did a flurry of errands before Tom returned to the office. One stop was the pharmacy, since my Tylenol supply had been exhausted. The pharmacist was unfamiliar with tylenol, but reocmmended another tablet. Last night I looked up the Italian name of the ingredient, and -- wait for it -- acetominiphrin: tylenol.
So I had most of the day to myself. First I walked across town to ship off our absentee ballots (shipped to us by Diana, merci buttercups) by DHL. Only E36, about $50, not too bad. Then I made my way to Santa Croce, the burial site of Michelangelo, Dante and Galileo (except for one finger that resides at the science museum, a must-see for a later day). It is also the location of some charming frescoes, although much of the church was shrouded in scaffolding for restoration work. One room houses the robe of St. Francis, which may actually be the real thing, as opposed to the relics of various other saints -- I've counted at least 11 fingers purportedly of John the Baptist, and that's just in this one town -- there must be hundreds scattered across the countryside.
The altar area completely obscured by scaffolding.
But the conservation work is as interesting as the church. I wish we could see more of it.
A monk serenading the workers on the organ.
Michelangelo's tomb.
So following up for an earlier post, Michelangelo is not buried in the church he wanted (Santa maria Maggiroe in Rome), but in his neighborhood church Santa Croce in Florence. His tomb is not decorated with the figures he desgined and almost finished, but with someone else's quite inferior work. But perhaps he doesn't care, since he's gotten a fair amount of attention in the past 400 years.
Today Tom is returning to work, and I will be packing a bit for the trip to Venice tomorrow (we will leave most of our stuff here in the apartment, whcih will be enjoyed in our absence by friends Dominique and Francoise who are driving down from Switzerland for the weekend). When we return Sunday, Martha will be joining us for a few days -- we have reservations (now required) for the Uffizi and the Accademia, and we are looking forward to a bit of shopping, although the prices are not encouraging.
No time to spellcheck, so hang in there....more soon!
Saturday we took the day completely off work, and drove out to San Gimignano, a well-preserved hill town, one of those Tuscan villages that Frances Mayes is so lyrical about. (In fact, her town, Cartona, is not too far away.) The ride out was a bit exciting, since the GPS was programmed for the STREET San Gimignano, so we had a bit of a wild goose chase at first. but we figured it out and were on our way.
When we arrived, we found quite the touristy trap, but not too crowded and charming. We visited one church (not in the mood to pay E5 each to visit the other), and invested in two espresso makers, since Tom has become attached to the one here, and had a terrific lunch -- lasagnette (fattish noodles) with wild boar sauce, the local specialty, for me, and rabbit remoulade for Tom.
The Tuscan countryside. 
San Gimignano is known for its towers, a sign of prosperity where merchants stored their inventories. There were many, but after the plague the town lost its independence and was taken over by Florence that insisted that it take down all but four of the towers.
A walled Tuscan village -- about 1000 years old.
But still growing.
No cars!
A local specialty that will not fit in the overhead compartment.
But these will!
Even though it was late in the day, we continued our country tour in Volterra, another walled city. We visited the main church, took in the views, and enjoyed an expresso and pastry before heading back. Again, an exciting trip with the GPS on the autostrada. As we arrived in Florence, the directions we were given seemed not quite right, and we were searching for a place to pull over to re-program the machine when it suddenly announced that we had arrived at our destination. Tom took a look around and realized that in fact we had. We are not quite sure how that happened, but we were indeed just ooutside tha parking garage across the small street from the apartment. Go figure.
Volterra. Note the battling TC dishes and antennae!
The exterior of the church, opening into the side of the altar....
The front door of the church.
The Etruscan gate, the most famous feature of Volterra.
Tom and I stopped in to watch an old fellow working on alabaster, the big noise in Volterra. Note the blurry, ancient dog -- who decided at that moment to start barking at us, so no better picture, I'm afraid. maybe next time....Sunday was a bit of a blur, since Tom's Saturday coughing turned into an ugly cold. So we did an errand or two, but basically he worked and napped, and I read.
Monday we did a flurry of errands before Tom returned to the office. One stop was the pharmacy, since my Tylenol supply had been exhausted. The pharmacist was unfamiliar with tylenol, but reocmmended another tablet. Last night I looked up the Italian name of the ingredient, and -- wait for it -- acetominiphrin: tylenol.
So I had most of the day to myself. First I walked across town to ship off our absentee ballots (shipped to us by Diana, merci buttercups) by DHL. Only E36, about $50, not too bad. Then I made my way to Santa Croce, the burial site of Michelangelo, Dante and Galileo (except for one finger that resides at the science museum, a must-see for a later day). It is also the location of some charming frescoes, although much of the church was shrouded in scaffolding for restoration work. One room houses the robe of St. Francis, which may actually be the real thing, as opposed to the relics of various other saints -- I've counted at least 11 fingers purportedly of John the Baptist, and that's just in this one town -- there must be hundreds scattered across the countryside.
The altar area completely obscured by scaffolding.
But the conservation work is as interesting as the church. I wish we could see more of it.
A monk serenading the workers on the organ.
Michelangelo's tomb.So following up for an earlier post, Michelangelo is not buried in the church he wanted (Santa maria Maggiroe in Rome), but in his neighborhood church Santa Croce in Florence. His tomb is not decorated with the figures he desgined and almost finished, but with someone else's quite inferior work. But perhaps he doesn't care, since he's gotten a fair amount of attention in the past 400 years.
Today Tom is returning to work, and I will be packing a bit for the trip to Venice tomorrow (we will leave most of our stuff here in the apartment, whcih will be enjoyed in our absence by friends Dominique and Francoise who are driving down from Switzerland for the weekend). When we return Sunday, Martha will be joining us for a few days -- we have reservations (now required) for the Uffizi and the Accademia, and we are looking forward to a bit of shopping, although the prices are not encouraging.
No time to spellcheck, so hang in there....more soon!
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