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Cinque Terra
From a headland Ok. Windows Unexpectedly closed, and I just lost about an A4 page of writing. But that's probably a good thing, as far as you're concerned.
summary:
Milano: Nasty, dirty city, didn't much like. Verry Hassley. Get the impression that there is a large gap between the rich and the poor. Il Duomo was impressive. Pity we felt we had to stop looking at it every few seconds to make sure we weren't being pick-pocketed.
Ended up in Padova that night: backtracked because nothing is open on a Monday morning in Verona. The Chiesa with the Giotto frescos is amazing (good pick, Sally!). So old, and so delicate, that they take 15 minutes to adjust the air in a holding chamber to resemble the microclimate of the church. and then you are only allowed 15 minutes with the frescoes (but we were the first group, all three of us, and as there were only 2 in the next group, we were allowed 30 minutes)
the Relics of San'Antonio were pretty cool, too. On display was a voice box, a tongue and the lower jaw of the poor saint. Whatever happened to requiring those body bits for
The Last Judgement?! "Arise and to your scattered bodies go" Scattered, all right.
Next was Verona, and Casa Della Giulletta. The famed Balcony (of the Capella family, who were known to have a viscious blood-feud with another Veronese family) is actually a modified Egyption Sarcophagus. As you do. The Courtyard walls were entirely covered over with graffiti, in fact, graffiti and canoodling seems to be all young lovers do in this town.
Saw the river, climbed a hill for the view *Shhh! 😉* went back and found the tomb of the Scaligheri, another (later) powerful house.
Trained back to Firenze, which I loved (possibly for the Company). Saw The great David.
Coment 1: He looks sad.
Comment 2: Although it's supposed to be after he's killed Goliath, he is holding a stone in the carving.
Comment 3: I don't think I realised he's 5 meters tall!
Comment 4: God, he has great veins!
Went to the Uffizi after, which, possibly because it is so crammed full of goodies, and possibly because it has no focus like the Galleria Dell Accademia, I wasn't so fussed on. Or maybe I had seen one too many depictions
Rio Maggiore
Isn't it cute! of Religous Icons. (I now know twenty Italian words to do with food, and about a hundred to do with the life of Jesus!)
That night we went and ate at a Trattoria, and had tuscan food (it was fantastico), then fully conscious of the sin we were commiting, went to see Spiderman 3 at the cinemas. The Italians were far outnumbered by the English speaking tourists. But it was a lot of fun!
The next day I climbed Il Duomo (great view, typical Tuscany. Exactly what I'd expect Italy to look like), then Sal and Emile and I met, had lunch, and went to the Cappelle Medicee: the Medici family chapels. More (!) Relics, but the chapel itself was amazing. Giant slabs of marble, frescoes painted by clear masters, so much opulence and celebration of the power of the Medici family. Oh, wow.
I slept that night in Venice
Venice, I also loved. touristy it might be (and God, how many dumb americans are there in this world?), but it is also, undeniably, beutiful. I stayed two days in this tiny Ostello, paying far too much, before coming to Trieste.
Trieste is... different. I
Milano Dom
It is beautiful. Just a pity it is in Milano, really. don't get the bad vibe I got in Milano, but still... It's not like any other Italian City I've visited. Probably to Austro-hungarian influence. Almost all the medieval Architecture was levelled by the Hapsburgs, which means that it is a very large collection of Neo-classical stuff. And romantic era stuff. Like the garden around Castello Miremare, which is laid out in romantic style, with fake caves, a partare looking outover the water *mum, you'd love it *, and even fake roman ruins. As if Italy didn't have enough real ones.
trieste is also a business centre, which means it empties out on weekends. Also, it has shrunk, by 70 000 in 5 years, which also contributes to it's Empty feel.
but I am practicing my Italian. And my German: I met a german couple on the Walking Tour of trieste: they have invited me back to Strassburg to stay with them.
Well, it is now 8pm, I am hungry, and I have a head cold, so I think I will call it quits. Tomorrow I go to Gorizia (Gorica in Slovene), then onto Nova Gorica across the border, and from there, to Bohinj bistrica, north and into
And there was this giant skeleton...
...whose nose was shaped like a carnevale mask. the Alps.
My adventure awaits.
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