Blogs from Siena, Tuscany, Italy, Europe - page 13

Day One in Tuscany We all decided that it would be nice to have a down day and hang out at the villa and chill by the pool. We did a little grocery shopping in the morning, cooked some lunch and we ready to head to the pool when the sky opened up and began dumping buckets of rain on us. No real exaggeration here it was raining so hard that it began flooding into the villa. Martin and Shelly had a room on the top floor that was a watery mess from the storm. They ended up moving to an apartment elsewhere on the Stommenano property. This storm continued from about 1p until 5pm. It didn’t matter that we missed the pool time we all had a great time hanging out in the Villa. ... read more

Ciao a tutti! We've just finished our first week of work for the 2009 season, and the weather has totally thrown everything for a loop. We've had relatively cold temperatures, plus plenty of rain, thereby turning the entire site into a huge mud pit, punctuated with large holes full of standing water. It's slow-going with heavy clumps of dirt to lift, tools getting coated, and shoes caking and sticking in the mud. My storerooms are a bit different from where I worked in 2007. We use a garage up near the museum that is owned by the Commune of Murlo. We have plenty of space, it's nice and cool, but the bathroom situation is a bit...interesting. There is, indeed, perhaps the most complicated and nuanced bathroom in the garage that we've named "Space Bathroom." You have ... read more

I'm at T minus four days to blast off on yet another Etruscan adventure (now my seventh), but this time will be very, very different. And by different, I mean way more awesomer. Mom retired and I'm taking her to Italy on her first trip there so she can say hey to the Pope and see the funny things her crazy daughter likes to do, like dig large holes in the ground and write about broken pottery. Our itinerary will begin with a few days to explore Rome, a quick jaunt to Assisi, another quick jaunt to Florence, then some quality time in Siena and Vescovado di Murlo where I will spend the next two months. I ship mom back to Seattle on the 19th, and then it's time for cleaning a nasty dig house, organizing ... read more

Travel weekend numero uno. Where do I even begin? It was fast and furious. In just three and a half days, my dad and I covered hundreds of kilometers… and no small number of them was on foot! As I write this, we are sittingon a high-speed EuroStar train heading back north from Rome. Thank goodness! I packed my bag on Wednesday night. My dad had Thursday morning to pack his bag (and learn how to use the little stove-top coffeepot in my apartment). After class I made a hasty reservation for a hotel, gathered my teaching stuff I needed to bring with me (e.g., students’ papers I still have to grade), and then swung by the apartment to pick up my dad and the luggage. From there, we stopped at Tabacchi Two for sandwiches, fresh ... read more

Let me begin my write-up of this most recent weekend adventure by stating that it was my favorite trip by far. It truly was the most beautiful place I have ever seen. Before continuing, let me just steer off topic by noting that I want to visit Palermo and then take a train to Messina. From Messina I want to hop on a ferry to the Aeolian Islands. I wish to visit Lipari, Vulcano and Stromboli. I would love to see the "black beaches, bubbling seas, sulfuric mud, hot springs, orange lava and molten rock." Yes, lava. Okay...onward... April 16th, 2009. Renato drove me to the train station at around 11 PM. While there, I ran into Antonette and her boyfriend Danielle. Soon after, Mike arrived. We talked and waited for the bus. April 17th, 2009. ... read more