Thursday, June 23, 2011

June 25

Sorry for all the typos of the previous blog. This iPad has a mind of its own and posted before I edited. Anyway, it is 5:45 a.m. in Italy and we are saying "arrivederchi, Roma."
See you later in the good, very young U.S.A.
We will do our "pond crossing" again, get on the bus, stop at Monica McFadden's aunt and uncle's farm to dine on the way home and reflect on all we have seen and done in Italy. We have put many miles on our shoes, climbed countless steps and 70 degree inclines, and taken away something rich and memorable. It has been a wonderful 12 days imbibing art and culture, not to mention great food. Ciao.

June 24

Sorry for my bloglessness but due to lack of easy Internet access and our rather pressing schedule, I simply have had little time.
Tuesday found us in Verona visiting the Arena there, which is older than the Roman Coliseum.
We also saw the Capulet house, the setting for Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. From there we moved on to Venice where we boarded a boat for a guided tour of the museum in St. Mark's Square that treated us to yet more steps. It was the seat of Venetian government and houses impressive and ornate paintings by Tinioretto. We then checked in at our hotel and walked through downtown Venice to the Bepi Venesian Ristorante where we enjoyed delicious lasagna, roasted chicken and vegetables served up by a jolly older Italian gentleman who referred to our group as "my sweethearts" and gave the girls refills on bread and water in a country that
has made America's free refills on drinks policy seem more than one could hope for.

On Wednesday we took a boat to the Murano Glass Factory and saw glass artisans at work. After shopping and lunch we boarded a bus for Assisi. Traveling through the majestic Appenine Mountains, we were delayed an hour in a mountain traffic jam due to road repairs and were
late arriving at our destination. We wound up at the Assisi McDonald's, which pleased the girls. Nest we stopped for gelato, which is fast becoming a dietary staple, before retiring to our cute hotel. Assisi is a harming town and has a lovely square frequented in the evening by it's residents.

Thursday, our last day in Rome, found us at the monastery of St. Francis. It is high atop a hill and offers climbing challenges not unlike Siena. Its pink and white marble is stunning,
As are the frescos in the three churches there. The feeling of this town within a town is unique and in the church where Francis is buried there is an aura of holiness.
We visited the shops, ate lunch, and returned to Rome; the Appian Way was in view as we returned. The girls wanted to revisit the Spanish Steps so we took the subway and went ther to eat supper. On the way home three of the girls and I missed the subway stop because the door we were standing by was out of order and not being well versed in Italian, we were unaware that we were in a no exit area. We got off and reboarded, arriving at our destination where Patsy Summe and another student were wIting for us. The other girls had returned to our hotel but while she was waiting, Patsy learned that there was a celebration being held for a Roman holy day and a few blocks away, the Pope was going to be comi g down the street in a procession of priests, bishops and cardinals. We scored to chance the walk and at random stood feet away from the Holy Father, as he sat on a float followed by an immense train of laity. We felt our missed stop had turned out fortunate indeed and were sorry the rest of the girls did
Ot get to witness this. Still, we have had an amazing tour of Italy and are looking forward to home sweet home.

Monday, June 20, 2011

June 19

Saturday night found us on guided tour of Florence, which is vibrant and beautiful by moonlight. We even saw a footrace--too hot to race during the day. . .

Sunday we began with Messa at the Duomo di Firenze (Cathedral di Santa Maria del Fiori--Our Lady of the Flower)at 9:00 a.m. A very old padre asked some of our girls to take up the collection. We progressed to a guided walking tour of Florence until late afternoon.
Some of the architecture we observed included the famous bell tower and baptistry adjacent to the Duomo, the first palace of the Medici and the Ponte Vecchio, which is a covered bridge
connecting the Pitti palace (another Medici extravagance)with the previously mentioned palace
(one can never have enough palaces, apparently).
Important gelato stop followed.
We went to the San Croce church where Michelangelo, Galileo and Marconi are buried, just to drop a few famous names of the long deceased. We also saw Dante's house and found out lots of info about the surrounding edifices.
We moved on to the Church of San Lorenza where the Medicis are buried then stopped for lunch.
We next toured the Uffizi Museum where we saw works by Michelangelo, Raphael, Bellini, Leonardo da Vinci, Carravaggio, Bottacelli, Lippi, and many more.
Immersed in art history we made our way back to the hotel to rest our brains and feet. Next was a steak dinner at the Osteria Dei Baroncelli.
Monday found us in Miracle Square in Pisa where we saw magnificent 12th century architecture and the Cathedral of St. Ranieri. The rest of the day was shopping at the markets of Firenze and did we have fun!

Saturday, June 18, 2011

June 18

We are in Firenze (Florence) and the girls are having dinner at a ristorante near the Hilton where we are staying. Tonight we will go on a tour of the city.
We traveled three hours to Siena this morning. Siena is a lovely medieval city built
On five hills. We chaperones climbed hills today that will fill our cardiovascular exercise requirements for the rest of the month. We walked the medieval streets and were taken in by the beauty of the cathedral first constructed in the 13th century, added to in the 14th but stopped by the Black Plague, and rebuilt in the 15th century with Sienese marble. It houses works by Michaelangelo, Donatelli, Raphael and Bernini. Talk about immersion in art and
architecture! We've been there! We spent several hours shopping and found some great souvenirs. Siena is a new favorite city of our girls.
Since we have no free internet access here, I will blog again on Monday and fill in the details about Florence.

Friday, June 17, 2011

June 17

Today was Pompeii and what an eye opener it was! After a 3 hour bus ride (courtesy of Carlo who looked like Danny DeVito's brother)we toured the ruins of a city replete with the remains of stores, an open air mall, a spa, a temple dedicated to Apollo and a bordello (actually there were 22 bordellos in Pompeii according to our guide). Mount Vesuvius was visible nearby and we were awed thinking about how Nature decimated this once vibrant place. We ate pizza and spaghetti at a nearby ristorante then rode the 3 hours back to Rome with some sleepy girls, still recovering from yesterday.
We have taken in so many sites and learned so much about this culturally rich area that we can only hope our pictures tell part of the story. The girls have been interested and entertained.
The guide today asked if they were smart because they impressed him as being so. Of course, they are,we said. They're Notre Dame girls:)

Thursday, June 16, 2011

June 16

Thursday morning found us on the bus headed for St. Peter in Chains Cathedral. We saw the actual chains used to imprison him. Next we walked to the Coliseum and then back on the bus; we next saw the Forum, the Palatine Hills, Circus Maximus, and the site of Caesar's assassination. After lunch we spent three hours touring the Vatican, which was amazing and overwhelming. We saw the exhumed body of Pope John XXIII which was found to be in tact and was then overlayed with wax. The Vatican paintings, tapestries and sculptures are beyond description.
Some of us walked to the Church of the Bones where Capuchin monks took the remains of their deceased members (those which the Vatican decided must be removed from its grounds and buried elsewhere) and decorated the area adjacent to their own church with the bones of the dead.
It was morbidly beautiful--and kind of creepy.
Feeling very Catholic after this busy day, we walked to the Spanish steps where we happened upon a protest march over taxes, complete with carabinerie in pursuit. The girls got a real cultural immersion! We gave them time to eat dinner and shop a bit and they were back to our scheduled meeting spot a half hour early. We boarded a crowded subway car and returned to our hotel, exhausted and satisfied that we had seen all a day would allow.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

June 15

Thirty-three pooped Pandas and their chaperones arrived in the Eternal City at 7:45 a.m. this morning. The "pond crossing" was smooth as glass but few of us got much sleep. We were met at the airport by Alberto who was quite a character; he took us to our tour bus and we were treated to a ride in Rome traffic that is definitely not for the faint of heart. There are 3 1/2 million people in Rome and it seems nearly as many scooters weaving in and out of traffic with cars changing lanes at will. Vehicles are compact as gas is about $9.00 a gallon in American currency.

We drove past the Vatican, which we will tour tomorrow and crossed the Tiber into downtown Rome. We walked to the Trevi Fountain, threw in our three coins over our left shoulders, had gelato, and walked on to the Parliament building in front of which sits the monument to Marcus Aurelius, which is as elaborately carved as it is old. We didn't see the infamous Prime Minister but we did walk on to the Pantheon, built by Hadrian; it is a mere 1800 year old structure housing the remains of Raphael. Formerly dedicated to the ancient gods of Rome, it is now a Christian monument to saints and features a painting of a Black Madonna above the main altar. our tour guide (Lorenza this time) explained how the circular opening at the top of the Pantheon is like the keystone holding the dome in place; it is an architectural wonder!
We walked on to the Piaza Navona where the Four Rivers Water Fountain designed by Bernini and featured in Angels and Demons sits. Our guide told us that there are two thousand fountains in Rome. It was hot and we took a slow walk back to our bus, arrived at our hotel, ate and napped. All agreed that rest was in order before dinner. The girls were amused that the room card must be kept inserted in a slot for room lights to remain on--no wasting electricity here! Dinner is at 8:00 p.m., after which we may take an evening stroll. The girls have been magnifico!