...dateline NZ 11:25....NZ 11:25...
Well after 24 hours of non stop flying fun (including stopovers in Rome, Singapore and Auckland).....we're back home again and frankly I'm wasted.
I should be sleeping now, but of course my body is telling me its almost lunch time.
So, highlights from the month of the boot....in no order, just as they come to my mind.
1/ The view from the top of the isle of Capri, it was a stunning day - which helped, but the James Bond setting and the chair lift access was a piece traveling magic. The reason to holiday.
2/ Walking down the Appian way - the principle road into Rome has been around a long time, the act of walking down a road that so many have walked before was a rose-tinted sense of history.
3/ The Pantheon. When you're there, you realise just how old Rome is - and the colors and design are simple and clean - showing that true class lasts forever, none of the overblown design you find elsewhere....(ahem Vatican city)
4/ The ladies of Italy - dark eyed and dangerous, they know how to dress! They have a tendency to dress a bit young as they get older, so you get the effect of an overstuffed couch trimmed with lamé - but otherwise very very chic.
5/ Driving in Malta. The lunatics are running the asylum there - no matter how interesting our destination, the stressful sweaty drive was by far the highlight. I was carefully given the traffic rules by the person we hired the car from but realised by day 2 that at any given time a Maltese will be breaking them. They hate signposts with a passion, and normally position them so you can see that you've taken the wrong turn as you disappear up the wrong road with a despairing wail. They have a wonderful ability to see around blind corners for the purposes of overtaking - and they speed all over the place. Some things make no sense - like all the traffic (including myself) doing the speed limit and overtaking an ambulance with its lights on. Elsewhere, at a major intersection - a truck was just parked in one of the lanes, causing chaos and mayhem (I was a bit annoyed about that - chaos and mayhem on the road is my job). Great stuff - though I had to learn to ignore the screams of the backseat drivers.
6/ Market days - they're everywhere, and no matter how many you see - you can't resist poking through the endless amounts of cheap tat, dubious leather goods, weird clothing and lumps of food to see if you can pick up something for a bargain.
7/ San Gimiango - Great hill town, great service - and an art gallery that introduced me to my new favorite artist - Guiliano Giuggioli.
8/ Venice. For all the fat tourists and pigeons running around - it is what its cracked up to be, an amazing place with a water problem. Check out the naval museum near the Arsenal.
9/ Amalfi coast - don't go there to see cute little towns and switchback roads, go there for the lazy sunny afternoons on the beach staring at the Mediterranean watching the locals color themselves a rich dark chocolate colour.
10/ Pompei - a timely reminder that when everything looks good, something explosive is around the bend...well also that after you've been buried for years under piles of dirt - you can get dug up.
Well that's me. I'll post up some photos as well when I get them sorted.
Bottom line: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1xRPCiczNM
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Go slow in Gozo
..dateline Gozo 13:28...NZ 01:38...
Well we're spending our penultimate day on the Island of Gozo.....and while we wait for the Gozonian's? Gozotian's ... to reopen after their siesta we're checking our emails on some machines in the Opera House...Gozo is small, it also has a bar and pool hall.
The weather has been muggy, rain and sun..but warm throughout. (A little weather report for you English folk out there)...a low of 20 expected tomorrow. Meanwhile, in sport....
Anyway we visited Valletta on Monday - where we got an overview on how many different cultures have come barging through Malta at one time and another....for a place that doesn't have much to bless itself with, its excited a lot of interest. Fort St Elmo for instance, was destroyed by the Turks (31 days of pain...) and then suffered the first casualties during WWII when the Italians bombed it.
We visited a limestone exhibition and you start to realize that Malta is just one big rock - which they've burrowed into at different times when the going gets tough.
Also not to be missed (breathless tone) is the Tarxien (pronounced Tarshen - no, its not a Star Wars base) Temples. Older than Stonehenge these particular slabs and carvings have been around for over 4000 years...which I shouldn't have to remind you is a hang of a long time. Its arresting to look at structure that has just been around for so long...your insignificance is highlighted.
We also visited the arts and crafts, where we watched Maltese craftsman blow glass and worry tin into interesting shapes. I found some wonderful miniatures, only 1 third of the price of the exact same ones I bought in Venice. Mutter mutter.
Then we visited a water park. For the sheer visceral thrill of throwing ourselves down a slide at top speed - it was very refreshing, but the staff were universally grumpy. It was the end of the season, so I suppose they feel over tourists, but given that my Euro's are as good as everyone else - I would have appreciated a better attitude. The girl blowing up the rubber rings (don't ask) looked as though her boyfriend had just run off with the neighbor, maybe he had. I would if she was that grumpy. Otherwise it was good to see a smallish crowd, no waiting for rides, and lots of Germans and English running around as pale as ghosts.
We plan to go snorkeling today if we can find a good place....ah, to swim in the same place that Nelson dropped anchor.
Useless fact: Gozo is about the same size and Manhattan - a few less people and no United Nations...
Well we're spending our penultimate day on the Island of Gozo.....and while we wait for the Gozonian's? Gozotian's ... to reopen after their siesta we're checking our emails on some machines in the Opera House...Gozo is small, it also has a bar and pool hall.
The weather has been muggy, rain and sun..but warm throughout. (A little weather report for you English folk out there)...a low of 20 expected tomorrow. Meanwhile, in sport....
Anyway we visited Valletta on Monday - where we got an overview on how many different cultures have come barging through Malta at one time and another....for a place that doesn't have much to bless itself with, its excited a lot of interest. Fort St Elmo for instance, was destroyed by the Turks (31 days of pain...) and then suffered the first casualties during WWII when the Italians bombed it.
We visited a limestone exhibition and you start to realize that Malta is just one big rock - which they've burrowed into at different times when the going gets tough.
Also not to be missed (breathless tone) is the Tarxien (pronounced Tarshen - no, its not a Star Wars base) Temples. Older than Stonehenge these particular slabs and carvings have been around for over 4000 years...which I shouldn't have to remind you is a hang of a long time. Its arresting to look at structure that has just been around for so long...your insignificance is highlighted.
We also visited the arts and crafts, where we watched Maltese craftsman blow glass and worry tin into interesting shapes. I found some wonderful miniatures, only 1 third of the price of the exact same ones I bought in Venice. Mutter mutter.
Then we visited a water park. For the sheer visceral thrill of throwing ourselves down a slide at top speed - it was very refreshing, but the staff were universally grumpy. It was the end of the season, so I suppose they feel over tourists, but given that my Euro's are as good as everyone else - I would have appreciated a better attitude. The girl blowing up the rubber rings (don't ask) looked as though her boyfriend had just run off with the neighbor, maybe he had. I would if she was that grumpy. Otherwise it was good to see a smallish crowd, no waiting for rides, and lots of Germans and English running around as pale as ghosts.
We plan to go snorkeling today if we can find a good place....ah, to swim in the same place that Nelson dropped anchor.
Useless fact: Gozo is about the same size and Manhattan - a few less people and no United Nations...
Sunday, October 26, 2008
In with the malteasers....
...dateline Malta 16:10...NZ 05:10...
Here we are in Malta..and I've finally got back onto the internet.
Briefly..after we left Montecarlo in Tuscany we dropped off the car and caught the train from Pisa to Venice via Florence, then we moved onto Malta 2 days later.
We didn't go and see a great deal in Pisa - apart from the square with the tower on a lean. Of course all the tourists there lined up to have an amusing photo taken of them holding the tower up. Next time I go I'm going to take a photo of the tourists doing amusing things with their arms and legs.
The tower isn't that big really...apparently the builder realised half way along that the foundation was having an issue - you can see where they have started building on a angle to compensate.
Ah Venice...streets full of water..please advise. (I've been wanting to use Robert Benchley's quote for some time..)
Venice...is incomparable. Its simply one of those cities you have to visit before you die. I really can't do it justice with a couple of sentences, so I will just stream some impressions.
We arrived and had to immediately cross a bridge from the station - then you realise that you're going to cross more bridges in a day that you would normally cross in a month...maybe a year and lugging luggage is hard work. Adelle need help with carting her gear around...so I was the sherpa following around with 2 suitcases and a bag.
Then you catch a water bus to your flat and then you understand that everything you expect to see as a car or truck..is on the water. Rubbish is hand carted to long narrow boats, builders go to work in little boats, goods are delivered via boat and cart. Its fascinating..and I sat and watched the boats on the grand canal for an hour.
Then the narrow alleyways....this way and that. We got lost a little bit at first - but finally I worked out the scale of the map and we were sorted.
The prices are full on - but I don't really begrudge them, because if tourist economics wasn't at work, we wouldn't have Venice to visit.
That's the other thing - they have a grand tradition of making a fast buck and you could see it everywhere. We visited the Bridge of Sighs....and it was plastered with car adverts. That was disappointing...but very predictable.
There are a huge amount of books on Venice - but if you're looking for something that covers their rise and decline before the tourist, check out the John Julius Norwich history.
San Marco square was covered with pigeons and tourists...only the Sistine Chapel was more densely packed....we left and came back early in the morning when it was relatively empty. Then we went down to the arsenal were the galleys were launched - we couldn't get it because its still a military base..but we visited the navel museum and for only 1.40 Euro..it was fantastic value...err..provided you like Italian Naval history.
We really didn't have a enough time in Venice - but plenty of reason to go back.
Then we flew to Malta - a place that gets an enormous amount of sun. Its therefore singularly unequipped for the enormous amount of water pouring from the sky this afternoon.....it started to look as though we were back in Venice...all the streets covered with water washing everywhere.
Last night we headed out and immediately got lost in the goat tracks around the area we are renting...we got sorted out though and found an indian resturant! Yipee! I was so ready for an indian meal. It was great - although the owner was solicitous to the point that you thought he was pulling your leg. He hovered around and tried to explain everything...punctuated with "yes please..ooh thank you...you are sweet"...as we were all familiar with the dishes was ordered in a great hurry...tika masala with extra garlic naan. yes please!
The architecture and landscape is great here - very arabesque...flat topped white houses with string beads and domes.
Malta has payed a huge price for being the crossroads of the med..I've been fascinated by its history for some time. Unfortunately for the Maltese they've had just about every nationality around the Mediterranean try to take over or take over at different times. The melange of cultures is very evident...
Bottom line: Maltesers don't come from Malta. They were invented by Forrest Mars Snr.
Here we are in Malta..and I've finally got back onto the internet.
Briefly..after we left Montecarlo in Tuscany we dropped off the car and caught the train from Pisa to Venice via Florence, then we moved onto Malta 2 days later.
We didn't go and see a great deal in Pisa - apart from the square with the tower on a lean. Of course all the tourists there lined up to have an amusing photo taken of them holding the tower up. Next time I go I'm going to take a photo of the tourists doing amusing things with their arms and legs.
The tower isn't that big really...apparently the builder realised half way along that the foundation was having an issue - you can see where they have started building on a angle to compensate.
Ah Venice...streets full of water..please advise. (I've been wanting to use Robert Benchley's quote for some time..)
Venice...is incomparable. Its simply one of those cities you have to visit before you die. I really can't do it justice with a couple of sentences, so I will just stream some impressions.
We arrived and had to immediately cross a bridge from the station - then you realise that you're going to cross more bridges in a day that you would normally cross in a month...maybe a year and lugging luggage is hard work. Adelle need help with carting her gear around...so I was the sherpa following around with 2 suitcases and a bag.
Then you catch a water bus to your flat and then you understand that everything you expect to see as a car or truck..is on the water. Rubbish is hand carted to long narrow boats, builders go to work in little boats, goods are delivered via boat and cart. Its fascinating..and I sat and watched the boats on the grand canal for an hour.
Then the narrow alleyways....this way and that. We got lost a little bit at first - but finally I worked out the scale of the map and we were sorted.
The prices are full on - but I don't really begrudge them, because if tourist economics wasn't at work, we wouldn't have Venice to visit.
That's the other thing - they have a grand tradition of making a fast buck and you could see it everywhere. We visited the Bridge of Sighs....and it was plastered with car adverts. That was disappointing...but very predictable.
There are a huge amount of books on Venice - but if you're looking for something that covers their rise and decline before the tourist, check out the John Julius Norwich history.
San Marco square was covered with pigeons and tourists...only the Sistine Chapel was more densely packed....we left and came back early in the morning when it was relatively empty. Then we went down to the arsenal were the galleys were launched - we couldn't get it because its still a military base..but we visited the navel museum and for only 1.40 Euro..it was fantastic value...err..provided you like Italian Naval history.
We really didn't have a enough time in Venice - but plenty of reason to go back.
Then we flew to Malta - a place that gets an enormous amount of sun. Its therefore singularly unequipped for the enormous amount of water pouring from the sky this afternoon.....it started to look as though we were back in Venice...all the streets covered with water washing everywhere.
Last night we headed out and immediately got lost in the goat tracks around the area we are renting...we got sorted out though and found an indian resturant! Yipee! I was so ready for an indian meal. It was great - although the owner was solicitous to the point that you thought he was pulling your leg. He hovered around and tried to explain everything...punctuated with "yes please..ooh thank you...you are sweet"...as we were all familiar with the dishes was ordered in a great hurry...tika masala with extra garlic naan. yes please!
The architecture and landscape is great here - very arabesque...flat topped white houses with string beads and domes.
Malta has payed a huge price for being the crossroads of the med..I've been fascinated by its history for some time. Unfortunately for the Maltese they've had just about every nationality around the Mediterranean try to take over or take over at different times. The melange of cultures is very evident...
Bottom line: Maltesers don't come from Malta. They were invented by Forrest Mars Snr.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Under the Tuscan moon..
..dateline Tuscany 18:15...NZ 07:15...
Well I've just spent a lazy 2 hours in a beautiful pool with the sun gleaming down on me...I could really get used to this lifestyle. What have you down with your Monday afternoon?
Tuscany is considered the birthplace of the of the Renaissance movement - The amount of artists around here...layabouts....trying to sell you cheap watercolours, actually on the whole they're not bad. I've even bought a piece of art - although how I'm going to get the thing home is another story.
We've done what everyone else does here...toured art galleries, small historic towns, eaten a ton of cheese and olives (although I dreamed I was an onion on Saturn last night - so I might cut down before bed).
Last night we attended a chocolate festival in a place called Montecarlo...where we could observe the italians at enjoying their favorite pastimes...food and family.
If you can imagine a narrow medieval street on a hill top (they're all on hills here..easy to defend)..lined with stalls selling the most exotic chocolates...with hordes of locals (yipee... no tourists!) strolling in the gathering dusk with their extended families..eating chocolate..now and then greeting friends in a hearty manner. Kids running around and a constant babble of Italian filling the warm autum air, nearer the square the church bell would crisply toll the passage of the evening. It was very pleasant and we wrapped it up with a 9:00 dinner at the local resturant. Grilled florantine steak with a mixed salade for me. The chef sent out his specials to the foreigners...very nice - and it was pea soup! High praise from me...I detest peas ordinarly with the cold hatred reserved for snakes or people who drive slowly in the fast lane.
As much as I enjoy the scenery which is great...the locals provide more entertainment, they obviously love life and they're dressed well! Even the nutters, mutterers and auditors...I saw an oldish chap, unshaven...muttering to some invisble friend make his way down the street and he could have fitted into a Hugo Boss glossy (maybe there is a niche market there...dressers to the insane). I mean the crazy people in Newtown, NZ make do with cardboard and carpet. So for the Italians...their national carrier might be falling out of the sky (if we don't make it off Malta you know they've closed down) but their people will be very chic.
Boring fact: Tuscany is the birthplace of Dante Alighieri, the father of modern Ialian and of course the writer of the The Divine Comedy.
Bottom line: Dress to impress..even invisble friends have standards.
Well I've just spent a lazy 2 hours in a beautiful pool with the sun gleaming down on me...I could really get used to this lifestyle. What have you down with your Monday afternoon?
Tuscany is considered the birthplace of the of the Renaissance movement - The amount of artists around here...layabouts....trying to sell you cheap watercolours, actually on the whole they're not bad. I've even bought a piece of art - although how I'm going to get the thing home is another story.
We've done what everyone else does here...toured art galleries, small historic towns, eaten a ton of cheese and olives (although I dreamed I was an onion on Saturn last night - so I might cut down before bed).
Last night we attended a chocolate festival in a place called Montecarlo...where we could observe the italians at enjoying their favorite pastimes...food and family.
If you can imagine a narrow medieval street on a hill top (they're all on hills here..easy to defend)..lined with stalls selling the most exotic chocolates...with hordes of locals (yipee... no tourists!) strolling in the gathering dusk with their extended families..eating chocolate..now and then greeting friends in a hearty manner. Kids running around and a constant babble of Italian filling the warm autum air, nearer the square the church bell would crisply toll the passage of the evening. It was very pleasant and we wrapped it up with a 9:00 dinner at the local resturant. Grilled florantine steak with a mixed salade for me. The chef sent out his specials to the foreigners...very nice - and it was pea soup! High praise from me...I detest peas ordinarly with the cold hatred reserved for snakes or people who drive slowly in the fast lane.
As much as I enjoy the scenery which is great...the locals provide more entertainment, they obviously love life and they're dressed well! Even the nutters, mutterers and auditors...I saw an oldish chap, unshaven...muttering to some invisble friend make his way down the street and he could have fitted into a Hugo Boss glossy (maybe there is a niche market there...dressers to the insane). I mean the crazy people in Newtown, NZ make do with cardboard and carpet. So for the Italians...their national carrier might be falling out of the sky (if we don't make it off Malta you know they've closed down) but their people will be very chic.
Boring fact: Tuscany is the birthplace of Dante Alighieri, the father of modern Ialian and of course the writer of the The Divine Comedy.
Bottom line: Dress to impress..even invisble friends have standards.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
A funny thing happened on the way to the forum...
...dateline Tuscany 15:02 ...NZ 04:02....
Righto...better update you as to where we are. We are now in Tuscany about an hour south of Florence and this blog is so behind that I'm going to bundle a few comments up together.
Monday we drove up here via Pompei (nice city shame about the accident). We arrived here in the evening...yes, its a converted monastry. So we're living in dorms with communal facilities and we're rising at two in the morning to sing psalms.
Yeah right..
We've spent our days so far tourning the wonderful countryside and visiting the shops..there are good deals out there, but a lot of sharks as well. Leather goods anyone?
Speaking of sharks, what better time to talk about the Isle of Capri.
If they tell you there are not many sharks in the med..well there are a bunch of them in Capri..oh my aching wallet. Don't misunderstand me..the place is great, but the prices are beyond the merely generous to the eyepoppingly painful. The one "value for money thing" we did was catch the gondola from Anacapri to the highest point of the island..8 Euro. Absolutely fantastic....as the photos will demonstrate when I can finally use my own machine! Probably when I get home.
Now, before I go...some words about The Forum, Ostia Antiqua and Pompei.... "Oops! What happened?"
Well..I could go on...but I enjoy history, and most people don't...so I won't.
We saw everything from the seat of government, to the villa's, the temples, the adminstration...the sewars...the brothels. Expensive legacy...
Right that is tonight's homework...3000 page essay...on: Rome - where did it all go wrong? ...E Gibbons - The decline and Fall.
Bottom line: A year under the Tuscan sun will leave you brown and lethargic.
Righto...better update you as to where we are. We are now in Tuscany about an hour south of Florence and this blog is so behind that I'm going to bundle a few comments up together.
Monday we drove up here via Pompei (nice city shame about the accident). We arrived here in the evening...yes, its a converted monastry. So we're living in dorms with communal facilities and we're rising at two in the morning to sing psalms.
Yeah right..
We've spent our days so far tourning the wonderful countryside and visiting the shops..there are good deals out there, but a lot of sharks as well. Leather goods anyone?
Speaking of sharks, what better time to talk about the Isle of Capri.
If they tell you there are not many sharks in the med..well there are a bunch of them in Capri..oh my aching wallet. Don't misunderstand me..the place is great, but the prices are beyond the merely generous to the eyepoppingly painful. The one "value for money thing" we did was catch the gondola from Anacapri to the highest point of the island..8 Euro. Absolutely fantastic....as the photos will demonstrate when I can finally use my own machine! Probably when I get home.
Now, before I go...some words about The Forum, Ostia Antiqua and Pompei.... "Oops! What happened?"
Well..I could go on...but I enjoy history, and most people don't...so I won't.
We saw everything from the seat of government, to the villa's, the temples, the adminstration...the sewars...the brothels. Expensive legacy...
Right that is tonight's homework...3000 page essay...on: Rome - where did it all go wrong? ...E Gibbons - The decline and Fall.
Bottom line: A year under the Tuscan sun will leave you brown and lethargic.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Colosseum and friends...
..dateline Amalfi 21:47 NZ 10:47...
As you move into Colosseum you start thinking..this place is a bit dirty, the dark columns of stone are filthy with the accumulated grime of the centuries before....not to mention the thousands of tourists that come through. It was pretty awesome to behold actually, a testimony to the ability of Rome's elite to tap and organise the resources of the empire. Huge and brilliantly designed, for instance it could hold double the number of Wellington's "cake tin", and it could exit them all within minutues. Interestingly, the moral code was quite strict in pagan Rome - women and men were not seated together...stop that chattering when serious killing was going on.
Then we moved onto the bathhouse via Circus Maximo....we walked along the track where chariots used to thunder down, nothing to see now of course, apart from young italian couples necking on the slopes...frankly when it comes to physical affection these guys are loud and proud.
The bathhouse was very intesting..the gardens were fantastic. To imagine it, you have to think of a huge complex surrounded by gardens...maybe 5 stories high. You went there for a swim, a spa...work out at the gym..(grunt) and then cold pool before you went to a different building to study scrolls. So along with the worship of the gods you could find something for everything - physical, mental and spiritual. Then one fine day the Goths turned up and cut of the water, not to mention the limbs of peasants in an outlying area...so people stopped going there, because they were too afraid of being attacked by bandits... among other things.
I was absorbed by the thought of this complex building, as civilized as you get today, suddenly falling out of use..because the ebb of civilization flowed away.
For a computer game player it was facitating....I used to think that the designers of these roleplaying games had the proportions over the top with their buildings and suchlike...but seeing these ruins I think they have a point....they were massive.
Then we walked the appian way....yes! Tick...we had a moments silence for Spartacus on the way through, before we reached the catacombs.
Ah..the catacombs..there are 20 miles of them, 4 levels deep and about 500,000 graves there. We stood on the spot where an early pope was hold a service when Roman soldiers caught up with him and took him upstairs to take off his head...I'm not sure which one..'cause the guide was asian, who told us many times he was notorius for losing people...I decided not to test the limit of his english skills.
Anyway..it was a long day and my plates of meat were complaining loudly.
Bottom line: if you want to bury someone quickly...choose volcanic soil, it's easy to dig..and hardens when exposed to air...there's a little tip for you amature funeral directors out there.
As you move into Colosseum you start thinking..this place is a bit dirty, the dark columns of stone are filthy with the accumulated grime of the centuries before....not to mention the thousands of tourists that come through. It was pretty awesome to behold actually, a testimony to the ability of Rome's elite to tap and organise the resources of the empire. Huge and brilliantly designed, for instance it could hold double the number of Wellington's "cake tin", and it could exit them all within minutues. Interestingly, the moral code was quite strict in pagan Rome - women and men were not seated together...stop that chattering when serious killing was going on.
Then we moved onto the bathhouse via Circus Maximo....we walked along the track where chariots used to thunder down, nothing to see now of course, apart from young italian couples necking on the slopes...frankly when it comes to physical affection these guys are loud and proud.
The bathhouse was very intesting..the gardens were fantastic. To imagine it, you have to think of a huge complex surrounded by gardens...maybe 5 stories high. You went there for a swim, a spa...work out at the gym..(grunt) and then cold pool before you went to a different building to study scrolls. So along with the worship of the gods you could find something for everything - physical, mental and spiritual. Then one fine day the Goths turned up and cut of the water, not to mention the limbs of peasants in an outlying area...so people stopped going there, because they were too afraid of being attacked by bandits... among other things.
I was absorbed by the thought of this complex building, as civilized as you get today, suddenly falling out of use..because the ebb of civilization flowed away.
For a computer game player it was facitating....I used to think that the designers of these roleplaying games had the proportions over the top with their buildings and suchlike...but seeing these ruins I think they have a point....they were massive.
Then we walked the appian way....yes! Tick...we had a moments silence for Spartacus on the way through, before we reached the catacombs.
Ah..the catacombs..there are 20 miles of them, 4 levels deep and about 500,000 graves there. We stood on the spot where an early pope was hold a service when Roman soldiers caught up with him and took him upstairs to take off his head...I'm not sure which one..'cause the guide was asian, who told us many times he was notorius for losing people...I decided not to test the limit of his english skills.
Anyway..it was a long day and my plates of meat were complaining loudly.
Bottom line: if you want to bury someone quickly...choose volcanic soil, it's easy to dig..and hardens when exposed to air...there's a little tip for you amature funeral directors out there.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Vatican City....
As you approach the Vatican city..you're concious of one thing, there is a hang of a lot of money floating around here. Its quite interesting, if you can imagine a gigantic domed building with pillared walkways extending out to you on the left and right...then that's the impression you're supposed to get when you approach. Its supposed to show the church embracing its flock...but for me it was like a giant crab....though I didn't mention this at the time.
We stood in line for a long time for St Peter,s...it was OK I guess..I'm not one for churches to be frank...but the artwork was pretty impressive....their interior decorator wasn't into the subtle..
We waited and stood for ages to get into the Sistine chapel...so while we're standing there lets look at the scooters and smart cars going by...
Scooters and parking for the Italians are not a science - they are art form, what one italian, a scooter and a roadway can produce together. Someone should go around Rome and get some pictures for a coffee table book. Then the actual driving! I saw a chappie take off from the lights on his scooter, smoking a cheroot, texting on his mobile phone....while playing the acordian. Ok I'm lying about the cheroot....but the point is these guys wizz all over the place in amazing ways. Its lively - and I like it. This is NOT a Nanny state. Most pedestrian crossings have a pedestrian lights, but some don't...and Italian drivers don't stop, you just have the walk out and they slow for you - you hope. There were a couple of elderly british folk waiting on one side by the pantheon, they were still there 2 days later when I went back - still trying to get across.
You always stand out as a tourist here, cause you tend to hussle across the road....you'd need to hit an Italian with 40 million volts before they'd hurry from the bus bearning down on them.
If you want to visit the sistine chapel...remember this...you're in for a long walk, in fact its like pilgrims progress. The art is rich, full and like the italian food after a while its JUST TOO MUCH! That's the british in me coming out, anyway..the actual chapel is filled with people with the guards fruitlessly trying to shush people. Too crowded I'm afraid, but I can say I've seen it, which is the important part. TICK!
Bottom line: The swiss guard do not provide swiss rolls to hungry tourists. In fact they have some difficulty understanding that request...
We stood in line for a long time for St Peter,s...it was OK I guess..I'm not one for churches to be frank...but the artwork was pretty impressive....their interior decorator wasn't into the subtle..
We waited and stood for ages to get into the Sistine chapel...so while we're standing there lets look at the scooters and smart cars going by...
Scooters and parking for the Italians are not a science - they are art form, what one italian, a scooter and a roadway can produce together. Someone should go around Rome and get some pictures for a coffee table book. Then the actual driving! I saw a chappie take off from the lights on his scooter, smoking a cheroot, texting on his mobile phone....while playing the acordian. Ok I'm lying about the cheroot....but the point is these guys wizz all over the place in amazing ways. Its lively - and I like it. This is NOT a Nanny state. Most pedestrian crossings have a pedestrian lights, but some don't...and Italian drivers don't stop, you just have the walk out and they slow for you - you hope. There were a couple of elderly british folk waiting on one side by the pantheon, they were still there 2 days later when I went back - still trying to get across.
You always stand out as a tourist here, cause you tend to hussle across the road....you'd need to hit an Italian with 40 million volts before they'd hurry from the bus bearning down on them.
If you want to visit the sistine chapel...remember this...you're in for a long walk, in fact its like pilgrims progress. The art is rich, full and like the italian food after a while its JUST TOO MUCH! That's the british in me coming out, anyway..the actual chapel is filled with people with the guards fruitlessly trying to shush people. Too crowded I'm afraid, but I can say I've seen it, which is the important part. TICK!
Bottom line: The swiss guard do not provide swiss rolls to hungry tourists. In fact they have some difficulty understanding that request...
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
