Tomorrow the statewide smoking ban goes into effect. Business owners are up in arms claiming that suddenly smokers will no longer go out of doors and participate in the capitalist economy. Apparently because they can no longer smoke and drink at the same time, they will no longer feel the need to eat out or go to their favorite club. The economic stability of the restaurant and bar industry in Colorado is in jeopardy because smoking will no longer be allowed. Colorado will soon follow theh example of cities and states like New York, Florida or California which no longer have bars and restaurants since their smoking bans became law.
Actually, we don’t even have to go as far as California to see the impact of smoking bans when Boulder banned smoking long ago, which might explain why so many Boulderites are flooding Denver bars and clubs, because they don't have any of their own. So, go out tonight, enjoy your last night of being able to eat in public since Monday everything will be closed and shuttered and out of business.
Friday, June 30, 2006
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Seeing ain't believing... nor should it be.
In itself, the image is bound neither to truth nor reality; it is appearance and bound to appearance. That is its magical affiliation with the illusion of the world as it is, the affiliation that reminds us that the real is never certain -- just as we can never be certain that the worst will happen -- and that perhaps the world can do without it, as it can do without the reality principle.
An image, I believe, affecs us directly, below the level of representation: at the level of intuition, of perception. At that level, the image is always an absolute surprise. At least it should be.
-- Jean Baudrillard, "the intelligence of evil or the lucidity pact"
An image, I believe, affecs us directly, below the level of representation: at the level of intuition, of perception. At that level, the image is always an absolute surprise. At least it should be.
-- Jean Baudrillard, "the intelligence of evil or the lucidity pact"
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
The Final Word
The last five weeks have been amazing. I have learned so much about myself and the world around me and along the way I managed to even learn a bit about how to travel more effectively. (For instance, don’t book a 8:00 AM Sunday flight in a city where the public transport doesn’t start until 7:00 AM) It is a little difficult to wrap the whole trip up into a nice package and summarize it all without leaving something out. If you have been following along here then you already know a lot of what I have experienced and even some of the ideas I have had on the trip.
Now it is back to the real world and the daily grind of life. Keep checking back here from time to time as I maintain this blog year round as well as a couple of others my film blog: The Film Commune and my political blog The Liberal Dilemma are both posted to regularly. Also be sure to check the website again as we post the best of Europe pictures fully edited and in better looking galleries.
Thanks all!
Shaych
There are a couple more galleries up with the final pics from the end of the trip.
Now it is back to the real world and the daily grind of life. Keep checking back here from time to time as I maintain this blog year round as well as a couple of others my film blog: The Film Commune and my political blog The Liberal Dilemma are both posted to regularly. Also be sure to check the website again as we post the best of Europe pictures fully edited and in better looking galleries.
Thanks all!
Shaych
There are a couple more galleries up with the final pics from the end of the trip.
London Bridge is Falling… Ah Who Cares.
I don’t want to spend too much time writing about London, mostly because aside from a few great moments, it didn’t really have that great of an impact on me. I am sure that Val went into greater detail but London feels too much like the United States and since arriving, it feels like we are just in New York and not across the ocean in another country.
Perhaps it is that I am suffering from a little bit of travel fatigue or that everything is ridiculously expensive but London just doesn’t feel right to me. I have tried a couple of times to find out if the city is really expensive for those who actually live here or if it is only because our dollar is worth half of theirs but I can’t seem to get a straight answer. Some things it makes sense that they are about as expensive as they are at home but other things just aren’t.
It is probably not fair to write the city off entirely since we have been on the road for over a month and at this point I am ready to be home and sleeping in my own bed, but for now, give me Paris again any day.
Cheers!
Shaych
Perhaps it is that I am suffering from a little bit of travel fatigue or that everything is ridiculously expensive but London just doesn’t feel right to me. I have tried a couple of times to find out if the city is really expensive for those who actually live here or if it is only because our dollar is worth half of theirs but I can’t seem to get a straight answer. Some things it makes sense that they are about as expensive as they are at home but other things just aren’t.
It is probably not fair to write the city off entirely since we have been on the road for over a month and at this point I am ready to be home and sleeping in my own bed, but for now, give me Paris again any day.
Cheers!
Shaych
Saturday, June 10, 2006
La Vie en Rose
This is my last journal entry from Paris. For those of you who know me well, you know that it has been a life long dream to live in New York, that has now changed. Paris has become my “new” New York. On our way back to Paris I began to fear that perhaps the city’s impressions were mostly impressions of my first great European city and that it wasn’t Paris per se that I was in love with but the idea of finally being back in Europe. When we arrived and I found myself walking again on Parisian soil, I realized that it is the city I am in love with and not just the idea.
On our first day back we took a stroll down to the Cimitère du Père Lachaise and paid our respects to some it’s famous residence. Unfortunately the sickness that had begun to take hold our last night in Florence was in full swing and I wasn’t able to do much more than that for the morning. My throat had swollen up and I could barely swallow anything plus, I could barely walk without pain or discomfort somewhere in my body and the mile walk to the cemetery had pretty much taken its toll so Val brought me home and let me sleep of the morning with a refreshing nap and when I awoke, we went off to explore the city again.
Over the course of the next couple of days, we were able to pay our respects to some of our other favorite people and heroes. We visited the Paris Catacombs and spent a little over an hour walking amongst the dead relocated to the abandoned quarries below the city. However, perhaps the greatest highlight of our return to Paris was finally getting to meet one of our true mentors, Angès Varda. In spite of the fact that she was busy putting together the finishing touches on a new show, she took a few moments to meet with two humble admirers. The visit was absolutely just wonderful.
On our last night, in our last few waking hours in Paris, I wanted so desperately to capture as much as I could every angle and image that I had experienced. I want to package all of this up and take it home with me and the tools I have to do it just aren’t enough. I can’t wait to come back, not in a few years but months. My last trip to New York I left loving the city but not missing a piece of myself. When we leave Paris tomorrow, a part of me will forever be here and, I won’t be complete until I come back to find it.
Is Paris paradise? Of course not, but it is as close as any city can get. The city has it’s problems but what city doesn’t. Today the temperature was in the mid 70s and the humidity was just perfect. I didn’t feel as though I was going to roast to death in my pants and long sleeve shirt, will the weather change in the high summer heat? Sure but you know what, it was over 90 degrees in Denver today and the heat hasn’t even started. I don’t like Denver’s weather. The sun is way to intense and I hate the fact that it never seems to rain or snow anymore. My body craves moisture and the dryness of Colorado just feels like an oven where I am being baked at a nice 450 degrees until golden brown.
Is there poverty? Of course there is, but there is in Denver too. We live a block from Colfax avenue in Downtown Denver. On my way to campus every morning I pass at least 15 homeless people, many of which are incapacitated in one way or another. Is there violence? Naturally but I have not felt this safe in any city in my life. Paris is a major world city and with that distinction come challenges. Find me a city that has over two million people and doesn’t suffer from these problems and I’ll explore that, until then Paris is just fine for me.
So what is it about this city that has grabbed my heart?
Aside from the deep connection that could only be described using metaphysical terms that would no doubt bore you all, there are a few concrete things that I can point to.
This city is built on cinema and photography. Both forms of artistic expression have their roots here and arguably flourished from this city either directly or by artists coming here to find their inspiration. The city loves cinema, French and American alike. There are a whole series of film festivals and film celebrations that happen year round in the city and the surrounding areas. There are cinemas all over and more than one research center and library dedicated to the study, production and preservation of film. I have never been in a city where over half the audience stayed to watch the credits of a major Hollywood production. Their cinemas are amazing temples to a form of artistic expression they hold dear.
It is a city that values the arts and culture to the point that electronic billboards throughout the city that list various activities taking place many of which are free to the public. (One of these billboards is how we found out about the free Cinema of Paris exhibit.)
Paris forced me to slow down, in everything I did. I ate slower (and less) and enjoyed every bite of it. Even my walking pace slowed in Paris to the point where I was telling Val to slow down a bit because he was walking too fast.
Paris is a city where new and old exist in a symbiotic relationship. Everything new looks back and references the old; from furniture to shoes, there is a clear understanding of where Paris has been and how that influences where Paris is going.
My only real complaint is how Americanized the city has become. It was disheartening to see so many Starbucks and McDonalds not to mention the Pizza Huts and KFCs. We avoided them all (except McDonalds to get a coke) and found that there were scores of other options for inexpensive food.
Perhaps one day soon, we will get the chance to return to Paris and study and maybe even live. However for now we must say good-bye to the city and look forward to our next adventure in London. So for the last time,
Salut!
Shaych
On our first day back we took a stroll down to the Cimitère du Père Lachaise and paid our respects to some it’s famous residence. Unfortunately the sickness that had begun to take hold our last night in Florence was in full swing and I wasn’t able to do much more than that for the morning. My throat had swollen up and I could barely swallow anything plus, I could barely walk without pain or discomfort somewhere in my body and the mile walk to the cemetery had pretty much taken its toll so Val brought me home and let me sleep of the morning with a refreshing nap and when I awoke, we went off to explore the city again.
Over the course of the next couple of days, we were able to pay our respects to some of our other favorite people and heroes. We visited the Paris Catacombs and spent a little over an hour walking amongst the dead relocated to the abandoned quarries below the city. However, perhaps the greatest highlight of our return to Paris was finally getting to meet one of our true mentors, Angès Varda. In spite of the fact that she was busy putting together the finishing touches on a new show, she took a few moments to meet with two humble admirers. The visit was absolutely just wonderful.
On our last night, in our last few waking hours in Paris, I wanted so desperately to capture as much as I could every angle and image that I had experienced. I want to package all of this up and take it home with me and the tools I have to do it just aren’t enough. I can’t wait to come back, not in a few years but months. My last trip to New York I left loving the city but not missing a piece of myself. When we leave Paris tomorrow, a part of me will forever be here and, I won’t be complete until I come back to find it.
Is Paris paradise? Of course not, but it is as close as any city can get. The city has it’s problems but what city doesn’t. Today the temperature was in the mid 70s and the humidity was just perfect. I didn’t feel as though I was going to roast to death in my pants and long sleeve shirt, will the weather change in the high summer heat? Sure but you know what, it was over 90 degrees in Denver today and the heat hasn’t even started. I don’t like Denver’s weather. The sun is way to intense and I hate the fact that it never seems to rain or snow anymore. My body craves moisture and the dryness of Colorado just feels like an oven where I am being baked at a nice 450 degrees until golden brown.
Is there poverty? Of course there is, but there is in Denver too. We live a block from Colfax avenue in Downtown Denver. On my way to campus every morning I pass at least 15 homeless people, many of which are incapacitated in one way or another. Is there violence? Naturally but I have not felt this safe in any city in my life. Paris is a major world city and with that distinction come challenges. Find me a city that has over two million people and doesn’t suffer from these problems and I’ll explore that, until then Paris is just fine for me.
So what is it about this city that has grabbed my heart?
Aside from the deep connection that could only be described using metaphysical terms that would no doubt bore you all, there are a few concrete things that I can point to.
This city is built on cinema and photography. Both forms of artistic expression have their roots here and arguably flourished from this city either directly or by artists coming here to find their inspiration. The city loves cinema, French and American alike. There are a whole series of film festivals and film celebrations that happen year round in the city and the surrounding areas. There are cinemas all over and more than one research center and library dedicated to the study, production and preservation of film. I have never been in a city where over half the audience stayed to watch the credits of a major Hollywood production. Their cinemas are amazing temples to a form of artistic expression they hold dear.
It is a city that values the arts and culture to the point that electronic billboards throughout the city that list various activities taking place many of which are free to the public. (One of these billboards is how we found out about the free Cinema of Paris exhibit.)
Paris forced me to slow down, in everything I did. I ate slower (and less) and enjoyed every bite of it. Even my walking pace slowed in Paris to the point where I was telling Val to slow down a bit because he was walking too fast.
Paris is a city where new and old exist in a symbiotic relationship. Everything new looks back and references the old; from furniture to shoes, there is a clear understanding of where Paris has been and how that influences where Paris is going.
My only real complaint is how Americanized the city has become. It was disheartening to see so many Starbucks and McDonalds not to mention the Pizza Huts and KFCs. We avoided them all (except McDonalds to get a coke) and found that there were scores of other options for inexpensive food.
Perhaps one day soon, we will get the chance to return to Paris and study and maybe even live. However for now we must say good-bye to the city and look forward to our next adventure in London. So for the last time,
Salut!
Shaych
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
La Dolce Vita
La Dolce Vita
About a month ago, the realization that I was going to Europe finally hit me. This summer was to begin with a series of events that I knew would change my life forever and it is easy to say they have.
The three weeks in Florence gave us a taste of what it would be like to live in Europe. Not be here purely on vacation but study and live our lives in the same (well close enough) to the way we lived at home. Because we had an apartment we were able to grocery shop and cook dinner, lunches and have breakfast at home, we were living real lives in Italy. In our time there I learned a lot about living the Italian lifestyle. For instance:
In Italian supermarkets, you use plastic gloves to pick your fruit. Once selected, you bag it, weigh it and put on a sticker that the clerk can scan. I was told this came to be mostly because prior to supermarkets, the Italians purchased their fruit from street vendors who would not allow them to touch the fruit. Instead they would tell the vendor what they wanted and they would pick it out for the customer and people were not used to the idea of other strangers handling their fruit so alas, gloves.
The Eurail pass works really well, for commuter trains but they tend to take a lot longer to get where you are going, I mean a lot longer.
The myth of wait staff not needing to be tipped is false. Apparently this comes from two things that have been misinterpreted. One, in Italy (particularly Florence) if you eat your food in the restaurant, there is usually an additional charge. This charge can be in addition to the second confusion: the service charge, which appears on your sit down check. This tends to be a small fee of €1 to €2 and does not go to your server but to the establishment to help cover the high cost of linen laundry, dishes, etc. Because of years of guidebooks and people misinterpreting these two things, servers no longer expect to get tips, particularly from Americans. I learned this from a friend of Val’s who is living in Italy and had it confirmed by a couple of other people.
You can also tell the difference in service and attitude when you begin tipping in any regular establishment you may frequent. We stopped into one café fairly regularly on our way to school to get coffee in the morning and I hadn’t seen the woman behind the counter smile as big as she did when we gave her a very simple €.50 tip on our coffee. So, when you go to Italy, ask about tipping and be ready to do so. Also, make sure it goes directly to the server as sometimes dishonest restaurateurs will see the money on the table and snatch it up. There are usually no spaces on a credit card receipt to tip so have some cash handy, besides tips should always be in cash, even stateside.
Remember doing the full multi-course meal takes time and they aren’t used to having the table right away to seat the next group. This means two things: don’t rush your meals and don’t get pissy if you cant get seated in ten minutes. If you have to eat at a certain restaurant, make a reservation. In any sit down regular restaurant you can have a meal consisting of a antipasto (appetizer), prmi (usually pasta), secondi (the meat), dolce (desert) and coffee and could also involve salads and side dishes, it takes time. If you don’t want the whole thing you can just order one course and have a good sized meal.
While I am here, a word on coffee. If you order a “café” you will get a straight up perfectly poured shot of espresso in a demitasse cup with a packet of sugar and a small spoon. Coffee is not for the weak. However, you may find some of you other coffee shop favorites like dopio, macchiato, cappuccino (though it is usually a little closer to what we would call a latté) and such. If you absolutely want a good ole cup of joe, order an Americano, it is the closest thing you are gonna get.
When visiting churches make sure you are dressed appropriately. Inevitably someone in our group was wearing something too revealing and ended up having to cover up a part of his/her body with a blue smock. No one wants to look like a blown up smurf so avoid bare shoulders, shorts, hats and sometimes even open toed shoes. Remember, it is a good ten degrees colder in most churches so chances are, you won’t roast, too bad.
Get a good phrase book, I recommend Lonely Planet’s travel phrase book. It is concise and will teach you things that you need to know like: “hey you’re breakin’ my balls here” or “easy tiger” and even a page of translations for instructions and apologies during more intimate moments. Let’s just say this book is a whole lot of fun, we plan to own one in every language. A lot of people do speak English. In fact, if you are here during high travel season, English is everywhere but it really does help when dealing with people if you can at least muddle your way through Italian.
Just drink wine. Drinks can be expensive in Italy, especially bottles of Coke, etc. It is generally cheaper (and better) to drink wine, even if it is the house wine. In the couple of sit down restaurants we were able to get a liter (a full standard bottle of wine is only .75l) of wine for less than €7 which would have worked out to about the same cost as us drinking cokes. Also, don’t expect fountain drinks. The entire time we were in Italy, we saw one place to get fountain coke and well, it was bout €4 ($5.81 USD) for a large. They have a great recycling program in most of the cities (more on that in a second) and can recycle all their plastic and glass containers so it is really more practical for them to do it that way.
Drinks can be purchased while you are out and about and I recommend Tabacci’s which tend to have good deals on water etc. Sometimes it isn’t that much more to get a large bottle of water or whatever so check the prices, which should always be displayed, to get the best deal. Now a word on buying water, Frizzante vs. Naturale. If you like bubbles in your water Frizzante is your game, however if you want plain ole water, stick to Naturale. It will generally say right on the label of the water which it is and when you order it in a restaurant, they will generally ask. Personally, I like Frizzante.
While you are out and bout there are usually many options for throwing away your trash with smaller trash cans etc, all over the city. However, if you should find yourself in a more “residential” part of the city, then there is a trick to figuring out which of the three (or four) trash receptacles to use. There are large square blue ones that have a step bar that opens the lid, these are for regular trash and organic material. There are squareish ones that are yellow and are usually topped with an opening covered in black rubber, those are for cardboard, last are the funky rounded blue ones with small holes, which are for bottles (glass and plastic) and are recycling bins. Recycle whenever possible. If you get confused, there are pictures to help.
Traffic. In the small Medieval cities of Italy, there are a lot of forms of transportation that need to share a small space know as streets. Don’t bother learning a lot of the traffic laws as I don’t think they really apply. Parking is as parking does and scooters have a definite law of their own. Don’t assume that just because you are walking down a crowded street that reminds you of a pedestrian mall at home, that cars, buses and delivery trucks aren’t going to try and get through. The good news is, because they drive like they do, they know how to handle their own streets.
As a pedestrian I would make sure to use crosswalks whenever possible. There are lights that work just like they do with cars with a red, yellow and green walking person. Don’t bother with looking for other traffic lights, use these they are for you and there is no telling where else traffic could be coming from if you use the car’s lights. If there is no crosswalk at an intersection, look both ways and cross away. Unless you do something totally careless and walk right out in front of a car, they will see you and generally slow down enough to let you cross. Though it did happen a couple of times that they were pretty sure they were going to be good and I could feel the wind at my back as the car passed. These rules seemed to work really well in all the Italian cities we visited.
Now comes the part where I talk about Gypsy babies and the National past time of Italy. During our orientation to the school and Florence, the school’s administration had a police officer come in and talk to us about safety and long story short, just don’t be stupid. Keep your bags and purse with you at all times and don’t walk with them to the street but towards buildings. If you are a woman and a man approaches you don’t freak out or respond just keep walking and ignore him, he may even reach out and touch you but whatever you do don’t react violently, just do what the Italian women do and remove his hand and walk on. He had a couple of horror stories to tell about women who reacted poorly and (at least in Florence) rape rates seem to be very low. He had a whole line of dialogue about how Italian men are used to being rejected by Italian women and you shouldn’t be any different.
As far as Gypsy babies go, don’t catch them (though I never saw a woman thrown her baby but hey, sounds like good advice) and don’t get caught up in them. For the most part our experiences with the Gypsies were the same few on our way to school and the couple that hung around the Duomo. They would generally mutter something about their bambio and shake a cup at you. Best thing to do, ignore them. I once watched a woman give them a few cents and then they would not stop bugging her until she gave them more money. Just ignore and walk on, it can seem difficult but you’ll get used to it.
Taking public transportation and the general life inside a city. It seemed like all the public transportation systems in Italy worked the same. You go to a Tabacci and buy a ticket that is validated on the bus. You can get on and off the bus through any door and just validate your ticket on the bus. Here too, be sensible and watch for your belongings but don’t constantly check for your wallet, if someone is looking to pickpocket you, they will now know exactly what pocket to go for. Don’t carry all of your cash and credit cards with you where they can be easily stolen, hide them away or just lock them up. Most bus stops had the routes that service them, maps and schedules to help you get to where you are going. It is way cheaper than taking a cab and a good way to see a city.
Life in most Italian cities isn’t that much different from the larger cities at home. I imagine that the biggest challenge for most American visitors is getting over the suburban shock of being in a downtown of a large city. Things will seem dirtier, more crowded and initially unsafe if you aren’t used to living in an urban environment. If you live in a large city, I am sure your downtown area is the same, here it is just larger. For instance at it’s peak in the Renaissance, Florence had a population of 100,000 now the city supports for times as many people and it shows. We can learn a lot from the Italians on how to run a city, or better yet from the Parisians but that will come later.
So these are the few things I learned. Most of them are the things people told me or I wish I knew before I came here. If you have been, I hope I brought back memories. If you are coming, I hope I gave you food for thought. If you don’t ever plan on visiting Italy, I hope I made you laugh. So Ciao from Italy where life moves at a different pace and scooters run the streets. Next we go back to Paris and see if it is still the city of my dreams.
Salut,
Shaych
There is one more photo gallery up of Florence including our photo critique.
About a month ago, the realization that I was going to Europe finally hit me. This summer was to begin with a series of events that I knew would change my life forever and it is easy to say they have.
The three weeks in Florence gave us a taste of what it would be like to live in Europe. Not be here purely on vacation but study and live our lives in the same (well close enough) to the way we lived at home. Because we had an apartment we were able to grocery shop and cook dinner, lunches and have breakfast at home, we were living real lives in Italy. In our time there I learned a lot about living the Italian lifestyle. For instance:
In Italian supermarkets, you use plastic gloves to pick your fruit. Once selected, you bag it, weigh it and put on a sticker that the clerk can scan. I was told this came to be mostly because prior to supermarkets, the Italians purchased their fruit from street vendors who would not allow them to touch the fruit. Instead they would tell the vendor what they wanted and they would pick it out for the customer and people were not used to the idea of other strangers handling their fruit so alas, gloves.
The Eurail pass works really well, for commuter trains but they tend to take a lot longer to get where you are going, I mean a lot longer.
The myth of wait staff not needing to be tipped is false. Apparently this comes from two things that have been misinterpreted. One, in Italy (particularly Florence) if you eat your food in the restaurant, there is usually an additional charge. This charge can be in addition to the second confusion: the service charge, which appears on your sit down check. This tends to be a small fee of €1 to €2 and does not go to your server but to the establishment to help cover the high cost of linen laundry, dishes, etc. Because of years of guidebooks and people misinterpreting these two things, servers no longer expect to get tips, particularly from Americans. I learned this from a friend of Val’s who is living in Italy and had it confirmed by a couple of other people.
You can also tell the difference in service and attitude when you begin tipping in any regular establishment you may frequent. We stopped into one café fairly regularly on our way to school to get coffee in the morning and I hadn’t seen the woman behind the counter smile as big as she did when we gave her a very simple €.50 tip on our coffee. So, when you go to Italy, ask about tipping and be ready to do so. Also, make sure it goes directly to the server as sometimes dishonest restaurateurs will see the money on the table and snatch it up. There are usually no spaces on a credit card receipt to tip so have some cash handy, besides tips should always be in cash, even stateside.
Remember doing the full multi-course meal takes time and they aren’t used to having the table right away to seat the next group. This means two things: don’t rush your meals and don’t get pissy if you cant get seated in ten minutes. If you have to eat at a certain restaurant, make a reservation. In any sit down regular restaurant you can have a meal consisting of a antipasto (appetizer), prmi (usually pasta), secondi (the meat), dolce (desert) and coffee and could also involve salads and side dishes, it takes time. If you don’t want the whole thing you can just order one course and have a good sized meal.
While I am here, a word on coffee. If you order a “café” you will get a straight up perfectly poured shot of espresso in a demitasse cup with a packet of sugar and a small spoon. Coffee is not for the weak. However, you may find some of you other coffee shop favorites like dopio, macchiato, cappuccino (though it is usually a little closer to what we would call a latté) and such. If you absolutely want a good ole cup of joe, order an Americano, it is the closest thing you are gonna get.
When visiting churches make sure you are dressed appropriately. Inevitably someone in our group was wearing something too revealing and ended up having to cover up a part of his/her body with a blue smock. No one wants to look like a blown up smurf so avoid bare shoulders, shorts, hats and sometimes even open toed shoes. Remember, it is a good ten degrees colder in most churches so chances are, you won’t roast, too bad.
Get a good phrase book, I recommend Lonely Planet’s travel phrase book. It is concise and will teach you things that you need to know like: “hey you’re breakin’ my balls here” or “easy tiger” and even a page of translations for instructions and apologies during more intimate moments. Let’s just say this book is a whole lot of fun, we plan to own one in every language. A lot of people do speak English. In fact, if you are here during high travel season, English is everywhere but it really does help when dealing with people if you can at least muddle your way through Italian.
Just drink wine. Drinks can be expensive in Italy, especially bottles of Coke, etc. It is generally cheaper (and better) to drink wine, even if it is the house wine. In the couple of sit down restaurants we were able to get a liter (a full standard bottle of wine is only .75l) of wine for less than €7 which would have worked out to about the same cost as us drinking cokes. Also, don’t expect fountain drinks. The entire time we were in Italy, we saw one place to get fountain coke and well, it was bout €4 ($5.81 USD) for a large. They have a great recycling program in most of the cities (more on that in a second) and can recycle all their plastic and glass containers so it is really more practical for them to do it that way.
Drinks can be purchased while you are out and about and I recommend Tabacci’s which tend to have good deals on water etc. Sometimes it isn’t that much more to get a large bottle of water or whatever so check the prices, which should always be displayed, to get the best deal. Now a word on buying water, Frizzante vs. Naturale. If you like bubbles in your water Frizzante is your game, however if you want plain ole water, stick to Naturale. It will generally say right on the label of the water which it is and when you order it in a restaurant, they will generally ask. Personally, I like Frizzante.
While you are out and bout there are usually many options for throwing away your trash with smaller trash cans etc, all over the city. However, if you should find yourself in a more “residential” part of the city, then there is a trick to figuring out which of the three (or four) trash receptacles to use. There are large square blue ones that have a step bar that opens the lid, these are for regular trash and organic material. There are squareish ones that are yellow and are usually topped with an opening covered in black rubber, those are for cardboard, last are the funky rounded blue ones with small holes, which are for bottles (glass and plastic) and are recycling bins. Recycle whenever possible. If you get confused, there are pictures to help.
Traffic. In the small Medieval cities of Italy, there are a lot of forms of transportation that need to share a small space know as streets. Don’t bother learning a lot of the traffic laws as I don’t think they really apply. Parking is as parking does and scooters have a definite law of their own. Don’t assume that just because you are walking down a crowded street that reminds you of a pedestrian mall at home, that cars, buses and delivery trucks aren’t going to try and get through. The good news is, because they drive like they do, they know how to handle their own streets.
As a pedestrian I would make sure to use crosswalks whenever possible. There are lights that work just like they do with cars with a red, yellow and green walking person. Don’t bother with looking for other traffic lights, use these they are for you and there is no telling where else traffic could be coming from if you use the car’s lights. If there is no crosswalk at an intersection, look both ways and cross away. Unless you do something totally careless and walk right out in front of a car, they will see you and generally slow down enough to let you cross. Though it did happen a couple of times that they were pretty sure they were going to be good and I could feel the wind at my back as the car passed. These rules seemed to work really well in all the Italian cities we visited.
Now comes the part where I talk about Gypsy babies and the National past time of Italy. During our orientation to the school and Florence, the school’s administration had a police officer come in and talk to us about safety and long story short, just don’t be stupid. Keep your bags and purse with you at all times and don’t walk with them to the street but towards buildings. If you are a woman and a man approaches you don’t freak out or respond just keep walking and ignore him, he may even reach out and touch you but whatever you do don’t react violently, just do what the Italian women do and remove his hand and walk on. He had a couple of horror stories to tell about women who reacted poorly and (at least in Florence) rape rates seem to be very low. He had a whole line of dialogue about how Italian men are used to being rejected by Italian women and you shouldn’t be any different.
As far as Gypsy babies go, don’t catch them (though I never saw a woman thrown her baby but hey, sounds like good advice) and don’t get caught up in them. For the most part our experiences with the Gypsies were the same few on our way to school and the couple that hung around the Duomo. They would generally mutter something about their bambio and shake a cup at you. Best thing to do, ignore them. I once watched a woman give them a few cents and then they would not stop bugging her until she gave them more money. Just ignore and walk on, it can seem difficult but you’ll get used to it.
Taking public transportation and the general life inside a city. It seemed like all the public transportation systems in Italy worked the same. You go to a Tabacci and buy a ticket that is validated on the bus. You can get on and off the bus through any door and just validate your ticket on the bus. Here too, be sensible and watch for your belongings but don’t constantly check for your wallet, if someone is looking to pickpocket you, they will now know exactly what pocket to go for. Don’t carry all of your cash and credit cards with you where they can be easily stolen, hide them away or just lock them up. Most bus stops had the routes that service them, maps and schedules to help you get to where you are going. It is way cheaper than taking a cab and a good way to see a city.
Life in most Italian cities isn’t that much different from the larger cities at home. I imagine that the biggest challenge for most American visitors is getting over the suburban shock of being in a downtown of a large city. Things will seem dirtier, more crowded and initially unsafe if you aren’t used to living in an urban environment. If you live in a large city, I am sure your downtown area is the same, here it is just larger. For instance at it’s peak in the Renaissance, Florence had a population of 100,000 now the city supports for times as many people and it shows. We can learn a lot from the Italians on how to run a city, or better yet from the Parisians but that will come later.
So these are the few things I learned. Most of them are the things people told me or I wish I knew before I came here. If you have been, I hope I brought back memories. If you are coming, I hope I gave you food for thought. If you don’t ever plan on visiting Italy, I hope I made you laugh. So Ciao from Italy where life moves at a different pace and scooters run the streets. Next we go back to Paris and see if it is still the city of my dreams.
Salut,
Shaych
There is one more photo gallery up of Florence including our photo critique.
Friday, June 02, 2006
Independence Day
Today is a national Italian holiday celebrating their independence. The entire country is shut down and nothing is open, actually I hope the supermarket is open or we aren’t going to eat tonight, hmmm should have checked that yesterday.
Last night after having a wonderful dinner with an old friend of Val’s we stumbled across the peoples parade. The parade was a parade / protest against a proposal to the Italian constitution to consolidate the offices of the President and Head of State into one person a man who by most accounts is a fascist and a direct political descendant of Mussolini. The parade was a great show of patriotism without fear and people were proud to walk under their political banners including those walking under the hammer and sickle of the communist party. I think that I would be hard pressed to find any parade with those who are marching with the passion and vigor of those who were marching last night.
I took some photos and video of the event and have posted the photos but not the video I hope to have it up soon.
Ciao for now,
Shaych
Last night after having a wonderful dinner with an old friend of Val’s we stumbled across the peoples parade. The parade was a parade / protest against a proposal to the Italian constitution to consolidate the offices of the President and Head of State into one person a man who by most accounts is a fascist and a direct political descendant of Mussolini. The parade was a great show of patriotism without fear and people were proud to walk under their political banners including those walking under the hammer and sickle of the communist party. I think that I would be hard pressed to find any parade with those who are marching with the passion and vigor of those who were marching last night.
I took some photos and video of the event and have posted the photos but not the video I hope to have it up soon.
Ciao for now,
Shaych
Thursday, June 01, 2006
A new post!
Sorry about the delay in the posts. We are in the last week of class and, well think of it as finals week with a studio class we’ve been busy. We should be able to finish all the projects by the time they are due and I think we have both produced some really good work. More importantly, I have discovered a new process that I am in love with. We have been working with solarplates making prints in a printmaking shop. I really like this process. Because I tend to be really anal and perfectionist when I am able to, I am drawn to processes that have built in variances. I was able to work with the plates and the ink and get some really interesting prints. Ya’ll will see them when we get back.
Everything else is going well. The group dynamics have definitely changed and we are all getting a little tired of each other. Not to be mean but walking through a museum today, one of the group asked who Mary Magdalene was. Normally I would be totally willing to overlook it, not everyone knows who she was. However, we watched the Da Vinci Code the other day and well, if you know it then anyone who sat through that pile of crap should know who the hell Mary Magdalene was. Her case was also not helped by the fact that one room earlier she asked who this Madonna person was.
Today we walked through the Uffizi museum, our last museum in Florence. We are both suffering from a bit of Renaissance art fatigue. In fact, I think we are going to save the Louvre until the end of our stay in Paris so we can actually enjoy it. I think that we will breeze through most of the Renaissance portion of the museum and focus on the ancient and other arts, I am dying for some African art at this point. Then in London, I really want to focus most of our trip to the British Museum to the Egyptian collection. If we were art history students, this would all be great but, we aren’t so we are a little burnt out on Renaissance art.
I am not sure how many more posts will come from Italy but below you can read about our adventures in Pisa and Rome. We’ll be home in a little more than a week and hopefully details have come to you about my birthday party, if not, then let me know and I’ll get them to you.
Ciao,
Shaych
Everything else is going well. The group dynamics have definitely changed and we are all getting a little tired of each other. Not to be mean but walking through a museum today, one of the group asked who Mary Magdalene was. Normally I would be totally willing to overlook it, not everyone knows who she was. However, we watched the Da Vinci Code the other day and well, if you know it then anyone who sat through that pile of crap should know who the hell Mary Magdalene was. Her case was also not helped by the fact that one room earlier she asked who this Madonna person was.
Today we walked through the Uffizi museum, our last museum in Florence. We are both suffering from a bit of Renaissance art fatigue. In fact, I think we are going to save the Louvre until the end of our stay in Paris so we can actually enjoy it. I think that we will breeze through most of the Renaissance portion of the museum and focus on the ancient and other arts, I am dying for some African art at this point. Then in London, I really want to focus most of our trip to the British Museum to the Egyptian collection. If we were art history students, this would all be great but, we aren’t so we are a little burnt out on Renaissance art.
I am not sure how many more posts will come from Italy but below you can read about our adventures in Pisa and Rome. We’ll be home in a little more than a week and hopefully details have come to you about my birthday party, if not, then let me know and I’ll get them to you.
Ciao,
Shaych
Rome Wasn’t Build in a Day but, That is All We Had
On Sunday, we had tried to catch a train to Venice. It would have meant a long train ride and only a few hours in the city but, we figured it was worth it. When we arrived at the train station, the only train that would have given us any time in Venice was sold out so, we had to make another choice. I really wanted to dip my toes in the ocean but it looked like it wasn’t going to happen. We tried to find a train that went to the coast but the earliest one didn’t leave for over an hour and we didn’t want to hang around the train station for that long. So, long story short, a train to Rome was leaving in about ten minutes and we hopped on board. Thinking it was only a two hour train ride, we could easily enjoy Rome and come back in time for dinner, perfect.
This is where we learn that there are two rail systems in Italy: Eurostar Italy and well the other one, which isn’t so fun. What was supposed to be a two hour trip to Rome ended up at three and a half hours though we did get to see some wonderful countryside and every small hamlet between here and the end of creation. As we passed the second Cortona train station we realized that we should have listened to Britta and gone there. But no, we were going to Rome and in another two hours, we would be there.
The train station in Rome is the biggest and oddest one we have been to. The whole thing is a shopping mall and felt more like a strange combination of Cherry Creek and an Airport. The station is fairly centrally located so that was nice and after buying a map we were off to see the sights. On our way we stopped in for some great Chinese food (you know when in Rome, oh wait I guess that doesn’t really apply here does it).
The Coliseum, The Forum and most of the ancient ruins are close together which was nice. We didn’t get to go into the Coliseum, mostly due to the fact that the line to get in was really long, so we could only see the outside. However, the Forum was free to get into and packed wall to freaking wall with tourists. There were probably more tourists in the area than the original Roman population. There were so many tourists that we just kind of walked through and around the top of the hill that led us to the tomb of the unknown soldier and the main art museum.
From there we made the trip down the hill to the Vatican. I had mixed feelings about heading into Vatican City. Of all the things we saw in Rome, the Vatican was the one that lived up to it’s reputation. As it was Sunday, most of the museums and such were closed and all we really got to see was St. Peter’s but it was enough. From there we headed back to across the river and caught a bus back to the train station.
We didn’t get to see much and what we did see kind of went by in a blur but overall it was a good day in Rome. We definitely want to return and get a chance to fully explore the city. I know that it is a huge city and we only got to see a very small part but it was nice. We wished we had more time or would have come on a Saturday when more of the Vatican was open to the public so we could explore at least one area in depth but alas, it wasn’t possible.
Ciao,
Shaych
This is where we learn that there are two rail systems in Italy: Eurostar Italy and well the other one, which isn’t so fun. What was supposed to be a two hour trip to Rome ended up at three and a half hours though we did get to see some wonderful countryside and every small hamlet between here and the end of creation. As we passed the second Cortona train station we realized that we should have listened to Britta and gone there. But no, we were going to Rome and in another two hours, we would be there.
The train station in Rome is the biggest and oddest one we have been to. The whole thing is a shopping mall and felt more like a strange combination of Cherry Creek and an Airport. The station is fairly centrally located so that was nice and after buying a map we were off to see the sights. On our way we stopped in for some great Chinese food (you know when in Rome, oh wait I guess that doesn’t really apply here does it).
The Coliseum, The Forum and most of the ancient ruins are close together which was nice. We didn’t get to go into the Coliseum, mostly due to the fact that the line to get in was really long, so we could only see the outside. However, the Forum was free to get into and packed wall to freaking wall with tourists. There were probably more tourists in the area than the original Roman population. There were so many tourists that we just kind of walked through and around the top of the hill that led us to the tomb of the unknown soldier and the main art museum.
From there we made the trip down the hill to the Vatican. I had mixed feelings about heading into Vatican City. Of all the things we saw in Rome, the Vatican was the one that lived up to it’s reputation. As it was Sunday, most of the museums and such were closed and all we really got to see was St. Peter’s but it was enough. From there we headed back to across the river and caught a bus back to the train station.
We didn’t get to see much and what we did see kind of went by in a blur but overall it was a good day in Rome. We definitely want to return and get a chance to fully explore the city. I know that it is a huge city and we only got to see a very small part but it was nice. We wished we had more time or would have come on a Saturday when more of the Vatican was open to the public so we could explore at least one area in depth but alas, it wasn’t possible.
Ciao,
Shaych
Leaning Tower
Pisa is only about an hour or so out of Florence on train and given it’s famous monument, we couldn’t resist. Every guide book I had read basically said the same thing: “get your picture taken holding up the tower and head back, not much else to see here.” However, when we arrived we found Pisa to be a great little town. First of all, there were not hoards of tourists blocking every road and path through the city. The street we walked to the main Duomo complex from the train station was pretty much empty, it was just us.
When we got to the complex, there were quite a few more visitors but there was also a large group of locals lounging and enjoying the warm afternoon. We got to visit the Duomo and the Medieval cemetery, both of which were amazing. It took us a while to realize that the marble floors were all grave markers and that we were walking across graves that were very old along side some that were more contemporary, even some as early as the 90s. The Church was as beautiful as any we had visited and featured the last work by Chime Bue (an early Renaissance artist) a wonderful mosaic above the altar.
After exploring these two monuments, we had some dinner. Right after we sat down for our pasta, a parade went by that turned out to be for a special annual festival that takes place in Pisa. I didn’t get any good details but I felt better knowing that people weren’t just getting all dressed up in Renaissance clothes and walking around for the tourists. The parade included a drum line that was just amazing. After making a large circle of the city they came back to the Duomo complex and finished their parade. The whole thing was kinda cool.
Afterwards we headed back and caught a train home. Overall an eventful day and I would highly recommend Pisa on any Tuscan trip.
Ciao,
Shaych
Pictures and video are posted for this trip.
When we got to the complex, there were quite a few more visitors but there was also a large group of locals lounging and enjoying the warm afternoon. We got to visit the Duomo and the Medieval cemetery, both of which were amazing. It took us a while to realize that the marble floors were all grave markers and that we were walking across graves that were very old along side some that were more contemporary, even some as early as the 90s. The Church was as beautiful as any we had visited and featured the last work by Chime Bue (an early Renaissance artist) a wonderful mosaic above the altar.
After exploring these two monuments, we had some dinner. Right after we sat down for our pasta, a parade went by that turned out to be for a special annual festival that takes place in Pisa. I didn’t get any good details but I felt better knowing that people weren’t just getting all dressed up in Renaissance clothes and walking around for the tourists. The parade included a drum line that was just amazing. After making a large circle of the city they came back to the Duomo complex and finished their parade. The whole thing was kinda cool.
Afterwards we headed back and caught a train home. Overall an eventful day and I would highly recommend Pisa on any Tuscan trip.
Ciao,
Shaych
Pictures and video are posted for this trip.
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