Retrospective Italy Update, Part II

Went on several more excursions, especially while we were based in Bologna. Some of the more notable ones (i.e. the ones from which I have pictures) are these:

Ravenna. A smaller town, with a weird hodgepodge of really, really old stuff and ugly industrial stuff. Was seat of the Western Roman Empire for a

while, no big deal. Lots of super old churches like this one: San Francesco, built 4th c. renovated 10th c. Where Dante had his funeral and was buried.

Speaking of which, saw his tomb as well. There was something moving about it; I was standing in the presence of Dante's final resting place, just as I was reading his (albeit hypothetical) account of the afterlife. It would have been a really great experience, if there hadn't been a line of 50 people behind me, all waiting to also have their solemn bonding moment with Dante's remains. All the same, a worthwhile pilgrimage.

Ravenna is also famous for its mosaics, especially these in San Vitale. They are pretty damn intricate and appropriately Byzantine, considering they were commissioned under the rule of the Byzantine emperor Justinian. Poor Ravenna's been reconquered about as many times as Poland, but these and others like them in the city have luckily stayed in pretty good shape, encouraging tourists from all over the world to take frustratingly blurry pictures of tiny patterned tiles.

Then: Florence!

View of Florence and the Duomo from its belltower

The Fountain of Neptune in front of the Palazzo Vecchip

View from the Ponte Vecchio

Love locks along the Ponte Vecchio

Duomo and the Baptistry

Facade of S. Maria del Fiore (aka the Duomo)

Florence was, of course, beyond beautiful--and incredibly exhausting. I didn't stay long enough to get museum fatigue this time (in fact, I didn't even get to see all the museums I wanted to go to!) but the sheer amount of bumbling tourists, street vendors, and other assorted annoying people made me want to lock myself in the hotel room and watch the Fairly Odd-Parents in Italian (apparently the show is much-beloved over there; it came on three different channels every night). And I didn't even run into the cast of Jersey Shore (though quite a few of my classmates did, the lucky dogs). When I return to Italy, it will definitely be in the winter--less heat, less tourists.

Finally, went to Siena to visit my friend Jade

Siena is a beautiful (and incredibly steep) little hill town with tasty food and a crazy annual medieval horse race in the main piazza. Unfortunately, I missed the Palio by just a few days, and I only got to spend an afternoon in the city. Ah, well, something for me to hit up on my next trip!

Up next: Rome

Retrospective Italy Update, Part I

So, it turns out I have been studying in Italy for five weeks! Unlike some people, I am not capable of keeping an up-to-date travel blog, so let me just do a quick overview:

It was beyond awesome!

(But next time I return to Italy, I will do so in the winter)

Maybe more details later, but my schedule is incredibly chock-full of being lazy for the next two months or so, so we'll see. In the meantime, some pictures:

Here's Bologna, the first town we stayed in (and my favorite by far). It's pretty awesome-- a university town, but it's university is the oldest in the world. So it's full of hip ragazzi (young people) but also assorted neat old stuff. And the best part of it is that it's in Italy, so you can pretty much walk to everything. And if not, there is legitimate (mostly) functioning public transport.

Here's some of that neat old stuff:

Ridiculously detailed Madonna mosaic

Former Merchant's Guild, now home to Bologna Chamber of Commerce

Statue of Neptune in the Piazza del Nettuno

Some delicious products produced in the nearby Emilia-Romagna region. Our first week we visited a Parmesan cheese factory (they actually call the real stuff parmigiano-reggiano, but who has time for that when there is cheese to be eaten?) and a balsamic vinegar place. There was many a delicious sample consumed.

Also: Wine is pretty popular in Italy. Each region kind of does its own thing, but everybody has a local wine. This one is made by the balsamic vinegar place in Parma-- a frizzy white, quite refreshing! The typical hang-out thing (especially when we were in Bologna) is to grab a bottle of wine and socialize on the steps of some historic building. It's a really nice way to pass an evening, actually. Oh, did I mention that wine is also incredibly cheap there?

Went to Venice our first weekend:

Honestly, didn't expect to like this city... but I did. Everything, including and especially the architecture, is ridiculously decadent. Our obligatory gondola ride just before sunset was pleasant and charming, despite a distinct lack of singing from our gondolier, and the dinner we ate at a restaurant over the Grand Canal was lovely. Don't think I could live there (it's way too touristy) but I would love to have a rich people house there!

Alright, selecting pictures to post is actually kind of an exhausting process (I took literally thousands), which I'm guessing is why I haven't done it so far. So this update will be broken into parts. Up next: Ravenna and Florence!