14 days ago, we began a journey through time, through centuries of history. Rome was most definitely not built in a day. Neither was Monaco, Venice or the quintessential Florence. Italy is a feast for each and every sense. The sights, smells, sounds, sensation and savor are taken for a roller coaster ride and doused into something incredible.
Nice - Nice is the most unique mix of quaint-modern. Reminds me of Bombay-Hyderabad. Folks sitting in cafes facing the road, coffee that smells like it was made in heaven, bread like Jesus probably tasted. Time seems to move at a slower pace here. Women can run in 6 inch heels, men boldly wear pink, kids ride their scooters to school (not in their parents' gas guzzling SUVs).
Monaco - the alleys of Monaco! Painted in the most wonderful pastels, stores with little trinkets, shacks with indescribable gnocchi as you eat facing the prince's palace, Monaco is a joy to be in. We now take the train up to Genova. Sweetie is dozing off as I write this, we've been at it non-stop and sleeps's finally catching up.
Cinque Terre - The Cinque Terre are 5 villages by the water - Monterosso, Vernazza, Manarola, Corniglia and Riomaggiore. They are not as quaint as they sound. The unfortunate thing is this - thanks to Rick Steeves, who popularized these villages, they are not as "rustic" as I would have liked them to be. Crowded, the water is not attractive, what with the, dare I say, "younger, more boisterous" crowd. Nevertheless, pretty unique, they, in my opinion, need to take many steps back to what they originally were. Quaint, simple, original.
Firenze - We then drive on to the city of Firenze. Driving trough Italy is a definite test to one's marriage. If you've survived it and not managed to kill each other, you're probably with the right person. I exaggerate but only a little. The street signs in Firenze could clearly be improved, the limited zones (which is like 50% of the streets) marked with flashing lights since Google maps knows nothing about them, that combined with a stick shift, and a near palpitating navigator figuring out the directions, the good ol' map way, not easy! I've said this many times and this trip just reinstated any doubts I may have had. Sweetie was born to drive. He was so at ease with the stick, it's just impressive (even if I say so myself, any wife knows how hard it was to accept that!) All said and done, I've never been this relieved dropping off a car!
We did Pisa, San Gimignano and Siena by car with Firenze as our base.
Pisa is about an hour's drive from Firenze. The city is very small with barely anything other than of course, the leaning tower. It was every bit as awesome as I had imagined. The day was perfect, the light was ideal for some good shots, the highlight being Sweetie taking pictures of our brothers and sisters from the north standing in weird poses to topple, push, hold the leaning tower. One guy actually made a face like King Kong (the resemblance was uncanny!) as if he was eating the tower up or something? Total fun watching him ding his poor wife as he stood in these weird poses as the poor woman shot his pictures. Ah, the joys of laughing at our neighbors!
Thanks to my dear friend Shwety, we added San Gimignano to our itinerary and..boy oh boy! What a delightfully quaint city! Surrounded by the Tuscan wine country, San Gimignano is walled on 4 sides by stone walls, inside it are these little narrow streets lined with small shops selling soap, Italian art and gelato. One city I will not forget the rest of my life! Siena which is a short drive from San Gimignano, failed to impress me as much.
The last 2 days were spent in exploring Firenze. My legs are killing me but the sights were every bit as beautiful as I had heard. The Church of St. Croce, Palazzo Michelangelo (panoramic view of the city), Church of Santa Maria Novella (we were so tired, we took a nap on the grass at the Piazza), Palazzo Pitti, Uffizzi Gallery and last but definitely not the least, the David. While I was not weak in my knees seeing the famed statue, I did mange to grab a spot on the floor to admire the feat of the master Michelangelo and the statue just takes you with it, to the times that were, to times where heroes breathed the air around you, heroes with slings who killed wicked giants. Off to the city of Venice this morning and as I blog on the train, I will miss the city of Firenze, the smell of coffee on every small street, the afternoon naps in the middle of a square, food that was clearly made for the Gods, gelato after every meal, walking till your feet give up, cappuccino that revives every sense and every tired nerve, talking to friendly barristas while your sip your coffee standing at the bar, little tiny shops with old tiny ladies who dream of visiting India, I take with me, all these wonderful moments. On to the city of Venice!
Venezia - Ah, the magical city of Venice! Every one has an imagination of the drama this city is filled with, and none of that is exaggeration. Venice is an impossible dream right in front of your eyes and as you take in each minute of this wonderous feat of man, you feel like you are transported to an older time. As with most cities I've seen so far, the crowds are a big turn off and Venice is no different. But not far from Venice is Murano, a short water taxi from Venice. This is where the famed Murano glass comes from and I was spellbound by this city. It's exactly like Venice, houses on both sides of a canal, the famous arcs in the middle of the canal, but much less crowded. If you don't care about touristy places, this is your Venice. Sweetie and I found the Venice we were looking for in Murano. As we sat on the steps facing the canal in front of a house with balconies full of flowers, I felt like I was one with this lovely place. The experience can only be put in words so much, these barely do any justice to what I have in my heart for Venice. I'd like to take my closest friends with me, show them the Italy I've seen, away from the herds of people, and Murano is just the right dose of Venice. We reach Rome in an hour. I hope the awe of the sights beats the turn off of the crowds.
Roma - Rome! This city is built by people who either loved it immensely or were "adequately" pressurized by people who loved it for reasons I will not care to elaborate. Whatever the motivation be, a traveller gets to enjoy the wonder that is Rome. The city is incredibly dirty, the key is to expect that and appreciate Rome beyond the crap on the streets. Every little detail put into every little art form is beyond description. One can only attribute the gift that the great sculptors and painters had was God's and God's alone. How else can one explain Bernini producing wondrous art forms at an age of 20? Just plain born with it, IMO. I personally loved the Borghese museum, the audio guide was the only one worth the money. The Colosseum was great, needless to say, but the barbaric nature of the feats for entertainment purposes is not something I can stomach. Wonders of the world, sure. I can't quite put my finger on whether I like the Romans or despise them. Bah, doesn't really matter I guess. Definitely a higher order of human beings. Walking down one of the alleys, it struck me! Why were all the great artists all born during the 15th, 16th century? Where did they all go, and why can't we see some like them now? Turns out they are around. We call them Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Armani. Well, that's my take. We take the train down to Naples to visit the city was that turned to ashes by the mighty Vesuvius - the mysterious city of Pompeii.
Napoli/Pompeii - Pompeii was such a miraculous last minute addition! I find that I tend to love discovering older civilizations, how people lived, what they did for a living, what mattered to them, what pissed them off. I can spend hours just wandering these ruins armed with vivid imagination. Pompeii is one of the most preserved excavations ever discovered in the world, there were certain homes with their kitchens with tandoor kind of ovens in some cases, with their original color intact. The people of Pompeii had a massive stadium, a gym (not kidding!), lavish baths and a common forum area. It seems sad that all of this was destroyed in less than a day by mount Vesuvius' eruption. Such a waste. If Pompeii made me ecstatic, Napoli shocked me. We walked one block in search of some grub and literally ran back into the train station. Horrible streets, questionable looking people, stench everywhere, good heavens, terrible! That's it for the day, can't wait to go back hit the sack. Another day in Rome and it's back home!
Crowds, dirt, incredible amount of passive smoking, all aside, delight is an understatement to describe what I feel for Italy. I feel like a child in Disneyland, like an artist in a museum, like a singer sitting through symphony, like a chef at a feast. The world is truly an amazing place and it is humbling to be part of this much history. There is so much to see, so little time. I truly believe that every individual must travel as much as life and commitments permit. It is through these travels that we humans tend to realize how much we owe our ancestors who made this world what it is today. It instills a sense of responsibility, a sense of awareness that we cannot make a mess of this labor of love. We have no right to destroy anything that we have not built. Seeing all this grandeur brings one down to one's knees and prods one to ask the question - what can I do as a citizen of this world? I don't believe in the boundaries anymore, let me be one with the world.
