Clearly. Considering that last time I wrote was about two weeks ago I would say that yes, my hypothesis is correct. Oi vey.
Okay...quick update on my life. Last Saturday (November 8) a bunch of people went into Florence to go to the Uffizi. Sweet. Before that we stopped at the Accademia to say hi to David and the Prisoners. I heart Michelangelo. While at the Accademia, Liza and I discovered a name for our character we made up (ask to meet her sometime, she's great). The Uffizi was snazzy- we got to see Botticelli's
Birth of Venus and
La Primavera (which in my head I always translate to English and then I want to call it Rite of Spring. Sigh). I'm also in love with Botticelli's
Madonna and Child with Six Angels, of which, unfortunately, I could not (or rather forgot to) find a postcard of. Sigh. We aso got to see Michelangelo's
Tondi and Da Vinci's
Adoration of the Magi. Cool beans.
After the Uffizi we walked around for a little bit- I bought myself a mask from the mask store that Pete, Zach adn I discovered way back in September. Yay masks.
SUnday was a lazy day. I spent most of it lounging aroudn the Villa pretending to do Philosophy reading. That night, I went out to dinner with Pete, Vanessa, Staci, Liza, Rich, and Natalie. We Went to this Belgian beer and Pizza place- it was yummy.
Monday nigth we went to see a show in Roccastrada, adn by Roccastrada I mean we thought it was in ROccastrada but really it was in Grossetto. Sigh. At least the guy in Roccastrada was cool and elt us see the theatre. Anyway the show as really amazing- it was jsut three actors using full masks the entire time, no dialogue. It was really astounding to see them use theur bodies in order to illustrate the different characters- it made me want to get into the studio and practice.
Friday afternoon we went to a wine tasting, and I actually drank wine and liked it. That was a first. We had a wine called PoggiodiPonte, which was made in central Tucsany from SanGiovesse grapes. We also had another one that was Merlot/Cabernet and it was really bitter and gross. Clearly SanGiovesse grapes are superior to French grapes, or maybe I'm just biased. Anyway- wine, thumbs up. Also, I'm a lightweight. The end.
Later that night we went to see another show- this time in Arezzo. It was a Dario Fo piece (if that name means anything to you) and I did not understand a darn thing in it. It was a one-man show and I thought that it was going to be more movement-oriented, but no- it was ALL text. And not just in Italian. Nope. It was in 'mariner speak', which is a combination of Italian (dialect, if you will), French, and Spanish. And it was all spoken REALLY quickly. I could pick up a word or two here and there, but for the majoirty of the show I was lost. Oh well.
Saruday (yesterday) a bunch of us went to Assisi, which was absolutely beautiful. The old part of the city is up on a hill and has the most beautiful views I have ever seen. Pictures will be up soon. We went to the Basilica di San Francesco, which was kind of a given but hey, you know. We got to see St. Francis' tomb, which was really beautiful and moving. Plus, there were monks EVERYWHERE...I heart monks. I think they are so precious. We walked through the town a little, too. We stopped in the Temple of Minerva, which is now a church. We also went to the Basilica of Santa Chiara, who was a hardcore follower of St. Francis. And we go to see St. Francis' sock.. Oh yeah. Liza and I also discovered that pullig our scarves up over our face kept us rather warm, although it looked mildly politically incorrect. Oops.
Today (Sunday) I went into Florence all by myself. Yup...I'm a big girl. I just kidn of wandered around in teh general direction of Santa Croce, which was my ultimate destination. I meandered off to Dante's House, which was kind of cool to look at even though I didn't go inside. I also went to the church where Beatrice is buried- you know, the chick that Dante wrote all of his poetry about. Yeah. Her. Anyway, next to her grave is a basket filled with notes that peopled have left asking for her help in love. Precious.
Santa Croce was next on the list. 'Twas pretty. I saw a lot of dead people. Not really...I just saw their tombs. Michelangelo. Galileo. Dant. Machiavelli. Marconi. Ghiberti. Pictures soon.
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“Remember tonight.. for it is the beginning of always.”
~ Dante Alighieri
