Venice reminds me of Gareth Owen’s observation about Wikipedia, “The problem with Wikipedia is that it only works in practice. In theory, it’s a total disaster.”
Who would have thought you could build a successful city on muck, miles from land, out in three feet of sea with no streets, and that it would last for centuries and be the most remarkable urban experience.
Certaldo Alto Book End. Had my last Bar Boccaccio Cappicino made by Rosella. Then we drove down the hill.
Had a good-bye brunch at Chiara’s Bed and Breakfast. She had this amazing 1” high cake with pears on it. Incredibly light. We all raved about it and she said it was the first recipe she ever learned and that it was real easy.
1 2 3 4 5 Cake
1 Egg, 2 Spoons of Butter, 3 Spoons of Sugar, 4 Spoons of Milk, 5 spoons of flour.
I am sure there is something else to it (like baking?), but time will tell when I try it. You can give two people a wedge of the same clay, but only the potter is going to quickly make something beautiful. We all joked with her that she should be making 2 4 6 8 10 Cake!
From the mailbag. I received this today from two people dear to my heart. I will protect their identities. They discovered it on a tour of the Louvre. There it is simply titled “Roman Satyrs.” No other information is available. However, if you would like to read their very humorous and insightful analysis of this ancient work, let me know and I will email it to you. They bring more than 40 years of the study of European, Roman and Greek History and Culture to this analysis. I am just unclear as to who is actually reading this blog and want to stay in the public (not pubic) arena.
Alfred manages the Hotel Ristorante Il Castello in Certaldo Alto. He is an accomplished jazz drummer and will be playing with Scott Hamilton this evening. He also raises turtles. When Emily was here they connected, but she didn’t have her camera at that moment, so I was instructed to get some pictures. Mission accomplished. Alfred has 16 Hermanni Turtles hibernating in his garden. These are indigenous to Tuscany. Three babies were born this summer and he is keeping them warm and feeding them salad all winter. Hopefully they will make it. He just weighed them and each of them have gained 3-4 grams this last month!
Chris and I have taken a boat-load of panoramic photos of Certaldo, Tuscany, Italy, and the World over the last few weeks. This is us at the Roman Gate or “Porte del Sole” (Door of the Sun) of Certaldo Alto looking out at Basso. Its been a blast. To see this pano and with links to others we have taken, follow the link.
http://www.360cities.net/profile/italyintensives/image/porta-del-sole#297.74,1.77,70.0
If you want to go to the Italy Intensives page on 360cities.net to see a list of ALL the panos, here is a quick link.
http://www.360cities.net/profile/italyintensives
More to Come!
Terry’s Book Nook (with Francesca). Practically every day there was this glowing warm corner of light where Terry works on his handmade books. Many times Francesca came and worked with him. They huddled together quietly talking and working hard for hours and hours. I really wanted to pull a chair up to the table and join them. This photo makes it appear that they are sitting miles apart. Check out the pano if you want to feel how close and warm the space is. Also, take the time to really look at all of Terry’s amazing books.
http://www.360cities.net/profile/danbailey/image/terry-s-book-nook-with-francesca#0.60,17.10,70.0
The great amazing talented wonderful Italy Intensive Fall 2011 Photo Class in Certaldo Alto. We did it all in grand style (even when acting as Dinosaurs)!
Follow Chris as we walk on a typical street up from Istanbul’s Spice Bazaar to the Grand Bazaar.
Istanbul Bosphorus Bridge. This bridge in Istanbul links Europe to Asia. Its my favorite bridge at night and I made a video to honor it. The music is in tribute to Burger here in the Italy Intensive program who sung this song right before I left for Istanbul. It was stuck in my head for the whole 4 days walking around! Most people think They Might Be Giants wrote this song, but even though they might be giants, they merely covered a great song. I intentionally picked (for free online at numerous sites) the original 1953 version from the Four Lads. If you have the bandwidth, go to the Vimeo site and watch it in HD. Enjoy.
