The Eccentric's Guide to Italy

Castel Sant'Angelo

2012-04-25T13:25:00.001-07:00

I didn't discover Castel Sant'Angelo until my second trip to Rome and then it became possibly my favorite place in the whole city. Why? For one, its a castle and I love castles and fortresses. Second, it has an awesome little museum full of guns, swords and armor. They didn't allow me to take any pictures but I did bring my sketch book and drew several things. Third, the view. It has a better view than St. Peter's and that's no easy achievement.

The castle sits right along the Tiber river that flows through Rome. It's also on the street that leads to the Vatican and it's the tallest building around. You literally cannot miss it.
It started life as a mausoleum for the Roman emperor Hadrian. But in 401, when the Empire was in more dire straights, (not the band) they converted into a fortress and made it a part of the city's defenses.
It costs a few Euro to get in, but it's worth it. Even before you reach the top there are many sights. There's a small courtyard high up in the big cylinder part. The architecture is very unique and the angel statue there is amazing. It was angel that originally stood on top of the castle but switched it out in the 1700's for some Flemmish guy's angel.

Then you get to see where the Pope would stay and where many people survived sieges and attacks. Caterina Sforza, the Italian Matriarch who's iron fist would put the Godfather to shame, was holed up here during an attack and refused to surrender. You can learn about this amazing woman here.
Okay, I'm sure you're all asking "What about the secret passage that leads from the Vatican to the castle? The super secret one that nobody knows about?"
Well.....
You see that fortified medieval wall that runs from the bottom right corner and makes a straight line to the Vatican? That's your super secret passage. It's not super and it's not secret. Everyone knows about. Heck, the tour guides will tell you all about it

Oh, to the right, that was my neighborhood when I lived there. I'd walk to two blocks to the Vatican, take a left down a long, wide avenue and go chill at the top of the castle for a while with my sketchbook. In the above picture you can see the walls of Vatican city.
There is a snack bar by the museum in case you get the munchies from too much awesomeness.
Let's look at some more views inside the castle before we go to the top.
Below is the "Bridge of Angels." It's called that because of all the angel statues.

Below is a view of the Tiber River, very historic and very pretty. I'll have a post just about that river later.

Here's a siege weapon, like a ballista, a giant crossbow that hurls stone balls.

Inside the outer walls.

A close up of the ancient Roman part of the Mausoleum.

Okay, now let's go through the Pope's pad...

To the roof.

The angel there and thus the name of the castle, comes from a terrible plague that when it finally ended, it was said that they saw the angel Michael sheathing his sword to call off the plague.
But you came here for the view. Check it out!
Ah! Roma! I love this city!

In the above picture, see how many famous landmarks you can see. 1. Pantheon. 2. Old government building on Capitaline Hill. 3.the Colloseum. 4. Palatine Hill. 5. the giant marble column thingy that's huge; the monument to Victor Emmanuel II. 6. Waldo.
If you really want to see "The Eternal City," you have to go the the castle and go to the top. You'll thank me.

Gelato: a +3 vorpal ice cream.

2012-04-23T14:59:00.001-07:00

If you go to Italy and the only thing you do is get off the plane, eat gelato and go home, it would still be well worth the trip. Gelato isn't just "Italian ice cream." No, sir. It's so much more than that. Well, not physically. It is Italian ice cream, but they do it right! It's legit. I don't know if they use forbidden alchemy or some secret ingredient or maybe they just add love to their recipe, but whatever they do they make it better than anything I've encountered in the States.

Mmmm....look at all those lovely flavors. I don't know what they are, but I wanna eat it!

How does one describe the sensation of texture and taste that make up gelato? "It's like eating silk at a fresh mountain spring." Okay, that was lame. Let's try "it's just that ______ awesome!" Maybe that comes closer. You be the judge. Either way gelato is smoother and more flavorful than American ice cream. Sure, you can get "gelato" in the states, but every place I've been to just isn't the same.

When I taste mango gelato for example, it's like eating a cold, cream covered mango. When I have the chocolate its like I've never tasted chocolate before.

And what flavors the have! I was wandering around Rome one Saturday as was my custom and I happened upon the Pantheon. The piazza in front of the Pantheon is very cool, but there's not much there. So I wandered down the road that was to the right of the Pantheon (facing it) and walked down into a narrow street. This street had all kinds of stores, most I didn't care about or didn't have money for, but then I spotted a gelataria. It wasn't just a gelato store, those are all over the place. No, this had, literally, wall to wall flavors of gelato all organized by catagories. There was the fruit section with every fruit and mix of fruit imaginable. There was the chocolate section with ever type of chocolate ever conceived of by the minds of men, the natural flavor section such as nuts, milk, honey, etc and a coffee section.

I got a milk, honey and German dark chocolate cone. There's something innocent and pure about just enjoying an ice cream cone, like you're a little kid again. But also, there's something more to it because this isn’t just an ice cream cone. It's something that would make a cynical food critique shed tears of joy.

How to find good gelato:

Generally, the further away you get from the major tourist sights, the better. If you can see a crowd of people with fanny packs and cameras, keep going.

There are more scientific ways. One, look at the containers. If they're plastic, keep walking. If they're metal, move to step two. Look for the banana flavor. If the banana is yellow, that means its fake and not worth your time. If it's grey, you are golden and probably a rock star. So, in short, metal containers and natural grey coloring for the banana. You find those and you'll be a happy homo sapien.

See the bright yellow? That's a 'no-go.'

How to enjoy gelato:

Don't rush it. (same could be said with any experience in Italy.) Take your time. Stop, find a good place to watch the crowds of people walk buy, maybe something cool to look at like the duomo in Florence and enjoy the moment. Soak it in for everything that it's worth. Remember that moment of simply joy and you'll be on your way to experiencing Italy as it should be experienced.

St. Peter's Rome

2012-04-17T15:49:00.001-07:00

I've been to New York. I've seen canyons of impossibly tall buildings that apparently stretched on forever. I saw the Empire State building and Chrysler Building. However, none of them were as impressive to me as St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Perhaps its not as big as those towering skyscrappers, but when you go in you're immediately shocked at how vast the space is in the church. It's like a church built for giants. The pillars inside are thicker than my bedroom and it seems to go on forever. You look up and you see an endless array of domes, windows and breathtaking statues.
Don't believe me? Check this out.

That's not even the main dome. That's just some little thing off to the side. Seriously though, it is hard to grasp how large this building. You may look at pictures and say "Oh, it isn't that big." It doesn't really look that big...until you get close to it. Then you realize how mindblowingly ginormous it is.
Did I mention that this church is big?
As you walk inside you'll find Michelangelo's Pieta to your right. No biggie.

And that isn't the only statue you'll find inside. The walls are covered in niches with huge statues in them. They look small, but once you get close you'll realize that they're larger than life. Each one is a masterpiece and there's dozens of them.
Check 'em out.

And here's st. Juliana.

And St. Francis (Perhaps my favorite Saint, but I'll get more into him when I cover Assisi.)

And St. Veronica.

And one more, St. Mary Euphrasia.

So you wander past looking at all the amazing art that literally covers the place. You have to stop and gawk for a while just to take the place in. Every photo I have doesn't do the place justice nor give you the correct impression on just how huge and beautiful this place is.

When I lived for a short time in Rome I would wander over to St. Peter's and bring my sketch book. It was there, drawing one of the statues that I had one of my coolest Italian experiences ever. I was sketching some angel or something and I look over and there's this very pretty Italian girl looking over my shoulder as I draw. She has an approving and very Italian look on her face as she says "Brava." She nods and then walks off. I'm Italian approved! I went there often as it was only three blocks away after all. One of the guards even commented on my sunglasses and said they were "beautiful." They were my gold Elvis shades. (No one ever accused me of being normal.)
St. Peter's is a cross shaped Basilica, but was originally designed to be a Greek Cross, equal on all sides. But Michelangelo was asked to redesign it and make it "better-er." (A direct quote, I'm sure.) So, he made it longer and betterer and then Bernnini the famous artist made a whole army of statues for it.
At the center of the cross, under the giant dome, you'll find something that looks like a really giant four post cupola, or band stand or fancy bed.

This supposedly marks the spot where St. Pete is buried. It looks big, but not THAT big, right? Well, keep in mind that it's about a hundred feet tall and doesn't even touch the base of the dome. It's friggin' huge.
At the very end of the church is this work of art by the always theatrical Berninni.

Now for the dome. How high up is it?

You can climb all the way up to the very top of the dome. It feels like mountain climbing. It takes forever to get just to the roof of the church, let alone the dome. On the roof there's a rest area where you can get something to drink and a snack to prepare you for the rest of the climb. I hope you're not claustrophobic because you're climbing between the outer skin of the dome and the inside supports. It's a long climb. But it's worth it.

You can see the whole city and then some! Down below is the piazza with it's branching arms. Lining on top are dozens of statues of saints. In the middle is an Egyptian obelisk stolen from Egypt by the Romans.
This is one of my favorite places in Rome, a city I love a great deal. I wandered by on Easter and got to see the Pope! Well, from hundreds of feet away, but I did see him!
Here's a few parting pictures to give you a better idea.

Ravenna

2012-04-14T12:39:00.001-07:00

Ravenna is one of my favorite cities in Italy, though it's often over looked by the rushing guided tours. When I was first considering the idea of going to Italy and thus fulfilling my #1 life goal, I knew I couldn't go there without visiting Ravenna. I know what you're thinking. Ravenna? WTF for? Let me tell you. I'm a HUGE lover of anything Byzantine. And one of the people I admire most in history is the Empress Theodora All my life I've seen the same picture of her, the mosaic that was done by someone who had seen her in life.

Yeah, that one.
I asked my professor, "We going to Ravenna by any chance?" "No, but you can," she said. And that got my gears turning. So, after my class group left, I stayed in Italy and went down to Ravenna. It was a cold, rainy day when I got there but I went out and wandered the streets anyway. For me, wandering around is the best way to get to know a place. Just by wandering I encountered a Venetian fort, Theodoric's tomb, San Vitale and Dante's tomb. (Don't worry, I'll go over each one.)
Ravenna has a small historical center surrounded by a modern industrial city. However, the history that it does have is very impressive.

Okay, let's go over the history of Ravenna for a bit. It was a port town in Roman times but no one really knows much about it before that. Caesar gathered his army there before crossing the Rubicon and it was a Navy port for the Empire. In the 5th century Emperor Honorius moved the capitol of the Roman Empire there. Not bad, so far? But then the Empire moved the capitol back to Rome just in time for it to fall. Then the Goths moved in and finally Theodoric, King of the Goths settled in Ravenna and used it as his capital. Now the strange thing about Theodoric the barbarian Goth was that he was actually a pretty swell guy. He kept the Roman system of laws for the locals, continued to build Roman style palaces and churches and when a crazy bishop had all the synagogues burned down, he ordered that the citizens rebuild the synagogues at their own expense. The fact is, he was hardly a barbarian and many great, old buildings from his rule are still right there for you to see. His mausoleum is there as well, though his body isn't. When the Eastern Roman Empire reconquered Ravenna and used it as its Italian capitol, they took Theodoric's body and tossed it into the sea. Nice guy or not, to the Byzantines he was still a heathen barbarian. (He was Arian Christian, btw.)

Then the Lombards came and took over Ravenna followed by the Franks, the Pope, the Venetians and then the Pope again. Long story.
SAN VITALE
This Byzantine church is the reason I went to Ravenna.

It's a "Greek Cross" style church where the wings of the cross are all the same length. It's also sunk into the marshy land over the years. Typical of Byzantine style, the church is kinda plain on the outside, but like an ugly girl, its what's on the inside that counts!

"Glittering mosaics in dim light" doesn't begin to describe San Vitale. In the apse, the rounded area up front there, has the mosaics of Justinian and Theodora on either side of the windows. I must tell you that mosaics loose much from photography. You really have to see them in life to understand just how beautiful they are.

Mausoleum of Galla Placida
Right next to San Vitale is a small little, private chapel that for some reason is called a mausoleum. Galla Placida was buried in her family crypt in Rome just so you know. But like a bad nickname from High School, the nickname stuck.

Rocca Brancaleone
This is a fort built by the Venetians in the 15th century. It does not have a Wikipedia page in English and the Italian page is also sorely lacking. It has a very peaceful park in front of it and when it's open you can look around the old fort.

Sant'Apollinare Nuovo
This is a church built in 504 by Theodoric and originally it was covered in mosaics that showed a lot of Goth themes. So when the Byzantines came in, they plastered new mosaics over the "too Gothy" ones but you can still see a hand or leg from the old Goth mosaics.

This mosaic runs down the entire length of the church and it shows female saints or virgins. The opposite side shows males. The mosaics also show a representation of Theodoric's old palace.

As you can see, it looks pretty Roman.
Here's the outside of the church.

As I was aimlessly wandering around, I stumbled on to Dante's tomb. Now I had just visited Florence a week before and knew that Dante's tomb was in Florence. However, Florence exiled Dante and he died in Ravenna and was buried there. The tomb in Florence is empty.

There are many other sites to see in Ravenna, some very old churches, Arian baptestries. (Not Aryan as in Nazi crap, but Arian as in an early sect of Christianity.) And there are some cool monuments and a very classy theater.
Here's a monument to Anita Garibaldi and all the people who died in Italy's unification. Also, its an excuse to show a woman in armor.

Here's that theater with some very cool statues in front.

So, if you like beautiful art, interesting and complex histories, I'd definitely suggest Ravenna for an Italian destination!

Spoleto

2012-04-10T16:05:00.001-07:00

Spoleto is probably a place you've never heard of and won't really be in your history books. I think the people there sort of prefer it that way. However, if you're in Italy and you have time, you should really check this place out. This is a picture of Spoleto as you walk from the train station up into town. Our hotel was on the right, the white building "Dui Porte."

Up on the hill you can see the old fortress turned prison the Albornozian Castle and that church there, well, we'll be getting to that soon.

Spoleto is a very beautiful little town in the Umbria region of Italy, in between Assisi and Rome. Like most places is Umbria it has a rustic...did I just say "rustic?" Give me a do over. It's quiet, out of the way, simple but loaded with tons of very interesting things you'll never find on some guided tour of Italy. This is the heart of Italy, away from the tourists but still surrounded by its past and its art.
Here's an idea of what its ancient, and I man ancient, streets look like.

Spoleto was around before the Romans and when the Romans forcibly moved in like awful relatives, they named it "Spoletium." Roman Ruins can still be see all over the little town.
Here's a Roman arch and the original street down below.

And here's a Roman theater.

Oh, that aint all. Beneath the town's government building there's an old Roman house! When I visited it they had two cute Italian college girls working on restoring the floor mosaics.

Here's a mosaic in the old house. Each one of those little tiles had to be placed back where it was supposed to be.

Then, after the Western Roman Empire fell, the Lombards moved in and took the joint over. Eventually the Lombard Countess Matilda of Tuscany who inherited the Duchy of Spoleto, gave it as a gift to the Pope. Now, she was a very interesting woman and you can learn more about her HERE.
But now, Spoleto is a sleepy little town except when they have their annual festival every year in late June-early July.
I walked up to the huge aquaduct that spans a narrow valley. Its not a Roman one (well, maybe there was a Roman one there once) but a 13th century one. Still, it's mighty impressive. And you get to walk out on it!

Now let's walk back down the hill to the Cathedral of Santa Maria Dell' Asunta. (Didn't we just see an Asunta in Torcello?) This isn't the biggest church in Italy, but it's very interesting. It has frescos done by Filppo Lippi, a famous monk/artist. He was a great artist but a lousy monk because he supposedly seduced the mayor's daughter and they killed him for it. They then brought in his son, Filippino Lippi to finish the frescos.
Here's the church! The bell tower is made out of Roman ruins and you can see parts of inscriptions and carved figures.

Since its not crowded with tourists this church is actually a very nice place to think, as is the piazza outside.
Now you can't go to Spoleto, let alone Umbria without gorging yourself on the food because it might possibly have the best food in Italy and that's saying a lot! With only a few exceptions, all my best meals were in Umbria. Let's start with the "porquetta." This I found at a small stand near the train station. This guy sold pork sandwiches which consisted of sliced pork, bread....and that's it. That's all it needed! It was one of the most amazing sandwiches of my life. It redefined what a truly great sandwich was. The next meal you must try is the Wild Boar Sausage. I've never had sausage this good in my life and sometimes I even consider the most delicious thing I've ever eaten. The trick is to sprinkle a little lime on it. Wow! I'm drooling just thinking about it. And the next thing you must try is the gnochi. It comes in different varieties but it's all good. It looks kinda like shell pasta but its potato dumplings in sauce. The desert was strawberries and cream which needs no explanation but I will say that fresh strawberries from the local farmers kick supermarket strawberries in the junk. This is another pasta dish that was wonderful. Seriously, just go order everything on the menu.

Desolate Torcello

2012-04-09T18:16:00.001-07:00

It may seem strange to some, but one of my very favorite places in Italy is a small, lonely, melancholy island just outside of Venice called "Torcello." (pronounced "Tor-che'-low") Now, I love Venice, it's my absolute favorite city on planet Earth and then some, but in that area Torcello is literally my favorite SPOT on Earth. And believe me, the rest of Italy gives some very stiff competition! There's no other place quite like it though. To get there you have to take several water taxis form Venice, to Murano, to Burano and then finally to Torcello. Unless you rented a boat or know a local Venetian, you aren't getting there any time soon. But I do have to say that it is very worth it. You leave the busy hustle and bustle of Venice behind, preferably in the morning to give you time, and you travel to the lonely island of Torcello.
Here's what it looks like as you approach the island.

Torcello was actually one of the very first settlements in the entire Venetian lagoon. It was settled by refugees from the collapsing Roman Empire. For its early history about 450BC to about 1200, Torcello was larger or at least rivaled Venice itself. The bishop even had his cathedral here. There were two harbors, now silted up and swampy and several churches, convents, monasteries and palaces. All of its past glory is almost vanished now.
As you get off the ferry at Torcello's one remaining dock you begin the short and empty walk along the silted up, green canal.

Through the trees and bushes you catch glimpses of ruined and run down houses on the other side of wild fields. Only as you approach the far side of the island do you start to see signs of living civilization. There are a handful of houses and one over priced bed and breakfast, the Cipriani.
You cross one tiny, but elegantly arched bridge and you com to the remains of the once glorious piazza.
Okay, I'm a bit of a romantic when it comes to such things. I was walking in the middle of the ruins of power. All that remained were a few buildings that were now a part of the museum and the two churches of Santa Fosca and Assunta.

The round one in front is an ancient Byzantine church of Santa Fosca, from when Venice and the Byzantine (Eastern Roman Empire thank you very much) were BFF's. It's a very simple, humble little church, two words not normally associated with the Byzantines. Next to it though is the Cahtedral of Santa Maria Assunta. I've seen many an Italian church from small town churches in Umbria, to St. Peter's in Rome to the glittering St. Mark's in Venice, but for me, Santa Maria Assunta has one of the most amazing mosaics in all of Italy.

The lone, solitary figure of the Virgin, all, lean and clad in a dark robe, stares out at you. She needs no other ornimintation. There's nothing gaudy or extravagant about this mosaic. It's simple, refrained and elegant in its power. I found my self standing there for a long time, staring at this work of art. As an artist I was kind of jealous. This 12th century anonymous Byzazantine artist has made a work that's as powerful today as it was the day it was made. You're going to have to believe me, its just something you're going to have to see for yourself. I mean it, go see it...now...I'll wait.

This is looking over the remains of Torcello from the bell tower. For a few Euro you get inside the church, the bell tower and/or the museum. Well worth it! At the top of the picture above you can see one of the silted up harbors.

Above is another view from the bell tower looking out over the only real street that remains. On the left is one of the few remaining canals. It was the silting up of the canals and harbors that caused disease that made everyone leave the island.
If you do have time, please go see this wonderful place. Once you're finished wandering around you can go back to the colorful island of Burano and have lunch at the Da Romano which serves some of the best Risotto ever. For the win!

Welcome to the Journey!

2012-04-09T15:58:00.001-07:00

If anyone's met me for more than five minutes they'll quickly realize that my great love in life is Italy. First, let me tell you a little about myself. During my first combat tour in Iraq I made a list of things I wanted to do with my life if I survived the war. Number one on that list was go to Italy. I have always wanted to go there. In college I double majored in History and Art, two great passions of mine. Well, Italy has more history and art than you can shake a canolli at. Mmmm.....I'm just thinking about canolli. Well, as you can see, I survived Iraq and I went back to college. Unfortunately when I got back I didn't adjust well. I ended up so full of anger and rage that I ended up hating almost everything and everyone. I remember thinking that the world didn't deserve to be happy. No one understood what I and my fellow soldiers had gone through. They asked ignorant questions like "So, did ya kill anyone?" That just infuriated me even more. It seemed that my fellow students were completely ignorant about the war being fought over seas. Also, I couldn't relate to their petty concerns and problems. To them a real problem was missing an episode of American Idol. I didn't see any goodness or beauty in the world. After my first semester back my art-history professor was going to take a group over to Italy and she suggested that I should go. I was single, had money and had nothing else to do...why the heck not?? So I signed up and flew over to Italy with the school group. I knew it wasn't going to be a lame, touristy rushed tour because my two professors were awesome. Just driving from the airport in Ostia to Rome and driving through the streets I saw things I never thought I'd see in my life. We drove by the Colosseum! It was just right there in front of me! That was only the first of many, many sights I'd see that blew me away. There in Italy I tasted the best food I've ever had. I met the nicest people, saw the most gorgeous churches and scenery, saw the most historic sites and gazed on the most divine art I've ever seen. It was in Italy that I learned that there was goodness and beauty in the world. I learned that I could be happy again and now every time I think of Italy, I cant help but smile. After my second tour in Iraq, I went back to Italy and lived in Rome where I taught English to the wonderful Italians. I got to wander around like a lost vagabond and explore Italy like a local. During the journey of this blog I hope to bring you along with me on my adventures. We'll explore the old churches, the forts, the palaces and the museums. We'll eat at all the best and worst places, have gelato and wild boar sausage and learn about the art and the history of the countless places. I hope you enjoy the adventure as much as I do. But remember, I'm eccentric so I won't go along with the same things the cheap tour guides go with. I'll offer a unique perspective of Italy with eyes trained in art, history and life.
I think this next picture sums up what my blog will be about.