Voyaging in Verona, Vicenza, and Venice

What a terrific week we had on our field trip to the north of Italy which included Verona, Vicenza, and Venice.

The field trip seemed to be Scarpa-themed (the Italian architect Carlo Scarpa). So on our way north from Orvieto, we were suddenly awoken and told we were stopping. To our dismay it was not for a snack break... But I guess Scarpa's Chiesa dell'Autostrada del Sol was pretty cool too. Dictionary definition of modern architecture both inside and outside, where you're not quite sure what all the strange shapes and curves are actually functioning for.

 And then we arrived in Verona. All I remember of Verona from 8 years ago was Juliet's house, and thought it was pretty dumb. But coming back and seeing far more and spending 2 days here, Verona is actually quite beautiful and one of my favorites now. This is "The Alps" fountain representing the two sister cities of Verona and Munich. And the ancient Arena is in the background (similar to the Colosseum).

I opted to take the Rick Steves' self-guided walking tour... alone, because no one else trusts Rick Steves' judgement like I have learned to do :). Jokes on them, they didn't see nearly as much as I did. If you don't know, Rick Steves' Italy travel guide has been my holy book while here in Italy. So I started in Piaza Bra where the Arena sits (we eventually went into the Arena as a group the next day).

And then to the Porta Borsari (the ancient Roman city entrance). And Rick Steve's gives sweet tips that people usually don't see, so he pointed me in the direction of a little bar where they have a window in the floor that you can see into the original Roman streets, and a Roman tombstone sitting right outside the cafe like it was just part of the decor (they were only allowed to bury their dead outside the city walls, hence right next to the Porta Borsari).

And then into Piazza Erbe where the square is lined with colorful building facades and is bustling with a market.

Had to go back to the house of Juliet just to make sure it was as dumb and touristy as I remembered to to be... confirmed, it was. But I went into the Letters to Juliet shop and got my name sewn into a sheet of paper for free.... and then stumbled into the Verona Hellas shop (the soccer team), which was worth it.

Passed through Piazza dei Signori before getting to the elaborate tombs of the Scaligeri family (who apparently found a loophole to the whole cemetery in the city issue).

 I got a little bit lost, but a nice Italian man set me back on my Rick Steve's path and I made it to Sant'Anastasia. It had spectacular ceiling ornamentation. (I somehow was able to sneak in without paying and also taking pictures while hiding behind columns...)

Then watched the sun go down and the city light up from the Ponte Pietra bridge over the river. Looking up to the hill where the Roman Theater and Castello San Pietro is. Finished up the night at the Duomo. I went inside (again without having to pay for a ticket), and watched a church service for a few minutes (I decided this was a bad time to try an sneak photos).

Group dinner that night was interesting... I was told that the group meal was ordered carefully to make sure no pork was in it. They started bringing out pasta with ragu (which typically has pork in it). So the professor comes by all concerned and says "I think there's pork in it, we'll try to get you something else. I said that's fine, so I ordered just pasta with white sauce. And I just got plain pasta... nothing else. So then the meat entree comes and the professor comes over again and says "I'm so sorry, but this definitely tastes like pork." So I ask the waitress what kind of meat it is and she says carne (which typically means beef)... carne di maiale (pork)... great. So I ask if there's anything else they have in the kitchen and she's responding to me in Italian but I catch "formaggio" (cheese). So I say yes yes, that's fine. So I get just a plate of cheese... And then of course dessert rolls around and everybody's joking and says "Sorry Elise, this probably has pork in it too." It's a tough life being a Jew in Italy...

The next day we did class trips to the Castelvecchio. This was awesome both because of the history of the castle but also because Carlo Scarpa redesigned the museum part after the roof was destroyed in WWII. So we spent the whole morning wandering around the castle, seeing a bunch of paintings, sculptures, frescoes, and medieval armory.

 ...seeing the amazing Scarpa museum design. They even had a few of his drawings which were cool. I'd argue that some of those would never get him an internship though...

Wandering around the grounds, the beautiful courtyard, and across the bridge. (Which apparently is being used as part of the set for a new Romeo and Juliet movie. So one of the entrances was just made out of plywood and paint... coulda fooled me.

And then I ventured on my own across the bridge and found this beautiful reflecting pool.

We finished our time in Verona at the Arena, and some of us tried to rent bikes and ride around but apparently you have to register beforehand and go through a bunch of stuff...fail. But we did see another Scarpa building, a bank, which was just horribly ugly, clearly not a good portfolio piece for Scarpa...

We then got on the bus and headed to Vicenza. Vicenza is home to a large concentration of Palladio buildings. We tried to hit all of them and at least snap a few pics of each (unfortunately my camera had died by then).

But then a group of use ventured to large park. Saw a whole menagerie of animals around this one pond

  Me at the park...

And then of course we had to climb some trees while the boys stood back and laughed... There's also a video of me trying to break of a huge dead branch by climbing on it. Don't get your hopes up, it didn't break off and land on me, although I wish it had, then I could send the video into America's Funniest Home Videos or something.

There were also chickens in the tree!!! So there's also a good video of Blake talking to the chickens and then me trying to throw a stick up into the tree to see if they'd fly away.

 The next day we went outside of Vicenza to Palladio's Villa Rotunda (what Jefferson designed his Monticello after). The building was cool, I guess it's ground-breaking because it's the same on all four sides...! The so-called "gardens" were not as terrific as I would have expected. Clearly Palladio needed a Landscape Architect on his time. The inside of the cupola was the most spectacular, a perfect fusion of painting, sculpture, and architect where you don't know where one stops and one starts. 

 Also outside Vicenza is Scarpa's Brion Cemetery. This place was truly spectacular (and much more LA focused, which was nice to see). The whole complex was just amazing, all the sculptural architecture, the reflecting pools, the plantings, the experience-based paths.... ahhhh perfect. Scarpa was also buried here. Modest as he was, his tomb is just a flat carved stone piece off in one corner, that's the kind of thing I respect a lot. 

The following are just a few snapshots of the cemetery.

 The chapel (opened just for us), was incredible. I loved the slit windows which reflected from the water outside and cast dancing patterns across the ceiling.

And then off to Venice!! The bus took us straight to the island. Saw the Calatrava bridge although I didn't realize what it was until later, all I knew is that I was taking pictures of a pretty sweet bridge. We had some time to just wander around that night.

 The next day Marco got us on a ferry down the Grand Canal and we walked to St. Mark's square. He showed us the Basilica of St Mark's and off of the rich mosaics, bronze horse sculptures, and 200 marble columns that decorate the facade (most of these were stolen from Constantinople during the raid of 1204). We got a chance to go inside on our own later that day.

 This is actually the Piazzetta next to St. Mark's square. That's the Doge's Palace on the left, the Library of St Mark's on the right, and the two patron saint statues of venice: St Theodoro (the original saint), and then St Mark (the Saint that the Venetians stole from Alexandria... they literally stole the body of St Mark to increase their religious importance... damn Venetians).

 We toured the Doge's Palace with Marco, many of the living quarters as well as the civic rooms used to elect other Doges. The doge, I learned, was not actually a king, nor a royal or politician at all. He was just a rich guy that had done great things for the business and wealth of Venice and this was just sort of a "thank-you" title from the political leaders.

We then climbed the bell tower of St Mark's square

 View from the bell tower into St Mark's Square

On the docks next to St Mark's square (Church of San Giorgio in the background)

Blake and I went to the Correr Museum to see an exhibit on the Armenians and their relationship to Venice. We also spent some time people-watching in St Marks square, rather I watched Blake as he attempted to punch pigeons that flew dangerously close to our heads.

 In front of the Bridge of Sighs (where the prisoners who were tried in the Doge's Palace were then taken to the prison on the other side and allowed one last look out into the world).

 Along the Grand Canal 

 On the Rialto Bridge overlooking the Grand Canal

View OF the Rialto Bridge FROM the Grand Canal

 

 Just one example of the opulence of all the mask, costume, and glass shops in Venice.

And then Blake and I ventured out to the islands of Murano (island of glass making) and Burano (island of lace making). Although we only spent about 5 minutes at each because the ferry schedule messed us up and we had to catch the last ferry back to the main island. The transportation map was NOT to scale and was extremely deceiving as far as actual distances. But we did get to see the sun set out on the lagoon.

 And then Blake taught me how to actually use my camera!!!! So we spent the rest of the night experimenting and doing some night shots. I'm so happy that I know how to do this now, because these shots are amazing!

In San Marco Sqaure where vendors were throwing some cool blue glowing things into the air.

Facade of St Mark's at night

Doge's Palace at night

Woke up to find THIS the next morning! Yup that's a scorpion...

Met up with Chelsea that morning!!!! Hadn't seen her in 9 months. And although we messed up our choreographed meeting in the Jewish quarter, this was just as good!

Marco took us to one of his favorite bookshops. It apparently has problems whenever it floods, so it's organization system looks like this...

 Marco spent some time in the Church of St Peter and Paul which was used as a cemetery on this otherwise difficult island to bury people on (obviously).

On the Rialto Bridge with my sis :)

After the group dispersed for spring break travels, Chelsea and I spent the rest of the time relaxing in the Jewish Ghetto, watching little Jewish children run around and play. Chelsea was adamant about getting her fix of cappuccino (several), pastries, and gelatto... since they don't have these in Ghana of course.

Beautiful Holocaust memorials in the Ghetto Nuovo Square. There was a plaque down one of the alleys that I thought was quite beautiful (and yes I was able to translate it roughly from Italian: "200 Jews from Venice, 8000 Jews from Italy, 6 million Jews from Europe. By blind barbaric hatred in distant lands. Chased, tortured, suppressed. In memory of the atrocious offense to human civilization. Call all men to the holy law of God to the feelings of brotherhood and love that affirms Israel first among the peoples."

We did witness a group of orthodox men dancing and singing in front of a small Jewish bar in the Jewish quarter. The Jews are surprisingly alive and well (although few) in Venice.