La Rivalita a Esso e piu Bella
“Rivalry at its Finest”
Let me take a few short lines to apologize for my neglect of this blog. I know that for the most part it is my only connection to family, friends, and loved ones but unfortunately for all I stumbled upon a site that allows me to watch American shows for free! It allowed me to catch back up with my two shows; House (because of his witty and sarcastic attitude) and Castle (because of mystery in both the cases and the personal lives of the characters). Now that I am fully up to date on these shows it is back to work (which also means I have to finish studio work).
And now onto Siena…
The city itself is quite remarkable with two primary tourist attractions in the “Campo” (public Piazza space) and the Duomo that looks eerily similar to the one in Oriveto. We spent most of our day wandering the streets and tuning out Marco while he spoke of the drama from years past. One topic became extremely interesting though and will be the focus of the rest of this blog.
Il Palio
“The Palio” is the name given to the annual horse race that takes place in the Campo of Siena. Although Siena stands as one city there are 17 different “contradas” (neighborhoods) that, during the Palio, become the fiercest of rivals. Each contrada has it’s own territory, symbol, church, museum (dedicated to the Palio victories), and colors. Each contrada also has an arch-enemy neighborhood that they hate with every ounce of energy (comparable to my dislike for the Broncos as a Chiefs fan).
These guys take hatred to a new level however as they engage in fights, bribes, and sabotage to ensure the rival contrada does not win the horse race. Being in first is important but finishing before your arch rival is the ultimate goal. Each horse is chosen at random (from a hat) by the mayor of the city then it is placed in the care of the contrada as they train, fed, and bless the horse before the race in the local church. Luckily for us we got to visit the “Goose” districts museum and church where all of this craziness happens (Pictured above).
Overall Siena was a dull city in my mind but the atmosphere and mindset of the locals was by far the most intriguing aspect of Italy thus far. The ability to live as equals for part of the year and enemies the rest of the time does not exist in America. Family comes first and pride is a word that people will die for here. “Il Palio” just became an event that must be added to any bucket list.
Fino a quando la prossima volta,
Tyler
Mamore Falls
Italy’s largest National Park (we think) the waterfall is the main feature of this attraction. To be honest I’m burnt out from writing so I decided to put together a quick video of the park. Enjoy!
Un Giardino, Una Villa, e Una Chiesa
“A Garden, a Villa, and a Church”
Our weekly trip on Friday consisted of a bus tour that would take us South(ish) of Rome beginning at the Villa D’Este then proceeding down the hill to Hardrian’s Villa and eventually into Rome to visit Jubilee Church by Richard Meier. Needless to say, with a jammed packed agenda, Friday began early as my alarm (a very annoying nuclear reactor sound) went off at 6:45 am. Fortunately, bus trip means my own seat which also means naptime so for the 1 hour and 30 minute trek south I slept soundly as my ipod drowned out any background noise or conversation.
Villa D’Este was the first destination as it sits among the common houses in the city center of Tivoli. Its large fortress style gate marked the entrance to the grounds that include a garden (complimented by several large and extravagant fountains) and a less than impressive Renaissance style house for a wealthy family. We quickly perused the rooms of the house then wandered into the garden where we would spend the next several hours taking photos and enjoying another perfect spring day in Italy. The garden was larger than expected and includes several famous water features including the water organ, the path of 100 fountains, and the Cyprus rotunda.
At exactly 12:45 (time was very important to Marco on this trip) we departed the garden and headed back down to the base of Tivoli where former emperor Hadrian had constructed an oversized villa for himself (ancient Romans tended to be selfish). After about 5 minutes of listening to Marco lecture (about the gossip of the time) a few of us subtly left the group as we moved onto more interesting sections of the villa grounds.
A short time later it was back onto the bus as we began the slow trek home stopping only for a quick viewing of Jubilee Church in the North of Rome. This church is the first piece of modern architecture that I have seen on this trip so it was a nice change of pace minus the location. Flanked by college dorm looking apartment buildings and standing in the middle of a Travertine plaza the church was slightly disappointing. Don’t get me wrong Richard Meier is more of an architect than I will ever be but his design does nothing to improve the world around it. It merely stands alone and ignores any sort of context which is a big no-no according to the professors in the KSU architecture department. It does look cool however so I guess that counts for something.
The day ended as we arrived back in Orvieto around 6:30 (18:30 to the Italians) with hopes that our trip to Terni the next day could match the fun and relaxing day we had just experienced.
Fino a quando la prossima volta,
Tyler
Gioco di Rivalita
“Rivalry Game”
A week ago Saturday marked the first of two legs against our archrivals from Santa Chiara (the other KSU architecture students studying in Italy). They arrived at the field around 11:30 and the game began after a short greeting and team warm up session. The idea of the game was to reunite all the KSU kids for a day that included a soccer match (tanning session for the girls), a local dinner, and lots of alcohol (only because we’re all 21).
The game matched up two different styles of soccer (which I won’t bore you with) as we lined up 5 vs. 5 with 25 minute halves and free subs (we each had 10 players). The Orvieto group (aka Spicy Sausages) wore different shades of blue jerseys while the Santa Chiara group (aka Redheaded Step Children) showed up in white t-shirts.
After the final whistle blew Orvieto (our team) stood victorious over the scrubs 12-5. The game was memorable however as we played fairly serious against each other but remained respectful (not always easy in the heat of battle). Following the game we decided to create 4 hybrid teams of 5 players from both groups and play a college version of “winner stays” soccer style. This was much more light hearted as players celebrated goals in dramatic ways, joked around with the opponent, and listened to music on the sidelines.
About 3 hours after the start of the first game we all separated in search of showers and beer with the intent to regroup for dinner. This plan failed however because we regrouped way before dinner as most of us enjoyed the weather on our front porch (about a 4 ft. by 12 ft. area outside our door) while sipping on local beers. Pizzeria Charlie’s was the dinner destination that overwhelmed the waiters, chefs, and other patrons (they don’t gather like we do in the United States) as we sat down for a 2 hour meal of Calzones and Pizza.
The end of dinner marked the beginning of the evening that included a soccer match (Inter Milan lost to AC Milan) and sangria. Overall it was a successful day that made all of us excited for the upcoming weekend when the roles would reverse and Orvieto would journey to Santa Chiara.
Fino a quando la prossima volta,
Tyler
Il Mondo Naturale
“The Natural World”
After a few weeks of not so normal travel and Spring break (both extremely enjoyable and already missed) we returned to the daily drag of routine life in Orvieto, Italy (sarcasm)! The week flew by as people returned with tales of adventures in different cities, countries, and cultures. After our first family dinner in some time (consisting of grilled chicken with pesto and pasta salad) we retired early in preparation for the next day’s travel to Villa Lante.
The early morning wake-up call and 15 minute stroll to the bus is still my least favorite part of traveling in Italy yet the process is becoming slightly easier with the welcomed addition of Springtime temperatures and sunshine (mostly thanks to daylight savings time). Boarding the bus without expectation or knowledge of the end destination, I quickly prepped my camera for what I assumed would be another photogenic and memorable day trip.
Upon arrival at Villa Lante we were quickly re-acclimated with the idea of “tourism” as we fought for the perfect picture and waited patiently for that one “photo bomber” to clear the view of our camera lens. The space is the epitome of Roman gardens as every aspect of the place is designed (both natural and man-made). The perfect weather made it impossible to pass on the chance to lounge on the many fountain ledges and stone benches scattered throughout the villa grounds. The relaxing sound of the fountains (all driven by primitive hydraulic technology) made one wonder who the heck gets the crappy job of keeping all of the bushes perfectly trimmed and shaped.
Unforeseen by our professors (or anyone for that matter) the most memorable part of the day came towards its conclusion as we emerged from the garden and were greeted by a playground fit for a king. My favorite elementary school memories came rushing back as we frolicked about on the swings, sea-saw, carousel, and vintage jungle gym. This was the perfect end to the day as we headed back to Orvieto to prepare for the soccer match against our cross town rivals (KSU kids from Castiligion Fiorentina) the following day. I will post the events of that day in a later blog.
Fino a quando la prossima volta,
Tyler
Italia Finora…
“Italy thus far…”
By Jordan Kaelin
Since arriving here on Saturday, Italy has been more beautiful than I could have ever imagined. The trip began in Orvieto where I received a free tour from a hansom Italian local (His name was Tyler). Our tour consisted of many photo ops (often self-timed while balancing the camera on bags, wallets, phones, cars, etc.) including places I have heard so much about. I also got to meet several locals that Tyler talks about daily. I have been impressed by the small town atmosphere with a surprising amount of things to do or experience (kinda like “The Little Apple”).
After a relaxing weekend in the mountain town we headed north to the bigger cities of Florence, Pisa, Venice, and Verona.
Florence seemed like an all day workout experience as we walked several miles to see all the famous sites the city has to offer (including 463 steps up the Duomo). This was my first taste with famous Italian art especially with the painted Dome ceiling of the Basilica and the pseudo-David statue outside the Uffici Gallery. This city opened my eyes to the placement of these works of art and architecture all of which seemed to be tucked away around any random corner. A spur of the moment dinner (in the basement restaurant of our hotel) turned out to be one of my favorites as I got to eat gnocchi for the first time.
Pisa was an entertaining way to spend the latter part of the day on Monday. Other than the church complex (and the kebab shop) the city seemed dead but the atmosphere around the tower made up for it. We (and many other tourists) spent a lot of time posing for the perfect tower picture along with scanning the local vendor stands for souvenirs. Seeing the tower firsthand makes it impossible to comprehend how it could possible still be standing.
Venice was by far my favorite city we have experienced thus far. Taking the #1 vapporetto down the grand canal provided a thorough tour of the city along with many photo opportunities. The city could make anyone feel like a professional photographer as it seems impossible to take a bad photo. Climbing the bell tower, walking through San Marco’s Basilica, and wondering over the Rialto bridge were some of the highlights of the day. The best part of Venice was to aimlessly wander over the many side bridges and canals taking in all the beauty of the city with Tyler (personal name drop).
Verona was not what I expected it to be. I knew it was home to the story of Romeo and Juliette so I assumed it would be a town preserved from that time (OLD!). When we arrived on the train I could see it was one of the more modern cities we have experienced. Walking down the busy shopping district (similar to the Plaza) we saw many familiar brands including Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Chanel, and more. In the midst of my window shopping, Tyler (Romeo/Bag holder) had to point out Juliette’s house as it stands in the middle of the busy commercial area. Although the placement of this house was odd, it was cool to see the well known story come to life. This city was filled with shopping and romance so how could a girl not enjoy it!
Our next adventure will take place in Rome before heading back home (816!). The trip so far has been a dream come true and hopefully (once I make a lot of money) I can experience it again.
Fino a quando la prossima volta,
Jordan (and Tyler)
Read First!
Due to the introduction of daylight savings time and the extreme time difference between Italy and KC, MO (or just because Jordan finally arrived!) this blog has become extremely stagnant. My apologies. In an effort to quickly regain the lost ground I have summarized the events of last week (March 14-18) below in both text and pictures. Following this post, I will probably turn the reigns over to Jordan for some time so she can give her perspective on the cities we have visited this week (March 19-26). Enjoy!
March 14-15:
Woke up early to catch train to Verona (It was raining)
Arrived in Verona and embarked on walking tour of city with camera in hand (had the ability to rain)
We saw Juliette’s house, a shopping district, the arena, and Castelvecchio
Sang Happy Birthday to Kevin in a restaurant then enjoyed several Irish Car Bombs to celebrate (no rain)
March 16:
Woke up early to ride a bus to Venice with several stops along the way (It was raining hard!)
Stopped in Vicenza to see a basilica, theater, and the inside of my rain jacket (still raining really hard)
Theater was highlight because we didn’t realize what we were seeing. It was the first theater built in perspective to deceive the audience. Very cool.
Continued driving to Villa Rotonda (I’m officially soaked)
Made it to Carlo Scarpa’s designed cemetery and embarked on walking tour (now it’s miserable)
Arrived in Venice to blow dry clothes, bags, shoes, and body (cloudy with a chance of rain)
March 17-18:
Awoke to tour the city with Marco as our guide (SUNNY!)
Enjoyed San Marcos square, a grand canal ferry ride, Rialto bridge, and getting lost (still beautiful)
Left Friday afternoon to prepare to pick up Jordan in Rome on Saturday!
Hope this quick rundown of the week can successfully update on my whereabouts and the experience we had. It was a very busy and eventful week and as you can tell the weather did not want to cooperate. Luckily, the weather would make a miraculous turn for the better upon Jordan’s arrival.
Fino a quando la prossima volta,
Tyler
