From Bayfield Wi to Florence Italy

It's hard to leave beautiful Bayfield, yet it's a bit easier when the sailing season is coming to an end and one is headed to Italy two days later. Florence was the initial destination, then south a couple of hours for a week long yoga retreat put on by my niece Laura and her yoga compatriot Steph. After that I'm pretty much on my own in Cinque Terre, the French Riviera and Provence.

Italy is so much different than what I remember from 1975 when we couldn't drink the water from the tap and there was no toilet paper in the bathrooms. There still aren't many public bathrooms for tourists, mainly because the building codes won't permit such additions to historic buildings. That's also why many of the old buildings don't have central air conditioning. It's not because people don't want it or can't afford it.

September is high season here because July and August are so hot. I'm traveling with my sister Chris who read up on traveling tips--how not to look like a tourist. Everyone here seems to be a tourist so what's the difference? Some 30,000 American students attend one of the 20 universities so between them and the tourists most of the locals speak some English.

Chris didn't believe me about staying up as long as we could the day of our arrival. We both had our moments of exhaustion, but managed to see the Boboli Gardens sans flowers at the Pitti Palace and have an appetizer dinner at a wine bar before collapsing.

Thanks to Rick Steve's, we booked 4 excellent tours through Artriva. We took a walking tour to acquaint ourselves with the buildings, winding our way down narrow alleys and pedestrian streets, thanks to an ordinance that keeps most cars outside the city walls. If you do manage to get a parking permit, it's limited to the area in which you live. That means no driving around within the city. But, who,would want to. To park in your garage means you have to do a three point turn to get into it and out of it.

We've learned all about the Medici family, pronounced Med' e che, not Me de' che. As far as I'm concerned, they were the forerunners of the Mafia. They never held office, though 4 Medicis became Popes. They were the behind-the-scenes bankers and politicians. Some Florentines refer to them as the Godfathers of Florence. To assure themselves they wouldn't go to hell, they spent considerable sums of money on behalf of the churches. Their egos and attitudes were huge. Cosmo, the elder had his face carved in the statute of Neptune. When he bought the Town Hall for their home, his wife didn't want to live there so they built a home across the Orno River.  Not wanting to cross the bridge with commoners, Cosmo build a second story on the bridge so his wife didn't have to.

The Medicis ruled for about 350 years, but died out as a result of in-breeding. Their empire was left to the Lorraine family with the stipulation that things were to be left in tact, and that request was honored. Even during war times, most buildings were unscathed. Mother Nature wasn't so kind in 1966 when a flood caused irreparable damage to much of the artwork in the Uffizi, the Accademia and other museums, as well as the city as a whole.

Italy is not that old of a country. The city states were unified in the 1800's. Florence was capital for a short time before it was switched to Rome. But during that time, renovation took out the city gates and impoverished buildings, and new Roman ones designed to look old took their place. None of course could be taller than the Town Hall. BTW, Florence is not the real name for this city, it's true name is Firenza.

Florence is all about art and fashion. Michelangelo and DaVinci both worked here. Da Vinci's sole free-standing painting is in the Uffizi. (His others are all permanent frescos.) Most significant here is the statute of David. It was supposed to be place atop the Duomo, but given how much time and effort it took to move the statute (upright per the artist's instructions) on the ground, 4 days and forty men, it stayed on the ground level and required a wall to be cut out to move David inside. Michelangelo was said to have dissected corpses in order to really understand how the body worked, which he then used this knowledge to create the masterpieces he did. He sculpted first with a round chisel, secondly a forked chisel, then smaller chisels, followed by sand, emery powder and straw to polish marble to such a shine. He also carved the whole front first, not around like other sculptors did. Michelangelo died a rich man thanks to his supporter, Lorenzo Medici. Though he died wealthy, Rome intended to bury the 89- year old "has-been" artist in an un-important church, so his relatives stole the body and he is buried in Florence.

Today we spent learning more than I expected about different olive oils and balsamic vinegars on a food tour. We heard about Bistecca alla Florentine, a rare grilled T-bone steak splashed with Tuscan olive oil which we had for dinner tonight, giving the black, or white, truffles another week to mature. We waddled to see a delightful comedy--The History of Florence in 60 Minutes. It really was delightful, but I closed my eyes and ears even with all the laughter, still working through the jet lag, though those of you who know me well, might not blame that on jet lag.no dessert tonight, but maybe tomorrow I'll have another gelato, one from a place that makes it locally and covers it, not from one that heaps it up, though the display makes one lust for it.