Leone is to Sicily as Johnson is to Minnesota

My apologies for the tardiness of my blog posts! This past week my friend Lauri was here, I had a project due, and a final.

Bravo: Lauri and I went to the island of Sicily. Many of my family members lived there before moving to the United States. The island is mountainous and beautiful. Along the beach crushed red coral washes up with the waves leaving beautiful patterns on the sand. Bravo #2: It is always nice to have a guest, Lauri and I did many of the tourist things such as: Colosseum, Roman Fourm, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Spanish Steps, Via del Corso, The Vatican (including a tour of the underground necropolis which contains the tomb of Saint Peter, very cool), and many more things.

Bruto: Last weekend we went to the Adriatic side of Italy. We did not take it in to account that it is the tourist off season. Much of the town we went to was closed for the season. It was not quite what I expected.

Interessante: I've always known that my last name is very Italian and means lion. What I did not know is that it is a Sicilian name and that it is as common there as the last name Johnson is in Minnesota! The owner of the hostel we stayed at was surprised when we arrived that I did not speak Italian.

Poop, Literally

Today the inevitable happened, I got pooped on by a seagull. Never again will I hope for a "more interesting" week.

A Week Dominated by School

I have not had many interesting adventures this past week, just the monotony of school, I guess it can not be avoided, even in Rome.

Bravo: The weather in Rome has been really beautiful, it is still in the mid 60's ever day, with very little rain. Bravo #2: This weekend I attended a cooking class hosted by my art history professor who before becoming a professor was a professional chef. We spent eight hours eating some of the most delicious food.

Bruto: The birds are still in town and fly in swarms around dusk, pooping everywhere.

Interessante: On Sunday my roommate and I walked to a nearby flea market where I purchased 10 euro boots. I wanted to get an inexpensive pair so I would not have to worry about getting them dirty or scuffed. Well, I got exactly what I paid for, the "suede" does not really feel like suede and they have a lingering smell of gasoline. Cheap Cheap Cheap!

I know this weeks post has been pretty mundane, this coming weekend my friend Lauri is coming to visit and we are planning on taking a day trip to the Adriatic Coast, hopefully there will be a little more adventure to write about.

Milan and Venice

This past week I went on a field trip to Milan and Venice. I remember thinking the Science Museum was an awesome field trip. This week just blew the Science Museum out of the water.

Bravo: In Milan I had the opportunity to tour the design work room of Achille Castiglioni. He has designed many famous products. His work space was so systematically organized! We had a tour led by his daughter who's personal insight was fascinating. He was such a logical thinker, everything had a specific purpose. Also while in Milan one of the art museums we went to had an exhibit on Frank Gehry, who happens to be one of my favorite architects. I loved being able to see his projects from conception to completion. I also got to see the ballet Giselle. After two days in Milan we took a three hour train to Venice. The minute you walk out of the train station you are greeted by a canal and water taxi stand. I have always known that the city is built on a marsh and uses canals rather than streets, but I don't think I ever anticipated how scenic it would be and also how many canals there actually are! The city is so beautiful, historic, and romantic, the architecture style is much more middle eastern than Rome. On Saturday my roommates and I sat along the main canal that runs through the city and had lunch over looking the water and basking in the sun. One of the days we took a longer boat ride out to the island of Murano, there we had the opportunity to watch an actual glass blower make a lamp as well as a tiny pony.

Bruto: Milan and Venice are both about a four hour train ride north of Rome, it was significantly colder. The temperature was definitely an issue during one of the art exhibits we saw in Venice because the venue it was in an old arsenal and was not heated.

Interessante: In the same exhibit that was not heated there was a piece of art that covered the majority of a wall (approximately 30'x30') made entirely of human hair. Grose. Interessante #2: November is the rainiest month in Venice. Due to its location and nature of what the city is built on the city often floods during this time of year. When we arrived the city it had not begun to flood but along all the sidewalks were platform sidewalks raised up about two feet off the original so that when it floods people will have a place to walk without their feet being completely submerged in water.