Teenage Wasteland

Garden details

2011-06-16T15:03:00.014-04:00

Bibb Lettuce, Pablo Lettuce, and Black Valentine Bush Beans

American Spinach, Parisian Carrots, and Pinto Beans

Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce, Butterhead Speckled Lettuce, and Tenderette Beans.

Buttercrunch Lettuce, Watermelon Radish, and Cilantro/Coriander.

Gourmet Lettuce Blend, Dwarf Blue Scotch Curled Kale, and Early Mazuna Mustard.

Buttercrunch Lettuce, Wong Bok (Chinese Cabbage), Cilantro/Coriander.

Arugula/Roquette, Evergreen Bunching Onion, Moss Curled Parsley.

Boston Pickling Cucumber, Speckled Roman Tomatoes, Shallots.

Celery, Brussels Sprouts, and Eggplant.

Bright Lights Swiss Chard, Chioggia Beet, and Clemson Spineless Okra.

Nutri-Red Carrots, Hamburg Parsley - Rooted Parsnip, and Detroit Golden Beet.

Danvers Half Long Carrots, Hakurei Hybrid Turnip, Cayene Chili, Poblano Chili.

Watermelon Radish, Carnival Blend Carrot, Jalapeño Chili and Cayenne Chili.

Vietnamese Mint, Kentucky Colonel Mint, Roma Tomato, Sweet 100 Tomato, Pineapple Tomato, 2 Tomatillo plants, Defiant Tomato, Green Zebra Tomato, and Cherokee Purple

Garden Update - mid June

2011-06-14T22:26:00.002-04:00

Well, between the end of the quarter and the wedding, I have been crazy effing busy over the past 2 months. I FINALLY have some time to blog. Although I barely had enough time to even shit, I did make certain to keep up with the garden. It's planted, and pretty much full. Here's an updated photo:

I will go through what I have planted plot by plot over the next few days or so. Keep an eye out. BTW, I LOVE Summer break.

Foraging for dinner

2011-04-24T22:44:00.003-04:00

So, I had already begun to regress from a full consumer economy member to an active participant in agriculture. That is, of course, the whole point of this blog, these days. Now, it is safe to say, that I have further devolved into a hunter/gatherer (well, a gatherer). I have foraged for my first meal.

Last week, I heard a story on NPR about urban foraging. This compelled me to think of some of my weeds in a different light. One of the biggest problems I have faced with my raised beds is that the system that I used to smother the grass has failed to kill the Wild Garlic (and violets). Wild Garlic, aka Allium vineale, had become the bane of my existence. Sure it looks like harmless little chives, but damn that shit is resilient! Well, instead of hating it, I decided to try to eat it. That was the right choice.

First off, the only way to get rid of wild garlic is to pull it out by the bulbs. (This will not completely get rid of it, but is better than mowing it down.) Since the bulbs need to come out, I thought, perhaps I should just eat it. I consulted another blog about the possibility of eating the stuff - whether it is poisonous, tastes bad, that sort of thing. I decided to give it a try. I made a pasta con aglia e olio (pasta with garlic and oil). It was delicious. Here is the procedure I used.

1. Harvest the weed. This involves digging the bulb structure with a trowel. Wild garlic reproduces in two ways: a. using flowers (not common in urban yards, as it usually gets mowed before flowering), and b. laterally by creating little neighboring bulbs. Consequently, the bulb cluster has a huge variety of size.

2. Clean the plants. I started with about a 2" diameter clump of bulbs and dirt, shook off as much as I could, and brought the remaining plants inside. To clean them, I ran them under the faucet for a few minutes (being sure not to let any stones go down the drain), then I filled the sing with water and soaked the entire plants for a few minutes. The cleaning process was very time consuming. Most of the bulbs (and corresponding chive-like leaves) are too small to use. These I discarded. I wound up keeping about 15 bulb-chive plants. The bulbs were about a cm in diameter, the leaves were about 8" long (give or take).

3. Prepare the food. I boiled 1/2 a box of pasta (I used fancy-shmancy gourmet market pasts. I'm an Epicurean, so sue me!). While that was cooking, I separated the bulbs from the leaves and roughly chopped the tiny bulbs. Once the pasta was cooked and drained, I returned it to the pot, added EVOO (or olio) and butter, then added the garlic. I put both the chopped bulbs and the leaves in. The latter were prepared using kitchen scissors, cutting them directly into to the pot. I did not want to overcook the garlic, but I wanted to temper the volatile flavor a bit (as I would do with normal onions or garlic). Meanwhile, I sliced grape tomatoes in half (useful hint: use two round, plastic container lids, put them together with the tomatoes inside, run knife between the two lids - no fuss, perfectly sliced tiny tomatoes!). I tossed the tomatoes with the pasta, threw in some crushed red pepper (aka birdseed), and topped it all with salt, freshly ground black pepper, and freshly graded Parmaggiano Reggiano.

It was delicious. It was also super cool to turn a nasty headache of a weed (and the bane of my organic gardening existence) into a delicious meal. Yay killing two birds with one stone by turning weeding into lunch! Yay foraging!

Trees = planted

2011-04-10T16:44:00.002-04:00

In the past 48 hours, I have planted or transplanted a total of 13 trees. Cool, huh? Step one was to transplant the crabapple tree from the back of our property to the front. This was the most difficult job, as the tree is about 7' tall. It's a nice tree, but the previous owners of our home had planted it right where it would eventually shade out the garden. I couldn't have that, so I moved it to the north end of the property. Assuming I did not kill it, problem solved!

The other 12 trees (well, 10 trees and 2 shrubs) were all obtained from the Arbor Day Foundation. Yeah, that's right. I donated money to the Arbor Day foundation. What did I get out of it? 1. A tax write off (woo, $25 bucks). 2. 10 trees and 2 shrubs. They came in the mail this week. Let me repeat this. I received 10 trees and 2 shrubs IN THE MAIL. That either means that I have brought abuse upon our femail man, or the trees were tiny. That's right. Tiny trees. Twigs with roots.

The two shrubs are Lilac bushes (well, twigs) that I planted between our fruit trees (that are flowering nicely). The 10 trees consist of 2 White Flowering Dogwoods (both planted at our house - one in front, one in back), 2 American Redbud (both, now, at my sister's house), 2 Golden Raintree trees (one at Dea's, one at Katie's 'rents' house), 2 Washington Hawthornes (both at Katie's 'rents'), and 2 crabapples (one at Katie's 'rents' and one back beyond our back fence). I am proud of myself, but I am tired of digging for a while.

New beds 5/5/11

2011-04-05T08:15:00.003-04:00

Here, at long last is a photo of my recent work. Of greatest prominence are the two new raised beds. Hopefully, I will find the time to get down to get down to Com-Til, this week. The new beds need LOTS of soil fill. The older beds need a bit (that is mainly my own leaf litter that you see). Notice that the back fence is not as monotonous as it once was. Over Spring Break, I transplanted all of those boxwood bushes from the front of the house. Hopefully, they will thrive, here. We received a Forsythia bush as a present over the weekend. I plan to plant it to the left of the boxwoods.

Finally, I would like to give a shout-out to my father. He turns 70, today. I look forward to how his genes will play out for me, as, apart from being semi-retired, he could easily pass for someone 20 years younger (Actually, this is true for both of my parents. I won the genetic lottery, bitches!).

Arbor Day

2011-04-04T22:10:00.002-04:00

So, I donated some money to the Arbor Day foundation. In return, I received ten (that's right, TEN) saplings to plant. I received them in the mail, today. I have two Sargent Crabapples (Malus sargentii), two Eastern Redbuds (Cercis Canadensis), two Washington Hawthorns (Crateygus phaenopyrum), two White Flowering Dogwoods (Cornus florida), and two Goldenraintrees (Koelreuteria paniculata). As a special gift, I also received two Fragrant Lilacs (Syringa vulgaris). I plan to plant the two lilacs, two dogwoods, and one of the redbuds, here. Speaking to my fiancé's mom, yesterday, they have a bunch of dead space in their yards. I think I can plant the others at their house. I really like the idea of planting trees. It feels empowering.

Productive

2011-04-03T21:13:00.003-04:00

Holy shit, I was productive, today. Katie and I planned a party (in the future), we finished our taxes, and we completed the other half of the raised bed system I spoke of earlier. We accomplished this all the while finding time to spend with Katie's family, as her grandfather passed away early this morning. RIP, Huck. He would have approved of the gardening.

Anywho, the second bed is complete. The two recent beds are both 3' deep. The longer of the two is 16' wide, with a divider in the center. The shorter is just over 10' long, with one bay being about 3'-6" and the other about 7.' By having separate cells, I can better regulate soil content for specific crops. Also, the dividers provide extra structural reinforcement. Between each of my beds I have left 3' paths. This is wide enough to get the lawn mower through. 3' is wide enough that I can pivot the wheel barrow 90 degrees. The 12" height of the sides of the beds is a perfect fit for the wheel barrow. I can upend the barrow with the lep fully over the wall. I have several inches to spare. It is wonderful being able to DUMP compost into the beds (from a 3' wide path). Yay, MATH!

The growing medium composition is a work in process. Just like the 6" beds from last fall, I smothered the grass with newspapers (3-5 pages thick) that were then hosed down. The smothered grass composts in the ground. Atop the newspapers I put a layer of composted leaf litter, a layer of composted manure, and another layer of leaf litter. The compost comes from several bags I hadleft in the garage since last year. Yes, I know that they've lost much of their goodness. I am mainly thinking of filler, at this point. I am reluctant to use the soil from my tomato pots from last year. I had some blight, and I don't want to risk it being transferred to the new beds. Most of the soil (which will be deposited on top of the leaf litter layers in all beds) will come from Comtil. I have never used Comtil, before. I am REALLY hoping that the soil is delivered in bags. If not, I might have to look elsewhere.

I should have photos for you tomorrow.

New Raised Bed

2011-04-03T00:20:00.002-04:00

I added another raised bed, today. I had planned to complete an entire row of beds, but I ran out of 1" screws (and then ran out of washers). Oh well. As you may have observed, my first row of beds is made of 2x6 boards of untreated pine, held together by corner braces and reinforcing braces. This row will be ideal for leafy greens that do not require a deep system of roots (lettuce, spinach, cabbage, and the like). The second row will consist of two 3' by approximately 15' beds constructed using 2x12 boards of untreated pine. Yes, I know I will need to replace the boards in a few years, but the untreated wood will not leak chemicals into the soil. Growing up, we had beds made of bricks and railroad ties. The ties leak creosote. That's bad. The bricks were just too thick. I did not want to waste that much space on the walls. 1.75' is enough, thank you.

The second tier of beds will be ideal for deeply rooted veggies that do not grow particularly tall (root veggies such as beets and turnips, low chili peppers, herbs). I am taking into consideration that some plants I intend to grow - sunflowers, corn, hops, tomatoes, etc. - could potentially block the sunlight of plants planted to the North of them. My southernmost plants will grow close to the ground. My tallest plants will be sown in the northernmost begs. Today's bed is of the middle ground.

Photos to follow.

Today's Fardening

2011-03-22T18:38:00.003-04:00

I finished transplanting the boxwoods from the front of the house to right along the back fence. The previous owners installed the fence to add privacy. I see it as a sun-blocking device (but I like that no one from the alley can see my produce). By placing boxwoods along the fence, I break up the monotony and fill up otherwise (constantly in shade) dead space.

I also bought two raspberry plants, today. They have been planted along the eastern fence (left, below). They should get decent light from about noon to about two hours before sunset. Because raspberries like acidic soil, I "mulched" them with the limbs (or should I say boughs) from the Xmas tree. The trunk of said Xmas tree will eventually be firewood, but right now it is a scary ass club.

I also planted a rhubarb plant and several asparagus plants. All three main crop plants are delayed gratification investments: none of them may (or can) be harvested in the first years. I'm okay with delayed gratification... for now.

Urban Organic Farming (aka I'm back-ish?)

2011-03-22T10:02:00.004-04:00

As you can plainly see, I have not updated my blog in quite some time. Other priorities, I suppose. Anywho, although I do hope, some day, to finish documenting my 2007-08 trip to Italy, I intend to shift gears with Teenage Wasteland, and mainly document my efforts at Urban Organic Farming. Well, "farming" might be too strong of a term. I plan on turning my yard into one hell of a garden - a farden, if you will.

This is what I am starting with. Some of the work was begun last Autumn. The raised bed at the rear (southern end) of the yard are composed of untreated pine 4x6's. To kill the grass, I put down newspaper, wetted the newspaper with water from my rain barrel, and topped it all off with compost. Theoretically, the newspaper would smother the grass and compost itself in the process. It was a near complete success. There are some chive-like weeds that survived the process. Kudos to the previous owners of the house for not chemical treating their lawn. If this means that I can have safe veggies and only have to pull up the occasional shitty chives (as opposed to non-shitty chives, which I will be growing), I am a happy fardner.

Last September, the beds had been planted with (from east to west) mustard greens, white radishes, turnips, more turnips (Jan Jansen would be proud), miscellaneous Asian greens (small section), spinach, and some sort of pinkish greenish lettuce.The thought was that I would get some baby greens, some roots, and use the rest as green compost. The mustard greens grew really quickly and were delicious (still "baby" greens) until the frost killed them off. The radishes survived the frost, but were mainly eaten by wildlife. The turnips ARE (present tense) doing well. I'm gonna see where they are a little closer to the frost date. The Asian greens did well and seem to be returning. I'll see where they are in a few weeks, as well. The spinach was eaten by wildlife in its infancy. The lettuce was killed by the frost. Some of it came back, but not enough to bother experimenting with, so I covered the dead-ish beds with composted leaf mold. They'll get a dose of composted manure closer to the frost date.

La Fornace e Montepulciano

2009-01-13T09:28:00.007-05:00

Outside Montalcino 31 December 2007

Being in the general region of Italy where Sangiovese grapes are grown and the specific region of Tuscany where Brunello is bottled, we then set forth to find a small vintner from whom to taste.

The entire region is dominated by small farms, each of which seems to specialize in viticulture.

The one that caught our fancy was named La Fornace. Above is the farmhouse. The door at the center leads to the dedicated tasting room.

Can you say atmosphere? So, the above image is the dedicated tasting room. We were privileged to be permitted to partake of delicious Rosso di Montalcino (2005), Brunello (2005), and Brunello (1998). Sadly the 2005 Brunello was not permitted to be sold. Italy has very strict laws governing the bottling of wines. For wine to called "Brunello," it must be made of a certain percentage of locally grown Sangiovese grapes, and it must sit in the bottle for a specific number of days. Once those criteria are met, the government issues a little pink sticker to go over the cork, certifying that the wine is, indeed, Brunello. We were three days shy of the date on which the 2005 Brunello could be sold (i.e. when it would receive the pink sticker). Since the bottles were already labeled, it was illegal for them to sell us the 2005 Brunello. We were able to purchase the 2005 Rossi do Montalcino. We also bought a bottle of the 1998 Brunello, which we are sitting on. The vintner also allowed me to taste his grappa. Grappa is a hard liquor made from distilling the left over stems and must from the winemaking process. I really like it. It reminds me of tequila. If you add grappa to espresso it is called "corretto," or "corrected." Sadly, they were out of bottle of grappa, otherwise I would have bought one of those, as well.

This is the vintner and his dog, Astra.

Astra is very cute.

By the time that we finished at La Fornace, it was beginning to get dark (5pm, or so... it was right after the Solstice). This image captures the last glimmer of sun on the Tuscan landscape between Montalcino and Montepulciano (where they make a damn fine Vino Nobile - Katie and I just drank the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano that we bought. It was transcendant.).

Montepulciano is another picturesque hilltown in southern Tuscany known for its viticulture. It ranks slightly below Montalcino in the quality of its wine. It was also approaching dusk when we arrived. Just after parking the car, I was able to capture the above image, which, I feel, capture the atmosphere of small town Tuscany.

This is the clock tower on the town hall of Montepulciano. Since it was dusk when we arrived (which, on New Years Eve, fell about two hours before the restaurants began to serve dinner), all we did was walk around, take in the sights, and purchase food at an authentic Italian equivalent of a deli. I bought prosciutto for my dad; pasta, cheese, and pancetta for dinner (I cooked spaghetti carbonara for dinner that night - it was damned good!); and we purchased the aforementioned transcendant Vino Nobile. The rapidly diminishing sunlight would preclude further photographs. Another day, another gig of jpegs. The next day is next year. I would travel back in time and trespass, all while my stomach acid slowly digests me. Stay tuned!

Castello di Montalcino

2009-01-12T22:26:00.008-05:00

Montalcino 31 December 2007

The above belvedere (beautiful view) shows part of the town and surrounding landscape of Montalcino. Note the natural tinting of the background landscape as it recedes into the distance. This is, of course, a consequence of light being diffused by the air molecules between the camera and the distant landscape. Artists would struggle in the Renaissance to create the illusion of three dimensional space on a two dimensional canvas. The depicting this "Atmospheric Perspective" accurately would greatly help create the illusion of distance. Incidentally, Montalcino is the region in which Brunello, one of the world's finest red wines, is bottled. More on that later.

The above image depicts the curtain wall of the Castello di Montalcino (the castle of Montalcino). The castello served as a defensive space within the town (which is, itself, fairly defensible, as it is high atop a hill). The high curtain walls were designed to withstand a direct attack from Medieval military technology (catapults, trebuchets, ballistas, etc.). An attacker would need to find another way to get to the chewy center of the castle...

Indeed, even getting close to the curtain wall would be difficult. An attacker would need to either scale tall terraced walls, or travel along the winding access road. The latter option would expose the attacker to defensive firepower.

Approaching he wall with the intention of busting through would have been potentially deadly to the Medieval attacker. The protrusion of the towers allowed defenders a stright shot down the length of the wall at potential enemies. They would be sitting ducks for archers.

Incidentally, the castle courtyard affords a glorious vista of the town church. I insisted on walking up to the church, insisting that it was of architectural significance. Sadly, I had mistaken Montalcino for Montecassino. The above church was quite boring, somewhat gaudy, and clearly decorated in the late 19th century. Laaaaaaaame!

If attackers manage to get all the way to the main gate, they face the "Murder Hole." From these slots above, defenders can dump all manner of damaging stuff down on attackers. By "damaging stuff," I mean boiling oil, molten lead, arrows, spit, what have you.

Where's a vat of molten lead when you need it?

The view from the other (non-gate, non-church facing) side of the castle was upon the scenic Tuscan landscape: Vineyards as far as the eye could see. The primary grape grown in this area is the Sangiovese varietal, which produces Rosso di Montalcino and Brunello. The next wing of our journey will involve our efforts to acquire some of that.

I suck, but I intend some day not to.

2009-01-12T22:14:00.003-05:00

So, I have been totally lame and have not updated my blog in quite some time. Don't feel left out, I have also barely updated my deviantART page, and I have completely ignored my geocities homepage. Anywho, I hope to remedy all of this in the very near future. Stay tuned!

P. S. In the meantime, check out my older posts using the convenient calendar menu/function, below. There are tons of great photos of Italy, there.

Guillermina's Home

2008-05-04T09:00:00.005-04:00

San Francesco 31 December 2007

I should work for the agency that promotes the house we stayed in: San Francesco. That's Italian for Saint Francis... as in Saint of Assisi. You know, the place where I ate pigeon and tried (non-neurotoxic) Absinthe. Anywho, it was a great place to stay. Each bedroom (and there were, like, 8) had its own private bath. The toilets had two flush settings: light and heavy (or, Number One and Number Two). Live pigs, chickens, cows, horses, donkeys and kitties, plus the aforementioned Etruscan Ruins. It was great.

San Francesco

This is a view of the Montefiascone from San Francesco. We will be visiting Montefiascone in a few days. It is a lovely hill town.

Guillermina is a good kitty.

I miss her a great deal.

Civita di Bagnoregio

2008-03-30T22:06:00.001-04:00

Civita di Bagnoregio 30 December 2007

Civita di Bagnoregio is Rick Steves's favorite Italian hill town. It was just a hop from San Francesco (and our landlady owns a shop there), so we just HAD to take a trip. It was way cool. Civita is the old town. It had been used in the era of the Barbarian invasions as a place for Italians to hide from Barbarians (mainly Lombards). Eventually, it was conquered (more or less) by Lombards and the Lombardian King liked the natural springs so much that he named the town "Bath of Kings," or Bagnoregio. As the danger of attack decreased over the centuries, the town expanded down the slope and up to another mesa, which became the main part of the town. Since the terrain is comprised mainly of soft sandstone (-like stuff), erosion is a constant problem. Several centuries ago, the land bridge connecting the old part of Bagnoregio to the new part collapsed, permanently separating the two. The old town became the Civita di Bagnoregio. The new town is just "Bagnoregio" (and is much larger). We went to the Civita.

Civita di Bagnoregio is in serious danger of erosion. Every few decades, another building falls off the edge. Nowadays, only 15 people live here year-round. Indeed, the only way to even get up there is by the footbridge. Yes, one can take a small motorized vehicle (like a Vespa) across, but there is no large (even as small as a Smart Car) motorized traffic. It was quite a hike, but it was also one of my favorite parts of the trip.

Judy, Doug, Katie, and Maggie Montanaro; Aaron Maurer; Civita di Bagnoregio

About half of the buildings were in ruins. Bo loves History.

Some of the vistas are not for the feint of heart.

La Chiesa. I think that this thing was a genuine cathedral (seat of a Bishop) back in the day. It's kinda small, now. Oh well. It gets the job done, I suppose.

Katie in front of the valley.

Picturesque courtyard.

Window overlooking the valley.

I love looking down on the farms. You can see the patterns of the land division. Sadly, this photo is low enough in resolution that you cannot easily see the herd of sheep. Look for little white dots.

Old architecture.

Sike! THIS is old architecture. This is the olive and wine cellar that is beneath the shop owned by our landlady. This was excavated by Etruscans. Evidently, the Etruscans were expert burrowers. Their structures are so good that they are still in use, today (albeit, with electric lighting installed). This space was so humid, that my camera rapidly fogged up. This was my only "keeper" from the bunch.

Picturesque alleyway.

Civita di Bagnoregio, departing view.

Okay, fine. This is neither in Civita di Bagnoregio nor regular Bagnoregio. I snapped this photo in Viterbo, though it was the only one in the bunch. I just thought that this cute little Fiat in a typical Medieval Italian lane was worth preserving. Take note of how greet the plants are. It's frakkin' December! There are succulents. SUCCULENTS!!! The Mediterranean climate rules.

Alex 1992-2008

2008-03-23T23:53:00.007-04:00

Alex

aka:
Walex
Woo
Willy Woo
Buddy
Boo
Billy Boo
Silly Sue
Killy Koo
Alex the Kitty
Alex P. Kitty

Alex has been suffering from Diabetes for several years. His kidneys have been weakening over the past several months. The confluence of these conditions made keeping his healthy a delicate balance. Our struggle came to an end earlier this evening. I knew that the end was near, but I did not know how long it would be. My worst nightmare would have been needing to take him to the vet to be put to sleep. He hated going to the vet. I didn't want our last moments together to be his least favorite thing in the world. My last moments with Stampy were dropping her off at the animal emergency room. I hated that.

Instead, Alex's last moments were doing his favorite thing in the world: cuddling with me on the couch. After lying together for about a half an hour, Alex seemed to want to get down off the couch. I carried him down to the litter box. He did his business. I then brought him back up. Several times he tried to get away, so I set him down. Was was so weak that he could barely move. After carrying him back to his blanket on the couch (and cuddling a little), he seemed to seize up. I tried to make him comfortable. I could still hear his heart. After a while he was no longer moving. I could no longer hear his heart. He died in my arms.

I named Alex after Alex from A Clockwork Orange. When he was a kitten, he used to stand up on his back paws. I liked to say that he was evolving. He also liked to play rough. I trained him to kill. He particularly liked to kill this one shoestring. I was very reluctant to have him neutered, worrying that he would stop being as fun to play with. When he got back from the vet, instead of being boring (or even groggy from the anaesthesia), he was more playful and more fun. It was like losing his nuts freed him to have fun.

He also liked to eat. Who am I kidding, he was morbidly obese at times. The thing about his eating was that he only really craved dry cat food. He never tried to get people food. He didn't care for wet cat food, either. Plain, dry cat food. He knew how to open doors. He liked to repetitively rub his paws on things just to make sound. He and I talked to each other - call and response. When Stampy was a kitten, when all of the other cats were mean to her, he cuddled with her and protected her like he was her mother. When Azrael would lie on her back, Alex would perform cunnilingus on her. He didn't really get along with Hawkeye or Klinger, but they tolerated one another. He had a cordial relationship with both his sister, Alexsis (aka Alex's sister), and Bunsen Honeydew (his roommate), both of whom survive him. He loved catnip. He hated the laser pointer. He would attack my hair, when I had long hair, and lick my hair when I had short hair. He liked to lick my beard.

I miss you, Buddy.

Caves and Corpses

2008-03-08T09:32:00.007-05:00

San Francesco 30 December 2007

Have I mentioned my quest? I am certain that I have. In case you need reminded (or have yet to read my earlier posts), I have made it my quest to reach the valley below San Francesco. Today, we will be traveling to Civita di Bagnoregio, a short jaunt away. I have plenty of time to attempt my quest. A hiking I will go.

The Valley: My Quest! I reason that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. I'm just gonna go straight down the hill. Sure, I'm gonna have to hop some fences, but it should be doable. I have hiking boots.

Again, the Dungeons and Dragons nerd in me REALLY wants this to be a dungeon. I want to find, like, a secret entrance to the dungeon beneath San Francesco, or at least the lair of some kind of monster (dragon, werewolf, beholder, etc.). From the side, this clearly looks like a D&D style dungeon entrance.

But, NOOOOOO! It has to only be about two meters deep. No self respecting monster would make a lair, here. Or would it...

Perhaps some kind of terrifying adventure is in order! Inside the cave, I located the desicated remains of some sort of porcine creature. Perhaps it is a Wild Boar (Cingiale) that was killed and eaten by a Werewolf! I'm in the werewolf's lair! Adventure!!! I look for secret entrances... No luck. I need an Elf or Half-Elf in my party. Shit. No more adventure. At least for an instant, I felt like I had stepped through the gate into another world, one filled with action and adventure. This trip is really feeding my imagination. Anywho, I still have a quest to complete, so I return to my journey down the cliff face. Onward!

What is this? Another dungeon entrance? Yet again, my hopes for that sort of discovery are stifled, however, this one has a delightful surprise...

This cave seems to be adapted to human use. Around Orvieto and Bagnoregio there are caves, such as these, with niches dug to serve as burial sites for Etruscans. As we have already covered, San Francesco is located on a site occupied by the Etruscan Acquarossa community. These niches are too small to serve as burial niches. They look more like shelves. I'm inclined to think that these caves served as living quarters, or at least some old Etruscan dude's garage.

So, here's why I didn't complete my quest, today. After adventuring in the caves, facing down a werewolf and an undead, headless wild boar zombie/vampire (or something like that), I discovered that the ground between the caves and The Valley was particularly wet. To make matters worse, there was a very wide stream, surrounded by brush, that stood between me and The Valley. I was not properly equipped to ford the stream, nor did I have enough time to explore a better crossing point. My quest would need to wait for another day. After turning around back toward San Francesco, I did snap this photo depicting one of the cave entrances. That looks like Shelob's lair, right? RIGHT?!?

So, on my way back up, I found the skeleton of a cow. I then thought to myself, "The dead porcine makes sense, there are tons of wild boar running around, but why would there be a cow skeleton out here... ...Oh." Yeah, apparently I was still in the cow pasture. This is a bad thing, 'cause these cows are assholes. Anywho, for shits and giggles, I carried the skull back with me. I suppose I can do some Georgia O'Keefe-style photos. Now, to find some flowers that look like vaginas...

Guillermina sure likes the skull. Isn't that cute?

My quest will need to wait for another day. At least I can photograph The Valley. This is my favorite capture of The Valley, by the way. The stream that blocked my way is just out of frame below the frame. I had trekked a long distance.

I did manage to capture another super cute photo of Guillermina. She is sitting on a light fixture. At night, she sits on the light (while it's lit... duh) in order to keep warm. Isn't that cute? Actually it's a little disturbing. Fortunately, it doesn't get all that cold at San Francesco. Still, I was seriously tempted to let Guillermina (and her mother) in the house. I was good. Why do I feel guilty for being good?

Roman Night

2008-02-29T23:37:00.002-05:00

Roma 29 Dec 2007

So, this last blog from Roma will be sadly devoid of many photos. My super awesome camera is not all that great in low light situations. Let me take that back. It does GREAT in low light, provided I am using a tripod. Since all of my tripods were in Columbus at the time, I had to make due. Rome was amazing, at night, btw. We stopped by the Piazza Navonna, which was having an Xmas market. I ate roasted chesnuts. The others got something akin to an elephant ear lathered with Nutella. The alleys of Medieval Rome were pretty cool in the dark.

The Pantheon is the oldest continually used building in Rome (the world?). Originally dedicated as a temple to ALL the gods, silly Christians later turned it into a temple for just ONE God (if you can call a god that has a son who is also, somehow, a part of the same god ONE god).

The dome of the Pantheon is also among the largest domes in existence. It is certainly the largest dome (in diameter) until modern times. The dome, itself, is constructed of poured concrete. Coffered frames reduce the amount of weight contained in the dome. An oculus at the top allows Natural Light to spill down onto the interior (I think I've attended parties where the same was true). By the way, the space contained beneath the dome forms a perfect sphere.

Tis photo provides a better sense of the interior space. I wish it had been less crowded and better lit. Both of these factors inhibited my photography. :(

Someone let go of a helium balloon in the shape of a horse. Now it is stuck in one of the coffers. Ha ha!
La Fontana di Trevi, or the Trevi Fountain. This grand design is also the work of Bernini. Like was the case with the Pantheon, the darkness combined with the crowd made this a difficult place to photograph. To top things off, this place is polluted with pan handlers and scam artists. A dude selling flowers walked up to Katie and tried to hand her a flower. She said "no thank you." He said, it's my last one, I'm giving it away. She said "thank you." He then turned to me and said "how 'bout a little something for the flower." I reached in my pocket and pulled out the change that I got to throw in the fountain. It was, like, .25 Euro. He got mad, gave it back to me, and took back the flower. We're Americans from the big city, dammit! I know better than to get out my wallet near a pan handler in a crowd. The way I see it, he's out .25 cents! Anywho, here endeth our day trip into Rome. We would hoof it back to the Termini Station to catch the late train back to Orte. Next up: Civita de Bagniareggio.

Il Duomo sopra la Basilica di San Pietro

2008-02-29T23:29:00.010-05:00

Citta del Vaticano 29 Dec 2007

So, when's the next time I'm gonna be in Rome, right? Using this logic, Aaron and I decided to head up to the top of the dome. Katie and Maggie (who had done it at some point in the past) did not want to accompany us, so it was dudes time! Our glance at the line indicated that it would be short trip. We tell the ladies to sit tight. We'd be right back.

What we discover was that the line we saw was the line to get into the holding area before the line to pay before the line to get in the elevator before the line for the stairs (actually, the waiting area had multiple separate lines, itself). The "best" line was the one before the payment kiosk. That line had neat little mosaics to gaze upon. The above image is one such mosaic. I don't speak Latin. Consequently, I do not precisely know what the caption says. However, I do recognize the word "passionum" and the word "Christi." That's "passion" and "Christ." The first word is an English word. "Testis" is the singular form of "testes." Christ has a passion for balls?

Ah, now we're on the roof. This is the side of Michelangelo's dome. This is just the beginning. On to the inside...

Okay, so the fig leaf is covering this person's testes and schlong, but that vegetation below looks like the fig leaf is not doing its job. I have a fig tree back home, by the way. I can always cover up, if need be.

"Peter is Super!" Hey! My (given) name is Peter! I'm SUPER!!! Incidentally, these are the 6 foot tall letters, mentioned in the previous blog.

Okay. Now, we're actually up on top of the cupola. This is one of the panoramic vistas of Rome. I am gazing southeast. Bernini's colonnade can be seen on the left.

This is the tip of the cupola. If you look at my first photo of the dome (again, last blog), this is the "reservoir tip" at the very top of the dome.

Radio Free The Vatican. This hilltop broadcasting station intrigues me, for some reason. This is the view toward the north.

La Piazza San Pietro seen from il duomo sopra la Basilica di San Pietro. Notice how the arms of the colonnade seem to reach out, welcoming all the people into the Roman Catholic Church. Alternately, the colonnade arms can be seen as pincers attempting to grasp all of the souls that it can, in a desperate effort to combat the mass exodus from the Church at the time of the Reformation. It's both, actually. One is literal, the other figurative. Great view, though, huh?

The dome is an eggshell dome: two thin, concentric domes that support one another. The stairs to the top go between the two shells. Needless to say, the dome is not handicapped accessible (there were signs warning the old, weak, and "cardiopatics" to avoid taking the trip up). Heck, I kinda had difficulty fitting my shoulders through some of the space. It was very surreal, actually. Claustrophobes would be in hell.

One final view of the dome (from the roof). Katie and Maggie will be very pissed. They called asking how long we would be back about the time we were standing in front of the Icon of Christ, Teabagger. It took a LONG time to get from there to the top and back down, again. It's almost dark, too. The rest of our pedestrian (literal, not metaphorical) trip through Rome would be in the dark!

Citta del Vaticano

2008-02-29T23:24:00.005-05:00

Citta del Vaticano 29 Dec 2007

Vatican City. The Papal See. The holiest of holies. Popeton. Catholingus. It goes by many names. Despite being the holiest place in Latin Christendom, it was a pretty cool place to visit.

The dome of St. Peter's Basilica (Basilica di San Pietro) is somewhat ubiquitous in the skyline of Rome. It can be seen from most big, open areas (NOTHING can be seen from the Medieval alleys around the Campo di Fiori - see last blog entry). Think of it like a bigger, older, taller (but still hulking over a corrupt organization) version of the Capitol Dome in Washington.

The dome is not the only cool part of the Vatican. No. The Piazza San Pietro, or St. Peter's Square (it's not square) was designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Although I prefer his Ecstasy of St. Teresa (Grrrrr!!! - see 2nd to last blog entry), this is almost as good. The rim (heh heh) of the colonnade features statues of Bernini's 140 favorite saints. I would hate to be his 141st favorite saint. Jeesh.

This is the facade of St. Peter's Basilica. No, it is not a cathedral. Don't make that mistake! A cathedral is the seat of a bishop. No bishop = no cathedral. True, the Pope is the Bishop of Rome, but his bishopric is seated at the Cathedral of St. John in Lateran, which is on the south side (Souf SayEEED!) of Rome. St. Peter's is "just" a basilica (a name denoting its ground plan). BTW, Bernini also designed the facade.

I really like St. Peter's Basilica. It is among the largest buildings in the world. It was the church with the largest in amount of interior space until the 20th century (Stupid megachurches! Do they have to ruin EVERYTHING?!?).

Michelangelo's Pieta. I love this thing. I can't believe that some douchebag tried to smash it. Of all the things in the Vatican, this would be among the LAST things I would want to smash. Other "last things" I would want to smash would include The Laocoön Group and the Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel wall featuring the self portrait of Michelangelo's empty skin. Of things that would be among the FIRST things I would want to smash: The Papacy and the College of Cardinals. BTW, Michelangelo designed the dome.

Is that the light of God shining down on the righteous? No, dumbass, that's just regular light. Michelangelo was smart enough to fool lots of people with that one. Sure, it's beautiful. Certainly, it is a monument of human achievement, but see the key word there? HUMAN achievement. Humans did this. Claiming divine inspiration is just an insult to their talent. Cut it out!

More awesomeness. Next, Aaron and I would head toward to the dome. See that tiny black rim (heh heh) beneath the lights in the dome? Well, I'm gonna go walk up there. See the gold line with (barely legible at this resolution) writing? Well, those letters are 6 feet tall. I'm headed up there!

Medieval Rome

2008-02-29T23:17:00.005-05:00

Roma 29 Dec 2007

Our next goal in our sightseeing quest in Roma was to reach St. Peter's Basilica, which is in the Vatican City. In order to get there, we needed to walk roughly northwest from The Forum. This path would take us through the heart of Medieval Rome. At the height of the Pax Romana, the city of Rome boasted a population of 1,000,000 inhabitants. By the middle ages, Rome had shrunk to a burg of about 50,000. Ferile packs of dogs roamed the streets. The little human population that remained crowded into the Medieval equivalent of tenements along the Tiber (constituting a westward demographic shift of population center of gravity, as it were). The result is a charming labyrinth of narrow alleys, ripe for exploration. This might have been my favorite part of being in Rome. I LOVE exploring.

I snapped this photo because Katie's family name is Montanaro. Sure, it's spelled differently, but the coincidence is worth a photo.

Charming Medieval Roman building.

Charming Medival Roman alleyway

I love these streets.

Finally, we have reached the Tiber (il Tevere). These are fun ruins in the Tiber. Until recently, the Tiber was more of an embarassment than a resource for the Romans. Centuries of neglect and pollution had made it a revolting flooding hazard (like the Scioto River, in Columbus). To cope, the Romans build tall walls along the banks and forgot about it. Fortunately, environmental efforts in the past several decades have made the Tiber lovely, again. There are bike trails along the banks, where one can view ruins in the water. Once crossing the River, we would reach the Vatican. Fun, fun, fun!

A funny thing happened on the way to the Forum...

2008-02-24T11:36:00.007-05:00

Roma 29 Dec 2007

Well, not so much funny as annoying. Also, it didn't happen on the WAY to the Forum. It happened IN a way that forced us to go TO the Forum. I'll get to that. Today was the second opportunity for us to go to Rome. What made this day different was that Katie, Maggie, Aaron, and I (the young folks who didn't drive to Naples) took a train into Rome. That meant that we were on foot. Needless to say, I got a lot of exercise. Some of that exercise was unnecessary, disappointing, redundant walking. I blame siesta. Again, other people taking naps has become my nemesis. I had exactly two places that I ABSOLUTELY had to see in Rome: The Capuchin Crypt and Bernini's The Ecstasy of St. Teresa. Seemingly conveniently, these two places are on the same block, north of the Termini station. That was where we went first. The annoying part was, after walking about 10 blocks to the place, we discovered that BOTH museums closed from noon-3pm for lunch and siesta. It was 11:55. Shit outta luck. This "forced" us to go places that would not be closed, randomly, in the middle of the day, so we trekked south and west toward the Forum (hence, the title of this blog).

The good thing about many of the ancient sites in Rome is that they are outside and open to the public. Siesta cannot stop me, now! After stopping off for some pizza and a beer (to go - I love non-the USA), the first ancient structure we reached was the Colonna Traiana (aka the Column of Trajan). It's smack dab in the middle of the Mercati di Traiano (or Markets of Trajan or Forum of Trajan). Neat.

Mercati di Traiano

From there, we marched down the Via dei Fori Imperiali toward il Colosseo. Now, the Colosseum is not spelled like a coliseum. It's named for a nearby colossal statue of Nero (later remodeled into a statue of Apollo). The proximity of the statue had an eponymous effect on the more accurately named Flavian Amphitheater (so named, as it was built during the Flavian Dynasty: Emperors Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian). You can just call it the Amphitheatrum Flavium.

Arch of Constantine. It's right across from the Flavian Amphitheater.

Above is a photograph of the actual Forum. People tend to refer to this area as the "Forum Romanum," or "Roman Forum." Well, there are many fori in Rome, so, to call this one the Roman Forum is inaccurate. One could call it the Forum Magnum (or Great Forum), as it is much larger than the other fori, however, the ancient Romans just called it the Forum. On the right you can see the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina (the columns on the right), the Curia (aka the Senate) behind that, and the Memorial to Victor Immanuel in the background (on the Capitoline Hill). The Palatine Hill is off the frame to the right.

Palatine Hill

Neat frieze.

Above is a view of the Forum from the north. From this view, the Palatine Hill would be on the right. The Temple of Antoninus and Faustina is on the left. The Flavian Amphitheatre can be seen in the background. This view illustrates something really cool about the Forum: most of it is open to the public and completely accessible. I really like being able to touch history. It's not behind a velvet rope, or poorly reproduced in a textbook, it's right there where I can touch it, walk amongst it, and truly feel like I am a part of it. I suppose I would have to thank the sheer amount of archaeological treasures in Rome. A single manmade structure of equivalent age in Columbus would necessitate its own national park. In Rome, there are enough ancient column ruins just lying around that we can be allowed to climb on them. I think that's really cool.

Next stop: Medieval Rome!

Pigeon and Absinthe

2008-02-11T22:44:00.013-05:00

Assisi 28 Dec 2007

Assisi is the birthplace of St. Francis (of Assisi). Therefore, it is one of the holier cities in Christendom. I did not find it to be that, so much. You will see...

Before we left for our (relatively long) road trip up to Assisi, I snapped another photo of The Valley. My quest to reach it would have to wait 'til another day. Notice how hazy the valley is. I think all of Italy was like that on that day. Also, it was very cold. A clear sky means high pressure. In Winter, that means COLD.

This photo is taken from the piazza in front of one of the medieval churches. The church, itself, was not particularly memorable. It had some neat archaeological excavations inside the church, but was, otherwise, a boring, renovated-during-the-Baroque-period-and-therefore-gaudy, small town church. The view of the fortress was pretty cool, though.

The coolest thing about that church was this plundered medieval sculpture. Violence at the doors of a church is very respectable, in my book.

Picturesque roadway.

The photo above features the church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva, or Santa Maria OVER the temple of Minerva. Stupid Christians! They take a perfectly serviceable pagan temple and vandalize it with Christian imagery. Come ON! Baroque? And not even GOOD Baroque, either. It's not like they built a St. Peter's or something on top. It's just a boring little church. I'm just mad a Christianity, right now. I'll shut up.

See what I mean?

Isn't this MUCH cooler?

At least they kept the sacrificial blood drain in the floor.

I am sad that this photo is so high contrast. I am definitely gonna hit this one with Photoshop. Toward the bottom of the frame is a woman in a wheel chair sitting right in front of the steps into the church. Apparently, neither the Ancient Romans nor the Christian renovators felt that handicap accessibility was a priority. My question is, why was the lady just sitting there at the base of the steps? It just screamed irony, to me.So, this is where we ate lunch. Thank you, Rick Steves Guidebook. It was AMAZING. I had pigeon. You heard me right, pigeon. It was delicioso. The meat was surprisingly dark. The cool thing is that it had the characteristics of dark meat, like roast beef, but the skin tasted like chicken skin (the best part of the chicken). I was served the entire pigeon. The bird had been cleaved (cloven? cleft?) in half, and the outer meat was still attached to the bones (including the teensy drumsticks - I probably looked like a giant while eating them). The interior meat was ground together into a sort of ragu. It was VERY flavorful. I would highly recommend it.

Assisi is located on a hillside, overlooking a broad plain. Had it not been so hazy (see first slide, above), I would have been able to see for miles and miles.

Maybe that's not haze. Maybe that's smoke from whatever's burning over there in the valley. Awesome view, no?
This very ancient-looking wall is just in someone's backyard. I stuck my camera through a gate to photograph this. I covet this yard.

This is the cathedral (I think it's a cathedral) of St. Francis of Assisi. The actual St. Francis took a vow of poverty, as he objected to the excesses of the Church. After he died, they went and build a bastion of excess and dedicated it to him. Nice, huh? This was one of the few churches that forbade all interior photography. Apparently, it's too holy a site for taking pictures, or there's too much money to made in the gift shop. Oh well. It was pretty cool. It has a two storey crypt. Sadly, they do not have Frankie's desiccated remains on display. Oh well, Austria has more gruesome relics, anyway. Am I being mean spirited?

Arcade. Groin vaults... groin.

Neat-o staircase.

I think that this is an amazing view.

So, this window beckoned to us. Can you tell why? We did not stop in here, as we were on our way to an internet café. This would be the first (and only) time that I could check my email while on the trip. This is quite unusual for me. Anywho, we found a quaint little internet café near the temple of Minerva. Keep in mind, that my plan for the trip was to try new things (such as the pigeon, and veal, which I normally refuse to eat - but, hey, when in Rome, do as the Romans do...). With that in mind, at the internet café, I tried Absinthe. Absinthe isn't like it used to be. It is now distilled so that it no longer exhibits the neurotoxic effects of the wormwood. Overall, I would say that the experience was like what I imagine imbibing a shot of one part Jägermeister, one part 151 would be like. It tasted like very strong, anise flavored liquor. It was yummy. I can now say that I have tried it (albeit, not the neurotoxic version beloved by such notables as Vincent van Gogh and Aleister Crowley). Vacations are about trying new things. In Assisi, I tried pigeon and absinthe.

I can assure you that it was not the absinthe that caused this (and the next) photo to be blurred. The light was quite low, so it was very hard to photograph the picturesque town in evening. I am sad that these did not come out.

So, we bid farewell to Assisi. I suspect that St. Francis, himself, would not have approved of my excesses, in his hometown (nor what his Church did to his town, but that's another story). I did enjoy the pigeons and absinthe. Were I to want to recreate this experience, at home, I would not have as much difficulty in acquiring the absinthe as I would have had just a few years ago. The U. S., recognizing the increase in quality of distillation processes since the 1920's, has relaxed the restrictions on absinthe importation. Alas, I could not purchase the variety that caused van Gogh to autoamputate his own ear, but who would want that, anyway? No neurotoxins for me, thank you very much. Of course, pigeons are easy enough to find. They're everywhere! All I need is some pigeon poison and it's bon appetite! Next stop: Roma (again)!

Morevieto

2008-01-20T14:39:00.001-05:00

Orvieto 27 Dec 2007

After lunch, Katie, Maggie, and I went off on our own. Our goal was to reach St. Patrick's Well. We would get there, but first we needed to look at some awesome vistas and stuff. Remember, Orvieto is a walled city on top of a hill. It is bound to have some beautiful views - belevederi, if you will.

When first we reached the wall, we were greeted with the above view: a house clinging to the edge of the hill. I think it's cool that that green spot is their back yard. It make my back yard look like a pile of puke - and I have an awesome back yard!

Not only does their yard rock, but they have cute widdle puppies.

Another puppy.

The above image is part of the fortifications comprising Orvieto's public park. This would be a fun place to play capture the flag (or Quake 4 in real life). Not all of the paths connect. There are little nooks and crannies that lead to different battlements, overlooking others. To boot, there are stunning views all around.

Katie and Maggie on another battlement.

Another view.

Remember: I am in Italy. This graffiti is in English. My guess is that the target audience is the English speaking crowd. My other guess is that the artists has limited English ability. Result: I get a giggle.

Another stunning view.

This view includes the top of the aforementioned St. Patrick's Well (center-left). St. Patrick's Well, aka il Pozzo san Patrizio, is actually a giant cistern, created to allow Orvieto to withstand a siege. The "Well" is a marvel of engineering. First, it's 175 feet deep - that's, like, 17 storeys - dug out of solid rock... in the middle age. THAT is a feat. On top of that, it was designed with a double helix ramp down to the bottom, allowing constant traffic of empty and full buckets. Observe...

Looking down.

Looking across.

Looking up.

Ruins of an Etruscan temple.

I love how the succulents just survive outside in Italy.

One of the local crafts in Orvieto is woodcarving. There are many cute examples of the craft throughout the town. Here is one featuring a cute widdle kittie.

Again, what's with the creepy Santas? This Santa looks like he has been lynched! He is SUPPOSED to look like he is climbing in an upper storey window. That's pretty creepy, too. To me, there's something about commanding a flying sleigh pulled by flying reindeer, that gives Santa license to enter our houses without out knowledge. This Italian burglar Santa is just creepy. I'm glad that he was hanged.

Picturesque street.

I like this photo. What doesn't come across is the fact that the door (and the corresponding knocker) is very small. (I suppose the PC way to refer to a small knocker is to say that it is petite. I like knockers of all sizes and shapes.) Nonetheless, I think this is a very cute photo of Katie. Don't you agree?

Wild Boar and the Antichrist

2008-01-15T08:16:00.000-05:00

Orvieto 27 Dec 2007

As we were strolling down the Via del Duomo in Orvieto, I saw the above visage hanging from wall in front of a store. The word for "Wild Boar" in Italian is "Cinghiale." There were, reportedly, cinghiale living in the vicinity of San Francesco, so we were instructed not to leave garbage outside. Anywho, I am a pushover for taxodermy. The cinghiale piqued my curiosity.

I really wanted to shop at this store. Sadly, by the time I had the opportunity to shop there, it was siesta, so the store was closed. I hate siesta, by the way. Sure, I like the IDEA of siesta, but it proves enormously inconvienient for tourists. I did not have any place to go where I could take a nap. I was using the limited number of daylight hours for sightseeing. Inability to visit specific stores, museums, and churches during the peak hours of the day is not for me. That being said, Orvieto is part of the Cittaslow (or slow city) movement, a concerted effort to slow down the pace of life. I would LOVE to be a part of this. Sadly, I live in a society (The U S and A) that does not easily facilitate these values. Being unaccustomed to doing NOTHING for 2 hours after lunch, as appealing as that might sound, makes for poor sightseeing. Perhaps this is not the best approach to life in an area where the primary economy is based on tourism. Then, again, in Summer, when there's no dearth of daylight hours, I would probably quite enjoy an imposed two hour break from sightseeing, which I would be COMPELLED to sit in a cafe sipping on Orvieto Classico or enjoying an espresso (in not so espresso fashion).

Orvieto Cathedral. The facade is in the Gothic style. It is particularly striking. I want to draw your attention to the bas-relief sculptures by Lorenzo Maitani.

Most of the sculptures depict stories from Genesis. (That would be the biblical story, not the band. The band, Genesis, is - or, rather, was - very popular in Italy. Nonetheless, so is Roman Catholicism, hence this is the book, not the band.)

By the way, here's Katie standing in front of Orvieto Cathedral. If you look closely, you can see both my and Maggie's reflections in Katie's sunglasses. I took a similar photo in Vienna in 2006.

Back to Maitani. This is the fourth pillar (from the left, stupid!). It depicts the last judgement. The figures on top of the line are the saved. Those below are the damned. Let's zoom in, shall we?

Although the subjects are suffering, it is remarkable at how realistic their human forms are depicted. Full frontal male nudity is an oddity in Medieval bas-relief sculpture. Damn those damned!

On to the interior. The whole building is stripey. I don't know how I feel about stripey. I like stripey when it is on stockings (VERY hot!). I don't like it so much on churches (not so hot).

Nave!
Stained glass. Notice the formica glazing toward the bottom. That's not glass. That's stone!

Interior bas-relief. I particularly like the background. The artist makes it look like a drawing. It's got perspective!

The stripey even extends to the outside. Interesting, but not hot.

One of the chapels in the Orvieto Duomo is covered in frescos by Signorelli. Sadly, I was not allowed to take photographs inside this chapel, so I had to use images that I found online (citations below).

http://www.wga.hu/art/s/signorel/brizio/0ceiling.jpg

This particular fresco depicts a demon speaking evil to the Antichrist. Of course, Signorelli, as was consistent with Renaissance Humanism, by depicting the Antichrist as a preacher, influencing the crowds to do evil deeds, was really criticizing some officials in the Roman Catholic church. I like to think of the Antichrist representing "preachers" who attempt to stear their flocks toward fundamental evil. Examples of fundamental evil, in my book, include hatred of their fellow man, demogoguery, and idol worship. In my opinion, no greater evil exists than variations on Evangelical Christianity in which is preached discrimination against homosexuals, liberals, Muslims, and humanists. Such congrgations are often guilty of demogoguery in favor of politicians (The President, perhaps) or even the preachers, themselves (Rod Parsley, I'm looking your way). Televangelism, in fact, seems to be a perfect example of idol worship. (Of course, if you need your money changed, you can get that done in the temple of some of these mega-"churches," some of which have their won ATMs.)

http://www.initaly.com/regions/umbria/pix/duomo/orvieto6.jpg

Perhaps the funniest part of these images is the fact that the depiction of the Antichrist bears a striking resemblance to yours, truly. My hair is not quite that curly, but the unkempt beard is a dead giveaway.

http://www.hellhappens.com/Antichrist-1.jpg

After the Cathedral, we sat down for a delightful meal at a local restaurant. Although the quality of the fare was more than passable, what truly stood out about this restaurant was the dramatic artwork. This photo depicts the head of an equestrian statue, comprised, primarily, out of what appeared to be driftwood. The afternoon would prove to be an exciting adventure. More to come.

Approaching Orvieto

2008-01-12T10:40:00.001-05:00

Orvieto 27 Dec 2007

Isn't this a beautiful view, a belvedere, so to speak? We saw this view out of the car window as we were descending to the valley containing Orvieto, one of the best preserved central Italian hill towns. I fell in love with this view at first sight. My love was so substantial, that I demanded that we stop the car so I could capture it. Easier said than done. I found that, to avoid having the frame cluttered with trees, I needed to perform some rather dangerous acrobatics. As it turns out, the best vantage point was from a bridge. The road we were on had no berm to speak of. Due to the unpredictability of Italian drivers, I found it necessary to climb on the outside of the bridge's guard rail - one handed - in order to capture this photo. Although I was only about 15 feet above the ground, a fall would have, nonetheless, been a bad thing. I was genuinely in danger of personal injury. At the same time, of course, I felt that I was less in danger than I would have been had I remained on the road side of the barrier (as opposed to the drop side). I feel a great degree of accomplishment from this photo, as a result.

Sadly, about a quarter mile down the road, the local park department provided an "official" belvedere, so I risked life and limb for no good reason. (It was still fun.)

The Montanaros

Katie and I. I am not being coy. We were being photographed by two cameras and I was smiling for the other camera. There are precious few photographs of myself among my photographs, so I decided to include this one. Judging by the amount of time that it is taking for me to go through all of my photos (granted, I took 2,250), I expect that it will be some time before I get the chance to view others' photos, which might include yours truly. Onward to Orvieto!

The Cave

2008-01-11T16:40:00.000-05:00

The Cave

San Francesco 27 Dec 2007

I just can't get over the view down that valley. It would become my mission to reach that valley and photograph San Francesco from that angle. Today, however, would have a different mission. I had noticed what appeared to be the mouth of a cave right next to the driveway gate. In walking down the driveway, I would snap a few photos of the farm animals and rustic scenery. Enjoy!

Here is a wider view of San Francesco from the driveway.

Horseys!

Success! The Cave! It took some clumsy negotiation through brambles, but I managed to approach the mouth of the cave. Deep down, I was hoping to find an extensive system of caves. Part of my wanted to have discovered a Dungeon's & Dragons style dungeon, perhaps something like the Mines of Moria or even Shelob's lair. Sadly, the cave only went back about 10 feet. In all likelihood, however, it had been carved out of the soft stone centuries earlier, possibly as early as the Etruscan times. It was cool find, notwithstanding. I wanted something deeper, though. Better luck next time, Bo!

Thus Spake Zoroaster

2008-01-10T16:08:00.001-05:00

I love the New York Times. Generally, it can be trusted to maintain a high quality of journalism. Occasionally, however, like everybody else, the writers from the New York Times choose to cut corners, pander to the less informed, or, at worst, can be woefully underqualified for their assignments. Consider the following article/blog posting:

January 10, 2008, 10:24 am
Tata Nano: The World’s Cheapest Car
By Richard S. Chang
Tags: Nano, Peoples Car, tata motors
Ratan Tata, chairman of Tata Motors, displaying the Nano in New Delhi on Thursday. (Photo by Money Sharma/European Pressphoto Association)

Tata Motors today took the covers off the world’s cheapest car — the Nano.

Over the past year, Tata has been building hype for a car that would cost a mere 100,000 rupees (roughly $2,500) and bring automotive transportation to the mainstream Indian population. It has been nicknamed the “People’s Car.” Over the course of the New Delhi Auto Expo, which began this week, anticipation had grown to fever pitch.

With the theme from “2001: A Space Odyssey” playing, Ratan Tata, chairman of Tata Motors drove the small white bubble car onto Tata’s show stage, where it joined two others.

The Tata Nano could sell for around $2,500. (Photo by Raveendran/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images)
“They are not concept cars, they are not prototypes,” Mr. Tata announced when he got out of the car. “They are the production cars that will roll out of the Singur plant later this year.”

The four-door Nano is a little over 10 feet long and nearly 5 feet wide. It is powered by a 623cc two-cylinder engine at the back of the car. With 33 horsepower, the Nano is capable of 65 miles an hour. Its four small wheels are at the absolute corners of the car to improve handling. There is a small trunk, big enough for a duffel bag.

“Today, we indeed have a People’s Car, which is affordable and yet built to meet safety requirements and emission norms, to be fuel efficient and low on emissions,” Mr. Tata added. “We are happy to present the People’s Car to India and we hope it brings the joy, pride and utility of owning a car to many families who need personal mobility.”

The base price for the Nano will be 120,000 rupees, including road tax and delivery. Higher level models will cost more and come with air-conditioning. Sun visors and radios are extra.

The nearest priced competitor is the Maruti 800, which costs roughly twice as much as the Nano. In comparing the Nano to the Maruti 800, Mr. Tata said, “It is 8 percent smaller — bumper to bumper — and has 21 percent larger seating capacity than Maruti 800.”

The Hindustan Times reports reactions from a couple of Tata’s competitors, Maruti and Hyundai:
Jagdish Khattar, a former head of Maruti 800 manufacturer Maruti Udyog Ltd., says it’s too early to say whether the Nano will overtake the original.

“It’s a good product but it’s still too early to say whether it will overtake the 800 because it caters to a totally new market segment,” he said while watching a live telecast of Tata’s press conference after unveiling of the Nano.

But clearly, at least one other manufacturer was worried.

An official of Hyundai Motors, which unveiled an LPG version of its Santro Thursday, was more circumspect.
“We definitely see it as impacting our sales,” he said in halting English, preferring to maintain anonymity.
Anand Mahindra, managing director for Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors’ primary competitor, said before the unveiling, “I think it’s a moment of history and I’m delighted an Indian company is leading the way.”

The Nano will go on sale in India later this year with an initial production run of 250,000 a year. Tata says it will offer the Nano in other emerging markets in Latin America, Southeast Asia and Africa within four years.

http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/10/tata-nano-the-worlds-cheapest-car/index.html?hp

I posted the following comment. Its approval is currently pending.

"With the theme from “2001: A Space Odyssey” playing?" Come on! The song is entitled "Also sprach Zaranthustra." It was composed in 1896 by Richard Strauss in honor of the book of the same title by Friedrich Nietzsche. Not only is the piece a magnificent fanfare (as can be clearly seen in the film, 2001: A Space Odyssey), but Zaranthustra, better known to the West as Zoroaster, was the founder of a major religion based in Iran and... (wait for it... wait for it...) INDIA!!! There have been many notable Zoroastrians in the world from actor Persis Khambatta and singer Freddy Mercury to industrialists Jamshetji and Ratan TATA, the founder and current head of TATA MOTORS!!! Do your research, people!

Of course, I'm excited about the Nano. I hope that America, as well, embraces energy and resource effeciency in our transportation. However, is it too much to ask that journalists understand their references?

Dead Man's Check

2008-01-10T07:51:00.000-05:00

This story appears in the New York Times. I find the imagery to be almost Pythonesque. When all is said and done, however, it is a little pathetic and sad. Oh well. C'est la vie.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Dead-Mans-Check.html

A Corpse, a Check, a Bizarre NYC Crime

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: January 10, 2008

Filed at 7:24 a.m. ET

NEW YORK (AP) -- Detective Travis Rapp has seen his share of corpses, but this was new: two men wheeling a rigid, pale body down a Manhattan street in a red office chair, drawing a crowd of suspicious onlookers.

Looking out the window of the restaurant where he was having lunch, Rapp initially assumed ''it was a mannequin or a dummy,'' he said. ''I thought it was a joke, honestly.''

A closer inspection showed that it wasn't. The man was dead, and two of his friends had hauled his corpse to a store to cash his $355 Social Security check, police said. They were arrested before they could get the money.

The bedraggled suspects, David J. Dalaia and James O'Hare, were scheduled to appear in court Wednesday night. Police said the men, both 65, were petty criminals with long histories of heroin addiction and arrests dating to the 1960s.

The trouble began Tuesday when Dalaia and O'Hare tried to cash Virgilio Cintron's check at a store in Hell's Kitchen on their own, police said. The man at the counter told them that Cintron had to be present to cash the check, so they went back to his apartment, which one of the suspects shared with the dead man.

Cintron was apparently undressed when he died, sometime within the previous 24 hours. Police said Dalaia and O'Hare proceeded to dress him in a faded T-shirt, pants they could only get up part way, and a pair of Velcro sneakers. They threw a coat over his waist to conceal what the pants couldn't cover, police said.

They then put him on the office chair and wheeled the corpse over to the check-cashing store.

The men left Cintron's body outside, went inside and tried to cash his check, authorities said. The store's clerk, who knew Cintron, asked the men where he was, and O'Hare told the clerk they would go and get him.

At about the same time, Rapp spotted the men and confronted them as they were trying to haul the body into the store. He said that even after he identified himself as a police officer, O'Hare told him, ''I have to get my friend in here. I have to cash his check.''

He ordered the men to back away from the victim. They feigned surprise when paramedics declared him dead, Rapp said.

''When they said, 'Your friend is dead,' they said, 'Oh my God, he's gone?'''

The scene played out on a busy Manhattan street as several people watched.

''I saw this guy sitting in this chair with his head back. He looked very dead,'' said Victor Rodriguez, 38, who was working at a nearby restaurant when he saw the commotion outside. ''He looked very sick. His eyes were closed. He wasn't moving.''

Little is known about Cintron, 66, who apparently died of natural causes. An autopsy proved inconclusive, the medical examiner's office said, and his body hadn't been positively identified as of Wednesday afternoon.

Relatives told police that he had recently been hospitalized for Parkinson's disease. Police said his rap sheet was long, with arrests for burglary, assault and drugs. Locals said that Cintron and O'Hare often frequented a food pantry down the street.

A telephone number listed for Cintron at the apartment he shared with O'Hare went unanswered. Police said they didn't have an address for Dalaia or attorney information for him or O'Hare.

Regardless of what happens to the defendants, they can take solace in the fact that they fooled one onlooker with the dead man disguise.

''He went in regular clothes. I didn't even know he was dead. I thought he was alive,'' said Gerit Ahemed, a clerk at a nearby deli.

Ciao Roma! Bus Tour

2008-01-09T11:06:00.001-05:00

Ciao Roma! Bus Tour

Roma 26 Dec 2007

Rome is a huge metropolis. In many ways it feels like a combination of New York City and Washington DC. There are many tight little streets and alleyways, much like NYC, but just like in DC how no building may be taller than the Capitol building, in Rome, no building may be taller than the dome of St. Peter's, so there are zero skyscrapers. (What does this tell us about priorities?). What makes Rome so different (and wonderful) is that it literally is The Eternal City. People have lived continuously on this spot for thousands of years. Consequently, there are historical sites EVERYWHERE. It is a historian's wet dream. I am a historian. Take that as you will.

On December 26th, we wound up in Rome for the first time on the trip. I had never before been to Rome. I was a Roman virgin, so to speak. For the benefit of us innocents, we decided to take a take a bus tour of the major sights, in order to get our bearings. The bus company was called "Ciao Roma!" For those of you NOT in the know, in Italian, "ciao" can mean both "hi" and "bye." So, we said "hi" to Rome via bus conveyence. I should forewarn the reader. Most of these photographs were taken through the window of a moving bus. I am quite proud of the job that I did, all things considered. Nonetheless, please forgive me the occasional slight out-of-focus image or substandard framing job.

The bus tour began at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, one of the oldest churces in the Western world. This Romanesque tower (a relatively recent addition) helped me to locate the church amidst the otherwise labyrinthine streets of Rome. We will return to this spot once the bus tour is over.

The above photo depicts a typical Roman street. I chose to include this image to underscore how much Rome is like any other modern metropolis. This photo could have been taken in Paris or Boston. I promise that it was in taken in Rome. Scout's honor.

The bus stopped at a traffic light, and I snapped this photo. Just on the other side of this fence lies a set of 2,000 year old ruins. Rome is full of ruins. Everywhere you look: Ruins. Again, I am a historian. Take that as you will.

These photos signify my first glances of The Colosseum. I like that it is old, but as coliseums go, I was not all that impressed. 60,000 spectators? Tops?!? That's like a Division II college stadium. WTF? Apparently, the ancient Romans never heard of Ohio Stadium.

The proper name for this structure is, of course, the Vespasian Amphitheater. All joking aside, it was a rather impressive structure. Sadly, they no longer feed Christians to lions for the amusement of tourists. After having spent multiple days unable to visit the best sites due to religious holidays (on my vacation, no less), I could have really used a good Christian eating.

Frankly, I'm quite amazed at how well this photo turned out. One can barely see the reflection of the opposing window. Good job, Bo!

This is the Arch of Constantine. I hope, some day, to have a triumphal arch dedicated in my name.

The bus drove by the Circus Maximus. I can just image Ben-Hur battling Jame's Bond's souped up Astin Martin (or some other type of vehicle with hidden tire-slicing hubcaps - maybe a chariot). Otherwise, it's a big park.

This is a side view of the Circus Maximus. Honestly, I find the ruins to the east to be far more interesting than an old abandoned race track.

Here's another view of the Vespasian Amphitheater. This time, the bus drove the other way around, so the people seated on the port side of the bus could take a gander.

In a city that once housed the seat of the Roman Empire, is anyone surprised that the Italian governmental buildings are replete with Neoclassical glory?

This would be the Piazza Venezia. The column of Trajan can be seen in the background. I also want a column.
This is Mussolini's window. They called him "il Duce," which basically means "the leader." I prefer to refer to him as "il Douche."

The bus passes over the Tiber (Tevere) by means of the Ponte Vittorio Emmanuelle. That is the Castel San Angelo in the background.

St. Peter's Square (Piazza San Pietro). That's the Michelangelo-designed dome to the left and the Bernini designed colonnade to the right. Somewhere in the buildings behind the colonnade, a former Hitler Youth member is wearing a dunce cap.

Big columns. Cittá del Vaticano. Bernini. Look it up.

Frankly, I was unprepared for how temperate the climate of Italy can be. It was December in Europe. I was expecting snow. Instead, I got citrus trees. Can you beat that?

As promised, the bus tour ended at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. This church features an ancient basilica floor plan. Check it out...

This simple columns-supporting-flat-wooden-roof plan would be the basis for most churches in the Western world. Santa Maria Maggiore is one of the oldest remaining early Christian basilicas. The building dates to the 5th century. Although it has had some superficial renovations over the years, the overall plan of the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore remains, more or less, unchanged since before the fall of the Roman Empire.

Pendentive!

Look at the statue of this joker. I think he looks insane.

Look at the corpse of this joker. I think he still looks insane.

Dome!

Ambulatory!

Nave!

So, I'm, like, walking around this basilica, suddenly, Katie tells me to look down, and low and behold, I'm about to step on the final resting place of Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini. He is one of my favorite sculptors. It was nice to visit his grave.

So, we finished our first evening in Rome by taking a shuttle bus from Termini Station (above) back to Ciampino Airport (where the car was parked). Termini Station was one of the last big building projects of the Fascist period. Is there any doubt that this building was designed by Fascists? Damn. Anywho, the shuttle bus was double decker, and I raced to the top and managed to snag a seat in the very front. There, I wound up in conversation with a girl named Olesya from Britain (of Eastern European descent). It was fun to speak English to someone new. I should email her...

Xmas

2008-01-08T08:01:00.001-05:00

Xmas: The Day on which nearly Everything is Closed

Viterbo 25 Dec 2007

Let me just begin by saying that holidays create a distinct impediment to sightseeing. Everything is has the potential to be closed. My Jewish brother-in-law tells me that, before having married a schicksa, it had been a family tradition to go to a Chinese restaurant on December 25th. Well, we were in Italy, a supposedly Catholic country. We did not expect to find much open, so we planned our day around doing things for which "open" would be irrelevant.

I spent a lot of time that day playing with Guillermina. Of course, I had yet to closely examine her genitalia, so I was still calling her "Guillermo." She is very cute. She likes to climb the little trees that line the fence overlooking the view. I miss her greatly.

In the category of "stuff that might not be closed on Xmas," we decided to seek out the natural volcanic hot springs that, legend holds, surround Viterbo. Our quest was a success. I spent December 25th in a swimming suit, enjoying a hot (albeit, stinky) bath and a mud facial. It was heavenly.

By the way, volcanic hot springs are HOT. This is a photograph of the actual spring. Yes, it is boiling. Yes, there was a lot of steam. Yes, I did slightly burn myself when I touched water that was a little bit too close to this area. Yes, I did smell like sulphur (and, perhaps, brimstone) for the rest of the day. It was worth it.

After enjoying a schvitz, we drove into the Medieval heart of Viterbo. Viterbo is a reasonably large city, about 1.5 hours northwest of Rome. It has one of the Pope's summer homes, or something. The Medieval heart is blessed with a largely intact city wall. I snapped many random photos of the interior of Viterbo. You will be subject to some of them. The above photo depicts the Papal Palaces, with the tower of the cathedral in the background. Learn more about Viterbo here.

Finally, I need to mention the scary-ass Santa who had been lashed to a fence near San Francesco. Doesn't this guy kinda freak you out? Is he the sort of character that you want breaking into your home? Of course not. Perhaps it's a good thing that someone had the wherewithal to bind him to a post in the country, away from anywhere he could harm someone. Indeed, due to the severe lack of chimneys in Italy, Santa no longer enters the home that way, but by a ladder into an upper story window. There were gobs of fake Santas on ladders attached to windows, throughout Italy. I just find the idea of this guy (above) using a ladder to enter people's homes disturbing.

P. S. Italians seem to maintain an industry of creepy-ass, life-sized, holiday dolls. More to come.

Bo.

Xmas Eve

2008-01-06T21:33:00.000-05:00

Xmas Eve: Another pointless day where I accomplished nothing.

San Francesco 24 Dec 2007

Jet lag is a bitch. As I pen this, I am suffering from the other side of the equation (Yay, mixed metaphors!). Xmas eve saw us sleeping in until 11am and feeling like we were being awakened at 5am. Half of the day (or more apt, half of the daylight) was gone. After a much needed shower (see below), I stepped outside to take my first gander at the countryside.

The above view greeted me from our porch. Porch is the wrong word. Veranda, perhaps? At any rate, this is what I saw. I call it breathtaking. I would make it my mission to reach the bottom of that valley in order that I can photograph our house from that angle. More to come.

This is the exterior of "San Francesco," the farm "house" in which we stayed. The building had previously been a lookout tower on top of a hillock. It had fallen into ruin, the top floors had caved in. In the last decade, it was transformed from ruin into a truly lovely rentable vacation home, surrounded by a working farm.

This was Katie and my bedroom. It was a king sized bed. Hail to the King, baby. Sadly, our bedroom view was far less exciting. It overlooked the pig pen.

This was our bathroom. The place has 7 bedrooms and 7 1/2 baths. We had our own shitter (complete with bidet). The water pressure wasn't great, and the hot water could not withstand the magnitude of showers to which it was exposed, but the privacy was quite nice.

This was the living room. Yes, that is crepe paper. What could have warranted such decoration?

This is the staircase up to the second floor. (Wait, this building is in Europe. I should use the European floor number scheme. This staircase goes from the ground floor up to the first floor.) This staircase is the only remaining original interior architectural element that survived to be renovated. Be certain to note the apparent bowing of the stone, from centuries of footfalls. This staircase was somewhat difficult to navigate. San Francesco has a total of four stories, the ground floor, two sleeping floors of three bedrooms each, and an attic consisting of a large (low ceilinged) sleeping space and two halves of a whole bathroom.

The kitchen window was once an arrow slit. Can you beat that?

This is Guillermina. She lives on the farm. She is a very cute kitten. She loves milk. She loves to be pet on her head and lower back. I miss her.

The property contains some Etruscan ruins. I find it humbling to think that the land was (more or less) continually farmed for 3,000 years. That the evidence exists and is easily accessible, makes this a perfect experience for a Historian. I had a ball.

Oh, yeah. The crepe paper. Katie's cousin Mackenzie (right) got engaged on the trip to Chris (left). Isn't that sweet? Due of the impending proposal, Katie's mom - who had been privy to the knowledge - would not let us leave the property all day. We were going stir crazy. There was only one car available, and we were not allowed to take it. Katie and I and Maggie and Bouba were bored out of our skulls. We wanted to see Italy, but we were forced to stay at the house. It would not have been so bad (lots of cool stuff to see, animals to play with, showers to take, bidets to employ, what have you), except we were kept in a constant state of "it's almost time to go, we just have to wait for so-and-so to get back." If we had been told of the plan (almost everyone else already knew), we could have gone on another hike, or played a game, or something. But, NOOOO!!! Anywho, it was very sweet, and we all went out for Xmas Eve dinner to a Ukrainian/Italian place. Also, it allows my to accurately paraphrase Bender: Ah, Xmas Eve: Another pointless day where I accomplished nothing... except take great photographs, visit Etruscan ruins, play with a kitty, and wish someone congratulations for getting engaged.

Bo.

The Arrival

2008-01-06T18:08:00.000-05:00

The Arrival

Italy 23 Dec 2007

So, I just spent the past two weeks in Italy. It was pretty awesome. I intend to share some of my experiences with you. Think of these posts as, basically, a diary of my stay. Enough of introductions.

Katie and I left for Italy on Saturday the 22nd. Traveling sucks. It is unworthy of blogging, so I will be brief. We booked an overnight transatlantic flight, which dramatically helped with the otherwise difficult Eastward jet lag. Consequently, we spent much of the day on Sunday in transit. We arrived at Rome's Fiumicino Airport (aka Leonardo da Vinci Airport) after dark on Sunday night. I was initiated into Italy be witnessing freeway driving at its "finest." Rick Steves uses an apt simile to describe Roman driving. He says that Romans stay in their lanes like rocks in an avalanche. I found that the rule applies not just to Romans, but to Italian drivers, everywhere. The way I like to describe it, Italians consider lane markers to be suggestions, rather than hard and fast rules. At any rate, it was quite entertaining. Arriving after dark, we were unable to truly experience the grandness of the surroundings to our temporary home before succumbing to slumber. The sights that would greet me the next morning would be worth the wait.

Bo.

Initiation

2008-01-06T07:28:00.000-05:00

Wilkommen. Bienvenue. Welcome. Come on in. My name is Bo Riley. You are reading my blog. I am beginning this new blog to serve as a repository for my ideas, observations, and experiences. I have been maintaining a Myspace blog, but am now choosing to relocate to blogspot, in order to increase the ease by which non-Myspace members can view my rants.

Much of the first installments of this blog will amount, basically, to a travelogue of my recent trip to Italy. It was ever so much fun. Anywho, I hope you enjoy what you read here. I hope that you check it every day and hang on my every word. Welcome.

Bo.