Invitation to Italy 2 of 7
Chapter 4
Northwest Italy
%DOMODOSSOLA
One year we left Locarno, Switzerland, crossed a corner of Italy, planning to drive back into Switzerland and on to the Matterhorn at Zermatt. We have driven difficult roads before and since, but compared to the road from Locarno, through Re, then to Domodossola, those other roads were superhighways. This road started out to be steep, narrow, rough, with sharp drop-offs, then we got to the bad road. There were no guard rails, but for a very good reason. They hadn’t forgotten them — there was just no room for guard rails. For Emmy, it was an hour of terror interrupted by moments of sheer panic!
As we approached Re, a huge church seemed to be in the middle of the street, in the middle of town, in the middle of nowhere. Someone had the idea to build the church, something about a statute of the Madonna. The attractive church was so large it appeared that all the residents for miles around would fit inside.
We arrived in Domodossola at noon time and saw a store with a lot of pretty brass items in the window, and a Master Charge sign on the door. We rested until they opened after lunch, collected the several items we wanted to buy, then found they had no idea what the Master Charge sign in the window meant. They had just opened their store, and the sign remained from the previous storekeeper. We bought what we could with the rest of our Italian money and a couple of travelers’ checks.
%ISELLE
We left Domodossola, headed towards the Swiss border and the Simplon Pass, intending to drive to the Matterhorn. One other year we drove over the Simplon Pass (6600 feet altitude) during a light snowfall, and discovered a monastery on the Italian side of the border, near the top of the pass. Next to the old, snow covered monastery building, there was a long low modern building that looked something like an army barracks. Perhaps it was the living quarters.
At Iselle, near the border, we saw signs advertising a “vehicle-train” that would take us through the mountains to Switzerland for the grand cost of $23. Normally we prefer to drive the “scenic route,” but we had experienced all the winding, twisty, mountain roads we could stand for one day, so we decided to ride the train through the Alps, from Iselle to Brig, Switzerland.
This train consists of many flatcars, built so we can drive our RV from flatcar to flatcar, parking a few inches behind the bumper of the vehicle in front of us. We turned off the motor and relaxed for the 20 minutes it took to get to the other end of the 12 mile tunnel. It’s really dark in there. A nice way to save difficult driving anytime, but in the winter, because of snow on the mountain roads, it’s necessary to take the train.
We have used this type of transportation several times in Italy, Switzerland, and Austria, and while we haven’t tried it yet, this is the way vehicles are transported through the “Chunnel,” the tunnel under the English Channel, between England and France.
%SAINT BERNARD PASS
One year we crossed from Switzerland into Italy at the San Bernardo (Saint Bernard) Pass. As we climbed the mountain the melody of bells of every note in several octaves filled the air from field after field of grazing cows. The Swiss are great at this, but sometimes the poor cow has a bell so large she has a problem reaching the grass.
The northern entrance to the tunnel is several miles up the mountain, and since the weather was marvelous we decided to ignore the tunnel (for vehicles, not trains) and drive over the top — 8,110 feet high — an excellent decision.
Saint Bernard of Menthon built a hospice here in the 10th century, and since the 12th century Augustinian monks — with the help of Saint Bernard dogs — have rescued stranded travelers. At the mountain top near the border, we stopped to visit the old abbey, the kennel that had pens with large St. Bernard dogs, and enclosures with a half dozen puppies. The atmosphere, the surroundings and the equipment were just about, but not quite, what one would expect at this ancient, storied mountain top. The incongruity? In this thousand-year-old monastery the pans containing the dog food were Coca-Cola trays.
The views of the mountain peaks and lakes were a bonus during lunch in our “sidewalk” cafe, fresh snow provided a crowning touch. We drove quite a distance down the mountainside on the Italian side before we found a village, but there were houses or other buildings, here and there. At a few places there were what appeared to be the ruins of military bunkers, left over from some war, and for quite a distance it was obvious a recent forest fire had devastated miles of the mountainside.
There are but few guardrails along the edge of this twisty mountain road, and we could see indications where the rail had been hit or scraped many times. Strange as it seems, we didn’t see any vehicles down the side of the mountain where there wasn’t any rail and where the drop-off was just as immediate and steep. What does that tell us about guard-rails?
ITALIAN GASOLINE COUPONS
For many years the Italian Government subsidized gasoline for tourists, but that is no longer available. On our first trip, in 1970, we finally found the right Government Office in Rome’s main railroad station, the Stazione Termini. There was a limit to the amount of gasoline that could be bought at a discount, but it would save a few dollars, or several thousand Lire. Receipt number 4430237/70, dated August 27, 1970 shows we bought coupons for 90 liters of fuel, about 23 gallons.
A few days later on the Autostrada near Florence, we stopped to buy gasoline, presented the coupons, and received what must have been a tongue lashing (in Italian) from the attendant who stood in front of our vehicle for a few minutes, shouting and waving his arms. When it became obvious to him that we didn't understand the problem, he gave up and sent us on our way.
The next day, after a visit to Milano, and just before we left Italy for Switzerland, we stopped again, planning to use the last of the coupons. Again we encountered an irate gas station attendant, but this time a customer nearby, who spoke English, informed us that the day after we bought the coupons the Italian Government raised the price of gasoline. We now had to pay the difference between the coupon value, and the cost of gasoline. No wonder the other station attendant was upset.
Other years we tried unsuccessfully to find the office that would issue coupons. Usually each office we found would be closed or out of coupons, and since it didn’t amount to all that much money, we didn’t persist. Finally, one year as we entered Italy from Switzerland we found an office at the border with an attendant who spoke English. She said gasoline coupons were available. Success at last. The gasoline tickets would include a discount on some Autostrada tolls, and would provide roadside help if our vehicle was disabled. Everything sounded good until we were notified that since we were driving a vehicle that used diesel fuel, no coupons were available, they were in fact gasoline-only coupons.
The maximum number of gasoline coupons would have saved about $26 during our 2,500 mile, one month trip through Italy in 1989. However, the cost of fuel for our diesel powered Renault RV (22 miles per gallon) was about $350 less than the cost for the gasoline that would have been used by the Dodge Camper Van (16 mpg) we used four other years. In 1988 gasoline cost $3.81 per gallon, the cost of Diesel fuel was $2.14, and the exchange rate was 1335L for one US dollar. Coupons are no longer available, and we won’t miss them.
%AOSTA / AOSTE
It's always a surprise to us, to notice the almost complete lack of old Roman ruins in Switzerland. Here in Aosta, just a few miles south of the Swiss border, we saw many signs of Roman architecture, including an arch and a tall tower. As seen elsewhere in Italy, miles of arbors cover hundreds or thousands of acres of vineyards.
%COURMAYEUR, MONTE BIANCO TUNNEL
In 1979 we traveled through 126 (free) tunnels (by actual count) from the French Riviera to Entreves, Italy, then through the 7.4 mile Mont Blanc tunnel (opened in 1965), on our way to Chamonix, France. The toll-collector had a cash register that automatically determined how many French Francs were still needed, after they accepted the last of our Italian Lire. The mountain peaks of the Italian and French Alps are very sharp and pointy, and we were informed cable cars were available to ride to the mountain top, then across the mountain range between France and Italy. We must try that sometime. (In 1999 a fire in this tunnel burned for a couple of days, and killed dozens of people.)
RULERS OF SAVOY
Starting in about the year 1000 with Humbert, Count of Savoy, including King Humbert I (who was assassinated in 1900 by a man named Bresci from New Jersey), and on to the mid-1940s, this area was ruled by the Savoy dynasty. The encyclopedia says King Humbert II was just a figurehead ruler of the dynasty. It also says “In March 1947, King Humbert II and his male descendants were permanently banished from Italy.” Well, they let us visit, but showed no interest in crowning a King Humberd. Now maybe that’s a little presumptuous, Humbert is the Anglicized version of what the Italians know as King Umberto.
PO RIVER
Italy's longest river, the Po, flows approximately 405 miles across the northern part of the country. From the Alps in northwestern Italy, the Po flows past Turin, Pavia, Piacenza, Cremona, and Ferrara to its delta on the Adriatic Sea, near Chioggia, south of Venice. The waters of the river provide irrigation for the densely populated Po valley where grains, sugar beets, fruit, and livestock are raised. The Po valley, also Italy's industrial center, has been settled since hundred’s of years BC.
%TORINO / TURIN
As we left the Autostrada near Turin the man at the booth looked at our vehicle to see how big it was, to determine how much toll to charge. Jim said, “Little, little,” and used his hands like measuring a fish — the man laughed and charged 1,000L (70¢). It most likely should have cost $7 to $8. We’ll never know for sure, but that’s as low a toll as we ever paid in Italy. If we tried that in France the usually dour, gruff, harsh toll-taker would probably charge double the official toll, just out of churlishness.
Here, as in other parts of Italy, many Italian truck drivers drive in the middle of two lanes on the Autostrada. That way they can get in either lane as needed, and who cares about other drivers anyway. We might not like some drivers, but when we stopped in a gas station to get a better map (the station didn’t have one), the man was very concerned that we might have a problem, and could he help. The Italians are generally polite, friendly, and agreeable people.
While stories of driving in large cities in Europe, especially in Italy, are hair raising enough, not until we tried to drive through Turin did we agree it was best to find a place to park, then walk. We drove into downtown and wished we were somewhere, anywhere else. Traffic and the drivers were beyond description, Torino is the worst city (for traffic and drivers) we have experienced. At one point Emmy almost screamed, “Forget it, let’s just get out of here!” An impossibility, with the traffic as it was. What a smoggy, messy, traffic-jammed city, at least the two days we were there. Torino’s problem starts with the automobile, then its driver, then the smog and traffic that results when those two get together.
What makes this somewhat surprising is that although founded long enough ago to have been destroyed by Hannibal in 218 BC, most of Turin was built to a formal plan in the sixteen and seventeen hundreds. Traffic problems are the fault of the drivers, not the streets.
A glance at the city map shows a carefully laid out city west of the Po River, truly different from most in Italy. But talk about contrast. A longer peek at the city map shows a completely different city to the east of the river. There’s room for only a few twisty streets climbing the extremely hilly terrain, with buildings identified on the map as Villa Bruni, Villa Treves, Villa Volta, and a couple of hundred more Villas.
Heavily damaged by Allied bombing during World War II, much of Turin now has a modern appearance with wide piazzas and regularly spaced streets and parks. At the time of our visit a great deal of street and building repair was under way, and most likely will continue indefinitely. We suspect that effort had absolutely nothing to do with WW II.
Despite the above comments about traffic, we found Piazza Vittorio Veneto (an old map we have calls this Piazza Vittorio Emanuele) surrounded with interesting buildings, including a bakery where we bought some very tasty bread. Many other buildings and streets were of interest, and the people (pedestrians, not drivers) were just as friendly and helpful as anywhere.
We strolled the Via Po, the Via Roma and other downtown streets, and shopped through several stores. It's funny to walk along a city street, past ancient buildings whose exterior suffers from a lack of maintenance, then look in the display window and visit inside the store, and find plenty of expensive goods, beautifully displayed. That is something we will see in city after city, from the Alps to the “foot” of Italy.
A short distance away we found the Renaissance Cathedral (Duomo) of San Giovanni Battista (Church of St. John), built around the year 1500 with three delicately carved doorways and a superb campanile. Inside, the Cappella della Santa Sindone (Chapel of the Holy Shroud) presents a fascinating display of pictures of the Shroud of Turin, said to be the cloth in which Christ was wrapped after His descent from the cross. The Shroud itself is preserved in a coffin-like urn, over the altar.
There was major fire damage to the Cathedral in the spring of 1997, but the shroud was rescued and suffered no damage. The Cathedral was restored in time for Pope John Paul to be there for the opening of the renovated Cathedral, and for the public display of the Shroud. The Shroud was available for public viewing in 1978, and was again on display to 2,400,000 visitors, from April 18 to June 14, 1998. The next public display is scheduled for the year 2000.
One evening, as we passed a church, Gran Madre di Dio (Grand Mother of God), on the right bank of the River Po, at the Ponte (bridge) Vittorio Emanuele I, we saw hundreds of bouquets of flowers on the wide staircase of many steps. The next morning there were several large trucks delivering more floral displays, all being carefully arranged in front of the church. By now the whole stairway was crowned with a panoply of a thousand floral testimonials, most likely as tribute to some famous personage. Another of the many times where the lack of language was a problem.
TORINO CAMPSITE
We found the main campsite on the right bank of the River Po with no problem, then found it had been closed by the police because of a drug problem among the regular, and sometimes permanent “campers.” We were directed across the river to a very steep street, with very, very narrow switch-back curves, so sharp we had to back and turn again. As mentioned earlier, the right side of the Po River is the location of hundreds of mansions, identified on the map as “Villa this, and Villa that.”
This campsite was also closed, because the Italian Government controls the dates they can be in operation. The campsite manager answered our knock, and we were invited to park just outside the gate, next to the manager’s home. He assured us this area would be quiet and we would be safe and secure — and he was correct. We were just across the street from a huge home called Villa … , — well, we neglected to note the name of the mansion, and the city map we have, neglected to identify the exact location of this campsite.
%SACRA DI SAN MICHELE
About 30 kilometers west of Torino on the main highway, then a few miles on a very twisty mountain road, leads to a parking lot below Sacra di San Michele, Italy’s predecessor to Mont St. Michel, France. When we arrived at the parking lot, it was so foggy we could hardly see the trees at the side of the road, but some Swiss travelers said Sacra di San Michele was unquestionably worth the walk — no drive permitted.
We walked up the hill in the fog, and could finally see Sacra di San Michele, dimly in the distance. We were the only visitors at that time, but a priest opened the Cathedral door and sold us some picture postcards that show the fantastic view of snow capped mountains on the other side of the great valley. Sacra di San Michele is located on the tip of what appears to be a huge pointy boulder, much like Mont St. Michel in France.
We climbed the long, long staircase of the many storied building, to see the Cathedral and a monastery with flying buttresses and towers. Construction or maintenance continued, and we watched while a cable was used to hoist wheelbarrows filled with wet cement high to the top of the building, then lowered them filled with rubble.
It’s interesting to learn that a monk, Gugliemo da Volpiano, the master builder of Sacra di San Michele, starting in 998, exercised a controlling influence in the building of Mont-St.-Michel on the Channel coast in France, a few years later.
We spent the night in a campground a short distance down the hill, hoping the weather would clear for a better view the next morning, but no such luck. On a crystal clear day in another year, as our daughter and her family were driving towards Turin (with no time to drive up the mountain), from her car she was able to capture video of this building, high on the mountain top.
%MONDOVI
In Mondovi we found a fabulous Basilica and monastery, that had been renovated in 1974. Pictures of the “before” show large cracks in the walls, and in the dome. Was it earthquake damage, or was it just age and construction problems? Again, lack of language skills, equals a lack of information.
Chapter 5
From Milano to Modena
ARCHITECTURAL TRIANGLE
For someone interested in thousand year old Italian architecture, the triangle east from Milano, through Piacenza, Parma, and Modena, to Bologna, then north through Ferrara and Padova to Venice, then west through Vicenza, Verona, Brescia, and Bergamo to Milano again, is just filled with little towns and larger cities, each inundated with the most fascinating, beautiful old buildings one can imagine.
%MILAN / MILANO
Milano is the economic capital of Italy, and is second in population to the city of Rome. When the metropolitan territory is included, Milano is even larger than Rome and its environs. Located in the basin of the Po River, Milan is connected by canals to the Adda River on the east and Ticino River on the west. We don’t spend much time in most of the larger cities, but in Milan we wanted to see the Duomo (Cathedral), and Leonardo da Vinci’s fresco, “Last Supper.”
We find it amazing how much we “learn now” that we wish we “knew then.” We have visited Milan on three occasions, but as guidebooks are re-read, brochures, encyclopedias and other reference books are studied, what results is a great desire to re-visit and explore this fascinating city, and for that matter, most other places we have visited one or a dozen times.
The guide books tell about two concentric boulevards that surround the city. The inner one was built in the 1300s, in place of Milan’s protective ramparts. Only traces of the fortresses remain, Porta Ticinese on the south, Porta Nuova on the north, and the Castello (castle) on the Northwest. In most major cities of Italy we remember ancient buildings and ruins, but while Milano’s city center abounds with fashionable shops and cafes, picture galleries and museums, we mostly remember the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, the Duomo (Cathedral), and the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, (home of da Vinci’s “Last Supper”).
It’s hard to imagine Milan belonging to any country other than Italy, but consider this: Milan was founded in 300 or 400 BC; was part of the Roman Empire for many centuries; then ruled by the Huns, Goths and Lombards for a couple of hundred years; it was a free commune for a few hundred more. Several great ducal families ruled the area for many centuries, then it was ruled by Spain, Austria, France, then Austria again. For a while it was part of the Kingdom of Sardinia, and only became part of Italy in 1861. Since most every major city in Italy was at one time an historic capital, they each developed a character, a tradition of its own, that continues to this day.
PIAZZA DEL DUOMO
Piazza del Duomo, the Cathedral Square, a great paved esplanade, is the center of Milano. The great monuments gathered in and around this spacious square include the Cathedral, the Porticoes, the Galleria, and a monument to Vittorio Emanuel II. Fountains, decorative lamp posts, subway entrances, and places to sit and rest, invite the stroller. The pavement consists of huge paving blocks patterned with white lines that create decorative squares, solid blocks and rectangles. Although not considered a monument, we remember a resplendent department store, la Rinascente, nearby, just east of the Galleria.
THE DUOMO, MILAN’S CATHEDRAL
Gothic Cathedrals constitute Europe’s greatest architectural heritage. In most cities the cathedral remains the largest and most visible building, overshadowing their city, or at least dominating the immediate surroundings. The Duomo in Milan is the second largest (to Seville, Spain) Gothic Cathedral, 485 feet long, by 298 feet wide, covering 145,000 square feet. Forty thousand people are needed to fill it completely. (St. Peter’s in Rome can hold maybe 60,000 people and Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris is said to hold only 9,000.)
Construction was started in 1386, but because there were problems with the structural and foundation design, along with constant bickering among the Italian, French, and German architects, it took nearly 425 years to construct. The Duomo was finally completed at the order of Napoleon in 1809, when this part of Italy was under control of the French.
The “ceiling” slopes from the peak above the center nave, across the two aisles of graduated height on each side, and if the roof continued to the ground, would form an equilateral triangle. The nave, held in place by 52 pillars, each 16 paces (about 35 feet) in circumference, is most impressive. The pillars and the interior are magnificent, stately, and majestic. On both sides of the choir, two pulpits are decorated with inlaid silver, and the remarkable St. Charles’s Chapel is located underground.
While the Duomo’s design is primarily based on the Cathedral at Bourges, France (built in the 1100s), its 148-foot-high nave is twenty-five feet higher than Bourges, nearly as high as the highest Gothic nave, at Cologne, Germany.
The façade is covered with shining rosy-tinted Candoglia marble, quarried in the vicinity of Lake Maggiore. Using the lake, the Ticino River, and the Naviglio (a canal that runs through Milano), the stone was delivered directly to the heart of the city, almost next to the building site.
Usually a cathedral will have one or two massive towers, many with a tall pointy steeple extending hundreds of feet above. To continue the uniqueness of this grand structure, in place of a tower or a steeple or two, Milan’s Duomo has a tall central tower, over 90 small gothic towers, and 2,245 spires that extend above the roof, scattered from side to side and front to back, each surmounted by a statue. These statues were completed by artisans from a variety of countries, and present a bewildering assortment of architectural styles.
On top of the 354-foot-high Tiburio or central spire, the statue of the Madonnina (1774), a gilded statue of the Virgin, is the symbol for the Milanese. During WW II it was draped in dark military cloth so the bright and shiny gild would not sparkle as a beacon to unwanted aircraft. Soon after the war ended, workmen climbed high to the top of the Tiburio to remove the cloth. Our son-in-law’s father remembers the thunderous roar of approval from the immense crowd in Piazza del Duomo, as the brilliance of the Madonnina again became an inspiration for the citizens of Milano.
In Paris, in Reims, and in dozens of other cathedrals, the rose (round) window above the west entrance is a focal point of the building. In Milan, we walked around the Cathedral to the east end, and found the apse with three huge bays of curved and counter-curved tracery, magnificent stained glass and wonderful rose windows. We remember the great bronze entrance doors on the west are works of art. At several places on the doors, protrusions of bronze (reliefs from the life of the Virgin) became shiny by the touch of many hands. Tradition, religious icon, or good-luck charm, we don’t know. A most attractive building.
Only now, long after our last visit to Milan, we discover that people are permitted to walk on the rooftop marble terraces where sun shining through pierced and crested balustrades, create dappled shadows of intricate filigree patterns. The next time we visit Milano we will be sure to enjoy a rooftop view of the spires and statues, then climb to the top of the Tiburio and enjoy a glorious panorama of Milan’s cityscape 350 feet below and, in clear weather, the snow-capped Alps in the distance.
SMUGGLE ANYONE?
These days, parking a private vehicle next to, or even anywhere near the Cathedral, requires special permission. The motorist must park a mile or two away, then walk or use the subway or other public transportation. But during our first two visits in Milan (1970 and 1985), we were able to park at the curb, right next to the beautiful Cathedral. In 1970 a man came to us and asked if we were going to Switzerland. He then indicated he wanted us to take, or maybe smuggle, something out of Italy or into Switzerland — we didn’t care which, since we weren’t interested in doing either.
GALLERIA VITTORIO EMANUELE
The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, Europe’s grandest shopping arcade, was built in the form of a cross, and is adorned with fresco and mosaic. One arm is 640 3/4 feet, and the other 344 1/2 feet, the ceiling appears to be three or four stories high, and there is a 165 foot high glass cupola. The Galleria was built in 1865 to ‘67 by Giuseppe Mengoni, who shortly thereafter lost his life by falling from the scaffolding, while adding the finishing touches.
We talk about shopping malls in the US as if we invented such a thing. But covered malls in Paris, Brussels, Rome, Milan, Naples and other European cities are 150 years old or older, and while smaller, they are certainly more architecturally exciting than any mall ever built in the US. The Galleria is a preferred winter sauntering place for the Milanese. In the evening, with the illumination of the lamps, the elegance of the shops and the animation of the crowd, it seems like an enchanted city.
At one place on the floor of the Galleria there’s a mosaic of a bull, a well-defined picture, we didn’t have to ask what it was. Tradition “requires” that the heel of the shoe be placed on a certain part of the bull’s anatomy, then pirouette. The picture is not hard to find, and we saw other people following the tradition. Come to think of it, we don’t remember what the tradition is, or why it “must be” followed.
Years ago our son-in-law’s father, as a very young man, worked at the Restaurant Biffi located in Milano’s Galleria. This was good training for the man who later was the Maitre’d Hotel in the Polo Lounge at the Beverly Hills Hotel for many years. As an example of what might questionably be called progress, a large part of what had been Biffi’s, is now a McDonald’s. At least we know where to find clean restrooms.
LA SCALA OPERA
Just north of the Galleria is Piazza della Scala, where the famous opera house with 3600 seats was built in 1778. With six tiers of private boxes that form the classic horseshoe-shaped auditorium, the Teatro alla Scala has become the greatest temple of Italian music and is world famous for the series of artists and masters (including Toscanini and Maria Callas) who have performed here. The harmonious acoustics of the hall and the scenographic system make this a supreme temple of lyric art. It is said that a night at La Scala is neither lackluster nor disappointing.
After major damage from bombs in WW II, the la Scala Opera House was rebuilt, modernized, then reopened in 1946. Our son-in-law’s father and Maestro Arturo Toscanini each played an important role in that gala occasion. One toiled in the Lobby Bar, the other starred in the orchestra pit!
DEPARTMENT STORE
A major department store, la Rinascente, is located just east of the Galleria, on the north side of the Cathedral. As expected, merchandise was presented as attractively as we have seen anywhere, including Harrod's in London, Gallerias Lafayette in Paris, and Kaufhof Des Westens in Berlin. The Italians are perfectionists at product display.
A day or two before we shopped at this store there had been a big modification in the exchange rate of lire for dollars, and no one seemed to know what the dollar was worth that morning. We have no idea how much we really paid (in dollars, using our Visa Card) for our small purchase, and if it mattered all that much, we shouldn’t have been there.
FRESCO PAINTING
Fresco is a technique of painting, used extensively for wall murals. In pure, or buon fresco, a fresh layer of wet plaster is applied to a prepared wall surface, then painted with pigments mixed with water. The pigments soak into the plaster forming a permanent chemical bond that may take many years to reach its best color quality. Secco fresco, painting on a dry surface with adhesive binder flakes, is not so permanent.
Fresco painting has a long history. Magnificent examples of fresco, painted 4,000 years ago, survive at the Palace of Minos in Knossos, Crete. Examples of Roman frescoes from Herculaneum and Pompeii are still in fine condition, despite being buried for nearly 2,000 years. And the 16th century saw the creation of glorious frescos by Raphaël in the Vatican Palace, and Michelangelo’s ceiling and walls in the Sistine Chapel. (We’ve seen the frescoes at all five places mentioned.)
SANTA MARIA DELLE GRAZIE,
HOME OF DA VINCI’S “LAST SUPPER”
The Refectory Hall of this fifteenth century Abbey church is the home of Leonardo da Vinci’s fresco, “Last Supper,” (13 feet 10 inches, by 29 feet 7 1/2 inches). Magnificent without equal, it unfortunately seemed destined to vanish in spite of, or because of the many restorations that have been underway since about 20 years after it was painted in 1495-98.
Each time we see this fresco (or a print), we notice that right in the middle, just below the picture of Christ, there is a badly repaired section of the wall. At one time the refectory was the Abbey dining room, and a doorway in this wall opened to the kitchen. They did a very poor job of repairs when the door was removed, and the doorway was filled and patched.
One reference indicates the feet of Christ had originally been painted on the wall below the table, right where the door was later cut, even later removed, then badly patched. Another reference states that monks watched the artist at work while they ate their meal, indicating the door was already there when the mural was created, and the feet of Christ were never painted by da Vinci. We find it interesting that da Vinci positioned the apostles in four groups of three, two groups of disciples on each side of Christ, and that their legs and feet were painted and are visible below the table.
One reference says Leonardo da Vinci used “fresco secco” to shorten his daily work time, consequently longevity was sacrificed and the “Last Supper” has been under almost continuous renovation since soon after it was completed. Another reference says he also used “tempera,” in which pigment is mixed with water-soluble glutinous materials, not nearly as permanent as plaster.
Always the inventor and innovator, da Vinci’s use of an unproved variety of paint materials on a board of poplar wood has resulted in a Mona Lisa (now hung in the Louvre in Paris) that has also deteriorated somewhat over the years. Leonardo da Vinci lived his last years in Amboise, France in the Loire Valley, where he died on May 2, 1519.
On our first visit to Milan in 1970, we saw a “Last Supper” (located on the north wall of the monastery refectory) that had almost faded from view. Just a few more years and this masterpiece would vanish. Huge scaffolding hid most of the painting on our second visit, and by the time of our third visit, major restoration was well underway. As a result of the restoration efforts over the past 500 years, the fresco had reached the point where it survived only as a vestige, an impressive ruin.
A laser system was being used to clean one tiny spot at a time. The laser uncovered fragments of the original painting which had been over-painted during some of the well-intentioned restorations over the centuries. Restorers in past centuries had changed many things in the original picture (hands, beards, etc.), and they were to be restored to the original detail.
To quote the press release; “Slow, severe conquest, which, flake after flake, day after day, millimeter after millimeter, fragment after fragment, gave back a reading of the dimensions, of the expressive and chromatic intensity that we thought was lost forever.” The exhibit was reopened for the public on May 28, 1999.
“CRUCIFIXION” BY MONTORFANO
A newspaper photo displayed in the refectory shows the aftermath of an air-raid in August 1943, during WW II. A portion of the top of the “Last Supper,” the west wall and the roof were destroyed. Another large picture, the “Crucifixion” by Giovanni Donato Montorfano, painted on the south wall of the room, survived almost intact. Isn’t it amazing, Montorfano’s painting, perhaps as old and nearly as detailed and in better condition than the one painted by da Vinci, is not nearly as famous as the “Last Supper,” just a few feet away.
NO PARKING TICKET
By 1991 the street pattern in this part of Milano had been changed since our last visit, and no parking was permitted in the plaza right in front of Santa Maria delle Grazie. Since the curb parking spaces were filled on both sides of this wide street, obeying Italian traffic “hints and suggestions,” other vehicles were now parked right in the middle of the street, leaving two narrow driving lanes between the rows of parked cars in what had been intended to be a four-lane street. We found a space right in the middle along with the others, parked the RV and went on our way to see the church and the famous paintings.
As we left the church and looked down the street, we saw a Milano police car driving slowly toward the church. Pausing at each automobile in the “middle parking lot,” the policeman would reach out the window (in the heavy rain) and slap a parking ticket on the windshield of each “lawbreaker.” We watched as he approached our RV, and we had to laugh as he extended his arm, but could not reach the windshield. The Milano policeman refused to get out in the rain just to give us a parking ticket, but he continued ticketing car after car.
The street ended as a cul-de-sac at the church, and with all the traffic it was doubtful we would be able to leave before the policeman was able to make a U-turn, and drive up the lane on the opposite side of the street. But after a couple of cars in front and back of us left, we made a many-back-and-forth U-turn and disappeared into the rain, Milan’s maze of streets, and the dense traffic.
The very heavy rain and the general bad weather during our visit that year, contributed to almost impossible traffic and almost no parking places. Twisting and turning through the city streets, we drove past Stazione Centrale, Milan’s huge railroad station, then followed signs to the Autostrada that ran past Milano on the north. Despite our better judgment, and as a result of the terrible weather and our half-hearted effort, we left Milan without first finding a safe parking place (like finding a needle in a haystack), then boarding the subway for a visit in the downtown area in the steady rain. In hindsight we can’t imagine making such a decision; we plan to revisit ASAP.
STREET MARKETS
One year we drove past a street with a wide center strip, where the largest outdoor food market in Milano is located. It extended for blocks but we could find no legal place to park. Jim finally found a space to double-park and Emmy got out to look around and buy our daily groceries. The market was too crowded, and lines of customers were so long, she gave up and we drove some more.
Finally we found a place to park near another street market, not as big and not as crowded, and among other things we bought a couple of kilograms of huge, excellent cherries. Only one or two were uneatable and had to be thrown away. Many times in street markets they put good cherries in front to catch the buyer’s eye, then sell the not-so-good ones from the back of the box. These cherries, and some we bought in (former) Yugoslavia later that year, were the biggest and best cherries we have ever eaten, in any country. Even better than cherries from Cherry Valley, near our home. Most likely a year with special cherry growing weather.
THE ROMAN ROAD SYSTEM
The Italian Region of Emilia-Romagna consists of eight provinces between the Po River and the Apennines Mountains, and is one of the most important agricultural regions of Italy. The region takes its name from the ancient (187 BC) Roman road, Via Emilia, that ran from Piacenza through Parma, Modena and Bologna, then to Rimini on the Adriatic Coast.
Starting in 300 BC, the Romans constructed about 50,000 miles of highways throughout Europe, England, and North Africa. The network remained in use during the Middle Ages, and remnants still exist. For example, Via Appia was begun in 312 BC, and the first segment joined Rome with Capua near Naples; the Via Flaminia connected Rome with the Latin colony of Ariminum.
We have traveled the Via Appia in Rome and in southeast Italy at Brindisi, the Via Aurelia from the French Riviera and along the Italian Riviera to Rome, the Via Emilia from Piacenza to Rimini, Via Tiburtina from Rome toward Pescara, Via Casilina from Rome to Naples, and Via Flaminia inland from the Adriatic near Rimini, towards Rome. Of course the roadbed we drove on has changed, but the route remains approximately the same. In some places the original road, or the ruin of nearly the original road remains as a tourist sight.
%PIACENZA
Located on the Po River, Piacenza is a commercial center for the surrounding agricultural region and produces clothing, processed foods, and agricultural equipment. The center of Piacenza’s old town is surrounded by a magnificent brick rampart, or city wall, and there are picturesque ancient narrow streets throughout the town. Among the many noteworthy churches is the Duomo (Cathedral) built from 1122 to 1233 in what is called the Lombard style. The massive Romanesque campanile includes an iron cage, called the gabbia, where wrongdoers were imprisoned and exposed naked, so they could be mocked by the people.
Renovation of the remains of Piacenza’s city wall and city gate was underway the sunny day we visited. Perhaps this area gets a lot of sun; we saw many apartment building balconies that included sun shades and awnings, much like thousands of buildings with balconies and awnings in the country of Greece.
%PARMA
Parma, on the ancient Via Emilia and on the Parma River, was founded by the Romans in 183 BC. Like most other cities in this part of the world, Parma was under control of several countries, including French Bourbons, from 1731 to 1801. This is the home of the University of Parma, founded in 1064, and world-famous Parmesan cheese, canned goods, and sausages are the city's chief food products. The milk by-products from the Parma cheese are then fed to pigs, from which they get the famous Parma hams.
There is a group of buildings called the Centro Episcopale, Parma’s Episcopal Center, which includes the Duomo (Cathedral), the Baptistry, San Giovanni (St. John’s Church), and the surrounding palaces. The dome of San Giovanni is decorated with a series of exceptional frescos, created between 1526 and 1530, by Antonio Allegri, also known as Correggio, the name of his hometown. (A common practice, Leonardo was born a mile north of the Italian town of Vinci in 1452.)
The Romanesque-Gothic Baptistry, built in the early 1200s, is several stories high and completely open from ground floor to roof. Magnificent! Built with Veronese rose-colored marble, the interior is a polygon of sixteen sides, with sixteen niches and graceful galleries liberally embellished with frescoes. The roof of the dome has fan vaulting, and the roof and the niches show outstanding artwork. There are also carved and painted decorations, and it includes marble in a variety of colors. The bronze and stonework, by Benedetto Antelami, in Parma's Baptistry and Cathedral are among the finest Italian Romanesque sculpture. This Baptistry is one of the most remarkable in Italy; we found it more interesting than some that are more famous.
The Duomo is in the Lombard Romanesque style with some early Gothic features, and includes a campanile. We are not expert enough in architecture to understand or describe the different styles, but we are surprised to find that what is called Romanesque in Parma, looks not even a little bit like what is called Romanesque in Worms and Speyer, Germany. Whatever it is called, this is a delightful set of buildings.
Throughout Europe, and throughout the ages, church buildings have usually been the most exceptional, prominent building in large cities and small towns alike. When we study books that discuss world architecture during the past 2,000 years, we find perhaps eighty to ninety percent of the buildings pictured and described in these books are churches, cathedrals, basilicas, mosques, and other religious buildings.
When we were in Parma (birthplace of the great Toscanini and the city of Giuseppe Verdi), a couple dozen benches faced a temporary stage in preparation for musical concerts and other artistic presentations. This is common practice throughout Europe — open-air theaters next to castles, cathedrals, in town squares, and even in the Michelangelo designed Piazza del Campidoglio on Capitol Hill, in front of the City Hall in Rome.
We walked around the town and through the narrow streets, but since it was a Saturday afternoon most stores were shuttered, and there were almost no cars or people on the street. When we stopped for an ice cream cone the storekeeper joked with us (sign language, pointing, and laughter) about the exchange rate of lire for a dollar. He indicated that since the number of lire we received for each dollar had just increased, he should be able to charge us more for an ice cream cone, than he charged his Italian customers.
%MODENA
This is a typical Italian city, with peeling paint, crumbling stucco, and some of the most fascinating, interesting buildings imaginable. The magnificent Cathedral in Modena, the purest Romanesque in Emilia, is a thing of subtle beauty from the slender tilted campanile to the pair of pinkish lions that guard its central portal. The Romanesque-Lombard style is characterized by elaborate exterior brickwork, the facades are richly decorated with stone sculpture, and entrance doors are covered with bronze relief panels.
The central porch is supported by marble lions and surmounted by a loggia (roofed arcade) and a large rose window. The doorways are framed in bas-reliefs by Wiligelmo, a sculptor from Modena. He and his pupils were responsible for much of the art and sculptures in this church. Of the three aisles, the center one is higher than the ones on each side, and huge brick pillars alternate with slim marble ones. The floor consists of well-worn slabs of different colors.
The 289 foot high Duomo campanile (called La Ghirlandina) next to the Cathedral leans inward slightly. Pisa has not cornered the market on leaning towers in Italy. Many towers were built to lean, just to prove they could, and others lean because the foundation has shifted over the centuries. We often wondered about the one in Pisa, but in 1990 they closed the Tower of Pisa for repairs (it is scheduled to reopen in 2001), so what do we know.
Next to the Cathedral in Piazza Grande we heard a background murmur in the air, and discovered many old men standing around in groups, sitting at sidewalk cafes, drinking coffee, talking, or reading a newspaper, and the sound of their prattle could be heard all over Modena’s plaza. The only stores open this Sunday morning were newsstands and sidewalk cafes.
In the downtown shopping area of these cities many of the buildings rest on arcades that make an interesting sight, and protect the shopper from both sun and rain. Many stores in Italy have a rolling metal shutter like a rusty, dusty, banged-up garage door, covering the front of the store. A street is alive and colorful with bright window displays while the stores are open, but it becomes drab and colorless outside of shopping hours. Usually the window displays contain fabulous, fashion conscious displays, but whether as a joke, an exaggeration, or a precursor of a fashion change, one merchant of men’s clothing displayed a mannequin clothed in the most ghastly ensemble.
In a long, narrow city park we saw several Italian outdoor cafes, each with a tiny building (maybe 15 feet square) with dozens of chairs at a dozen little tables. People must spend hours over a cup of coffee, a newspaper, or friendly conversation.
CHAPTER 6
BOLOGNA, FERRARA, PADOVA
%BOLOGNA
The city of Bologna is the most remarkable of the phenomenal Italian cities in this area. For someone with an interest in Italian architecture, this is the city to visit. We’ve done it four different years. The downtown area is marvelous, extraordinary, unbelievable. (Who said a thesaurus isn’t a necessity.)
Bologna was a Roman colony from 190 BC, a Byzantine colony from the 6th century AD, and became part of united Italy in 1860. In the Middle Ages the University of Bologna, the oldest in Europe, had 10,000 students and some of the professors were women. One historian reports, “Novella d’Andrea, was so beautiful in face and body she had to teach from behind a curtain so she wouldn’t distract her students!” Guglielmo Marconi, the inventor of radio was born here in 1874, and if he is not Bologna’s most famous “favorite son,” he is quite likely the “favorite son” most familiar to Americans.
Although heavily bombed in WW II, the city is a veritable living museum of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Bologna is famous for its arcaded streets and dozens of towers — visible in every direction. Block after block of red-brick buildings extend over the sidewalks that are often paved with a broken-marble mosaic. Its citizens can walk almost endlessly in the shade and out of the rain. The arcades are built with single or double columns, some rounded, some square, and many building arcades have richly decorated ceilings. Display windows and store shelves in these ancient buildings exhibit merchandise in the beautiful manner we have come to expect in Italy.
SAN PETRONIO (ST. PETRONIUS’ BASILICA)
From the outside, Bologna’s Basilica looks a little like an old warehouse. The lower half of the façade is faced with marble, but the upper portion remains with only rough bricks. The huge brick pillars inside the remarkable church were constructed from brick, then carved into shape, rather than being built with large building stones, as found in many cathedrals. On the outside, at the far end on the left side of the building, it appears that either a portion of the building was removed to permit the street to continue, or perhaps that part of the church was never completed. The Bologna Basilica manages to look much bigger on the inside than on the outside. All that huge, beautiful interior, just can’t fit inside that exterior.
Across the plaza from the Basilica there’s a wall displaying hundreds of pictures of people who were killed during WW II. As best we can determine, the inscription approximately translates to “8 September 1943 to 25 April 1945, Fallen in the Resistance for Freedom and Justice, for the Glory and Independence of the Homeland.”
FEEDING THE PIGEONS
As an extreme example of what can happen with Italian bread, one time as we left this building an Italian grandmother was entertaining her grandchildren by feeding some of the hundreds of pigeons in Piazza Maggiore, in front of the Basilica. She had a large bag filled with dinner rolls that must have been a few days old. She would toss a roll into the air a few feet from where she stood, and as the roll landed on the cement it would explode into a million pieces, and spread over a large area for the birds to eat. Amazing! The Italian bread we have purchased over the years is not always the greatest, but it's always very eatable. Sometimes the crust is hard, the loaf is hollow, and given some drum sticks, we could lead a parade.
THE LEANING TOWERS
In Piazza di Porta Ravegnana, we visited the two old Bologna towers, built side by side at slight angles to each other, in the early 1100s. These towers are built of plain brick, and were used to defend the city during the numerous feuds in which Bologna was involved.
It’s obvious the foundations were purposely built at an angle, they do not lean because the foundation sank on one side. The Torre (Tower) Asinelli, built by the Asinelli family, is about 330 feet high, and leans 7 1/2 feet. Just a few feet away, the other, Torre Garisenda, while never completed, is 165 feet high and tilts 10 feet. They were built on a slant so the architect could prove he could do it, and so the rich owners could say they could afford it.
The street next to the towers is named Zamboni, the name of the man who invented the ice-machine (called a Zamboni) used to smooth the ice at ice shows and hockey games. A Zamboni often appears in the “Peanuts” cartoon.
Up to the early 1900s Bologna boasted of four towers, but a drastic process of “urban removal” demolished the other two, called Artemesia and Riccadonna. Avenues were cut through the historic center of the city, and these towers and some “unattractive” housing was removed to make way for more immense and stately city squares.
CITY TRAFFIC
In recent years cities all over Europe and especially in Italy, have been trying to reduce traffic in the downtown areas. In Bologna they not only have those rules, they have a system that reads license plates and an immediate fine is issued to anyone who is not supposed to be there. We were not too worried about all that, since soon after getting off the bus in downtown Bologna we saw a McDonald’s restaurant and a store nearby had its windows filled with Disney merchandise for sale. We knew we were in a very civilized city.
CONVERSATION IN THE BOLOGNA CAMPSITE
In 1995 the very new Bologna campsite where we spent the night, was owned by the city. In addition to spaces for RVs, they had built a few dozen small rooms that were, at that time, rented to young people from several countries. We had an interesting conversation with the students who were attending a special class in marketing, provided by Bologna University.
The Englishman in the campsite office was married to an Italian, and he loves living in Italy. He said we should leave the RV in the campsite parking lot, and ride the bus downtown. Over the last few weeks, three people from this campsite who parked near downtown, had their RV broken into.
The stories of crime involving vehicles in Italy are frightening, but in our eight trips to Italy we have had absolutely no problem. (Our RV has been broken into twice in France.) Some car rental companies will not permit their cars to be taken into Italy. The man in the campsite said someone parked a nearly new Mercedes in downtown Naples, and it was stolen within a few minutes. When he reported the loss, the insurance company refused to pay, and said if a Mercedes is stolen in Naples it’s not as if it’s an accident, it’s as if it was scheduled. It shouldn’t be a surprise, it should be expected. We were told that stolen cars are put inside big trucks or trailers, and within hours will be out of the country. Seems that Russia and other Eastern European countries (including, surprisingly, Albania) are the favorite destinations.
TANGENZIALE KENNEDY
As we left Bologna the Autostrada that bypasses the city on the north is called Tangenziale Kennedy, most likely named for President Kennedy. This very efficient super-highway had center lanes, toll required, that continued past the city, while the outside lanes, no toll required, served as a freeway for Bologna traffic.
%FERRARA
Situated near the Po River, about 30 miles from the Adriatic Sea, Ferrara is an important center for fruit production, and the manufacture of chemicals, plastics, shoes, and sugar. Fruit orchards extend for miles and miles in this part of Italy.
Many towns and cities in Italy have, or had a defensive wall, we haven’t seen one that is not of interest, but the several miles of brick rampart around Ferrara is very special, a sight not to be missed. On the north side of town there were no houses or other buildings outside the wall, so a mile or two of the wall as originally built, can be seen with no obstruction. Defensive positions, perhaps best defined as a “spade” on a deck of cards, extend many yards from the wall.
We haven’t counted them, but we have seen at least a thousand city walls, or ruins of walls, in all parts of Europe, and each is exceptional. Pictures only show that stones or bricks have been stacked in a long, high row, but we really appreciate the beauty. It's hard to imagine the years of labor and the cost to build these ancient fortifications.
When we visit a museum, many of the items on display seem to be there just because they are old. Not because they are beautiful or useful or even particularly decorative, but just old. As Charles Dickens wrote in “Pictures From Italy” in 1844, “There is, probably, not a famous picture or statue in all Italy, but could be easily buried under a mountain of printed paper devoted to dissertations on it.”
When we see city walls and gates, fortified castles, basilicas, the amphitheaters, cathedrals, and the old theaters, we see beautiful, useful, works of real art. Perhaps this explains why we are more interested in seeing where people live(d) and work(ed), now and in the past, than just to see items someone chose to put in a museum.
FERRARA’S OUTDOOR MARKET
We visited Ferrara on a Sunday, just in time to buy some groceries and a couple of gadgets at the flea and food market, as it was closing for the day. When Emmy arrived at the flea market 99% of the buyers had left, the sellers had put away 99% of the things that had been for sale, but Emmy managed to buy 99% of a towel rack with glass rods and brass brackets. Now if we only had the missing 1%.
CATHEDRAL OF SAN GIORGIO
The north side of the Cathedral of San Giorgio (begun 1135) is built right up against other buildings, the market place is on the south side in an open plaza. We could see the small columns high on the side of the white and pink marble building. In several cases, a pair of columns are intertwined and carved in various shapes. But it was disappointing to see the Cathedral was closed the first year we visited, and we did not get to see the inside.
On our next two visits we were very pleased to find the doors open, and while the exterior is engrossing, it didn’t prepare us for the exquisite splendor inside this beautiful building. We enjoyed the artwork in the spectacular, recently restored place of worship. The people who built and those who restored Ferrara’s Cathedral are really masters. We must almost touch some of the pictures to make sure they are just paintings, and not a three-dimensional sculpture.
There must be some way to fittingly describe the front of this beautiful cathedral. Looking at a photo confirms our appreciation of this building, but it doesn’t help much with the description. The front is basically in three sections with a door at ground level of each section. In each partition there are nine arches at the second level, grouped in threes by a higher pointed arch. The next higher level is another nine small arches, with four arches above. There is a round “hole” below a roof that slopes both ways from the middle, with seventeen small arches just below the roof line.
Since the middle door is larger than the other two, there’s a decorative portico covering a portion of the second and third levels of the middle section. In addition to all of that, there are another four objects at roof level, a wall niche with a statue and two or three other objects in the lower portion of the wall. A guide book says, “… the triple facade, which is very wide and all in marble, is remarkable for its sculptures and the arrangement and variety of openings.” Another says, “… with a noble three-bay facade pierced with triple arcades in the best Lombard-Romanesque tradition.” Those two descriptions are simpler, but none of these portrayals comes close to doing the job.
One year on the street near the Cathedral, Ferrara had parking places for visitors from other countries only, no Italian license plates permitted. The next time we visited, those parking restrictions were gone.
THE ESTE CASTLE
We visited the Este Castle just a couple of blocks up the street from the Cathedral. This Castle was built for the Este family in the 1300s. That family ruled this part of Italy, starting in 1264, and a branch of the family still ruled Modena until the whole area was united with the Kingdom of Sardinia (later Italy) in 1859. The Este Castle is now used as offices for various governmental bureaucracies. It’s guarded by moats and fortified gateways with drawbridges, but a tourist is permitted to walk throughout the building.
IL CASTELLO, THE SHOPPING CENTER
Outside the old city wall we saw a big new shopping mall, named Il Castello, The Castle. This mall was built just like a shopping center in the US, complete with a surrounding parking lot, perhaps one hundred stores, a display of Korean automobiles at the inside auto dealer, and a huge grocery store. This store, with 35 to 40 check-stands and miles of well-stocked shelves, had not one jar of peanut butter. What a disappointment.
While the number of stores, the decor, and the variety of things to buy were so unlike anything seen in this area before this mall was built, the almost unlimited, well sized parking spaces must be its most extraordinary feature. To find a convenient place to park, in a space large enough for something bigger than a Roman Chariot, must be a real treasure for these customers.
FERRARA CAMPSITE
The very nice, new campsite just outside the city wall, is owned and operated by the City of Ferrara. We were here in late June one year, and were very surprised that the very large restaurant and some other campsite facilities were not in operation, and the campsite had few visitors. We were assured that during July, August and September it will be in full operation, and full of overnight patrons.
One year we stopped at a little camping and outdoor furniture store nearby, and bought some supplies for the RV. We managed to “talk” to the Italian family by using dictionary, hand signals, and pencil and paper. They were happy to learn we are from California, and had recently acquired an Italian son-in-law.
%PADOVA / PADUA
The six-domed Basilica of St. Anthony, the Saint’s Basilica (Basilica del Santo) is the most famous and artistically important architectural building in Padova. Started immediately after the death of Saint Anthony on June 13, 1231, its different styles (Romanesque, Gothic, Venetian and Byzantine) blend to create an unusual, but remarkable place of worship. In the centuries since it was built, artistic masterpieces by a dozen artists have been added. Some of the most beautiful are the frescoes by Pietro Annigoni, created in the 1980s.
The Cappella degli Scrovegni (The Scrovegni Chapel) is a masterpiece of Italian painting. Thirty-six scenes arranged in three tiers depict the lives of Mary and Jesus. The theme of the Redemption is concluded by the painting of the Last Judgment on the entrance wall.
About the most memorable feature in the Duomo (cathedral, begun in 1135) a few blocks from St. Anthony’s, is the floor, laid with black and white tile, in an optical illusion pattern.
VIDEO CAMERA REPAIR
In 1995 while in Venice, our Sony video camera gave up the ghost. The man at the campsite in Mestre telephoned Sony in Milano, and was told a Sony Video repair shop was located in Padova, just 25 miles away. We got off the Autostrada at “Padova East,” turned right to the 3rd light, then right for one long block, asked for directions one time, then turned left to Via Maroncelli #46, the Video Systems Centro Nordmende, where the man in charge said he would look it over and see what he could fix.
While camera repairs were being made we visited the Basilica del Santo, walked in the downtown area, shopped in the outdoor market, and just looked and looked in this fascinating ancient city. Three squares in the center of town, Piazza della Frutta, Piazza dei Signori and Piazza delle Erbe, are surrounded by old houses with arcades, and have been used for daily markets for centuries. The Palazzo della Ragione (a huge building between Piazza della Frutta, and Piazza delle Erbe), was built in 1218 as the seat of the law courts. The first-floor covered market is called Europe’s oldest “mall,” and is still a beehive of food merchants, fishmongers, butchers, butter-and-egg men, fruit vendors, and florists. The second floor is occupied by a room with exceptional dimensions (265 by 88 feet), entirely frescoed with astrological subjects.
One of the most famous establishments in town is the University, started in 1222, where Galileo was a professor (1592—1610), and Dante and Copernicus were students. The Anatomy Theater, part of the medical school, was built in 1594 with six circular levels of seats for students to observe operations. It is perfectly preserved.
Upon our return the Video repair people assured us all was now OK with our camera, so we drove on to Ferrara for the night. We got off the Autostrada to drive through the little towns, and in Rovigo we took video of a couple of leaning towers — Italy is noted for leaning towers. The road was lined with fields of sun flowers that were about ready for harvest. After we arrived in the campsite in Ferrara, we replayed the video of the day and found that while the picture was OK, there was no sound.
The next morning we returned the 90 kilometers (55 miles) to the video repair shop, and tried again. Nearby we discovered a large Sheraton Hotel, so Jim offered Emmy the chance for breakfast with menus, a tablecloth, a waiter, and all the trimmings, but she said, “I’d rather do it myself.” Wow, is she trained!
This time the repairs were just fine, but they did say this was the first time a customer ate breakfast in an RV in the parking lot, waiting for camera repairs to be completed.
It's nice to spend some time in Padova while the shop-front shutters are up, the stores are open and people are up and about. One year we stopped at a bakery and bought some bread that looked very good, and was delicious. They only had large loaves, so we had the baker cut it and give most of it to a lady shopper with several children, who was thrilled to get it. As we window-shopped, we bought a little hand-held battery operated fan. Blades fold when not in use, and the fan was a help from time to time.
%CHIOGGIA
Earlier we said, “Try to imagine the buildings of Venice, lining streets filled with automobiles.” Well, here we are in the town of Chioggia (on the coast between Ferrara and Venice), built to look like Venice, except the streets really are streets. Seems funny to drive where normally we would be on a Venetian vaporetto when we see such scenes. We paused for lunch on a street along a nearby waterway and imagined our RV was a gondola floating in a canal in Venice.
ARCHITECTURAL TRIANGLE
As stated earlier, the triangle east from Milano to Bologna, then north to Venice, then west to Milano again, is just filled with little towns and la
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