Venice to Florence/ Random facts

I left Venice (Venezia) yesterday and traveled by train to Florence (Firenze). The Italian countryside was idyllic, the farms green and beautiful. We went through many long tunnels as we passed under the Appenine Mountains.

Here are some random facts that I haven't really shared with you yet.

In Greece and in Venice there are gelaterias all over. Gelato is the Italian version of ice cream. I'm not really sure what the difference is. I will have to take a picture of one to include later. I have tried several flavors so far; hazelnut, chocolate, lemon, coconut, and nutella. I will let you know of any new ones I try:) There are also snack shops everywhere. So you can get a pizza or a panini anytime of day you want. They also have chips (in Greece they had Pringles in every shop), and cups of fresh fruit.

The hot and cold water labels are C for hot (calidaria) and F for cold (frigida).

In Croatia I learned that they invented the necktie. The women would wrap red scarves around the necks of the men coming back from war/travel. In Venice, on the island of Murano, they make glass. They make jewelry (beads or pendents), vases, picture frames, etc. It is all very colorful.

Italiam quaero patriam . . .

My quest is for Italy! (Aeneid 1. 308)

I returned to Venice. My hotel was not far from San Marco Square, which is the main entry to the city. Venice was once a bunch of little marshy islands. When people came to settle there, they had to bring in tall piles (wooden poles) and drive them deep into the mud. The mud preserved the wood so that it would not rot, and the wood eventually petrified. Then they were able to put planks down, and built their homes on those planks. All the little islands are connected by bridges. There are over 100 islands in Venice, and each bridge connects two separate islands.

Nearly all the islands have their own church, and you can find them in the smallest, strangest places. They were all beautiful though, and there are church bells that ring each hour, echoing each other across the city. San Marco cathedral is in the main square. It was beautiful inside, but we were not allowed to take pictures since the church is still used. There are mosaics all over the huge ceilings. They used small tiles to make pictures of the Old and New Testament stories. Most amazing is that all of the pictures were on a background of gold tiles, actually glass with a little gold leafing inside. You can see some of the gold in my picture, but imagine a huge tall ceiling with it all over. It was truly amazing to see.
There are no cars or roads, just canals and boats. They have motor boats, and gondolas. Even the police, ambulance, and fire-engines are boats. There were thousands of tourists in Venice, it was hard to imagine living there with so many visitors all the time. The city is actually sinking 4 cm each year, and it will cost millions to help correct the problems that Venice faces. I learned so many interesting things about the founding and history of Venice. Our tour guides were wonderful to explain the details, instead of just giving the basics. I could tell they love and are proud of their city.

Katakolon, Greece

Our last stop in Greece was to Katakolon and Olympia. These two cities are found on the western side of the Peloponese (just below mainland Greece). Katakolon was unlike the other Greek cities, it was a small port town. We had to drive through the countryside to reach Olympia. There were many beautiful farms, green fields, and olive orchards on the way. The land was hilly, but not mountainous like in the other cities we visited.

Olympia is the site of the ancient Olympics. Much of it was destroyed during the Christian period, when they tried to eliminate the pagan influence. The stadium, where the foot races were once held, has been restored. The marble starting blocks are still there, and the spectators would sit on the sides of the hill. (Only men were allowed in the stadium.) Over 200,000 spectators would come to watch the games. Several temples had been built outside the stadium. The temple of Jupiter must have been very large. You could tell by the great columns, which had fallen down. There was a museum there, where they have collected the artifacts that they have found at the location.

Mykonos and Delos, Greece

Mykonos was beautiful. All of the buildings are painted bright white, then the shutters, doors and railings are painted bright colors; bright and light blue, red, green, pink. There are little shops and cafes in the narrow, winding streets. There are also several oldfashioned windmills on the hills and by the coastline. The water was very clear.

I also saw the island of Delos, the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis. It was a sacred island, and the early Greeks would make a pilgrimage there to worship. It also became a strong market town; with a democracy and a population of 50, 000. The Romans destroyed the city in 88 BC, killing 20,000 and taking the rest as slaves. The island has never been reinhabited, the buildings were destoyed by the Romans, earthquakes, and time. Many things were looted, but the Greeks have made the whole island a museum to preserve the ancient buildings. It is the Greek version of Pompeii. It was fascinating.

Athens, Greece

Today was incredible. I got to stand on the top of the Acropolis and see the Parthenon. This temple was built and dedicated to Athena, the goddess of wisdom. In mythology, she sprung from the head of Zeus, full grown and in armor. The temple is built on a hill, where it is said that Athena touched the ground and the first olive tree grew. The people were so grateful for the gift that they renamed the city for her and built the temple. Several smaller temples surround the Parthenon, the temple of Nike (which is being restored) and the Erectheon Temple. The columns carved into women (Carytids) are on one of the porches of this temple.
It was inspiring, the view of Athens from the top was breathtaking. The city of Athens is huge, four million people live there now. The streets are lined with orange and lemons trees in many main streets. Even from the ship I could see the outline (very small) of the Parthenon. In ancient times, they used it as a lighthouse to guide ships to port.

Corfu, Greece

Today, I toured the island of Corfu, Greece. I got to see the Achilleion Palace, which was built by Elizabeth, the Empress of Austria in the late 1800's. She loved Greece and Greek mythology, and she had many Greek statues throughout her palace. The banister of the main staircase has images of all the gods in bronze. In the garden is a great bronze sculpture of Achilles in his armor, which was made for Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, who later owned the home. The other pictures are of the shops in Old Town Corfu. The last picture is a view of Corfu from the palace garden.

Ivan Mestrovic

While in Split, I had the chance to tour an art gallery of a Croatian sculptor named Ivan Mestrovic. Many of his scultpures were amazing, but I want to show you two of them. The first was outside the gallery. It is a sculpture of the Cyclops, Polyphemus hurling a rock towards Odysseus' ships. It was spectacular!
The second is a statue outside Diocletian's palace. The local tradition is that if you rub the big toe of the statue and make a wish, the wish will come true. The tour guide warned that we needed to choose our wishes wisely, because it would come true. I will have to see if that is true.

Split, Croatia

Today I had the opportunity to go to Split, Croatia. I was able to visit the Palace of the Emperor Diocletian. He was an Emperor in the 4th century AD, who spilt the Roman Empire into two parts, the East and the West. He also persecuted the Christians during his reign. His palace is still imhabited now, but by the people of Split. The main palace was added to and the rooms separated into apartments. His mausoleum has been converted (ironically) into a Catholic Cathedral. It is the oldest Catholic cathedral. I loved seeing the original architecture; the arches and columns are beautiful. Much of the marble is gone, but the stone and brickwork beneath it are still a testament to the skill of Roman engineering.

Arrival

I arrived in Venice Saturday morning, and headed straight for the ship to begin a 7 day Greek island cruise. Here are some shots of Venice as we left port. I will be seeing more of Venice next week, and am very excited to get a closer view of Venice.

Getting Ready

Too much to do in too little time. I leave Friday, but haven't started packing yet. I probably won't get any pictures up until Sunday June 20th.