Antinori

Friday was deemed a "cultural day" and spouses were invited along for the fun.  Our first stop was the Antinori Winery for a tour and lunch.  Then we went to San Gimignano to walk around the city a bit. 

 

The vineyards were beautiful.  Mauricio, our guide and one of the resident sommeliers, was trained at UC Davis, had a great accent, and shared a lot with us.  You can listen to a bit of his talk to us below.  I felt funny videoing the entire thing, but I wanted to capture a part of it.  He talked about the temperature difference on one hill versus another, water needs of plants, grafting, and Costco's place in the wine buying business.  The fear instilled by Robert Parker's reviews of wines was also mentioned.

 

After chatting in the vineyard, Mauricio took us around to the cellars, in a building designed by Galileo.

Here Mauricio shows us one of the vats for storage and talks about cleaning the tank.

After the tour, we went in for a lunch and wine pairing.  The first course, olive oils.  You heard me.  As I tasted the three different oils, I kept thinking that I do my best to avoid oil and fat and now I'm eating it in a spoon.  But, when you eat olive oil alone, you do taste the differences.

 

The next course was thinly sliced and grilled vegetables, drizzled with a balsamic reduction.

The main course was hand-made ravioli with the most delicious pesto.  I'm trying to make that pesto here at home.  I'm not succeeding. 

Dessert was individual chocolate souffles covered in powdered sugar and a delicious strawberry sauce. 

Next they brought out these small desserts:  tartlets, cherry tomatoes wrapped in grape leaves and dipped in dark chocolate, and biscotti.  All very tasty--even the chocolate covered tomatoes.

We had a great time.  If you're in Tuscany, drop by.  If you're in Costco, pick up a bottle of wine.

Piazza della Signoria

The other part of my rambling around Thursday brought me to the Piazza della Signoria.  The tower above is part of the Palazzo Vecchio.

A statute of Cosimo I; one of the Medici rulers of Florence.

The fountain of Neptune is in the square to commemorate Cosimo I's naval victories.

The most interesting thing about the piazza is that on the eastern side, stands Loggia del Lanzi, an open loggia that houses incredibly famous statues just out in the open.

Above is Menelaus bearing the body of Patrocles, a Roman copy of the Greek original.

Below is Hercules and Nessus by Giambologna.

The Rape of the Sabine Woman by Giambologna.  (Later in the day I saw a plaster cast in the gallery where Michelangelo's David stands.

The Perseus by Benvenuto Cellini.

Another statue in the piazza, outside the Loggia is this, Hercules and Cacus by Baccio Bandinelli.

Friday evening, I took Dave back to the Piazza and the Loggia to look at the beautiful sculptures.

Santa Croce

Thursday.  Yes.  It's only Thursday on my trip to Italy.

Thursday, Dave had two company visits:  a high-end cappuccino manufacturer and an even higher end pen manufacturer.  I had the entire day to roam about Florence on my own. I wanted to be sure to visit Santa Croce.  I took a meandering stroll about the city and arrived in the piazza in time for lunch.  (I'm really good at timing my meals.)  I bought a delicious slice of pizza topped with eggplant, zucchini, and onions and ate in the piazza as I ignored the Asian lady trying to sell scarves to tourists.  

After my lunch, I headed inside the chapel.  All of the chapels have a posted "dress code."  No shorts or even short skirts.  Outside this chapel, inappropriately attired women could purchase a plastic poncho of sorts to wear inside so as to be modest in appearance.  I giggled at some of the women wearing them, because of the ridiculous clothes they were wearing underneath.  Who goes touring Florence in the middle of the afternoon looking like they're headed clubbing?  

Santa Croce is such a popular destination because of the tombs contained there.

Below is the tomb of Michelangelo.

 

A plaque to DaVinci.

This statue is said to be the inspiration for the Statue of Liberty.  

The tomb of Enrico Fermi, Nobel Prize winning Physicist; I, remember that, at least, from my science classes.

 

The interior of the church was made of these beautiful exposed beams.

 

This was one of my favorite paintings.  I am struck by the artists halo around the woman's head.  I hope there is someone whose life I've touched who would envision me with that glowing light encircling my head.

While some of the tombs were along the side of the chapel, others were in the floor along the way.

Another example of the painstaking attention to detail and ornate style that abounds in Italy.  This is the roof of a portico that extended perpendicular to the chapel and that helped form a courtyard garden.

Below is the garden.

Then parallel to the sanctuary was this hallway of tombs and monuments.  The entire room was filled with beautiful marble monuments.

 

I love the simplicity of this cross.

Santa Maria Novella

After climbing the famous dome of Il Duomo, Dave and I were hungry.  We bought a sandwich on the most delicious bread and found a place to sit in the Piazza Santa Maria Novella.  As we enjoyed our sandwich, we engaged in a favorite past time, people watching.

The Piazza used to be the site of a horse race.  There are columns around which the competitors raced their steeds.  The turtles seem humorous given the fable of the tortoise and the hare.

After our yummy sandwich, we had our first encounter with a pay-to-use toilet.  It was clean; I was happy.
(While we were in Italy, I threatened to do an entire post on Italian bathrooms; I didn't take pictures; it wouldn't be nearly as interesting without the pictures.)

A quick picture of the front door of the church, then it was off to tour the chapel.  (An interesting note, the main center doors of the churches are typically only opened on Easter or other high holy days in the church.  The remainder of the year side doors are used; whether they are on the front, but not the main doors, or literally a side entrance.)

No pictures were allowed inside Santa Maria Novella, but these are pictures of the garden that runs parallel to the chapel. 

Holocaust Survivor

 

This morning, summer school had the pleasure of hearing the story of Holocaust survivor, Jerry Valfer.  He was born in Germany in 1924.  He and his dad were sent to a camp in 1938.  He was sent back to his mother because he was too young.  His parents had the foresight to send his older brother to Palestine.  Jerry was too young to go at the time; when Jerry was old enough to send, the Italian border had been closed.  Later after living in Denmark, he did eventually end up in a concentration camp, where he was reunited with his parents.  He stated that the three of them were one of the few families that actually made it out of a camp with all members still living, when the camp was liberated in 1945.

Jerry stated several times that you can't become bitter because of what you've experienced in life and that two wrongs don't make a right. He talked about how being hungry is one of the worst experiences to endure.  After coming to the United States, he became a chef. 

 

Mr. Valfer lives in Rochester, Minnesota now.  In 2000, he co-authored a book about his experiences titled,  Jerry's Story: Sometimes I Didn't Think; I Just Kept on Living. I just ordered a copy from Half.com.  I wish I had had the forethought to order it and have it here for him to inscribe after his talk.  

I appreciate his willingness to share his story with our students and staff.  It is important that we not forget the Holocaust and those who died due to prejudice. 

Swim Lessons

We interrupt this tour through Italy to bring you the latest on Gavin. We started swim lessons at Hubenak Swim last Monday.  Ms. Cheryl and Mr. Gordon want the kids to be able to float on their backs when they're tired and to be able to get to the edge of the pool and get out.  Last Monday there were lots of tears.  I think Gavin and Dean were relying a lot on each other last week--in the sense of, "Hey, we're going to swim lessons with Dean today.  Won't that be fun?"  

I am impressed with all that Gavin can do.  At the end of the first class, kids had to dive to the bottom (guided down by Mr. Gordon) to pick up a ring.  Gavin was willing to go first because he had been having fun playing with the rings.  He came up empty handed the first time, but had two rings when he came up the second time.

By Thursday, the tears were less.  You can see Gavin swimming below.  I didn't capture him projectile vomiting into the water after screaming and swallowing too much water. Mr. Gordon had a great, "not the first time that has happened, won't be the last time" attitude about the vomiting.  Mr. Gordon has a great touch with the kids.  He's firm; the boys listen to him and do what is asked of them.  He also praises them and gives them high-fives for a job well done.

Over the weekend, we went to the pool to practice.  Gavin didn't want any part of the pool; he just wanted to play at the splash pad.  At the end of class Thursday, Lindsey and I mentioned practice to Mr. Gordon.  He reminded us to let the boys have fun at the pool, too.  I didn't push Gavin to go to the pool instead of the splash pad.  I really just wanted him to have fun, and he did.  It was apparent that the three other little boys, Dean included, had practiced and Gavin didn't.  However, by the end of today, he had made good progress.

Near the end of class, the boys raced in pairs to Mr. Gordon.  Gavin didn't want to jump into the water from standing, but would sit down and get in.  Oh well, we'll take what we can get. 

After the races, the boys had to dive to get rings again.  Gavin was ready to volunteer.  He likes diving--go figure.  When I asked him at dinner what his favorite part was, he quickly replied the race. 

We'll see what the next 3 classes bring.  Hopefully a little boy who doesn't cry for Mama.  And here's hoping our next trip to the pool will find an opportunity for G to practice what he's learning.