Italy Travel Journal
May 28 - July 20, 1997
These words are from the hand-written travel journal I kept while I was on an "Engineering in Italy" study abroad trip the summer after my sophomore year at Texas A&M. Eventually I'll have to scan some of the pictures in and add those - that was before the age of digital cameras!
Wednesday, May 28 - Castiglion Fiorentino
Our first day at Santa Chiara, Paolo (our philosophy and art history professor) took us on a tour of our new hometown. Walking through the narrow cobbled streets of this medieval walled town was an experience in and of itself. Paolo showed us the town library and its collection of ancient books. I don't know of anywhere else that you can actually touch and read books hundredes of years old. They were beautiful! Then we headed up to the main square. Paolo explained that the town's name means "Florentine Castle" and that throughout its history it had been in the hands of several different cities. He pointed out the coat of arms of the famous Medici family of Florence that can also be seen on various buildings throughout the town.
Paolo shows us books in the town library
Kayleen and Eddie visiting with a local in the streets of Castiglion Fiorentino
He also showed us the church of Santa Chiara, which was right next to the center where we were staying. He explained that the long rectangular shape of the basilica represented man's distance from God and his journey to God through the church. He also explained that while it seemed strange to us to see tombs in the walls and floor of the church, this was a common practice of people who wanted to be as close to God as possible.
the steeple of Santa Chiara church
We headed up to the Pinacoteca Comunale (Community Museum) to take a look. He showed us two similar wooden crosses and explained how you could tell which one was older. The first (from the Middle Ages) showed Christ very erect and stiff while the second showes Christ's body more affected by gravity and more true to human form. This was because during the Renaissance, more emphasis was placed on the human body and the human mind, evoking the term "humanism."
He also pointed out some items excavated recently that have proved that the city was built on the site of an old Etruscan community that predates the Roman Empire.
So we came to know a little of its long history... and we began to settle into the charms of Castiglion Fiorentino.
Students hanging out in the courtyard of the school
Caleb, Lisa, Brad, and Anais eating dinner in the school dining room
Friday, May 30 - Firenze (Florence)
(Basilica di San Miniato al Monte)
We took the 1.5 hour bus trip from Castiglion Fiorentino to Florence. When we arrived, we walked up a hill to a church with a beautiful panoramic view of the city below. It was the site of the Basilica di San Miniato del Monte, Florence's oldest church. The inside of the church was scattered with frescoes, but we were told that these were added later.
Lisa, me and Anais outside of San Miniato
The church was built in a Paleo-Christian style. Its decorations were primarily geometric in nature and rather sparse. This went along with the idea of silence and fear in a church to create reverence. The church was over 1000 years old! One of the most interesting aspects of the church was the circle of the zodiac on the floor. This showed a transition from the belief in the astrological to the Christian beliefs, even though the official writings of the church at the time denounced such ideas.
The beautiful painting (there is a postcard picture of the painting in the journal) at the front of the church is in typical Paleo-Christian style. You'll notice that Christ is depicted in the style of a Roman emperor. The four apostles are represented by animals: Mark as a lion, John as an eagle, Luke as a cow, and Matthew as a human (he was a tax collector).
Next we stopped in a small plaza called the Piazza dei Peruzzi, which was once the "Wall Street" of Florence, due to the mint of a new gold coin which made a lot of people rich, primarily a family called Peruzzi whose coat of arms bears three pears. Their home (at four stories) was once one of the highest structures in the city.
(Interior of Santa Croce)
Then we went into the Piazza San Spirito where the Basilica di Santa Croce stands. It is a Franciscan church financed by the private donations of Florentine families. In return for their contributions, the church would "reserve" space for their family members to be buried in the church. As a result, it became the largest private graveyard of the city. Apart from prestigious Florentine families, Sant Croce also houses the bodies of Michelangelo, Galileo Galilei (minus one finger which is in the Florence Museum of Science) and Machiavelli. There is also a monument to Dante Aligheri, whose body is actually buried in Ravenna. When he was alive, Dante was banished from Florence, but after he died the Florentines wanted his body back. It has turned into an annual ceremony where the mayor of Florence approaches the mayor of Ravenna and asks for the body of Dante. He always says no and then they have a celebration!
Anyway, Santa Croce means "Holy Cross." Supposedly, they have a small piece of the cross on which Jesus was crucified.
Then we hit the markets :) and ate lunch at a place called Trattoria da Panello (I think that this is it). The tortellini was excellent.
After lunch we headed to the Duomo (Brunelleschi's dome) of the Cathedral, which was completed in 1420. Dr. Allen explained how the dome was built in two layers. Brunelleschi added holes between the layers to keep the relative humidity the same on both sides. But the holes have caused stresses which have created cracks throughout the dome - some up to 60 feet in length! The frescoes painted on the inside of the dome paint a frightening picture of judgment day and hell. We proceeded to the top of the dome for a breathtaking view of Florence. Descending, we took a look at Brunelleschi's tomb beneath the church before heading to L'Accademia to see Michelangelo's David.
Someone asked me what was the big deal about a big sculpture of a naked guy. I told them to wait and see. All the pictures cannot begin to describe my feelings as I gazed up at the enormous sculpture. The human body carved meticulously out of a piece of rock, brought to life with Michelangelo's hands. The David as depicted by Michelangelo is an almost defiant monument to the beauty of the human form.
Florence itself is such a beautiful city with so much to offer. It's symbol is the lily and its historical colors are violet and white. Its patron saint is St. John the Baptist and its day of celebration is June 24. Its name "Firenze" means "the place where two rivers meet."
Saturday, May 31 - Arezzo
a street in Arezzo and the antique fair in Piazza Grande
Today we visited the charming town of Arezzo, located only ten minutes from Castiglion Fiorentino by train. Our first stop was at the Roman amphitheater. Archaeologists say it was 123 feet long and 93 feet wide. It seated about 10,000 people who came to watch violent sporting events and naval battles (this was apparently accomplished by a spring which ran under the Coliseum).
We next stopped at the church of San Francesco, the patron saint of Arezzo, before moving to the Church of Santa Maria della Pieve. The tower of the church which is said to have a "hundred holes" is the emblem of Arezzo. The interior of the church is beautiful withi its high gothic arches and columns. As an engineer, the church is interesting because you can see where the structure is deteriorating. The main columns on the left side of the church lean slightly outward and you can see the irregularities in the arches. The dome is also made of wood, which is very unusual.
We finished our formal tour in the Piazza Grande, the main plaza of the town, where a large antique fair was being held. Then we split up into small groups for lunch. We ate in a small restaurant. There were six of us eating and five of us got out our phrase books to translate the menu. Finally, one guy stood up and pointed to something that someone at another table was eating. He motioned that we wanted six of those. The waitress laughed. I felt like such a stupid American tourist! But the food was good so I guess it turned out well.
We spent the rest of the afternoon meandering through town. We stopped for gelato at this place that had a jukebox. Italians listen to a lot of American music so there was a decent selection. At Kate's request, we played Lionel Ritchie's "Dancing on the Ceiling." We got some strange looks for that! We eventually wandered back to the train station for the ride home, to end a pleasant and relaxing day.
Sunday, June 1 - Pisa
I was a little surprised upon our arrival in Pisa that there was more to it than just the famed leaning tower. There was also a cathedral, a baptistery, a camposanto monumentale, and two museums. The baptistery and cathedral were beautiful. The cathedral was probably one of the largest and most ornate that we've visited so far this trip. The monument, which was basically a large graveyard set in stone, was a little eery. Of course I'm getting kind of used to walking over tombs and such, since to have people buried in the walls and floors of churches is very common.
But by far the most interesting aspect of Pisa is the tower. It was built in four stages, each stage built with the intention of correcting the lean of the lower stages, so that the tower has taken on a slight banana shape. The main problem is that it was built on unstable, sandy soil.
Many efforts have been made to save the tower over the years. One was to freeze the ground underneath it using liquid nitrogen. They forgot, however, about underground pipes from World War II which burst in the process, causing the tower to shift even more. There are over 670 tons of lead hanging on one side of the tower. The weight of the lead is causing tremendous pressure on the rock of the structure. Eventually, the strain will cause an explosion of the rock under the weights.
When we visited, tourists cannot really get near the tower. They are not sure how much longer it will stand. So I guess the experience of Pisa (we stayed about 3 hours) was worth the 6-hour round trip bus ride - at least I can say that I saw it while it was still standing.
Wednesday, June 4 - Assisi
Part of the magic of Assisi lies in the story of its native Saint Frances, one of the patron saints of Italy and the man in many ways responsible for a revolution in the Catholic Church. His story has been the subject of many movies - the spoiled son of a wealthy Italian businessman and a French aristocrat whose lifestyle was anything but holy the first years of his life. His experience in a Perugian prison introduced him to "Lady Poverty" who he fell in love with and voed to follow all the days of his life, at the serious expense of repudiation of his father and the family wealth. He is beloved by people from around the world. He as known as the first ecologist, the first socialist, etc. He was the first to write in the Italian vernacular, the first to write a prayer praising God for the natural world. I could go on but it would fill more pages than I have here.
Our first stop was at the Basilica di San Francesco, the first and most elaborate of the Franciscan churches. It is rather ironic because the ornate interior of the church, covered with frescoes (and lots of blue paint made from rare and expensive lapis lazuli) contradicts the vow of poverty prescribed by Franciscan teaching. The lower level of the church features classical round arches and frescoes representing the life of Christ and of Saint Frances, the most significant by Giotto. The walls of the church were like books for the people of the middle ages, in that they told the sotry of Saint Frances in pictures for the common people who could not read. The church on the second level features the pointed gothic arches chosen because later builders wanted to build on the base of the original church but they wanted to build higher than the original arches would allow.
Another interesting feature of Assisi is the remains of the Roman square underneath the location of the current piazza. The facade of the Roman temple still stands today as the facade of a Christian church. The ruins date back to the year 200 A.D.
We then proceeded to the Chiesa di Santa Chiara, the church dedicated to Saint Clare of Assisi, who at age 13 left her parents to follow Saint Frances and start an order of her own. Probably one of the most interesting aspects of the church is the body of Saint Clare, apparently very well preserved when it was originally found almost 400 years after her death. This was due to the fact that her tomb was very cold since it was so far underground. Apparently, it was only about 4 years ago that they needed to cover her fave and feet with a plastic mask. Morbid, yes, but interesting nonetheless.
We had a delicious and pleasant lunch at a place called Rocca Maggiore (I think). After lunch, the group split up and took off in different directions. Dr. Allen's group to explore the old castle and Marco's group to venture farther into his hometown. Alex, Cheryl and I took the easy way out. We meandered around town, stopping for postcards and gelato before relaxing in the square in front of Santa Chiara until the rest of the group showed up. Another good day spent in a little Italian town.
Friday, June 6 - Siena
Over one of the doors into Siena there is written, "Siena will make your heart deeper." This beautiful little town, famous for its red wine, unique landscape, and most of all the character of its people and the tradition surrounding the contrade and the Palio, certainly leaves an impression never to be forgotten. Siena is also the origin of Saint Catherine, who shares with Saint Frances the title of patron saint of Italy. It is at her church that we fist stopped... the Basilica Cateriniana di Santo Domenico.
It is also here that we saw the first sign of the contrade, the seventeen districts of Siena that date back hundreds of years. The contrade shape the lives of the people of Siena - they dictate how they are raised, how they will live, how they will think. Even in modern times, marriages between enemy contrade are virtually unheard of. In this church honoring Saint Catherine, however, the flages of all the city's contrade fly, one of the only places in the city where this can be seen. This particular church straddles the line between two districts - the goose district and the dragon district, and it is the flags of these two districts that are most prominently displayed in the church.
To be continued...
