Venice, Florence, and The Olive Garden

I've never had this much trouble posting a blog entry. With that said, the photos are out of order for now, but that will have to do. Also, As soon as I have the time, I'll post an entry on the Cinque Terre and Rome. I will say that Rome offered a pleasant surprise...

We arrived in Venice at 9:00 am (photo of Jenny on one of the many bridges spanning the small canals), just late enough in the morning to miss the prime hours of early morning exploration. One of the unexpected moments that Mike and I shared on a previous trip to Venice, was arriving at 5:30 am, when the only creatures in San Marcos plaza were pigeons and a pair of Italian lovers. This time however, Jenny and I settled for the crowds. Fortunately, we had a perfect B&B to which we could escape.

The Ca' Angeli is situated on the Grand Canal (photo of Jenny in the sitting room window), and delivered on both of the "B"s. In fact, Jenny and I thought the breakfast was the best one we'd had so far - brioche, hot croissants, yogurt, fresh squeezed orange juice, cheeses, meats, cereal, fresh fruit, etc. In the lobby, several trophies from Trip Advisor and other reputable websites attest to the quality of the establishment.

After checking into our hotel and dropping off our bags, we caught the boat to Murano, where we sat in on a glass making demonstration. Jenny had been eager to visit Murano since talking about the island with Mr. Holding, who often recalls getting Murano glass chandeliers for his hotels. Prior to leaving for our trip, we decided that, on each trip we take, we'll get one really nice thing to remind us of the place. In India that was a Kashmiri rug (and a wooden, bohemian rocking elephant). Jenny had it in her mind that we weren't coming away from Murano empty handed. We walked through 15 or so shops looking for just the right item. We knew that we wanted something that could be used, which wouldn't just end up on a table or in a cupboard (not that there's anything wrong with that; we're just not at that stage yet - we still need the basics). After several bargaining sessions with different salespeople, in different stores, we decided on one lamp, which only one of the stores had. The lamp is in the style of lanterns that were hung in parts of the Doge's palace, and other residences of nobility (or so we're told). Regardless of the history of the style of lamp, we were very pleased with it, and with the eventual pricetag.

After finishing our business on Murano, we got back to tourist duties, climbing towers, crossing bridges, visiting cathedrals and the like. One of the most enjoyable activities in Venice was simply walking along the canals and through small piazzas. Jenny and I walked the circumference of the main part of town: from San Marcos Plaza, over the Rialto Bridge; through back streets near the Grand Canal; and to the far side of Dorsodouro, which has outstanding views of Venetian highlights, and offers the best neighborhood hopping in Venice.

After a night of rest, Jenny and I were up at 5:45, eager to see Venice without all of the tourists. While we enjoyed having most of the town to ourselves, we were both groggy, and, having seen Venice in its entirety the previous day, we agreed that more sleep sounded better.

We returned to the Ca’ Angeli for breakfast, and hurried to the train station to catch our train to Florence.

Our first stop in Florence was our B&B. I knew ahead of time that this wasn’t going to be one of our best accommodations, but I knew I could have done much better when Jenny told me, “This place reminds me of Hyderabad.” Our hotel in Hyderabad, inappropriately named Cosy Homes, was large, empty, and hot.

After checking in, Jenny and I ate lunch at Mario’s, a restaurant about which our guide book raved. At Mario’s, Jenny and I were put at a table with two older Italian men. One of the men, a grey-bearded, Jerry Garcia look-a-like, threw down ring after ring of fried calamari, as he talked rapidly to the other. The other man, skinnier and with less facial hair, sipped wine as he nodded and occasionally let out a “Si, si.” We eventually shared a salad and pasta with mussels.

From Mario’s, we went to the Accademia, where we marvelled at Michaelangelo’s David. It’s one of those pieces for which no one can adequately prepare. Enough said.

Our two final Florence highlights from day one were our ascent to the top of the Duomo, and a walk to the Piazzale Michaelangelo, where we watched the sun set behind the city.

Tuscany:

From a previous trip to Europe, with Mike and my friends in 2005, I remembered Florence as being somewhat overrun with tourists and more of a one-day stop. I know this sounds blasphemous to lovers of Renaissance art, but neither Jenny nor I have the attention span to spend multiple hours (let alone consecutive days) in Florentine art museums. As a matter of fact, our art experience in Florence was limited to 15 minutes in the Accademia to see the David.

Thus, on our second day in the area, Jenny and I rented a car and drove into the Tuscan countryside. With no recommendations and no guidebook, we were limited to a map, which outlined the Tuscan region. We decided to head south of Florence towards Siena. We immediately noticed the beauty that people mention when they discuss Tuscany: rolling hills separated into fields and vineyards; rows of tall cypress (?) trees; towns of hewn rock buildings with tile or slate roofs. As we continued on the S22, we noticed a large village in the distance, with towers, a large wall. The next exit pointed us towards San Gimignano, which is known as the Midevil Manhattan.

San Gimignano originally had 70+ towers, but now has only 13.

I remembered reading about the town in my guidebook, but we hadn’t really given much thought to it, and we had left our guidebook at home. San Gimignano turned out to be just as touristy as Florence, complete with automated park n’ pay lots at the town entrance. However, one could still imagine what the thin streets and alleyways, and the large central plaza would have looked like in the 1300s: a troll pulling his wagon of wheat up a ramp; a woman selling chickens in the main square; a Catholic funeral procession going into the cathedral…. We took several photos of the town and the surrounding countryside (San Gimignano is located on a hill and offers good views) and hurried back to our car to avoid paying an additional 2 Euro for a second hour.

We felt like our car rental had been relatively worth it to this point, but we wanted more. We could have paid a tour company to take us to San Gimignano, and avoided the hassles of driving in a foreign country. Luck was on our side. After driving aimlessly through towns for an hour or so, coming closer to Siena, we eventually turned onto an entirely random road, one of dozens of which we could have chosen.

After several miles, we turned onto another random road, leading to Lilliano. After having driven 20 feet towards Lilliano, Jenny and I looked at each other and started laughing. The road to Lilliano is a half-mile long, upward sloping, and passes through a canopy of trees. Lilliano is a group of about eight buildings and houses on top of a Tuscan hill. The main building is completely covered in ivy, and the roads are the characteristic hard-packed, bleached dirt of the area.

After asking a Lilliano old-timer, we discovered that the town only produces wine (“solomente vino qui”), and that it doesn’t have any restaurants. We were directed to Castellana, a neighboring town with two good restaurants (“dui ristorante bene”). On our way to Castellana, back through the canopy, we stopped at a winery to ask for further recommendations. They directed us to the Riserva di Fizzano, a restaurant associated with the winery, located 8 miles away, on the other side of Lilliano. Thus, for a third time we drove through the canopy, passing Lilliano, into the middle of the Tuscan nowhere. Dirt roads, vineyards, rolling hills – this is why we rented the car.

Eventually we came to a sign pointing to the Riserva di Fizzano. It directed us down a dirt road which passed through a valley and emerged on the other side, cutting a vineyard in two. The road climbed through the vineyard until it eventually reached an Italian villa on top of a hill (I don’t know that any guide book will get you here, but I would highly recommend it). Jenny and I looked at each other with the same thought: This…is…awesome. We were optimistic that this villa was the Riserva di Fizzano. Certainly this would be the best meal we had in Italy, probably the best meal we had on our trip, and perhaps the best meal we had in our lives. In the midst of our excitement, we noticed a familiar logo: “The Olive Garden Italian Restaurant.”

Now, I personally enjoy the olive garden. I’m a big fan of their all-you-can-eat soup and salad. However, both Jenny and I were looking for something a little different. Our optimism turned to curiosity, and we drove on to the Riserva di Fizzano/Olive Garden Restaurant.

The Riserva di Fizzano was a midevil town that fell into disuse, and was eventually purchased by entrepreneurs who turned it into a resort – in the most beautiful part of Italy. Eventually, The Olive Garden, in an effort to add authenticity to its menu, brings chefs and corporate level officers to the Riserva di Fizzano to learn from Tuscan cooks and chefs. The Riserva di Fizzano is now site of the Tuscan Culinary Institute, and its very own Olive Garden restaurant, at which Jenny and I ate. Unfortunately, there was no all-you-can-eat soup and salad on the menu. There was, however, amazing homemade pasta Bolognese and a kind of spaghetti with ham, zucchini, saffron, and a butter sauce. The administration assured us that we dined at an Olive Garden restaurant, but one that, “is much different from the United States restaurant.” Either way, lunch was amazing, and Jenny and I spent the rest of our day walking around the area, admiring the views, and talking with a German couple who spends three weeks a year at the Risera di Fizzano.

From the Riserva di Fizzzano, we hurried back to Florence to catch the Calcio Historico, a tournament between four teams, recreating a sport that was invented by Florentines when they were isolated from the rest of the Italian peninsula in the late middle ages and early renaissance. We happened to get tickets the night before, as we passed the Santa Croce cathedral. In the square that the cathedral faces, bleachers were being set up around a dirt field. The square, which is cobblestone for 362 days per year, was the original site of the tournament, and is turned into an arena 3 days each year for the modern variety of the tournament.

The best way to describe the game is that it is a human Demolition Derby. It is played on a dirt field, members of each team do everything they can to annihilate the other team, and after 50 minutes, the team to score the most points (by throwing or kicking a ball into a goal that runs the width of the baseline) wins. After an hour of pre-game pomp and celebration, we watched the red team beat the white team 11-4. Boxing and wrestling are legal, and happened regularly throughout the game. With 27 team members on either side, there was always plenty to see. It was readily apparent that the majority of these guys weren’t year-round athletes, and the fun part was watching multiple pairs of overweight Italians block, wrestle and box each other.

Jenny at the Riserva di Fizzano (AKA the Tuscan Culinary Institute, and The Olive Garden)

Jenny on top of the Duomo in Florence

Lilliano

I'm used to seeing this kind of sign just before the 13th East exit on I-215

Calcio Historico in front of the Santa Croce Cathedral

Pomp before the Calcio Historico

Emerging from the canopy into Lilliano

Sunset behind FlorenceJenny in our B&B window overlooking the Grand Canal.
Venice

Venice
A new acquisition
Venice