More about my first day

Lunch hour on Friday and I'm back at the hotel to rest a bit before the afternoon session. The first talk of the afternoon is in German so I'm not rushing to get back for that. It's so hard to sit still and look intelligent when you have no clue what they are saying.

So, back to yesterday. After thoroughly soaking up the atmosphere and drinking in all that green and pink and white marble, I went off in search of Via d'Orche. The Paperback Exchange is written up in several guide books and I had read an article in The Florentine the night before. So off I went. Wonderful bookstore with lots of new and used books and friendly atmosphere. I'm not saying whether I bought anything or not! Guess. From there I wondered on, heading in the general direction I thought the river would be. I turned into the Piazza della Republica and was delighted by the sight of a small bright carousel.

From there I went past Orsanmichele to the Piazza della Signoria. Wow, there they all are, the Palazzo Vecchio the Uffizi and all those statues! When you study architectural photographs, as I have done for so long, you don't have any sense (I should say I didn't anyway) of how the buildings relate to each other. In a way this is one of the important topics of the conference. In categorizing and arranging images in our collections we affect how the user interacts with them and the idea of the objects depicted as well. Would my perceptions be different if I had worked with photos of all the buildings in one piazza rather than looking at the churches, then the municipal buildings, then the museums?










At this point I realized that I was only a few longish blocks from the Arno so I decided to push on. As I walked along I could see further ahead a swarm of people on what looked like a narrow, dark street. As I got closer I realized that what I was seeing was in fact the Ponte Vecchio. I had not idea! Tiny, with the shops filled with expensive trinkets and jewels, it is a bit claustrophobic feeling (or is it me that is claustrophobic and not the bridge?) By this time it must have been almost noon, the sun was hot and not at a good angle for photos but I did stop and try to take a few views from each side of the bridge.

I'm stopping here for a break and then back to the conference. Check back for the Biblioteca Nazionale and Santa Croce.

My first day, continued

Let's see, where was I? Oh yes, the Baptistery. And then the Duomo. I was there a bit before the crowds which was nice. I walked around the whole thing, admired the Campanile, and took some photos before joining the queue to go inside. I wasn't as moved by the inside as by the outside, it is a lot plainer than you might expect, almost restrained. And all the people with their cameras and chatter didn't seem conducive to reverence. I sat on one side and contemplated for a few minutes (resting my feet for the next stage). Then I was off in search of the Paperback Exchange, a highly recommended English language bookstore, located in a small side street just beyond the Duomo.

Now let me just pause and say something about the streets here. The great thing is that in the area of the Duomo there are now whole blocks that have been designated for pedestrians only (more or less, do watch out for the bikes though). This has infuriated the cab drivers and confused almost everyone else. The trouble is you get used to strolling around in the street and then suddenly there is traffic again and you have to jump out of the way. Clearly I haven't mastered the signage, plus I seem to be expecting the traffic to behave like it does in England and Australia, that is, come at me from the wrong side. How I got this confused I don't know but I've had several near misses. The other thing is that the sidewalks are about the width of my hips. This means that people are always stepping out into the road to let others pass, or walking sideways which is also dangerous. The streets are narrow (my hips aren't) and the buildings high and so you miss a lot just getting safely from one end of the block to the other. I have to stop and look back to see what I've missed. You can't be watching the pavement to avoid disastrous falls and taking in the scenery at the same time alas.

I'm stopping here to head off to the Institut for a very full schedule of talks. Those chairs are so uncomfortable that it will be torture to keep from constant fidgeting. Will pick up the saga tonight. Looks like another beautiful day here. More later.

My first full day in Florence

Somehow I managed to get up and out this morning (discipline!) after a nice breakfast in the hotel's lovely high-ceiling-ed breakfast room (ok so I don't love continental breakfasts but this wasn't bad). Here are some images that I found on the net of the hotel - I couldn't have taken these myself. Believe me that is NOT what I had for breakfast.

I had been studying the map, planning my route. It is amazing how misleading the scale of these maps can be. I wasn't sure how far I would get but my main objective was the Baptistery and the Duomo, and the Paperback Exchange (located in a side street near the Duomo). But believe it or not I got all the way to the river, Santa Croce and back to the hotel without giving in an taking a cab. My legs are very annoyed with me and my feet haven't been speaking to me for days.

What I particularly love here is the way you turn a corner and there is a building you have read about all your life. The fact that the first one to "hit" me this morning is my all time favorite, the lovely octagonal Baptistery was a great way to start the walk. I'm going to add a couple of photos from the first part of the walk here and then stop for the night. I will pick up again in the am.

On the road again in 2009

I thought I had done my traveling early this year, and quite definitively, with the trip to Australia and New Zealand, but here I am in Florence, Italy attending a conference called "Photo Archives and the Photographic Memory of Art History." The weather here is gorgeous, warm to hot during the day and pleasantly cool at night. I traveled overnight via Paris and just made the connection to my Florence flight by minutes. Miraculously my hotel room was available when I arrived, weary and sleep deprived, at 10am local time (4am my body time). Took a short (4-hrs, oh well, I meant it to be 2 hours) nap and then went out for a little walk around the neighborhood. I only got as far as the street market beside the Basilica San Lorenzo. I thought my legs were going to give out but a quick refreshing lemon gelato revived me for the walk back to the hotel. I had a late dinner at the Ristorante Accademia in Piazza San Marco. I won't torment you with how delicious it was. Just take my word for it...it is very hard to get a bad meal here. So with all my muscles (and I use that term loosely) aching I staggered back to the hotel and to sleep.

One last look back

I'm back and I'm adjusted to being back in snow country, more or less. I still have some unpacking to do but am procrastinating as usual. I'm trying to catch up on all the Obama inauguration stuff that I missed, like the parade and the balls and all that. And of course I'm back to school. This will be the last entry in the MissHTravels blog until another trip comes along. Now that I'm into the habit though I'm going to try to keep posting on my other blog, MissHavisham's Attic - and I welcome all of you who have enjoyed the trip to check in there when you have a chance. As I try to get everything lined up for the new semester I'm making lots of lists. I thought I'd just take a minute to list some of the very finest moments from the trip - here goes:
1. My first glimpse of the Sydney Opera House. Seeing it live and sparkling there in the sun is just magic.

2. Having a Kangaroo in my lap, well almost and patting the koala.

3. Lunch at Doyles' on Watson's Bay

4. The Manley ferry - actually I love Sydney harbor from almost any angle, including the view from our hotel.
5. The weather - every day - and the air smelled so clean.
6. Riding around in buses in Melbourne and Hobart.
7. My 6th, 17th, and 100th view of the Sydney Opera House! I just couldn't get enough of it.
8. The Hobart Bookstore
9. Getting up early and going up to the top deck as we sailed into Milford Sound
10. Having breakfast brought to us every morning!
11. Our whole day in Dunedin - including the dreaded ascent to see the not very interesting albatross colony - I mean it's not like they were doing anything. Especially the penguins and the sea lions!










12. Driving around the Art Deco capital of the world in a vintage red Buick.
13. The Taraunga Public Library - I was obviously having professional withdrawal so went in to their lovely library to touch hands with some fellow librarians. They were awfully nice. We talked about Obama as it was inauguration day.
14. Getting up at 4:30 am to watch the inauguration while we were still on the ship - with a small handful of others.
15. The Enchanted Flower Garden exhibit at the Auckland Art Gallery
16. And the best fish and chips EVER at Bobby's Fish Market in Taraunga...

There were so many highlights that it seems silly to try to list them but it helps to remember some of the most favorites

Where has the time gone?

Today was our last full day in Auckland. I'm still recovering from a bout with the traveler's least favorite bug so I haven't thoroughly explored the wonders of Auckland. But the weather has been glorious and today I managed to see a lovely exhibit at the Auckland Art Gallery. The main building is "under construction" so they are carrying on in a modern building across the street from the old building. The main exhibit, "The Enchanted Garden," was a marvelous mish-mash of paintings, sculpture and objects from all over the place. Yesterday while Catherine was off to Waiheke Island on the ferry I did the Maritime Museum. This is right on the waterfront and is very low-tech but quite interesting even for a land-lubber like me. There was an interesting exhibit that was right up my alley about an important 19th-century yacht photographer, and then lots of wooden boats, models of boats and the cabin of an old ferry. You could even take a ride in a real steam-driven tender, the S.S. Puke (I'm not making this up) but for a variety of reasons I thought better not.

We're wading through our purchases and other impedimenta hoping to reduce our luggage to a reasonable state of organized chaos. I seem to have acquired some books that I haven't read - I did read five books that have been left behind or added to the ship's library once I finished. As always I loved the access to old British mysteries that one can't always find at home. There's something so perfect about reading classic 1930s who-dunnits while on a cruise! I've also been slogging through the two "work" books I brought along, although they were much more palatable while in a lounge chair on the pool deck, with stewards bringing me tea and blankets. I did try to (literally) weigh my book purchases with an eye to carrying them home so that kept me from anything too crazy. My favorite bookstore was in Hobart - they had a wonderful selection and that was where I bought my "Australian" version of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone...well at least I think it was printed in Oz. I didn't buy one in NZ because they were so clearly imports. I found a number of goodish second-hand bookstores all along the way where I added a couple of previously unread Margerie Allinghams (read and abandoned) as well as a couple of G. Heyer mysteries which are not widely available in the US. I re-read one of my favorite Ngaio Marsh mysteries - one which takes place in NZ while R. Alleyn is traveling for his health (before his marriage to Troy) and features a wonderful group of "theatricals." I was particularly happy to acquire a copy of N. Marsh's autobiography which has not to my knowledge been available in the US. With our imminent return to the US in mind I have restrained myself here in Auckland.

So this may be the last post for a few 24-hours. I'll try to do a wrap-up while airborne - what were the highlights, favorites, and so on. Thanks for your comments and interest and see you all soon.

Some men just shouldn't wear shorts

Now, I just couldn't illustrate this post, it wouldn't be fair. But one of the many interesting phenomena that I observed on board the lovely ship Nautica was what rotten legs some men feel compelled to share with the world. Of course, I happen to know several men with very good legs who seldom are seen in public in shorts (my dear husband among them). What is it that comes over these aging Lotharios when they get on a cruise ship? Or am I making an error in thinking that they leave all inhibition ashore and only show up like this when at sea? Maybe their home towns are celebrating the temporary absence of those knobbly wonders from the Main Street. Possibly even now there are towns out in middle American dreading the return of the hairy-legged ones whose absence had been like balm to their scenic highways. After just a couple of weeks of observation I know that there are indeed men out there who truly do us all a favor when wearing short pants, alas most of them seem to be under 30 and either Aussies or Kiwis.

Even as I write this a little voice is telling me to leave this theme alone as there is probably some smart-ass out there writing about the agony of witnessing me descending on the ship's pool. Ok, enough stones from glass houses.

Auckland put on a lovely fireworks display for us last night. Short but definitely lively. We were able to see the whole show from the balcony of our hotel room. This weekend is a big holiday weekend in which they celebrate the founding of the city. We took a ferry ride out to Devonport on the other side of the harbor from here this morning - lovely area with a couple of high points with spectacular views back to Auckland. I love the houses here which are mostly small villas with lots of lovely detail. I haven't really succeeded in getting great photos of these as I'm usually taking frantic shots through the windows of moving vehicles. But I've had a great time looking at the delightful variety throughout the area. I'll try to attach some of my more successful ones. More soon.