Verona and Venice

There is nothing like a good night's rest! I awoke Thursday morning feeling like a million bucks (or 692,892.01 Euro according to the current exchange rate), ready for a travel day to Venice with a stop in Verona. We took one last group photo at the concert venue from the night before and then headed out.

Verona is a wonderful little medieval town. It is full of charm and character and each year it hosts an opera festival at the old Roman ampitheater, which happened to be our first stop once we arrived. We then had a chance to see the legendary House of Juliet, including the balcony and courtyard. It's very touristy, but a unique experience, so it is a must for any visit to the city. Despite tradition, I did not grab the boob of the statue of the fair maiden like this guy:

From here I wandered all over town, using my handy-dandy Rick Steves guidebook, stopping to take in some of the sights including this view of the river:

After wolfing down a gelato, I met back up with the group and we boarded the bus to head to Venice. We didn't have much time once we got to Venice Mestre, or the mainland of Venice, so we pretty much just hung out at the hotel and a little town square a few blocks away.

The next morning, Friday, we awoke, had breakfast, took the bus to a water taxi, and then made our way into Venice proper. Here was the view from the boat on the way into town:

Venice is a great city to get lost in. And it's easy to do. And get lost is what I did. I had a general plan for sights to see throughout the day: La Fenice (the opera house), San Marco, the bell tower, the Accademia, the Rialto bridge, the Frari church, and the Doge's Palace. We had most of the day free to roam about the town, so I headed in the general direction of each sight, getting somewhat lost along the way and thoroughly enjoying myself. It was very fun to wander down quiet side streets, away from the crowds, and discover little piazzas. Here are some of the photos from my wanderings:

I saw everything on my list and more. It was a wonderful day. The capstone to the day was a trip up the bell tower in Piazza San Marco for some views of the city and dinner at Trovatore restaurant. The food was okay but I was so hungry after wandering all over town I wolfed my dinner and finished the dinners of two of the chaperones. "The is the best goddamn pork cutlet I've ever had in my life."

We took the water taxi back to our hotel that night and I visited the town square in Venice Mestre for a beer at a little cafe and to check out the "night running event" that was going on. It was some kind of race that began and ended in the square. The course was short and the runners ran laps. Every so often a motorcycle would pass me, followed by a bicycle with an orange flag, then some faster runners, then some slower runners. After forty minutes it was all over and they were announcing winners. I headed to bed drowsy and happy to have spent a day well in Venice.

Lucca, Pisa, and a Concert

On Wednesday morning I woke up with my alarm for the first time on the trip (I had normally been waking up earlier than my alarm because I was so excited to see the sites). This day however, I was feeling a bit under the weather - perhaps the enormous amounts of walking, late nights, early mornings, and copious amounts of Italian sun were beginning to take their toll. Either way I was happy to have a low key day ahead of me.

We began our Wednesday morning with a trip to Lucca and a couple hours of free time to roam about the city. Lucca is a medieval town with a still intact city wall that, long past its defensive uses, has been turned into a biking and walking trail around the perimeter of the old town. Bikes are cheap to rent - 2.50 euros per hour - but since I wasn't feeling great I simply strolled around town to the Roman Ampitheater and several of the churches. At one point while walking around on the ramparts I found myself in the middle of filming for a TV commercial.


After leaving Lucca we headed for lunch in the countryside. We stopped at a small winery/olive oilery called Fattoria Il Poggio in the Montecarlo region of Tuscany for a simply gorgeous meal in the idyllic rolling hills and surrounding farms. It was a hot afternoon but there was a nice breeze as we sat and ate together at one large table under a long awning in the shade of the trees. Our meal was fresh homemade pasta, cheese, ham, fresh baked bread, artichoke hearts (roasted), peppers (roasted), olives, fresh olive oil, and wine. Well, the kids didn't drink the wine, but the adults got to sample. To finish off the meal we had homemade biscotti and grappa from the vineyard. This was absolutely delicious (my mouth is watering as I write this).

After the meal (and a nap on the bus) we arrived in Pisa to see the Field of Miracles. It was a hot day but the sky was a deep blue and the buildings were a beautiful color against this backdrop. I managed to get into the baptistry, which is one of the most amazing acoustical spaces of the 13th and 14th century. While inside I sang a few notes and was shushed by one of the security guards. Undeterred I started whistling. After a few minutes I made a hasty exit - when I noticed they were eying me with suspicion. I just wanted to hear what it sounded like - really.


Our next stop was Montecatini and a performance at the site of an old Roman bath. This was our final concert for the tour in an beautiful outdoor venue. As we finished our sound-check hundreds of people (I'm not exaggerating) began streaming into the performance area. It was almost a mad dash for seats. By 9 PM the place was packed with all of the seats full and people standing around the periphery. The performance went very well and we were greeting with a standing ovation and shouts of "BRAVI, BRAVI!!!" from the audience. After the concert people approached me and the students, showering them with praise. It was fantastic. We even received compliments when we returned to the venue the next morning for a group photo. It was a great way to wrap up our performances.

Last Day in Rome and on to Florence

Since I am sightseeing machine and history nerd all rolled into one, I couldn't resist taking one last walk through the streets of Rome before we left for Florence. Our departure time the morning after our performance in Gallicano was set for 9:30 AM so this afforded me ample time. Using my Rick Steves Guide to Rome I set out on what he calls the "Pilgrim's Tour" of the city for two very important reasons: 1) most churches have free entry and 2) most churches open at 7:00 AM. Also this tour was the closest in proximity to our hotel.

On my tour I saw Santa Maria Maggiore, Santa Prassede, St. Peter in Chains (with Michelangelo's Moses - above), San Clemente, plus as an added bonus I went by the Roman Forum (attempting to get in for free only to find out that you have to pay). On my way back to the hotel I stopped by the Holy Stairs, right next to San Giovanni in Laterano, considered going up the stairs (you have to do it on your knees while praying - they have a list of prayers at the information kiosk), looked at my watch, realized that I didn't have time and that perhaps I should not "speed pray" past all of the other people up the stairs, said a quick "Hail Mary," and went back to the hotel to catch the bus.


After my whirlwind tour of Rome in the morning, I managed to get some rest on the bus as we headed to Florence. I remembered from my last trip that Florence was one of my favorite cities in Europe so I was excited to return. I was particularly excited because our tour manager somehow was able to score me ticket to the Uffizi Gallery (usually it is difficult to get in during peak season without waiting in a long line) with a timed entrance.

Upon arrival we met up with local guide who took us through the Accademia to see Michelangelo's David. This was particularly exciting because the same gallery also houses unfinished sculptures, including some for Pope Julius II's tomb, of which the Moses sculpture (the one I had just seen earlier that morning) was a part.

After the Accademia I visited the Uffizi Gallery with my timed entrance for a 45 minute whirlwind tour, then I climbed the bell tower next to the Duomo for some great panoramic vistas of the city, after which I booked it through the crowded streets to the Ponte Vecchio, and finished off my free time with a gelato. Not bad for a couple of hours in Florence!

From the Ponte Vecchio and gelato I met back up with the group at Santa Croce. We then walked to our bus, boarded, and headed off to our hotel in Montecatini Terme. Once we arrived we had a delicious dinner at our hotel and then we took a funicular up to the old medieval village, high above the valley floor - Montecatini Alto. The evening ended with a relaxed, peaceful stroll along the narrow medieval streets.

Rome Wasn't Built in a Day (2)

Monday morning I awoke early, refreshed and ready for a day of sightseeing and a concert in the evening. I started out the day with a walk by myself in the neighborhood around the hotel and stumbled upon the Arcibasilica Papale di San Giovanni in Laterano, the first Christian church in the city of Rome and the official seat of the Pope (who is the Bishop of Rome). It's a gorgeous church with many very old mosaics covering the walls on the inside. Here's a hint: if you want to see some of the many churches of Rome visit them during the week in the early mornings. I did this two days in a row and had each church basically all to myself. The above photo is the actual seat of the Pope.

After my stroll I met back up with the group and we boarded our bus toward the Vatican. Here we got a chance to visit the Vatican Museums, including the Sistine Chapel, and then tour St. Peter's Basilica. Afterward we had some free time for lunch and we hung out a bit in St. Peter's Square.

Following our morning in the city we headed out across the countryside to the small town of Gallicano, about 25 kilometers to the east of Rome. It was here, in the evening, that we rehearsed and performed our first concert in collaboration with a youth orchestra from the town of Palestrina, another smallish town about 20 minutes east of Gallicano. We snapped this picture in between rehearsal and concert of a poster hanging up in town:

The concert was a huge success. The church was packed, the students performed well, the audience loved it, and the Italian kids were genuinely excited to hear us perform. We were even presented with a plaque bearing official town seal after our performance.



Following the concert we went to a local restaurant for dinner with the Italian kids and some of their parents (great homemade pasta, delicious main course, awesome wine). Here the kids all got to hang out with each other and talk. It was really fun to watch them interact over the meal.

After dinner we went back to Rome for one last evening at our hotel. It was a beautiful day capped off by a great performance. The next morning we awoke headed to Florence.

Italy 2011: Rome Wasn't Built in a Day

Sunday, June 19: This is me in the Dusseldorf airport, after being awake for twenty hours, waiting for our entire group to make it through passport control upon arrival in Europe. We had a two hour layover in Germany before catching our flight to Rome. I don't sleep well (or at all really) on planes so my "good cheer" was flagging at this point. I did, however, manage to rally by the time we made it to our hotel later in the day. The flights went smoothly, the worst part being the one hour and forty five minute wait for our luggage in Rome, but otherwise we made it without a hitch.

After finally getting our luggage (it was 4:00 PM by this point) we met up with our tour group leader, Stefano, and boarded a bus that would take us to our hotel. Most of the students and chaperones were wide awake, excitedly snapping photos out the window of the bus. I was excited to be in Rome and I couldn't wait to hit the ground running (we had an ambitious agenda of sightseeing for the first day) after a stop at the hotel to check in and shower.

Our first stop, after the hotel, was the Colosseum - for which we had tickets (no gladiator fights though). We had a bit of time before entering so I explored the area nearby, walking on the original Roman road, called Via Sacra, up Palatine Hill and toward the Roman Forum. It was a breathtaking and the position of the sun made for some wonderful photographs.




The Colosseum is an imposing structure, just as I remember. Inside they are doing some restoration, including a small area where they have installed a floor that is similar to the one on which the games or "people and animals tearing one another limb from limb" were held. It was basically a scaffolding that supported a wooden floor that was then covered in sand. Sand was used because it soaked up the blood, was easy to sweep up after fights, and made the wooden planks less slippery - at least they were thinking of safety. Once inside I paused to imagine 50,000 people watching gladiators battling each other (or mauling slaves and Christians to death) in front of the emperor and vestal virgins. (See my artsy photo below)

After the Colosseum we boarded the bus and headed to the Trevi fountain on the way dinner. The last time I was in this spot, I did not (I am pretty sure) make a wish in the fountain according to custom because I was too cool to do it. This time I did. According to tradition a person is supposed to: 1) make a wish 2) become one with the water of the fountain (don't literally climb in because you will be arrested) 3) turn your back to the fountain and close your eyes 4) toss a coin over your shoulder. According to custom your wish will be granted and you will, as a bonus, return Rome one day.

After the fountain we passed by the Pantheon on our way to supper. It was getting late by this point, unfortunately it was closed, but everyone was very hungry so perhaps it was for the best that we were unable to go in. We made it to the restaurant and enjoyed an enormous meal served in courses - the first of many for the week. At some point between the second course and dessert many of the students began to completely crash due to jet lag. Some of them actually fell asleep at the tables while waiting for the ice cream. Needless to say we went back to the hotel after this for a good night's rest.

Two Days to Italy

On Saturday I board a Lufthansa flight with twenty-seven young musicians and five chaperones for a nine day tour of Italy. We will perform two concerts while in the country (last night we gave a preview concert in Crystal Lake for parents and other well-wishers) and spend time in Rome, Venice, and Florence. Today I spent a couple of hours tying up last minute loose ends before I leave Champaign: insurance coverage for the summer - check, trip to the bank - check, laundry - in progress.

Fifteen years ago this summer I prepared to embark on the most exciting adventure of my young life - a month long tour across Europe with friends and classmates in conjunction with a humanities course at Rosemount High School. It was the summer between my junior and senior years and I remember the anticipation and excitement of leaving the country for the very first time. I even had a countdown to departure in my bedroom:


This summer, as I prepare to go back to Italy, my thoughts have wandered back to June of 1996 (the flight overseas was almost exactly fifteen years ago to the day). Italy was the midpoint of our itinerary. We began in England, traveled through France, Switzerland, grazed the southeastern corner of Austria and then headed south toward Venice and then Rome.

Being a teenager I was awestruck by the splendor of the trip but I was also an egocentric little punk so it was by this point in the trip that I had officially "gotten sick" of everyone. "Here I am in this amazing place but these people are driving me CRAZY!" I remember quietly wandering away from the group whenever I could. Once in Venice, where I almost got lost in the narrow, winding streets among the thousands of tourists from all over the world (I remember thinking there weren't many Venetians in Venice), I saw a young boy fall into one of the canals. Gross. I also turned seventeen in Venice but I didn't tell any of my friends that it was my birthday because "they just wouldn't understand." Boy, did I ever teach them a lesson!

Another time I spent an entire day by myself wandering the streets of Rome well off the beaten path, getting lost, not really having a good time because I didn't know where the &$@*! I was, and only finding my way back because I managed to remember our group leader's advice: "if you get lost, just find this bus number ____ and get on." To my relief the bus took me right back to the hotel and I was able to find the restaurant where we were meeting for dinner from there.

After these excursions I managed to suck it up and enjoy myself in the company of others once again. By the time we made it to Spain I was back to "I love you guys." All it took was almost getting lost in a foreign city to make me realize that I actually did like the people I was with. Amazing isn't it? Maybe I just needed to create more drama because the trip had been going too smoothly up to that point. Whatever the reason, I'm glad I didn't get mugged, kidnapped, or left behind by my group.

My favorite memory of Rome was, of all things, doing laundry. We went to a laundromat owned by a Pakistani guy named Cobra (I assume this was a nickname), who was also a DJ at a local night club. This guy was awesome and he was SUPER excited that we were all Americans (the TVs in his laundromat were playing MTV Europe). "HEY USA!" he shouted as we walked in. His English wasn't great but it was WAY better than any of our Italian. We settled in and did our laundry. "JACKIE CHAN!" he shouted at the Korean girl in our group.

Unfortunately for my friend, Chris, he was unable to get a machine until late in the evening and Cobra was getting ready to close. "Leave your laundry. I take care of it. You come back tomorrow," he suggested as he simultaneously began closing up shop and inviting us to his discotheque that evening. After a few moments of hesitation (think a group of teenagers consulting one another about the advice we received to NEVER LEAVE YOUR PERSONAL BELONGINGS WITH ANYONE ELSE) Chris finally agreed to leave all of his clothes, except for those which were on his back, with Cobra and head back to the hotel.

Of course, looking back on the situation, it was totally legit but we were all young and nervous. We had all been warned to not trust anyone. And once again teenaged egocentricity reared its ugly head: "what if he steals your dirty laundry, Chris?" Seriously.

The next day we headed back to Cobra's laundromat. Chris was followed by a paparazzi of teenaged Americans with cameras. Everyone did who laundry the night before came back along with a few others from the group who were simply curious. "What is he going to do if his laundry isn't there? What if Cobra isn't there? What if he took Chris's laundry?" We managed to work ourselves up into a bit a frenzy over this whole situation. When we arrived at the shop we were greeted with "HEY USA!" It was Cobra, standing in front of his machines and TVs playing MTV Europe, and he had Chris's laundry ready to go just like he said. In the end Chris got his clothes back, he made a friend in Cobra, and we got to take pictures.

The Summer Thus Far

It's been a while since I've written a blog post. It's not that I've been too busy to write but rather things have settled into a nice quiet routine in Champaign this summer. As a result there have been relatively little "eventful" things on which to report. I have worked myself into a routine of study, practice, and reading along with a 15-K training program that have kept my days structured and organized (I've only had a couple of days where I haven't been productive at all and spent my time playing lots of Snood).

In the meantime I've been auditioning students for next year's MCYO groups and preparing the ensemble for our Italy trip. We leave on Saturday. Like five days from now. It's kind of hard to believe because I just kind of fell into this whole thing. I haven't been to Italy since I was sixteen years old - I actually turned sixteen in Venice - so I'm pretty excited. If we had $4000 Kaia could have come along too but unfortunately our $7000/year combined income doesn't really allow for that at this point. Someday we will both return to Italy together and we won't be in the company of a student orchestra.

It's been terribly hot for the past three weeks so when the weather finally cooled off a bit we decided to take advantage of a beautiful day and go to Kickapoo State Park just 24 miles east of Chambana on the banks of the Kickapoo River. We spent a lovely afternoon hiking through the woods and along the shores of Clear Lake. It's not an enormous lake but it's a decent size - probably something like Half Moon Lake in Carson Park - and it was a three mile hike with some terrain changes. It was nice to get out of town and do something naturey. This summer has been a lot of driving (for me) and also lots of time in Chicago/suburbs and Champaign.

Here are some photos from yesterday's excursion:

We found a tiny waterfall along the trail.

Thank goodness we weren't on our bikes I mean, we can't afford a heavy fine.

We saw this little frog in the tall grass.

Here is the trail through the woods.

Overall it was a fine day and it gave us a taste of the outdoors. Later this summer we're going to take a backpacking excursion to northern Wisconsin at Copper Falls State Park. I'm looking forward to this because we haven't been camping since the very beginning of last summer. That was when we camped for one night at Perrot State Park near La Crosse, WI and got rained out for the rest of the weekend. Hopefully the weather will cooperate for us in August.

In the meantime I should probably start thinking about packing for my trip.