Italy

The rain in Germany falls mainly on my helmet.

| Mairead

That was a very tiring day yesterday. I think it was nine hours on the road….04 07a

(Leaving our little town of Gries Im Sellrain)

It started out slow… Nice roads in Austria. Then it began to rain and get cold. You may remember the cold weather layers we were so eager to get rid of on the first journey through Germany just two weeks ago? Well we were equally eager to get it back on yesterday. But the rain was nice, it makes a lovely pitter, patter on my helmet and when you’re all cosy and warm inside layers of fabric it’s magical. Drank more tea yesterday also, for one thing the coffee is not the same once you leave Italy… and for another holding a mug of hot tea is the nicest thing in the world when you’re cold.

04 07b

(This seems to be the way they stack hay in Austria)

We stayed near Frankfurt last night and we were lucky they had a restaurant and the food was good. The view of Frankfurt was also very good. We could see planes leaving the airport but not hear them – perfect for  a good night’s sleep!

04 07c

(On our way to the motorway)

We have been incredibly lucky with our phone service. Three cheers for Three. We have been using it in on our mobiles in Ireland for more than a year now and for a monthly fee we get free data access. That was all grand and handy but what was a lovely surprise was there’s a Three in the Uk, in Austria and in Italy, so we got free data in those places too! No problem with data roaming and the stories of bills for thousands of euros for downloading an email (unless there’s a bill waiting for us when we get home……) So, yesterday as soon as we left Austria our phones turned back into phones. We couldn’t even check the weather (well, of course we could just look up…) and we had no idea what was happening to Mr. Snowdon. Then when we arrived at our hotel the nice man had to apportion out little bits of paper to us for access to the wifi… “there’s one for your phone and one for your laptop and one for….. and I’ll have to write those in the book….”

04 07d

(Austria, so pretty)

We’ll continue through Germany today and into the Netherlands, so no internet until we hit McDonald’s! Well, to be precise McDonald’s the Netherlands because in my experience McDonald’s Germany don’t do free wi-fi (one participant in my survey…)

04 07f

(Last check of wi-fi before we leave the 3-Austrian borders)

Gratitude List today: Austria – the beauty. Cold weather bike gear – the cosiness. Rain – as it splashes on my helmet. My helmet – as it stops the rain from splashing on my head! Hot tea – just holding it. Frankfurt – the food here in our hotel, the view, the sound proof windows. Three – the free data on holidays.

Until the Netherlands, Mairead

We arrived here in Austria.

| Mairead

We’re staying in a little town in the Austrian mountains called Gries Im Sellrain. And true to its name there was rain. With my new-found appreciation for rain, you can imagine I was very happy.

03 07d

(Near Florence, notice how flat the land is)

So… we left Florence yesterday morning at 8.45am and we arrived here at about 5pm and it’ wasn’t such a bad day. We did have a high of 30 degrees but we had a low of 17 degrees also. It was a bit of a shock to the system when I realised I might be cold. Hadn’t felt that for a while. The reality was that it wasn’t too hot and it wasn’t too cold and it wasn’t too tiring. And… it seems my body has got used to travelling for long periods in one position and it wasn’t complaining.

03 07e

(Now you can see some hills in the distance)

I saved myself a lot of worrying and imagining scary things for nothing. Instead I spent my time noticing what was exactly in front of me and appreciating the stuff I liked. Scenery and nature were in front of me. Although Florence is very beautiful, we didn’t see a lot of nature. Not that there weren’t gardens, there were, but we didn’t go to them. We spent time in the streets and the museums and art galleries. So even though we were on a six lane highway now, there was plenty of nature all around us. And it was changing all the time.

03 07f

(The hills and mountains are getting closer)

We stopped every hour (ish) at motorway services and we have it down to a fine art by now. First one, breakfast. Second one fruit and water. Third one, lunch. Fourth one, ice cream or coffee and pastry.Last one shower! That makes five hours of driving and three hours of stops.

03 07g

(And closer)

Yesterday I promised to write a gratitude list and that has made me realise that I appreciate being able to go on this journey. To be able to take the time to do something so different. To have the health, the means and the will. To be able to visit places I have only read about or seen in documentaries. We live in privileged times and we don’t know it.

03 07a

(And finally we arrive in Austria)

While on this road I have been remembering my Dad tell us stories as children about his trip with friends to Rome. The story goes that they drove all the way from Baltinglass in Co. Wicklow, Ireland to Roma, Italy, more than fifty years ago. Before air conditioning, before motorways, before wi-fi! I would love to ask him about it now, but it’s too late, I didn’t know when it was possible to ask that I would want to know. And I would love to see photos of his journey but I don’t know if any exist.

03 07b

(In a little town with a funny church steeple)

So here’s my gratitude list….. Nature, the landscape of northern Italy and Austria from flat lands to huge craggy mountains. Motorway services – really! The journey. Rain… And finally I am grateful that I have the opportunity to write, to take photos and to make you all listen!!!

03 07c

(This is just one of that many signs to tell us… we are welcome :))

 Until Germany, Mairead.

How often do Ryanair fly out of Pisa? Anyone?

| Mairead

We’re leaving Florence today, well, tomorrow as I write and we’re leaving very early (read 9am…) so I anticipate having too little time then (now, to you) to write so I’m writing now…. which is in the past… which means I may have developed a time machine… it is now as you read and as I write?… Oh better yet, I’ve found a way to explain The Power of Now…. maybe later.

02 07a

(Window in Venice)

Although the Florence bit is nearly over there’s still the journey home…. Four days of wonderful riding through Italy, Austria, Germany, Holland, England and Wales… Emmm… Thing is, the trip down kinda put me off the trip home and I’m busy looking at a train to Pisa and a Ryanair to Dublin. But don’t tell Denis. He’ll be motoring along without a care until the first stop before he realises I’m not on the back. He’ll open his mail and this blog will be there, maybe I should write something nice for him, so he’ll understand…

02 07d

(Windows in Siena)

Never mind, I’m not really going to Pisa, I’m going overland and I’m going to make the journey as easy for myself as possible! First, I’m going to start by following my own advice… well, I was only sharing it because I wasn’t using it myself. So, I’ll notice what’s happening now on the journey.  Instead of imagining and getting fearful about what might happen or about how it might be as hot/tiring/sore as the last time I’ll notice how exactly it is right now. Also, I’ll appreciate stuff that happens and I’ll share with you what I’m grateful for each day…

02 07f

(Window in Duomo, Florence)

You might notice that “easy” for me doesn’t really include any physical issues…. (well, we will be stopping very regularly, in fact by the time we get home we’ll have stopped at approximately 25 motorway services/roadside cafes  over the four days, so that’s a given!) No, all my issues are mental – interesting, right? Mmm…

02 07h

(Window in Pitti Palace, Florence)

We’ll be in Austria next time I write to you, and I’ll let you know how I am then, but of course it’ll be now… again, Mairead.

Very quiet day here….

| Mairead

Didn’t do a lot yesterday, took the day off and read…. But I’ve included some previous day photos. In fact we have so many photos we could pretend we were still here for another month! Or maybe we are….

01 07b

(Another view of the Duomo.)

I was reading an article from the online version of the British Telegraph newspaper, it was written by a guy called Mic Wright, who lives in Dublin. The article was about how hard it is to be a writer nowadays. “The currency of the written word has been devalued”, there’s so much writing and it’s free. So why would anyone want to pay you to do it?

01 07d

(There are lots and lots of scooters)

I don’t know him but it sounds like he’s having a bad day. But if he stops writing I’d be sad because in that short article there was some beautiful words. For example, words  “spill forth from the internet like water from a broken valve”, yummy! He talks about telling his teenage self to give up the dream of being a writer, now I’m sad again.

01 07e

(Artist at work outside the Uffizi…. she reminded me of Nolene, and it could be Nolene! Hello New Zealand!)

But the saddest bit? The comments. They were some very cranky people commenting but that’s not the sad bit. The sad bit was one of the commenters was a parent with a seventeen year old son. The son wanted to be a writer. The parent needed the son to know that writing didn’t bring in money so it was not worth the son’s passion. He was going to send the article to his son, because he was “not prepared to support him until his 40’s.” I wanted to tell the parent that encouraging his son to follow his passion does not automatically lead to having to support him financially until he’s 40. And I want to tell him, please, encourage your son to follow his passion….. But I am not brave enough to comment on the site with the cranky commenters…

01 07a

(Giubbe Rosse bar/cafe in Piazza della Repubblica Florence, favourite haunt of writers over the years)

I think most people will agree with the parent and that makes me even sadder. So, I’ll stop now.

“The path will call to you, and you’ll find yourself on it. The way to begin is to stand…. waiting, waiting… breathlessly waiting.” Carlos Castaneda.

I’m off to ponder on the beauty of Florence, Mairead.

Surprise!

| Mairead

Yesterday we went to the Modern Art Gallery in Florence. You would thing there was a theme here because we also went to see modern art in Venice. There was a difference between the two… in Venice the artists were still alive, in Florence modern art is art from the 1800’s and 1900’s! There was one room dedicated to a still living artist….

30 06a

(The palace)

It was housed in a former palace of the Medici family making it a lovely setting and there were very few visitors, so that was great. The Medici were big in Florence, they started the banking system and they supported the arts, in particular Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Botticelli. It seems their best only lasted for a hundred years but they filled a lot of good stuff into that time!

30 06c

(The sun shining through a window onto the tiles at the palace)

After the art we wandered towards the Ponte Vecchio and the Duomo, we were going to see a concert at 5pm. It was hot and we thought it might be a good time to indulge in ice cream, so we stopped at the first ice cream shop. I ordered a big scoop in one of those fancy cones and Denis followed suit with a different flavour,  and then he asked “How much?” The guy behind the counter said “Ten euro.” Denis, thinking the language barrier had gone up, asked again, (with a slight incredulous tone) “How much?” It was still ten euro….

30 06b

(Pretty and ordinary in Florence)

Unfortunately, (or possibly fortunately…) I was licking my cone (I didn’t want it dripping, did I? It was yummy) so there was no way out except to pay. It’s a reminder: You are responsible! At no point between the thought “ice creme would be lovely” and the licking of said ice cream, did either of us ask “how much is the ice cream?” We didn’t care enough to ask! We wanted the ice cream! Once the terrible truth is out (we just spent €10 on ice cream!) there’s a tendency to blame everyone else for our lack of responsibility. But there’s no one to blame… well, except us! So eventually we forgave ourselves and ate the ice cream and it was still yummy….

30 06d

(Look, there’s Kieran, singing! In a nice white shirt)

Then we went to the concert. My nephew (and god child) Kieran was doing a short concert tour of Italy with his school and last night they were in Florence. I had got that much information months ago but as we are much slower at planning than my brother’s family (or indeed my brother’s family’s school!) I didn’t know if we would be here on the particular night. Now we were and I thought it might be a nice surprise to turn up and say “Hi!” We found the church where they would be performing yesterday, it was in a little street next to the Duomo and last night we arrived just in time and took our seats. I spotted Kieran in the front and as I didn’t want to put him off his performance I sat quietly in my seat…. until the second last item on the program, the string quintet.

30 06e

(On the way home Denis spotted some flying creatures and an opportunity for photography. I spotted an opportunity for biting creatures and left him to it )

Kieran had given up his seat earlier for extra audience members who, hearing the music, were coming in from the street and he was sitting on the floor right beside our pew. So I leaned forward and caught his eye. At first he had that look that any teenager who is eyeballed in church by an adult gets, “oops I must be doing something wrong” (he wasn’t!) Then his eyes opened wide and he looked very confused and finally he started smiling and waving. They were off to their hotel on a ninety minute bus ride after the concert so only enough time to hug and kiss and tell him how we found him. Then we told his parents, by email, how well-behaved he was and how clean he looked!

30 06f

(The Ponte Vecchio at night)

The little things, Mairead.

Wide awake is a strange place.

| Mairead

It’s five past much too early as I write, on a Saturday morning in a studio flat near the Via Sienese on the edge of Florence. It is hard for me to believe that last statement, the bit about being in Florence. I feel no different than usual. I feel no huge Italian influence. At this early hour I don’t feel the heat. I see familiar things around me. I am drinking water. So why did I travel for days on the back of a motorbike to be here if I feel just the same as being at home?

29 06a

(Ponte Vecchio, the only bridge in Florence not bombed during World War II)

But of course it’s not the same. If I open the door onto the garden I can see the soil is dry and cracking from the constant heat and lack of rain. If I pick up one of our host’s books I can see they are written in Italian, even if the cover is familiar, the contents are completely indecipherable. If I open the fridge there are strange foods in there, in the cupboard also. And especially under the sink, the things in there may contain warning labels but how would I know? Even the tap in the kitchen sink has an extra colour… red for hot, blue for cold and white for…

29 06e

(The huge Duomo)

And even though at this particular moment sitting on an (almost) normal chair, typing on my own laptop and drinking ordinary water (from the white section of the tap…) I don’t feel different…. But for every moment that I am here in a country I did not grow up in, I am awakened by differences all around me. And being awakened is probably a good thing.

29 06c

(Jugs for sale)

Most of my life I spend asleep…. and I’m not talking about the time I’m asleep in bed. For example, I go to the shop, I  walk to the third aisle, I pick up some toilet paper, I scan for the shortest checkout, I pull out some cash from my purse, I hand it over, I smile/don’t smile, I say something pleasant/unpleasant about the weather/government/price of cabbage, I walk out, I notice very little…. unless they moved the toilet rolls.

29 06d

(A braille map of Florence)

Here in Italy I stop every time on the threshold of a shop and wake up. I think “is it still day or is it evening?” and search in my memory for the words “Buongiorno” (good day) or “Buonasera” (good evening), because here in this unfamiliar place everyone greets each other when they walk into a shop. I stop in front of the shelves full of unfamiliar packages and search for clues as to what might be inside. If I’m lucky and know what I want, I search for a match between my want and each package in front of me. I am awake because they have moved and repackaged everything….

29 06f

(Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo)

As I walk along the street I am noticing shop windows, footpath edges, scooter sounds, bicycle sounds, pedestrian sounds, I see crossing stripes. I look right then left and then with a jolt I remember I must look left first. Wake up! The traffic closest to me will come from the left…. unless this is a one way street… I’m awake now.

29 06g

(The reason Piazzale Michelangelo got its name – a copy of Michelangelo’s David)

And while I’m awake I notice what’s going on right here and I can bring a little bit back home with me for when the rain falls and I am asleep again, Mairead.

Day trip to Siena.

| Mairead

We had an early timed visit to the Uffizi Gallery in Florence yesterday so no opportunity to blog about our wonderful day in Siena…. unit now.

2806a

(The Pizza del Campo, the low stone pillars in the background (in front of the buildings) mark the edge of a race track)

We were meeting Bill and Christie (thank you Kate! thank you Bill and Christie!) who have been travelling over to Siena from Vermont every second summer to lecture for the past ten years. So they know Siena… Bill had kindly agreed to meet us at the bus stop, have a coffee and tell us a little about Siena and indeed Florence. Denis had met Bill about ten years ago but his memory is not as good as it used to be (!) so he couldn’t recall Bill’s face. He told me this on the bus as it was pulling into the station. But all was not lost, in spite of his memory issues, his google searching skills are excellent and within thirty seconds we had a picture of Bill on the phone and through the bus window!

28 06g

(Denis and Bill considering one of the most photographed views in Siena…)

28 06h

(… and that view)

We followed Bill around for the next two hours getting a very personal tour of the city (they had only arrived the previous day and Christie was unpacking and would join us for lunch). As luck would have it the Palio would be held on next Monday so we were there in time to see the preparations and we had Bill to explain it all to us.

28 06b

(The clay)

The Palio is a horse race around the square in Siena. In the previous week the track is laid with local clay (clay kept each year for this purpose) we saw and walked on this clay. The race has been continuously in existence since the 1500’s. The jockeys ride bare back, as they always have, around a narrow course, cheered on by their particular city ward. They race three circuits of the square. I got the picture below from Wikipedia to show an action shot of the race.

Palio di Siena 2008 2

(The Palio in progress. No saddle. The white surface on the left beside the horses foot is a mattress! The mattresses are tied to walls of the small chapel at the narrowest part of the course so that the horses and jockeys don’t hit it. Also, you can see the clay being thrown up by the horse’s feet. The jockeys colours correspond to the city ward for which he rides. In this picture the race track looks wider than it is!)

28 06j

(Entrance to one of the horse houses and….)

28 06i

(Denis got a shot of a package being delivered to the horse house – it was hay and it says Hypposan…. for your horse to dream…)

Only ten city  wards get to compete and the lucky ones are picked out of a lottery. The horses and riders are matched with a ward by lottery the day before the race and there is a special horse house (not stable!) in each city ward, where the jockey and horse must stay locked in until the race!

28 06d

(The snail fountain)

Even though the race (the first one, there’s second one in August) would not by held until next week the preparations were well underway. Bill brought us to four different wards to see the details. We went to the snail, the eagle, the panther and the tortoise. I suppose it’s a bit like following GAA in Ireland the city wards would be the counties and your allegiance would be to the county you were born in. What’s extra for the Palio is that babies and sometimes adults are baptised at the water fountain of their ward.

28 06f

(The tortoise fountain… are they the Wicklow colours or the Tipperary colours? You might be able to see a small snail at the feet of the tortoise?)

Bill and Christie showed us and told us so much and made our visit to Siena very memorable and highly enjoyable. And a bonus, as Siena is on a hill (well, more than one hill) the temperature was cooler. Another bonus, Bill and Christie are coming to Ireland in August and as they showed more than a passing interest in the Rock of Cashel (no, they weren’t being polite!) I’ll be giving them a little tour. Better start airing the beds, Mam!

From Florence with love, Mairead.

Today is Wednesday, it must be Florence…..

| Mairead

We had a very pleasant trip down from Venice to Florence yesterday, the temperature was just right and the traffic was light and the scenery was very pretty. Then we got to the city. Fast traffic, hot sun and little scooters nipping in and out of every available space on the narrow roads, while their riders talked on the phone! I need a lie down just thinking about it…. Needless to say no photos, I needed both hands to hang on tight while I prayed fervently.

26 06d

(Look at those great clouds. About 45km from Florence)

But it’s all okay now, we did arrive at our new accommodation, safely. A large-sized bed sit with its own little garden on the edge of Florence. Another Airbnb find and the host has gone off to stay with a friend while we live in her very comfortable home. I on the other hand am not so comfortable. Got great mail from Susanna about mosquitos and Florence but by the time I had opened it the little angels had done their worst 😦 I anticipate more fervent praying….

26 06b

(And great shade)

So lets remember the good times in Venice! Forgot to mention yesterday that we did take a Gondola ride. It was eighty euros for thirty-five minutes but we didn’t pay that! We were standing around at a busy Gondola pick up point, trying to work out how to attract the attention of the guy in charge when Miranda spotted us. She was with her boyfriend, both in their early twenties, both from China. Turned out they wanted the same thing we wanted – a good deal! She was very determined and had the whole deal sorted while we followed her around!

26 06g

(Traffic jam on a side canal)

There was a bit of a traffic jam at the beginning but eventually we arrived at the grand canal and the Gondolier started to point out the Mayor’s house and Venice’s seven star hotel (maybe next time?) It was at this point that Miranda leaned across to take a picture and our gondolier commanded “No moving around, I need balance.” Up to then I had accepted that he knew what he was doing and all the rocking from side to side didn’t mean I was going to end up in the water, now…. I wasn’t so sure. We all kept very still after that. And I took a little look around (just moving my eyes not my body) to spot the life jackets, maybe they were under the seats?

26 06h

(Miranda took our picture. Look at the Gondolier in the background – they all use their legs to push away from the walls)

You see it’s a very precise thing the gondolier is doing, it looks easy enough, because they make it look easy but it’s not so easy. And it made me think about living in balance and how that might take a long time to achieve and may look very easy from the outside but it’s always a work in progress. So what’s that all about?

26 06i

(Perfect balance)

From itchy Florence, Mairead.

It’s Saturday in Venice…..

| Mairead

I did wonder if Saturday would be very busy in Venice and it was, but still not uncomfortably so. I don’t like crowds so my tolerance level is set quite low and I didn’t have a problem. That’s Venice for you, it’s so different that every lane, street, canal, piazza is a new experience and us tourists are not trying to fit into one or two hotspots. (Well, except St Mark’s.)

24 06b

(Everything has to be delivered by water, then handcart – above are boxes of souvenirs from Venice about to be unloaded and sold in the shops)

The water bus/boat was full in the morning when we arrived but there was a lovely woman opening and closing the entrance bar and making space. I, of course, understood nothing of what she said but I did understand the body language… Let me translate:  smiling all the time = I’m very friendly and I welcome you to my city, it’s lovely here, have a great time; waving two hands in the direction of the interior of the bus/boat = although I would love to just have you on the bus we must welcome these other people into our space but for you there’s loads of room inside and you might even get a seat if you’re lucky; standing on the dock saying lots of words including one that sounded a bit like the name on the dock = this is… (name on dock) and from here you’ll be able to visit… (list of amazing stuff nearby); I spent most of my time on the boat listening to her.

24 06j

(Sometimes a bit choppy in the Gondola)

Eventually Denis had to drag me away because we had reached our stop. We were going to Gardini, I think it means garden. You remember our Canadian friend yesterday? Well we decided to also go to the modern art exhibition. It’s a biannual event so I took that as a sign we needed to go… So, the exhibition takes place in a group of buildings in the park. Lots of trees, so great shade.

24 06c

(Shady trees at the Gardini)

Very different to the rest of Venice (the island bit, I mean) where space seems to be at a premium and we hadn’t seen any trees. It was another hot day and I was feeling the effects, so we were very glad most of the buildings were air-conditioned.

24 06a

(This is the first exhibit, it’s from Spain. It’s a pile of rubble and represents “making visible what escapes our attention”. Love that!)

My favourite exhibit was of personal notebooks. I spent the last year on my course grappling with how to make a personal notebook. What is it? I’m still not entirely sure myself… but this is what I did to produce mine… Get a blank notebook and stick pictures, drawings, found objects (that’s a great phrase that’s used all the time in modern art, it seems to mean anything you didn’t make yourself) flowers, bugs, anything really. But you should like or love the things you stick in. Then your notebook becomes a representation of you, to yourself. I suppose it’s a conscious representation of all the stuff you like that’s usually unconscious to you. Having your unconscious stuff out there for you to see can be very helpful when you are looking for ideas for producing art or craft. But I think it’s useful for another reason.. and I’m going to start showing people how to use it in that way….. soon.

24 06d

(A page from one of the personal notebooks, full of tickets. I want to do this!)

After the modern art we took a bus/boat ride all the way to the terminus, it was cool in the breeze and we got to see Venice from the water.  I did notice something weird that was different from our first day here…. I’m no longer walking around with my mouth open! I mean, I seem to have stopped noticing how amazing this place is. I have become accustomed to it all. It’s Sunday as I write this and I can still remember the moment we arrived on the island on Friday and I walked across the bus (real bus) park and saw buildings sitting in sea water. It was startling and beautiful and caused my mouth to open wide!

24 06i

(Lots of cruise ships visit Venice, this one is headed straight for our bus/boat)

Every step we took on the first day was in amazement. The bridges, the gondolas, the flowers hanging from the balconies, the water, the narrow lanes, the colours, the sounds – of lapping water of a beautiful language, the smells – food, coffee, perfume, the sun, the shade, the heat, the breezes, the steps, the taste of the coffee, the food, the queues, the lack of queues, the queue jumping, the waiters dressed impeccably, the ice cream dripping faster than you could eat it, the boat docks at every front door, the water lapping up the side of the buildings, the amazing shade of deep green “stuff” growing on each building at the waterline.

24 06k

(This is the fire brigade… and these are the firemen… in uniform… lovely)

Do we eventually stop noticing every beautiful thing in our lives? Mairead.