Venice Nov 4-5

Our last full days in Venice...
Wednesday
To get around in this town you either walk or take the city " bus" which is a boat called a vaporetto. It's been very nice hearing NO motor vehicles at all!  Today we took a vaporetto to several sites including city historical buildings & Bascilica di San Marco.

In the evening about a dozen of the group went to a concert of Vivaldi music at a church. There were 7 string instruments & a piano. I thought it was excellent. Lovely setting, excellent musicians, and Italian music!  After the concert, 5 of us didn't want to wait a long time for the Vaporetto so we walked..  Now, that entailed navigating all sorts of winding streets at 10 pm.  Fortunately the guy in our group used google directions & did a good job of getting us back--- actually before those who took the boat!  ( our walk was over 45 min.). That was a fun adventure.

Thursday
We began the day on a Vaporetto to take us to the island of Murano where Venitian glassmaking is done. We watched an informative video before watching the men work with glass. We learned that glassmaking used to be done in Venice proper but centuries ago the kilns tended to cause fires so it was decided that this job should be done on another island.  Makes sense.
I got videos & pix of the men at work. Such skill!  I did buy a few little trinkets back in Venice.
My friend Jan and I did some shopping & returned to the hotel to get ready for our last event: farewell dinner at the hotel.

The group of about 28 became very at ease & friendly over the weeks, so it was a lovely evening. We got some whole group pictures and have each other's contact info.  I think I may keep in touch with several of them.
Everyone else is leaving early tomorrow but my flight isn't till 8 pm so I have a bit more time here.  I'll fly to London, spend the night in an Ibis hotel, then depart for SF at 11 am on Saturday. That breaks up the trip a bit.

I'm tired now but I'll try to write 1 more time tomorrow and add some overall reflections of the trip.  But in short,  my earlier view that this was a well organized tour still stands.  I feel very lucky.
Looking forward to seeing my Swedie & puppy soon!

Venice Tues Nov 3

I am amazed at how unique Venice is!  I'm not sure if I love it or not but I can say it's unlike any other place I've ever seen. We arrived yesterday, so today was our first full day. I didn't have a great start because when I entered my hotel room yesterday there was a terrible odor. I had a friend & our guide smell it to see if they agreed & they did. We tried to get another room but the hotel said it was full. My Italian guide said if I leave the window open it could help a lot & sure enough it has. ( I can speculate with you later about the possible causes). Anyway I decided to stay in the room & I have kept the window open all the time.  It's pretty cold at night but the blankets are warm.  C' est la vie.

So about Venice:
We didn't see much last night but today we got around a lot.  At the top of the list was the gondola ride.  It was a cool but bright, sunny day so we were very fortunate.  We had 5 boats together for our group. I can say the gondoliers gave us zero attention but their water skills were excellent. We all enjoyed it.  I took a ton of pictures & videos. We also took the water bus for sightseeing& visited some historical sites.
The oddest thing to me is that when we walk around all we do is see other tourists. I know it's the part of town, but this really feels like walking around Disneyland minus Micky.  The population here has dropped ( according to our lecturer) so to me so far it hardly feels like Italy. But of course the physical attributes (  canals & architecture ) are amazing.

I'm exhausted right now & need to sleep cuz tomorrow is a busy day. We have 2 more days in the group, but while they all leave Friday morning, I don't fly till Fri night so I'll have more time here.

Nightee night.
Jane

Nov 1 Florence

It's our last day in Florence.  Off to Venice by train tomorrow.

Our day began with an excellent lecture by a professor about Florence's history and the Medici family. Once again I was very interested in the content and again it helped tie together the art, the history &  architecture  in new ways. Having read about these works & places is one thing but visiting them is incredible. The videos that friend Jackie loaned me to watch in the last month really set the stage for me.

This afternoon was free for the travelers ( Roger calls us "Roadies") to do as they choose. I met up with former Academic Senate colleague Richard & his wife.  He is teaching a semester abroad through his college. It was wonderful to see them!  I wasn't interested in going to more galleries so we went to the Pitti  Palace to see their gardens. This was another beautiful, sunny day --- perfect for strolling through gardens. High atop the hill behind the palace we had a super view of the city and environs.  Got some nice pix. All the while we were catching up on the last couple years since we worked together. This was a welcomed change of pace.

I have not worn a Fitbit here but my IPhone keeps track of the daily steps & tells how many flights of stairs we take.  Oh my!!!   Today was 15,500 steps and the equivalent of 30 floors climbed!!  The other night the 6 people at the  table were discussing their exercise routines & all work out regularly-- not surprising as that is needed for this kind of trip. It seems that nearly everyone is in their 60s or 70s with 2 who announced that they are 85!! Incredible!

I noticed the group dynamics of this group & mentioned to our group leader how interesting it is to observe everyone. She was curious to understand  more about that topic so I think I'll share some group theory with her. We are sitting together on the train tomorrow.

Florence has been super. As everyone promised, it's lovely and easy to get around. I now understand its attraction.

Can't believe I'll be home next Saturday!

Jane

Florence Oct 30-31

Friday Oct 30
What timing!  First thing this morning I read an email from friend Jackie telling me to try to see if I could visit the newly renovated museum at the Duomo-- the cathedral. Our group would visit the Duomo this morning, and because of Jackie's message, I asked our tour leader if our Duomo tour pass also included the museum. She said " I don't know but I'll check."  Well, it turned out the museum was reopening TODAY and yes we could go there!! More about that in a minute...

We had a private tour of the Duomo with a man whose father had been a marble craftsman for the Duomo!  Immediately I noticed his speech was different & I wondered if he was a German speaker.  No, turns out I was hearing the Florentine accent.  The Duomo 's architecture is unique & its history is too.

He next took us to the Baptisry next to the Duomo. And finally he took us to the marble workmens' studio to show us some of the techniques of working with marble. This was very interesting!  The men were not working today so we had the place to ourselves.

This was a very active day because after lunch we visited an important museums: theGalleria dell' Accademia.  It's  the home of the huge statue of David by Michelangelo. Our art historian guide led us and added fascinating details about the art as well as the people.  This trip--- thanks to our lecturers -- has brought art to life for me more than ever. I'm seeing connections between artists & the history / culture of the various eras and can actually identify Italian works that I'd only superficially been exposed to before. ( I never took an art history course).

Fortunately we had some free time to have a short visit at the new Duomo museum. It was excellent! It displayed the history  of the church including parts from the earlier structure.  I appreciated an audio visual presentation chronicling the evolution of Florence.

Tonight was a special dinner & show held as a banquet at the Medici Villa.  We were greeted by Renaissance musicians in period costumes & were entertained by them & folk dancers. (Jackie--I got pix & videos for you!). A " court jester" provided comedy to the evening & managed to pull up most people in the audience at one time or another for a game or dance.  Very entertaining!

Sat. October 31
Happy Halloween!  It's nearly dinner time & I saw almost  no signs of Halloween here ( but I did just eat some chocolate ). When we go for dinner I'll be curious if anything changes after dark.
We began the day with an outstanding lecture by a professor about the Medici family & history/ art of  Florence. She told us what to look for this afternoon at the Uffizi Gallery and encouraged us not to try to see it all ( thanks) but rather focus on certain works. It worked!  Her presentation was so effective, we all found the critical works on our own, in a self guided tour. Wow!
We also visited the Bargello National Museum. Whew!!

This is a crash course in Italian art history !

Off to dinner now.
Jane

Rome & Florence Oct 28-29

Oct 28 Wesnesday
Our last full day in Rome.
I have to say I have nothing but praise for the group: Road Scholar. It's really well organized & a pleasure to relax & see what each day will bring..
I was a bit under the weather this morning so I joined the group for lunch & the afternoon which was a visit to the Villa Borghese.  It's a mansion of the Borghese family with treasures they collected, then turned over to the country to become a museum.  The holdings were varied & beautiful--- especially some spectacular sculptures by Bernini. Our guide pointed out details about these works that I'm sure I would never have noticed without her guidance.  I have some lovely pix but am unsure how to post them here.
I'm really enjoying meeting with a variety of fellow travelers -- mostly from the east coast, the Bay Area or upper Midwest.  Interesting and very friendly folks.
My friend Jan & I decided not to get a big dinner tonight so we had gelato instead !  Last night in Rome...

Oct 29 Thursday
We were treated to a light & sound show in the middle of the night: tremendous thunder & lightening!  I slept with the window open so it was quite a show!
The tour arranged to pick up our baggage at 6 am but I managed to go back to sleep for awhile. This morning we walked to the National Romano museum. It displayed  articles discovered in " digs" in & around Rome. The best for me was a room set up like a dining room of a villa ( la villa di livia a Prime Porte) which was surrounded by wall paintings depicting garden scenes.   Evidently the room had been a subterranean dining room and when the runis were uncovered, the paintings were in excellent condition.  I took some lovely pictures & also bought a few souvenirs at the bookstore.  The artist's style made you think of impressionists----- but they painted in Ancient Rome and their work was uncovered in  1863.
After lunch we set out for the bullet train to Florence.
Our hotel here is much nicer than the one in Rome and I'm delighted that my bed is a queen& not a tiny single!  At dinner I was telling someone how many helpful things my mother taught me about traveling well --- then I said her name was Florence!  So sis & bro--- this sure makes me think of Mom.
I'm a happy camper cuz there's a laundry across the street from the hotel and in a couple hours & for 20 euros I got ALL my clothes washed.  Yippee. (I've been gone 9 days now. )
I called my friend Richard who is teaching a semester abroad in Florence & we will get together Sunday when I have the afternoon free. He did Academic Senate work with me & lives in Riverside.
Our group had a short walk  before dinner to orient us to the city a little. Beautiful!

Jane

Roma Oct 26-27

Well, last night I wrote my blog, then because of internet problems I  lost it all. Disappointing.  So I'll summarize 2 days now.

Monday Oct  26
This was the first full day of the RS tour. We began with a terrific lecture by a prof of archeology about what we would see today: the Forum and Colosseum.  I'm very happy with the quality of the lecturers we are getting!

Having this scholar lead us through the structures was outstanding!  We wear head sets on tours so we can all hear her.  (This was my first group tour so I was impressed with this technological advancement!)

At the Forum I was especially moved by the area where speeches were made ( of course) and the tribute area dedicated to Julius Caesar. Back when I taught high school, that was a play in my curriculum, so seeing the Forum made Shakespeare come to life.    I noticed that I should turn 360 degrees from time to time because there was always something more to see in each direction. And how the relics spanned centuries was a continual surprise!

Next we went to the Colosseum. Now, I had seen the Roman arena in Arles, France last year, but it didn't prepare me for the scale of this place!  Immense!  The magnitude of the structure!  I kept shaking my head in disbelief. I'm glad that Jackie ( at home) loaned me videos about Rome & elsewhere because they helped prepare me for the history & lore of many places.

Late afternoon we had another short lecture by an art expert about the Vatican-- in preparation for tomorrow. Our dinner tonight was at an outdoor patio and it was beautiful!  We've been really lucky with the weather.

Tuesday Oct 27
We left the hotel very early for the Vatican: the museum, Sistine Chapel and St Peter's Basilica. Because we were in a special group with our own guide & because we were there so early, we almost had parts of the museum all to ourselves.  Our guides said this never happens!  I have pictures where you can't see anyone around us.  It made the tour a pleasure rather than a mob scene. We didn't spend much time in the museum but did see highlights with an excellent guide. She was an art student who was tapped to re-paint portions of the exterior of the museum under the previous pope.  Most interesting.

The Sistine Chapel in general was not as I expected.   There are no permanent seats except some benches along side walls and it's smaller than I imagined. Of course the art was breathtaking. We had 1/2 hour to study as much as we could. Very impressive. The lectures, videos & reading I had done did help me focus on certain parts & to look for some main themes. Otherwise it's too much overload.

Finally we saw St Peter's. We have all seen the huge piazza in front of it where crowds gather to hear the pope or wait for a new pope to be elected.  Incredibly it was nearly empty today!  Inside the church, as with the Colosseum, I was astounded at the enormity of it!  I have seen pretty impressive cathedrals before, but this was huge.

We had the afternoon free so I hung out with my new friend Jan. After lunch we went to see an archeology museum but unfortunately it was closed when we got there. So instead we explored ruins
in the vicinity of the Colosseum.

At dinner we sat with 2 couples we've gotten to know. I showed them pix of our  San Jose apricots & avocados & they were pretty amazed. They are from Wisconsin & New Jersey.  I've enjoyed meeting them as well as a number of others. A very congenial group!  This is a super trip.

Oct 26

I'm sorry. I wrote an entry but had Internet problems & lost my posting (rats!)

I'll have to re-do it tomorrow. Too late now. Sorry.

Roma -- day 1 of Road Scholar tour Oct 25

I keep thinking about our walking food tour yesterday & what a wonderful day it was.... Very special. The guides will send us pix & a list of where we visited.

Joni flew back to France today & I had the morning free so I slept in late -- and today they moved clocks back an hour in Europe. Luckily I researched to see if I could get a massage nearby & found a Thai massage spa 2 blocks away & they were open so I got a 45 min massage!  Ahhh...Perfect!  I plan to go back there Tuesday when we have free time from the group.

The Road Scholar group ( I'll say "RS" from here on) arrived today so I began to meet some of the 28      participants. Not surprisingly the teachers in the group were like magnets & found each other!  We all had lunch & dinner together as well as got an overview of the trip.  The 3 teachers I sat with at dinner were absolutely fascinating gals.  Wonderful stories to tell. I expect I will make good friends. :-). I'm impressed with the 2 group Italian leaders who will be with us the whole time. Additionally we will have local experts join us for lectures & tours of specific sites in each city. Bravo!

I'm delighted with everything so far and am very happy I'm not jet lagged like they are!
Weather has been excellent. Tomorrow : the Forum and colosseum tour, and a lecture on the Vatican treasures in advance of our visit the next day.

Jane

Roma days 2-3. Oct 24

Well I started to write yesterday, then it was time for dinner & show and  then it was too late to write, so this will tell about Friday & Saturday.

Yesterday (Friday) we used our Hop On/Off bus pass to get around.  We decided an unusual place to visit would be the Jewish Ghetto which has a synagogue, museum & district. Joni got a free Rick Steves audio  walking tour which gave some history & tips. We began with a guided tour of the large, beautiful synagogue which was a well done tour except it was in Italian so I was pretty lost. But the museum told the history of Jews in Italy-- with signs also in English. Next we found a kosher restaurant for lunch. The menu is not like typical US Jewish menus.  All the areas we are visiting have ruins mixed in alongside modern buildings. Fascinating. 

So after lunch what does one need?  Dessert!  Joni was on a quest for a speciality dessert: Tartufo and I had to find a famous gelato place-- Giolitti. While it was pretty good, we found that today, our guide took us to a much better gelato store. But our searching took us through new parts of town & forced us to walk a LOT but I'm not sure it was enough to offset the calories!  Overall I figure my diet here is about 96% carbs. Eek!  Between pasta, pizza & desserts, there's not at all the amount of vegetables & fruits I am used to.  So much for a "Mediterranean " diet !  ( not)

We had dinner near the hotel, then met Joni's French friend to attend a little concert at a church nearby. It was three tenors , along the line of the famous concerts --in the 80 s was it? 

However it turned out that these were not the professional level of singers that one might hope for.  It was pretty  touristic, unfortunately. 

Today ( Saturday) we had booked a walking food tour put on by several young Romans.  It took place in the Vatican neighborhood. Fantastic!  Turned out it was a private tour-- just for us!  It included a long visit in a market with tastings of cheeses, brushette, olive oils, proschutto (for Joni) etc.  outstanding! The little tour company has 4 founders who met at the university. They're in mid 20s. 

After the market, we walked through neighborhoods where she discussed history, architecture, Roman life & food. The guide is an archeologist with a passion for her field as well as food.  We cannot say enough good about them & the day!  " RomaEat: Food on Foot."  

We also visited a small family business & walked through the kitchen & watched the men make ( not cook) various pastas. Following that we went too restaurant to sample several of the pastas made where we visited today ---served with wine of course.

The day concluded with a stop at a wonderful gelato place, then coffee.

Whew!  A perfect day in all ways: information, food, private attention, weather, new places, all with our individual questions answered. We spent over 5 hours with them!  Mama Mia!

We are resting a bit before we go to dinner. ( really?).  Joni returns to France tomorrow morning & my tour begins tomorrow afternoon. Magnifico!  ( I don't have Italian spell check so please don't critique that). 

Having a wonderful time. Wish you were here.  

Jane

Roma day 1 -- Thursday Oct 22, 2015

Ciao from Roma!  I arrived late yesterday after a rather grueling voyage but I figure flying to Europe in the cheap seats is probably like childbirth-- women forget the pain before the next time around.

I'm with Joni, staying in the hotel where my tour starts Sunday.  It's a fine, basic hotel (Hotel Diana). I'm happy to have a quiet, dark location since I'm here 8 nights. Today we had a nice hotel breakfast & set off for the "hop on, hop off" tour which gave us a perfect overview of the city. It's truly breathtaking to see such ancient & historic buildings & sites. We were disappointed that the Trevi  fountain & Spanish Steps were blocked off due to renovation but c'est la vie. We did get  views of such places as Colosseum, Circus Maximus, Palatine hill, Forum, some big Catholic  places ( wink wink), & Borghese gardens-- where we enjoyed strolling & watching folks on skates, segways & carriages. Had a nice lunch sans tourists-- love to find local places. By 4:00, feeling tired from the walking we took a taxi home. Tonight we're having dinner w one of Joni's friends from France who is in town. She only speaks French so it will help me feel less sad that I didn't stop off in France.

We got the bus pass good for 2 days so we can use it tomorrow to go directly to places we want to explore. Today we mostly rode.
Typical of Joni she  has struck up conversations with folks from Venezuela ( speaking in her excellent Spanish); from France & assorted other countries-- Holland, Ireland, Australia.  Fun!

So far: great times!
Ciao!

Going to Italy!

Buongiorno!

Well Telluride is over, so now I  plan to write from time to time about my travels in Italy Oct 21-Nov 6, in case you're interested.   My friend Joni will be with me in Rome the first 4 days (before the tour starts) , then she returns to France &  I’ll join the Road Scholar Tour.  The group will have 4 nights each in Rome, Florence then Venice. 

  So, my itinerary is: Rome Oct 21-28; Florence Oct 29-Nov 1; Venice Nov 2-6.  In Florence I'll get to see my Academic Senate colleague, Richard, who is teaching there for the semester.

Next posting: Rome!  :-)

Jane

List of my ratings for films 2015

This is very much off the top of my head, but will give you a sense of my reactions overall.

Telluride films 2015 ( saw 13)

Ratings: 
1 star = worth seeing
2= really good
3=among the best this year


45 Years **
Carol **
Suffragette***
Black Mass***
Room***
Marguerite***
Tikkum*
Time to Choose***
Steve Jobs***
Mom & Me**
He Named Me Malala ***
Taxi**
Spotlight ***

Labor Day Sept 7 Final Day

A very entertaining final day!
1. Marguerite-- a French comedy by the same filmmaker who brought a film to Telluride a few years ago that was hysterical-- Superstar. This one is about a woman who is a singer wanna-be who cannot sing at all but everyone in her world pretends she's great. Most amusing. But a special aspect for me was that I got seated 1/2 early and chatted with a film critic next to me: Joe Morgenstern from the Wall St Journal. (Later I found he's a Pulitzer Prize winner 😊). It was a pleasure to hear his views on the films we have seen.
2.  Taxi-- a filmmaker in Iran has been under " house arrest" for years but still manages to make films. In this case he mounted a camera on the dashboard of a taxi and drove around Tehran to find an array of stories. This was a thoroughly entertaining film.  Ken Burns sat directly behind me.
3. Room.   I resisted going to this one because of the subject matter but was convinced by others all day that I needed to see it and am glad I did. Really intense. It's about a woman & her little boy who are confined to live in a single room. I can't say more to give it away but it was the most powerful film of all.

So in summary: I enjoyed every film I saw, have no regrets and if you're interested in more views or details about any of these, just ask me. Of course there were many more movies shown than I saw, but the 13 I saw were quite special!
I'll write next when I'm in Italy late October.
Jane
          Fin

Sunday Sept 6

I'm always sad Sunday night because it means the festival is almost over. But one more day tomorrow.
I realize in yesterday's post I didn't make it clear that I did like all the movies. By the end of today I've seen 10 and I cannot say any of them were not worthwhile.

So today's 4 were:
1. Black Mass-- perhaps the most commercial & well publicized before the festival. It's about notorious Boston gangster of the 70s and 80s: Jimmy " Whitey" Bulger, played by Johnny Depp, who unfortunately was not here.  His acting was superb. Also in cast : Kevin Bacon, Benedict Cumberbatch, et al.
2. Mom & Me-- a heartwarming documentary about men & their relationships with their mothers. I'd highly recommend this one.
3. Time to Choose-- a powerful documentary about global warming.  Wow. Amazing. The good news is while it shows how many ways we have messed up the planet, it also shows positive changes that are being made & gives hope we can improve things if we take things seriously. Well done. Their website provides recommendations: Timetochoose.com. I hope it will be seen as widely as An Inconvenient Truth was.
4. Tikkun--Set in  Jerusalem, it focuses on the life of an adolescent teen who is an Hasidic student struggling with his faith and coming of age.  By far the most artsy film I saw this year, it's quite interesting and artistic.

It appears I'll get in 3 more tomorrow, making my total 13.  Not bad for a long weekend!
Jane

Saturday Sept 5

I was able to get to 4 movies today and saw a lot of celebs.

1. Suffragette--- About the early 1900s women in England who worked to get the vote for women. Well done!  It was introduced by the director & had Q & A after with female director, female writer and Meryl Streep who played a small but pivotal role. Very exciting to see/ hear her. Carrie Mulligan stars but couldn't come due to having a baby.

2. 45 Years--- about an English couple celebrating their 45 th anniversary --- but experiencing some personal struggle.

3 Spotlight--- about the Boston Globe exposee about the child abuse within the Catholic church. Michael Keaton  stars & was here for the Q & A. Cast includes Mark Ruffalo.

4. A tribute to Danny Boyle. He was honored by the festival with a montage of clips from his films, then an interesting interview with him. It was followed by the premiere of his new film: Steve Jobs. Wow!  Very fun!  Cast includes Michael Fassbender, Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen, Jeff Daniels.
Present today were writer Aaron Sorkin, Winslet, Rogen as well as Steve Wozniak. Very cool.
Before the film Laura Linney walked past me en route to the movie.

Wonderful day.

Sept 4 Friday Day 1

My day began with the Patron's brunch which is always a highlight of the festival. Tho it was cold & a bit rainy, I had a wonderful time. Ken Burns & family sat at my table along w another film maker, Roger Ebert's wife, and a man who is a major donor & a part of the festival for 40 years.  Most entertaining!  I stood in line in front of director Alexander Payne (" Nebraska" & Descendents") and spoke a bit with him.  I didn't see any actors at brunch. But Ken B said he had been escorting Michael Kearon around today. 😉
There then was a private screening for Patrons and it was "He named me Malala", an outstanding documentary. After it was a discussion moderated by Ken Burns with the filmmaker & Malala's father-- who was featured in the film. Malala herself couldn't make it in person but they had her there by video/ satellite from England!  This was an incredible experience.  The film will come out in Oct & I understand will later be on Nat Geo.  Malala has a foundation to support the education of girls. I'll definitely look into that.
This evening I saw a tribute toRooney Mara whose name wasn't familiar to me till they spoke of her films: "Dragon Tatoo, ". "Social Network". "Her. "
They then showed her new film (  we were the first audience ever to see it): "Carol."  Also stars Cate Blanchett.  They play 2 women in the 1950s who have a relationship that is viewed by society as taboo..  Another excellent film!  I know it will get a lot of attention / awards.
So, so far I am delighted !

Sept 3,2015 Day before festival

The 6 of us are settled in our beautiful condo with mountain views and eagerly awaiting the start of the festival tomorrow. We got the schedule and are thrilled to find out the names of most of the films and people who will be here. One never knows whether we personally will see these folks but here's a sampling:
Meryl Streep, Idris Elba, Danny Boyle, Aaron Sorkin, Seth Rogen, Kate Winslet, Steve Wozniak ( the new film about Steve Jobs) Michael Keaton.  If I see 1/2 of them it will be great!

  Some of the films on the list so far:
 Black Mass,
Carol,
He named me Malala,
Suffragette,
Steve Jobs

I look forward to telling you all about our experiences!
Jane

Waiting for Telluride

As I have done for several years, I will write about my experiences at the Telluride Film Festival which this year starts Sept 4th. I'll try to write each night when I get back to our condo after seeing 3-4 movies. ( whew). Don't expect synopses of the films but rather just my impressions and who we see.
This picture is my favorite spot to walk in the morning in Telluride. Looking forward!

By the way, I plan to write in my blog again in October when I go to Italy.

--Jane