Italy – Wayfaring: Still

Epilogue – Europe Honeymoon

April 23, 2005July 29, 2021 GennLeave a comment

Expectations were feverishly high because it was after all (pricey!) Europe and well… our honeymoon. The honeymoon. One may travel to many places in his entire lifetime and promptly forget about some of these places several moons later, but nobody forgets the honeymoon.

As luck would have it, our honeymoon turned out to be nothing short of perfect. The itinerary was unsurpassed, the tour leader unrivalled, and the company unparalleled. Our group was manageably small with only 19 adults including 3 other pairs of honeymoon-ers like us, and everyone was pleasant, jovial and considerate.

If anything, I only have two minor grouses – we didn’t get to see much of Rome and totally missed out on Vatican City because of late Pope John Paul II’s funeral. I also didn’t particularly enjoy the incessant rain, in which we were told was not in congruence with Europe’s usual climate in April. I didn’t remember this, but the mister recalled that the rain started shortly after we landed in Rome, and only stopped after our day trip to Volendam in The Netherlands. He knew it for a fact that it wasn’t raining prior to 8 Apr 2005 because of a colleague who left Rome the day we arrived – apparently it was the only day which rained in the week she was there.

We were in Volendam on 19 Apr 2005 having our dinner of fish & chips when our Italian coach driver (who is a Roman Catholic) announced that the new Pope had been elected. It was raining bucketfuls of cats and dogs prior to dinner, but reduced to a drizzle when we were done with our scrumptious dinner. By the time we arrived at our hotel, the rain had completely stopped.

Was it a coincidence, or was there divine ‘intervention’? The oddity of the rainy season occurring within the period of sede vacante (Latin for ‘the seat being vacant’) of the Holy See, which promptly ended with the cessation of sede vacante – seemed to suggest that it was more than mere coincidence. We are not deeply pious people, but… it was some food for thought.

Our honeymoon coincided with the funerals of late Pope John Paul II and Prince Rainier III of Monaco, and the wedding of Prince Charles & Camilla Bowles. As you could see, we visited Europe during a very, for lack of a better word, interesting time. The trip was quite the eye-opener – we learnt how and why a papal conclave is convened, the difference between white smoke versus black smoke, Grace Kelly (not the bag!) and the House of Grimaldi from the Principality of Monaco. Speculations on the identity of the next Pope and expostulations on the sovereignty of Monaco considering Prince Albert II’s lack of a lawful heir totally preponderated the European, if not the world’s, prime time news. The media were having a series of field days.

We thought that Jeffrey Hoh, our tour leader, is the very epitome of an exceptional tour leader. He totally blew our minds with his experience, general knowledge, even temper and high level of service orientation. Following Jeffrey’s tradition of bestowing every tour group with a specific name (to distinguish all the groups he’d ever led), our group was aptly titled ’2 Funerals & a Wedding’. He professed that it would be difficult to forget our group given the unusual events facing Europe during our travel. He held true to his words, because several years later, he found and added the both of us as his friends on Facebook.

Regrettably, we’d lost contact with almost everyone in the group, with the exception of Kenneth and Sharon. If you are, or know any of our group-mates from the picture above, please email us at tenodddays[at]gmail[dot]com. We’d love to re-connect!

‘Of all the countries you visited, which is your favourite?’

We got asked this question umpteen times, by friends and family alike, following our return to reality. Not trying to play favourites here… but we have to concede that we enjoyed Italy the most. Something about the Italians’ honest charm, warmth and gregariousness tugged at my heartstrings – possibly because being reticent and bashful by nature, I couldn’t be more different than they are. The mister readily agreed with me, for an entirely different reason, I suspect – he had been raving incessantly about the unlimited potently flavoursome shots of espresso he got to enjoy at breakfasts in Italy.

Check out CTC Travel if you would like to trace our footsteps. While we do not sanction a package tour for seasoned travellers, we highly recommend it for virgin travellers (to Europe) who have no inkling of their travel likes and peeves, as a starting point.

The ‘Motleys’

April 21, 2005July 29, 2021 GennLeave a comment

Not that Lake Maggiore in Italy, Brussels in Belgium and London in England are any less important, but they have been lumped together simply for convenience’s sake since we spent very little time in these cities and it seemed appropriate to put them together in a post (rather than completely omitting them).

At Isola Bella — *Took a couple pic at the dock of Isola Bella.*

While on the way from the French Riviera to Lucerne, our coach made a stop at Lake Maggiore (Italian: Lago Maggiore). For this detour, we have our experienced tour leader to thank. I’d been to England’s Lake District years back, and I loved it there. Italy’s Lago Maggiore and its vicinity was equally charming.

A boat hire was necessary to bring us across the lake to Isola Bella, one of the Borromean islands of Lago Maggiore. We both liked Isola Bella a lot. For starters, this quiet little island was not swarmed with tourists. It was also a good break for us all, to be amidst Mother Nature instead of built-up cities. We didn’t have a lot of time to fully explore the island, but I do remember that a small trattoria on the island served about the best fare we had on the whole trip. We had nothing fancy for lunch, just simple pasta (the mister had aglio e olio). It was mind-blowingly delicious!

Before we knew it, it was time to leave the island. We did after all have quite a distance more to travel. Here is a parting shot of the friendly boat captain who traversed us across the lake to and from Isola Bella.

Brussels in Belgium was another day tour we made while travelling via coach from Paris to Amsterdam. We were supposed to come by many sites including the Atomium, the Chinese and Japanese pavilions etc. but it was raining incessantly. Rain… a definite mood dampener for me. Because of it, we never got off the coach till we arrived at Grote Markt (the central square of Brussels). We saw Manneken Pis who, unfortunately was buck-naked, and not dressed up in any costume. The 61cm tall bronze statue that we saw was of course a mere copy from 1965 and not the original. We were told that the original statue was kept locked up in at Maison du Roi on Grote Markt itself, presumably to foil any future plans of stealing it.

The Mannekin Pis — Was rather disappointed to see buck-naked Manneken Pis, not dressed in any costume.

And we came across numerous shops selling Belgium chocolates. It was where we went quite crazy shopping for chocolates to bring home to family and friends since we were only left with Amsterdam and London before headed for home. Here, on the historical square of Brussels, I first heard about the folklore of Lady Godiva and the origins of the term “Peeping Tom”. It was also here that I finally decided that I do not fancy Belgium chocolates. Too bitter for my tastebuds.

We had a good couple of hours to ourselves, and thoroughly explored the historical centre of Brussels. With it being a rainy and gloomy day, we hardly took out the DSLR to take pictures. There is really nothing I hate more than rain when travelling.

London needs no introduction. Please don’t be offended if you are a Londoner or is a fan of London, but if there is any city I’ve come across that I felt is grossly over-rated, it is London. Considering that I made up my mind about this metropolitan city at the age of 17 (and felt strongly about it) it had to count for something, because at that impressionable age, I was greatly undecided about most things.

Since we had very little time in London after flying in from Schiphol Airport Amsterdam, we broke from the group after checking into our hotel in Knightsbridge. While the group went visiting the usual touristy places like Trafalgar Square, London Bridge, Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey and the likes, we headed straight for Old Bond Street and Oxford Street. If these two streets reek of a shopping haven to you, you are quite right. I was however, not there to shop for the usual stuff women shop for: I was there for the old-style bookstores and bookbinders. 12 years ago, they were all over Oxford Street. Alas, 12 years later, I had serious trouble locating even one of them. Must have given way to the more commercialised and profitable shopping trade in the name of ‘progress’. 😦

We took the least amount of pictures in London since we were busy soaking in the commercialised aspect of the city. On hindsight, it was a rather self-serving decision on my part not to revisit the usual sights in London. After all it was the mister’s first visit to London. Although he was very agreeable to break from the group, he wouldn’t know what he was missing since he’d never been. My conscience has been weighing heavily on me these years because of what he missed as a result of my wilfulness. I promised to make it up to him; one day we would do an extensive fly-drive tour of England, including a visit to the mecca of every Manchester United fan – Old Trafford. It is my dream to watch a live match between the red devils and the reds but the mister fears my safety because well… football hooliganism is very real. We have not sorted this out yet, but will. Soon.

The Romance & Fashion Capitals

April 11, 2005July 29, 2021 GennLeave a comment

Venice (Italian: Venezia), a city in northern Italy proverbial for tourism, goes by several other names including “City of Masks”, “City of Bridges” and “The Floating City”. However, none of these monikers befits this Italian stunner more than “The Romance Capital”. Indeed, many who have visited Venice left deeply stirred within, intrigued by romantic charm of this breathtaking city on water. Us included, without a doubt.

We couldn’t have visited Venice in weather more awful: there was a deluge during most parts of the day, so much so that flooding was a very real threat. Not that floods (or ‘Acqua Alta’, as known to Venetians) are rare occurrences in Venice. As a matter of fact, it is said that even floods should not deter tourists from visiting Venice; all is required would be a pair of rubber boots and off they go! That said, it was most certainly comforting to know that floods in Venice seldom linger, for they usually recede after 2-3 hours.

Once landed on Venice after a bumpy boat ride on choppy waters, we headed straight down one of the numerous narrow alleys and scanned for a local bistro to satisfy our growling stomachs. It’s bizarre how Singaporeans like to flock together – apart from 2 other couples who decided to have sandwiches for lunch, the rest of us all settled for the same restaurant. That must had been one elated restaurant owner!

Venice Restaurant — *Waiting for our pasta lunch at our booth.*

Following our exceptionally saporous lunch of pasta, we followed our tour leader around as he showed us the must-see famous sights and sounds of Venice including St. Mark’s Square and Basilica, Bridge of Sighs and Rialto Bridge. Then we were ushered into a small factory to watch a Murano glass-blowing demonstration. Fascinating, that demonstration was. We were then led into the shop front where beautiful pieces of Murano glass graced the shelves. Although not obliged to purchase any of the pieces, we ended up acquiring two pretty tea glasses which, till this day, we still have not found a use for.

Despite the downpour, several of us agreed upon renting two gondole (Italian: singular – gondola, plural – gondole), complete with two musicians, for a ride along the Grand Canal. We must have been quite a sight, huddling close together and carrying umbrellas on the gondole rides. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience which did not come cheap. Rental for a gondola generally costs about 100€ for a 1-hour ride, and does not come with musicians at that price. Such a ride can be a rather delightful experience for first-time visitors to Venice, but only if you could somehow forget the price and ignore the stench at some parts of the canal. Remember – concentrate on the novelty of the experience and you’ll be fine!

We left Venice with an inexplicably deep sense of regret. Despite being warned of its touristy aspects, the mister and I fell hopelessly in love with the Romance Capital. T’is a pity that the weather was acting up the whole time during our visit; it vastly limited our activities, and much of the time was spent ducking from shelter to shelter. It is imperative that we revisit.

For the record, we broke 3 brollies during that one day in Venice. The gusts were that strong.

The next morning, we headed for Verona prior to Milan. Verona is a city in Veneto between Venice and Milan which is chiefly known for its Arena and the tourist trap that is Juliet’s House & Balcony. Verona is in actuality far more than that. If anything, it being awarded world heritage site status by UNESCO, predominantly for its urban structure and architecture, should count for something.

The rain seemed to fancy us, for it ‘tailed’ us like hound dogs wherever we went. As a result of getting caught in the rain several days in a row (we were sometimes too indolent to utilise the brolly), I was feeling a little under the weather. The mister, who astutely noticed that I was becoming less chatty and more touchy by the minute, wisely decided upon chilling at a nearby cafe over traipsing about aimlessly.

In no time, we were back in the coach and on our way to Milan. Our first stop was Sforza Castle (Italian: Castello Sforzesco), the symbol of power of the House of Sforza, which reigned in the 15th century after the Ambrosian Republic of Milan collapsed. It now houses several of the city’s museums and art collections.

Milan (Italian: Milano) is touted to be one of the leading fashion capitals in the world, alongside Paris and New York. According to Wikipedia, New York and Milan are considered the economic and true current media fashion capitals of the world while Paris and London are considered symbolic fashion centres of Europe. None of these makes much sense to me since I do not boast to have an impeccable fashion sense. Rather, I often opt for functionality over fashion. Nevertheless, we all know that Milan is home to many world-famous fashion designers – including Versace, Armani, D&G, Prada and Trussardi – who are widely regarded as fashion maestros. And the one place where their boutiques all convene – Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, reputed to the be world’s oldest shopping mall.

Within walking distance are the renowned gothic Milan Duomo and La Scala, Milan’s opera house. The Milan Duomo is the seat of the archbishop of Milan and Milanese, like most of the Italian population, are Roman Catholics. This astoundingly beautiful gothic cathedral apparently took 5 centuries to construct. In contrast, the partially completed gothic-styled Sagrada Familia in Barcelona is rumoured to be taking no more than 150 years (construction is still underway). One could only imagine the many vicissitudes the Milan Duomo must have witnessed over the 500 years of construction.

The Milan Duomo is purportedly also the largest gothic cathedral, and second largest Catholic cathedral in the world (the honour of being the largest Catholic cathedral goes to Seville Cathedral; St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican City is not considered a cathedral and the reasoning eludes me). Statistics and rankings aside, the cathedral casts an imposing presence as the nerve centre of Milan, for most of Milan’s streets either radiate from or circle around it. If you intend to visit Milan, this Milan Duomo is a must-visit. Accord some time to thoroughly explore the cathedral, and if you could, take the walk up to the roof of the cathedral at a small fee of 3,50€ or make use of the elevator for 5,00€.

Tomorrow we would be travelling south-westwards to warmer climate. Can’t wait!

TRIVIA:
The Carnival of Venice (Italian: Carnevale di Venezia) is held annually where people wear elaborate costumes and masks, then hang out all over town. This is the reason why one sees masks in all shapes and sizes being sold as souvenirs in Venice throughout the year. The Carnival season lasts for several weeks and culminates on Shrove Tuesday, the day of the Carnival. It is a fun time to visit Venice so as to soak in the Carnival spirit as people costume themselves, drink and make merry.

First Encounter with The ‘Boot’

April 9, 2005July 28, 2021 GennLeave a comment

Italy (Italian: Italia) also often goes by the moniker of ‘The Boot’, ascribed by the physical shape of the country. This endearing nickname is honestly rather befitting for a soccer-crazed nation like Italy, me thinks.

We landed at Rome Fiumicino Airport on a special day – 8 Apr 2005, incidentally late Pope John Paul II’s day of funeral. Rome (Italian: Roma) was swarmed with multitudes of pilgrims whom, together with numerous heads of state and dignitaries, were making their way to Vatican City to pay their last respects to a much-loved and well-respected leader of the worldwide Catholic Church. While I am not entirely certain if that day was declared a public holiday in Rome, it was a futile effort trying to proceed with our tour itinerary (for Rome itself) since several iconic landmarks including The Colosseum and The Pantheon were closed as out of respect. Vatican City, where the funeral was taking place, was also out of bounds to commoners like us.

Remote TV Screens — *It almost seemed like everyone in Rome that morning decided to go outdoors*
*to follow the funeral mass proceedings together.*

Pilgrims and locals alike were watching the funeral mass on many of the mobile TV screens we saw set up all over Rome. As a result, it became exceedingly inconvenient for the coach to move around in the city due to the crowdedness. That was when our tour leader opted for us to travel on foot instead. I weren’t upset with the sudden turn of events (not that anything would change if I were), for how many people could actually boast that they were in Rome on such a day of significance? To witness the populace being moved and touched by the passing of a great spiritual leader was… a very sobering reminder that we all could, and should endeavour to continue doing good in our lives.

At Colosseum — *The Colosseum was closed, so we took a shot of it across the street.*

At Pantheon — *The Pantheon was also closed for the day.*

After the obligatory photo stops at the few famous landmarks including The Colosseum, Trevi Fountain and The Pantheon, we were very much left to our own devices in the vicinity of Spanish Steps. It started raining intermittently, which dampened our moods considerably. The mister and I explored the area a little, and after throwing perfunctory glances at the upmarket designer stores and restaurants, we decided to seek refuge (from the rain and the maddening crowd who were out and about in throngs after the funeral mass ended) at the McDonald’s outlet near the steps till it was time for the group to reassemble.

The rest of the day spent in Rome was rather nondescript and uneventful. We were still rather jet-lagged and sleepy (no thanks to the great selection of movies available on Singapore Airlines, I hardly slept on the red-eye flight) hence the decision to have an early night.

The second day started early (and this is to be expected for most package tours) as we were leaving Rome for Florence (Italian: Firenze). After a forgettable breakfast at the hotel, we were all raring to go.

On the way to Florence, we made a short 3-hour stop at Pisa. Ah, Pisa… who isn’t fascinated with the leaning tower located at Square of Miracles (Italian: Piazza dei Miracoli)? The evil Superman in the 3rd installation of the same-titled series of movies introduced me to the Leaning Tower of Pisa when I was but a young lass barely of schooling age. I remember being extremely puzzled by the existence of a tilting building in the world, following my parents around and questioning them incessantly in an attempt to satisfy my inquisitive young mind. ‘Does it really exist? Why didn’t it topple over? Why didn’t they tear it down and rebuild it? Is anyone living in the building?’ I swear I went on and on about it, but back then the parents were not equipped with the requisite knowledge to explain things adequately to appease me. I too, moved on to obsess over other stuff.

Later on in life, I went to college, majored in civil & structural engineering, and learnt all about foundation and soil consolidation. Admittedly, foundation engineering was not one of my favourite topics, but it sure did answer my questions, albeit almost 2 decades late.

Miracle Square — *The truly beautiful Piazza dei Miracoli.*

Unlike the other tourists who were attempting to take shots with the tower in all poses conceivable, I was busy reading about the ongoing restoration works, which demanded my assiduous concentration. My professors at college would have been proud of me, for I was about the only person in the vicinity who was interested! The mister was understandably more than pleased to accompany me in my pursuit to satisfy my insatiable thirst for knowledge; he is as camera-shy as I am otherwise shutter-happy.

Michelangelo Park — *The sun was setting and the park was becoming quite chilly.*
*The panoramic view of Florence totally made up for the cold.*

It was slightly past mid-afternoon by the time we finally arrived in Florence. Florence, arguably the grand old dame of the Renaissance movement, is one classy lady. We were whisked off the coach at Michelangelo Park located up on a hill where we saw a replica of ‘David’ and a magnificent panoramic view of Florence. The view which greeted us was breathtaking, both literally and figuratively – the ambient temperature of the square had noticeably dropped with the drizzle and setting sun, which resulted in my nose turning numb from the cold. Each breath I took was becoming a rather laborious effort and though I enjoyed the view, I couldn’t wait to hide out in the coach.

Piazza del Duomo, where Duomo of Florence (Italian: Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore) is sited, is a must-visit and was where we found ourselves next. The square, located in the heart of the historical centre of Florence, is one of most visited places in Europe. With exterior facade of the basilica lined with marble panels in various shades of green and pink bordered by white, it resulted in a very, for lack of a better word, attractive neo-gothic exterior. Not everyone thought the same though – to some, the facade appeared to have been excessively decorated.

Opposite, we saw the great east gates of the Florence Baptistery, more commonly referred to as the Gates of Paradise, a term coined by Michelangelo the maestro himself, comprising 10 panels depicting scenes from the Old Testament. Lorenzo Ghiberti, the sculptor of the 10 panels himself admitted that they were “the most singular work that I have ever made”. Although the panels that are mounted on the east doors now are mere copies (the originals are carefully restored and kept in a dry environment), the remarkable beauty and grandeur of the original works shone even through their replicas.

After a long day on the roads, we again turned in early after yet another nondescript dinner.