My Italy Sketchbook Day 8. Touring the Vatican.

On our first full day in Rome we were signed up for a tour of the Vatican Museum, including the Sistine Chapel and inside of St. Peter's. I highly recommend taking a tour if you want to see the Sistine Chapel - the lines were VERY, very long! Even though our tour was early (we were picked up at 7:am) it was well worth it. This is the entrance to the Vatican Museum.
Our first stop was the Courtyard of the Pine Cone, so named for the fountain at one end.
There is also a contemporary sculpture, Sphere within Sphere by Arnaldo Pomodoro.Our tour guide used the opportunity in the courtyard to speak a bit about the Sistine Chapel, of course one of the main reasons for touring the Vatican Museum. Tour Guides, as well as all guests, are asked not to speak inside the Sistine Chapel. So once we had a little background, we ventured inside. The museums were really one long room after another, filled with a variety of sculptures, tapestries and paintings. The lighting made it difficult on my camera (or the batteries were dying...hard to say) but luckily David bought a very nice guidebook so we could remember what we saw. Every room had an incredible ceiling, some more elaborate than others, but all very impressive. I loved the light from the window falling accross this sculpture.And then, almost without warning, we were upon the Sistine Chapel. The room was actually smaller than I imagined, and rather dark. It was very crowded, with wall to wall tourists and many guards. Photographs are not permitted...but I had to break the rules. It was like I had to take one shot just to be sure I wasn't dreaming!
Of course it's out of focus because I was trying to hide the camera down at my waistline as I shot the renegade photo!

But what an experience. The ceiling is beyond belief, really. The colors practically glow in the drapery. The figures seem to be alive. The positions and poses are not just impressive in themselves, but the fact that Michelangelo painted them on a ceiling, as if they were tumbling out towards the viewers down below, makes them beyond comprehension. The sibyls holding books looked as if they would step right out of the ceiling and begin to tell their stories. I wish I could have sat and stared all day (the only drawback to being on the tour...had to move on with the group!)

What struck me as well was that although there were many other impressive ceilings and frescoes, they all paled in comparison once you saw the Sistine Chapel. The same thing struck me later on as we went into St. Peter's - once you see the Pieta by Michelangelo, all other sculptures, while beautiful, seem to pale in comparison.

The spiral staircase built in 1932 that exits the museums.
Although we managed to see quite a bit of the collection, there were numerous rooms that we did not get into - I was most disappointed that we did not get into the Raphael Rooms, which included his "School of Athens", a piece I really wanted to see in person. Also, somewhere in the Vatican, is the Laocoon group (which I thought was at the Uffizi Gallery, but I guess I was wrong!) which I would have been thrilled to see in person. Oh well...onward! Or so we thought...

Our tour was supposed to go into St. Peter's, but the Pope was holding a ceremony and we could not get in! So our tour guide encouraged us to come back in the afternoon, which David and I did. Although - here is one important thing to note - I decided to change from pants to a skirt. This was not a wise move!

Me in the infamous skirt sitting on one of the fountains.

We waited in the large (but moving) line to get into the Church for about 15 minutes, then went thru the security checkpoint.
From security we continued towards the entrance, where we passed by the Bronze Door where we saw a Swiss Guard in full uniform. Inching closer towards the church...in the shadow of the sculpture....

SO close! So close! Almost to the steps! And here's where it I got turned away. In my skirt. That was deemed too short by the final security checkpoint. 25 minutes it took us to get this close and we got turned away. No amount of belly-aching and no fancy wrapping of my sweater in an attempt to hide my (pagan!) legs would sway the guard, so we turned away. I looked at David, partly angry with myself and partly infuriated that they couldn't tell me at the BEGINNING of the line that my skirt was too short, and said "Should I go change?" and he, so kindly and patiently, said "yes" and we walked back to our hotel, I got changed back into my long pants, and we walked back to the Church. Where, we waited about 30 minutes again, and FINALLY got in!

And of course, seeing the Pieta in person made it all worth while. Even behind bullet-proof glass it was breathtaking.
What is hard to impress upon you with photos is the massive size of St. Peter's inside. You feel like Jack in the Giant's castle after climbing up the beanstalk. It's huge! I don't know what this sculpture is all about...but I like it! The light was gorgeous at this time in the late afternoon.

Most of the sculptures I would guess to be 4 or five times life-size.

The Baldachin, by Bernini. At the time, there was a barricade set up and we could not venture further into the Altar section.

A shot of the light streaming into the cupola designed by Michelangelo.

A few shots of the interior.

Another dome, another gorgeous ceiling!

Looking up at one of the massive sculpture groupings.

At one point a beam of light was hitting this adorable puti high up on a column, but I couldn't hold my camera steady enough and zoom in to get a good picture...here is a far away shot.

One more shot looking up at the amazing ceiling - those sculptures are enormous! How they made them, and then got them UP there, is beyond me! I couldn't imagine the work that went into this amazing space.

And as we left the Basilica, we got one more shot of the Swiss guard in full uniform. You can see they are on high alert for short skirts.

My Italy Sketchbook Day 7. The Saints and Angels of Rome

An early morning train ride took us from Florence to Rome on our 7th day and we arrived early in the afternoon, with plenty of time to explore the area close to our hotel. We decided to take a walk to the Castel Sant'Angelo.

A view from the back of the Castle, showing part of the wall that surrounds Vatican city.

A sculpture close to the Castle.

Looking out over the Tevere (the Tiber River).

We were both so busy looking at the castle and the river, that we didn't realize that we were so close to Vatican City!

We went into the castle, venturing further and further skyward. A view from the castle towards the Vatican. You can see the wall surrounding the City in the lower right corner.

The Church in the distance.

While exploring the inside of the castle, I passed by this woman sitting on a window ledge. I thought this would make a lovely painting.

In another corridor I loved the light falling on the light blue walls - David kindly took this snapshot of me on the window ledge.

A view from the perimeter walls of the castle looking inward.

A view of the Castle from the Ponte St. Angelo (bridge). The following pictures are some of the angel sculptures along the bridge. I loved the sculptures, and the clouds behind made a gorgeous backdrop.

I'm looking forward to creating some paintings/drawings from these photos. So after exploring the castle inside and out we ventured over to St. Peter's square. It's over-whelming in size and grandeur.

The sunlight gleaming in a fountain.

A beam of light shining down on the sculptures .

A dramatic backdrop of clouds and sunlight.

We had a tour of the Vatican scheduled for the next day, so we headed back to the hotel for a quick power nap before dinner. However, I was restless and wanted to do some sketching, and returned to the Angel sculptures on the bridge.

The light was incredible!

I sketched for a little while from this beautiful statue.

Of course, many people stopped to check my progress as I drew...I really have to remember to put a little hat out to collect tips :)

My Italy sketchbook...the last day of Florence

On our last day in Florence we had no scheduled tours or museums, so we took a relaxing stroll and headed towards the Medici Chapels which are at the back of the Church of St. Lorenzo. In fact, the chapel is so un-assuming, and there was no line anywhere nearby, that we actually first waited in line at the front of the church. When we were about to purchase the tickets to go in, I said "I want to see this" - pointing to the image of Michelangelo's Tomb of Lorenzo. The guide said "You want the entrance at the back of the church".So we headed towards the back, and as you can see there was only a very short line. The construction set-up also hid the entrance a bit. I don't know if it's always this quiet - but let me tell you - if it is, you should definitely add it to your must-see list. Once inside, again no pictures were allowed, I was totally unprepared for how gorgeous the inside of the Chapel of the Princess was (I was too busy thinking about Michelangelo's sculptures!) The chapel is stunning - a wide variety of dark marbles, with amazing in-lays and artwork, incredible sculptures, gorgeous paintings on the ceilings. Even the fact that it had a scaffolding set up for restoration work couldn't take away from it's breath-taking beauty. Pictures do not do it justice.Then we ventured further into the New Sacristy to spend time looking at the tomb of Lorenzo, Duke of Urbino and the Duke of Nemours. I spent several minutes sketching the figure of Dusk. It was a surreal moment to be in the presence of the amazing sculptures. (all the more surreal when a cell phone rang. The colliding of two worlds... Michelangelo's 1500's sculptures and our 2000+ technology. I couldn't imagine what he would think of our world today!)

I chose to draw "Dusk" because I had always thought, in pictures, that the figure looked like a male model with two breasts just "stuck" on as an afterthought (ok - add some boobs - now it's a woman) But in actuality, seeing her in person, she was much more feminine. Tranquil, lovely. I was so thrilled I had a chance to draw for a while. I would have stayed and drew all the sculptures if I had the time!
After that wonderful experience we ate a delicious lunch at a cafe right outside the door of the Chapel. It was one of the best lunches I had! A vegetable quiche that was to die for (I keep looking for a similar recipe to no avail!)

On our way back to our hotel, we walked past the Church of Santa Maria Novella and decided to take a short detour to check out the inside.

The side door.

A door in the courtyard. Again, no photographs from the inside, but it was a lovely church and very ornate. I was also taken by surprise to see this painting, Massacio's Trinity, hanging in the church. I recognized it from many Art History classes.

What was also interesting was the information regarding the facade of the Church and a couple features I had previously ignored...two different Sundials.

Before we knew it, the sun was setting and our time in Florence was coming to an end.

David near the Arno river as we watched the sun set.

We had one last delicious meal at a lovely restaurant (don't you love these turquoise doors?) then went back to the hotel - the next day - we head to Rome!

My Italy Sketchbook. Day Five...the Art of Florence

I was incredibly excited about our third day in Florence. We scheduled tickets for the Accademia and the Uffizi galleries, and I could hardly wait to visit both! See Michelangelo's David - in person!!! I had goosebumps. We only had to walk a few blocks from our hotel to the Accademia gallery. I don't have any pictures from the inside, as cameras were not permitted inside either gallery. (I highly recommend booking ticket times in advance - the lines at both galleries are VERY long if you have not pre-ordered your tickets)

Once inside the Academia, I had to pace myself as we got closer to the David...it was almost overwhelming to me to think about standing in front of that iconic sculpture. SO I stopped in the corridor of the "Slave" sculptures, and drew a quick sketch of a this Pieta.

This is actually the third drawing I did...from a sculpture by Lorenzo Bartolini in an adjacent room. I was thrilled when I came around to the front of the sculpture to see it's name "Nymph of the Scorpion". As a scorpio, it felt like I was meant to love that piece! Ah...and here he is! I spent a glorious 20 minutes studying the handsome David (the second most handsome David I know) What an incredible piece. Of course I cannot describe it any better than it has been described a million times before, but I can tell you, that seeing it in person is breath-taking. Awe-inspiring. I hope every artist gets to see it in their lifetime.

As I sat on a chair and sketched, the busy gallery was filled with tourists trying ever so subtly, and not so subtly, to sneak a picture or two of the famous sculpture. The poor gallery guides were going hoarse and showed growing frustration as they continued shouting "no pictures" "no photo" "no video" on deaf ears. Others stopped frequently to watch my progress as I drew. I kept thinking "why are you even looking at me?!?! DAVID is right there!"

It made me so happy to be an artist at that moment - to be able to sit and study his face, to capture the gesture of his hand, to appreciate the enormity of the task to create such an piece. I loved every minute of it, and could have stayed all day drawing every possible angle! Luckily, I threw some coins in the Trevi fountain, so I am assured a return trip to Italy...when I shall draw some more!

After we left the Academia, we took a leisurely break at a restaurant in the Piazzo Republica. This was a great place to do some people watching.

We also passed by the Cathedral of Florence, an incredible church that is one of the iconic images of the city. I was impressed with just the side....until I saw the front!

It is just spectacular.

The detail on the door is exquisite!

It is a huge church, and the size is really incomprehensible unless you are standing at the door looking up.

I took several photos of some of the gorgeous sculptures on the front. Their faces and gestures were beautiful. Humbling, to say the least.

This sculpture looked like it was blessing you as you entered the church.

This face! Amazing!

We did not go inside, but perhaps when we return (see...another reason to go back!)

OK this was a funny little detour. Hidden among the side streets as you leave the Academia is a small museum dedicated to Leonardo da Vinci. David and I ventured in and paid to go "behind the magic curtain" and see some machines built according to some of the sketches made by Leonardo. It was actually quite fun and interesting! Often you see a sketch of an idea and don't appreciate it's full potential/beauty in design until you can see it 3-dimensionally, in action. Something as simple as a chain for a bicycle - flippers for swimming - ball bearings - all of these things were part of his body of work. Above I am standing in a mirrored room! (the only place I shot an illegal photo!) Not quite sure of the PURPOSE of the mirrored room, but it was there!

Heading away from the cathedral...on our way to the Uffizi Gallery.

A quick shot of a typical street scene in Florence - a line up of about 100 vespa scooters! I really wanted to know - how did the drivers know which one was theirs? They all looked the same!

We then arrived at the Loggia dei Lanzi and the Piazza della Signoria.

These pictures are a little out of order so bear with me...this is the sculpture "Rape of the Sabine". A popular sculpture in tons of Art history books...quite stunning and emotional in person.

There's my David checking out a copy of Michaelangelo's David (the copy pales in comparisson to the real thing!) near the entrance of the Palazzo Vecchio.

Me sitting in the outdoor sculpture gallery with the David behind me (not sure what's up with my hair in this picture...)

This sculpture, "The Rape of Polyxena", by Pio Fedi, was right in front of me, and we had some time before our scheduled entry into the Uffizi gallery, so I did this quick sketch.

This is at the entrance of the Uffizi near the Arno River. (I am happier than I look, I swear)

The courtyard area. David was incredulous that they were actually using that crane to lift large construction equipment over the heads of the tourists...he said OSHA would be furious!

A sculpture of Leonardo...I should have asked him about that mirrored room...

I don't remember who this is, but I was just amazed at the facial expression and gesture of this sculpture.

(From the other side)

We could not take pictures inside the Ufizi, but I will tell you...it was a little redundant. Not my favorite gallery over-all. However, it is striking to see how brilliantly the artists handle all different types of materials and surfaces...I also wanted to reach out and touch the velvet on some of the outfits! There were some very recognizable pieces, including the Diptych of the Duke and Duchess of Urbino by Piero Della Francesca (the best profile in Art History, IMO), and the Birth of Venus by Botticelli (the eyes in his work and incredible), and The Venus of Urbino by Titian. There were many others that I recognized.

There was a secret treasure hidden on the back of one of the Triptychs...a delicate painting of dove landing on a figure (the image on the left) (The Portinari Triptych)

We ended up at the roof of the museum, enjoying the perfect weather and incredible views of the city. By far my favorite "art" day in Florence...so far!

My Italy Sketchbook. Day Four...Chianti Wine Tour, Florence

One of our favorite events while in Italy was a Chianti Wine tour that we went on our second day in Florence. We met our group near the train station and boarded a very large bus, one that made you wonder if it could actually fit down some of the narrow streets! A word to the wise if you sign up for one of these tours - or ANY tour while you are in Italy - the tour guides DO NOT babysit you! If you are not paying attention, you WILL get left behind! Our group walked from the meeting point to where the bus was waiting, and our tour guide took a head count once we all boarded, and discovered that one couple was already missing! Well, she just went on without them! And I have to say - this happened on several other tours we took as well. David and I were beginning to wonder if the tour guides left a few people behind on purpose as a warning to the other tourists....



Anyway, our first stop on this tour was the Fattoria Castello Il Palagio. A gorgeous Castle dating back to 1252, that has a very rich history.

The courtyard is especially beautiful, each of the four walls having different characteristics and brickwork. The courtyard is still used for weddings and special occasions (in fact the castle is still occupied by the family). The door on the right is the family chapel.

A staircase in the far corner...I loved the shape of the door and the warm yellow color on the walls.

Dotted among the bricks are coat-of-arms representing the marriages of family members - two family crests joining as one. The "vespa" was a popular image on these crests (in reference to the hornet, not the small motorcycles!)

A view of the region from the back of the castle.

A large tree (I think she said cedar...I could be wrong) near the front door.

Perched along a garden wall, enjoying the gorgeous weather and the views.

Venturing down into the wine cellar, which was once the dungeons of the castle!

And of course the hi-light of this stop - our wine tasting! We tried three different red wines, including a fabulous Chianti and Merlot (which was delicious with Pecorino cheese, a new favorite of mine) as well as an amazing desert wine accompanied by biscotti, which we enjoyed dipped into the desert wine.

If you are traveling alone, in a small group, or as a couple, I highly recommend a tour of this kind - the opportunity to sit and chat with our fellow tourists was very enjoyable!

As our (now even happier) group re-boarded our bus, we made our way to the next village, Greve, where we took a short break to walk around the town square and peek in the shops.

If you are looking for more authentic Italian wares and souvenirs, this is another good reason to venture into the Chianti region - we saw many shops of pottery, art, and linens that were all locally made.

Another view of Greve.

Another short ride on the bus brought us to the beautiful Castellina area. This quiet and charming village was definitely a world away from the heavily tourist-filled roads of Florence.

David and I found some wonderful hand-carved cutting boards made from local Olive wood, our favorite souvenirs from our trip.

A charming wine shop.

I loved this beautiful sculpture and outdoor faucet.

After another short bus ride thru the hills, with a gorgeous sunset as we drove to our final destination, we enjoyed a fabulous dinner at a wonderful restaurant located on Centro Storico San Donato in Poggio. I have never smelled ANYTHING so wonderful as the aroma in this restaurant - "La Toppa". I wish I had more photos of the sunset and this last village, but my pictures all came out blurry! So take my word for it - great views, great food, great fun...take a Chianti Wine tour if you are ever in Florence!

My Italy Sketchbook. Day Four...Boboli Gardens, Florence

Our second day in Florence was beautiful...the weather continued to be sunny and clear, and we decided to spend our free morning exploring Boboli Gardens, as recommended by a fellow passenger on our train from Venice to Florence. As we climbed up the subtle hillside exploring the gardens, there were many beautiful places to stop and enjoy the view, as well as practice posing.

I could imagine a large party here would be fabulous on a September evening - the cool breeze, people walking thru the gardens enjoying live music and delicious food and wine. That building is the Palazzo Pitti.

The view as we approached the top of the hill was spectacular.

I believe this is the top of the Duomo.

David resting as we reach the top of the hillside garden.

As we ventured back down on the other side of the garden, there was a large sculpture of a face - I really don't know much about it, whether it is old or contemporary, but it was a good spot to see if I really do have an Italian profile. Pretty close, I think!

It was also a good spot to stop and do a little sketch - see! I told you I did some drawing in Italy!

A view from the other side (plus I really liked that lady's colorful dress!)

My sketch!

Another gorgeous spot in the garden - it looks like an outdoor amphitheater. (This is only half...this shape was mirrored on the other side)

The grotto at the end of the garden.

A pleasant little surprise...a small water fountain with two tiny heads! It was only about the size of a small soup bowl. (No, I didn't drink the water)

A small, more sculpted garden.

That was all before noon. We walked back to our hotel on the other side of the Arno River to lunch and nap before our Chianti Wine tour later that day. (I'm tired just reading about it!)

At A Restoration Hardware near you...see my drawings in the Mercer Frame Collection!

We interrupt this Italy recap to bring you this special announcement...Restoration Hardware has a new line of frames, called the Mercer Collection, and they have used three of my figure drawings for the face papers in the frames! David and i ventured out to the Perimetter mall this morning to check them out. I was very excited...the display of frames on top was the first thing you saw as you entered the store. And as we explored the beautiful store there were several other areas where the frames were on display!

These are the drawings that were used (they are cropped in the frames)

So to mark the occasion, David and I bought the 5" x 7" frame, and we got in the car...he said "do you want to open it and make sure it's the right one?" So I checked the box, and it's all wrapped in Styrofoam and taped pretty well and I thought "Nah, I'm sure it's fine". OK - for those of you who know me, you can probably guess what happened next...that's right! I opened the box finally AFTER we left the parking lot and were driving on the 285 and instead of my drawing being in the frame in the box there was...nothing. I got a blank frame. Chalk this up to another experience where I should always listen to my husband. (Just don't ever tell him I said that!)

Anyway...if you are ever in a Restoration Hardware - check out the Mercer Frames! Those are my drawings!

My Italy Sketchbook. Day Three...from Venice to Florence

So our weekend in Venice has come to an end...on our last morning I did a quick, and not very successful, watercolor sketch of the Rialto bridge. If I'm brave I may post it later! This is the view from our water taxi as we headed to the train station. Arevederci, Venezia!

We arrived in Florence on a beautiful, sunny afternoon. Our travel agent had said to just "take a cab ride" from the train station to our hotel. So we did. It was the shortest cab ride ever. Our hotel was right around the corner! Oh well...at least that's the only cab ride we need in Florence. It is so easy to walk everywhere...we really saw a lot during our 4 days in the city. After a nice dinner we walked along the Arno River. Behind me is the Ponte Vecchio. All of the little shops on the bridge sell jewelry, in case you are interested!

Apparently Italian canines appreciate the view, too!

Another bridge over the Arno.

We only walked for a short while before we realized traffic is CRAZY in Florence! Most of the people drive very small cars, such as this three-wheeled yellow car, or little Vespa scooters. Everyone drives fast, and when a HUGE tour bus rounds a corner, no one slows down - they SPEED UP and dare to cut in front of the enourmous bus!

The Piazza Ognissanti.

Only a couple blocks from our hotel was the Santa Maria Novella, a beautiful church. We visit the church later in our trip.

We crash early...tomorow we head out on a Chianti Wine tour after exploring the Boboli Gardens.

My Italy Sketchbook. Day Two...Afternoon in Venice

So after a lovely morning exploring St. Mark's Square and Murano glass, David and I were looking forward to a relaxing afternoon. We were very lucky...we happened to be in Venice the day of the Regata Storica. Also....we were staying in a hotel right next to the Rialto bridge...with a balcony...where we could watch the whole thing! The first picture shows the Grand Canal as we approached the first part of the program - the parade.

This is a picture of what the canal usually looks like - LOTS of boats! Motorized and otherwise - all driven by men who never go less than 30MPH on the water - including while they are parking! They speed into a dock space then slam it in reverse. And they cut each other off like maniacs! I thought it was crazy...of course, that ended up being mild once I experienced a cab ride in Rome...but more on that later!

So as the parade and race was getting under way, we saw many of the teams warming up - here is a team in blue shirts and an orange boat - I loved the colors!

Here is a shot of the Rialto bridge as the crowds began to gather. I felt so awful for all of the spectators who perched atop the bridge to watch - as the race got started, the cops removed everyone from the bridge! The streets became very crowded.

As the afternoon went on many spectators appeared in the windows up and down the canal...

Here is our group watching from our perch. I think we ended up spending 7 hours eating, drinking, reading, watching and talking! It was a lovely afternoon.

The parade was wonderful - all of the teams participated as well as several boats in a "pageantry" style - lots of colorful costumes, as if they were royalty from long ago arriving in Venice.

More parade shots...

I hope this works - this is a short video of the younger competitors rounding the marker. As the teams make the turn, you can hear the announcer call out the order by team color "rosso verde bianco celeste".

I do have a couple of sketches to add - I'll post those later!

My Italy Sketchbook. Day Two...Morning in Venice

Our second day in Venice was very busy. We started the morning with a tour of St. Mark's Square, or Piazza San Marco. It was a wonderful tour with a native of Venice as our guide. Before I get into the portion of the tour in St. Mark's Square, a bit of info she shared about gondolas...that have always been painted black.

Also, gondoliers have always been male. Currently, one woman is in training to become a gondolier. Her father was one as well. When asked how the Venetians felt about this, she said...in all honesty...that most people feel that gondoliers are more than just men driving a boat - they have almost a mythical status, and have always been male. I got the impression that as a female Venetian she wasn't all that thrilled with the idea.

As our tour got started we talked a about the Basilica, which housed St. Mark's tomb. The remains were stolen in the night...there's even a mosaic depicting the theft!
The outside of the Basilica has more than 400 columns, of all different kinds of precious marble. It really was beautiful.When large buildings were being constructed, trees were buried under the ground to give additional support. Many refer to this as "the forest under Venice". There was a great picture in the square depicting how trees were placed close together, buried in the ground as the base for the heaviest buildings. It was also explained that if someone cut a tree down without authority, they were hung on the next closest tree and left on display for three days. (Our guide explained that this is also why it is considered bad luck to walk thru the two columns at the edge of St. Mark's square...it mirrors walking between the two trees where the accused would hang) We then went inside Doge's Palace, stopping in the courtyard to admire the architecture. In the lower left, you can see one of many large well heads that were used to collect fresh water. Providing fresh water to the people has always been a challenge for the Venetian people. If one was caught tampering with the precious public supply, they would be hanged.

A beautiful staircase in the courtyard.

This carved face shows one of the elements of Venetian government. If you wanted to accuse someone of a crime, you would write the accusation, sign it, and have two others witness it. Then, the accusation could be placed in the mouth. If the accusation proved to be true, the accused would face justice and the accuser would remain anonymous. However, if anyone ever falsely accused someone, everyone who signed that paper would be in big trouble. I'm pretty sure more hanging from a tree was involved...

Inside Doge's palace...the gorgeous LaScala d'Oro, or Golden Staircase. (Photographs were not allowed after this section.)

Me standing next to that amazing staircase in the courtyard.
After our tour of the square, we were invited to take a boat ride to the Murano Glass factory. Once we made sure that we would get a ride back (there are many free rides over there - but you have to buy some glass if you want a free ride back!) we decided to hop on the boat and head over to the factory. The view from the boat heading away from the square.

Inside the Murano Glass factory, we watched as a master glass artist, who I believe over 40 yrs of experience, create a vase and a small glass figure. Glass blowing is becoming an endangered art in Murano - in the 1960's there were over 60 glass artisans, now they have only 15. It's sad to think that these respected artists (click on the Murano link to learn more) have fallen prey to a common problem - to study to be a master glass maker requires time and commitment, often with very little pay, and many of today's youth are unwilling to do that. As our guide said "most want to play soccer".

I have my own theory as well...our whole tour of the factory was one long sales' pitch to buy, what I thought, was very "dated" and "tacky" looking glass. Very little was said about the history of the factory, it's place in the Venetian history, it's legendary glass making techniques. The master glass blowers must feel like they are trained monkeys at this point, shilling for the tourists who pour thru rather than creating "art". But I digress...(oh and there's the one shot I got of inside the showroom before I was told "no pictures!")Waiting outside the factory for our boat.

The sidewalk and shops near the glass factory.

Well all that was before 1:PM! I will have to share our afternoon in Venice watching the Regata Storica in the Grand Canal in my next post!

My Italy Sketchbook.Day One...Venice

Hi! I have missed updating my blog! David and I just returned from our 10th Anniversary trip to Italy. It was just fantastic. We had gorgeous weather almost the entire time and visited three wonderful cities - Venice, Florence and Rome. Armed with my camera and my sketchbook, I was determined to learn and see a lot! I am planning on sharing both my sketchbook drawings and my photos - a little bit from each day of our journey (it took a while to narrow down the 634 shots I took! Thank goodness for digital!) Please enjoy!

The first shot is out of the airplane window as we approached Italy - the Alps were gorgeous from the air! Little villages were tucked in valleys thru out.

When you arrive in Venice, you might consider having an escort meet you - from the airport, we had an escort take us to a water taxi and assist in transporting our luggage. (As we walked from the airport to the water taxis, we passed Viggo Mortenson on his way towards the airport! For the next two days I kept saying "You know who that is - that is Viggo!" like the guy from Ghostbuster's 2...

Our first glimpse of Venice in the water taxi!

The Rialto Bridge - one of the most famous bridges over the Grand Canal in Venice. Our hotel was right next to it.

We were very lucky that when we arrived at 9:30 am local time we were permitted to check into our room early...both of us were ready for a power nap after not sleeping at all on the 7 hour plane ride from NYC! Much to our dismay, our room was SO bright! The only window coverings were sheer white curtains! I couldn't sleep at all.

Little did we know...and David did not discover this until 3:am that night when the voices outside woke us up...that there were wooden shutters that you could close! You had to open the windows, reach out, and pull them shut! So, if you ever arrive in Venice early in the morning and need a power nap...close the shutters!

A view from the top of the Rialto Bridge.

And a view from the side steps.

David and I standing atop one of the many other bridges connecting the 118 small islands that make up Venice.
Walking down a narrow alley between the buildings.

One of the narrow canals in between the islands.

A gorgeous reflection of some colorful Venetian buildings.

David standing in the very busy St. Marks' Square. (I have lots more from St. Mark's square...I'll share that in the next entry!)

A view across the water from St. Mark's square - San Giorgio Maggiore

The sun setting on our first day in Italy.....

I *heart* dooce

Ok, if you are familiar with the blogging world or twitterverse at all, you have seen the name dooce once or twice. You may have even read her blog. I am not a daily reader, but I do stop in for a dose of dooce from time to time. Last night I woke up at 3 am and by 4 am gave up trying to get back to sleep and grabbed my laptop (hey, you never know what's going on in Etsy's forums at 4 am!) And in my journeys I came across this post on dooce's blog, which is basically the best thing I have read in a while. Not Cormac MrCarthy's "The Road" or anything like that...but it's got a little bit of everything that makes a story great - laughter, love, a few curse words, a heroine, a villain, and best of all, a happy ending. Oh yeah, and my favorite line ever about sex with a major appliance (it's a short list of lines, but the top spot is highly coveted)

http://www.dooce.com/2009/08/28/containing-capital-letter-or-two