by Pamela Birchard
While getting sidetracked, a frequent occurrence when exploring the outskirts of Florence, we stumbled upon an outdoor bar titled "Easy Living." On the other side of the Arno river, where it is curiously quieter, the true taste of night life comes alive. It happened to be a night where fans of the World Cup semi-finals, for Germany or Spain, were out for a victory. A residing beach radiated with a projection screen and a sea of jerseys. The sidetrack turned out to be right on course with celebration.
I noticed similar ingredients of bright colors, carbonation and sweet fruit being served to the locals and I thought I should stick with the same. I asked the young fashionable lady standing next to me what she ordered. "Spritz," was all she replied. It is now my beverage of choice.
We found a prime overlooking spot on a cobblestone divider and heard the cheers down below. It seems as if they were rooting for Spain, a good choice in the long run.
After all the chanting, ambient electronic music came on and a thin woman in a sequined top began an interpretive dance in the middle of the patio. This eccentric display completed the essence of living easily. We left shortly after, since we ultimately lost track of time, but promised to return. And that we did, on that same, distracting road.
RUNNING RAGGEDY
By: Kim Manning
Trotting down the uneven cobblestone road, the trek is much more strenuous than satisfying. Weaving in and out of fanny packs and parasols, I get funny glares and absolutely no sympathy of my mission.
Running in a foreign country is exactly that, an entirely different experience. There are no smiles from oncoming fellow runners, no polite “I’ll let you through” gestures from pedestrians and absolutely no water fountains along the way.
To me, running is therapeutic; it’s calming. However, the hustle and bustle of Florence makes it difficult to fully enjoy the experience. In the city center, tourists run amuck with map in hand trying to decipher what each street is called and where the street sign even is. It makes for many obstacles.
Here are a few tips to make your run a little better:
1. If you have trail running shoes, bring them. The uneven pavement makes for an uneasy run. Bringing trail shoes or shoes with good stabilization will help to prevent injuries.
2. Go early in the morning, or late in the evening in the summer months. Make sure to stay in well lit areas, but it is much cooler at night and not nearly as many tourists that you will need to weave in and out of.
3. Drink lots of water through the day. Runners always need to stay hydrated, but with temps that can reach the 100s it is especially important.
4. Find a buddy if you can. No matter how long you are in Florence for, the roads can be confusing and some are tight and dark. Stay with a friend and try to stay in areas that you are familiar with or just continue down one road the entire time.
5. PAY ATTENTION. Keep your headphones on low volume and make sure you are watching where you are going, because the tourists in Florence will not watch you! (I nearly tripped over a suitcase because someone didn’t move out of the way but saw me coming.)
TAKING THE PLUNGE
After two weeks of nearly 100-degree heat, Florence’s cathedrals, castles and culture lose their allure. All we wanted to do was take the plunge – into cold, fresh water.
Of course, the popular resorts had been reserved months before by prescient Europeans. We took the train to Livorno, and then a city bus (No. 2) from the train station to the last stop, Montenero, across the street from the Funuculare. For one euro, it hauls you up the steep hill. You emerge in the village, where there is a spectacular view of the coast.
Although our trip from Florence was cheap, by the time we got to the Hotel La Vedetta, we were eager to swim, so hired a taxi to take us to the jagged rocks of the Calafuria, along the Mar Ligure. Most of our fellow bathers were 20-somethings who had arrived on scooters or motorcycles and preened on the rocks, showing off their tanned and taut bodies. The waves crashed against the rocks and jellyfish stung us, but at least we weren't pounding the pavement.
By the second day, we learned we could take Bus 2 to a street in Livorno leading to two beach clubs, called bagni. For 4.5 euros each, we gained entry to a sea of people. Here we found people of all ages and sizes, clad in skimpy suits - by American standards. Unbeknownst to us till a middle-aged woman started berating me, Italians pay a bit more and reserve particular beach chairs and umbrellas and have access to changing areas. Bagni are wonderful for family groups, since young teens can safely roam the restricted area, which often includes volleyball and tennis courts and other sports amenities. There are shallow, sandy places for toddlers to play as well as high diving boards for the talented to show off and others to belly flop spectacularly. This is hardly wild coast, with ladders into separated pools of water, but the sea was gentler here and no jellyfish were in sight.
POOL OPTIONS IN OR NEAR FLORENCE
For a quicker dip, reachable by bus or bicycle (or a long walk) in Florence, my colleague Pantelis Vassilakis recommends Picina Paolo Costoli at Campo di Marti. It’s about a mile from the center city. If you’re too hot to walk, catch Bus 10 from Piazza di San Marco. One runs every 20 minutes.
My daughter recommends the pool at Fiesole, a district 7 km (4 miles) northeast of Florence, with sweeping views of the city and countryside. Take Bus 7 from Santa Maria Novella in Florence.
Everyone's favorite swimming places were off the five villages of Cinque Terre. See "Destinations" for more information.
And, if you have no other options, ask some local children to shoot you with their squirt guns. Very refreshing!
OPEN AIR OPERA
By Nancy Day
July in Italy is usually dry and hot, cooling off after sunset to create the perfect ambience for outdoor opera, which starts at 9:15.
I saw Die Zauberflote, written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and usually performed in German, in Italian (Il Flauto Magico) at the Boboli Gardens in Florence, and Carmen, set in Spain, written and performed in French by George Bizet, at the centuries-old Roman arena in Verona.
The Magic Flute cost 44 Euros (ticket bought on the Internet) and lasted well past midnight on this weeknight. The Queen of the Night was appropriately domineering and performed the challenging coloratura of her demanding second aria skillfully. The other singers I particularly liked were the trio of angelic-sounding boys who appear periodically as chorus. The audience of all ages was composed primarily of Italians. The setting is lovely, surrounded by gardens and fountains on the south side of the River Arno, with a capacity on bleacher-like seats of 3,000.
I walked from my apartment near the Duomo, but you can also take a bus or taxi to the entrance.
My daughter and I went to Verona to see Carmen, arranged by Fun Florence, an activities service targeting the thousands of international students who study abroad here. For 80 Euros, we made the trip north to Verona in an air-conditioned bus, complete with monitors and DVD player. To get in the mood for Verona, we watched the 1996 Baz Lurhrmann movie version of Romeo and Juliet, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes, updated to the mythical “Verona Beach” where fast cars and gang feuds rule. We arrived in the real Verona, riverside, no beach, in late afternoon and took a walking tour, first stop, the tourist-clogged Juliet’s house.
Verona is a beautiful city, calmer than others we visited, dominated in its historic center by the Roman amphitheatre, built in the first century AD and seating nearly 20,000. Since 1913, opera has been staged there every summer.
We were advised to take – or rent – pillows to make sitting on the pink marble more palatable, but that turned out to be the least of our problems in seeing this famous opera in four acts. (People who pay more have reserved actual seats, but the hoi polloi of general admission find seats where they can higher up and are free to go and come during the evening.)
Matters began promisingly when the gong lady came out to announce the opera’s start. The full orchestra filed in and began the well-known overture. Audience members lit candles, handed out free at the doors. Then donkeys and dancing girls and what looked like a cast of hundreds entered the main stage and two side ones. The nearly full moon slipped in and out of high clouds at the stage end of the amphitheatre; soon lightning cut the sky at the other end. And then came the rains.
People fled to the exits, but not as fast as the professional musicians gathered up their expensive instruments and sought shelter. The audience huddled close together in the covered passageways and came back when the rain abated. After all, Carmen had not yet made her first entrance. This routine was repeated three times.
Announcements were made in Italian, German and English. The gong lady dutifully reappeared after each break in the weather to signal another try. (A woman in period dress who came on the stage by herself to start – or restart – the proceedings with a series of increasingly strong gong hits.)
The orchestra returned, to much applause. The animals and players returned. The overture was skipped and we got right into the lovely Michaela coming to the crowded square to tell Don Jose news of his mother, immediately followed by more lightning and thunder and another rush to shelter.
Around midnight, the troupers tried again. This time, Carmen had the chance to sing her two arias in the first act, before the announcements in three languages revealed that the local weather authorities said the weather was “stable,” which for this evening, July 23, 2010, meant that we could expect more showers and thunderstorms, so the performance was canceled.
Those of us still awake watched the full version of the opera, filmed in Verona, on the way back to Florence, as it did, indeed, keep raining.
Since rain is rare, however, I still recommend the trip. The costumes are stunning, the animals and children beautifully behaved, the singers and musicians magnificent. If I said in Chicago or New York that I got drenched at the opera, people would laugh. But it was worth it here in the heart of Italy to experience opera as people have since the art form was invented.
More information:
http://www.arena.it/en-US/HOMEen.html
www.florenceforfun.com
http://www.festivalopera.it/incms/opencms/operafestival_en/sito-operafestival_en/Contenuti_operafestival_en/locations/visualizza_asset.html?id=429&pagename=480
www.festivalopera.it
Atmospheric photos from the cheap seats
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