Tivoli: Villa Adriana

A view of Tivoli from Villa Adriana

While my friends were here from Modena, I drove them to Tivoli, a 30-minute drive from Zagarolo. We went to see Villa Adriana, which was built as a retreat for the Roman Emperor Hadrian between 125 and 134 A.D. In the later years of his rule, he governed the Roman empire from the Villa. It has been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

the Pecile at Villa Adriana

We spent several hours walking through the vast complex, which covers 250 acres and includes some 30 buildings: palaces, terme (baths), a theatre, temples, libraries, state rooms and living quarters.

Hadrian was involved in creating the architecture of the estate from his own ideas, and the style of the statues, sculpture and mosaics were inspired by his travels to Greece and Egypt. The Villa still preserves the grandeur and splendor of the ancient Roman world. Hadrian was also responsible for building the Pantheon in Rome.


One of the most striking and best preserved parts of the Villa is a pool, named Canopus after an Egyptian city. There is a grotto at one end called the Serapeo. This was my favorite part of the complex: I found the green of the trees on either side, and the long expanse of green water to be both mesmermizing and relaxing.

Canopus

Serapeo

After our long walk through the vast complex of the Villa, we stopped for pranzo (lunch) at a restaurant on the premises and had another delicious Roman meal. (I can feel the pounds creeping on!) Unfortunately, by this time we were weary, and still had a date to visit the Tufaio winery, so we didn't make it to another villa in Tivoli, Villa D'Este, famous for its fountains and flower gardens. It will have to wait until another day.

Firenze: Wild and Wonderful

Me with Walt, a friend from Kansas

When in Florence, I usually stay in a hotel near the train station, but after living in the centro storico, I wanted to find a hotel closer to my old neighborhood. My friend Haruko suggested one that her sister had stayed in, close to Piazza Beccaria, called Orti di Cimabue. I was very pleased with the hotel, the location and the price. As mentioned in my post about my birthday surprise, a young woman at the hotel played violin in the orchestra for the performance that night. Not only that, but when I told her it was my birthday, the next day I found a red rose in my room, along with birthday greetings. I've already decided to return to Florence at the end of my stay this year, and hope to return to this hotel.

Orti di Cimabue

Villa La Petraia

Medici Villas: Villa Castello, Villa La Petraia

One of my adventures while living in Florence last fall was to visit some of the Medici villas outside of the city, and I decided to return there this week, to see what was blooming. When I was there in the fall, there were only remnants of the flowers that had bloomed in the spring, and I envisioned a bountiful display in the right season.

I got up early and took a bus to the train station, where I caught another bus to Castello. (Number 28 and 2 will get you there, but the latter one has fewer stops.) I asked the driver if he stopped at the Villas, and he said yes, but neglected to let me know when we arrived, so I had a good walk back to them when I did get off. To my surprise, the parks looked much the same as they had last fall. I had missed the spring flowering season, and very little was in bloom that day. It was disappointing, to say the least. And since I have such a lovely landscape where I'm living in Zagarolo, I don't have the same craving for parks that I did while living in Florence last year. On the way out of the Villa Castello, I asked directions to the nearest bus stop, and discovered it was right near the entrance, which saved me a lot of unnecessary walking. For more info and photos on the parks, here's a link to the post I wrote last fall:

wandering-around-villas-and-gardens

While in Florence, I decided to do some research on gnudi: by that I mean that I went to several restaurants where I had eaten gnudi before, to see how it compared to the recipe I've been using. At the first restaurant I tried, I was appalled...only a bland taste of spinach was evident in the green blobs on my plate, along with heavy shavings of parmagiana cheese. The gnudi lay in a pool of butter, but there was no evidence of sage that should flavor the butter. The dish was so tasteless, I should have complained and sent it back. When I'd tried gnudi at that same restaurant last fall, it was very tasty.

Table settings at BRAC

The next day I went to my favorite restaurant in Florence, Libreria BRAC, which is actually a vegetarian restaurant in the vicinity of Santa Croce. The place also serves as a library, where one can read, write or use the wifi service. I'd first eaten gnudi there last fall, and it was exquisite. This time it was good, but not as good as the gnudi I've been making. SCORE! The ambiance at BRAC is creative and playful. This time they had a display of growing seeds on the tables, to smell, touch and taste, and when you paid your bill (very low prices!), you were given a sample of seeds to take with you.

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San Lorenzo Market

When in Florence, I always find time to stroll through the San Lorenzo market, one of the best shopping markets in the world. I have several "favorite" vendors where I usually buy gifts, and get a discount each time for favoring them.

Babbit family on Ponte Vecchio

On Sunday, just before I left Florence, I spent a few hours with some friends from Lawrence who had come to the city for the day. They were spending a week in Italy and it was an odd coincidence that we would be in Florence at the same time. We only had a short time together before I had to catch my train back to Rome, but it gave me a rare chance to share my favorite city with friends from Kansas.

Wandering Around Villas and Gardens

A view from Villa di Petraia

In contrast to my previous post about Italy being a culture where "less is more," yesterday I had the chance to visit remnants of an era where the opposite (''more is never enough") was a way of life in Italy, at least with the nobili (nobility). I visited three villas of the Medici and their gardens, seeing an area north of Florence that was new to me. It was part of a free tour sponsored by the city, called Per ville e per giardini, running from June through November 14.

Amidst the trees near Villa di Castello

It started with another adventure, of sorts, as I was unsure which bus stop to get off at. A woman at the tourist office told me the name of the street, via Giuliana, but neglected to mention there would be 10 different stops on that street. Naturally, I got off at the first stop when I should have waited for number 10, which added over thirty minutes of walking time to reach the villas. But it was well worth the effort!

The first stop on my itinerary was the Garden of the Villa di Castello. It was extraordinary! The villa itself houses the Accademia della Crusca, (a society of intellectuals who oversee the Italian language), and is not open to the public. But the gardens, once used by the Medici, are open to the public and free.

A path in the gardens of Villa di Castello

First, I wandered through the wooded area of the gardens, at home amidst the trees. It was a cloudy day, and only a few other people had ventured out to view the parks that morning. Then I visited the formal gardens with herbs and citrus trees in profusion.

The citrus gardens, with Villa di Castello in the background

There was also a grotto in the formal garden area, called Grotta degli Animali, which has a menagerie of animals sculpted by Giambologna and his assistants.

The mosaic on the ceiling, made of stone and shells, is spectacular. I spent over an hour walking through the gardens at Villa di Castello.

Next on the itinerary was the Villa Corsini di Castello, which had a display of Roman statues, along with Etruscan items that were recently excavated from the plains around Florence. There was also a formal garden here, but no public access. I didn't spend much time at this villa, and photos were not allowed inside. One highlight: a Roman copy of the Greek sculpture of Ariadne sleeping.

Arianna_dormiente

The gardens at Villa Corsini di Castello

The last villa on the agenda was a short walk up the hill, to Villa di Petraia, and the most spectacular view of all. Here, there were not only formal gardens to explore, and a panoramic view of Florence, but one could also take a tour of the sumptuous villa, complete with frescoed walls and furnishings.


I spent several hours at Villa di Petraia, as there was a lot to see, and the tour of the villa itself took an hour. Some highlights: a panel by Botticelli and Giambologna's statue of Venus. Photos were not allowed, but you can get an idea of the place by accessing the following link. It's in Italian, but the photos are great, and there's even a short German video with views of the villa.

Villa_La_Petraia

I can easily imagine i giovani (young people) from Bocaccio's Decameron hanging out in this villa in the hills north of Florence, fabricating stories to amuse themselves as an escape from the fear of the plague and its devastation. In the gardens there were still-blooming herbs (lavender, sage, rosemary) and remnants of hydrangea and iris. I'm looking forward to coming back in the spring to view the gardens in full bloom.

My visit to the villas took about six hours from start to finish, and I was walking for at least four hours. It turned out to be the perfect excursion on a cloudy day, and I returned to Florence filled with wonderful images of the gardens I'd explored.

For more photos, click here: LeVille#

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Today (Sunday) I finished the tour by visiting Palazzo Riccardi-Medici here in Florence, where the Medici once lived. It's now a museum, and it was a good place to hang out on a rainy day. Walking through town, I noticed long lines of people under their umbrellas, waiting to get in several museums. Tomorrow is a national holiday, so many Italians have come to town for the three day weekend. Unfortunately, rain is forecast for the next three days!