SEVENTEENTH
DAY
September
29, 2005
I
experienced a slight energy dip yesterday when doing my daily journal but
today, today, I feel really good. It is
worth mentioning for the last time that in September the weather has been
benign, lovely, although sometimes hot and humid in the late afternoon. All that said, the light is going away earlier
each day and the cool down comes faster.
I understand, that it gets very wet in late October and November. We await the Gods.
We
have been picking a new spot to go sightseeing everyday. Because it has lots of stairs, I have been
avoiding the Campidoglio for the better part of this week. Last Sunday, however, because the Capitoline
Museum is on that plaza, I went to see an exhibit and found the steps were not
too bad. Three amazing buildings, all
designed by Michelangelo surround the Piazza. It is a must for any tourist
coming to Rome, three stars in every guidebook.
The old Senate building has been turned around to face the Piazza (it
used to look down on the Roman Forum) and it was built according to
Michelangelo’s plan after his death. The
intricate design on the Piazza floor is his as well. And from the back of the
Senate building is the most famous view of the Imperial Forum. It is so elegant and striking as to be beyond
my power to describe. The Museum is made
up of the two other buildings on the Plaza and they are look-alikes They house
the Capitoline collection. From the roof
of the museum building on the right, there is a terrace that overlooks most of
the ancient ruins and churches of Rome.
I would call it one of the great romantic date places in Rome. If my description doesn’t suit, you should
come and see it for yourself. We hung
around for about an hour and decided that the museum collection was for another
day.
Walking
back down the graduated steps of the hill we consulted our little red Trattoria
book. It is almost impossible to use as
it is not divided by any sensible method, neither geography nor type of food. Anyway, too tough for me to figure out, so I
must look at almost every entry and finally found one that we thought looked
good. It is in the Piazza del Pigna between Gesu and Chestini, very near an
apartment that we like, except we have to sell our unborn children to pay the
rent. In case you are worried, Kimberly
says no children are on the way. This is
a sweet little place and the food was as good as I have had in Rome. I had the Antipasti and Kim and I split a
great Clam Pasta. In a moment of
madness, I also ordered a Capressi Salad and was rewarded with the best Buffalo
Mozzarela since we arrived. Too Much, I
need my Precor. We walked all the way
back to our bus in Trastevere in order to feel better about lunch. We included the Campo de Fiori on the
way. Lots of legwork.
Another
new friend. Mario Teleri, teaches printmaking at Temple University in
Rome. He invited us to his studio and
out to one of his favorite Pizza joints.
The studio was great and reminded me of mine in Sonoma, not too clean
but very usable. He has two intaglio
presses much like mine but much more room for it all. Still, his presses are in the basement and
mine in the light of our garden. There
were lots of artists working and finishing up.
Mario’s partner, Luce, does not speak English. She too is an artist, teaching print in Milan
and making Jewelry in Rome. Kimbo that
great social wonder, kept the conversation all going and the pizza was
tasty. It was an early evening for
everybody by Italian standards, and they drove us all the way back up the hill
to our cabin. Mario has been very
generous, and I have been offered to teach one of his classes at Temple on the
subject of papermaking. Last night I
wished I spoke Italian.
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