Florence Is Being Destroyed By Tourists
Not my words, but those of Ottaviano de Medici, a direct descendant of the Medicis, who created Italy’s jewel. He is quoted in this article from the Sydney Morning Herald. Here’s the first paragraph.
A descendant of Florence’s famous Medici family said on Tuesday that mass tourism was a “threat” to his native city and called for it to be put on a UNESCO list of endangered areas.
I must admit, I get a bit fed up with tourists, especially in London. It’s one of the reasons, I’m a member of many of the arts institutions in London, as it means I can bypass queues and crowds, and get invited to special events like this one at the British Museum.
So if I go to Florence or Venice, I always go in the winter, as the threat of cold and wet weather keeps most tourists away. It was one of the great charms of my visit to Genoa recently, that the city was almost empty.
Tourists may be a curse, but they do bring in money and create employment. We need to find a balance as to how we charge them for their disruption.
Little Bits Of Italian Paper
One slight irritant in Italy is that the law says you must have a receipt. Unlike in the UK, Italians seem very reluctant to bin them for you.
Back From Palermo By Train
I arrived back safely from Palermo last night and I’ll be posting the details of the trip over the next few days. The posts will be dated as they happened.
I should say though, that I travelled on eight trains in the seven days, since I left on the eighth of this month.
Other than the choosing of the wrong hotel in Naples, I made only one big mistake; I travelled with an out-of-date guide, which made Naples, Genoa and Turin difficult.
This link will give all the posts, when they’ve all been written.
Train Toilets In Italy
Occasionally, you get a disgusting or failed toilet on a British train.
But not so in Italy!
On the five Italian trains I travelled on, only one had a clean toilet and on that train, it didn’t flush properly. So much to my shame, I left it rather filthy.
But even in the cheaper of the hotels I stayed in, the plumbing was good.
From Milan To Geneva
The train journey from Milan to Geneva goes through the lakes and mountains and the Simplon Tunnel.
It is a journey that must be one of the most spectacular in a train on a regular rather than a tourist service.
It is also pretty fast, as my journey took under four hours. It’s not expensive, as for the 17th November, you can book the same train for just £20 and First Class for £110. By comparison London to Newcastle on the same day at a similar time are showing at £60 and £90 respectively for a journey an hour shorter.
The Milan Science Museum
This science museum, made ours in South Kensington seem particularly narrow in scope, very small and boring.
They also had no objections to the taking of pictures, providing you switched the flash off.
It was very busy with families and lots of kids.
One of the great things about a lot of Italian museums, is they seem to open early, unlike in some countries like Denmark.
A Nice Touch On The Milan Underground
I saw this plate on a handrail on the Milan Underground.
A Nice Touch On The Milan Underground
My eyesight may not be good enough to drive, but my brain compensates by turning my head to make my walking safe.
But it is touches like this, that must help those with limited vision to navigate a city safely and successfully.
To contrast, in Turin I’d seen a partially-sighted guy with a cane, having trouble with an escalator on the Metro.
Milan Cathedral
Milan Cathedral is one of those buildings that you can’t photograph too many times.
The way the spires and the other carvings interact to create different shapes is almost unique and is far superior to the creations of Gaudi.
Again, I’m drawn back to 2001, when the cathedral was surrounded by a massive army of Ipswich supporters dressed in blue. Sadly, I don’t have any photos of that day.
I also went to see the Jackson Pollock exhibition in the Royal Palace. It emphasised how little I know of modern art. But it was very well presented and thought provoking.
Milan is a place that you can really do in a weekend, as the public transport is good, and the major sites are clustered around a few points, like the cathedral and the castle. I was only in the vicinity of the cathedral for about two hours, but if I’d had more time, I could have wasted a whole day, not going further than say a kilometre from the cathedral.
One regret was that I didn’t get up very early and go to the piazza in front of the cathedral, as only at that hour do you really appreciate the beauty of any place of architectural integrity. It was raining hard, so I chickened out!
In Search Of The Last Supper
I’ve seen Leonardo’s Last Supper in the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, in Milan twice, but felt that as it was a wet afternoon, that I might be greedy and have another look.
However, it was all fully booked, so I just looked at the outside of the church and then got a tram to the Duomo.
Incidentally, the first time I saw the mural, was when Ipswich played Inter Milan in the UEFA Cup in 2001. One of the staff was surprised at how many visitors they had that day all dressed in blue.
Although Ipswich lost as expected, we all had a great day in Milan.
But normally now, twelve years later, you have to pre-book the visit. I suppose now with most visitors having the Internet on their phone, this is not that easy.
A Snack, Italian Style
When I arrived in Milan, I was hungry and so I went into a cafe under one of those big plastic covers, you see all over Italy, to see what I can get.
A Snack, Italian Style
The picture doesn’t show the large glass of excellent Pinot Grigio.
The Anonymous Widower 