Reflections From Roma #02
16 novembre 2017
Photo Update Alert:
“Portugal”
Hello there… Rodger French
here.
Good news! Our final
shipment of furniture has arrived in Naples, so we will have everything in our
apartment before Thanksgiving. With some shrewd household engineering and a bit
of luck, we’ll make the place comfy and less like living in a large shipping
container. And, most importantly, ready for guests.
We have been grossly
negligent in fulfilling our sightseeing obligations, although we did get
tickets for an evening guided tour of the Vatican, a time when there are theoretically
fewer tourists. Yeah, right. Three words: Zombie. Tourist. Apocalypse. With
selfie sticks. I recall visiting in 1980, when one could simply stroll in and
hang out, but those days are long gone. The place was packed, like sardines packed.
The Vatican is still a must-see when in Rome, but one must gird one’s loins.
[Agony and Ecstasy Sidebar - The climax of the tour was, naturally,
the Sistine Chapel. I had not seen it since it was cleaned and restored… and it
was breathtaking. The colors in Michelangelo’s paintings are vivid, vibrant,
and a revelation to behold.]
Speaking of tourism, one
of the benefits of being victimized by the idiotic federal hiring freeze is
that I am at liberty to occasionally tag along with A.J. when she visits facilities
out of town. Last week found us in Portugal, a country new to me. And I must
say, I liked it very much. The people are nice, the food is terrific, and art
and music flourish there.
I spent two days wandering
solo around Lisboa (Lisbon). It is a lovely city, smaller and cleaner than
Roma, with some very serious hills. I caught a taxi to the Museu Nacional do
Azulejo (National Tile Museum), which I highly recommend. (Check out the
photoz.) Otherwise, I simply skylarked, did some light shopping, and ate a lot
of good bread.
Our next stop was Aveiro,
a small town on the road from Lisboa to Porto. While A.J. went to work, I got
dropped off in town, a very charming place, complete with canals, boats, and
flamingos. I walked, took photoz, and bought some Fado CDs. I also stumbled
upon a restaurant where I ordered grilled sardines, a Portuguese speciality,
served with boiled potatoes and salad. That was an itch well scratched.
From Aveiro, it was off to
Porto, Portugal’s second city, and a favourite tourist destination. We stayed
at a place called Hotel da Música, located in Mercado Bom Sucesso, a renovated
50s-era marketplace. It is a short walk from Casa da Música, a concert venue of
modern and confusing design (thank you, Rem Koolhaas), where we attended a
performance by the Porto Big Band, a 15-piece outfit that played Ellington,
Basie, and other swing music. Very cool.
Tourism aside, the
principle industry in Porto is the making of Port wine. There are a boatload of
establishments offering tours of their cellars where grapes from the Douro
Valley are meticulously aged into many different varieties of Port. Naturally,
there are tastings. And gift shops. We decided that Port wine, in all its
permutations, is a good thing.
Then it was back to Lisboa
by train. So. Civilized. We spent the day wandering about before ascending the
Elevador de Santa Justa to take in the panorama before sunset. Then, back to
our hotel, after a bit more walking, eating, and shopping for Fado sheet music.
Our trip to Portugal was “um grande sucesso” and I hope to one day return.
[Zombie Tourist Apocalypse Sidebar - Lisboa has recently expanded
port facilities to accommodate several cruise ships at once. It is my
considered opinion that these vessels, specifically the gigantic floating
skyscraper variety, are a worldwide pestilence and environmental menace.]
Back in Roma, it seems
that Anne has some “use it or lose it” leave on the books. Alrighty, then. Next
up: Florence and Siena - by train - for 10 days beginning at the end of this
month. Then back for Natale a Roma.
Onward.
Rodger
