…it’s R-a-v-e-n-n-a!

Ciao tutti,

My most recent viaggio was a day trip to the city of Ravenna this past Friday. This Romagnolo town is only about an hour train ride east of Bologna, very close to the Adriatic Sea. The other important aspect of Ravenna is that it’s incredibly old! Several of the landmarks in the city date back to around the 11^th century, and there are also many ancient Byzantine artifacts, ruins, and mosaics from even earlier centuries.

Even more incredible are the dazzling mosaics from the Byzantine era, especially those found in the Basilica di San Vitale (both on the walls above the altar as well as covering the floor in intricate patters):

A depiction of the Biblical story "Abraham sacrificing Isaac"

The church itself is also incredibly spectacular, with magnificent frescoes covering the non-mosaic walls:

Because of the beautiful Byzantine mosaics in the Basilicas, the city of Ravenna has become known for its mosaics, and there are several shops throughout the town that hand-make and sell various mosaic trinkets:

One thing that I was surprised to learn about Ravenna was that Dante Alighieri had died and is buried there. Most people assume that the great Italian poet is laid to rest in his birthplace of Florence, the city he loved and called home for so much of his life. However, his tomb is in Ravenna. It is beautiful, yes, but I was expecting a little more. I would think that Dante of all people would have a very extravagant tomb in a very central location within the city, but it seems a little tucked away. It’s actually kind of quaint when you see it:

The last place we visited before leaving Ravenna was the Basilica di San Francesco, a simple church behind which Dante’s tomb is located, but with an incredibly cool crypt which is covered in several inches of water! What’s more is that there’s fish swimming about! See for yourself:

Never a dull moment here in Italy!

Ciao for now,

Augusto

…it’s L-a-g-o d-i G-a-r-d-a!

Ciao tutti,

I know, I know. It’s been almost a month since my last update. I have two excuses: 1) As most of my classes will be done by Easter, I have been very busy with three classes a day for the past four weeks, and 2) let’s be honest… The Carnevale post was just too good to bury under new posts J

But the time has certainly come to update you all on my life and adventures, the first of which being a trip last weekend to Lake Garda (Lago di Garda). Situated in northern Italy at the foothills the Alps, this beautiful lake is in a very culturally-rich area, where the Italian language decreases in prevalence to give way to German. In the far-North regions of Italy, close to the Austrian and Swiss borders, many people speak both German and Italian. In fact, in the region of Trentino-Alto Adige, in which the northern tip of Lake Garda is located, German is an official language.   

Our trip, however, was to the southern part of the lake, and therefore we were not as bombarded with the German language. The rich culture and beautiful sights, though, hit us like a ton of bricks.

This trip, unlike other trips in Italy on which I have previously embarked, was coordinated through BCSP, meaning the program paid for and organized the trip entirely. We boarded a coach bus early Saturday morning to drive up to the Lombardy/Veneto regions (the majority of Lake Garda is located on the borders of these two regions), and arrived back in Bologna that night. A short, yet incredible day trip, indeed.

Also, my friend and roommate from Notre Dame, Troy, who is currently studying abroad in Athens, Greece, was in Bologna to visit me for the weekend with his friend Caitlyn (also studying abroad in Greece). Luckily, both Troy and Caitlyn were able to come with us to Lake Garda for the day.

Our first stop was to Sirmione, a port town on a small peninsula that juts out into the southern portion of Lake Garda.  We met our tour guide, who first showed us the Castello Scaligero, a 13^th-century castle built as a fortress of protection to the exposed port of Sirmione from northern attackers. It is extremely well-preserved and thus we were able to see all the various additions to the castle that occurred over the centuries as power over the castle changed hands.

We then strolled through the streets of this beautiful city-on-the-lake.

Il Castello di Scaligero

A Sirmione wedding!

Our next stop was the Grotte di Catullo, ancient Roman ruins from the 1^st-centuy A.D. Like the Castello Scaligero, this ancient villa is relatively well-preserved (considering how incredibly old it is). The villa is said to have been owned by the family of the Latin poet Catullus (Catullo). Our tour guide filled us in on the history of the site, but even more amazing were the fantastic views of the lake as well as the villa itself. Take a look:

After the tour of the Grotte di Catullo, we had lunch in Sirmione and then boarded the bus to go to Gardone Riviera, a town on the Lombardy-side of the lake. The main site of this town is called Il Vittorale degli Italiani, an absolutely huge estate complete with an extravagant villa, a full-sized amphitheatre, a fascist-style mausoleum, and last but certainly not least… (the pièce de résistance) a naval ship jutting out off the hillside! It’s absolutely incredible. Furthermore, the estate was home to the modern Italian writer Gabriele d’Annunzio, whom I have studied in both my Italian literature as well as Italian politics classes. Needless to say, it was an incredible estate, and the pictures speak for themselves:

The main church in Gardone Riviera

The estate at il Vittoriale degli italiani

Fascist-style architecture

The amphitheatre

The fascist-style mausoleum

The naval vessel installed into the side of a hill

View from atop the mast

Sunset over Gardone Riviera

Troy and I

As the sun began to set over the beautiful Lake Garda, we (and the bus!) boarded a ferry to cross the lake to the town of Torri del Benaco, on the Veneto side of the lake. We grabbed a quick caffè e un po' di dolce before boarding the bus back home to Bologna. 

A beautiful ending to a beautiful day. 

Ciao for now,

Augusto