Looking back on Italy

The following posts are a digital diary of the month I spent in Italy. I generated the map in iPhoto to keep track of where I went. The points show the places in Italy where I left my Nikon Coolpix P6000 camera on long enough that it had a chance to acquire a GPS signal and record the lat/long of the pictures I was taking. There are many more points in between those shown on this map, but I could only display them if I zoomed in. Examples of zooming in are shown on the previous post This GPS data, tho' incomplete, sure helped me label my photos!

Looking Back on Italy2

The GPS tagging is a pretty cool feature of my point-and-shoot Nikon. Once I download the pictures to iPhoto, the place where each picture was taken shows as a pin on a map. I can zoom in on some of these points to identify the exact street or place where I was standing when I took the pic (the accuracy probably depends on the level of detail for google maps for that area - - high for cities, lower in the sticks). I've attached closeups of the photo-taking points for Assisi, Siena, Volterra, and Cinque Terre by boat as examples.

Somma Lombardo

I took a cab with Carol, Dick, and Coleen from the Rick Steve's tour group from Orta to a hotel 5 min or so away from Malpensa (Milan Airport) where I was going to catch a flight to Nice the next morning. I walked into the little village for a late lunch. The town had its own castle and a large church. It seems all Italian villages do. The hotel (a Hilton Garden Inn) was a nice segue between my weeks in Italy and the beginning of my journey home - - a little bit American and a little bit Italian.

Orta - Last meal and departure

We had our last dinner together at the Olina Restaurant in town. Many courses, accompanied by wine as always, were beautifully presented (peaches with prosciutto, risotto with asparagus, saffron tortelloni and saffron, sirloin steak and tiramisu. The steak was cooked very rare on a sizzling hot stone brought to the table. We exchanged little gifts with our buddies. Some of the gifts, and some of the presentations, were very clever.

The next morning we gathered for breakfast in pretty room with a panoramic view of the town and lake. We began to leave in groups of 2 and 3 as our taxis arrived to take us to airports and train stations.

Orta San Giulio - View from Above

After a quick look around the church, I followed a road (more like a dirt path) that went up and then across the face of the steep hill behind the town. It was the first time on the whole trip that I walked on a relatively smooth, soft surface and could look at the view rather than my feet (so I wouldn’t trip on cobbles) or over my shoulder (so I wouldn’t be killed by an Italian driver who was choosing to ignore the “suggestion” of a stop sign or light). The view to the town and lake below and the mountains around was gorgeous.

Orta San Giulio - Church

On my way back to the hotel, I climbed up to the church that overlooks the town. On the way up (more cobbles, more steps) I heard what must have been a music lesson. It sounded lovely so several of us stopped, took a little break, and enjoyed the performance. The church was quite pretty inside, but I think I have had my fill of Italian churches for the next little while!

Isola di San Giulio

We docked at the little island in the middle of the lake. A a Benedictine monastery is in the center. Below that, a walk encircles the island, meant to be taken in silence and meditation. Below that is the surprisingly large Basilica of San Giulio and a ring of buildings that face the lake, former homes of the basilica's canons. The original church dates back to the 4th century, but it has been rebuilt more than once. I loved the colors of the brilliant frescos, some of which date to the 1400s, and started snapping pics until I looked closely at them. Each was worse than the last - - scenes of saints being tortured in horrible ways. What is it with Catholics and the graphic depiction of martyrs? Below the nave of the church is a catacomb with a very elaborate glass casket heavily encrusted with silver.