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| Opportunity to do some simple shopping in Italy |
Buongiorno…welcome
back to Cantiamo’s travels around beautiful Italy. When I left you last, we were a bunch of choristers
who had very quickly found our feet in Florence, so much so that by now, many
of us had adapted well to the Italian way of life which involved sightseeing or
shopping madly for a few hours then, understandably utterly exhausted from this
strenuous activity and with the shops shutting their doors at one o’clock on
the dot, popping back to the hotel for a bit of lunch and a rest, the sole
purpose of which was to re-energise for the afternoon’s vigorous Florentine walking
activities.
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| Carb Loading ☺ |
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| As You Do |
Though it is
safe to say that Italians have never heard of the word ‘diet’, by now with many
of the group struck down with a variety of ailments, the Italian culinary habit
of carbo loading at every meal could well have been a blessing, for by now we were
in need of every bit of energy we could muster, particularly on this morning (Day 17) as we were
on our way to help ‘prop up’ the Leaning Tower of Pisa (as you do)!
The 100
kilometers from Florence to Pisa through the Tuscan countryside with its
undulating hills covered with vineyards, olive trees, avenues of cypress and
small farms, is a part of Italy that had clearly received a big fat smooch from
the fairy of beauty. While there is no
doubt the town of Pisa did contain its own medieval magic with historical
churches, palaces and beautiful bridges spanning the River Arno, it was time constraints
that prevented our group from heading anywhere other than the precinct of the Piazza
dei Miracoli or Square of Miracles. From
the profusion of buses, cars, scooters and bikes in the parking zones, it was
also the destination of three million other visitors who were keen for their own
kodak moments and to be as amazed as we were by this impressive piece of Pisa.
Situated
within ancient fortified walls, this UNESCO world heritage site comprised the
Baptistry, Cathedral and the Cathedral’s Bell Tower, its construction over a
couple of hundred years begun in 1173, its noticeable lean becoming obvious
nearer its completion. A few of our energetic
souls, assured of the Tower’s ability to withstand toppling, did climb the 257
steps to the top, Nos. 8 and 10 (Brian and Marina) recreating a photo taken at
the bell’s chamber during a holiday back in 1984BC (before children). Having absorbed the sights, consumed a snack,
captured on camera the scene from many angles and with a need to maintain our
day’s schedule it was a quick count to preserve our flock before herding ourselves
through untold tourists milling about souvenir stalls and back to the bus for
the next leg to Le Roncole, a tiny village in the province of Parma and the
birthplace of Giuseppe Verdi.
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| Casa Verdi in Roncole |
This simple
home, ‘Casa Natale del Maestro’ two hundred years ago a tavern and General
Store run by Giuseppi’s father, is now regarded as a National Treasure where
staff equipped our group with iPads for an interactive account of the daily
activities of young Guiseppe and his family, a wonderful introduction to the
life of this remarkable man. “I was,
I am and I will always be a countryman from Roncole” said the sign
outside. As humble as he was gifted and benevolent,
we were soon to learn so much more of Verdi’s life upon reaching Milan.
Before
departing Le Roncole for Pavia, our next over-nighter still very much on this
day’s itinerary, mention must be made of the tiny red poppy-like flowers which
had been attracting admiring glances from bus windows throughout the length and
breadth of our travels. Tiny red wildflowers
which made like Mexican waves along the roadsides or appeared from unexpected
places in pastures. On this day, a
profusion of these poppies in a neighbouring farmer’s field was a photo
opportunity too tempting to resist. All
I can say is that Farmer Filippo (not his real name), watching a section of his field of barley flattened by unknowing
frolicking females did show commendable control and we, extreme relief and repentance
as we became the objects of his attention and made a swift exit!
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| Playing in the fields at Roncole |
The journey to
Pavia was a delight taking us through rich farmland and many rice paddies highlighting
the Italian sentiment that this area around the Po River Valley was ‘the rice
capital of Italy’, particularly renowned for the Aborio variety. There’ll be no prizes for guessing what was
on the menu at our 4star accommodation in Pavia that night!
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| Statua della Minerva - Pavia |
After the buzzing
hub of Florence, Pavia seemed like a cloak of quietness but lift the cloak and
there was a lot going on encompassing the remnants of a long life, its history
dating back to 572AD. On a short stroll down
the tree lined street to the main square, it was hard not to embrace the
oldness of the architecture with cafes and shops lining the way nor the continuing sad saga of No. 1 who by now had
developed quite a bad chest infection and, outside a Pavian Apothecary had inadvertently
broken her bottle of cough mixture spilling its sticky contents throughout her
brand new leather bag.
Day 18, and
with our scheduled performance at the 10 o’clock Mass in the Church of Santa
Maria della Carmine, it was an early checkout and a big hallelujah for the
comparatively short walk to this 15th century church. Though quiet on this Wednesday, the market
stalls in the piazza outside the church spoke of the many great gatherings that
may have once taken place. Inside, with a
mid-week congregation surprisingly large and despite the many muffled coughs
and ahems from the choir, our voices soared to the majestic heights of this Gothic
masterpiece. Counterpoint to our
euphoria was the disappointment no more
deeply felt than by our No. 11, (Alexis) that had we been one week earlier, we
might have been part of an audience for the performance by the La Scala
Symphony Orchestra under the baton of world renown conductor, Zubin Mehta, a
giant of his craft.
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| The Choir in Le Chiesa di Pavia, Santa Maria del Carmine |
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| Milan Cathedral |
However, an
hour later we were back on the bus and heading down the highway a short
distance to Milan, Italy’s second largest city where we were elated to be spending
the next 3 nights. Having suffered
extensive damage from allied bombings during WW11, today Milan stands as a
testament to the human spirit that it is now a thriving metropolis. Acclaimed for its culture, castles, cathedral,
its banking and commerce, museums, fashion houses and its Galleria Vittorio
Emanuele, the world’s oldest shopping Mall and a mecca for shoppers, on our Day
19, it was for Milan’s famous Opera House, Teatro alla Scala that we were
all making a beeline. Our guide, Ester was a font of information as we were
guided through La Scala’s magnificent halls and galleries; a front-of-stage
journey through one of the world’s most important Opera Houses and its most
impressive museum collection of great composers, unforgettable singers and
dancers who have called La Scala their ‘home’.
A sneak peek of the theatre from an Opera Box left many of us
breathless. For the remainder of the
day, Milan was ours for the exploring.
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| Loving La Scala - Di Grace and Sue |
Our concert
performance that evening was a 20kilometer bus ride to Uboldo, a tiny town
north west of Milan overflowing with small town charm, bonhomie and our host at
Talent House, Francesco, could not have been more gracious. It seemed
that half the town had turned up for our performance, an audience no less
gracious in showing their appreciation of our concert despite our struggles
with their prized venue’s unforgiving acoustics and a performance akin to a Coughing
Cacophony. There were probably better
ways to conquer colds than beverages of the strongish variety but by the time
we arrived back at the hotel it was late, we were weary, cold and so it was the
shortest route to the warmth of the bar area where we prattled on into the wee
small hours over a glass or two of
prosecco.
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| The Choir performing at the Talent House in Uboldo |
They say one
should never go back, and while that may be true of some places, no trip to
Milan could ever be complete without a rebound visit (for some on this trip, a
first) to Casa Verdi. I hope, dear
readers, that you will forgive me if I borrow words from my 2011 report of our
visit to this unforgettable place, for their depth of meaning have not
diminished, my memories of this home, indelible.
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| Casa Verdi in Milan |
“Casa di
Reposo per Musicisti Fondazione Verdi’ are the words engraved on the front
of the home. Verdi’s statue stands in
the piazza in front of it and inside the home, his mortal remains lie in repose
next to his wife, but according to the literature, ‘the commonly used name,
‘Casa Verdi’ grew out of another story: this is where the composer hosts his
friends - the old musicians for whom Verdi had his home built and who do not
enjoy economic independence; men and women left to face the most difficult
years of their lives on their own’. It
is their ‘rest home’ and they are his ‘guests’ and today as many as 100 of
these talented old souls live comfortably amid these beautiful
surroundings. To have been invited to
visit this home, to wander the hallways and rooms and learn about the place where
Guiseppe Verdi also wandered and composed was an unforgettable experience. To
have been invited to perform for these gracious and talented old folk was
indeed a privilege and the atmosphere, the sights and the sounds of Casa Verdi
were pleasures in which we all gloried.
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| Can't Help Falling in Love With You at Casa Verdi |
It is truth
that ‘upon entering one feels the need for an intimate, solemn prayer of the
sort that he wrote for his operas’. As
we walked through the huge iron gates into the garden, from somewhere in a top
floor room, we heard the dulcet sounds of a piano wafting down and it was not
difficult to believe we were dreaming out loud.
While seemingly composed, our No. 20 must have been feeling somewhat overawed
at having to accompany the choir on the magnificent grand piano donated by the
great pianist, Vladimir Horowitz and his wife, Wanda Toscannini but as always, rose
to the occasion with faultless accompaniment throughout a sublime performance by the choir, arguably
the best on tour. To spend one’s final
years in such a place, the sounds of music everywhere…that’s got to be hard to
beat!!
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| Thank you Margaret ♥ |
On the evening
of our last full day together in Italy, we gathered in our usual Milanese
restaurant for our final dinner. It was
obvious from the outset that we were not going gently into that cold night for
we supped, sipped, imbibed, laughed and recounted great times and in moments of
sanity, gave thanks to all who had made
this tour the success that it had become.
It rained as we made our way back to the bus for our return to the hotel
and was still raining early the following morning when a handful boarded the bus for the airport and the long
flight home via Singapore while others waited in preparation for further
adventures around Europe and places beyond, all with wonderful memories and
friendships to last a lifetime.
Alexis, for your
incomparable compassion, inspiration, sensitivity and patience; for challenging
us with songs so that every note was earned and, for the most part… right; for
walking us into the world of music and showing us so much that we never want to
leave it and for just being an all-round awesome person and the best in the
business, we give you our warmest
thanks.
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| Alexis in La Scala |
Grazie
mille to you all for joining me on this account of our ‘Cantiamo’ tour
around Italy. Torna
presto a trovarci, alla prossima, ciao ciao…but never say
goodbye!
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| What, More Carbs??!! |
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| Nola enjoying the Galleria Vittoria The Oldest Shopping Mall in the World |
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| Reward for voting - Coffee |
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| This guy prefers a small beer! |
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| Talent House in Uboldo |
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| Thank you Luigi our ever reliable bus driver - for getting us to our destinations safely and on time. |
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| Thank you Ondra for guiding us through the maze of old towns, directing us to the nearest and best coffee shops, helping us hurdle the language barriers, being the source of endless information including 'height above sea level'. Grazie Mille; Děkuji |
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| Another Prosecco! |
Over the years, the Museum has stored the traces of the presence
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