All in a Day

Here's a typical day for me in Venice:

Up at 7 a.m., shower, get dressed, and pack my shoulder bag with my guidebook, map, dictionary, notebook for school, bottle of water, and camera.

I usually walk to school. On some days I pass this cat outside the building. Look at his eyes.

Orange eyes!

On the way to school I pass a little bakery on a very narrow street. I always stop for breakfast -- something sweet like a croissant filled with marmalade, or a chocolate pastry. Everything there is delicious. The woman behind the counter is named Sylvia and she is very nice. Today I asked her for a picture, and she led me into the back of the bakery so I could get a picture of the bakers too.

Sylvia and the bakers.

Then I walk to Piazzale Roma. There are only 3 or 4 bridges that cross the Grand Canal, so if I want to walk to school I have to go to this piazzale to get across. The next closest bridge, the Rialto Bridge, is too far away. Then I walk to Campo Santa Margherita, where the school is. Classes start at 9.

Inside the school. Classrooms are on the left and right of the hallway.

At 10:50 a.m. we take a 20 minute break, and I usually go outside to get a macchiato. There are two cafes less than a minute away. I go to the one that also serves food -- pastries, cookies, slices of pizza, and my favorite: arancini, or fried balls of yellow rice stuffed with meat & cheese or vegetables. Delicious! At this cafe, there are no chairs. You drink and eat at the counter, the Italian way.

Classes start again at 11:10 and last until 1. Then I have lunch somewhere with classmates. That's the end of the structured part of the day. From 2 p.m. on I walk around and go sightseeing. I usually don't get home until after 7. Then I relax, read email, update the blog, etc. Then dinner, and possibly a drink or two afterward.


Today in class I told a story in Italian. It was really, really poor Italian, and I had to look up several words beforehand, but Marga (who is also a beginner) told me later that she understood it. I only know how to speak in present tense, so here it is in English as I told it. It's a true story:


Last night I go to a bar. The bartender's name is Enrico. He is my bartender. I give him may Euros and he gives me many beers. A dog comes to the bar. I say, "Enrico, your dog?" Enrico says, "Yes." I say, "The name?" He says, "Bigoi." I say, "What is the meaning of Bigoi?" He says, "Spaghetti in Venetian." I say, "Your dog is Spaghetti?" He says, "Yes." I order a panino. The panino comes. Bigoi ... (at this point I mime Bigoi sniffing the air). Bigoi comes here (I point to my feet). I say, "Enrico, I give a little bit of panino?" He says, "No, he's too fat!" I ... (then I mime sneaking food to Bigoi).

After class, my classmate Marga, who is Dutch, and I went to the Peggy Guggenheim Museum. After all of the religious art I have seen, I was ready for something different. Peggy Guggenheim bought a palazzo (palace) here and spent a lot of her time hanging out with and cultivating artists like Jackson Pollock. Her personal collection is now on display in the palazzo, which was turned into a museum. On display are Pollock, Picasso, Dali, Kandinsky, Mondrian, and many others. Photos are not allowed inside, but here are a few I was allowed to take:

This tree, in her garden, was a gift from Yoko Ono. People hang wishes from it.

Peggy is buried in the garden.

Her home is on the Grand Canal. This is the view from her bedroom.

The anatomically correct The Angel of the City is outside the front door.

Also anatomically correct.

Marga and me in the garden.

After the Guggenheim, Marga and I went to a free exhibition we heard about of avant garde art. The exhibition was literally in the home of a Polish man who lives on a campo (square) and sets these exhibits up for anyone to see. You just have to ring the doorbell and be let in.

The entrance to his home.

This particular exhibition focuses on light and movement, and has a bauhaus influence. I am not an art connoisseur and know nothing about any of this, but I am going to list the artists in case you are:

Jesus Rafael Soto, Penetrable
Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, Ein Lightspiel Schwarz Weiss Grau
Werner Greaff, Komposition II
Carlos Cruz-Diez, Chromosatuation
Julio Le Parc, Continuel Lumiere Mobile
And some others. And now the art ...

You had to walk through this.

Me

Three rooms

Various light boxes

Even though I have been here for 12 days, I am still awestruck by how beautiful the Grand Canal is, especially on a sunny day. So here's another shot, taken today.