Hill Towns

Along the Apenine mountains, between Rome and

Florence, are the regions of Tuscany and Umbria.

Many of the hill towns in this area date back to Roman

times. In Assisi we visited the basilica and saw the Giotto

frescos depicting the life of St. Francis. They date from the

the early 14th century. In Perugia, the relic associated

with the basilica is the Virgin Mary's wedding ring. They

keep it behind an ornate iron grate in a big metal sepulcher

that looks like a space capsule.

Old Stuff

Italians seem to have an odd fascination with

old stuff. Everywhere you go, especially in Rome, you

see old stuff: old buildings, old statues, old fountains.

I'm not sure why they haven't figured out that

knocking down all that stuff could make room

for buildings that would generate some serious

cash like condos and strip malls. Who knows, maybe

there's even oil down there. Hey, I'm as

sentimental as the next guy, but after

2,000 years, it's time to move on.

San Michele

Everywhere we went in Italy, I was

constantly astonished at the variety and

intricacy of the architecture. The people who

created all of this stuff never needed 80 ton

hydrolic cranes, fork lifts or building permits,

and it's still there after all this time. Imagine.

Foro Romano

No matter where you are in Rome,

you're never far from a reminder of

the city's long and complex history.

From the Forum and Colosseum,

to the Pantheon and St. Peters,

to Trevi Fountain and the

Victor Emanuele monument,

Rome is a living timeline of the

history of Western culture.

Come Fly With Me

I love to travel but I dont like the going

and coming back part. When you fly, you're

crammed into a huge metal tube with

400 strangers then go streaking through the sky

at 600 miles an hour, 35,000 feet in the air

for hour after tedious hour and the only thing

they give you to break the monotony are some

miniature pretzels and a TV dinner. your neck

gets stiff, your legs get numb. Slaves rowing

Roman war ships had more leg room. But its

still the quickest way to get there.

Lunch With Sofia

Mary, Sue and I hiked down a seemingly

endless maze of winding steps and narrow

cobblestone streets to the marina in

Sorrento. We had lunch at a little family run

cafe near the edge of the harbor. As we looked

over the menu, one of the two sisters who

operate the place brought three small

photo albums to our table. The albums were

filled with snapshots of the night

Sopia Loren stopped in for dinner. they were

very proud, of course. That would never

happen at Denny's.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Any Irishman who plays

a ukulele is OK in my book.

Non Parlo Italiano

I thought I'd get one more post in

before we head off to Italy. I was reading an article

about Tuscany in the National Geographic Traveler

magazine and saw a photo of the Uffizi, thought it

would make an interesting drawing.

Imagine the Sistine Chapel

done in colored pencils.

Tete de Femme

I've been working on my technique

for drawing portaits. Sometimes I'll

randomly browse through a book or

magazine and start to sketch a picture

that catches my eye, just doodling with the

sketch book on my lap. The process makes

me focus on proportions and relationships

of the elements of the subject. I couldn't say

where this one came from but I'm happy

with the way it turned out.

From Here to November

" As societies grow decadent,

the language grows decadent, too.

Words are used to disguise, not to

illuminate, action: you liberate a city

by destroying it. Words are used to confuse,

so that at election time people will

solemnly vote against their own interests."

Gore Vidal

An apt thought this election season.

Super Chunk

Ever since I was a little kid,

I've loved peanut butter. It's great on

toast, crackers, and smeared on a

crisp stick of celery. With out it

Elvis would only have had fried banana

sandwiches. Crunchy or smooth, it's

comfort food in a jar.