Another Shot from the Castle's Kitchen Window!

Reflection Shot

Welcome to Another Month of Florentine Braheem!

This Month:

* Ospedale (The bidet that saved the day!)

* Once Around (Beginning our goodbyes)

*Rome "The Eternal City" (A family Trip)

* The Love of Art and Children (An Amazing Night!)

* The Lost Art of Fresco (An encounter with an artist)

* The Return of My mom (A surprise for the kids)

* The Arrival of Emily

* Lo Sport (Fiorentina and a Surprising Revelation)

* Lo Sport (10K)

* Coming Home (What We're Looking Forward to)

*Gelato Time

* Cheap Seats (Sagra, The City at Night, Friendly Faces "Merv" & Country Days)

Enjoy!

Ospedale (When the Bidet Saved the Day!)

Our year here has been filled with highs and very few lows. Mid May brought upon us a few days that we would just assume forget.

My mom returned to Florence after not having been here since early November (And not having seen us since Christmas) and our close friend Emily (Who has been watching our house while we are away) arrived just two days later.

I on the other hand had managed to dodge bullets all year long and had avoided falling ill since we arrived in Italy in August. In fact, I think that it had been over a year since I had even had a cold! Well my streak came to an abrupt end the day after they arrived in Florence and put a serious damper on our weekend together :>(

It started innocently with a low grade fever and knees that ached as if I had just run in the Florence marathon. After two days of symptoms that couldn’t stop me from keeping with my workout routine, it hit me like a locomotive.

Over the next thirty six hours I spent my time traversing back and forth “Literally” every twenty to thirty minutes between our bedroom and our bathroom. Those that have prepped for a colonoscopy need only to recall that fateful night and multiply it by about five times the length, add a fever of about 102 degrees to the mix, and you will understand what I went through! Over the span of four days I lost 4.5 kilo (about 10 pounds!)

By Saturday night my doctor (Who had made three house calls over the previous two days) felt it was time for me to go to the hospital for blood tests and to stave off dehydration. In total I spent about five hours in the hospital with an IV in my arm receiving fluids. The good news was that the blood work for Salmonella and other serious things came back negative and I was sent home to the comforts of my overused mattress and the commode that I had become far too intimate with!

Ahhh, but there’s a silver lining in this story and it rests on the seat of the bidet! When one spends so much time squatting as I did in that horrible period, the word “Chapped” is enough to send chills down your spine! There is no shortage of “Morbido” toilet tissue in Italia, but even the softest wiping materials won’t protect the most delicate of skin!

The routine was pretty simple and by no time I was able to do it in my sleep (Or at least with my eyes closed at three in the morning!)

Step 1: Sit on the toilet for three to five seconds before action happens.

Step 2: Wait till all is finished including severe abdominal cramping.

Step 3: Resist habit of reaching for toilet tissues and “Slide Step” to the right approximately 18 inches.

Step 4: Turn on bidet water to desired temperature (If wanting to go back to sleep wait till water is warm!)

Step 5: Enjoy how fresh you feel

Step 6: Dab toilet tissue to remove wetness

Step 7: Go back to bed

The thought of having to endure those three days without the help of a bidet is something that I would never want to go through. My guess that I would still be walking a bit gingerly two weeks later :>)

Looking and Feeling Like Shit

Once Around

Have you ever seen this movie? It starred Holly Hunter, Richard Dryfus and Danny Aiello. There’s a famous scene at the end where they drive in a circle in a roundabout in their limo. It’s their way of reliving a very fond memory together.

For us, our Once Around has begun and it’s been hard so far. Many of our friends are surprised for some reason to find out that we will not be returning to Italy after the summer. “Che pecata” (What a shame) they murmur under their breath. Everyone wants to get together for a final dinner or lunch. Our social calendar is slammed. The outpouring of attachment is incredibly flattering.

It makes it hard as in so many ways, we have tried to “Detach”, at least I have. I’ve found myself pulling away from some of my casual acquaintances, goodbyes are hard for everyone, I’m no exception. Many of my friends have asked me of late “What’s wrong? You seem different. Is everything OK?” I guess I’m not doing such a great job of hiding my feelings. Its as if I don’t want to be sad, so as a means of protection, I am guarded. What a contrast. Not more than five months ago, I was writing about working hard to make friends and now I’m trying to figure out how to fly under the radar screen. I’d be lying to say that the thought hasn’t crossed my mind that it would have been easier to not have developed any deep friendships. But if I were to do it all over again, I’d do it the same way.

Those that we are close with (You saw their faces in last months blog) are another story. It’s not possible to detach from them and we don’t want to. For several of them it’s as if they are grasping for every last minute with us, trying to figure out how to squeeze in another bit of time together. Many of them have been very open about their feelings, telling us that they will cry when we leave or that there will be a void in their life.

I often think about the courage that they have for allowing themselves to become friends with us! For a guy like Paolo “The Gentile Giant” he has poured his soul into our friendship like very few people that I have ever known. It’s as if he’s Trey and Olivia’s Uncle at this point. He loves them and them him. Now he has to say goodbye. We feel so sad for him, but at the same time admire his willingness to become our friend knowing that it would be limited in time and scope.

This brings up an interesting question. Why would these people be so attached to us when we’ve only known each other for a short period of time and in some cases still can’t fluently communicate with one another? The answer seems to lie in the difference with us as Americans. Several people over the last few months have told us that we are “different” not like their Italian friends. We’ve been told that we’re “Open”, “Happier”, “Non Judgmental” and “Unique”. I would imagine that given the fact that this has been the most magical year of our lives, that Anna and I have had a great energy when interacting with people. It’s not like we’re in a bad mood very often!

These compliments of course need to be taken with a very light grain of salt, but they raise an interesting issue. Have we been a breath of fresh air in their lives, displaying the hopes that naturally come with the freedom of being an American? I ask this because I have been told so many times by different people that Americans are happier than Italians, that they dream more and that they have an enthusiasm that’s not guarded, that’s full of adventure.

When I reflect back on the past year, I do see a guardedness in the Italian people in many ways. I think that it comes from having been disappointed so many times by their government, so many un kept promises about a better life and system to live in.

For some of our friends, for various reasons we will never see them again and will be left to wonder what the meaning of our encounter was in the first place. Others will perhaps be our friends for the rest of our lives. For now, our revolution around the roundabout will continue throughout June and into early July. It won’t get easier but certainly harder. The second half of this tale will be covered in the final blog next month. Stay tuned…

Another Victory over Davide in Tic Tac Toe!

Livy and Paolo (The Gentile Giant)

Rome (The Eternal City)

Few places on the planet have such history. Athens comes to mind, but yet it’s such a shadow of what it once was. You can make a case for Cairo but so much of its antiquities are outside the current modern city. Perhaps more than any other city in the world’s history, Rome has stood the test of time and passed with an “A”.

I remember when we came here the first time, nearly eight years ago with my mom and dad. Trey was only two years old and just learning to talk. I can still close my eyes and see his chubby little legs staggering down the cobblestone sidewalks as we passed the outdoor café’s on Via Veneto Vittorio. The woman thought that he was the cutest thing that they had ever seen and the men…well lets just say he was the ultimate “Little Bambino” to the men.

We’ve intentionally avoided coming to Rome for the last several months because we wanted to experience it again as more than just an appetizer over a normal 48 hour weekend. Yet even with the four full days that we spent in Italy’s ancient capital at the end of May, we still felt as if the time was inadequate.

Rome’s greatest asset is its biggest challenge as it is so overwhelming at times. Rome is not an overly large city, but it feels that way at times. However, consider that it packs in its three million inhabitants and still manages to host virtually every culture as one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations.

What really makes the former capital of the world so interesting and overwhelming all at once is sheer number of historical things to see. It’s as if Rome is an onion, and as you continue to peel back its layers, new ones appear that you never new existed.

The top layers are the places that everyone visits their first time to Rome:

The Colluseum: The spectacular host of Gladiator Matches over two thousand years ago.

St. Peter’s Basilica (Vatican City): The World’s largest church and home to the Pope

The Trevi Fountain: Second to no fountain on the planet and a gathering place for people from all over the world.

The Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel: One of the greatest Museums on earth and home to Michelangelo’s other great masterpiece, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

This is only a small sampling of great things to see and we’re still talking about well known attractions.

Anna and I wanted to peel back a few layers and see some things that many tourists never have the time to explore. We of course were limited, in that we only had four days to do it and also have a nine and six year old.

Our trip to Rome ended up being a bit of a world wind, with us having a private tour two different days and doing some exploring on our own. The highlights were our visits to the Coluseum, The Vatican Museum and the Church of St. Clement…

The Coluseum: Those that have seen the movie Gladiator, should note that I spoke with a couple of historians on the subject of old Rome and the consensus is that the movie did a very good job of depicting how things were. Knowing this makes a visit to the Coluseum so much more intriguing as you can play out in your mind what it must have been like to be in such an impressive stadium with the crowd on their feet cheering for blood!

The Coluseum was built in 72 AD and it took fifteen million slaves eight years to complete (Almost as long as it took those Italian woman to clean the first house we lived in when we first moved to Florence!)

It held fifty five thousand spectators and the arena could be emptied in only ten minutes due to its sophisticated architectural design!

Our visit through the Coluseum taught us a great deal about the importance of sport and entertainment back in the time of Cesar. In many ways it was his way of controlling the people, by providing them with a spectacle that they had never seen.

When viewing the photos, note that the temporary flooring that is at the far end of the stadium is to show where the fighting floor existed back then. The fascinating thing about the Coluseum is that below the fighting surface was a vast labyrinth of Gladiator holding cells, hallways and trap doors for surprise entrances through the stadium floor and cages to host the numerous wild animals that would take place in the fighting. What you see in the photos are the remains of this labyrinth.

To this day, it remains one of the greatest pieces of archeology in the world and it was every bit as impressive the second time as the first.

The Vatican Museum: I remember having visited the Vatican Museum with a private tour guide eight years ago, but I think that I forgot how impressive this museum really is. In fact it may be the best museum that I have ever been to and that includes the Louvre in Paris.

The Museum itself was started back in the early 1500’s by Pope Julius II and it hosts some of the worlds finest art ranging from ancient Greek and Roman sculptures, to amazing tapestries, mosaics, amazing frescos, oil on canvass and of course the World’s most well known Ceiling Fresco, the Sistine Chapel.

They line up for hours waiting to get into the museum and it’s for one reason, to see the ceiling crafted by the great Michelangelo. When asked by the Pope to take on the monumental task of painting the ceiling, he responded “I’m not a painter, I’m a sculptor”. To see the results of something that he considered himself to be “second best” at, is the truest testament to his greatness.

In all it took him four and a half years to paint Capella Sistine, which depicts various scenes from the Old Testament. Michelangelo was solely responsible for the ceiling while he and other great artists of the time (Such as Raphael and Botticelli) assisted in painting the surrounding walls.

A trip through the Chapel can be frustrating as the first thought that crosses your mind is all the people that you know that have not witnessed something so spectacular. Unfortunately its not possible to recreate the experience, even IF they would let you take photos inside!

The Church of St. Clement – One night here in Florence, Anna was watching the history channel and took interest in a show that was telling all about the “Underground” city in Rome that very few tourists ever get to. According to the show, much of ancient Rome is buried under the ground as centuries have seen dozens of new building erected on top of the cities antiquities.

We decided to ask our tour guide to take us to one of these locations. Her suggestion was the Church of Saint Clement. It turned out to be the highlight of our trip!

As you enter the small church at street level, you ask yourself the question “What’s so special about this place”, especially if you have been in as many impressive churches as we have. However its what’s “underneath” the current church which was built in the 1200’s that is the amazing thing!

As you descend down the thirty some odd stairs that are at are on the far side of the church, the air becomes more damp and the temperature significantly more cool. You are entering the old St. Clement Church which was built in 500 AD! When the barbarians from the North conquered Rome in the 5^th Century, they destroyed many of its ancient buildings by removing the ceilings and filling them in with dirt.

Once the Christians took hold in Rome they began to erect buildings on top of the old remains using a great deal of the marble columns from the Roman Empire to assist in their new construction.

The lower church is in remarkably good shape and even has several sarcophagi in its catacombs. I was able to hold the camera still in the dim light to pull off a few photos.

Just when we thought that we had descended to the bottom, our guide informed us that the old city streets of Rome were actually below the first church that was built in the 5^th Century! We were astonished to find that we could go down even further below the ground and that below the underground church were old buildings and city streets dating back to before Christ! It was so cool being down so far below the earth’s surface and imagining what life must have been like.

As it turns out there are dozens of sights like this one (Although The Church of St. Clement has some of the more developed excavations) throughout the city, some of which have still yet to be dug.

So, when I say that Rome is like an onion with layers that still need to be peeled back, perhaps you now better understand the analogy! Literally the current city is in large part built “on top” of ancient Rome.

Anna and I have discussed whether Rome would be a place for a future Braheem family adventure? Lets at least say that its worth many more visits and a lot more digging :>)

Having a Seat on the Spanish Steps

The Sistine Chapel

One of Many amazing Tapestry in the Vatican Museum

The Vatican Museum's Amazing Ceilings

Vatican Ceilings up Close

St. Clement, the Underground Church

Ancient Roman Streets 30 Feet Underground!

A sip from a 2000 year old Fountain!

The Coluseum

Inside the Great Stadium

Among antique greatness

The Trevi Fountain

The Worlds Largest Church and Home of the Pope (St. Peters)

The Love of Art and of Children (Simply a wonderful night!)

Anna and I have managed to begin the “Detachment from Italy” process, now that we are less than 45 days before returning home. Some days its easy when you start to day dream about seeing your friends and family again, taking in a ball game in So Cal, or laying in the backyard by the pool on a nice summer day.

Then, Florence does it to you again…”Not so Fast Damn it! You’re not falling out of love with me that easy”. “Here is yet another experience that will remind you of how unique and special this city is”, she says.

The special night began very modestly. It was a Friday and as usual I took Trey to tennis after school, while Anna and Olivia went to swimming. We showered the kids and then were faced with the always difficult decision of which of the dozens of great restaurants we wanted to have dinner at.

In last month’s blog, I mentioned that our good friend Paulo “The Gentile Giant” works in a parking garage in the center of the city. He lets us park there for free which comes in handy as it’s nearly impossible to find parking in Florence’s city center, especially at night. There have been times where we had to walk nearly a mile to dinner in the rain having settled for the closest parking spot we could find!

When we arrived at the garage, Paolo as usual was waiting for us and excited to see the kids. He insisted on washing our car while we were eating dinner, but then surprised Trey by asking him if he wanted to use the “power washer”. You’ve likely seen this devise before but probably have never held one. It’s like a blow torch that shoots out a massive amount of water under high pressure, perfect for a nine year old boy!

Trey of course jumped at the chance and gripped the handle with both hands tightly. When he pulled the trigger, water came blasting out and the shear force nearly knocked him on his rear end! As he staggered backwards, he couldn’t keep the nozzle pointed down. The gun veered upwards, and he managed to include three other vehicles in the car washing process, including one with its window down!

Man we had a great laugh and as usual, Paolo did it again, managing to make the kids smile. Its funny, it’s like he’s there uncle. They both run to him and hug him every time they see him.

After leaving the garage, we walked a few blocks to one of the center’s great restaurants, Trattoria Garga. We have dined many times at Garga, but usually without the kids, having only taken them there once. A night out in the center can be a late night and all the walking can be tough on the little ones and getting home before 11:00 can be a challenge.

Garga is a really hip Italian Trattoria, with paintings all over the walls (Some within frames and some directly on the walls themselves). The art work is beyond description because it’s so eclectic. Its as if you have entered someone’ garage, and they have just taken the contents of their mind (both good and bad thoughts) and guided them to the walls. An example would be of one such painting that depicts the devil with an erection! Not all of the works are this graphic, but you get the idea when it comes to creativity and expression!

When we arrived, we were welcomed as usual with open arms. We sat and placed our orders (I had my favorite dish, the veal with truffle cream and sliced avocados on top! Kirk will attest that this is a winner of a dish!) The kids as usual were great and brought along with them the felt markers and paper that their buddy Paolo had given them a week ago! They love to draw and can occupy an entire meal with their creativity.

What happened from this point resulted in a night that Anna and I will never forget as parents. One by one over the course of the next 90 minutes, the waiters kept coming, not to see Anna and I, but to watch the kids draw and to participate in the experience. First they brought new white cloth napkins and showed Livy how to hold five different colored markers at a time to make various multi colored patterns.

One waiter drew a bird, another the profile of a man and a third, a snowman. Livy and Trey were so into it as they added to the mural that was being created on their individual linens. Before we new it, they had bowls of water on the table and were creating “Tie Die”! They used the salt shakers to salt the colors and create dimension to their master pieces. The table had been turned into an art room! The best part was that no one cared that the ink was leaking through to the table cloth or that the water was spilling on the floor. The entire wait staff was into it, and kept telling the kids what great artists they were. The smiles on their faces were priceless. Like Anna said, it was as if the waiters all had little boys inside them that were just waiting to come out!

Imagine how the kids felt, being in a nice restaurant and being encouraged to be kids!

Just when we thought that the night would end, they asked us if we would like to see their private art studio! They took us to a back corner of the restaurant. Garga used to be someones home about five hundred years ago and like many restaurants in Florence it doesn’t have one large dining room, but rather numerous small rooms with tables. We exited through a curtain and down a long flight of stairs into the basement. When we arrived, we found two small rooms that were covered with original art, every bit as eclectic as the display upstairs. My favorite piece was an actual centuries old fireplace that was filled with empty wine bottles and had a wooden frame around the opening, giving the impression that it was a painting. The waiter then revealed that many of the pieces of art in the underground studio as well as the restaurant upstairs were in fact created by them.

What a wonderful experience for the kids. In America, artists are not revered like they are here. Artistic expression (Letting what is inside of you come out) is not only encouraged but cherished here in a way that we cherish athletic talent back home.

Additionally, it was yet another reminder of how differently children are looked at here versus at home. I would say that America is one of the more family friendly countries in the world, but still there is something about Italians and children that is quite special. On numerous occasions we have witnessed Italian woman and men (Perhaps men more than woman) show an affection for Trey and Olivia that you only see from family in the US.

Often times it’s a kiss on the top of the head that a friend will give to the kids after having just met them for the first time. There are other occasions where it’s simply giving their time to take interest in what the kids are up to.

This is solely theory on my part, but I think that the answer may lie (At least to some extent) within their difficulty in having children due to financial restrictions. If our society had a higher death rate than birth rate, would we view children differently? Would it make us cherish them even more than we already do? I do know that several of our friends would like to have kids, but simply can’t afford to at this point.

Whatever the reason, it’s been truly a pleasure as a parent to see our children treated with so much respect and given so much attention by Italian adults. I can’t think of a better country to host our family for these past ten months.

Car Wash!

A Great Night for the kids

Everyone Joined in!

The Masterpiece before Tiedye

The Lost Art of Fresco

For many years it has been my goal to own a piece of art from Italy. Our first adventure into art purchases took place five years ago when Anna and I stumbled upon an original oil on canvass in a small town called Montelpulciano. The piece was approximately five feet by five feet and the shop owner claimed that it dated back to the 1600’s. There was no way for us to know of its authenticity and with only a hour to contemplate the option of spending nearly thirty thousand dollars while on vacation, we took the prudent route and held off on such an important investment.

When we decided to come to Florence for a year, it became our goal to educate ourselves on the ins and outs of art investment and to buy the ultimate souvenir from our family adventure. As we educated ourselves by visiting numerous art and antique shops, we quickly realized that we were in for a rude awakening. All of the quality oil on canvass available from the 15, 16 or 1700’s were priced greatly beyond where we were comfortable. We were astonished to find that prices were ranging between one hundred and fifty and four hundred thousand euro! We resolved ourselves that it just wasn’t reasonable for us to continue looking for art…

In early May, our buddy Paolo “The Gentile Giant” gave us tickets to one of the biggest art fairs held in Europe every year “The Mostra” which comes to Florence for ten days each May.

When we arrived we were surprised to find that the show consisted of several large buildings which housed literally hundreds of artisans showing off their craft. The first building we entered featured artists of various crafts (Silver artists, painters, weavers of fine linens etc…) we were immediately attracted to an artist however that seemed particularly unique. He was a middle aged man who had on display numerous “Frescos”.

For those of you who think you know what a fresco is (And for those that don’t) I will clarify in a moment, but there was something else very special about the artist Antonio Di Vito. When Anna saw him she immediately grabbed my arm, “Honey, oh my God! I read about this man in the paper. He’s one of the last Fresco artists around. He’s amazing. God honey, this is a sign! We’re meant to buy something from him!” Those of you who know Anna are probably laughing right now because you could see her getting all worked up in her adorable way and saying that to me!

The story actually continues a couple of weeks later, but for now lets say that we worked out a deal over the phone the following week to buy our two favorite pieces from Antonio Di Vito.

Two weeks later we were at his home in the countryside where he does all of his painting in the privacy of his farm house that was built in the 1400’s! We decided to take my Alex to meet Antonio, knowing that she would be appreciative of his talents. My mom had just arrived the night before and what better way to welcome her back to Italy than to take her to the house of an artist!

The art of Fresco dates back seven to eight hundred years. Perhaps the world’s most famous fresco is that of the ceiling in the Sistine Chapel in Rome (Painted by the master Michelangelo). Frescos are most commonly found in churches, but what makes them unique is that they painted directly onto the wall rather than on canvass or wood.

What many don’t know about fresco is the difficulty behind the technique itself. The artist uses “pigment” rather than paint. As an example, one such pigment common in Italy is a pigment named “Terra” which is the color of the earth in Sienna, a mustard yellow color. The artist simply takes the terra and mixes it with a little water on his or her brush and paints directly onto the stucco itself. The catch is that the stucco must be fresh and wet! When the terra is mixed into the wet stucco, the stucco absorbs the pigment and the cement literally becomes that color once dried.

A fresco artist, unlike any other type of artist must be very quick in creating their masterpiece. If the stucco dries, it’s too late to continue and therefore the artist only has about six hours to compete his work.

Additionally the artist must have a very delicate hand when using the brush. The surface of the wet stucco is of course movable and a heavy hand would create indentations that would forever be seen once dried.

Di Vito, recreates some of the worlds most famous works on wet stucco and adds his own twist. In particular he is a big fan of Da Vinci. The two works that we purchased are recreations of the great Leonardo, including “The Annunciation” (The original oil on canvass hangs in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence).

For Anna and I to have met one of the worlds remaining fresco artists, purchased his original works and spent time with him at his home watching him exercise his craft was really an amazing experience and yet another irreplaceable memory of our time here. The icing on the cake was when he and his wife made lunch for my mom, Alex, Anna and I and we spent a lazy afternoon in his garden eating together.

You may be wondering how we can bring home a piece of stucco that was once affixed to a wall. It’s a special technique (That few know about using glue that allows him to slowly remove the stucco from the wall that it was painted on. Since the “terra” is dry upon removal and therefore the color is a part of the cement itself, the glue doesn’t in any way damage the quality of the painting.

The photos will prove this point! Now we just need to find room in our house to hang all this stuff :>)

The Master at Work on fresh plaster

Da Vinci's Annunciation (Anna's Favorite) It will hang on our staircase!

My favorite Piece and now its ours :>)