Italy

Each summer the girls and I return home for the summer while John remains in Abu Dhabi for work. Europe is about midway on the long flight between Abu Dhabi and Chicago. Last year we stopped over in Paris. This year we decided to take an extended layover in Italy- a few day to visit friends in Umbria and a few days in Rome. John decided to join us for a long weekend before leaving us and returning to Abu Dhabi.

Hannah was once again our unofficial trip photographer:

First stop: Montefalco, Umbria, to see our friends Heidi and Tom. We have known them pretty much forever. 

Tom made us true Italian pizzas in their very own backyard pizza oven.

The setting for dinner is about as picturesque as it gets:

More photos taken around Tom and Heidi's home, on the outskirts of town.

The next day Heidi took us on a tour of the nearby town of Bevagna, originally settled by the Etruscans over 2000 years ago.

Inside Bevagna's San Silvestro, a XII Century Church.

 

We peered through an open doorway where some craftsmen were working on traditional Italian mosaics. They kindy invited us in to show us how the art was created.

 More scenes around the town. It is impossibe to get a bad photograph in Umbria.

We headed back to Montefalco for lunch. Several years ago Tom started a micro-brewing company in Montefalco that he has just recently sold. The last of his beers are still available at the local restaurants.

We wandered around Montefalco while waiting for the museum of San Francesco to open.

 

The most famous work of art in Montefalco is Madonna del Soccorso by Tiberio d'Assisi, ca 1510.  I find it fascinating because the woman is supposed to be saving the child and scaring away the devil, but at first glance it appears that the woman is about to beat her own child. The ambiguity is intriguing.

After two nights in Montefalco, we headed to Rome. We stayed at the Donna Camilla Savelli Hotel in Trastevere, originally a convent designed by Borromini in 1643.

In, above, and around our hotel, a five minute walk from Bramante's Tempietto:

St. Peter's (with outhouses near the center of the main piazza, a surprising eyesore)

Overpriced ice cream at Tre Scalini, but you pay for the experience of relaxing while enjoying the activities in Piazza Navona.

One of my favorite buildings in Rome, the Pantheon:

Campo de' Fiori. When I studied in Rome for a semester in graduate school, my studio was located in the building in the background - the Palazzo Pio:

Piazza Farnese:

Nearby, the three dimensional forced perspective at Galleria Spada, also designed by Borromini:

 The Colosseum and Roman Forum:

Not everything in Rome is old. The MAXXI (Museum of Art in the XXI Century), designed by Zaha Hadid, is well worth a visit. The building itself is a challenge to the senses. The exhibits, such as the video installations we saw by Fiona Tan, are all thought provoking.

We unfortunately ended up losing a day's worth of photographs, including the Trevi Fountain, the Villa Borghese Galleria, the Vatican Museum, the inside of St. Peter's (an hour wait to get it), and photos of Pope Francis. We saw him quite by accident, from up high inside the dome of St. Peter's, looking down over his weekly Wednesday afternoon mass. We somehow managed to save a photo of the Spanish Steps and a view from the Borghese Gardens, looking over the city of Rome.

 At the end of each exhausting but fulfilling day, coming back to Trastevere and picking a place to eat from one of the many sidewalk cafes and restaurants was always a treat. Rome is an amazing place to visit and now we have a new favorite hotel that we can stay at when we return.

Post Script: Our friend Heidi, who had been fighting cancer for many years, died just a few weeks after our visit. She was originally from Switzerland and lived with my family as an au pair when I was seven years old. She returned several years later and lived with us for another three years while she completed a degree at the University of Illinois. Tom is the son of someone my mom used to work with and was studying at the U of I at the same time. They lived in Austin, Texas before moving to Italy for an early retirement. My family has always kept in close touch with Heidi and Tom over the years, with visits to Champaign, Chicago, Austin, Switzerland, and Italy. We consider them family. 

I wanted to add something here (this is from John). When we were visiting Heidi and Tom at one point they remarked how the girls seemed comfortable and confident in conversations with them. I remember this very clearly, I said, " We always talk about you as if you are family, I think that makes them comfortable and at ease around you." It is the truth, they really are part of our family.

I love this photo of Heidi. At one point in her life she was a tour guide, taking tourists from Europe to places all over the world. She was wonderful at organizing big events, especially parties for friends and family that went on for days, complete with fabulous meals, hikes, and wine and olive oil tastings. In this photo she is doing what she loves to do best, directing us to the next point of interest somewhere in Italy. She will be missed.