The writers at cndkmen had a meeting and decided that if we cover Bologna chronologically, each day will be a cycle of porticos + other architecture, food, charming things, and us looking happy but very hot! So instead we’re going to do a few themed posts. Here’s a quick preview on the themes as they stand now: Hope to post all tomorrow evening, on the train back to Milan! until then, we have some more porticoes, food and charming things to enjoy!
We continued on by train to Milan and arrived in the early evening and took a taxi to our hotel. We stayed in the fashion district, which is closer to where our friends Matthew and Patricia were, in the very trendy hotel hnow. That’s not a typo! I think it’s said ‘now’. Check out the daring design choices! We had a drink and nibble at the rooftop bar We then walked over to the restaurant the out friends suggested, seeing a fashion show, paparazzi waiting for celebrities to drive by, and a lively area along a canal that reminded us…
You might have noticed that I only mentioned one swim in days 1 & 2, which means I didn’t swim on Wednesday! Big mistake, one that I set out to correct on Thursday. I watched my time more closely and finished up work at 6, walked with John to the seafront, and swam at the public beach. Then back to the hotel to shower and change, and out again for a stroll before dinner. I went to the old city, the neighborhood called Le Sequet, that sits up very high on a hill. We had a really fun meal out…
I flew to Nice on Tuesday. The train that runs along the coast to towns east and west of Nice is a short walk from the airport (well done, Nice!) and I very easily got on a train to Cannes. The view was of the Mediterranean much of the 35 minute or so journey. I met John at our hotel, also a short walk from the Cannes train station, and quickly changed into my swimsuit to walk together down to the seafront. John peeled off to the evenings awards ceremony and I went to the public beach. Great swim! Quick…
The spirit of Bloonsday is pretty infectious! Paddy handily improvised an eyepatch and was an instant James Joyce after breakfast. I took the dart into town then the lúas over to meet Phyllis at St Mary’s Abbey for a tour. The tour, or lecture really, in the chapter house space was excellent. The abbey was built in 1139 by the Cistercian order and was one of the most important monasteries in medieval Ireland. Read more here! https://heritageireland.ie/places-to-visit/st-marys-abbey-chapter-house/. The site is mentioned in the wandering rocks chapter of Ulysses, in which Dubliners make their way across the city going about their…
With two days in Dublin to take in Bloomsday-related festivities, I set out this morning to hit a few. First, I booked a spot on a Poetry & Music Stroll with a singer and songwriter Remco Jacobs. It was held at Sweny’s pharmacy with a walk to Merino Square and to the former Finn Hotel. First though, like Leopold Bloom and many Joyce fans before me, I bought a bar of lemon wax soap. Then the 20ish people on the tour all crowded into the cozy Sweny’s, not unlike the very tight quarters where we saw flamenco performed in Granada,…
We’re in sawyer this weekend and had an errand to run in nearby St Joseph. While there, we visited the lakefront and their lighthouses. I somehow didn’t get a photo of the main lighthouse, so see above here! There are two lighthouses together who’s is for navigation – a ship can position so that the two lights are lined up and be sure that the passage in to the shore is deep and safe. This is import and at this spot where a river meets the lake, since the river is dredged regularly to remove sediment and stay 25’ deep,…
We had a lot going on in May! Liam joined us in Sawyer for a very nice overnight and Mother’s Day visit. Painterly sunsets (different day and beach but still Michigan) Baby animals are a delight in May. In order that they were spotted, teenaged goslings in Humboldt park Teeny tiny wood ducks with their mom in the lagoon at Humboldt park And a fawn in the garden in sawyer! It even stayed overnight, curled up outside the outdoor shower! Blog readers may know her as mom, Mary or nana, and she turned 80 years young this month. Happy birthday,…
We took a walk in the 606 and enjoyed a lot of pretty purples in bloom At the west end, there’s a sundial. The lines pointing to where the sun sets at solstices and equinoxes form an X rather than a + which is something fun and mystifying to think about. It’s because of our distance north of the equator, right? We’ve been charting sunset locations from Michigan using a compass app and there’s a big swing between setting at a WSW position in winter to WNW position in summer!
Goslings spotted in Humboldt park! The next day we saw another family with 2 goslings. Not the biggest expert but these seemed to me a couple of weeks old. That tracks since we usually see goslings the last week or so of April.