Boungirono Friends and Family,
As I mentioned last week, I did so much last week that I broke it up into two parts especially because Week 8 has thankfully been less busy and more relaxing so I have less to talk about.
As we continued our trip in Vicenza, we next stopped at Tomba Brion which is an addition to a cemetery designed by Carlo Scarpa who I mentioned in last week's post. Scarpa wanted to create a sanctuary to meditate and reflect on death. The environment had a very calming effect and was very meaningful to me. Recently my grandfather Dennis Koch passed away and unfortunately, I wasn't able to travel back home for the service. I don't believe that it was a coincidence that we traveled to this memorial on the same day as my grandfather's service but instead God's plan for me that allowed me to celebrate my grandfather's life. The garden and sanctuary gave me the opportunity to remember how great of a role model my grandfather was and some of my favorite memories of him.
After that went on to Verona for the last day of our trip. This was a quick stop where we were able to see another Carlo Scarpa project Castle Vecchio as well as other highlights in the city such as the Castle Vecchio bridge and the Verona Arena. We didn’t have a ton of time to explore this town so I decided to rent a bike for an hour and just wandered around before we headed home.
Castle Vecchio Bridge
Interior Courtyard of Castle Vecchio. Most of the Scarpa renovation was on the interior of the building. It was a great architectural example of how to blend an older existing structure with a modern art gallery. A perfect blend or history and renovation.
Verona Arena (Roman Arena)
This week for class we finished up our proposal for the project we would like to see happen in Orvieto. So far up to this point we have been studying Orvieto trying to find areas where we can help improve the city. After we get back from spring break the real work will begin.
On Thursday we were able to participate in a cooking workshop where we made Bruschetta, Lasagna, and a chocolate pear cake. We were each split up into separate groups to tackle the individual tasks so unfortunately I wasn’t able to learn everything. I was tasked with making the ragu on the stove. While cooking, I learned that it was important to cook the water out of the vegetables and meat first before adding in the tomato sauce that way your sauce has more flavor.
After we finished the cooking portion of the class we headed to see the wine production on the property. The wi winery was seated on top of small hill and the valley surrounding it was covered in grade vines for wine production.
The wine cellars on property used to be Etruscan caves. Now repurposed they make the perfect wine cellar.
Every year they keep a couple bottles from that year so they are able too taste in the future and see how it has aged. Some of these bottles had lots of mold growing on it so I assume that they haven’t been touched in a few years.
After the tour we were able to enjoy the meal we had prepared. All in all it was a great workshop.
Finally on Saturday, I went back to Rome with Aenya. Aenya had a hair appointment to get her hair rebraided so I had a few hours to roam around Rome. Since I wasn’t able to book a tour for the Coliseum last time I spent most of my time there and at the Roman Forum. I also went to the top of the Palatine Hill and got a great view of the city.
I know when I was at AT&T stadium I was so impressed by the size of the facility. Now standing in coliseum I’m trying to understand how they built something of similar size was ancient techniques.
In the far distance you can see the coliseum still towering over the ruins of this ancient civilization.
Overlooking the Roman Forum from on top of the Palatine hill.
Today I spent most of the day traveling for spring break and 4 trains later we have finally made it! However you’ll have to wait till next week to figure out where we went!
Nice
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