Treading in the Footsteps of the Famous

There is something that appeals about walking in the footsteps of the famous. Somehow it is inspiring to tread the same streets walked by historical figures and try to feel their presence and try to think of the place as they would have found it.

In April we stayed in a house a mere 20 metres from the side door of Santa Croce church. We saw people queue to enter each day as we headed off to other parts of town. After 3 days, we discovered what they were visiting. Buried here are many Italian luminaries, including Michelangelo, Galileo, Marconi (radio inventor), poet Dante, philosopher Machiavelli, and Rossini (composer). And to think we almost missed it!

We have:
• walked in Florence, where Michaelangelo spent his childhood,
• strolled around Newton’s Cambridge, where he investigated light during the Great Plague years,
• wandered through Mozart’s birthplace,
• sat in Burns' rustic cottage,
• visited Stratford, the family home of playwright Shakespeare.

While visiting such places, one thought I have is: What would this person think about the effect they have had on the world? Would they be impressed with historical developments that they somehow triggered? Would they approve?

So, this week was our time to visit Arles in Provence, where Van Gogh spent the years 1888-9 and painted local scenes. It was in this town that his psychiatric condition worsened, and when he cut off his ear, it concerned local residents so much that they sought to have him certified in the local mental institution.

Shadows on the hills,
Sketch the trees and the daffodils,
Catch the breeze and the winter chills,
In colors on the snowy linen land.


Today, one can take a guided walk around Arles to view the scenes of many of his paintings during this prolific time. His Starry Night over the Rhone was set here, as was his famous bridge paintings and recognisable self-portraits. One can still see the wheat fields and sunflowers in full bloom and think of his painting of scenes like these.

Colors changing hue, morning field of amber grain,
Weathered faces lined in pain,
Are soothed beneath the artist's loving hand.


In the centre of old town is the Forum Place which Van Gogh painted. We dined at the Van Gogh restaurant, which today is painted in the bright yellow colours of yesteryear. The only thing missing from this enjoyable event was Don Maclean softly singing in the background.

Now I understand what you tried to say to me,
How you suffered for your sanity,
How you tried to set them free.
They would not listen, they did not know how.
Perhaps they'll listen now.

Unfortunately, Van Gogh’s art is not found in Arles, but mostly displayed in distant Netherlands. That will have to wait a few weeks until after we travel Germany.
(p.s. My Sunflower photo has been Van Gogh-ed)

Gaudi's work is not ABC

There is a story of a traveller on an organised tour who was carefully taking notes of each place on the itinerary. The tour guide noticed that occasionally the traveller would simply record 'ABC'. When asked as to the coded meaning, the traveller replied, 'Another Bloody Church'.


Cathedrals are designed to be big... impressive... awesome. And they succeed. Designed to inspire, they are a credit to the commitment of past societies, many small, which built such amazing edificies. Most took many generations to complete and almost every city has one in a prime position. The architecture is impressive with similar designs to allow tall buildings to stay upright ... for centuries.

The development of the flying buttress was a design feature discovered by the master builders of the middle ages. Masonry has excellent compression properties, but little tensile strength. Medieval architects did not have steel to reinforce their buildings, and the flying buttress allowed the distribution of forces to the ground without tension. The Romans discovered the arch and medieval builders used this architectural development to construct their magnificent edifices. These designs allowed the buildings to be light and have sunlight enter through intricate stained glass windows. These are colourful, even if one needs binoculars to see the details.

Unfortunately, one of the signs of tiring is the feeling that we have seen another bloody church, and they begin to appear similar. Which they do. And although I have enjoyed seeing them in their settings, there is that sameness that has crept into our visits.

That was ... until Barcelona.

The Sagrada Familia is a massive structure by any benchmark. It is loud and ostentatious and it appears as if the designer aimed to out-do all competition in cathedral building.

It has a great wow-factor that brings out a reaction from all who enter. Before I visited, I thought the exterior was loud and unnecessarily excessive. Why have one tall spire, when eighteen will do the job better? Twelve for the apostles, four evangelists, Mary and the yet to be built tallest one for Jesus. It is just .. too much.

Gaudi designed his buildings in the modernista style, and this one has it all. He developed a way to remove the time-tested flying buttress, and his ideas use natural elements seen during his childhood in rural Spain.

The massive columns have been transformed into tall trees, and one looks up into a forest canopy.


We walked through a giant construction site and witnessed the building of an engineering marvel. Architects are attempting to maintain integrity with Gaudi's original design, but can now use modern materials. And like the medieval cathedrals, this one has taken so far over a century to complete. It may be finished in 20 years if all augurs well. In one poignant moment, I watched an elderly engineer being guided through the construction site by younger colleagues. They supported him as they walked down the almost-completed transept, turned him around to look up, and all marvelled at the project they were honoured to be building.


Described as God's architect by some, Gaudi's cathedral will not please everyone. But it certainly impressed me. Those stained glass windows blend the colour spectrum in ways I have never seen before. And it was magnificent. Gaudi's work has influenced many, from Gehry to Dr. Seuss. If you don't believe me, go and look up the making of The Grinch movie.

I didn't want to leave and had another look around. When a guide asked me what I thought at the end of my visit, my answer was, 'After this, I can never enjoy another cathedral again'.

I have been impressed so often this year, but the visit to Gaudi's cathedral was indeed a highlight. Wow!!

Mountain Fever

This week it is Summer time in the Alps, although the photos seem to say otherwise. We are spending a few days in Chamonix, then will cross the border into Switzerland to trek the picturesque Bernese Oberland area around Lauterbrunnen.

This week is a quieter respite from the busy cultural visits of Europe's cities. Well, at least it was planned to be quieter. Up at 5.30 a.m. to beat the crowds, we crammed into a gondola to climb to a giddying 3800 metres at Aiguille du Midi. Most of the others aboard were equipped with hiking boots with crampons, ropes, and snow clothing, and we considered if we were under-prepared. The gondola rose to a height where one is affected by altitude and climbing stairs makes the heart beat much faster than expected; a warning sign to take it easy up there.

There we were, above the clouds and looking down on the beauty of the snow-capped mountain peaks around the Chamonix valley. The views are spectacular when sitting on top of this alpine world just perfect for panoramic shots. Some visitors take the gondola across the next valley to Italy.
We had planned to take a randonnée (Notice the French accent?) around the valley rim and hike in the lower reaches, with wonderful views of the valley and peaks. The hike was to see the famous Mer de Glace (Sea of ice) glacier and take the return train from Le Montenvers back to Chamonix.

The steep valley sides have been scoured with ice and snow over millennia, leaving behind boulders and rocks strewn across the path. There are warnings of dangerous rock falls instructing hikers to avoid lingering at the most dangerous spots.


There is a well visited restaurant built next to the glacier. On the station wall is a photograph showing the Mer de Glace in 1910, with a great expanse of ice passing the restaurant and down the valley. The striking thing about the photo is comparing it to today's view of an ice-free, rocky U-shaped valley. The front of this retreating ice flow has now moved one kilometre back up the valley, and like most retreating European glaciers, provides further evidence of global warming. Maybe it's best to see these magnificent structures before humans never see them again.

My Education

In times past, young wealthy English men and women went on the Grand Tour of Europe. It was seen as a time to complete their education by travel in search of Western civilisation's roots. France and Italy were compulsory waypoints to see Europe before and after the Renaissance.

This year, 2010, has been our own Grand Tour. While others did this travelling in their youth, I had to wait until the freedom years once children had left home. So, in many ways we have been making up for lost time, with a desire to visit many sites that would take many years if we lived more conveniently.

Although I am trained in the Sciences, it is the humanities that grasp my attention after work. Art, architecture, politics, language and history are all pursuits that fascinate.

Each place visited has cultural features that have been on the must-see list.
Museums, castles, art galleries, artifacts, cathedrals are all there, and we have had a tight itinerary to see this sampling of European history. Favourite museums visited include the British Museum, Scienza, and Vatican. And the Uffizi, Belvedere and Guggenheim art galleries are certainly worth the effort.

We have seen many castles in various states of condition; from the Welsh (Chepstow and Conwy) and Scottish (Urquhart) castles in poor repair to the touristy and well-maintained English castles such as Tower of London, Nottingham and Warwick castles. There are the renovated and World Heritage listed castles at Carcassonne and Zaragosa. Each has its own story weaved into the lives of famous kings and queens.

Then there are the places of worship, including Melrose Abbey, Mont Saint-Michel, York, Westminster, Canterbury, Cologne, Orvieto, Florence, Santa Croce, Siena, Pisa, St. Peter’s, and St. Mark's Basilica.

Visiting these relics, plus battlefields and scenes of famous historical events are leaving an indelible mark on me. I am being affected by their beauty, charm, and stories, each with a small segment of history's great patchwork. For the first time I am getting to sense and understand the fascinating history and not just read vicariously from across the world. And one of the most stunning revelations is the great extent and influence of the Romans across these countries.