Europe Favorites

Out of approximately 1600 total pictures taken during my trip to Europe with sister Liz, here are some of my favorites.

This is the center of the 1992 Olympics complex in Barcelona, on the hill of Montjuïc. On the left is the Montjuïc Telecommunications Tower, designed by Santiago Calatrava to represent a kneeling figure making an offering. The central vertical needle casts a shadow on the brick plaza below and can be used as a sundial of sorts.














Bicycling along the Mediterranean in Barcelona was definitely a highlight of the trip. This was my first time riding on a tandem bike. Liz and I got the hang of it right away. The person in front stirring has to be cognizant of the larger turning radius and greater distance required for braking. The person in back just has to trust the person in front because she has no control whatsoever. Pedaling together at the same cadence is a minor incovenience.















Gaudi's Sagrada Familia Church in Barcelona is one of my favorite works of architecture. Construction was begun in 1882 and is expected to be completed in 2026. The magnificent towers and facades are unlike any other church I've seen. While Liz and I decided not to pay the entry fee, we spent a good amount of time looking at the Passion facade, which features Jesus crucified on an I-beam (not shown).





















This is the Pont d'Avignon in southern France, from the popular nursery rhyme "Sur le Pont d'Avignon." The bridge over the Rhône river was constructed in the 12th century but took a beating from floods and only four arches out of the original 22 remain today. According to the song people danced on top of the bridge, which I could definitely see possible on a warm pleasant summer evening such as the one of our visit.

Pardon me for liking bridges, but this is not a conventional bridge--it's the Pont du Gard and part of a Roman aqueduct 50 km long near Nîmes, France. The downward slope of the aqueduct was just 0.4%, meaning in descended only 12 meters along its entire length. Although it's a profoundly beautiful structure, it was rationally constructed with one specific funtion: carry water from point A to point B.














I'm not much of a beach person, but this is the kind of beach I like (it would be even better without all the other people). This is Calanque d'En-Vau near Cassis in the south of France. The water was blue and chilly, there were big cliffs all around, and you had to hike 1.5 hours, or kayak, to get there...perfect.
















This picture was taken during our hike in the Apuan Alps in Italy, not too far from Pisa.














Florence was probably our favorite city. It has some of the finest art in the world (Michelangelo's David is only the start), and a view of the city at sunset from Piazza Michelangelo is awe-inspiring.






















Venice is swarming with tourists and prices are outrageous, but it's also sinking and turned out to be a must-see for us on this trip. Cities on a body of water, whether it be a river or the ocean, have a worldly and often romantic ambiance, and Venice takes this to the next level. There's no other place in the world where the ambulances are boats.














This is a very nice mosaic, 2000 years old, from Pompeii. It's one thing to see ancient temples and stadiums. In Pompeii, one has the opportunity to see well-preserved houses, restaurants, baths, and a brothel, to actually go back in time and imagine oneself as a Roman.















This is the Roman Forum, the main marketplace in the ancient city. The best preserved buildings here are the ones that were lucky enough to be converted into churches. I like this picture because it made me imagine what a large modern city, like New York, would look like if it was abandoned, looted, and left to the elements for 2,000 years. I think there'd be a lot more asphalt and concrete and fewer elegant columns. By the way, the white building in the background of this photo is the magnificent monument to Vittorio Emanuele II, the first king of unified Italy.














The Pantheon in Rome was another of our favorite architectural wonders. It is still the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world.















This is my sister Liz sitting on the face of a 3,000-year-old statue of Dionysus on the Greek island of Naxos.














The Parthenon, taken from nearby Hill of the Muses. I always find it fascinating that the Greek style of architecture is essentially the same we use today for any important building.

Vexillology

With the United States' nail-biting World Cup victory over Algeria, capped by a goal in the 91st minute, it feels great to be an American today. Watching the World Cup has rekindled in me an interest in world flags, the study of which is called vexillology. A country's flag is its most important visual symbol in the media, international diplomacy, war, and sports competitions. While every country is entitled to choose whatever colors and images they want for their flag, it's obvious to me that some flags are better than others.

Here is the Saudi Arabia flag.
This is a poor flag because it has writing on it. Flags should be comprehensible by all people and writing in any language excludes those who are unfamiliar with the language. To make matters worse, there's a sword underneath the writing and so for all non-Arabic speakers know, the writing says "Saudi Arabia kills all non-Muslims." In fact, the inscription reads "There is no god but God; Muhammad is the Messenger of God."

Here is one of my favorite flags.
The Japanese flag portrays the rising sun, an incredibly powerful symbol. It contains just two colors and is simple enough for a child to recall and draw it. The color red has been repeatedly associated with victory in human psychology, and so is a good choice to include in a national flag. Another benefit of its simplicity is that it can be recognized even when partially unfurled on a calm day.

Unfortunately the New Zealand flag is pathetic.
You never want the flag of another sovereign nation in the upper left-hand corner of your flag. There is a long-stading movement to replace this flag, but nothing seems to ever come of it.

I also take issue with the Canadian flag.
Sure, it's simple, uses two colors, and there's a lot of winning red there. But a maple leaf? It's hardly a symbol of a thriving, powerful democracy.

I actually don't think the Israeli flag is all that bad.
The star of David is a simple and unique symbol of Israel's establishment as a Jewish state, and with the blue stripes the flag looks like a Jewish tallit.

Complicated coats of arms and multi-colored patterns are definitely flag no-nos, such as in the flags of Serbia
and Turkmenistan.

And now for the United States flag.
The U.S. flag is really a fantastic flag. It is extremely unique and far from the boring tri-colors of European nations like France, Italy, and Germany. In some ways there's a lot going on, with 13 stripes representing 13 colonies and 50 stars for 50 states, but really there are just two symbols repeated 13 and 50 times. There's no problem with a partially unfurled U.S. flag because even the 13 red and white stripes are enough to identify it.

Interesting fact: What is the only world country not to have a rectangular flag?


Nepal.

Backpacking in Europe, Part II

Highlights from second half of backpacking trip in Europe with my sister Liz:

Florence, Italy:

• Ufizzi Gallery, where we saw Francesca's Duke and Duchess of Urbino, Leonardo's Annunciation, Titian's Venus of Urbino, and Rembrandt's self portraits
• Beautiful view of the city with sunset from Piazza Michelangelo
• Michelangelo's David sculpture in the Accademia
• Second largest synagogue in the world, built in the late 1800s. It has a magnificent copper dome that holds its own against the Duomo. We received an excellent tour and learned how the synagogue was used as a garage by the Nazis and was severely damaged in a 1966 flood, which destroyed many sacred Torah texts.
• Two walking tours of town (free with stay at our hostel) that included stops at Palazzo Vecchio (city hall) and Palazzos Medici and Strozzi, home of rival wealthy families
  
• Tasty wine at Le Volpi e l'Uva
• Best meal of the trip at a restaurant showed to us by an American woman who had lived in Florence. There was no set menu, and we were unsure how much the meal would cost, so we explained that we just wanted 20 euros worth per person. That got us prosciutto with melon appetizer, hearty bean soup, and four different types of pasta including delicious cheese ravioli. Did I mention unlimited red wine?

Venice, Italy

• Stepping outside the train station, hearing a siren, and seeing an ambulance speed past. Except the ambulance was a boat. Soon we saw police-boats and fire-boats.
• Visiting Piazza San Marco for as little time as possible due to extreme numbers of tourists.
• Taking tour of Doge's Palace, which rivals Versailles in its elaborate gold decorations, colorful frescos and columned facade.
• Going to top of the belltower to get panaromic view of the city.
• Walking through town with British exchange student Alex, who took us to see the Jewish ghetto. Synagogues were identifiable only by a pattern of five horizontal windows.
• Running on La Giudecca, dodging drunk ladies and hitting dead ends at dirty dark alleys and hotel courtyards equally often.

All night train ride from Venice to Naples.

Naples, Italy

• Stepping of the train to unbearable heat and horrible traffic. We found our hostel on a street where men were selling stolen goods and in the process of getting busted by police as we arrived.
• Nearly getting run over several times by reckless moped drivers.
• Eating pizza at its birthplace.
  
• Running in a hilltop park, only refuge from the madness on the streets.
• Taking a bus to and then hiking the last fifteen minutes to the rim of Mt. Vesuvius. It looks pretty tame now. Had excellent views of the city and Bay of Naples.
• Spending the afternoon strolling around Pompeii in intense heat. We saw temples, baths, marketplaces, private homes, a theater, a stadium, and a brothel. There were piles of artifacts that had just been thrown into sheds; archaeologists didn't know what to do with it all.

Rome, Italy

• Taking tour of the Colosseum, site of thousands of gladiator battles and man vs. beast contests. Beneath the sandy stage we saw ruins of the complicated trap door network used to add and take away props.
• Walking through the Roman forum, the center marketplace of ancient Rome. The best preserved ruins had been converted into churches.
• Seeing the Palatino, the living quarters of the Roman emperor. He had his own personal stadium where he could watch gladiator fights and plays.
• Fontana di Trevi, where 3000 euros are thrown away every day. Liz and I contributed 2 cents.
  
• Lots and lots of churches. Can't beat St. Peter's Cathedral for size, though.
• Spending the better part of a day at the Vatican Museum, where we saw the Apollo Belvedere, Laocoon, Leonardo's St. Jerome, Raphael's School of Athens and Disputa, and some incredible tapestries including one of Jesus's resurrection.

We flew from Rome to Athens, then took a ferry to the island of Naxos, the largest in the Cyclades group.

Naxos

• Hanging out on the beach for a day. Good to relax after non-stop traveling for a month. The water was pleasantly warm.
• Renting a car and driving around the northern half of the island. We saw many Greek ruins older than those in Athens, including the Temple of Demeter (6th century B.C.) and a statue of Dionysus. We climbed up to the cave of Zas where Zeus was born. In the tiny village of Apollon we watched the U.S. come back from 2-0 to tie Slovenia! Our drive down the west coast cliffs of the island as the sun set was incredible.
• I rented a bike and retraced our route in the car the day before. I stopped for lunch in the village of Koronos, where a friendly cafe owner was very excited I was American. The cycle was challenging but rewarding.

Athens

• We saw the main sights on the Acropolis including the Parthenon and the Erechtheum. We also saw the Temple of Zeus, of which only a handful of columns remain, and Hadrian's Arch.
• We visited the Greek parliament building and saw the changing of the guard. Also took a stroll through the city gardens.

More later, pictures and further comments.

Backpacking in Europe: Part I

My sister Liz and I are currently backpacking in Europe. We arrived in Barcelona, Spain on May 18 and are departing from Athens, Greece on June 21. Here are highlights of our tour so far:

Barcelona:

• Tandem bicycle ride along the Mediterranean Sea.
• Visiting Olympic Park and Botanical Gardens
• Eating tapas, drinking sangria
• Walking through twisting streets of old city
• Seeing Gaudi's Sagrada Familia basilica
• Happening across the Madrid Fan Zone for a championsip soccer match being played in Barcelona. Thousands of fans dressed in red and white striped jerseys partying in the afternoon in preparation for a 9:30 pm match, creating a Where's Waldo-type scene.
• Searching for the Barcelona fan zone.
• Discovering the Barcelona fan zone is in fact the Sevilla fan zone, as Barcelona was chosen as a neutral site for the Sevilla-Madrid match.
• Watching the soccer match in a bar called The Obama, complete with a life size statue of the American president.

France/Provence

• Visiting Chateau d'If, prison on an island off the coast of Marseilles and setting for Alexander Dumas's Count of Montecristo.
• Strolling through open air markets and munching on delicious fresh fruit and veggies, croissants, pain au chocolat, warm baguettes, amazing cheeses.
• Spending three nights in Cassis, resort town in Provence. We went hiking on cliffside tracks and spent the day on a beach that required a challenging walk to get to (this didn't stop the French, as the beach was packed).
• Driving through cute French towns with friends Charlotte and Stephan.
• Visiting Pont du Gard (Roman aqueduct) and a couple Roman stadiums. In one stadium we attended a bullfight, in the Spanish style ending in the killing of the bull.
• Swimming in the Mediterranean and watching kite surfers.

Italy

• Staying in Riomaggiore, one of five villages in the Cinque Terre.
• Hiking the breathtaking coastal track between the villages of the Cinque Terre.
• Going on a couple runs on very steep tracks in the Cinque Terre.
• Kayaking on the Mediterranean, during fairly rough seas.
• Eating focacia with pesto and mozzarella
• Cooking our own pasta with walnut sauce (decent).
• Strolling through non-tourist towns of La Spezia and Massa.
• Three day walk with challenging ascents in the Apuan Alps from Resceto to Castelpoggio. These mountains are known for marble mining, which we witnessed in abundance. Marble for Michelangelo's David was mined here. Mining didn't ruin the walk, as we had some tremendous vistas and were led for an hour by an Italian couple who showed us trenches used by soldiers in WWI and pointed out native flora. We were treated well in two rifugios, where we received filling and cheap meals and had comfortable beds to sleep in.
• Walking around the Leaning Tower of Pisa and taking the obligatory tourist pictures, followed by gourmet gelato.
• Spending the day at il Ciocco, an Italian resort where Liz's friend Nick is working. We were treated like kings to free four-course meals and spent hours lounging by the pool.

We arrived today in Florence and walked a bit around the Duomo, a massive Gothic cathedral. We plan to spend a couple days here and then travel to Venice, Rome, Naples, and a Greek island. It has been a very epic trip so far and I'm super excited to begin the art history portion of our tour.