our last morning in Milan,
& we finally lingered
(on the ground floor
of our building)
there were definite regulars
coming in for their morning caffe'
taking it to go or...
...standing, right there,
at the counter
(sometimes dog leash in hand -
with said dog politely investigating
a very savory floor)
coffee sooooo good
i stopped using sugar
(though didn't skimp on
the frothy cream, uh-uh!)
and i got an extra treat
(on top of all the others)
of freshly-squeezed
orange juice - aaaahhhh!
SO GOOD
we had a little time
before departure
so decided to meander
a few blocks
through our oh-so-pretty
neighborhood
passing by a hardy orange
(maybe?)
as we traversed
the streets towards
(the church near Leonardo's
The Last Supper)
for one last Milan contemplation
with art in every corner
and on every surface
old mixed with older
and some not as old
(now & again)
just to keep you
on your toes
with Mary and angels
and starry skies
with Sforza sun squiggles
reminding you exactly
where you are
* M I L A N *
we took the old street car
at the stop around the corner
from our place
and said...
good-bye, La Scala
hello, train station!
& i almost had a pile-up on the escalator...
(not pictured here)
quickly learning not to be
immediately behind anyone
who was attempting to control
two rolling suitcases
while wearing massive ski boots...
we managed to wend through
the absolute CRUSH of humanity
(as EVERYONE in Europe
rides trains) & board one headed
southeast from Milan
through the Italian countryside
to Parma!
where it was raining.
google maps had us take the long way
down a somewhat gray and disheveled street,
lugging our heavy bags,
but finally arriving to our
(thankfully)
delightful airbnb street!
complete with a neighborhood
Christmas tree!
we found our door
& took a little break
from our luggage and the rain,
enjoying The View
from the front window
then eventually going out
to see a little bit of
our slice of Parma!
these wholly unfamiliar streets
became beautifully familiar
over the next handful of days
so, so glad that hubby
suggested some time
in a smaller town!
& that he picked Parma!
the view from a former convent
which now holds many wonders,
including a (yes) puppet museum!
just now realizing
the lighted words are that of
Verdi's Nabucco opera's
Va, pensiero chorus
ove olezzano tepide e molli
l'aure dolci del suolo natal!
~ ~ ~
where, soft and mild, the sweet airs
of my native land smell fragrant!
rain...not so fun :(
but i loved catching a cyclist in the photo
as she sped her way home
another rainy doorway -
probably (but not positively)
coming out of a church
and the most beautiful
public pay phone!
(which was really short -
possibly for accessibility?)
(Saint Mary of the Stockade,
which references the fence built
to surround the Nursing Madonna fresco
after it became an icon in the late 1400's)
eventually making its way
to the altar of the church
i quite enjoyed how each church
crafted their unique Nativity scene
the Nursing Madonna,
around which this entire church was built
in 1521-1539
(due to the flocks of pilgrims
who came to see an icon of
John the Baptist, as well as
this fresco of the Nursing Madonna
that was on the outside of a nearby house)
***the columns are amazing! & are called
Solomonic or "barley-sugar" columns***
it was an incredibly ornate church
with little illumination
towards what is, i'm sure,
an amazing dome
showing the Assumption of Mary
it is interesting to ponder
the focus on Mary
that was largely absent
from my own church upbringing
as a Lutheran and,
more recently, a Quaker
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
i considered doing a separate post
of the puppet museum - but
am going to continue my
one day | one post
...so...
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
PUPPETS OH MY
i do believe i first
saw mention of this museum
when perusing google maps
for the route from our place
to downtown
(only a few blocks away)
seriously...who in their right mind
EVER passes up
a puppet museum!?!
certainly, not MEEEEEE
i present to you...
Giordano Ferrari's The Puppet Castle
(Castello dei Burratini)
it was (as you might imagine)
absolutely stupendous
Italo Ferrari & his friend began a puppetry empire
in the winter of 1892
with La forestra perigliosa
& never looked back
Italo eventually included his children,
Giordano, Emilio, Ermelinda, and Maura,
in the Ferrari puppet legacy
including an extended annual 'residency'
at the spa town of Salsomaggiore
during the years between WWI and WWII
after Italo's death in 1961,
Giordano and Emilio
were the primary Ferrari Brothers
behind Parma puppetry in the mid-20th century
Giordano eventually had two sons,
Luciano and Italo (not to be confused
with grandfather Italo, he was called Gimmi)
and the height of their fame
really was in the 1970's
when their puppets were on TV
& also took part in Bernardo Bertolucci's
Giordano (the father, but son of the original Italo)
died...leaving the second son, Italo (but called Gimmi)
to carry on into the 1980's
are you following along?
Gimmi, his wife Manuela, and
their son Giordano
(there's a nomenclature theme here),
as well as Gimmi's niece Daniela
were now the Puppet Masters
but it largely ended
with Gimmi's retirement in 2006,
which resulted in the retirement of it all
HOWEVER!
it just so happens that i spied
an announcement!
of a special holiday puppet show!
taking place in the evening of
one of our days in Parma!
who EVER turns down the opportunity
to see a puppet show?!?
certainly not i, so...
you can look forward to that post -
or avoid it at all costs!
here's an amusing (if not funny -
and, possibly, not even really amusing)
little story about touring the puppet museum...
like all of our other stops,
plenty of folks spoke enough English in Parma
that our lack of Italian was not really an issue
but that was not the case
at the puppet museum!
it seemed run by volunteers,
one older woman behind the front counter
& another one roaming the small museum
i forget what i wanted to ask,
but i tried to initiate a conversation
in English & was quickly deterred
however, when i said we could converse
in Spanish, that was met with excitement & relief
seriously, my Spanish has come in handy
in more countries than i ever imagined!
on our last (long ago) trip to Italy,
i would always start by asking
"do you speak English?"
if the answer was "no,"
then i would blithely plunge into Spanish
eventually learning a few very unSpanish-y
Italian words that i started tossing in
with what seemed good results (haha)
well, these puppets just keep
going & going, don't they?
i didn't want to leave any photos behind -
lest i leave out what is your favorite!
i am particularly fond of this guy ^^^
& his amazing schnozzle
just you wait for that puppet show!
it was quite a surprise
these were almost as tall as me
& were the only large puppets
in the museum
okay, so we finally
exited the museum
(really, even the less enthusiastic
member of the party stuck it out)
& it was time for dinner!
which i had researched!
back story:
as we explored around our neighborhood,
i wanted to try & find the restaurant
i had my eye on for dinner...
and, truly, it seemed completely
hidden away!
as we approached its address
(on a regular neighborhood street),
i saw a young woman under her umbrella
speaking with someone at an open door.
i thought i heard her say
(in Italian)
something that made me wonder
if she, too, was searching
for this restaurant.
it seemed she was getting a response of
"we're not open."
the young woman departed &
the door closed.
when we arrived at the door
(which was the address of the
mysterious restaurant),
i saw on the list of doorbells
the name of the restaurant.
unsure of the protocol
(& having observed the young woman),
we decided to return later
& hope it might be open.
which it was!
& this time, that street door was
OPEN...leading the way
into a small courtyard,
with the door at the back
framed by windows glowing
a warm yellow
it was
& it was...
HANDWRITTEN
& the food exquisitely
homemade
we totally decided
- right then & there -
that this...this was
our place!
& so did that young woman,
whom we had seen earlier...
she was sitting at the bar
devouring a bowl of soup
of all the meals,
the meals (oh, yes - we returned)
at Bacco Verde
were my favorite
so, if you're ever in Parma...
