Taking One (or four) for the Team

Where to begin dear reader? Where to begin?

How about...Belgium! Home to dear friends, delicious chocolate, and really really (did I mention really) great beer.


Now if you've ever been out with me for a night on the town, you know that I am not a cheap date. I don't drink beer. I prefer a good Pinot Noir or a nice mixed drink with spanish flair: mojitos, palomas, etc... But rarely ever beer. Dear reader, I have been converted. Belgians, specifically Belgian monks, know how to do beer. Our first night at Emily and Jack's place was started off and wrapped up with a beer tasting. What I mean is we taste the whole bottle, and some of the beers (such as the blue St. Bernardus bottle) have an alcohol content of 10.5%. So after "tasting" the four beers to my immediate right in the picture, I was having a wonderful cultural experience. Another fun thing about Belgian beers is that each beer has its own special glass. Some glasses make the bubbles do certain things. Others are shaped to build the head and still others to discourage foam. There's a real art to it.

Emily and Jack live in the town of Luven, the biggest college town in Belgium, where Jack is doing his post-doctorate linguistics research. The university is the oldest Catholic university in the world, operating for the last six centuries, and the town is beautiful.


The original city hall takes Gothic decor to a whole new level. Too bad they didn't spend more time on the sculptural program of the building. There just aren't enough little statues under stone canopies for my taste.


This jaunty little fellow is a fountain whose purpose is to denounce brainwashing through education. I agree schools shouldn't brainwash their students; the monk's beer does it just fine.


The university library was bombed in WWII. School libraries from around the world donated books to restock it, and now the names of all the donating libraries are carved into the edifice of the building in fancy script.

After a couple days of relaxing and eating delicious Belgian food (steamed muscles, pork shank, and Flemish stew), we were ready for our next adventure.

Welcome to Amsterdam!









We had a great time roaming the streets and crossing the canals of the city. I checked another souvenir off the list when I bought a pair of European skinny jeans. Skinny leg jeans are in style in the US, but the Europeans take it to a whole new level. It's like the 80's when you had to sew yourself into your jeans (or so I'm told), but nowadays there are zippers on the pants legs to save sewing time.

The redlight district (sorry no pictures) sneaks up on you. At least it did on this tour group of senior citizens that stumbled into it ahead of us. We thought it was a laugh and that seeing the shops and the scantily-clad ladies in windows was a must if you were going to say you'd seen Amsterdam. I'm not sure the white-hairs would have agreed.

The highlight (read as "art historical freak out") of the trip to A'dam was a visit to the Rijks Museum. The interior of the museum is being completely overhauled, so they have a "greatest hits" show up. 12 rooms of the highlights of the Dutch Golden Age, including Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Hals. We got to see Rembrandt's most famous work, "The Night Watch," and a couple of my personal favorites "Syndics of the Cloth Merchants' Guild" (basically a bunch of old rich dudes in period clothing, but geese it's great) and a self portrait where I think he looks like the orneriest old man ever. Vermeer is never a let down, and I was surprised at some of the what I would consider modern aspects of Rembrandt's and Hal's use of paint. Definitely a stop worth the 12 Euro.

After a couple days in A'dam, it was back to Belgium for some low key sight seeing. The dutch countryside is gorgeous, so we headed out in the car one afternoon and ended up in the town of Namur. Our first stop was the hill top and citadel of the ancient town.




I guess every good citadel needs a creepy old archer's tunnel. While it was fun to see how this place would have been defended in the past, I couldn't believe Barrett and Emily got me to walk into this long dark tunnel of a thing. I didn't know if I should be more on the lookout for ghosts or ferrel animals.


Another gorgeous view from the top without Barrett and me in the way.


The Chateau Namur is also at the top of the hill. It's a hotel and reception hall now. Anyone else thinking of the Shining? Anyone? This place looked so haunted on a cloudy day!


We didn't stoop to McDonald's, but sometimes you just need a fast food break. So we did it dutch style and hit the Quick Burger. They're obviously modeled after Micky D's, but not quite there yet.

After a little local research we decided to ditch Brussels and visit Antwerp.

Barrett and Emily pose for a quick picture at the impressive Antwerp train station.


The original building defies categorization and the subsequent additions for high speed trains makes it truly unique. Jack said he feels likes he's in the league of extraordinary gentlemen when his train pulls into the elevated platforms. And before you ask, I have no idea what "WINKELS" are or why they were on both my left and my right.


The Antwerp cathedral is home to a famous Northern European Renaissance triptych and had a Ruben's show up, but THEY WOULDN'T LET ME IN! We arrived five minutes after the last entry time. So after the ticket taker told me what an awesome show they had, he told me to come back tomorrow, which I couldn't. The worst was that I could see part of the show through the entry way glass, AND there were still people in there milling around. It wasn't closing time. They just weren't letting more people in. Arrgghhh! Art historian torture!


Who loves a gothic portal? I do! I do!


I have no idea what this building is used for, but I thought it was pretty. The statue is some unknown to me hero killing the Antwerp giant. I guess the giant deserved it.


More beautiful buildings on the main square in Antwerp.

We had a phenomenal time hanging out with Jack and Emily and added two new countries to our list. Now it's back to Italy for a couple days of family time till we head back to the US. The final Italy post is forthcoming, and we are getting excited to head back to Oklahoma and move into our new home.

Packing up,
Megan

Not Just for Thanksgiving

Dear Readers,

Welcome to Istanbul!


Turkey is an amazing country. We spent two full days in the old part of Istanbul. I don't know if I've been in a more welcoming country. Not only was the customer service at the sights, restaurants, and hotels excellent, but also people on the street were just a pleasure to chat with. They were happy to help with directions and tell you about the beautiful buildings and history of their city.

The first stop for all good little art historians...the Hagia Sofia. Originally Santa Sofia, a Byzantine church built by Constantine (the man who brought you Christianity), it was converted to a mosque. The Muslim faith forbids depictions of human likenesses in places of worship, so the Byzantine mosaics were plastered over and the interior was redecorated. Bad sultan...very naughty. It was also completely sacked and looted by the Crusaders (oops...did we do that?) and burned up at one point. I'm just happy there's still something to see period. In recent times the mosque has been converted to a museum and is no longer used as a Muslim house of worship. It's always interesting to see what restoration projects turn up under the plaster. Like the angel face below the dome.








I snapped this pick from a window on the upper arcade. It's the onion domes of Hagia Sofia with the Blue Mosque in the distance.


This gorgeous structure is the Blue Mosque. It's gorgeous inside too and is still an official house of worship. We had to remove our shoes before entering. And, if it had been prayer time, I would have needed to cover my head. I had a pashmina on hand just in case.






Muslims are called to prayer five times a day. The first of which, I'm pretty sure, is at day break. At least that's what it seemed like when the extremely loud call to prayer sounded came though our closed window sometime between 5 and 6 am in the morning. All mosques play a man singing calls to pray on loud speakers, and believers can pray at home or go to the mosque. You can't accidently miss the time for prayer, no matter where (or how asleep) you are. It was always a little weird at first then it became a surreal sound to fall back asleep to.

One of Istanbul's sultans built the uber impressive cistern below the city. I'm still not 100% sure what it was used for (I know it stored water in case of emergency, but why did it have to be so fancy), but it sure was a knockout. The medusa stones are a cool enigma to see when you're there. No one is sure why they're there or why they aren't right side up.




Sidenote, the Turkish government must think very highly of their landmarks because...holy moly...tickets to get into museums and landmarks are expensive. $15-$20/person. Thank the Lord (or should I say Allah) that the Blue Mosque was free.

Hands down favorites of everyone were the bazaars. The Grand Bazaar is the largest covered market in the world. It was a cool place to wander around, but I would recommend making purchases at the Egyptian Bazaar or the Arasta Bazaar. The Arasta was my favorite because the sales people were much more laid back, and the prices were actually reasonable. You can find pretty much anything under the sun at the bazaars. On my constant search for a good glass of tea, I was thrilled to discover Turkish tea. Consequently, I was even more thrilled to purchase some teas at the Egyptian Bazaar (also known as the Spice Bazaar). Here are some beautiful pics from my sister-in-law Christy.









I heard the term before, but was surprised to find out that "Whirling Dervishes" are actually Turkish dancers practicing a mystic religious tradition. The instrumental music and singing is sometimes lively and sometimes very meditative. Dervishes whirl to fill themselves with love, which is the essence of the divine. They spin in constant circles for about 30 minutes only stopping three or four times. There were a few times during the performance that it felt too personal and sacred to perform while people were watching and eating.






We also visited the palace of the sultans and the seat of the Ottoman empire. The interiors were lavish, but the big show was the jewelry in the treasury. And by big I mean an 8lb emerald and a diamond the size of my fist. No kidding. But of course, you can't take pictures in the treasury. Because why? I've got my own 84 carat diamond at home that I might get cut to copy yours? Really?






Barrett and I are already planning our next trip to Turkey. We would love to spend some more time outside of the tourist areas. Not this time, but hopefully next time, we'll come back with a rug as a souvenir. We couldn't convince the boys that there were really such things as flying carpets, but without a doubt some of the world's most beautiful rugs are painstakingly made here and by hand. This woman gave a quick demonstration to us and the boys on how to make a rug. To go a meter wide and a meter long takes almost a year on a fine turkish rug.


We leave tomorrow to visit friends in Belgium and Amsterdam. Maybe I should post pictures of the Venice airport??? We go there an awful lot these days.

Gooly Gooly (that's what goodbye in Turkish sounds like),
Megan

Look! It's Another Something Old!

Dear Reader,

My parents have arrived (and no, that's not what I meant by "something old" in the title).

We started in Vicenza where the big ticket item is architecture by Palladio. While I'm not fainting over Paladian architecture, I did enjoy taking a pic with my pops in front of his statue.


Welcome to Verona! The city of Romeo and Juliet (and yummy gelato)!


The Piazza delle Erbe is the heart of the city, and it's easy to imagine the Montagues and Capulets here biting their thumbs at each other and drawing their swords.


This whale bone has been hanging in that pass for centuries, and it's rumored that it will fall on the first truly "just" person to walk under it. It hasn't fallen yet, which really stinks for the popes who've walked under it. Sorry popes!


This is the Loggia dei Consiglio which is considered the finest piece of Renaissance architecture in Verona.


Mom and I stop for a pic by the river to check out the Roman theatre and castle on the other side.


Dad and I found the souvenirs we want. Yes, that's a baby blue Lamborghini and a Ferrari. We tried not to touch.




We visited the fictional house of Juliet and the Capulets. This is me with Juliet. If you need a new love in your life you're supposed to touch her right breast. I'm happily married and also not up for public statue groping, so we skipped that legend. I did think the wall of love letters for luck in love was groovy, so I stopped for a pic.




Next city. Welcome to Venice!






St. Mark's is my favorite church in the world. And I've seen a lot of nice churches in my time. Notice all the different colors of marble used to decorate the church facade. Every inch of the massive five-domed ceiling is covered in gold mosaic with works from as far back as the Byzantine era up to the Renaissance.








The Pala d'Oro, an altarpiece, is one of my favorite works of art in the church. It's been embellished over the centuries by Venetian doges. And yes...all those gem stones are real...all 2,000 of them...even the ones the size of my thumb. And it's not a gold veneer, it's solid.


These horses are solid bronze and were originally stolen from Constantinople (where we're headed this weekend). They graced the front of St. Mark's for many years, now some copies hold their place while they chill in the museum. Apparently sets like these were quite the fashion hundreds of years ago, but this is the only complete "four in hand" chariot set that has survived.


Now I had visited St. Mark's before, but I didn't realize till this time that the Tetrachs were there. These four short kings are in every art history review class, are carved out of a very rare purple marble, and were, of course, looted from Constantinople. Historians don't know exactly who they are or what they're doing, but appear suspicious of something, holding each other and their swords. I was on the lookout myself.


I was super excited to visit the doge's palace, the Palazzo Ducale. This was my first time to go in, and while we couldn't use the camera inside, please trust me, the doge's pants were fancy and the dungeon was decidedly not. Here is a pic of the Venetian Gothic facade, the only one of its kind, and the Giants' Staircase. If you were a visiting royal the doge would greet you from the top of the stairs overlooking his courtyard. You should walk up, because the doge would never walk down to you.




Next stop...Rome!


Even if you've been to Rome more than once, some places always merit repeat viewings. The forum, behind the pic of my parents. The Colosseum, which I had only seen from the outside before, is always impressive. My dad snapped this great pic of the Elefantino with the Pantheon in the background. And my favorite fountain in Rome, the Barcaccia (fountain of the sinking boat) at the bottom of the Spanish Steps.






On this trip I also saw some new things (that are still actually very old). We visited the Vatican Museums...art historian drooling...and let me tell you, the only place with fancier stuff than a king's palace is the pope's palace. Check out the ceiling in one of the halls. All the ceilings are like this. And if you're a ninja turtle fan, we've managed to show my mom and dad three of them. Raphael's School of Athens (I had a minor art historian freak out over this one, picture below), Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel (sorry no photos allowed), and a Leonardo da Vinci in the painting gallery.




I also had my first opportunity to see St.Peter's. This place is huge! And I say that after having seen the Colosseum. All of the statues are larger than life size, and the gigantic canopy over the altar is made of bronze, which was taken and melted down from the Pantheon. I guess they thought the gods over at the Pantheon were through with it.






All in all I think my parents had a great time. We are all pretty worn out from our walking tours of these fabulous cities (12 miles in one day alone). A lot of delicious food and wine was consumed, souvenirs were purchased, and pictures were taken. It would be hard to pick a favorite moment, but I have an inkling into what they enjoyed the most. Nobody likes a good story better than my mom and Buzz Lightyear.


As they fly back home, Barrett and I head with whole Pasho clan to Istanbul, Turkey.

Bags Packed (again),
Megan