Smile, breathe and go slowly
Thich Nhat Hanh
My motto for the day has been "slowly, slowly." Solar radiation bounced upwards into my face off the stone pavement below my feet as I left the hotel at 9:30am. Before noon, temperatures hit 40C, so heat-survival-protocols were enacted.
I thought it was smart choosing to visit an art museum on a hot day because art museums need to be temperature controlled and temperature control means air conditioning. Right? Wrong. Temperature control in the Castelvecchio Museum means open windows and a few standing fans for the comfort of the guards.
The museum's collection of sculpture and paintings is amazing. It may not be the Uffizi but it's a real treat. I came upon an early painting by Pisanello (refer to yesterday's post). I am lucky to see the delightful Madonna of the Quail because it was stolen from the museum in 2015. Inside job, I'm told. Thankfully, police recovered it two years later.
The fabulous meal was the perfect prelude to the spectacular staging (and singing) of Puccini's opera Turnadot under the stars in Verona's Roman amphitheater ("Arena").
I cannot remember the last time I saw midnight. Being out at midnight in Italy feels so good! Especially walking with a nightcap gelato in hand. :-)
Now it is going on 1:00am so I will say "Buona notte" and see you "a domani".
A wonderful 'conducted tour' - the heat of the day winding down to a cooler evening - beautifully described. But it was probably still in the high 20s to low 30s around midnight. Your last image brings back memories of the installation of our robotic insects exhibition in Rome - a memorable midnight ramble to the Roman Steps before retiring. 'Domani' figured a great deal in the installation process. What ever we needed in terms of equipment and services from the 'local' crew - power supplies, aircon, ladders and scaffolding - all were on the basis of 'domani'.... ;0)
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