This past week was jammed pack, with returning from a weekend trip to Switzerland and hosting our friends Nate and Rebecca, we were on the move. Also this week we were able to visit the Renzo Piano Workshop, which was a really neat experience. While we unfortunately didn’t get to go into their studio space, it was still great to be able to see the projects that are currently in the works for their office, as well as the space where they house their past projects for visiting students to review.
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| View from Renzo Piano Building Workshop |
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| Enjoying the views at Renzo Piano Building Workshop |
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| Models at Renzo Piano Building Workshop |
While I don’t know THAT MUCH about architecture, I do tend to know a little bit about Renzo Piano’s work… I mean my dog is named about him after all! It was really neat to be able to see models, sketches and renderings of projects that Nick and I have previously visited.
Also on our agenda for Monday evening was a visit to Genova’s Theatre, where we enjoyed a brilliant piano concert by an amazing Brazilian pianist. The only thing that I was bummed about was that we were on the wrong side of the theatre to be able to see his hands while he was playing, I would have loved to see how fast they were moving! Prior to Nate and Rebecca’s departure on Thursday we joined Anna and Luca for dinner in Boccadasse, we returned to the pizza place that we visited when we first arrived in Genova. I had a traditional Bufalina pizza, while it wasn’t what I was expecting, it was delicious and I of course consumed the entire thing!
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| Bufalina pizza |
Thursday we headed to our second of three day trips to Milan. Little did we know upon arrival that it was the first day of Milan Fashion Week. It was such an interesting experience, while not one that I probably want to experience on a regular basis, I will have to admit it was pretty cool seeing the models walk around posing while the paparazzi snapped their pictures. I had only wish these individuals were actually celebrities, but oh well…. I guess they are likely celebrities in the fashion industry. Along with seeing many models changing and being prepped for their run way shows, we visited two museums and had amazing weather for our visit this time around. I would say a successful day in Milano!
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Papparazzi waiting as blacked out cars drop off the important people
for Milano Fashion Week |
Friday, as I already blogged about was the much anticipated villa party, and fun was had by all. I was a little slower to get around Saturday morning, and not because of my consumption of alcohol, but because I was sore from wearing heels all night! Man, I am getting old. To my surprise the sun was shining and we spent most of the day outside! Nick was able to find two trees that kindly supported my hammock. The students decided that we should have a cook out and invite Silvia and her family over to thank her for all her hard work arranging the villa party. They did an amazing job preparing for our cookout, we had burgers with brie and bacon and of course served the delicious left overs from the villa party. Our evening wasn’t complete without another game of telephone pictionary, played by everyone in the villa!
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| Love My Life! |
Sunday was a day of catching up on school work and then in the afternoon I attended the Sampdoria vs AC Milan soccer game with the students. Nick had to stay behind as the chair from the Landscape Department at Clemson was arriving and he had to be at the villa to let her in. The students keep commenting on how crazy the fans were at the game, and while I will admit they were a bit ridiculous, I really did think that it would be a lot worse than it was. The AC Milan fans were locked in their own separate part of the stadium though, which was interesting! I am really looking forward to March though as we are going to see Genova’s other soccer team – Genova – play. At first I thought that I would be a Sampdoria fan, but due to their pathetic play this weekend I am quickly moving on (I know – pretty lame fan huh?) But I feel that I should be a Genova fan, as this is where I live and no one back home would know who Sampdoria was if I was sporting their shirt 🙂
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| Sampdoria takes the field |
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| These fans are serious about their soccer |
This week will be full of finishing up school work (my last week – yeah), catching up on laundry and packing and cleaning the apartment. We leave for independent travel on Friday, Nick and I are headed to Edinburg, Amsterdam and Berlin. And then when we return from our travels, my dear friend Liz will be here to visit! It is going to be a crazy next few weeks, but I keep telling myself that I have plenty of time to sleep when I am old and retired!
That's me!! So looking forward to seeing you all!!