Milan :: An Ancient City

Sforzesco Castle

Piazza Castello

As I walked across the Piazza Castello, or the outer courtyard, toward the Sforzesco Castle my eyes drifted up to the outline of the fortified castle walls against the skyline. No modern skyscrapers in view, just a view as seen through the ages. Stunning. One of the main landmarks of Milan originally built in 1358 by the Visconti (one of the two important Italian noble dynasties of the Middle Ages).

By now, those who follow my blog know that I love the history behind my travels. And this recent stay in Milan proved to be one of those magical trips where I could dive headlong into the history of the place.

Duke's Courtyard

Ducal Courtyard 

One of the surprising things I learned in studying the history of Milan is that it was originally founded by Celts around 600 BC. Wait, what? I always associate Celts with Ireland, but Celts were originally the people of Medieval Europe (around 1200 BC) who spoke Celtic language and had cultural similarities. It wasn't until roughly 450 BC that the Celts migrated north to the British Isles. The Romans showed up around 222 BC, ambushed the Celts, took over and renamed the city Mediolanum (Milan). And thus founded the Northern Roman capital city.

Sempione Park

The castle was a highlight of our stay in Milan. We spent 2 full days exploring it, walking through the many courtyards, looking at the sculpture, stonework, tile work ... you name it, this place has it. The walkway ceilings surrounding the Ducal Courtyard looked like something you'd see in the Game of Thrones in the Kingdom of Dorne. And I loved the reflecting pool in the Duke's Courtyard, an oasis in the middle of Milan.

Another wonderful discovery was the massive city park just outside the castle. One of the back gates is a drawbridge that lets out onto the expanse of Sempione Park, a 95 acre park of rolling hills, lakes and walkways. 

Our weather for this trip was unbelievable. Everyone kept telling us it was 'unseasonably warm.' Just our luck! We wandered through the park on a gorgeous 80-degree day with a bit of a breeze. You could not ask for better weather. We spent the afternoon just watching the world go by. There was too much to see in this ancient city for one trip. We will return, of that I have no doubt.

Lake Life :: Como

There is nothing like sitting in an old town square, next to a lake and slowly watching life go by. You can feel the relaxation seep through you in waves as you slowly exhale and soak in the sun.

I have heard about Lake Como over the years, and somehow expected it to be more of a scene given all the celebrity sightings and talk of secret Mafia meetings. It was nothing as I imagined. I did not see George fly by in a speed boat, or anyone from the Versace Villa sit and sip an Aperol Spritz in the town square, which by the way, is my new favorite summer drink. It looks a bit like orange Kool-Aid, and I couldn't get over that I saw absolutely everyone drinking it from wine glasses? It took me awhile to figure out exactly what it was (Prosecco with Campari), but by the end of the trip it had become my go-to drink. 

The main center of this idyllic town was not crowded, but still quite active with people enjoying local cafes or shopping. Perhaps it was the time of year? I kept hearing that it was unseasonably warm. It was in the high 70s while we were there, but apparently it is typically in the low 60s this time of year which might be still a bit cold for lake life. Whatever the reason, we seemed to hit this little town at just the right moment in time. Everything was in bloom, the weather was perfect and there was room to breathe.

Across the water from the main square, you can see the villas of the aristocrats scale up the hillside. Lake Como has been a popular retreat for the wealthy since Roman times, and you could feel that in the architecture. A stroll through the narrow back streets that surround the square open up to a secondary square with the local cathedral built in 1396 in a Gothic style. It was simple, yet stunning, and nowhere near as ornate as other European cities. But it commanded the skyline giving it a beautiful focal to the town. As you can see I simply fell in love with this little town and cannot wait to go back for another visit. 

Hiking the Yucatan :: Tulum

Templo del Dios del Viento

Tulum is stunning. It sits on cliffs overlooking the turquoise waters of the Caribbean Sea. It is the only Mayan Ruin near the sea, and not a surprise that it is one of the most visited archaeological sites in Mexico. 

The city was one of the last built by the Maya and was in its height between the 13th ad 15th centuries. Tulum survived roughly 70 years after the Spanish arrived, but the diseases the Spanish brought with them appear to have contributed to the city's downfall. The local Maya continued to visit the site to burn incense and pray through the late 20th century until tourism just overwhelmed the site.

While it is called Tulum today (meaning wall or enclosure), the Maya called it Zama meaning 'dawn' as it faced the sunrise. The name was given to the city by explorers Stephens and Catherwood in 1847 when they found the abandoned ruins surrounded by a stone wall. The city served as a major port in the region connecting an extensive trade network between maritime and land routes. 

My favorite picture is of the Wind Temple. and probably the most photographed. The building is called the Templo del Dios del Viento (the temple of the god of the wind). The wind god is known as Ehecatl with his temples built as cylinders to reduce air resistance from the winds that came from all sides. Some called this deity Huracan, which is the origin for the word hurricane.

One thing that surprised me was how many iguanas we saw; they were simply everywhere. Hidden under the thatched roofs, sunning themselves on the ruins and strolling across the main courtyard. You can see the spikes that run down their spine which give them their names 'Mexican Spiny-Tailed' iguana. They seem very unnerved by all the tourists and simply just stare you down as this guy did to me. To locals they can be a bit of a nuisance as they eat plants, flowers and prey on nesting birds, small animals and sea turtle eggs. They can scare locals by lashing their tails and biting if they feel threatened. I kept my distance using a zoom to photograph him. Just in case he got testy!

Hiking the Yucatan :: Ek' Balam

The wild beauty of Ek' Balam is captivating. I had no idea what to expect from this place as it isn't talked about much, and we had a hard time finding it. There are next to no road signs and it was literally 'off the grid.' I had been very diligent about buying the extra GPS maps for Mexico, but it was of no help finding this location. We went by it twice and in circles for another half hour. But it was all worth it once you step through that ancient doorway.

Ek' Balam Sacbe

Somewhere between 700-1,200 BC Ek' Balam was at its height. It always strikes me when I hear how advanced the old world of the Americas was so long ago. And makes me wonder what event caused its downfall. For this site, they believe it was a siege on the city by an enemy based on the how hurried one of the city walls had been constructed and looks to be crushed.

The main pyramid of this site is considered one of the largest ever excavated in the Yucatan. Because of its low profile (and lack of wall-to-wall tourists) you are still able to climb and explore it. In my last post you will see the view from the top down the steps. Somehow I managed to take this picture from the top, but no picture of the full pyramid? Clearly I was distracted by the carvings and secret doorways. It was captivating sitting on top of this pyramid. The Mayan jungle sprawling out across the low lands and the wind cooling us off from the heat. It did have a way of transporting you to another time with only the sound of the wind and nature and no modern architecture anywhere to be seen. Thankfully, both the hubby and my oldest daughter managed to take pictures that I can share. One of the best was of the huge 'monster mouth' mid-way up the main pyramid. This is a portal to the Mayan underworld. It is hard to capture the right angle to represent the size and dominance of this doorway under the thatch roof of the pyramid. 

There is a series of sacbes, or raised 'white way' that connected the ancient Mayan Kingdom from one site to another. At the end of the road you'ld pass through an archway as you entered one of the Mayan sites. You can see the beautifully preserved one of Ek' Balam with the raised stone road that connected this site. We saw these sacbes at all the sites we visited. I could image all the travelers through the ages walking across these stones, traveling between cities, trying to make their way in the world.

Hiking The Yucatan :: Mayan Ruins

Tulum

Chacmool at Chichen Itza

Exploring the many Mayan Ruins has been on my bucket list for a long time. And I finally visited a few over the holiday break. Actually, quite a few places on my bucket list are up on the header of my blog. Each one represents a place I've been that was on the list, or places I have yet to go. You can see the Chacmool front and center above, and I finally got to see it.

These sculptures appear all over Mexico from as early as the 9th century AD. The original, ancient name used by the Mayan and Aztecs is not known. The name Chacmool was given in 1875 by Augustus Le Plongeon who excavated one of the statues at Chichen Itza. The name translates from the Mayan as 'thundering paw' as he found the statue buried beneath the Platform of the Eagles and Jaguars. The Chacmool is thought to be used as an alter to place offerings to the gods. Typically these reclining figures are holding a bowl on their stomach where offerings of tamales, tortillas, tobacco and in some cases human hearts are placed. Some believed the Chacmool depicted slain warriors, others say they represent a defenseless, passive appearance of a Mayan captive. A full frontal view of a face is rare in Mayan art except among representations of captives.

Ek' Balam

As much as I had dreamed of seeing Chichen Itza, Ek' Balam was unexpectedly my favorite. Don't get me wrong. Chichen Itza was awe inspiring. The main pyramid was stunning. The Ball Court jaw dropping. But Ek' Balam was off the beaten track and more rustic. We were able to really explore and get up close to the ruins. Both Chichen Itza and Tulum are so over crowded with tourists that so many of the structures are roped off. The Chacmool I wanted to see at Chichen Itza is inside the main pyramid, which was not accessible to climb and thus I was unable to see what was inside.

I loved the wild beauty of Ek' Balam, and that it still felt somewhat hidden within the Mayan jungle. We climbed the main pyramid straight up the narrow stone steps giving us an endless view across the tree tops. It was breathtaking. Literally. Once I looked down from the top I nearly panicked at the thought of how I was going to get down. In the end my daughter and I decided the safest route down was on our butts one step at a time. There is no shame in safety!

Hiking Florida :: Digesting Alligators

Alligator digesting a turtle

We did a lot of hiking while we were down in Florida. Flat hiking that is, as Florida isn't known for its hills. One of the places we explored was the Everglades. The landscape is gorgeous and varied from one area to the next.

Everglades River of Grass

We hiked through marsh lands that looked like a savannah, tree hammocks, dense mangroves to wide open ponds choked with lilies that are home to birds, turtles and alligators. The trails were easy to hike as there was a network of wooden bridges that made it easy to navigate through the marsh.

Close up of grasslands with White Ibis

One of the most interesting things we saw was an alligator up close, on land. We chatted with the park ranger who explained that this guy had been lying there (perfectly still) for 5 days digesting a turtle he ate. She explained that if you looked at his stomach you could see the circle from the turtle's shell and the gap just before his hind legs showed how stretched his stomach was from the turtle. 

The area is considered a tropical wetland, and it serves as a drainage basin for southern Florida. One term I loved (identified by writer Marjory Stoneman Douglas) was "River of Grass." Which is just so true. When you look out over the grassy savannah you realize that it is not solid ground, but a large waterway filled with dense grass. During the wet season this slow-moving river grows to 60 miles wide and 100+ miles long. 

Marjory was a journalist, feminist and environmentalist. When she was younger she spoke out on women's suffrage and civil rights. In to her 70s, she took a central role in protecting the everglades and earned the nickname the Grande Dame of the Everglades. She lived to be 108 and and collected all kinds of awards including a Presidential Medal of Freedom. I would have loved to spend a bit of time with her listening to the tales of her life.

Sunshine in Winter

Yellow Crowned Night Heron

When you live in New England February can feel like the longest month of the year. We decided to take a break and head down to the Florida Keys, and I tell you the morning we left we just couldn't get out of town fast enough.

My husband had booked a flight for 10am, but of course the airline re-booked us without notice to an earlier flight. That meant getting up and out the door with two teenagers by 5am. Anyone with teenagers knows just how difficult a task that is. The temperature was 3 degrees (fahrenheit, or -16 celsius) with a wind chill that pushed it to roughly 15 below. That meant having to lug heavy winter coats with us to Florida. Seriously? 

It was all well worth it. It rained the first 2 days, and I couldn't have cared less. I was in flip flops and capris and loving every minute. I can't say that I did much else but soak in the sun, walk a bit along the coast and do a little bird watching. It was perfect to just be.

Bucket List :: Savannah

I have an extensive bucket list of places I want to see. I realize the title of my blog is kind of a give away to my love of travel, so it should come as no surprise that I have a list. I have two lists actually, and they are over on Pinterest. The first one is for the places I want to see, and a second for the places I've been. I guess we all have our silly collections, mine just don't tend to be 'things' (unless we're talking about beads) usually they are experiences.

I have been to several of the places on my Blog Header; London (Big Ben), New York (Statue of Liberty), Seattle (Space Needle), Paris (Eiffel Tower), New Delhi India (Gandhi Museum), Hilo Hawaii (King Kamehameha), San Francisco (Transamerica Pyramid and Rodin's The Thinker). Some of you who have seen The Thinker might say, "that's not where that statue is." And you'd be right, and wrong at the same time. Apparently several casts were made, and so this statue actually sits in the courtyard of about 9 museums in the US, and another 8 outside the US. So for me, I saw Rodin's sculpture in San Francisco's Legion of Honor. And while that sounds like a lot of statues, there are almost 50 of Mahatma Gandhi around the world. As for my Shiva, this is a statue that sits on my book shelf that I brought back from a little town in the foothills of the Himalayas. You can read more about it here.

So back to the list. I can now tick off one more place I've been that is on both my bucket list and travel icons for my blog header: Savannah. I read a book years ago called Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, which intrigued me enough to make my bucket list of places I wanted to see. On the cover is a popular statue, Bird Girl, in an old cemetery just outside of Savannah called Bonaventure. The statue was originally made in 1936 using an 8-year-old girl as the model, and was meant to be a bird feeder. Four statues were cast from the original, which ended up in four states with one purchased by a family in Savannah who put it in the family plot in Bonaventure. The statue has since been moved to a local museum due to its popularity from the book. I am not one for visiting graveyards, but this one was intriguing. It is on 100 acres with lanes of trees crisscrossing through the cemetery and framing up the statuary. It is a worth the trip for any photographer.

We enjoyed our week in Savannah, and nearby Hilton Head. While there is a lot of history in this little town, we honestly just enjoyed the endless places to walk, or hike around. The streets are tree-lined and full of Spanish moss hanging down. The main park, Forsyth Park, is gorgeous with a cast iron fountain in the center. We met a local man who was out walking his dog who showed us a picture on his phone from 4 weeks ago when they have a quick drop in temp and the fountain completely froze over. They can't turn the water off as the cast iron would crack so the fountain froze with the water looking as though it stopped just shy of bubbling over. We spent one morning down along the old river walk and found a local favorite for pralines called River Street Sweets. I don't think I've ever had one before, and boy are they good.

The neighborhoods are full of Georgian style houses that are gorgeous to check out. And in one little neighborhood we found our favorite restaurant, The Crystal Beer Parlor, which is an old speakeasy. You wouldn't know from the outside that it was a large pub on the inside, but I suppose that was the point. Our second favorite restaurant we found out on Hilton Head called Scott's Fish Market, which had delicious fresh seafood. I think if I tallied the rest of the family The Distillery would come in third.

Savannah seems to have it all. There are also some wonderful beaches. In the city you can head to Tybee Island which is about a 20 minute drive. The beach has a long boardwalk out over the water (which is how I took this picture from this angle). Or for a bit more upscale experience try Hilton Head which is about a 40 minute drive. The sand is soft and there is an abundance of shells for those who love a little shelling. We brought home several bags, so I'm hoping to do a little beading with some of those. Finally, I think my personal favorite was a walk around Pinckney Island just off Hilton Head which is a wildlife refuge. There were marshes in every direction full of tiny mud crabs, local oysters and muscles. But even more amazing were all the birds. I lost count on how many types there were. There was a gorgeous great blue herring just standing there looking at us. Unfortunately (for me) the picture is on my husband's camera, so I'll have to come back later to show you all that one. But I'll leave you with a quick video of bird chatter we heard out on the island. Blogger wouldn't load this one, so just click over to my Facebook page.

Bucket List :: Drink from a Coconut

One of the things that my oldest daughter Kate had on her bucket list of things she wanted to do was to drink from a coconut. I think after all those episodes of Survivor, it just seemed like a cool thing to do.

When we were in Mexico last winter; she got her chance. Her sister was right there with her and game to give it a try as well. At our hotel we saw a few people walking around with their very own coconut, and we thought 'oh, I guess you just order one from the bar.' But surprisingly no one seemed to know what we were talking about when we tried that?

But then one of the staff suggested we find a gardener who could whack one down from one of the trees on the property. And so now I had both my girls hunting around the grounds looking for a guy with a machete. Not exactly what a mom wants to hear. But we did find a very nice gardener who was more than willing to help the girls out. They had a bit of trouble trying to drink from the hacked opening, but a straw was a quick solve so they could enjoy their drink with lunch.

Thankful in India :: My Shiva

While traveling through India with my husband and his mother we visited a small town in the foothills of the Himalayas called Mussoorie. The train ride was a life altering experience: see my previous post Thankful In India: Mother-In-Law. Seriously, thank God for my Mother-In-Law on this trip.  Without her I might have turned around after the first night. 

We flew into Delhi landing at nearly midnight. Note to self: arrive during the daylight --India is a different world at night. After finding our luggage we head out to grab a cab.  My husband and I (consider ourselves New Yorkers) pride ourselves on our street smarts.  NY street smarts are child's play and only mildly useful in India. 

When we walk out from customs we are solicited, no strike that, accosted from all sides with taxi drivers. Once in the cab it is like we're in an old film noir driving at night. The cab looks to be circa 1940, diesel, clutch and very jumpy. Driving along the Grand Trunk Road the oldest road in South Asia ... 'nough said.  

Our destination was a hotel in the middle of Connaught Place. When looking at a map from a Western perspective, it would appear to be 'downtown' New Delhi.  Note to self: when a country is as old as India there is not likely to be a 'downtown' in the American, or Western European understanding. 

Our Taxi driver runs up (yes up, there is no main floor lobby) several flights of stairs to check our booking.  "Sorry sir but there is no reservation for you here" he reports. Now that's strange.  I personally called at least 3x before our arrival to check our reservation and was told "don't worry, there is plenty of room." Ok, now what?  Our cabby sets off like an Indy driver through the back streets. 

We arrive at a second location, and are once again told there is no room, specifically "there is a convention in town with an extra 10 million" he says.  This is starting to sound very fishy as nothing appears to be quite that over run, and the hotel we are now outside of had a guy waiting at the front gate to tell our cab driver this news.  We set off for a third location where they miraculously have a room for us, but it will be nearly 3x what we had originally budgeted for with our reservation. 
    We know we are being hustled but we're just too tired to negotiate at this point.  Welcome to India!  They appear to have blown their budget on the lobby since the room was Times-Square skeevy.  However at this point we'd been traveling for more than 15 hours and had been driving the back roads of Delhi for more than an hour. Like I said; too tired to care.  The sheets did not look clean.  I pulled out a shirt from my luggage and put it over my pillow and grabbed my coat to lay on top of the bed.  

The next morning I am woken up at sunrise (that's about a total of 4 hours of sleep at this point). The sun is just starting to filter in through a window screen and I can hear the call to prayer from the street.

The procession uses bells, and they sing rhythmically in a 5-note chant. All this seems to excite the local dogs who yip and run around below. An 'other world' experience. 

We explore Delhi for the day, which includes a stop by a massive statue of Shiva. Lord Shiva is the Supreme Being in Hinduism and is known as the creator and the destroyer. Shiva continuously dissolves and recreates in a cyclic process of creation, preservation, dissolution and recreation of the universe. Shiva is the original sati victim. Sati is the Hindu practice of a widow throwing herself on her husband's funeral pyre, which is now abolished by law.  

A few days later we were up in the Himalayas (Mussoorie) and drifting through the market bizarre where my husband spots my bronze statue of Shiva. I knew immediately that this Shiva was coming home with me. My husband began the negotiation dance that is 'to shop in India.' Truly an art, and he has it in spades. It was still early in our trip and was one of the first things we bought.  I threw it into my backpack and quickly realized that I was not going to be able to buy a lot of bronze -- it's really heavy and rough to carrying around India for 5 weeks.  Note to self.

My Shiva is a version called Nataraja, Lord of Dancers (nata in Sanskrit means dance and raja means Lord). The link notes: "To understand the concept of Nataraja we have to understand the idea of dance itself.  Like Yoga, dance induces trance, ecstasy and the experience of the divine."  I don't know what yoga this guy does? While I like it as much as the next guy and certainly can become quite relaxed ... my state is not normally one of a trance nor ecstasy ... but one of sleeping.  More than once I have fallen asleep in a final released locust pose (lying on your stomach with your arms tucked under you). Perhaps there is a theme here ... I need more sleep in my life!   For more stories on our lack of sleep in India read about our overnight train to Mussoorie: Thankful In India: Mother-In-Law. My Shiva still sits on my shelf, and is used liberally in photographing my jewelry. More on Shiva try: Shiva or Gods