One night I chanced to hear a radio interview of Jane Jacobs. I was already interested in the topic of what makes for a lively and interesting city, and she was so knowledgeable about it, I felt compelled to find out more. Jacobs passed away in 2006 at the age of 90, but her book, 'Death and Life of Great American Cities' has become a primary reference for city planners, even though most of what's built in North America reflects the needs of automobiles more than the needs of humans.
Jacobs had been an architectural writer, and in the late 50's helped
fight and win a battle to save New York's Greenwich Village from the plans of parks commissioner Robert Moses to build an expressway
through the area. She wrote her book in a trenchant style, sarcastic towards the great visionaries of the day who wanted to tear down older, 'slummy' districts in cities to build freeways, housing projects and civic centers. She observed that these grand schemes never worked as their designers envisioned, and devoted herself to observing and recording what actually did work in cities, documenting what it was that made cities interesting, lively places (or not).
Some of what Jacobs railed against I see in parts of modern Barcelona. You can find urban parks, complete with benches and other amenities, at the center of of traffic circles where no one ever seems to be found (for obvious reasons). There are districts where block after block of monotonous, ugly housing towers resemble old-style housing projects in the US (though they didn't seem dangerous).
But the Eixample, a large part of Barcelona built up around the old, walled city in the 19th century, seems almost lifted from Jane's prescription for a good city:
* housing density, perhaps not quite at her 100-250/net acre prescription, but far higher than a typical city in North America, with 5-6 story apartments atop continuous ground floor retail.
* diversity of use and building age, with an area serving multiple primary functions, with people coming at different times for different reasons. Certainly housing is a primary function in the Eixample, but shopping is also intense, with mixed retail, small groceries, market pavilions, bakeries, and specialized stores all within walking distance. Tapas bars, art galleries and some theater action at night replace some of the daytime commercial activity.
* short blocks make the entire area generally accessible. This accessibility is greatly augmented by a feature I'd add,
* a great and comprehensive public transport system, which includes buses and underground light rail, but also well-organized vehicular traffic management, pedestrian safety features, separated bicycle lanes in many areas.
* Wide sidewalks, along some streets, 50 or 60 feet, provide plenty of room for restaurants, news stands, public protests against austerity (evident during my visit) and gawking tourists. They also beveled the corners of blocks, providing four triangular sections on each quadrant for parking and public trash receptacles. This gives each corner the openness of public plazas such as are found throughout the old parts of the city.
How did they get it so right?
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Back Home....Reflections
Some of you loyal readers may have noticed an abrupt halt in postings from your correspondent. Luckily, it didn't happen too early, so most everywhere got at least some attention, though perhaps nowhere got as much as it deserved. In part, this reflects the general difficulty of internet access via wifi when on the road in Europe.
Most places I stayed did have some wifi, though for several it was a bit expensive, as much as 3 euros an hour. Where wifi speeds were adequate, I found an hour was sufficient to get a posting up, especially if I had the text written and the photos picked out. The bigger problem was a number of places, such as in Fierenza (Florence) there were so many people using it that my old iphone couldn't get connected at all.
Then in my final stop, Rome, disaster struck. While on the subway, somehow I got pick pocketed and lost both wallet and iphone. Losing an iphone 3 is not a major setback financially, but if it's your link to the internet it really crimps your activity. Sure, there are internet cafes, but I found in this world of hackers I was reluctant to type in my passwords. Next time I'll set up a separate account. Also, next time I'll keep my phone in a zip-up pocket with a velcro flap. (I didn't lose my passport, credit cards, or significant money because those were inside my shirt, in a pouch hanging around my neck)
Camping actually worked quite well for me, and would have been much better if it hadn't been one of the wettest springs in anyone's memory. Next time I'll make sure my tent doesn't leak! One advantage to camping and staying in hostels is that you tend to meet people from other cultures, much more than in hotels and tour groups, where you're mostly around others of your own sort.
In particular I met a lot of cyclists: Annie and Walter from New Zealand, who'd also biked all over the US and had very nice things to say about it, Stefan the turkey farmer from Austria who'd found a bike thrown away, fixed it up, and retraced a roman road across Italy, Claus and his wife from Germany who'd been biking and camping Europe for 20 years, a couple from Germany who'd been biking all over for a year including from Northern California to Costa Rica and through Turkey, Greece, Italy, and were heading back to find jobs. There were others, mostly riding tough, heavy-duty road-bikes with paniers front and back. These people were great to talk with!
There were others, like Oliver Born and his girlfriend from Stuttgart, who battled excessive disco noise in Rome. We got to be friends, shared breakfast, they both work for HP in Germany. I met an American on the train to Siena whose name unfortunately was lost with my phone, Terry Small perhaps, from Honolulu. He said he always preferred to travel alone so as to meet new people, so perhaps that's part of it. Traveling alone does get, well, lonely.
What I took with me was too much, in a word, though I could have done worse. I had heard about $6 coffee, and decided I'd better take coffee making equipment. Bollocks! Italy and Spain must be the greatest countries in the world for coffee-lovers: You can find better capuccinos and pastries in nearly every street corner shop than you'll find in the US almost anywhere, and the coffee averaged about 1.20 euros. I don't know how Starbucks manages to stay in business there, but it may be due to visiting Americans who haven't yet discovered the local cuisine.
Quite a few other things weighed down my poor aching back, but here's the things I'd take next time:
* Kindle paperwhite loaded with guidebooks, and a few paper maps
* light sleeping bag and air mattress. I had a new Sierra Designs Dri-Down bag which worked very well even when wet.
* light aluminum folding stool. This was a surprise, but was so handy I'll mention it. It weighs only about 8 oz, and makes many things so much easier. But don't consider a heavy one!
* phone/camera/eye-fi card. The issues here I've mentioned, but all in all it worked. I had the special memory card which could transfer photos from the Canon 260 to the phone for posting. Wouldn't consider depending on a phone camera.
* 4 sets underwear/socks, including what I was wearing. (wash as possible in shower.)
* 2 pairs pants, ditto
* 3 shirts: 1 light short sleeve, 1 dress long sleeve, 1 heavy flannel over-shirt.
* light umbrella. (bought there for 3 euros)
* very light shoulder bag
* toothbrush/paste/floss
* small towel/ wash cloth/ bar soap (I found this soap OK for shaving and hair washing)
* LED head lamp with fresh batteries. (don't take extra batteries)
* clothesline cord/ thread/ needles (I actually used all this stuff)
* 1 water bottle.
* swiss army knife with scissors and cork screw. (don't leave home without it)
* light weight tent and ground cloth, tested for rain proofness
* light but durable pack to contain everything plus a few souvenirs.
* passport, credit and ATM cards, some cash, and a safe money-belt type thing to keep it all in, plus a light wallet for walking-around money.
That's about it. If you were staying in hotels you wouldn't need any camping equipment, but I really liked the camping, except when it was raining, and averaged less than 15 euros a night for lodging. It is also quite safe, though I kept my passport, phone, etc with me all the time, even to the shower.
I have a few more thoughts to add later.
Most places I stayed did have some wifi, though for several it was a bit expensive, as much as 3 euros an hour. Where wifi speeds were adequate, I found an hour was sufficient to get a posting up, especially if I had the text written and the photos picked out. The bigger problem was a number of places, such as in Fierenza (Florence) there were so many people using it that my old iphone couldn't get connected at all.
Then in my final stop, Rome, disaster struck. While on the subway, somehow I got pick pocketed and lost both wallet and iphone. Losing an iphone 3 is not a major setback financially, but if it's your link to the internet it really crimps your activity. Sure, there are internet cafes, but I found in this world of hackers I was reluctant to type in my passwords. Next time I'll set up a separate account. Also, next time I'll keep my phone in a zip-up pocket with a velcro flap. (I didn't lose my passport, credit cards, or significant money because those were inside my shirt, in a pouch hanging around my neck)
Camping actually worked quite well for me, and would have been much better if it hadn't been one of the wettest springs in anyone's memory. Next time I'll make sure my tent doesn't leak! One advantage to camping and staying in hostels is that you tend to meet people from other cultures, much more than in hotels and tour groups, where you're mostly around others of your own sort.
In particular I met a lot of cyclists: Annie and Walter from New Zealand, who'd also biked all over the US and had very nice things to say about it, Stefan the turkey farmer from Austria who'd found a bike thrown away, fixed it up, and retraced a roman road across Italy, Claus and his wife from Germany who'd been biking and camping Europe for 20 years, a couple from Germany who'd been biking all over for a year including from Northern California to Costa Rica and through Turkey, Greece, Italy, and were heading back to find jobs. There were others, mostly riding tough, heavy-duty road-bikes with paniers front and back. These people were great to talk with!
There were others, like Oliver Born and his girlfriend from Stuttgart, who battled excessive disco noise in Rome. We got to be friends, shared breakfast, they both work for HP in Germany. I met an American on the train to Siena whose name unfortunately was lost with my phone, Terry Small perhaps, from Honolulu. He said he always preferred to travel alone so as to meet new people, so perhaps that's part of it. Traveling alone does get, well, lonely.
What I took with me was too much, in a word, though I could have done worse. I had heard about $6 coffee, and decided I'd better take coffee making equipment. Bollocks! Italy and Spain must be the greatest countries in the world for coffee-lovers: You can find better capuccinos and pastries in nearly every street corner shop than you'll find in the US almost anywhere, and the coffee averaged about 1.20 euros. I don't know how Starbucks manages to stay in business there, but it may be due to visiting Americans who haven't yet discovered the local cuisine.
Quite a few other things weighed down my poor aching back, but here's the things I'd take next time:
* Kindle paperwhite loaded with guidebooks, and a few paper maps
* light sleeping bag and air mattress. I had a new Sierra Designs Dri-Down bag which worked very well even when wet.
* light aluminum folding stool. This was a surprise, but was so handy I'll mention it. It weighs only about 8 oz, and makes many things so much easier. But don't consider a heavy one!
* phone/camera/eye-fi card. The issues here I've mentioned, but all in all it worked. I had the special memory card which could transfer photos from the Canon 260 to the phone for posting. Wouldn't consider depending on a phone camera.
* 4 sets underwear/socks, including what I was wearing. (wash as possible in shower.)
* 2 pairs pants, ditto
* 3 shirts: 1 light short sleeve, 1 dress long sleeve, 1 heavy flannel over-shirt.
* light umbrella. (bought there for 3 euros)
* very light shoulder bag
* toothbrush/paste/floss
* small towel/ wash cloth/ bar soap (I found this soap OK for shaving and hair washing)
* LED head lamp with fresh batteries. (don't take extra batteries)
* clothesline cord/ thread/ needles (I actually used all this stuff)
* 1 water bottle.
* swiss army knife with scissors and cork screw. (don't leave home without it)
* light weight tent and ground cloth, tested for rain proofness
* light but durable pack to contain everything plus a few souvenirs.
* passport, credit and ATM cards, some cash, and a safe money-belt type thing to keep it all in, plus a light wallet for walking-around money.
That's about it. If you were staying in hotels you wouldn't need any camping equipment, but I really liked the camping, except when it was raining, and averaged less than 15 euros a night for lodging. It is also quite safe, though I kept my passport, phone, etc with me all the time, even to the shower.
I have a few more thoughts to add later.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Bicycle Racing
Do they ever take bicycle racing seriously! One race of the 'Giro d' Italia' was held in Sorrento while I was there. I went to Napoli to avoid the crowd. But I guess it was my fate.
Yesterday, the finish line for this (I think) 130 km stage of the race was 350 meters from my camp. I thought I might as well walk out, join the throng, and snap a picture. Here's the winner, and then the peloton, if that's what they call this gaggle struggling to catch up.
Yesterday, the finish line for this (I think) 130 km stage of the race was 350 meters from my camp. I thought I might as well walk out, join the throng, and snap a picture. Here's the winner, and then the peloton, if that's what they call this gaggle struggling to catch up.
Door knockers
Seeing a lot of interesting door knockers, and other hardware, I set about making a little photo collection
Florence. Fierenza?
Why is it we give our own names to places locals call something else? If the Italians call it Fierenza, shouldn't everyone?
Whatever you call it, the city grows on you quickly. At first everything seems expensive, and then you find a few bargain spots, then more, and suddenly it doesn't seem so expensive at all.
Is it ever full of sights to see! Something delightful around every bend. I'm not coming close to seeing it all, which makes me happy, since I'll have to come back. And there's the gelato.
Plenty of tourists, for sure. Most of them in large herds, being led by someone hoisting a flag or umbrella, moving purposefully this way or that, like little military squadrons. There are herds of Germans, herds of Japanese, Chinese, Americans. More efficient that way, I guess. They're the ones in long lines you'll try to escape from.
Museo de San Marco
One way to avoid long lines is to head for one of the 'lesser' sights, such as the Museo de San Marco. This 15th-century monastery was decorated with frescos by Friar Angeleco, and others. Price of admission was a bargain at €4 when I went in.
In addition to the amazing frescos, most of which relate to an event from the life of Saint Antonius, there are gilded paintings with fantastic detail, examples of manuscripts hand painted by the monks, frescos within each of the 43 monks' rooms, and a special section dedicated to one of the most infamous residents, Savonarola.
This charismatic monk threw out the Medicis, led the burning of books and paintings he considered heretical, and turned Florence into a theocracy for a bit. Eventually the Florentines got tired of the heavy hand of the religious right wing, overthrew him, and burned him alive. Don't mess with the Italianos!
(They don't allow photography inside, though some were ignorant or oblivious to the many signs posted)
Ufizzi Gallery
Usually there are very long lines at this, the most famous art collection in Florence and one of the greatest rennaisance collections anywhere. You have to book a month in advance to avoid them.
I took Rick Steves' advice and went by an hour before closing...there was no line! Normally I'd have liked to spend twice that long, but it was worth the €11 entrance price.
They're very strict about no photos, but I'll tell you, it's phenomenal. They also have a new section they're just fitting out, and judging by the few that were completed, the lighting is much better. Something to look forward to. I haven't even left Fierenza and I already want to come back.
Whatever you call it, the city grows on you quickly. At first everything seems expensive, and then you find a few bargain spots, then more, and suddenly it doesn't seem so expensive at all.
Is it ever full of sights to see! Something delightful around every bend. I'm not coming close to seeing it all, which makes me happy, since I'll have to come back. And there's the gelato.
Plenty of tourists, for sure. Most of them in large herds, being led by someone hoisting a flag or umbrella, moving purposefully this way or that, like little military squadrons. There are herds of Germans, herds of Japanese, Chinese, Americans. More efficient that way, I guess. They're the ones in long lines you'll try to escape from.
Museo de San Marco
One way to avoid long lines is to head for one of the 'lesser' sights, such as the Museo de San Marco. This 15th-century monastery was decorated with frescos by Friar Angeleco, and others. Price of admission was a bargain at €4 when I went in.
In addition to the amazing frescos, most of which relate to an event from the life of Saint Antonius, there are gilded paintings with fantastic detail, examples of manuscripts hand painted by the monks, frescos within each of the 43 monks' rooms, and a special section dedicated to one of the most infamous residents, Savonarola.
This charismatic monk threw out the Medicis, led the burning of books and paintings he considered heretical, and turned Florence into a theocracy for a bit. Eventually the Florentines got tired of the heavy hand of the religious right wing, overthrew him, and burned him alive. Don't mess with the Italianos!
(They don't allow photography inside, though some were ignorant or oblivious to the many signs posted)
Ufizzi Gallery
Usually there are very long lines at this, the most famous art collection in Florence and one of the greatest rennaisance collections anywhere. You have to book a month in advance to avoid them.
I took Rick Steves' advice and went by an hour before closing...there was no line! Normally I'd have liked to spend twice that long, but it was worth the €11 entrance price.
They're very strict about no photos, but I'll tell you, it's phenomenal. They also have a new section they're just fitting out, and judging by the few that were completed, the lighting is much better. Something to look forward to. I haven't even left Fierenza and I already want to come back.
Friday, May 10, 2013
Assisi
This is the home of Saint Francis. I couldn't find a place to stay here, and had trouble with transportation which made me late and tired. Set up the tent and slept in somebody's olive orchard, and left the next day after seeing some of the sights.
I almost blew it off, but I'm glad I didn't. The basilica of St Francis is one of the really inspiring ones. It's covered (inside) with frescos by Giotto and other greats of the early renaissance.
Francis is also one of the truly inspirational figures of christendom. He abandoned a promising and lucrative career in his dad's fabric business to follow a non-materialistic lifestyle, with an emphasis on appreciation of nature. I agree he was a true saint. Too bad you have to throw in miracles to make the official grade, but he made it anyway.
It was also a Roman town. This is the old forum.
You can see the chip marks from 2000 years ago, and the pigeon poop from yesterday
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
A little complaint about the trains...
I'll just get this out there: I don't think anyone at Trenitalia has thought too much about making the Rome station, or their scheduling system, intelligible. Here's my experience:
First, I get issued a ticket by the ticket machine that says 'Assisi'. No other destination noted. So you might think I should look for a train that's going to Assisi, right?
Bong!
No, the train goes through Assisi, but the final destination in Perugia. So you have to look for a train going to Perugia, not Assisi. Well, darn! Doesn't everyone know that? Cause if you don't, good luck figuring it out here. There are no maps to inform you, nor is that little factoid on the ticket.
Second, the train to Perugia is going on binario (track) 1 est. So you wait by binario 1, right? Because there's no sign of an another track, est must mean 'estimated' or something.
Bong!
1 est is way, way down, outside the station, and your train just left while you were waiting for it. Is there a map up anywhere to show you where 1 est is?
No, heck no! That's your problem, man, to figure out where the platform is. I just work here. Besides, everyone knows that!
OK, that said, I did have a very smooth ride on a Eurostar train from Naples to Rome at about 190 km/hour. It took about an hour. That was before I wasted 3-4 hours at the station because they can't be bothered to develop decent signage and information systems.
It's not just me. I saw some Germans shaking their heads too. But to be fair, they do have very nice espresso at the food bar.
It's Italy. Enough said.
Update: I think this is worth saying:
As I got off the train from Assisi to Florence, I heard a call. Turning around, I saw a fellow waving at me from the door of the train. He had my ipod, which had fallen out of my pocket.
He could've easier just kept it, but he didn't. So there you are. Italy may have a somewhat disfunctional public sector (unlike America, where everything is just perfect (not!)) but the Italian people, for the most part are really great. I keep rediscovering this.
First, I get issued a ticket by the ticket machine that says 'Assisi'. No other destination noted. So you might think I should look for a train that's going to Assisi, right?
Bong!
No, the train goes through Assisi, but the final destination in Perugia. So you have to look for a train going to Perugia, not Assisi. Well, darn! Doesn't everyone know that? Cause if you don't, good luck figuring it out here. There are no maps to inform you, nor is that little factoid on the ticket.
Second, the train to Perugia is going on binario (track) 1 est. So you wait by binario 1, right? Because there's no sign of an another track, est must mean 'estimated' or something.
Bong!
1 est is way, way down, outside the station, and your train just left while you were waiting for it. Is there a map up anywhere to show you where 1 est is?
No, heck no! That's your problem, man, to figure out where the platform is. I just work here. Besides, everyone knows that!
OK, that said, I did have a very smooth ride on a Eurostar train from Naples to Rome at about 190 km/hour. It took about an hour. That was before I wasted 3-4 hours at the station because they can't be bothered to develop decent signage and information systems.
It's not just me. I saw some Germans shaking their heads too. But to be fair, they do have very nice espresso at the food bar.
It's Italy. Enough said.
Update: I think this is worth saying:
As I got off the train from Assisi to Florence, I heard a call. Turning around, I saw a fellow waving at me from the door of the train. He had my ipod, which had fallen out of my pocket.
He could've easier just kept it, but he didn't. So there you are. Italy may have a somewhat disfunctional public sector (unlike America, where everything is just perfect (not!)) but the Italian people, for the most part are really great. I keep rediscovering this.
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