A Local Encounter that Changed my Perspective - Magnum Opus
ITALY | Thursday, 21 February 2013 | Views [217] | Scholarship Entry
Scuola Leonardo da Vinci is a school for foreigners. Students on their break, suck in nicotine and nurse espresso shots from paper cups – thoroughly embracing the Italian culture. I leave the building with Vittoria, my tour guide for the day. She is dressed in classic Tuscan attire from the renaissance, as if to add to the experience. Her red velvet skirt skims dusty cobblestones and I follow the click clack of her kitten heels down single-file sidewalks.
Listen close, she says.
The city has a voice. Firenze’s full lungs release to project the symphonic sound of an urban Italian center. Vocal chords reverberate. A steady hum of diverse dialects mingles with the jingle of a gypsy’s coin and the wispy, windy sound of pigeons’ wings. The Campanile’s bells chime, alerting residents that siesta is at its end. The raucous sound of an ambulanza or polizia racing somewhere in the distance through a twisted cobbled street becomes a familiar melody that plays on and off, day in and day out.
Listen close.
Vittoria propels herself into the thrall of tourists standing before Florence’s prized cathedral. The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore is a mass of colored marble and ornate designs. The scolding heat emanates from the marble steps and Vittoria’s ruched velvet top is darkened and dampened beneath her arms. The sun is at its midday point and beads of sweat trickle down the backs of my knees.
Vittoria points at particular edifices, reciting facts in a thick Tuscan accent and I strain my ears to understand. My eyes scan to see the entirety spanning over three city blocks, covering the whole of the piazza.
Look close, she says.
Ecco tutti colori! The marble stone is a delicate mixture of pastel pink from Maremma, green from Prato, and crisp white from Carrera. On both sides of the grandiose doors are spiraling multi-depth columns, engraved with flowers and decorative detail that lead my eyes upwards toward an abundance of sculpted figures and busts of both idols and artists of the Florentine culture. As I continue to gawk, Vittoria points me towards Brunelleschi’s magnum opus – The Dome. The red herringbone brick is a jarring contrast against the chiesa’s soft colors. It is topped with a cupola on which you can walk around, dare you venture the 436 steps to the top.
Vittoria watches me as I take in the building. The dome is a recognized marvel of the age, and as the body of Florence, it bestows the city it’s voice.
Listen close, she says.
Tags: Travel Writing Scholarship 2013
Travel Answers about Italy
Do you have a travel question? Ask other World Nomads.