I am rather sad that summer is over, although Florence has scorching summers due to it lying in a basin of a river valley with surrounding hills . It just means my time here in this beautiful place is shorter. Now's the season for chestnuts or "castagna". The Florentines call them "marroni" which means brown. I am waiting for the pretty autumn colours, but also glad that the deciduous leaves are taking their time to change. I like how I can observe the gradual change, the tops leaves turning from green to orange first. It's the same feeling like you anticipate your child to grow up, but hoping that the process won't be too fast.
This is another view of Ponte Vecchio, from Lungarno
degli Acciaiuoli. It's a narrow lane with pretty heavy traffic and lots
of pedestrians. The shops along this sunny stretch of road boasts of
the view of River Arno. There are many tourists shops, shops selling
leather goods and a couple of café. They charge extra for sitting at a
table, so if you do not wish to pay extra yet enjoy the view, have a
takeaway coffee and stand along here.
This place is somewhat special to me due to the acquaintances I have. I
like to visit my friend Michele occassionally, the one who owns a
Enoteca just one lane behind at Borgo S.S Apostoli. Just a few shops
down, is an artist, Signor Pasquale Naccarato. His charming little
studio hangs his works with reproduction of paintings by Caravaggio,
Raphael, Vermeer and many more.
His
little pet pigeon is also named Caravaggio and he sometimes croons when
there are visitors. Pasquale just spent some precious time going
through my sketches yesterday afternoon, giving me his advise and the
direction I should go. I really appreciate his warmth and his time. He
is one of the fortunate people that can turn his passion into a career.
Of course, he is very talented as he is self-taught in his oil
technique.
12.10.2012
This
is the sight that greets me every morning. The view from the kitchen of
the apartment I rent in Florence. The surrounding apartments, part of
the marquee in my neighbor's garden is visible, the metal structure that
allows creeping plants to grow and makes sort of a little canopy. The
little weird stump in the backyard with the laundry line wrapped around.
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