Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Author: admin

  • British Airways (Gatwick South to Malta) – Fourth Time

    British Airways (Gatwick South to Malta) – Fourth Time

    And my fourth visit to the delightful island of Malta….

    Earlier on in the day the flight was expected to be delayed by around ninety minutes due to adverse weather conditions, but there was then a change in aircraft and the delay became relatively minor. Not that this was a problem, we had arrived at Gatwick early, so we had plenty of time in the BA lounge. The gate was called and it was once again the set of gates at the end of the long corridor, a little bit of a walk from the main terminal. The boarding process was though very well managed, with all the customers boarded by group and this was carefully enforced. There are enough seats in the area as well for customers to wait before boarding.

    Parked up at Gatwick, the aircraft G-EUUT, which has been operated by BA since 2007, which I was on when I returned from Palma to Gatwick South in November last year. The aircraft that I should have been on today, before the aircraft change this afternoon, was the one which went tech last year en route to Palma…..

    I had an exit row aisle seat and Liam had the middle seat, although the window seat wasn’t used so we had the row of three emergency exit row seats between us. The flight was uneventful, which is a useful thing for a flight to be, with the buy on board seeming to be quite popular on this evening’s flight. Then there was just the matter of getting through border control at Malta airport and then the checks for the Coronavirus where everyone was corralled through a checkpoint….

    The flight wasn’t unreasonably priced, costing £44 for a single journey, which I reduced by using Avios. The flight, which took just under three hours, was around 80% full, which meant it wasn’t sufficiently busy to cause problems with space in the overhead lockers.

  • Florence – Boboli Gardens (Photos)

    Florence – Boboli Gardens (Photos)

    Photos from the rather lovely Boboli Gardens.

  • Florence – Museo della Misericordia

    Florence – Museo della Misericordia

    This museum opened in 2016 and it tells the story of the Misericordia of Florence, a charity established in the thirteenth century. It has provided charity, social care and treatment to the people of the city since its creation, with the members of the organisation always helping anonymously, so they would usually wear a mask covering their heads. The museum is located by Florence Cathedral, so it’s easy enough to find.

    I’ve already posted separately about:

    Tribute to the Misericordia by Cesare Riesch

    Saint Tobias by Santi di Tito

    Misericordia Brothers Collecting the Wounded

    Misericordia Brothers Offering Charity

    Saint John the Baptist by Giovanni Martini

    When we went to the museum the staff member was on the ground floor as there were no other visitors, so she guided us in the lift up to the fourth floor. There is a sheet of paper with English translations on, although the text around the museum is nearly all translated into English as well. The museum is clearly laid out, not too in-depth with the information and there are plenty of exhibits. The photographs are particularly interesting, although the head covering does make some of them look a little sinister. The museum is also fully disabled accessible because of various lifts located around, which isn’t always the case with historical locations in Florence.

    There’s a video at the start of the museum which gives some background to the charity, as well as featuring some of the work that they still do. The above photo shows that they still provide medical services at football games across the country. A visit to the museum isn’t likely to take much longer than 45 minutes, but it’s a fascinating look at how the charity has developed over the centuries and the good which it has done.

  • Malta – Safely at Gatwick Airport

    Malta – Safely at Gatwick Airport

    Unusually for me I arrived at Gatwick Airport by car, thanks to Liam’s excellent driving skills, which made for a smooth and easy journey. In three hours and ten minutes we had gone from being in Norwich, parking at Gatwick’s car park, getting Liam’s ticket re-issued (long story), through security (which Liam messed up) and into the lounge.

    So that means six hours or so in the lounge. I think we’ll cope.

  • Florence – Museo della Misericordia (Tribute to the Misericordia by Cesare Riesch)

    Florence – Museo della Misericordia (Tribute to the Misericordia by Cesare Riesch)

    As I mentioned in other posts about this museum, the Misericordia were a group of individuals who performed charitable works anonymously. This painting is in tribute to them and their charity, although I think it’s quite a disconcerting artwork. It was painted by Cesare Riesch (1906-1982) and was given to the museum by his family after he died. A nice sentiment, but a very direct image.

  • Florence – Florence Cathedral Museum (Flowering Cross from the Column of St. Zenobius)

    Florence – Florence Cathedral Museum (Flowering Cross from the Column of St. Zenobius)

    Saint Zenobius was the first bishop of Florence and there is a story passed down the generations that when his body was being moved from the Basilica di San Lorenzo di Firenze to the Cathedral that it touched a dead elm which then burst into flower. A gardening miracle can’t be a bad thing, although the Saint today is better known from being children back to life after they’ve died. There’s a pillar now at the spot where this miracle is said to have taken place, which is often today marked with flowers at its base.

    It’s not known when the first pillar was placed there, but it’s known that it was lost during the flood of 1333, but was replaced in the following year. The pillar collapsed in 1501 and was then repaired, still standing today. The details on various web-sites of the pillar suggest that the fourteenth century version is still in situ.

    However, this pillar at the Cathedral museum is dated as being from the fourteenth century. So, it’s either the one that was installed in 1334 and there was a new one added in 1501, or this is somehow something else. However, the cross does look like the one which is currently standing and it’s a wonderful tradition. I like to think that this is the fourteenth century cross which fell in 1501, now located just a stone’s throw from the current one. Quite a long stone’s throw, but just about doable.

  • Florence – Trams

    Florence – Trams

    There were trams in Florence from 1879 until 1958, then it was thought that they were no longer useful and that cars and buses would provide the alternatives. The service has though been brought back from 2010, with the T1 service which runs from Villa Costanza to Careggi. It’s the second line, T1, which openly recently, which is though perhaps the most useful to visitors to Florence, as it runs from the airport to just outside of the city centre.

    The trams are easy to find when leaving the airport, with clear signage, and there’s a machine which accepts cards and cash to buy the tickets from. The trams leave on a regular basis and late into the evening, with the validation machines being easily visible and clear to understand. Richard did manage to miss his stop when he went back to the hotel on one, but they’re much easier than the previous option of getting a bus to the airport. And, these trams are just €1.50 for a 90-minute ticket, which allows users to get off onto another tram or bus as long as the journey is completed before the 90 minutes since validation are up.

  • Florence – Museo della Misericordia (Saint Tobias by Santi di Tito)

    Florence – Museo della Misericordia (Saint Tobias by Santi di Tito)

    This artwork was painted in oils by Santi di Tito in around 1578 to 1580. He was an influential local painter who was born in Florence in 1536 and died in the city in 1603. I think that Saint Tobias is the patron saint of grave-diggers, along with Saint Anthony and Saint Joseph, it seems quite a competitive role….. Anyway, an interesting artwork, but there’s unfortunately no obvious provenance of where this painting has been over the centuries.

  • Florence – Marino Marini Museum

    Florence – Marino Marini Museum

    This museum and gallery is located in what was San Pancrazio Church, primarily a fourteenth century structure, although there has been a church on this site since the tenth century. The Rucellai Sepulchre has been retained within the church and this is accessible through the museum, although there’s an extra charge for that. The staff member at the reception area was friendly and he explained what there was to see and how to access it.

    The view of the gallery from the entrance desk. The church stopped being used for religious purposes in 1808 during the Napoleonic Suppression and the building was then was used by the city as a tribunal court and then as a tobacco factory. It was a sad fall from grace for such a beautiful building which was used by the Vallombrosan Congregation order of Benedictine monks from 1230 until 1808.

    And looking down on the gallery from the first floor.

    There are plenty of works, around two hundred, by Marini which are located around the gallery. The majority of works were given to the city by the artist during his lifetime, with many others given by his widow following his death. There’s no admission charge to visit the gallery, just to see the chapel and also the regularly changing exhibition in the crypt.

    Although damaged, this fresco on the ceiling retains some beauty and it’s interesting to see how it looks in its unrestored versions. The church has lost much of its interior, although some decorative elements remain, primarily in the crypt.

     

    Some of the sculptures which Marini created and I’ve also posted separately about the sculptures Bagnante, Miracolo and Giocoliere. The sculptures were all interesting to look at and the environment is pleasing, with the light and space being ideal for this project. However, I didn’t really understand anything that I was looking at and although every sculpture was named there was no more information provided. It’s an intriguing museum, but I would have liked more explanation of the messages that the artist sought to convey in these artworks.

  • Florence – Marino Marini Museum (Bagnante)

    Florence – Marino Marini Museum (Bagnante)

    Meaning ‘bather’ in English, this sculpture by Marino Marini was cast in bronze in 1938. I’ve been trying to bring some understanding of what Marini was representing in these sculptures, with limited success. The Museum of Modern Art in Rome has a similar sculpture, although made from stone, and they have managed to write on their web-site five paragraphs describing their version of the artwork and a further four explaining it. I’m still none the wiser……