A Postcard: Tuscany

By Shawna Hammon

A Postcard – Tuscany

So it is here we arrive at the reason I am in Italy with Clemson instead of in Prague with my peers from NC State - Florence and Rome.  This group trip was the highlight of my adventures in Italy thus far, particularly because we were given the freedom to explore most of these places on our own and in our own way.  As a result of this freedom I was able to make discoveries and experience things I never would have if we had been on scheduled tours or herded around like sheep as we had on past trips.  From the Etruscan caves in Montepulciano to a razed tower in Siena to Sunday Mass in the Pantheon, this trip was by far my favorite. 

The Etruscan cave was an accidental discovery while looking for some good wine.  A sign on Palazzo Ricci in Montepulciano on Via Ricci promised some local wines for tasting.  We went in expecting the tasting counter to be just inside, but instead found ourselves going down, down, down steep underground staircases into the depths of the multi-story foundations of the Renaissance palazzo.   Eventually, we came out into the wine cellar far below the surface, where there were stacks of huge barrels in a series of towering, narrow brick vaults.  The pictures could never do this image justice.  A path through these barrels eventually led to the tasting shop, which let out onto Via di Collazzi.  We tasted two wines and I purchased a bottle which I am saving for my graduation party in December – I can’t wait to open it!

Wine Tasting at Montepulciano

On another fine free afternoon Denver, Tyler and I came upon the razed tower in Siena.  At first we admired it for its odd stairs, which one of the guys likened to Squidward’s nose (a character from Sponge Bob Square Pants), but once we made our way around it, we realized it was once one of Siena’s eighty-two towers soaring above the city.  The tower was primarily constructed of red brick and the structure at the base vaults over two basins of water, which an older gentleman was giving to his dogs despite the non-potable water sign.  The sun was setting quickly on us, so pictures are limited, but this was one of our most exciting discoveries made just outside of town along the wall.

The remains of one of Siena's famed towers.

I came to Rome, in particular, with a strong desire to do what the architectural masters of past had - to study and sketch the ancient ruins, objects, and sites until I fully understand the classic orders and proportioning systems.  Unfortunately for me, much of these ancient ruins studied by the likes of Alberti, Borromini, Bernini, and Brunelleschi, were razed by bombings in 1943, so ancient ruins were limited.  Also, these masters spent years in Rome making detailed observations.  Burnelleschi spent ten years here with his friend, Donatello.  I had a dream that this would be me, perhaps not years, but spending a semester sketching and absorbing all the knowledge of the ancients.  However, Genova was a more affordable program, so I had to make the most of the four days I had in Rome.

Pantheon in the rain.

Make the best of it I did, Sunday Mass in the Pantheon proved to be one of the most breathtaking moments in Italy.   As the rain fell through the oculus and splashed on the floor while the priest sang a hymnal, no words could describe how momentous and unforgettable that experience was.  So while I may not have gotten to study in Rome for the years or even four months that I had wished, I am looking forward to visiting Rome many times in the future.  I’m sure each time will bring new surprises and I will see things in a different way as I mature into being an architect.

Sources:

http://www.reidsitaly.com/destinations/tuscany/montepulciano/index.html