Saturday, January 2, 2010
Goodbye everybody, I've got to go!!
Monday, July 20, 2009
Friday, June 19, 2009
Italia! Parte 1
Ciao d'Italia!! I arrived in Venice on Monday after what seemed like a never ending flight trip from sf-->ny-->venice. We had pretty bad luck with seating and so on the way to ny i was stuck in the window seat beside my dad and a guy from Armenia...i hate the window seat because whenever I have to use the bathroom, everyone has to get up. After a 3 hour layover, during the flight to ny I sat on the aisle next to a larger sized business man who was a pro traveler. He had no problem sleeping, while I was restless and easily scared by the turbulence. Oh well! We got here, and let's just say, Venezia is everything I'd hoped it'd be!! It's gorgeous!! There are winding, narrow streets with cobblestones lined with three or four story high buildings. Everything looks old, aged, and sometimes decrepit, but in a good way...like good old cheese :) There are no direct routes anywhere!
First day, we wandered somewhat aimlessly to San Marco piazza and the Rialto bridge/shopping area, and to get there we were largely reliant on the little signs with arrows posted on street walls, "Per S. Marco --->". There are so many canals here and every few streets you cross a bridge over the brackish green water, where you catch a glimpse of the colorful houses lining the canal. Anyway, on the first day we visited St. Mark's Square, which, after the claustrophobia of the streets and alleys, is a huge expansive space filled with tourists. The edges of the square are lined with shops and overpriced cafés with waterfront views. We went into St. Mark's Cathedral and they made me buy a table-cloth-like cover for my legs "out of respect"...i guessssss. It was beautiful though, and I'm loving Italy so much already because, everywhere you turn there's a painting, fresco, or work of art!! In San Marco there was also a relic room filled with creepy holy relics like saints hands, fingers, bones...skulls!!! Oh Catholicism. Also in the square is the Doges' Palaze, where the dukes of venice lived and conducted business. The Doges had it good...and as an art history nerd, I basically had mini-strokes every time we entered a room!
Second day, we visited another church (forgot the name), which had a lot of old tombs for famous people back in the day. While most stuck to the conventions rectangular marble tomb...some were a little out there. One, that framed a side entrance had sculptures of black slaves holding the tomb instead of columns, and their bodies were clothed in white, except for black marble marble peaking out of their knees and for their faces. There were also creepy skeleton sculptures holding inscriptions, and glaring down at us menacingly... these were larger than life size, and more then creepy. Next to that tomb was the artist Canova's (who I've never heard of) tomb. His tomb was shaped like a pyramid!! And surrounding the partially opened door (which supposedly houses his heart) were life-size figures of cloaked women, mourning his death. Apparently he designed the tomb before he died...and was quite imaginative. That day we also went to the Scuole di San Rocco, which were once academic schools. This building and the church beside it was full of paintings by the renaissance artist Tintoretto!
Yesterday, we checked into a new hotel, which unlike the other hotel, is located in the middle of Venice. It's called Ca' dei Conti, and is nestled near San Marco right on the canal with its own private bridge!! Che bello!! It's decorated in 18th century style, and our room, the "Casanova Suite" (somehow we were upgraded...I think my mom prob told them me or my brother had bad asthma or something) has patterned green clothed walls and rich furniture!! It reminds me of rococo decorations from France (pictures to come later, unfortunately). We spent most of the day resting after traveling and settling in, then wandered out to get dinner. I've been able practice my Italiano speaking a bit here, and am getting more confident!! yay!!
Today, Liam and I went off on our own, no parents :D Instead of going towards the uber touristy San Marco, we headed away from it along the water towards the Arsenale, and the Castello district. This area was pretty empty and the streets widened a bit. The gelato that usually went for 2 euro a scoop here went for 1 euro! We found a street that was covered with clothlines, and had shirts, underwear, and sheets strung out! It was so picturesque, almost like a cheesy movie set. AND we saw Venice's Communist party chapter headquarters...oh boy! haha Out of the red door came three or four older men, grumbling in italian and eyeing us suspiciously.
Right now we're taking a break on the terrace of the hotel and I can smell the dinner of the older lady in the building across from us....mmmm. I'm hungryyyyyyy.
Hope everyone is well, I miss you guys!!! (and I really wish that you came in my pockets)
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Summer Lovin'
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Summer? Seriously?
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Springin and Sprangin
FIRST shorts of the season :)
Sandalsssss
New old shoes
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It's been too long....and of course, I am posting in order to procrastinate. le poo. I have a Theater paper due on Thursday about "the performativity of identity in M. Butterfly and Junk Bonds", and an outline/draft for my Baroque Art research paper. I know I want to write about Velazquez's Juan de Pareja, but I'm not exactly sure what I want to argue. I feel like writing research papers about older art is difficult because most works have been written about already! I'm much more excited about wiriting my paper for my modern art class. I'm writing about Martha Rosler's photomontages on the Iraq War.
I can't believe school is almost over!!!! But it's not coming soon enough...I still have to get through a month of HELL: research papers and finals ugh. Summer should be fun, and I'm really looking forward to it :) It just need to BE summer already, not almost be summer! I'm tired of all this work, and I'm tired of being tired!!!!
Speaking of, I'm tired now! Tonight I watched the VSA culture show and it was AMAZING!!! I'm so proud of my little VSA that I live with, all the hard work that they put into it really paid off :) But, consequently + all the heat, I am ready for some sleepytime.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Rain Rain Go Away!
I just realized today that I haven't blogged in a really long time! (well neither have you guys, psh) All this rain lately has been a real downer, plus with my marathon run of every sickness in the world, life has pretty much sucked. I guess not totally sucked, I should blame all my sicknesses on a certain person! But yesterday when the sun came out, I actually smiled to myself while walking! I love the beginning of spring!!
I can't believe it's midterm season already...where the hell did that come from?! Seems like last week I was receiving my syllabus now I'm nose diving into midterm week! EEK! It doesn't help that next week also happens to be me birthday *woot the big 2 1*, so I'm basically gonna kill myself then get wasted. I do have goals to remember what happens on this birthday and not to throw up. Very managable, I think. I'm really excited to have my tea party with the girlies + Stevelicious! I love nothing more than getting dressed up and having tea and sandwiches. I am truly an old woman.
Looking back on the year, I can't believe how much has happened! This time last year I was barely adjusting to my first semester at Berkeley, and now I couldn't be more at home here! Now it's apartment hunting season and I can't help but look ahead to next year, which will be...different. I'm looking forward to living in the Co-ops this summer/fall and I'm really crossing my fingers for Italy in the Spring, but I don't think anything will be quite the same as living with Leminee in Cheney 312. Living here this year has been truly the greatest time of my life and it saddens me that I won't be living with Minee next year. It seems dumb to lament the end of our box-triple life because I know I'll come over to their house a lot and they'll eat at mine when they're poor. haha. I'm very excited about living in Berkeley this summer because it'll be my first summer not vacationing with the fam! YAY! I'll be doing my own thing, which is how I like it.
In all, life is pretty good. So i'll stop here. And leave you with some cool art:
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About Me
- LL
- I am nothing but blocks of stone on pieces of gravel. I am nothing but weight, and silence, inertia and density. Nothing will ever learn my secret, or even whether I contain one. The only thing that can penetrate me is the strident cry of the cicada that pierces the heart of summer. Be content to taste the raw beauty of my opaque flesh; look at me without saying a word and ask me nothing; be silent and try, through my hermetic body, to find yourself.