The Gucci Museum recently reopened after renovation. The restaurant is beautiful and impossible to reserve a table in. Gucci advertised the new installation as a garden and, silly me, I thought that meant an outdoor space with soil and plants. It’s possible, there could be a courtyard.
But, no, it’s not an actual garden. I guess it’s a paper garden. Anyway here it is:
We’ve all used this word to describe the state of an old building or other structure. But, where does the word come from?
In Italian, la lapide means ” a stone.” Dilapidare means “to take stones away.”
So a structure that is falling apart or having stones purposely removed is called “dilapidated.” Who knew?!!
Check it out!
Small signs warning graffiti creators not to paint anything appear on many exterior walls in Florence. Typically, the creators seem to obey the signs. But, right on a major Lungarno street (street along the Arno river), someone could not help themselves and painted–in a beautiful graphic style, I might add–words that both support immigrants and denounces Fascism.
Immigration is a huge issue in Italy. A week or so ago an immigrant was shot dead on the street that I walk on at least weekly and sometimes several times a week. I happened to be walking down this street shortly after the murder. Carabinieri and police were everywhere. I didn’t find out until later that a man in his 60s was planning to commit suicide, but lacked the nerve, so he walked outside and shot the first person he saw. At least that’s what I read.
There was a march last Sunday in support of immigrants. It is such a sad story, all these displaced people from the middle east and northern Africa, whose lives are ripped apart by endless civil wars.
Despite the fact that this graffiti is forbidden, I can’t help but admire the creator who felt compelled to state his/her support for the downtrodden. And, in such a beautiful style.
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