Lee's Tuscan Odyssey: 240. It's all Greek to me

In 2001 I came to live in Italy. I had some fun, wrote a journal and this is the blog of my story...

"Tuscany is a state of grace. The countryside is so lovingly designed that the eye sweeps the mountains and valleys without stumbling over a single stone. The lilt of the rolling green hills, the upsurging cypresses, the terraces sculptured by generations that have handled the rocks with skillful tenderness, the fields geometrically juxtaposed as though drawn by a draughtsman for beauty as well as productivity; the battlements of castles on the hills, their tall towers standing grey-blue and golden tan among the forest of trees, the air of such clarity that every sod of earth stands out in such dazzling detail. The fields ripening with barley and oats, beans and beets. The grape-heavy vines espaliered between the horizontal branches of silver-green olive trees, composing orchards of webbed design, rich in intimation of wine, olive oil and lacy-leaf poetry. Tuscany untied the knots in a man's intestines, wiped out the ills of the world. Italy is the garden of Europe, Tuscany is the garden of Italy, Florence is the flower of Tuscany." Irving Stone from my favourite book " The Agony and the Ecstacy" A fictional biography of Michelangelo

I end my 8th journal with a return to Greece and memories of our Summer holiday amongst the classical islands. The BIF teachers have broken with their traditional 'Chinese' evenings and we've gone all Greek!

We have a very enjoyable evening at Dionisio in Florence, the winter drizzle is forgotten, work is hardly mentioned and we're transported back to Santorini and Ithaka as we dine on Ambrosia and nectar with the gods...

End of Book 8

'I follow nature without being able to grasp her, and this river that flows returns, one day green, another yellow and tomorrow it'll be a torrent.'

Monet

In 2001 I came to live in Italy. I had some fun, wrote a journal and this is the blog of my story...

240. It's all Greek to me

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