Friday 15 March 2013

Mercati di Traiano - Trajan's Markets

http://en.mercatiditraiano.it/

An amazing book ...and now a very good play!

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time


Mark Hadddon (the author): "Curious incident is not a book about Asperger's. It's a novel whose central character describes himself as a mathematician with some behavioural difficulties. Indeed he never uses the words Asperger's or autism (I slightly regret that fact that the word Asperger's was used on the cover). If anything it's a novel about difference, about being an outsider, about seeing the world in a surprising and revealing way. It's as much a novel about us as it is about Christopher."

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/reviews/article-2293649/The-Curious-Incident-Of-The-Dog-In-The-Night-Time-Angst-autism-add-high-emotions.html#ixzz2Nd3onziG Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Wednesday 25 April 2012

Meet the Romans - Mary Beard's amazing new documentary about Ancient Rome




I have previously watched Mary talk about Pompeii and the lives of its ordinary people. In her new documentary for BBC she discusses the people who lived in the Ancient Rome. I am really looking forward to watching all the episodes. 
Some of Mary's pearls:
''This is how we should imagine an ancient city - Everyone shitting together!''
You can watch the first on the following website http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01ghsjx or on youtube.
Enjoy!

Saturday 10 March 2012

Miletus - amazingly beautiful and eerily abandoned...


Miletus was one of the greatest commercial centres of the Greek world before its harbor silted over. The first settlers were Minoan Greeks from Crete, who arrived between 1400 BC and 1200 BC. The Ionians, who arrived 200 years later, slaughtered the male population and married the widows. Michael Wood in his book ''In search of the Trojan War'' says that women and children who were the only survivors after the Trojan War were brought to Miletus and from there to Greece where they became slaves.












The Great Theatre

It is remarkably intact, 25 000 seat amphitheatre built by the Ionians and kept up by the Romans. Along the third to sixth rows some insriptions reserving seats for notables are still visible, and the vaulted passages leading to the seats have the feel of the modern sporting arena. When you climb to the top of the theatre you can see the defensive walls built by the Byzantines. 





Delphinion and Nymphaion

Not much is left of Delphinion which was a sanctuary of Apollo. and all only one story remains of Nymphaion which was once a highly ornate three-story structure, that resembled the Library of Celsus at Ephesus and once distributed water to the rest of the city.

Wednesday 25 January 2012

What a real gentleman should wear

PRADA FALL/WINTER 2012 MENSWEAR SHOW



to me the kind of man who would wear this type of clothes could be one or a mixture of these:


Crown Prince Leopold (from the Illusionist)


John Malkovich (as an older Talented Mr. Ripley)


or my favorite - Jason Bourne - the ultimate assassin.

I wonder what would happen if you mix these three - probably it would be someone very intelligent, strong and ruthless. Great!
If anyone can produce an amazing menswear collection these days, it's Miuccia Prada. The show was very good as well, perfect music, lovely carpet :) and of course Emile Hirsch, Jamie Bell, Adrien Brody, Tim Roth and Gary Oldman. Fantastic casting. I loved the look on Willem Dafoe's face saying ''I have no idea what's happening''. Cute ...

Tuesday 6 December 2011

Asclepion of Pergamum

The Asclepion (Asklepieion) of Pergamum was perhaps the world's most famous ancient medical center, and is the second-most important site in Bergama. Founded by a man named Archias, the Asclepion of Pergamum became famous under Galen (131-210 AD), a local physician who pursued his medical studies in Greece and Alexandria (Egypt) before settling here as doctor to Pergamum's gladiators.



It was about to rain when we got there and once we were inside the thunderstorm started, which was very beautiful. And then it rained quite for some time. There are these really cute frogs (which can startle you as they are quite loud) and turtles swimming in what used to be swimming pools for the patients. There is this long underpassage which used to be a hospital and it's very beautiful especially in the rain. All in all it's an amazing place which I hope one day will be restored and cleaned up. I hope to go back there and take more photos.