The Yogi Berra-ism pretty much sums it all up. When Laura was curating and showing at the Wired Gallery in High Falls, the owner, a wonderful fellow named Sevan Melikyan indicated a desire to lecture on my show on the topic of the Peggy Guggenheim Museum un Venice. Although I was a bit reluctant, knowing that this would be a major project to undertake and probably, therefore, impede me from posting more regular uploads of the show, I accepted the proposal. Seven and I have now been working on the project for over a week. We began in my kitchen taping his presentation, and continued today with the correct placement of the photos. Now I have to "smooth" everything out and create a complete program. Then he desires to see the finished product, so who knows when this will be unveiled. As I thought, it is taking a while to finish.
Meanwhile I am working on the next show after this and that may come out on the heels of this one. That one will focus on My Experiences with Sandro Botticelli, covering not only galleries in Italy, but in this country as well. Again, this is not the definitive Botticelli, but my own connection to one of the 15th century's greatest artists. The show follows my "discovery" of Botticelli chronologically beginning in 1992 and continuing through this past summer. A bit different from my take on Raphael, it is more expansive and very personal.
Stay tuned.
Wednesday, December 28, 2016
Wednesday, December 21, 2016
Happy Anniversary to Alan's Italy
On December 16, 2016 I quietly marked the 5th anniversary of Alan's Italy. In the past I have marked the occasion with much fanfare, sometimes even balloons falling on the screen during the introduction. I hope I have not become too complacent nor too modest, because even though I am not famous, Alan's Italy is doubtless a phenomenon worthy of taking note. Laura and I always tell the story of our meeting people on a vaporetto (water bus) in Venice in 2013 late in the evening who recognized my face (and sports jacket). "We know you!" They breathlessly continued, "We watched your Venice show on Youtube (Show # 1!), and it helped us plan our trip here. Thank you so much." They even asked me to autograph a bag in which they were carrying food back to the hotel for one of their husbands who watching the kids. I recall: "Dominick, sorry you couldn't be here to meet me, but thanks for watching Alan's Italy." During that same trip when Laura was appearing in the Venice Biennale at the Palazzo Bembo, I, as a bonafide and certified official Exhibition correspondent, wearing my credentials on my lapel for 7 days, was videotaping interviews with as many artists in the show as I could find to speak with me. Sometimes we used an interpreter as these people came from dozens of countries around the world. As I would finish up an interview, people would tug at my jacket and request to be interviewed. We even interviewed someone late in the evening on a backstreet in Venice who happened to be showing at the Palazzo Bembo, but was doing something or other right there on the sidewalk. I interviewed the President of the Global Art Affairs Foundation who organized the Palazzo Bembo Exhibition. In all I came home with 21 videotaped interviews which served as the basis for three episodes of Alan's Italy. During that same trip I even interviewed the Head Rabbi of the Jewish Congregation in Venice and the Director of the Jewish Congregation in Florence in situ. For recent visits are are met with some anticipation by people for whom I had set up interviews in advance of a trip. Over 40,000 times people have watched at least one episode. There are currently 143 subscribers to the show on Youtube. My blogs have received over 11,000 reads. I have lectured about Alan's Italy and written two books on it and Italian Travel. It all started as simply a hobby, something to keep me busy during my "first retirement" back in 2010. The idea led to 123 studio and 9 home productions. People stopped me on the streets of Woodstock and other communities up here to compliment me on the show. When I decided to stop broadcasting live on Woodstock Public Access Television several months ago, the newly formed Producer's Board begged me to remain on the air. The Mayor of Woodstock once designated me "Ambassador to the Venice Biennale for the Town of Woodstock." I have made friends with people from all over the world, especially, of course, Italy. A doctor of mine recently told me she loved one of my episodes. And on and on....
It turned out to be a heck of a hobby!! Nevertheless, as odd as this may sound based on what I have tried to objectively demonstrate in the first paragraph, I prefer focusing with people in conversation about my profession as an educator of 45 years, and counting, hopefully. I mean that is what I officially received my formal training in, practiced for all those years in high schools and colleges, wrote my "real" book on a few years ago, and take the most pride in. Compliments about my teaching (and former supervising) give me greater joy. Nothing fills me with greater happiness than for one of the coordinators or chairpeople at my present college to tell me how valuable I am to the school or how lucky my students are to have me. Twice a year I revel in the student evaluations of me which occur in each of my classes every semester. Recently my Chairman gave me the ultimate compliment, which unfortunately I would rather not mention here. So what is Alan's Italy exactly? Where is it going? When will it end?
It is a hobby of mine, like going to the YMCA, reading, watching television, but so much more. It brings the world closer to me on a regular basis and I hope gives to my friends in Italy as much happiness as it has to me. It will continue, somehow, although my ideas are bound to run out eventually, I assume. If my home country, the United States of America cuts my Social Security and/or Medicare, certainly that would have a major impact on my ability to create viable presentations. Nonetheless, I will try to maintain my present level of commitment and bring to my audience quality productions. So after 5 years (on the air - the project itself actually began in the spring of 2011), I look forward to many more. All I ask is that you, my audience, stay with me. Thank you.
It turned out to be a heck of a hobby!! Nevertheless, as odd as this may sound based on what I have tried to objectively demonstrate in the first paragraph, I prefer focusing with people in conversation about my profession as an educator of 45 years, and counting, hopefully. I mean that is what I officially received my formal training in, practiced for all those years in high schools and colleges, wrote my "real" book on a few years ago, and take the most pride in. Compliments about my teaching (and former supervising) give me greater joy. Nothing fills me with greater happiness than for one of the coordinators or chairpeople at my present college to tell me how valuable I am to the school or how lucky my students are to have me. Twice a year I revel in the student evaluations of me which occur in each of my classes every semester. Recently my Chairman gave me the ultimate compliment, which unfortunately I would rather not mention here. So what is Alan's Italy exactly? Where is it going? When will it end?
It is a hobby of mine, like going to the YMCA, reading, watching television, but so much more. It brings the world closer to me on a regular basis and I hope gives to my friends in Italy as much happiness as it has to me. It will continue, somehow, although my ideas are bound to run out eventually, I assume. If my home country, the United States of America cuts my Social Security and/or Medicare, certainly that would have a major impact on my ability to create viable presentations. Nonetheless, I will try to maintain my present level of commitment and bring to my audience quality productions. So after 5 years (on the air - the project itself actually began in the spring of 2011), I look forward to many more. All I ask is that you, my audience, stay with me. Thank you.
Monday, December 19, 2016
Verona on My Mind
Alan's Italy Show # 132 on Verona is finished and downloaded to Youtube. It is pretty much the show I had planned complete with three videos of the Roman Arena, a fun group of videos we took when Alan's Italy was not even a dream. I also focus on two people, William Shakespeare and John Hawkweed, who both had dubious connections to Verona. It is a good summary of the Verona experience from a tourists point of view, far removed from my usual type of show in which I feel that I am intimately involved such as just about anything related to Florence and Tuscany, or even Venice and Varenna for that matter. I did a lot of research and came to the conclusion that relying on a lot of elements of Verona's history would have been too boring since there was nothing to distinguish it from most other Italian city states during the Middle Ages. Instead of I took the viewer on a rather superficial, yet interesting tour of the major sites focusing on our personal experience and speaking about how we would up in Verona during June 2007 complete with several descriptive maps.
I played with a lot of special effects and the result is a nice presentation that even Laura was impressed with. In fact she usually has several suggestions to make, but made absolutely none!! I liked it also and it is good to be back on the horse. I will be dealing into a lot of areas that interest me now including doing a show on Botticelli's art in the Uffizi, the Peggy Guggenheim Museum, and a lot of show in which Laura has focused her attention over the years like the Doors of Italy and Panoramas.
That is now where we stand.
I played with a lot of special effects and the result is a nice presentation that even Laura was impressed with. In fact she usually has several suggestions to make, but made absolutely none!! I liked it also and it is good to be back on the horse. I will be dealing into a lot of areas that interest me now including doing a show on Botticelli's art in the Uffizi, the Peggy Guggenheim Museum, and a lot of show in which Laura has focused her attention over the years like the Doors of Italy and Panoramas.
That is now where we stand.
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
Whew!!! That was a close call.
I snapped out of it. For several days I honestly thought Alan's Italy had come to the end of a great run. Then I was browsing through some old albums and my interest came to life. I am currently working on a show on the City of Verona in Northern Italy. I have put in some work researching and assembling the images, and now have a good idea of how it should be presented. I will begin to shoot probably this weekend. Today I will probably plan out the sequence of events with greater detail and an eye towards how the show will develop. I am sort of excited by it. One of the problems with the Verona album is that for various reasons, back in 2007 when we took the trip that included the storied city, we only took about 45 photos. It was an overnighter with us staying in a lovely hotel right in the city center (which everyone should know by now is what we always do - as opposed to staying out of town at an agritourismo or some other place in the countryside). We hardly photographed the hotel, and even left out several key sights. It was a rainy day which always puts a damper on attempts at sightseeing. We did take 4 videos which are fascinating, but with such "fertile" territory as Verona, we should have many more.
I suppose the cause of the problem rests in three areas. First we were very new at using digital cameras; this was only the second or third time we were using it for the trip. Second, we had no idea that four and a half years later I would be producing the TV show. Had we gone to Verona now on a future trip, we would surely plan to take more videos, and even many more photos, and certainly not leave out some key sights even if we had to stay over an extra day. And finally this was a long vacation and I suppose that by the time we arrived in Verona after having already traveled for almost two weeks to Vienna, Salzburg, Bolzano, and Venice, we were probably a bit worn out; especially since we had rented a car in Salzburg and driven across some pretty daunting mountains and, if I recall, treacherous roads through the Dolomites. I recall the drive we made from Bolzano south around (but into) Trento, east to Roveretto, and then south southeast to Venice. The drive once we left Roveretto was, up to that time - I believe the fourth time I had driven in Europe - very anxiety producing, with the road winding, sloping up and down, and with the typical blind curves I later had to deal with to an even greater degree. I remember Laura saying, hey look at that view, and my hands tightly gripping the steering wheel and my eyes fixed on the road ahead. Needless to say I missed that photo op!! When we finally pulled into the Tronchetto Parking Lot just outside of Venice, I was happy to give up the car for a few days. Then back in the car we decided to stop in two places on the way to our next destination of Varenna on Lake Como (the first time we ever visited that area). As I always do and certainly did back when driving was a part of just about every trip, I studied the map to see what was between Venice and Varenna. It turns out that Verona was my first choice among the three main Veneto Cities of Vicenza, Padua, and Verona. I almost made it to Verona back in 2002 during my third solo trip, and then as I was buying the ticket to board from Venice as a day trip to Verona, I found that there was an imminent railroad strike and if I went to Verona, I may not have been able to return.
So we left Venice, heading west on the autostrade for a very easy and welcome drive to Verona from Venice. That drive was not, however, free of worry. Before GPS use, I studied the map so I wouldn't get lost exiting Venice, and almost as soon as I left Tronchetto, took a wrong turn!! Amazing, but true. Nonetheless, we did arrive in Verona just after noon, drove to our hotel, left our luggage there as we usually did when pulling into town, and then I had to find a distant parking lot and walk back to the hotel, all in the rain. Then probably around 2:00 PM, we headed out to various places that will be covered in the show. We left Verona the next morning and before we took our next stopover in Bergamo (southeast of Varenna and Lake Como), we stopped in the amazing town of Sirmione on Lake Guarda. Verona was a place I read about via William Shakespeare (to be explained during the show). Sirmione was a town that was described to me by a friend at the college many years ago. Bergamo was a town which my former principal at the high school told me about. Thus the plan for the two days between Venice and Varenna.
I am detailing all this because I probably would not describe such things during Alan's Italy. I should point out that although we did have a great drive from Salzburg to Bolzano and the parking lot in Bolzano was close to the hotel (LOL), I did have a harrowing experience that I never wrote or spoke on the show about. We went to the Reiferstein Castle just north of Bolzano on our drive south from Salzburg. We parked the car, and walked up the hill to the very, very charming castle when I suddenly realized I may have left my lights on. I left Laura and ran down the hill, saw that I did not leave my lights on, and headed back up the hill to the door of the castle where Laura was waiting. I saw three young women hiking up to the castle (I thought they were anyway). After about ten minutes I realized they were not going to the castle at all, but just going for a leisurely hike. I panicked, and tried to find my way back to the parking lot and got lost!!! Now minutes were ticking away as I could not find my way back to the car and the regular route up to the castle. Eventually I found my way, but Laura was indeed concerned about where I had been, and I was sweating profusely on a humid June afternoon.
I mention all these trials and tribulations to put in perspective what had transpired during this particular vacation in June 2007 which I will summarize on the show. But the bottom line.........I am back!!!! I hope.
I suppose the cause of the problem rests in three areas. First we were very new at using digital cameras; this was only the second or third time we were using it for the trip. Second, we had no idea that four and a half years later I would be producing the TV show. Had we gone to Verona now on a future trip, we would surely plan to take more videos, and even many more photos, and certainly not leave out some key sights even if we had to stay over an extra day. And finally this was a long vacation and I suppose that by the time we arrived in Verona after having already traveled for almost two weeks to Vienna, Salzburg, Bolzano, and Venice, we were probably a bit worn out; especially since we had rented a car in Salzburg and driven across some pretty daunting mountains and, if I recall, treacherous roads through the Dolomites. I recall the drive we made from Bolzano south around (but into) Trento, east to Roveretto, and then south southeast to Venice. The drive once we left Roveretto was, up to that time - I believe the fourth time I had driven in Europe - very anxiety producing, with the road winding, sloping up and down, and with the typical blind curves I later had to deal with to an even greater degree. I remember Laura saying, hey look at that view, and my hands tightly gripping the steering wheel and my eyes fixed on the road ahead. Needless to say I missed that photo op!! When we finally pulled into the Tronchetto Parking Lot just outside of Venice, I was happy to give up the car for a few days. Then back in the car we decided to stop in two places on the way to our next destination of Varenna on Lake Como (the first time we ever visited that area). As I always do and certainly did back when driving was a part of just about every trip, I studied the map to see what was between Venice and Varenna. It turns out that Verona was my first choice among the three main Veneto Cities of Vicenza, Padua, and Verona. I almost made it to Verona back in 2002 during my third solo trip, and then as I was buying the ticket to board from Venice as a day trip to Verona, I found that there was an imminent railroad strike and if I went to Verona, I may not have been able to return.
So we left Venice, heading west on the autostrade for a very easy and welcome drive to Verona from Venice. That drive was not, however, free of worry. Before GPS use, I studied the map so I wouldn't get lost exiting Venice, and almost as soon as I left Tronchetto, took a wrong turn!! Amazing, but true. Nonetheless, we did arrive in Verona just after noon, drove to our hotel, left our luggage there as we usually did when pulling into town, and then I had to find a distant parking lot and walk back to the hotel, all in the rain. Then probably around 2:00 PM, we headed out to various places that will be covered in the show. We left Verona the next morning and before we took our next stopover in Bergamo (southeast of Varenna and Lake Como), we stopped in the amazing town of Sirmione on Lake Guarda. Verona was a place I read about via William Shakespeare (to be explained during the show). Sirmione was a town that was described to me by a friend at the college many years ago. Bergamo was a town which my former principal at the high school told me about. Thus the plan for the two days between Venice and Varenna.
I am detailing all this because I probably would not describe such things during Alan's Italy. I should point out that although we did have a great drive from Salzburg to Bolzano and the parking lot in Bolzano was close to the hotel (LOL), I did have a harrowing experience that I never wrote or spoke on the show about. We went to the Reiferstein Castle just north of Bolzano on our drive south from Salzburg. We parked the car, and walked up the hill to the very, very charming castle when I suddenly realized I may have left my lights on. I left Laura and ran down the hill, saw that I did not leave my lights on, and headed back up the hill to the door of the castle where Laura was waiting. I saw three young women hiking up to the castle (I thought they were anyway). After about ten minutes I realized they were not going to the castle at all, but just going for a leisurely hike. I panicked, and tried to find my way back to the parking lot and got lost!!! Now minutes were ticking away as I could not find my way back to the car and the regular route up to the castle. Eventually I found my way, but Laura was indeed concerned about where I had been, and I was sweating profusely on a humid June afternoon.
I mention all these trials and tribulations to put in perspective what had transpired during this particular vacation in June 2007 which I will summarize on the show. But the bottom line.........I am back!!!! I hope.
Saturday, December 10, 2016
A Change of Plans
I began the long awaited, How to Plan a Trip to Italy, by videotaping a few short clips of my explaining the process. I then downloaded to IMovie. After a modest beginning, it was disappointingly boring to me, which is a bad sign right there. It was simply me sitting in a chair talking endlessly about all the facets of the planning process. I became bored not only watching what I had produced, but also trying to create an interesting show. Laura agreed. The whole thing just really was awful. A flop!
Worse than that, I have found myself in a state of inertia regarding Alan's Italy. I am only slightly concerned, but since this has happened before, I am assuming it will pass. After doing a show, I usually am very eager to produce another, but this time, I have hit a wall. After the "planning show,"I was going to do several tours of the big cities, but even that seems stale to me now. It is not that there are no possibilities; actually I have a few potential shows on my mind. I just can't get started. Odd also because I finish my college teaching job Thursday and will then have six weeks during which time I was planning to do several shows.
I am not worried. I will probably go to my albums and choose one that interests me the most and get to work. Laura was trying to motivate me by telling me to just choose a place that interests me and get started, even offering to scan pre digital camera photo albums and creating photos which could be used. To wit we looked through an album from 2004 which had some very interesting stuff.
If the chance arises that show 131 was my swan song, I will let you know. Oddly 130 and 131 were two of my most rewarding and enjoyable, so I assume this will pass.
Worse than that, I have found myself in a state of inertia regarding Alan's Italy. I am only slightly concerned, but since this has happened before, I am assuming it will pass. After doing a show, I usually am very eager to produce another, but this time, I have hit a wall. After the "planning show,"I was going to do several tours of the big cities, but even that seems stale to me now. It is not that there are no possibilities; actually I have a few potential shows on my mind. I just can't get started. Odd also because I finish my college teaching job Thursday and will then have six weeks during which time I was planning to do several shows.
I am not worried. I will probably go to my albums and choose one that interests me the most and get to work. Laura was trying to motivate me by telling me to just choose a place that interests me and get started, even offering to scan pre digital camera photo albums and creating photos which could be used. To wit we looked through an album from 2004 which had some very interesting stuff.
If the chance arises that show 131 was my swan song, I will let you know. Oddly 130 and 131 were two of my most rewarding and enjoyable, so I assume this will pass.
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
Posting A New Episode of Alan's Italy in Record Time
Five days after I posted show # 130 related to the art of Raphael, show # 131 was just uploaded. This was quickest posting of one video after another in five years. This show, centering of the fifteen minute interview with the owner Antje D'Almeida of the amazing store "Mio," also focuses on spending a lovely three hours on a 100 meter stretch on via della Spada. We begin by visiting the great and very unheralded Marino Marini Museum, then having lunch at our favorite restaurant, La Spada, ending up down the block at Mio, a very unusual, unique, and fun store. It took a long time to put together, although no where near the time spent on the Raphael show, but now opens the way for a project that I have thought about for five years, but never followed through on. It also clears the deck of material I planned for during our last trip to Italy. Although there are still a few loose ends from that trip that we photographed back in May and June, I can wait until after this project is competed to continue.
I will now do a show on How to Plan a Trip to Italy, followed by a nuts and bolts look at each major city, Rome, Florence, and Venice. I will also take a look at Tuscany, Milan, Lake Como and the Amalfi Coast. Of course it depends on how long a person will spend in Italy to either focus on the "big three" of Florence, Rome, and Venice or add in the other few. All that will be covered in the series of shows. Some older material will be familiar to many of my long time viewers, but with my new concepts I learned on IMovie, it should be a clearer, crisper, and more efficient presentation. The idea germinated over the past several years as people continually wanted me to help them plan trips for them to Italy. I still will be happy to do so as I have, but now I can say, "Look at the series of shows, and see if that is helpful to you. It may be or not; that remains to be seen." Certainly it is much less difficult when an expert on planning like myself is doing the work, but I still like this idea.
Meanwhile over 30 people have viewed the Raphael show in five days, a new record for me. The only explanation could be that at Laura's opening at the Wired Gallery, I made several new contacts as evidenced by the dearth of business cards I seem to have in my wallet. To them I say, welcome aboard and I hope you enjoy all 131 and more episodes.
I will now do a show on How to Plan a Trip to Italy, followed by a nuts and bolts look at each major city, Rome, Florence, and Venice. I will also take a look at Tuscany, Milan, Lake Como and the Amalfi Coast. Of course it depends on how long a person will spend in Italy to either focus on the "big three" of Florence, Rome, and Venice or add in the other few. All that will be covered in the series of shows. Some older material will be familiar to many of my long time viewers, but with my new concepts I learned on IMovie, it should be a clearer, crisper, and more efficient presentation. The idea germinated over the past several years as people continually wanted me to help them plan trips for them to Italy. I still will be happy to do so as I have, but now I can say, "Look at the series of shows, and see if that is helpful to you. It may be or not; that remains to be seen." Certainly it is much less difficult when an expert on planning like myself is doing the work, but I still like this idea.
Meanwhile over 30 people have viewed the Raphael show in five days, a new record for me. The only explanation could be that at Laura's opening at the Wired Gallery, I made several new contacts as evidenced by the dearth of business cards I seem to have in my wallet. To them I say, welcome aboard and I hope you enjoy all 131 and more episodes.
Monday, November 28, 2016
40,000 Views
In early January 2012 the experience of producing a TV cable access show was so delicious and exciting that I needed an outlet for my emotions. I began this blog with the intention of telling the story of how I managed to do Alan's Italy. It was simply an emotional outlet and perhaps an intent to tell a little history to anyone who might be interested in my tiny slice of life in Woodstock, New York. I can't seem to fall asleep tonight, but now I know why. Somewhere deep in my soul I just knew something monumental had occurred and until I digested it, I would not be able to sleep, so here it is. I awoke, checked my Youtube Channel; I apparently just went over 40,000 views on my channel. A few days ago I hit 140 subscribers. So I share the news now with my friends, family, and many supporters around the world. Thank you.
Thursday, November 24, 2016
The Art of Raphael
I spent longer creating this show on IMovie than I did any other show since I started doing my own videotaping and editing with show # 124. The reason was that although I have good knowledge of art history, especially from the Florentine Renaissance, there was a lot to be desired with regard to Raphael. I then had to video several parts to the show which took place over the course of weeks. Most of the responsibility for the delay in finishing the project, however, had to do with the fact that over the past week and a half, I was out of the house for about 75 % of the time.The end product is very satisfying, and although art history is still largely uncharted waters for me, I think I did ok. The other show regarding a solo analysis of the art of a famous Italian Renaissance artist was the one I did on Ghirlandaio. This was better than that, although that show has had a lot of viewers. Recall I have done several art shows with help from Rick Hirst, my dear friend and artist. The improvement was based on my new method of creating episodes on Alan's Italy. Each time I use IMovie, I find another aspect of the process I didn't know before. This always seems to enhance the finished product. There is no telling where I can go with iMovie, but it is both fun and exciting. Laura pushed me forward with this and as always I am very grateful to her. I tend to move slowly to change. She knows this and although it is very frustrating for her, she stays with it until I move myself in the right direction; it has never been the wrong direction. She has very good instincts. Laura herself has been heavily involved in curating a gallery show for Saturday, November 26, but still has given me a lot of her time including today when we honed the product to its current, finished form. The video was uploaded to Youtube only minutes ago.
It was, of course, challenging to try to give proper regard for anything involving one of the greatest artists of all time, Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino. I was assisted by the fact that I love his work, and have seen much of it throughout Italy and France (the Louvre has a significant number of pieces stolen by Napoleon during his occupation of Italy in the late 18th century). I did have several favorites at the Palatine Gallery which helped to narrow down the scope of the show. Nonetheless, to provide appropriate background material, I had a lot of research to do. One hold-up centered on the famous portrait of Agnolo Doni. The story I originally heard centered on Doni's relationship with Michelangelo. In the early 16th century Florence was privileged to have living in it at the same time the three giants of the High Renaissance, Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael. Imagine that. All three played a prominent role in my show, but the story revolving around the so called Doni Tondo was the sticking point. The story I always believed was the one which Vasari told in his famous Lives of the Artists used by the author Irving Stone in the Agony and the Ecstasy, a book I read in 1992 before my first trip to Italy on the advice of a friend who told me it would enhance my visit to Florence (which it did). I then re-read the book twice more until I fell in love with Michelangelo and Ghirlandaio. That story told by Vasari of the Doni Tondo was widely accepted in the art world as well. Then I read another interpretation leading to the theory that the Dono Tondo should have been called the Strozzi Tondo. I didn't know what to tell my audience was the real story, so solved the problem by telling both stories. Other than that pretty much everything else was accepted by the art world. It is fascinating and reminded me once again that iconic figures in history were as human and "normal" as anyone who ever lived. I once sat on a bench in Florence and imagined seeing pass by me all three of the greatest artists of Florentine History. If I spoke Italian fluently, I wouldn't know what to say except that they had no idea how famous they would become; or did they?
My next show will center on an interview we did in an extraordinary shop on via della Spada in Florence. I then realized that this street is a favorite of mine and will throw in some talk about our favorite restaurant, La Spada, and one of our favorite museums, the Marino Marini, both of which are on that street. I will not do too much on the two last ones, because each of them had their own shows years ago. I, of course as my viewers and readers know, love streets in Italy having already produced shows on via della Scala in Florence and via dei Fori Imperiali in Rome. I think I also did one on streets in general in Florence as I recall focusing on via Tornabuoni, via Calzaiuolo, etc. Anyway that will be show # 131 which I am eager to begin and will do so soon. My semester at the college ends soon and I will have plenty of time to get into a lot of themes that I am eager to do namely shows on the "perfect tours of..." I will include Florence, Rome, Venice, Milan, and Tuscany in separate shows. Then I will do my long desired show on explaining to my audience how to plan a trip to Italy the way Laura and I travel. I would also like to choose my favorite photos which have some extraordinary characteristic and base a show on that. So there is a lot to do and I cannot wait to begin.
It was, of course, challenging to try to give proper regard for anything involving one of the greatest artists of all time, Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino. I was assisted by the fact that I love his work, and have seen much of it throughout Italy and France (the Louvre has a significant number of pieces stolen by Napoleon during his occupation of Italy in the late 18th century). I did have several favorites at the Palatine Gallery which helped to narrow down the scope of the show. Nonetheless, to provide appropriate background material, I had a lot of research to do. One hold-up centered on the famous portrait of Agnolo Doni. The story I originally heard centered on Doni's relationship with Michelangelo. In the early 16th century Florence was privileged to have living in it at the same time the three giants of the High Renaissance, Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael. Imagine that. All three played a prominent role in my show, but the story revolving around the so called Doni Tondo was the sticking point. The story I always believed was the one which Vasari told in his famous Lives of the Artists used by the author Irving Stone in the Agony and the Ecstasy, a book I read in 1992 before my first trip to Italy on the advice of a friend who told me it would enhance my visit to Florence (which it did). I then re-read the book twice more until I fell in love with Michelangelo and Ghirlandaio. That story told by Vasari of the Doni Tondo was widely accepted in the art world as well. Then I read another interpretation leading to the theory that the Dono Tondo should have been called the Strozzi Tondo. I didn't know what to tell my audience was the real story, so solved the problem by telling both stories. Other than that pretty much everything else was accepted by the art world. It is fascinating and reminded me once again that iconic figures in history were as human and "normal" as anyone who ever lived. I once sat on a bench in Florence and imagined seeing pass by me all three of the greatest artists of Florentine History. If I spoke Italian fluently, I wouldn't know what to say except that they had no idea how famous they would become; or did they?
My next show will center on an interview we did in an extraordinary shop on via della Spada in Florence. I then realized that this street is a favorite of mine and will throw in some talk about our favorite restaurant, La Spada, and one of our favorite museums, the Marino Marini, both of which are on that street. I will not do too much on the two last ones, because each of them had their own shows years ago. I, of course as my viewers and readers know, love streets in Italy having already produced shows on via della Scala in Florence and via dei Fori Imperiali in Rome. I think I also did one on streets in general in Florence as I recall focusing on via Tornabuoni, via Calzaiuolo, etc. Anyway that will be show # 131 which I am eager to begin and will do so soon. My semester at the college ends soon and I will have plenty of time to get into a lot of themes that I am eager to do namely shows on the "perfect tours of..." I will include Florence, Rome, Venice, Milan, and Tuscany in separate shows. Then I will do my long desired show on explaining to my audience how to plan a trip to Italy the way Laura and I travel. I would also like to choose my favorite photos which have some extraordinary characteristic and base a show on that. So there is a lot to do and I cannot wait to begin.
Monday, November 7, 2016
More Tuscany
Yet another amazing day spent traveling in Tuscany with our friends. As I indicated in the show, the best days we spend are those with our friends, and this was no exception. This type of show is so easy to put together that the only thing that worries me is that I do justice to these wonderful people. Typical of the hospitality shown by people I have met and become close with over these 24 years, the show portrays their warmth, knowledge of their surroundings, and unflinching attempt to do everything to please us. We are very lucky to know such extraordinary people. It all began with Lidia more than 20 years ago and has blossomed into one of the finest parts of the great life I have been privileged to lead. After this last trip, we decided to double the amount of time we will spend in Florence giving us greater opportunities to experience these special moments.
The show went smoothly in production. I began using scripting from IMovie instead of creating text on my word processing program, taking screen shots, and downloading to IPhoto and then IMovie. It went well and today I did more research so you will see more of this. Otherwise I pretty much followed the same procedure I have in the recent several shows.
I continue to try to figure out how to provide newer shows to Woodstock Public Access, but so far to no avail. I will continue to try out of loyalty to the network and my wonderful engineer.
I now begin to create the next show # 130. That will focus of one of Florence's great museums, the Galleria Palatina at the Pitti Palace. I always liked that museum because it contains probably more paintings by Raphael than any other in Italy (the Louvre might have more, not certain). I will discuss those paintings as a layman not an expert, but then that is what my show has always been about, my thoughts and feelings about things. I will do my best, but a lot of research might be necessary so it could take a while. Stay tuned.
The show went smoothly in production. I began using scripting from IMovie instead of creating text on my word processing program, taking screen shots, and downloading to IPhoto and then IMovie. It went well and today I did more research so you will see more of this. Otherwise I pretty much followed the same procedure I have in the recent several shows.
I continue to try to figure out how to provide newer shows to Woodstock Public Access, but so far to no avail. I will continue to try out of loyalty to the network and my wonderful engineer.
I now begin to create the next show # 130. That will focus of one of Florence's great museums, the Galleria Palatina at the Pitti Palace. I always liked that museum because it contains probably more paintings by Raphael than any other in Italy (the Louvre might have more, not certain). I will discuss those paintings as a layman not an expert, but then that is what my show has always been about, my thoughts and feelings about things. I will do my best, but a lot of research might be necessary so it could take a while. Stay tuned.
Sunday, October 30, 2016
The Stunning Area of the Val d'Orcia and Enhancing My Knowledge of IMovie
It usually takes me about two weeks to put a show together, but this one dragged on for three weeks. It came out so beautiful that I am totally convinced that spending time tweaking the "finished" product should become a regular part of my process. Many things intervened to extend the creation of this production.
First, of course, I had MOHs Surgery on a Squamous Cell Cancer on my ear causing my ears to swell up and prevent me from doing any videotaping as I looked quite strange on video. I worked around that, however, as best I could. There were many other aspects that I needed to do to create this project. I even tried several new concepts including creating the overlaying voice using our Canon Camera. I first tried to use the in-computer microphone but the sound's quality was a bit less sharp than the camera produced. Also using the computer microphone prevents me from then changing photos. This is what occurred. I recorded my voice above a series of photos. When Laura saw the photos, she made the suggestion to replace one of them, but when I tried to do that I lost all the voice overs I had just created. I realized that not only was the sound poor, but also I had a lot less flexibility in creating the IMovie project when I used the in-computer mic. The best way to create a video is to record my voice even if I do not show any of me. I literally sat on my couch (where I do most of my work), placed the camera on the table I use to rest my computer, and pressed start. It didn't matter what the camera was actually showed, because it was the voice that interested me. I then did the usual download of the file into my computer, and placed the photos in the correct position without actually showing anything the camera recorded. The bottom line is that when I wish to speak to my audience without showing many or no photos, I will shoot downstairs in my living room, but if I just want my voice, I will bring the camera upstairs as I indicated. Amazing revelation.
I also for the first time used several editing techniques I never went near. One of the things I hated were the transitions from clip to clip that I videotaped. However, IMovie provides several possible types of transitions that make for not only smoother movement from clip to clip, but also the added dimension of something very lovely. Laura also indicated that she was unhappy about my labeling texts. In this show I move from town to town. I usually create the text on Pages (the word processing app on my Mac) and exported a photo which I placed below the name of the town for example. Laura asked whether that could be accomplished within IMovie and indeed it did. I googled how to use the texting aspect of iMovie which I then realized not only provided the actual ability to write, but also provided different fonts, colors, and locations of the descriptions on the photo, some of which were very imaginative (to me anyway).
So what you will see for Alan's Italy Show # 128 - A Day Out in Tuscany with Luca and Greta - the Val d'Orcia - San Quirico will be, probably I hope, the best production yet using iMovie. I have the feeling that I have just discovered something I should known about, but that's what learning is all about. I learned the very basics of IMovie, and then over the past several weeks have expanded my knowledge to include some very wonderful features which enhance the finished product. I use that same technique, I then realized, when I teach mathematics. I start with the basic, and most of the time, easy examples and gradually raise the level of difficulty for students to better understand the whole topic, i.e. the key and probably most important aspect of teaching and learning.
This show reveals some absolutely stunning images of the south eastern edge of Tuscany known as the Val d'Orcia. I guess that every town is probably pretty gorgeous in that region, but we focused on the four we actually visited, Pienza, Montalcino, and Bagno Vignoni from the trips Laura and I took between 2008 and 2010 during which I drove, and then San Quirico from the drive in May, 2016 during which Luca drove. What always makes trips nowadays so very special was the fact that Luca, who knows Tuscany about as well as anyone, drove us around. He brought Greta, his lovely daughter, to enhance our experience. Unfortunately it rained, just not did back in 2013 when Luca drove us to Colle di val d'Elsa, also in Tuscany, but further north near Siena. Rain never dampens his spirit and enthusiasm which is very contagious, since the afternoon was beautiful. Also.....oddly, it always seems to clear up after lunch!!!!
First, of course, I had MOHs Surgery on a Squamous Cell Cancer on my ear causing my ears to swell up and prevent me from doing any videotaping as I looked quite strange on video. I worked around that, however, as best I could. There were many other aspects that I needed to do to create this project. I even tried several new concepts including creating the overlaying voice using our Canon Camera. I first tried to use the in-computer microphone but the sound's quality was a bit less sharp than the camera produced. Also using the computer microphone prevents me from then changing photos. This is what occurred. I recorded my voice above a series of photos. When Laura saw the photos, she made the suggestion to replace one of them, but when I tried to do that I lost all the voice overs I had just created. I realized that not only was the sound poor, but also I had a lot less flexibility in creating the IMovie project when I used the in-computer mic. The best way to create a video is to record my voice even if I do not show any of me. I literally sat on my couch (where I do most of my work), placed the camera on the table I use to rest my computer, and pressed start. It didn't matter what the camera was actually showed, because it was the voice that interested me. I then did the usual download of the file into my computer, and placed the photos in the correct position without actually showing anything the camera recorded. The bottom line is that when I wish to speak to my audience without showing many or no photos, I will shoot downstairs in my living room, but if I just want my voice, I will bring the camera upstairs as I indicated. Amazing revelation.
I also for the first time used several editing techniques I never went near. One of the things I hated were the transitions from clip to clip that I videotaped. However, IMovie provides several possible types of transitions that make for not only smoother movement from clip to clip, but also the added dimension of something very lovely. Laura also indicated that she was unhappy about my labeling texts. In this show I move from town to town. I usually create the text on Pages (the word processing app on my Mac) and exported a photo which I placed below the name of the town for example. Laura asked whether that could be accomplished within IMovie and indeed it did. I googled how to use the texting aspect of iMovie which I then realized not only provided the actual ability to write, but also provided different fonts, colors, and locations of the descriptions on the photo, some of which were very imaginative (to me anyway).
So what you will see for Alan's Italy Show # 128 - A Day Out in Tuscany with Luca and Greta - the Val d'Orcia - San Quirico will be, probably I hope, the best production yet using iMovie. I have the feeling that I have just discovered something I should known about, but that's what learning is all about. I learned the very basics of IMovie, and then over the past several weeks have expanded my knowledge to include some very wonderful features which enhance the finished product. I use that same technique, I then realized, when I teach mathematics. I start with the basic, and most of the time, easy examples and gradually raise the level of difficulty for students to better understand the whole topic, i.e. the key and probably most important aspect of teaching and learning.
This show reveals some absolutely stunning images of the south eastern edge of Tuscany known as the Val d'Orcia. I guess that every town is probably pretty gorgeous in that region, but we focused on the four we actually visited, Pienza, Montalcino, and Bagno Vignoni from the trips Laura and I took between 2008 and 2010 during which I drove, and then San Quirico from the drive in May, 2016 during which Luca drove. What always makes trips nowadays so very special was the fact that Luca, who knows Tuscany about as well as anyone, drove us around. He brought Greta, his lovely daughter, to enhance our experience. Unfortunately it rained, just not did back in 2013 when Luca drove us to Colle di val d'Elsa, also in Tuscany, but further north near Siena. Rain never dampens his spirit and enthusiasm which is very contagious, since the afternoon was beautiful. Also.....oddly, it always seems to clear up after lunch!!!!
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
Shorter Shows and More of Them
I was put on the shelf last Friday due to a surgical procedure, but began a new concept which gave me greater ease in producing shows. I used the in-computer microphone available through IMovie and sat on my den couch doing the voice over of a series of photos related to Show # 128 - A Day Out in Tuscany with Luca and Greta - San Quirico d'Orcia. It was fun and easy, and with the given flexibility, it gave me the opportunity to do several takes on the same segment (as many as 7 - 10 in one case). The total package of doing shows at home and even in a half laying down position has been a great thing for me. The show should appear on Youtube this weekend maintaining the every two week schedule in which I seem to have eased into.
My new situation is that in current sequence of shows on Tuscany, the productions have been shorter, and more concise. I don't mind. I can knock off a 20 - 30 min show rather easily now that I do not have the 45 - 60 minute restriction of the live studio version of the show I had to produce with the public access station. With that in mind I have many new ideas for shows, some of which will be offshoots of previous aired broadcasts from years ago. It is possible for me to perhaps even increase the bi-weekly rate of creations.
I am also trying to solve the problem of providing the Woodstock Cable Access Station (newly name changed to PAW - Public Access of Woodstock). Without going into minute detail, let me just say that I purchased software which should facilitate their being able to air my new shows (which they had not been able to do since I left).
Other than that my mind is quite fertile with new ideas for shows including revisiting various Tuscan and Umbrian towns. I would also like to finally do shows on helping people to plan their own trips, complete with some of my own experiences with traveling issues that have caused me difficulties. I am planning a show with which will be titled something like The Perfect Tour of Florence for First Time Visitors, and then perhaps others of that ilk for more advanced travelers. Things like that including Venice, Rome, and Milan in the mix. Those cities are always hard to figure out because of the plethora of things to see and do. A well organized 3 - 4 days in any of those would be very rewarding on one's now rather than taking one of those humongous tour groups which limit creativity on the part of the traveler.
That's where we stand right now.
My new situation is that in current sequence of shows on Tuscany, the productions have been shorter, and more concise. I don't mind. I can knock off a 20 - 30 min show rather easily now that I do not have the 45 - 60 minute restriction of the live studio version of the show I had to produce with the public access station. With that in mind I have many new ideas for shows, some of which will be offshoots of previous aired broadcasts from years ago. It is possible for me to perhaps even increase the bi-weekly rate of creations.
I am also trying to solve the problem of providing the Woodstock Cable Access Station (newly name changed to PAW - Public Access of Woodstock). Without going into minute detail, let me just say that I purchased software which should facilitate their being able to air my new shows (which they had not been able to do since I left).
Other than that my mind is quite fertile with new ideas for shows including revisiting various Tuscan and Umbrian towns. I would also like to finally do shows on helping people to plan their own trips, complete with some of my own experiences with traveling issues that have caused me difficulties. I am planning a show with which will be titled something like The Perfect Tour of Florence for First Time Visitors, and then perhaps others of that ilk for more advanced travelers. Things like that including Venice, Rome, and Milan in the mix. Those cities are always hard to figure out because of the plethora of things to see and do. A well organized 3 - 4 days in any of those would be very rewarding on one's now rather than taking one of those humongous tour groups which limit creativity on the part of the traveler.
That's where we stand right now.
Friday, October 7, 2016
Alan's Italy Show # 127 - A Day Out in Tuscany with Lidia - Volterra and Monteriggioni
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W82XvQnobCA
Thursday, October 6, 2016
Our Shortest Show But Filled With Stunning Images
A crisp, smooth production of Alan's Italy Show # 127 focuses on our day out from Siena with Lidia driving us to Volterra where we dined and then returned to Siena by way of the amazing hill town of Monteriggioni. Honestly there wasn't much to say about these two towns west of Siena, so I thought it was time to just do a show of much less length of time. At almost 22 minutes it is almost half the size of our previous shortest show. Nonetheless I covered a lot of ground showing the charming towns plus some stunning Western Tuscan images of the landscape.
Two small glitches occurred. First when we took the videos using Laura's Cannon Powershot 16 they appeared to be somewhat out of focus during very brief 2 or 3 second intervals. We went ahead regardless with my superimposing images instead of focusing on me which is not a bad idea anyway. We later called Cannon Tech Support and seemed to have solved that problem. The other problem was some strange background grinding sounds which I edited out of the video using a control on the IMovie panel. I figured that out using the online Apple Teaching Segments which are invaluable. So things looked pretty good. I caught one mistake I made when I accidentally referred to something as being the 5th century when I meant 15th century. See if you can catch that very brief moment. Otherwise, despite some hesitating dialogue on my part at times, the final production was very satisfying.
We utilized some very fine photos Laura took in Volterra and Monteriggioni with some stunning landscapes forcing Lidia to stop for us which she did gladly. Also, of course, we were very grateful to Lidia who as usual just sweet and wonderful. It is such a pleasure going anywhere with her driving and negotiating some harrowing Italian roads. This was show one of the two we will be doing based on our two side trips during our four day stay in Siena. I reminded viewers of that fact once again, that our stay in Siena was predominantly to explore Western Tuscany and also in the next show South Central Tuscany, the area known as the Val D'Orcia. During the latter drive Luca graciously took us around accompanied by his lovely daughter Greta.
Two small glitches occurred. First when we took the videos using Laura's Cannon Powershot 16 they appeared to be somewhat out of focus during very brief 2 or 3 second intervals. We went ahead regardless with my superimposing images instead of focusing on me which is not a bad idea anyway. We later called Cannon Tech Support and seemed to have solved that problem. The other problem was some strange background grinding sounds which I edited out of the video using a control on the IMovie panel. I figured that out using the online Apple Teaching Segments which are invaluable. So things looked pretty good. I caught one mistake I made when I accidentally referred to something as being the 5th century when I meant 15th century. See if you can catch that very brief moment. Otherwise, despite some hesitating dialogue on my part at times, the final production was very satisfying.
We utilized some very fine photos Laura took in Volterra and Monteriggioni with some stunning landscapes forcing Lidia to stop for us which she did gladly. Also, of course, we were very grateful to Lidia who as usual just sweet and wonderful. It is such a pleasure going anywhere with her driving and negotiating some harrowing Italian roads. This was show one of the two we will be doing based on our two side trips during our four day stay in Siena. I reminded viewers of that fact once again, that our stay in Siena was predominantly to explore Western Tuscany and also in the next show South Central Tuscany, the area known as the Val D'Orcia. During the latter drive Luca graciously took us around accompanied by his lovely daughter Greta.
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
Why Do I Always Have to Explain This?
Once again someone I know saw the show and remarked that she was eager to see the show since she went to Siena once. She was disappointed that the show did not completely cover every part of the city, so I explained to her what I have tried to explain many times, but perhaps it is necessary to repeat this every so often. No problem.
Alan's Italy is not the definitive travelogue on any place. I do not ever want to be considered the authority or expert on Italy. It is a story of my and Laura's experience in a particular place. Yes, I try to include some narrative about the history and background of the place, but for the most part it is simply, well, how shall I put this? ALAN'S Italy!!!! It is what happened to us during our stay interpreted the way we want, I want. We saw a few things of note like Il Campo and the Cathedral and the Pinacoteca, but we had no interest whatsoever in spending the four days stay going everywhere in Siena. In fact the reason we stayed in Siena was not so much to see the city, but to stay in a central place near other areas of Tuscany not far from Florence that would permit somewhat easier access for our friends, Luca and Lida, to come, pick us up and take us around to places I wanted to explore like Volterra, Monteriggioni, and San Quirico d'Orcia.
So once again, when I title a show, Siena, for example, it is because that is where we were, and I will show significantly charming photos while I talk a little about the town, but the essence is not THE definitive show about Siena, nor did I ever want it to be. One more story. I once had a discussion with a friend about my TV show. This was perhaps three or four years ago. The person made some suggestions about how HE would have wanted the show to be. I digested all that he said and then responded, "Well, John, no offense at all, but if you have a certain interpretation of what you would like my audience to see, then have your own show and call it John's Italy!!!!" I have spent a lifetime in education following prescribed curricula, superintendent directives, rules, laws, regulations, and the list goes on and on. Alan's Italy is my attempt to basically do what I want. In my last remaining years, that pleases me to no end. It is MY show and exactly what I want it to be. I place it on Youtube because if a person wants to see it, fine; if not, well that's ok also.
I am happy that I have a lot of subscribers to my Youtube Channel, 129 as of this writing, and approaching 40,000 views, and I hope everyone who watches understands what I am trying to do. I also hope when I do my next show, Show # 127: Volterra, people do not view with the intent of learning everything they will want to know about that town in Western Tuscany. In fact I have one segment of the show (working on it as I write) in which I choose a well known person who was born there and grew up there, but did some amazing things elsewhere. The person is Daniele da Volterra, a fellow whom I have noted pretty much everywhere I read something about Michelangelo's later life, especially as it regards Rome where the amazing master of sculpture and fresco painting did a vast amount of work. So when you view Alan's Italy expect the esoteric, off beat, different interpretation of a place, not the boilerplate version you might expect from reading one of the great and famous tour guides.
Thanks for your attention.
Alan's Italy is not the definitive travelogue on any place. I do not ever want to be considered the authority or expert on Italy. It is a story of my and Laura's experience in a particular place. Yes, I try to include some narrative about the history and background of the place, but for the most part it is simply, well, how shall I put this? ALAN'S Italy!!!! It is what happened to us during our stay interpreted the way we want, I want. We saw a few things of note like Il Campo and the Cathedral and the Pinacoteca, but we had no interest whatsoever in spending the four days stay going everywhere in Siena. In fact the reason we stayed in Siena was not so much to see the city, but to stay in a central place near other areas of Tuscany not far from Florence that would permit somewhat easier access for our friends, Luca and Lida, to come, pick us up and take us around to places I wanted to explore like Volterra, Monteriggioni, and San Quirico d'Orcia.
So once again, when I title a show, Siena, for example, it is because that is where we were, and I will show significantly charming photos while I talk a little about the town, but the essence is not THE definitive show about Siena, nor did I ever want it to be. One more story. I once had a discussion with a friend about my TV show. This was perhaps three or four years ago. The person made some suggestions about how HE would have wanted the show to be. I digested all that he said and then responded, "Well, John, no offense at all, but if you have a certain interpretation of what you would like my audience to see, then have your own show and call it John's Italy!!!!" I have spent a lifetime in education following prescribed curricula, superintendent directives, rules, laws, regulations, and the list goes on and on. Alan's Italy is my attempt to basically do what I want. In my last remaining years, that pleases me to no end. It is MY show and exactly what I want it to be. I place it on Youtube because if a person wants to see it, fine; if not, well that's ok also.
I am happy that I have a lot of subscribers to my Youtube Channel, 129 as of this writing, and approaching 40,000 views, and I hope everyone who watches understands what I am trying to do. I also hope when I do my next show, Show # 127: Volterra, people do not view with the intent of learning everything they will want to know about that town in Western Tuscany. In fact I have one segment of the show (working on it as I write) in which I choose a well known person who was born there and grew up there, but did some amazing things elsewhere. The person is Daniele da Volterra, a fellow whom I have noted pretty much everywhere I read something about Michelangelo's later life, especially as it regards Rome where the amazing master of sculpture and fresco painting did a vast amount of work. So when you view Alan's Italy expect the esoteric, off beat, different interpretation of a place, not the boilerplate version you might expect from reading one of the great and famous tour guides.
Thanks for your attention.
Friday, September 16, 2016
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
Show # 126 Siena Completed!!!
Continuing to barrel ahead with shows, I completed the latest about the wonderful Tuscan city of Siena. It came out virtually the way I described it in my previous blog post, but with Laura's assistance made even better than I imagined it would. She reminded me that we had a video she did with my talking about Siena only minutes after we arrived at the hotel focusing on our expectations and reasons for coming. Then I do a 5 minute segment from my now famous black leather living chair that has become a part of the show. Then then the 12 minute video interview of Francesco who works at the hotel. Then I do a ten minute segment on the history of Siena with photos in a kind of slide show appearing to the audience. Laura just made some fine tuning of that segment today. I follow that by another interview with a shop owner in Siena on a street near where our hotel was, and then I wrap it all up with another segment talking about the next show on Volterra (thereby inaugurating a series of shows on Tuscany that I will work on next).
I would instantly upload it to Youtube except that I do not want to croud up my Youtube Channel with yet another production. The Civita show, # 124 has gone over 100 views and the next show 125 on the Trattoria Antica Forno is approaching 50 after only one week!!! Between the two that is a lot of action on the site. I don't want to go with another new show until the action on these shows has died down a bit. I don't know when that will be, but regardless I will probably upload in a few days. I put an ad in the Woodstock Times telling people that the void they may feel based on my absence from the public access station can be easily filled on Youtube where they have complete access to 125 shows, old and new, instantly whenever they feel like seeing the show. That ad will run for another week. It is possible that ad has caused some forward movement. I suspect that putting the ad also in the Saugerties Times would have the same result. I am running at over 1,000 views a month on the channel and quickly am approaching 38,000 lifetime views, a much faster pace than I predicted but a few months ago.
Meanwhile I sent a DVD in vain to the WPAT station only to learn that there is a problem because the DVD opens with a menu instead of going right to the video. Panda TV in Tivoli assures me if I send it to them, there shouldn't be a problem. I cannot find the solution that PAT wants. Meanwhile Woodstock Public Access Television has been taken over by a group who call themselves the WPAT Board of Producers. My friend, prime mover of Alan's Italy, and master technician of the studio has quit as the Board was castigating him for some kind of abuses which sounded fishy to me knowing him as I do. They wrote an open letter in the Woodstock Times lambasting him and "demanding" that he appear before the Board to "answer charges." LOL Then they were sad he left his role as studio technician, an unpaid volunteer albatross he had hanging around his neck. I told Ellen at the studio that you do not humiliate someone in front of the community and then expect him to keep doing this herculean job for no pay and appear, no less, in front of the Board!!! I wrote a "rebuttal" open letter lauding his merits and thanking him for changing my life. No exaggeration there!!!! I am sort of glad to have gotten out of there.
Look for the Siena video in a few days.
I would instantly upload it to Youtube except that I do not want to croud up my Youtube Channel with yet another production. The Civita show, # 124 has gone over 100 views and the next show 125 on the Trattoria Antica Forno is approaching 50 after only one week!!! Between the two that is a lot of action on the site. I don't want to go with another new show until the action on these shows has died down a bit. I don't know when that will be, but regardless I will probably upload in a few days. I put an ad in the Woodstock Times telling people that the void they may feel based on my absence from the public access station can be easily filled on Youtube where they have complete access to 125 shows, old and new, instantly whenever they feel like seeing the show. That ad will run for another week. It is possible that ad has caused some forward movement. I suspect that putting the ad also in the Saugerties Times would have the same result. I am running at over 1,000 views a month on the channel and quickly am approaching 38,000 lifetime views, a much faster pace than I predicted but a few months ago.
Meanwhile I sent a DVD in vain to the WPAT station only to learn that there is a problem because the DVD opens with a menu instead of going right to the video. Panda TV in Tivoli assures me if I send it to them, there shouldn't be a problem. I cannot find the solution that PAT wants. Meanwhile Woodstock Public Access Television has been taken over by a group who call themselves the WPAT Board of Producers. My friend, prime mover of Alan's Italy, and master technician of the studio has quit as the Board was castigating him for some kind of abuses which sounded fishy to me knowing him as I do. They wrote an open letter in the Woodstock Times lambasting him and "demanding" that he appear before the Board to "answer charges." LOL Then they were sad he left his role as studio technician, an unpaid volunteer albatross he had hanging around his neck. I told Ellen at the studio that you do not humiliate someone in front of the community and then expect him to keep doing this herculean job for no pay and appear, no less, in front of the Board!!! I wrote a "rebuttal" open letter lauding his merits and thanking him for changing my life. No exaggeration there!!!! I am sort of glad to have gotten out of there.
Look for the Siena video in a few days.
Sunday, September 4, 2016
Project Completed!!!
My second show was completed yesterday and uploaded to Youtube. Alan's Italy Show # 125: Trattoria Antica Forno with Franco Sala was probably the best production I ever did. The process of editing and videoing my role sitting in my chair in the living room is not only easier and more efficient, creating stunning images, but also extremely enjoyable. I am in total control of the way things are arranged and how things look. I was on the phone with an IMovie expert who taught me things I never knew and it seems as though the possibilities are endless. Laura and I agreed that I would revisit some of my earlier shows which probably contained inferior images, and try to fashoning the topic into a slightly different theme to give it more originality. I think I can do quite a lot and if that is true then the number of shows I am capable of producing is endless! The creation was very rewarding and Franco himself emailed me that he loved the finished product.
Meanwhile, Woodstock Public Access Television wants me to transform my videos which are MP 4s into MP 2s. When I told this to the IMovie expert he thought I was mistaken, "There is no such thing as MP2," he exclaimed, "that is an old and outdated format." I said, "Yes, welcome to WPAT." Even Panda TV in Tivoli could not use my format. I will send them the original file and they can do whatever needs to be done to make it palatable with their systems. Other than actually showing the Youtube version of the TV, that is the best I can do. The IMovie expert said he doesn't even know if there is software which converts an MP4 to MP2.
The next show will focus on Siena. We already know what that will look like. I will introduce the show and then talk about the magnificent hotel we stayed in during our four night visit in May 2016. We also have a marvelous 12 minute interview with a lovely young fellow who works there. We will then choose some wonderful representative images to show of Siena while my voice overlays a brief history of the wonderful city an hour south of Florence.
Meanwhile, Woodstock Public Access Television wants me to transform my videos which are MP 4s into MP 2s. When I told this to the IMovie expert he thought I was mistaken, "There is no such thing as MP2," he exclaimed, "that is an old and outdated format." I said, "Yes, welcome to WPAT." Even Panda TV in Tivoli could not use my format. I will send them the original file and they can do whatever needs to be done to make it palatable with their systems. Other than actually showing the Youtube version of the TV, that is the best I can do. The IMovie expert said he doesn't even know if there is software which converts an MP4 to MP2.
The next show will focus on Siena. We already know what that will look like. I will introduce the show and then talk about the magnificent hotel we stayed in during our four night visit in May 2016. We also have a marvelous 12 minute interview with a lovely young fellow who works there. We will then choose some wonderful representative images to show of Siena while my voice overlays a brief history of the wonderful city an hour south of Florence.
Thursday, September 1, 2016
Show # 125 -Franco Sala's Trattoria Antica Forno posted to Youtube soon
Still working on perfecting the show, but almost finished. Having the ability to edit, do my voice overlays, adding photos, and videotaping my parts simply has given us the ability to continually evaluate and critically appraise the product. The down part is that in many ways I liked the spontaneity of doing a live show unedited without continually revisiting the "finished" product and re-evaluating the video. I am the kind of person who likes to get to the end of a project and move on to the next one, so this has been a bit frustrating. Yet I know in my heart that the process of editing over and over makes for a better product and more satisfying experience in the long run.
Working at the college puts a crimp into the process because today would have been the perfect time for the final process of re-shooting some of the videos we do at home, but I will be busy now, probably until Sunday, perhaps if I could squeeze in some time tomorrow or Saturday, it may be sooner. The finished product will contain an extraordinary 22 minute cooking demonstration by Franco with Laura standing right in the kitchen a couple of feet away from him as he narrates what he is doing. It is both fascinating and hard to watch on an empty stomach! Also included will be a videotaped interview with Franco which took place several years ago in the lobby of the Hotel Duomo in Orvieto. During that interview I lead him through the key periods of his life which led him to own the restaurant Trattoria Antica Forno in Civita di Bagnoregio.
I will post the video on Youtube sometime in the next few days. Stay tuned.
Working at the college puts a crimp into the process because today would have been the perfect time for the final process of re-shooting some of the videos we do at home, but I will be busy now, probably until Sunday, perhaps if I could squeeze in some time tomorrow or Saturday, it may be sooner. The finished product will contain an extraordinary 22 minute cooking demonstration by Franco with Laura standing right in the kitchen a couple of feet away from him as he narrates what he is doing. It is both fascinating and hard to watch on an empty stomach! Also included will be a videotaped interview with Franco which took place several years ago in the lobby of the Hotel Duomo in Orvieto. During that interview I lead him through the key periods of his life which led him to own the restaurant Trattoria Antica Forno in Civita di Bagnoregio.
I will post the video on Youtube sometime in the next few days. Stay tuned.
Wednesday, August 24, 2016
Amazing!!!!!
Yes it is. My two hour lesson took place last Monday, August 15, 2016. After a hectic week I finally got around to trying to create a show using the techniques Steven Blauweiss taught me. After three hours on Monday, 7:30 PM - 10:30 PM, and then another hour or two working with Laura on a photo sequence on Tuesday, I tried to export the video from IMovie to my desktop. That is necessary in order to then upload to Youtube and create DVDs. The first attempt produced very poor sound and was useless. I tried again and the export process stopped in the middle and indicated that there was no room in my hard drive. I looked at my storage, and sure enough there was very little room. I went to bed with the thought of trying again the next morning. I dumped a lot of videos and movies I didn't need on my computer, and tried again and this time the show was successfully exported. Laura and I watched in amazement the finished product. We were stunned by the fact that this actually was created almost entirely by me with significant help from her. I am still stunned and worried that something may still go wrong. However, Alan's Italy Show # 124 - Return to Civita di Bagnoregio is now uploaded to Youtube for your viewing pleasure.
The show contains a lot of videos we took when in Civita last June, and many new images. It begins with a brief history of my association with the town and its significant restaurant owner Franco Sala, our dear and sweet friend who has shown us fantastic kindness over the years. I interwove photos and videos with my images appearing occasionally along with my voice over the photo sequence which takes the viewer on a "tour" of Civita down the narrow alleys, and passing some extraordinary scenes. The format is similar to what I used to produce in the studio with some slight modifications. The images are much better and the videos viewable as never before. I like the process of editing as it gives me almost complete control of what everything will look like and the timing of the images and videos. All the filming of me occurred in my living room sitting in my favorite chair. Everything else was moved from IPhoto to IMovie.
I am eager to get on to part 2 of the project which will be the story of our association with Franco, a biography of him and how he came to Civita, and finally a cooking demonstration with Laura taking an amazing series of videos right in the kitchen of restaurant during his busiest time. It will be a wonderful tribute to a great man and friend.
The show contains a lot of videos we took when in Civita last June, and many new images. It begins with a brief history of my association with the town and its significant restaurant owner Franco Sala, our dear and sweet friend who has shown us fantastic kindness over the years. I interwove photos and videos with my images appearing occasionally along with my voice over the photo sequence which takes the viewer on a "tour" of Civita down the narrow alleys, and passing some extraordinary scenes. The format is similar to what I used to produce in the studio with some slight modifications. The images are much better and the videos viewable as never before. I like the process of editing as it gives me almost complete control of what everything will look like and the timing of the images and videos. All the filming of me occurred in my living room sitting in my favorite chair. Everything else was moved from IPhoto to IMovie.
I am eager to get on to part 2 of the project which will be the story of our association with Franco, a biography of him and how he came to Civita, and finally a cooking demonstration with Laura taking an amazing series of videos right in the kitchen of restaurant during his busiest time. It will be a wonderful tribute to a great man and friend.
Wednesday, August 17, 2016
The New Alan's Italy
Apparently even the most OCD, rigidly comfortable with how he has done things rather successfully guy can change. After the last show which had blurry images and almost unwatchable videos, I made the decision to change the way Alan's Italy is produced. I decided to try to learn how to create my show through the process of editing using IMovie as my vehicle. First I told Ellen that I was leaving Woodstock Public Access Television as a live broadcaster. I will still give the station my DVD's but only after the show was completed. I then contacted Stephen Blauwiess, a well known and successful videographer in the Hudson Valley to give me a two hour lesson to begin my training. The lesson was obviously only the beginning of the process, but I was on my way. He taught me how to do some basic and sophisticated things to enhance the Alan's Italy experience. At this point I am putting together the two shows I was intending to produce before, Show # 124 - Return to Civita di Bagnoregio and # 125 - Franco Sala's Trattoria Antica Forno in Civita. The two shows will be based on our June 5, 2016 trip to the town I had visited three times previously, except that this time we videotaped our experiences especially a cooking demo by Franco himself. There will be a lot of videos, but also some stunning images that Laura took during the visit. Although I will mention Franco in the first part with the intention of doing a whole show on his marvelous restaurant, the entire sequence of the two shows will be dedicated to him and my extraordinary friendship with him. The second show will be the one where I will really give my viewers a peak into an amazing man complete with a biographical video I took several years ago in the lobby of the Hotel Duomo in Orvieto. Although I will not be able to really get started preparing the two albums until the weekend due to my absolutely hectic schedule this week, I have already begun the planning. There is no target date for uploading to Youtube, but knowing who I am and how I operate, I assume that in a week or two I will unveil the first show followed soon afterward by the second one. I ask my followers to be patient while I do my thing amid myriad things I am currently involved with including and especially the opening of my 45th year in education starting August 25.
Thursday, August 11, 2016
I apologize
...to all my readers who keep waiting for a post. I have spent the summer in the fog of cataract surgery which, although many people say is a breeze, to me was a challenging period of my life. Although my vision now is very good and I am very satisfied with the surgery and my doctor, the road to this point took many strange and anxious turns. Surgery on my left eye (eye # 2) was postponed minutes before being wheeled into the operating room because the nurse and then doctor noticed an infection in my eye. I had to go home and wait a week and a half for that second surgery putting antibiotic drops in the eye to clear up the infection. That was hard for me. Then I kept having the feeling of something in my eyes, both, but worse in the first eye. Then of course the drops I was putting in my eyes for a total of 8 weeks and the antibiotic cream I rubbed on the left eye for several weeks every evening. The drops were actually the least of the issues as I had no trouble with that. Nevertheless, the process of cataract surgery is amazing and anyone who is contemplating surgery on one or both eyes should consider having it. I also recommend Dr. Roger Husted in Kingston for people who live in Ulster County. He was remarkably sensitive, accommodating, and understanding. His reassurance to me constantly was one of the things that got me through the whole process. And of course he was using the latest lenses, called Toric which not only correct the vision but also correct the astigmatism. In my right eye (eye # 1) my vision is now 20-30 and in the left, 20-25 which the Refraction Technician told me will shift between 20-20 under perfect conditions such as weather and dryness of my eyes to 20-25. The Toric Lenses are not covered under Medicare and it cost me extra. The prospect of not having to wear glasses for distance was too good to pass up. Of course I now continue to wear glasses for reading as I did before, but now I have no short vision for reading as I once did a couple of months ago. I am still able to answer my cell phone, see my food to an extent, and do a number of other close up things, but little else. I will try bifocals for times when I need near and far vision quickly such as eating meals for example. I will try, however, to only wear glasses for reading. I love not wearing glasses.
So, although I did do "normal" things and even produced a few TV shows along the way, my energy was being used for my surgical situation. I did a lot of Alan's Italy thinking however and did one show which did not turn out correct with blurring photos and even blurrier videos. I will revisit the possibility of editing my own TV show at home rather than doing the broadcast in the studio. My goal will be to create perfect images and videos and to make the process as simple as possible. The stress I always experienced that I wrote about at great length in these blogs is starting to get to me. I will pursue that possibility in the near future. If I can produce my own show, I will still upload to Youtube and give a DVD copy to WPAT. I will keep you posted. Until then Alan's Italy might not appear on Youtube for a while. Not sure at this time.
So, although I did do "normal" things and even produced a few TV shows along the way, my energy was being used for my surgical situation. I did a lot of Alan's Italy thinking however and did one show which did not turn out correct with blurring photos and even blurrier videos. I will revisit the possibility of editing my own TV show at home rather than doing the broadcast in the studio. My goal will be to create perfect images and videos and to make the process as simple as possible. The stress I always experienced that I wrote about at great length in these blogs is starting to get to me. I will pursue that possibility in the near future. If I can produce my own show, I will still upload to Youtube and give a DVD copy to WPAT. I will keep you posted. Until then Alan's Italy might not appear on Youtube for a while. Not sure at this time.
Friday, July 15, 2016
Back on the Horse
It was not a perfect performance by me. I made a few mistakes and did not at all feel that comfortable. I felt as if I were forcing everything although it is not that obvious that this was occurring. I appear for the most part relaxed, but I was not. I don't come out of traumatic experiences well and this was typical. Most people would wonder what I was was talking about after all I can now see with 20-30 vision in both eyes and have no residual effects so far. Nonetheless, the entire experience was quite unnerving for me and I am happy cataract surgery is behind me.
The show this evening had three parts. There was the summary of what we did on our last trip, what were highlights, and basically discusses why we love Italy so much. I also talk about our wonderful friends. In the second part I talk about all the things I discovered in Florence that were new and different from any of my previous 22 times there. Finally I do the "bridge show" focusing on several throughout Italy but primarily Florence and Venice. The enjoyed the first two parts much more than the third, although I must say that by then I was rather tired and eager to get home. As I said I made a few slight error, like calling Laura Lidia, mispronouncing several Italian words, and once again getting mixed up between east and west on the Arno River in Florence. Most people would probably like the show at least that is really what I hope. The original show # 123 has been deleted from Youtube since it was not what I wanted so if you saw that one five weeks ago then try this one also.
I look forward to creating more shows and have many ideas as I already indicated. Ric Hirst has consented to join me on August 26 for a discussion about why he loves Italy and indeed bought a house there spending 5 months a year until recently.
The show this evening had three parts. There was the summary of what we did on our last trip, what were highlights, and basically discusses why we love Italy so much. I also talk about our wonderful friends. In the second part I talk about all the things I discovered in Florence that were new and different from any of my previous 22 times there. Finally I do the "bridge show" focusing on several throughout Italy but primarily Florence and Venice. The enjoyed the first two parts much more than the third, although I must say that by then I was rather tired and eager to get home. As I said I made a few slight error, like calling Laura Lidia, mispronouncing several Italian words, and once again getting mixed up between east and west on the Arno River in Florence. Most people would probably like the show at least that is really what I hope. The original show # 123 has been deleted from Youtube since it was not what I wanted so if you saw that one five weeks ago then try this one also.
I look forward to creating more shows and have many ideas as I already indicated. Ric Hirst has consented to join me on August 26 for a discussion about why he loves Italy and indeed bought a house there spending 5 months a year until recently.
Monday, July 11, 2016
And Now.......Alan's Italy
Well cataract surgery now, hopefully, behind me, I will try very hard to produce my first show in several weeks. I will ask Ellen to test the studio equipment before I get there and let me know if it is not working. No telling how many more problems and cancellations I can deal with. The show will be a rebroadcast of # 123, the one I already did but took off the internet because I didn't like it. Then I must get back to the drawing board, but I have a tentative idea of what the next few shows will be.
Show # 124 - Return to Civita di Bagnoregio featuring a very close look at this extraordinary hill town in Alto Lazio.
Show # 125 - Franco Sala's Trattoria Antica Forno in Civita di Bagnoregio
Show # 126 - Siena and the Hotel Palazzo Ravizza
Show # 127 - Volterra, A Day out With Lidia, Part 1
Show # 128 - Monteriggioni, A Day out With Lidia, Part 2
Show # 129 - San Quirico d'Orcia, A Day out With Luca and Greta
Show # 130 - San Donato with Lidia, Sabrina, Giulio, and Simone
Show # 130 - Panoramic Views of Italy
Show # 131 - A Stroll Around Florence
The Rest TBA.....
Show # 124 - Return to Civita di Bagnoregio featuring a very close look at this extraordinary hill town in Alto Lazio.
Show # 125 - Franco Sala's Trattoria Antica Forno in Civita di Bagnoregio
Show # 126 - Siena and the Hotel Palazzo Ravizza
Show # 127 - Volterra, A Day out With Lidia, Part 1
Show # 128 - Monteriggioni, A Day out With Lidia, Part 2
Show # 129 - San Quirico d'Orcia, A Day out With Luca and Greta
Show # 130 - San Donato with Lidia, Sabrina, Giulio, and Simone
Show # 130 - Panoramic Views of Italy
Show # 131 - A Stroll Around Florence
The Rest TBA.....
Cataracts, Anxiety, and Different Strokes for Different Folks
So I went for my second cataract surgery on June 28 doing the prep with drops of three different kinds, and gearing myself for the final chapter. Ten minutes from being wheeled in to the operating room, my doctor came out (at the apparent urging of my nurse), and told me I had an infection in my eye about to be worked on and I would have to postpone the procedure. I became very upset and went home now trying to put a new prescription of drops intended to clear up the problem. On I went with the strange interim period with one farsighted eye and one nearsighted.
Eight days later my doctor told me that the infected eye was improved and he would schedule me for two days hence, Fri, July 8. Again I did the prep drops, but this time had to go to a different location for the surgery. Again I was prepped for surgery with drops for numbing and pupil dilation. I even started on the sedation drip I requested for the procedure. This time I was wheeled in the operating room, surrounded by doctors and nurses who began to set me up for the eye surgery. Suddenly my doctor realized that there was a mistake and that the special lens he would implant was probably at the other location (where I should have had the second surgery on June 28). Someone would have to get the lens and meanwhile out I went back to the holding room where I waited about an hour and a half. Once again I was wheeled into the operating room and the same scenario. Finally my doctor did the procedure. As with the first one, I was aware of everything that was happening since the patient must be awake enough so that they could respond to directions from the doctor (look left, look up, etc). Although I was thoroughly sedated, I was nonetheless anxious and apprehensive. Finally back to the recovery area where I celebrated by having my first buttered corn muffin in 25 years with the best tasting apple juice I ever had.
I am now almost a month removed from the first surgery. My vision without glasses and long-distance is stunningly amazing!!!! My second eye, however, has not made the immediate progress I did back on June 14 with the first eye. Although my vision in the second eye would probably be categorized as excellent, there is a mild blurriness. Since when I came home after the second surgery my vision was so blurry I could hardly see, the blurriness is most likely about 80 % better. My doctor assures me it will get better yet. I visit with him on Wednesday. I now do not wear glasses for long distance, but drug store reading glasses, 2.75, for close up seeing, computer work, and sometimes dining in low light places. Eventually I will get progressive (bifocal) lenses, but haven't yet decided whether to wear them or to just keep using a separate pair of readers. After 63 years of wearing glasses, this is amazing to not have to wear glasses for most situations beyond about 5 or so feet away. My pupils are still dilated in the recent surgical eye after over 72 hours, but I believe that is normal.
Next time I have any kind of surgery, I will speak with nobody about their experience. I learned the hard way that everybody has a different experience. Some comments varied from, "oh, it's a piece of cake having cataract surgery," to "gee, I don't remember," to other reassuring comments. It is possible that people were protecting me from possible apprehension. Nonetheless, my experience was spoken of by no one not even including the infection on the 28th and the missing lens on the 8th. I do not think it was a "piece of cake," nor is this a trivial experience - at least not for me.
Eight days later my doctor told me that the infected eye was improved and he would schedule me for two days hence, Fri, July 8. Again I did the prep drops, but this time had to go to a different location for the surgery. Again I was prepped for surgery with drops for numbing and pupil dilation. I even started on the sedation drip I requested for the procedure. This time I was wheeled in the operating room, surrounded by doctors and nurses who began to set me up for the eye surgery. Suddenly my doctor realized that there was a mistake and that the special lens he would implant was probably at the other location (where I should have had the second surgery on June 28). Someone would have to get the lens and meanwhile out I went back to the holding room where I waited about an hour and a half. Once again I was wheeled into the operating room and the same scenario. Finally my doctor did the procedure. As with the first one, I was aware of everything that was happening since the patient must be awake enough so that they could respond to directions from the doctor (look left, look up, etc). Although I was thoroughly sedated, I was nonetheless anxious and apprehensive. Finally back to the recovery area where I celebrated by having my first buttered corn muffin in 25 years with the best tasting apple juice I ever had.
I am now almost a month removed from the first surgery. My vision without glasses and long-distance is stunningly amazing!!!! My second eye, however, has not made the immediate progress I did back on June 14 with the first eye. Although my vision in the second eye would probably be categorized as excellent, there is a mild blurriness. Since when I came home after the second surgery my vision was so blurry I could hardly see, the blurriness is most likely about 80 % better. My doctor assures me it will get better yet. I visit with him on Wednesday. I now do not wear glasses for long distance, but drug store reading glasses, 2.75, for close up seeing, computer work, and sometimes dining in low light places. Eventually I will get progressive (bifocal) lenses, but haven't yet decided whether to wear them or to just keep using a separate pair of readers. After 63 years of wearing glasses, this is amazing to not have to wear glasses for most situations beyond about 5 or so feet away. My pupils are still dilated in the recent surgical eye after over 72 hours, but I believe that is normal.
Next time I have any kind of surgery, I will speak with nobody about their experience. I learned the hard way that everybody has a different experience. Some comments varied from, "oh, it's a piece of cake having cataract surgery," to "gee, I don't remember," to other reassuring comments. It is possible that people were protecting me from possible apprehension. Nonetheless, my experience was spoken of by no one not even including the infection on the 28th and the missing lens on the 8th. I do not think it was a "piece of cake," nor is this a trivial experience - at least not for me.
Saturday, June 25, 2016
The Rebroadcast of Show # 123 Delayed Indefinitely
Due to problems with the studio equipment, the rebroadcast of Alan's Italy Show # 123 - My Favorite Bridges could not be produced last evening. Due to my impending cataract surgery, Part 2, the date for the next attempt at a live broadcast is uncertain at this time. I will will keep you posted.
Saturday, June 18, 2016
Coming to Grips with Cataract Surgery
I don't recall when my parents had their cataract surgery. I don't recall how it went, if they were afraid, anxious, or really any thoughts they may have had. I don't recall what they were like afterwards. To me it was something that older people had, and I did not need to be concerned about it for many years to come. In retrospect I wish I had paid closer attention to the whole thing. In general I wish I had paid closer attention to the aging process that my parents experienced. After all my mother lived to be about 93 1/2 and my father 89 1/2. They had a lot of things to deal with, but I paid little attention. All I remember was my father saying to me, "Alan, don't get old," and my mother repeating the Bette Davis quote, "getting old is not for sissies," which I still quote a lot. I like to say, "if getting old is not for sissies, then what do sissies, like me, do?"
So as I got older, I knew things were going to happen. I actually had Melanoma at age 51. My father had skin cancer, I recall, but not Melanoma. That was my first surgery, and as I recall I was pretty scared. I still have the 8 inch long scar with clear remnants of the 15 stitches. I loved the doctor, Matthew Harris, who did the surgery at NYU Medical Center, and my Dermatologist, Alan Schecter, who still treats me. Then there was surgery to remove the kidney stone in 2011. That was the worst week of my life, and I never wish to repeat it. I have had minor dermatological procedures over the year, perhaps as many as two dozen or more.
About 4 years ago, when my vision began to deteriorate and I was told I had cataracts, I knew the time was coming soon for that surgery. Then my ophthalmologist, Dr. Gary Povill, retired and handed me off to the person who did his surgery, Dr. Roger Husted. I liked him immediately, but was still quite apprehensive about the coming procedure. Last September, when I could not even read the top line with my right eye and barely the 20-40 line with my "good" eye, the left, Dr. Husted told me I was ready for cataract surgery. Knowing I would need time for the whole thing, I scheduled it for after my teaching ended, choosing the two dates myself back last fall even before I asked the doctor's scheduler, June 14 and June 28.
Then I began the research, speaking with dozens of people who had it, and reading everything I could find on the Internet. I was assured that it was a complicated, but successful procedure in a large number of cases. Most people said, "ah, it's a piece of cake." Nonetheless I was very anxious, as I am for many things in life (including doing a TV show!). I started with the drops the Friday before and continue to this day, 72 hours after the first surgery. I drove to the surgical center, and my wife drove me home. I was sedated, as I requested (some people do not have that (for them getting older will be "sissy-free")). I was quite relaxed, but felt the doctor doing a lot of stuff and heard him speaking (his voice was reassuring). The surgery seemed to take longer than I recall reading, but I knew he was implanting a special Toric Lens to which I paid extra to correct my astigmatism. I went home, took off the patch on my right eye and immediately realized that I had gone from not being able to make out face features on people ten feet from me at the YMCA without my glasses to being able to see brilliantly with the surgical eye without glasses. The next day the doctor's assistant told me I had 20-30 vision in that eye without glasses. I still had who knows what in the left eye without glasses. I thought I would be quite cool by having my glasses adjusted so that the right lens was removed and replaced with a clear lens; it didn't work for me, so now here is my situation.
I walk around with a good right eye and a bad left left eye, but am managing. I drove yesterday very well as I am legally allowed (in NY State 20-40 in one eye). I cannot see short distance, as I was told would happen, so I wear a pair of drug store reading glasses with a patch over the bad eye, and that is what I am doing now as I write this blog. It is uncomfortable. I await my next surgery on Tuesday, June 28, still anxious, but eager to get the whole thing over with. I do not wear glasses anymore for distance. I will be going to a party tonight being seen by friends for the first time in 63 years without glasses. This interim two-week period when I can see well with one eye, and do the reading/writing thing as I indicated is hard for me, but I have no choice and the days pass. I will keep you posted.
So as I got older, I knew things were going to happen. I actually had Melanoma at age 51. My father had skin cancer, I recall, but not Melanoma. That was my first surgery, and as I recall I was pretty scared. I still have the 8 inch long scar with clear remnants of the 15 stitches. I loved the doctor, Matthew Harris, who did the surgery at NYU Medical Center, and my Dermatologist, Alan Schecter, who still treats me. Then there was surgery to remove the kidney stone in 2011. That was the worst week of my life, and I never wish to repeat it. I have had minor dermatological procedures over the year, perhaps as many as two dozen or more.
About 4 years ago, when my vision began to deteriorate and I was told I had cataracts, I knew the time was coming soon for that surgery. Then my ophthalmologist, Dr. Gary Povill, retired and handed me off to the person who did his surgery, Dr. Roger Husted. I liked him immediately, but was still quite apprehensive about the coming procedure. Last September, when I could not even read the top line with my right eye and barely the 20-40 line with my "good" eye, the left, Dr. Husted told me I was ready for cataract surgery. Knowing I would need time for the whole thing, I scheduled it for after my teaching ended, choosing the two dates myself back last fall even before I asked the doctor's scheduler, June 14 and June 28.
Then I began the research, speaking with dozens of people who had it, and reading everything I could find on the Internet. I was assured that it was a complicated, but successful procedure in a large number of cases. Most people said, "ah, it's a piece of cake." Nonetheless I was very anxious, as I am for many things in life (including doing a TV show!). I started with the drops the Friday before and continue to this day, 72 hours after the first surgery. I drove to the surgical center, and my wife drove me home. I was sedated, as I requested (some people do not have that (for them getting older will be "sissy-free")). I was quite relaxed, but felt the doctor doing a lot of stuff and heard him speaking (his voice was reassuring). The surgery seemed to take longer than I recall reading, but I knew he was implanting a special Toric Lens to which I paid extra to correct my astigmatism. I went home, took off the patch on my right eye and immediately realized that I had gone from not being able to make out face features on people ten feet from me at the YMCA without my glasses to being able to see brilliantly with the surgical eye without glasses. The next day the doctor's assistant told me I had 20-30 vision in that eye without glasses. I still had who knows what in the left eye without glasses. I thought I would be quite cool by having my glasses adjusted so that the right lens was removed and replaced with a clear lens; it didn't work for me, so now here is my situation.
I walk around with a good right eye and a bad left left eye, but am managing. I drove yesterday very well as I am legally allowed (in NY State 20-40 in one eye). I cannot see short distance, as I was told would happen, so I wear a pair of drug store reading glasses with a patch over the bad eye, and that is what I am doing now as I write this blog. It is uncomfortable. I await my next surgery on Tuesday, June 28, still anxious, but eager to get the whole thing over with. I do not wear glasses anymore for distance. I will be going to a party tonight being seen by friends for the first time in 63 years without glasses. This interim two-week period when I can see well with one eye, and do the reading/writing thing as I indicated is hard for me, but I have no choice and the days pass. I will keep you posted.
Saturday, June 11, 2016
Boy Did I Goof
I'm very sorry, but show # 123 was just removed from Youtube. The mistake I made with the work of Ghirlandaio in the Museum of San Marco's Book Store/Gift Show was so egregious that in my utter humiliation and embarrassment, I have decided to either have that segment edited out of the DVD of the show or do the entire show over again. I sounded like an utter doofus. Here is the actual story:
In 1486 the Monastery of San Marco commissioned Domenico Ghirlandaio to do a fresco in their facility. That is how the fresco got there. It was not a bookstore/gift shop in 1486 (DUHHHHHHH), and if I were to hazard a guess, and of course my credibility index has probably just fallen to new lows, I would say that the location back then was the Refectory. I come to this conclusion because his other two Cenacolos (Ognissanti and Badia a Pasignano) were located in the area where the monks dined known as a Refectory.
My apologies. I have no excuse other than jet lag and perhaps my anxiety over my impending cataract surgery which is quite high right now. I will keep you informed about the solution and when show # 123 returns. Too bad, because I actually liked the show.
Friday, June 10, 2016
My Favorite Bridges and a Whole Lot More
This week I labored with several different ideas to put together for my first broadcast off the "new season." My original idea was to simply do the Favorite Bridges Show that was planned before we left for Italy. Then after a memorable 12 day trip, I decided that perhaps I should focus on trip taking in general and the specific trip we just took. Then while in Florence I decided that maybe I should take photos of some unique experiences I was having in a city that I have seen extensively since 1992. The upshot was a show which combined all three concepts. Thus I start out thanking our friends for making our trip amazing, then I talk about my unique experiences accompanied by about a dozen photos I took during a solo day strolling about in Florence, and the concluding with the Bridges. The result was a quick (seemingly, even though the show was over 50 minutes long), lively, fun show which not covered a lot of ground, but kept me very much engaged during my current period of jet lag from my trip home, anxiety over my impending cataract surgery, and general tiredness. There were, however, two mistakes. First I queried why Ghirlandaio's painting of the San Marco Cenacolo was placed at San Marco, when in actuality it is a fresco commissioned during the 15 th century for the monastery. Second I was may have mistaken about the America Vespucci Bridge in Florence in a photo showing the westernmost bridges. No excuses. Just for me, same old, same old.
Jet lag is becoming worse each year we travel. Waking up at 4 AM in the morning (10AM Italy time), ready for bed no later than 9 PM (3 AM the next morning Italy time), and getting hungry at strange times. When I get out of bed at say 9 AM, it is really 3 PM and I would have already had breakfast and lunch......and on and on. Other bodily issues such as constipation, grogginess all the time, disorientation, and lethargy. Put that together with the prospect of cataract surgery, which admittedly I have heard is no big deal from dozens of people, I was really quite out of it this week. I was resolved not to do a show. Then mid-week I felt that in order to take my mind off the surgery scheduled for next Tuesday, I would have to keep very busy. Therefore I went to the YMCA twice since returning, put together a show, wrote a blog (Friends, Food, and Fabulous Views), did a wash, went to the local dump, went shopping, went to the bank, registered at the hospital, wrote several emails to my friends in Italy, and watched a lot of TV. It all helps.
The future for Alan's Italy is very much in doubt. I have no idea what my vision will be like after Tuesday. Will I be able to drive? Read? Watch TV? Put together another show? Everything is up in the air and will remain so until I can get a handle on my condition. Even if the surgery goes smoothly and I can see 20 - 20 long distance I will need new reading glasses for close up work like doing prep for a new show and I will have to wait until after surgery number 2 on my left eye and then some, so maybe not for weeks. I will try to keep my dedicated followers up to date.
Jet lag is becoming worse each year we travel. Waking up at 4 AM in the morning (10AM Italy time), ready for bed no later than 9 PM (3 AM the next morning Italy time), and getting hungry at strange times. When I get out of bed at say 9 AM, it is really 3 PM and I would have already had breakfast and lunch......and on and on. Other bodily issues such as constipation, grogginess all the time, disorientation, and lethargy. Put that together with the prospect of cataract surgery, which admittedly I have heard is no big deal from dozens of people, I was really quite out of it this week. I was resolved not to do a show. Then mid-week I felt that in order to take my mind off the surgery scheduled for next Tuesday, I would have to keep very busy. Therefore I went to the YMCA twice since returning, put together a show, wrote a blog (Friends, Food, and Fabulous Views), did a wash, went to the local dump, went shopping, went to the bank, registered at the hospital, wrote several emails to my friends in Italy, and watched a lot of TV. It all helps.
The future for Alan's Italy is very much in doubt. I have no idea what my vision will be like after Tuesday. Will I be able to drive? Read? Watch TV? Put together another show? Everything is up in the air and will remain so until I can get a handle on my condition. Even if the surgery goes smoothly and I can see 20 - 20 long distance I will need new reading glasses for close up work like doing prep for a new show and I will have to wait until after surgery number 2 on my left eye and then some, so maybe not for weeks. I will try to keep my dedicated followers up to date.
Wednesday, June 8, 2016
Friends, Food, and Fantastic Views
Pardon my immodesty, but I really do know how to plan a vacation in Italy that can be everything I wanted.
We flew into Rome and took a taxi to Siena, our first sleepover. What a feeling getting off the plane and having the Alessandro Brigante Taxi Service waiting at the exit. Fabrizio was there waiting with a sign, we boarded his car, and off we went on the 3 hour trip to Siena. What a nice guy stopping for us when the need arose and driving flawlessly while we relaxed in the back seat sleeping and watching the scenery dropping us off right at the front door of our hotel, Palazzo Ravizza, in Siena. The price of $360 euro was well worth it for us - no driving for me (ahhhhh) and no finding my way around Italy and into a big city. The hotel was spectacular with a garden in the rear with magnificent views of Tuscany. Both our rooms ( we had to switch due to a prearranged conflict in room occupancy) had views of Tuscany and were spotless and beautiful. Siena is a nice town, but we proved conclusively once and for all, not one of our favorite places. Florence has better food, better museums, and of course, no fault to Siena, our dearest friends. So we could see the countryside without my driving, Lidia and Luca came down to meet us and take us to Volterra and Monteriggioni (3rd time for me, 2nd for Laura) and the val d'orcin region with lunch at San Quirico d'Orcia, both wonderful days with loving and fabulous friends. Had ok food except for the Osteria Nonna Gina in Siena which was amazing. Saw the Campo and Duomo which are great famous locations and the Pinacoteca (art museum) which has Sienese art, not my favorite kind of art, but interesting anyway. We befriended a member of staff at the hotel, Francesco, who gave us a superb 20 minute interview while seated in the back garden.
After four nights it was taxi again to Florence door to door and again a wonderful experience. Same room at Croce di Malta we have had for quite a while now with balcony overlooking back garden. Lunch at La Grotta di Leo, our favorite lunch place with excellent pizza, and dinner at La Spada with great food. We dined with Lidia for practically every meal. We had Bistecca Fiorentina two nights in a row!!!! Best steak ever. One day Lidia took us with her wonderful friends (and now our friends as well) to see the newly restored Cenacolo (Last Supper) by my favorite artist, Domenico Ghirlandaio, located at the Monastery at Badia a Pasignano, where we were the year before. Then they took us to a small town in the area, San Donato, a great small town I never heard of. The moral to this story is, let your friends take you wherever they want! Then we went back to Sabrina and Giulio's house for lunch cooked by Giulio and had several hours of our fun and great food. They told us of the best pizza place in Florence, Santarpia which did indeed have great pizza. We bid farewell to them. While in Florence we visited the Pitti Palace Galleria Palatina for the great works by Raphael. Slight mistake here - not nearly enough time in Florence. Once again met our friend Prof Roger Crum who brought with him to Florence 54 students and 6 faculty members. We dined with him and brought him back to our hotel Croce di Malta to show him the 360 degree view from the roof which was opened just for me. Once again bumped into one of the owners, Simone who greeted me warmly. Bought some leather products in Lidia's store including a new wallet, 3 belts, and a new side bag for me.
We took the train to Orvieto, a lovely town in Umbria, much nicer for us anyway than Siena. Dinner with Franco and Nina. Then next morning Nina drove us back with her to Civita di Bagnoregio where she works with Franco at his fabulous restaurant Trattoria Antica Forno. Civita is a 2800 year old Etruscan town accessible only via a long walkway which is at several points virtually a 45 degree angle up to the town perched high above the Alto Lazio valley with Lubriano on the eastern side. We walked around the town again filled with several times the number of people we usually see, then dined at Antina Forno. Laura went into the kitchen to video Franco cooking what turned out to be close to 70 meals (pasta mostly) and learning some new things about Italian cooking. We now have about 20 minutes of his cooking brilliance on video. We then watched the twice yearly donkey race patterned after the famous Palio of Siena. What a hoot with immovable donkeys "strolling" around the town square, a fraction the size of the Campo in Siena. Franco then drove us back to Civita for our last evening in Italy. We strolled the eerie, dark, and empty backstreets of Orvieto before trying to get some sleep as we were awakened at 4:30 AM next day for the taxi back to Rome Airport.
A memorable and exciting trip to Italy which will be elaborated upon during about 8 - 10 shows over the next year. I will probably miss Friday evening's show as I prepare myself mentally for my double cataract surgery coming up first next week and then two weeks later. Not certain when my next show will be.
We flew into Rome and took a taxi to Siena, our first sleepover. What a feeling getting off the plane and having the Alessandro Brigante Taxi Service waiting at the exit. Fabrizio was there waiting with a sign, we boarded his car, and off we went on the 3 hour trip to Siena. What a nice guy stopping for us when the need arose and driving flawlessly while we relaxed in the back seat sleeping and watching the scenery dropping us off right at the front door of our hotel, Palazzo Ravizza, in Siena. The price of $360 euro was well worth it for us - no driving for me (ahhhhh) and no finding my way around Italy and into a big city. The hotel was spectacular with a garden in the rear with magnificent views of Tuscany. Both our rooms ( we had to switch due to a prearranged conflict in room occupancy) had views of Tuscany and were spotless and beautiful. Siena is a nice town, but we proved conclusively once and for all, not one of our favorite places. Florence has better food, better museums, and of course, no fault to Siena, our dearest friends. So we could see the countryside without my driving, Lidia and Luca came down to meet us and take us to Volterra and Monteriggioni (3rd time for me, 2nd for Laura) and the val d'orcin region with lunch at San Quirico d'Orcia, both wonderful days with loving and fabulous friends. Had ok food except for the Osteria Nonna Gina in Siena which was amazing. Saw the Campo and Duomo which are great famous locations and the Pinacoteca (art museum) which has Sienese art, not my favorite kind of art, but interesting anyway. We befriended a member of staff at the hotel, Francesco, who gave us a superb 20 minute interview while seated in the back garden.
After four nights it was taxi again to Florence door to door and again a wonderful experience. Same room at Croce di Malta we have had for quite a while now with balcony overlooking back garden. Lunch at La Grotta di Leo, our favorite lunch place with excellent pizza, and dinner at La Spada with great food. We dined with Lidia for practically every meal. We had Bistecca Fiorentina two nights in a row!!!! Best steak ever. One day Lidia took us with her wonderful friends (and now our friends as well) to see the newly restored Cenacolo (Last Supper) by my favorite artist, Domenico Ghirlandaio, located at the Monastery at Badia a Pasignano, where we were the year before. Then they took us to a small town in the area, San Donato, a great small town I never heard of. The moral to this story is, let your friends take you wherever they want! Then we went back to Sabrina and Giulio's house for lunch cooked by Giulio and had several hours of our fun and great food. They told us of the best pizza place in Florence, Santarpia which did indeed have great pizza. We bid farewell to them. While in Florence we visited the Pitti Palace Galleria Palatina for the great works by Raphael. Slight mistake here - not nearly enough time in Florence. Once again met our friend Prof Roger Crum who brought with him to Florence 54 students and 6 faculty members. We dined with him and brought him back to our hotel Croce di Malta to show him the 360 degree view from the roof which was opened just for me. Once again bumped into one of the owners, Simone who greeted me warmly. Bought some leather products in Lidia's store including a new wallet, 3 belts, and a new side bag for me.
We took the train to Orvieto, a lovely town in Umbria, much nicer for us anyway than Siena. Dinner with Franco and Nina. Then next morning Nina drove us back with her to Civita di Bagnoregio where she works with Franco at his fabulous restaurant Trattoria Antica Forno. Civita is a 2800 year old Etruscan town accessible only via a long walkway which is at several points virtually a 45 degree angle up to the town perched high above the Alto Lazio valley with Lubriano on the eastern side. We walked around the town again filled with several times the number of people we usually see, then dined at Antina Forno. Laura went into the kitchen to video Franco cooking what turned out to be close to 70 meals (pasta mostly) and learning some new things about Italian cooking. We now have about 20 minutes of his cooking brilliance on video. We then watched the twice yearly donkey race patterned after the famous Palio of Siena. What a hoot with immovable donkeys "strolling" around the town square, a fraction the size of the Campo in Siena. Franco then drove us back to Civita for our last evening in Italy. We strolled the eerie, dark, and empty backstreets of Orvieto before trying to get some sleep as we were awakened at 4:30 AM next day for the taxi back to Rome Airport.
A memorable and exciting trip to Italy which will be elaborated upon during about 8 - 10 shows over the next year. I will probably miss Friday evening's show as I prepare myself mentally for my double cataract surgery coming up first next week and then two weeks later. Not certain when my next show will be.
Friday, May 20, 2016
The "Last Show of the Season"
One of the easiest shows to put together and also one of the most fun experiences. I simply took the photos from the intro to the show and discussed what they mean to us which was, of course, very easy to do. I felt complete relaxed and confident although the very first photo of the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore in the Venetian Lagoon gave me fits at first when I could't think of the name. After that it was smooth sailing through roughly 40 of our best photographs from our many trips to Italy. Except for a few very minor glitches at the start of the show, everything went very smoothly. We even went back to using the old stand-up microphone rather than the lapel clip on used nowadays on regular TV.
And so the "season" is now finished as we prepare for my 24th and Laura's 17th trip to Italy. I have many ideas for shows and would love going back to the once a week format we started with back in late 2011, if I can find new shows during our trip, expand on several ideas I have, and make the time during the summer when I should have enough time to work extra hours to get ready. All this, of course, is dependent on how my cataract surgery comes out. We shall see.
In the meantime, thanks to my ever present following and I hope to give you more interesting videos in the coming season.
And so the "season" is now finished as we prepare for my 24th and Laura's 17th trip to Italy. I have many ideas for shows and would love going back to the once a week format we started with back in late 2011, if I can find new shows during our trip, expand on several ideas I have, and make the time during the summer when I should have enough time to work extra hours to get ready. All this, of course, is dependent on how my cataract surgery comes out. We shall see.
In the meantime, thanks to my ever present following and I hope to give you more interesting videos in the coming season.
Friday, May 13, 2016
Return to a Favorite Theme
I love old photos. I love old photos of Italy more than anything. As I indicated on the show, I like to find the exact location of an old photo and compare the photo to the modern view trying to find as many differences as possible. As I point out on the show, it was easier to create shows centering around the much more familiar places such as Florence, Rome, and Tuscany generally. Varenna was difficult because I was not as familiar with the town, despite having been there a half dozen times. Therefore this album took a lot of time to pull together; really the largest quantity of time in recent months. It was well worth it as I thoroughly enjoyed the longest show I have had in a very long time at slightly over 57 minutes. Although I have enjoyed the recent shows, this time I was truly enthralled by a topic that has always fascinated me. That tells me a lot. In the future I must try to "get into" my ideas to a greater degree; a great lesson considering there is yet another Italian trip coming up very soon.
As for the actual broadcast experience of which I like to talk, the only issue was the sound was again, lower than in past years due I believe to the different microphone I now use - a small one attached to my lapel. Even Ellen said I had it was too far from my mouth at first, but next time I may put it even closer. Other than that it was an outstanding video of a show that I truly loved doing. Ellen and I seem to be interacting on the air a lot more lately which I have always wanted as it gives more of a real feel of a live broadcast than just going through the material on my own. Now that I now longer have guests on the show I like this approach. Even when I used to listen to Imus in the Morning on radio, I loved the way he interacted with his staff. It gave a great down-home feeling to the live broadcast.
Next week I am deviating from a model which I have practiced for quite some time, i.e. doing a bi-weekly show. I will do my first back to back broadcast in a long time. There a few reasons for this. First I have a lot of material with what I assume will be a treasure trove after the next trip. Second, I will not know the future for a while. Missing two straight weeks because of our trip plus the uncertainty of my condition after cataract surgery on June 14 and June 28, I would rather keep moving now. The topic will be easy for me - simply an analysis of the photo montage that forms the basis of my show's introduction. I will spend a few minutes discussing the meaning of the selection of the photos, where they are taken and why Laura photographed them.
As for the actual broadcast experience of which I like to talk, the only issue was the sound was again, lower than in past years due I believe to the different microphone I now use - a small one attached to my lapel. Even Ellen said I had it was too far from my mouth at first, but next time I may put it even closer. Other than that it was an outstanding video of a show that I truly loved doing. Ellen and I seem to be interacting on the air a lot more lately which I have always wanted as it gives more of a real feel of a live broadcast than just going through the material on my own. Now that I now longer have guests on the show I like this approach. Even when I used to listen to Imus in the Morning on radio, I loved the way he interacted with his staff. It gave a great down-home feeling to the live broadcast.
Next week I am deviating from a model which I have practiced for quite some time, i.e. doing a bi-weekly show. I will do my first back to back broadcast in a long time. There a few reasons for this. First I have a lot of material with what I assume will be a treasure trove after the next trip. Second, I will not know the future for a while. Missing two straight weeks because of our trip plus the uncertainty of my condition after cataract surgery on June 14 and June 28, I would rather keep moving now. The topic will be easy for me - simply an analysis of the photo montage that forms the basis of my show's introduction. I will spend a few minutes discussing the meaning of the selection of the photos, where they are taken and why Laura photographed them.
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
Patience, Patience, Patience
Patience is not something of which I have an abundance. This is a trait of mine that my followers know all too well. Walking out of the studio on Friday evening after doing what I assumed to be a very successful show without the DVD of the show in hand was a peculiar feeling for me. Friday turned into Saturday into Sunday into Monday and I heard nothing, except that apparently Ellen had left a message on my phone indicating that she would drop off the DVD of the show Monday afternoon. It occurred as scheduled, and I watched it and did the uploading to Youtube, as my viewers already know by the stunning image of Lake Como which appears as the lead image.
It is in fact a nice, crisp show and I looked and sounded more relaxed than I have been recently. Back in the groove again I was confident about my material and looking forward to the broadcast. People always tell me how relaxed I look, but the truth is sometimes very far from that. In this case I was very at ease. Unfortunately I made a couple of errors calling a "vaporetto" a "wheel chair" during the segment at the beginning initiated by one of my viewers who asked about the access ramp at the Florence Santa Maria Novella Train Station. With respect to accessibility for the physically challenged I spoke about the wheel chairs I have often seen around Venice, one of the "easiest" places for the physically challenged to navigate around because of its predominate flatness - except for the bridges which are the only hindrance. Later in the show I misused a word, "pummel" instead of "plummet." Attempting to describe the fall of the Fiumelatte water I interspersed the two words. The water plummets not pummels. I am not that upset about those errors, since, after all, I am an amateur. If I had made such a mistake in a mathematics classroom of such a magnitude, then it might be a matter of concern.
Nonetheless, I had a wonderful opportunity to describe two of the truly amazing times we had on Lake Como, a destination for us that has been filled with incredible moments. The Trattoria Baita Belvedere with its spectacular views of the lake and Bellagio and the town of Fiumelatte with its charming town and small water fall were memorable times. I now turn to a show that began to be formed in my mind when, sitting in the lobby of our hotel in Varenna, Hotel du Lac. I noticed a book of 19th century photos. Yes, dear viewers, it will yet another Then and Now show, so if you like that kind of thing, please tune in, hopefully, Friday evening, May 6.
So even though I have a dearth of patience, thanks nonetheless for your's.
It is in fact a nice, crisp show and I looked and sounded more relaxed than I have been recently. Back in the groove again I was confident about my material and looking forward to the broadcast. People always tell me how relaxed I look, but the truth is sometimes very far from that. In this case I was very at ease. Unfortunately I made a couple of errors calling a "vaporetto" a "wheel chair" during the segment at the beginning initiated by one of my viewers who asked about the access ramp at the Florence Santa Maria Novella Train Station. With respect to accessibility for the physically challenged I spoke about the wheel chairs I have often seen around Venice, one of the "easiest" places for the physically challenged to navigate around because of its predominate flatness - except for the bridges which are the only hindrance. Later in the show I misused a word, "pummel" instead of "plummet." Attempting to describe the fall of the Fiumelatte water I interspersed the two words. The water plummets not pummels. I am not that upset about those errors, since, after all, I am an amateur. If I had made such a mistake in a mathematics classroom of such a magnitude, then it might be a matter of concern.
Nonetheless, I had a wonderful opportunity to describe two of the truly amazing times we had on Lake Como, a destination for us that has been filled with incredible moments. The Trattoria Baita Belvedere with its spectacular views of the lake and Bellagio and the town of Fiumelatte with its charming town and small water fall were memorable times. I now turn to a show that began to be formed in my mind when, sitting in the lobby of our hotel in Varenna, Hotel du Lac. I noticed a book of 19th century photos. Yes, dear viewers, it will yet another Then and Now show, so if you like that kind of thing, please tune in, hopefully, Friday evening, May 6.
So even though I have a dearth of patience, thanks nonetheless for your's.
Saturday, April 23, 2016
Almost There, But Not Quite......
I wouldn't have believed it possible. When I finished the show, and feeling very relaxed that it was a good one, I actually felt that we have finally mastered the new equipment. I confidently gathered together my things, cables, computer, notes, etc. but heard mutterings coming from the console. Never a good sign. Ellen was desperately trying to "finalize" the DVD but was having trouble with the remote control. Who would have thought it! Yet another issue that we had yet to have. After 120 shows there was actually something left that hadn't been screwed up. While I was seated and watching her go through this process, someone came into the studio who knew me, but, of course with my poor memory for such things lately, I didn't know her. She and her husband were producers of their own cable access show, and wanted to know why I wasn't at the Board of Producer's meeting last week. I told her that I didn't know it existed, but would like to attend. Yet another thing I have committed myself to. We finished the show at about 5:45 and it was now about 6:15 and still no video. I left and told Ellen to keep me informed. I have yet to see the finished version. That is the reason that the show has yet to be uploaded to Youtube. It should be a few days away, but if I have to do the show over (which would make me very upset), it could be longer.
Saturday, April 9, 2016
Farewell to Tuscany.....For Now
The last show in the "Tuscany Series" was more or less successfully recorded yesterday evening. I use the word recorded as opposed to broadcasted because apparently Ellen forgot to flick the switch which would have made the show live! I didn't realize this until I got home and Laura wanted to know if we did a show. I told her we did and I have a supposed DVD of the effort. I had a feeling something might have been up when I looked at one of the monitors and noticed the WPAT Channel 23 Logo was on the screen. Then I simply forgot to say something because generally I don't have much of an idea what goes on behind the console. Fortunately I did have the DVD. We went out for the evening and didn't get back into the house until after 11, but then I broke down and watched the show which was recorded well enough even though the volume was too low and the photos appeared to be not quite the usual standard. I went to sleep annoyed, once again (or I should say "yet again") determined to end the whole project. As usually occurs for me, after a good night's sleep (actually "good" might be stretching the point), I changed my mind and downloaded to my computer, uploaded to Youtube, and made copies for Woodstock Public Access and Panda TV (Tivoli, Red Hook, Rhinebeck, and Rhinecliff). Now I am putting the punctuation mark on show # 119 with the blog post!!
The experience of traveling around Tuscany with both Lidia and Luca has evolved to the point where that in itself is worth the trip to Italy. In this case last time we were in Italy we simply told both of them to take somewhere amazing. We were not disappointed. So for shows 117 and 118 Lidia was the hostess and architect of a wonderful afternoon, and for show 119 Luca planned the trip. As I indicated on the show last night, we had made an almost circular journey around the town of Volpaia when we were in Chianti in 2009 and again in 2010, but this time visited this almost perfectly charming town. The video of the show clearly shows our fascination with small, quaint Tuscan villages. All the towns came into existence as outposts during the various wars between rivals Florence and Siena during the Middle Ages and transitioned to vacation destinations in the late 20th century. Both Lidia and Luca chose extraordinary lunch locations, Lidia in Rignana and Luca in Volpaia. I described the later in great detail, even asking Luca in an email to indicate the various bruschette (plural for bruschetta). He and Mary, as Laura later reminded me, ordered appetizers only while I (for some reason) ordered a lasagne. Next time I will probably go along with whatever my friends choose. For our upcoming trip in late May/early June I have chosen Siena and again asked Lidia and Luca to take us to places that actually I have chosen. Maybe THAT is a mistake. We shall see.
I now pivot back to Lake Como doing the next two shows related to the town of Varenna, the first, # 120 related to day trips while staying in Varenna that were easy and very rewarding and # 121 yet another in the long line of "Then and Now" type presentations. I am excited although both are in moderate to severe states of incompleteness. I have my work ahead of me. Those last two will complete the material obtained from the trip we took in May and June of 2015.
The experience of traveling around Tuscany with both Lidia and Luca has evolved to the point where that in itself is worth the trip to Italy. In this case last time we were in Italy we simply told both of them to take somewhere amazing. We were not disappointed. So for shows 117 and 118 Lidia was the hostess and architect of a wonderful afternoon, and for show 119 Luca planned the trip. As I indicated on the show last night, we had made an almost circular journey around the town of Volpaia when we were in Chianti in 2009 and again in 2010, but this time visited this almost perfectly charming town. The video of the show clearly shows our fascination with small, quaint Tuscan villages. All the towns came into existence as outposts during the various wars between rivals Florence and Siena during the Middle Ages and transitioned to vacation destinations in the late 20th century. Both Lidia and Luca chose extraordinary lunch locations, Lidia in Rignana and Luca in Volpaia. I described the later in great detail, even asking Luca in an email to indicate the various bruschette (plural for bruschetta). He and Mary, as Laura later reminded me, ordered appetizers only while I (for some reason) ordered a lasagne. Next time I will probably go along with whatever my friends choose. For our upcoming trip in late May/early June I have chosen Siena and again asked Lidia and Luca to take us to places that actually I have chosen. Maybe THAT is a mistake. We shall see.
I now pivot back to Lake Como doing the next two shows related to the town of Varenna, the first, # 120 related to day trips while staying in Varenna that were easy and very rewarding and # 121 yet another in the long line of "Then and Now" type presentations. I am excited although both are in moderate to severe states of incompleteness. I have my work ahead of me. Those last two will complete the material obtained from the trip we took in May and June of 2015.
Friday, March 25, 2016
Success!!!!!
After some trepidation about broadcasting tonight during the half hour preceding the beginning of the broadcast, we began right on time at 5 PM. The process was relatively smooth on Ellen's side of the console, but my computer betrayed me and I had some difficulty which you will be able to view on Youtube. I think I had too many programs open at the same time and the memory did not permit so many things to be going on simultaneously and froze at times. For now I can simply solve the problem by closing down the programs I do not need which is all except Photos. Other than that I felt very relaxed and Ellen looked very calm as the broadcast continued just like old times. In the future I may have to add memory to my computer or buy a new one. I only have 4 GB memory; I could use at least 8 GB if not even 16 which Laura has and her computer is lightning fast.
So thus finishes a sequence of shows dedicated to a wonderful day out with Lidia and her friends that began with Show # 117 back in early October, 2015 and was finally put to rest yesterday, March 25, 2016 with Show # 118. The almost six month hiatus is the longest I have gone without doing a broadcast. At first I needed the rest from the sometimes arduous task of creating and then executing a show. Then I just kind of gave up the possibility of continuing, and finally when it looked promising, I began putting a show together and here I am.
However, I just cannot complain after finally getting back on TV and most importantly successfully uploading a new video after the 6 month hiatus. I have many more show scheduled and will discuss my ideas on the next show in two weeks. That show # 119 will focus on a day out at the Chianti village of Volpaia with Luca and Mary as our guides. Quite simply at this stage of my travels around Italy, I just cannot drive any longer. If not for Luca, Lidia, and Franco we would be confined to major cities (not a tragedy) or take trains and buses to the countryside which is just not so rewarding as driving. I will discuss all future plans in two weeks, but for now, yes, success!!!!
So thus finishes a sequence of shows dedicated to a wonderful day out with Lidia and her friends that began with Show # 117 back in early October, 2015 and was finally put to rest yesterday, March 25, 2016 with Show # 118. The almost six month hiatus is the longest I have gone without doing a broadcast. At first I needed the rest from the sometimes arduous task of creating and then executing a show. Then I just kind of gave up the possibility of continuing, and finally when it looked promising, I began putting a show together and here I am.
However, I just cannot complain after finally getting back on TV and most importantly successfully uploading a new video after the 6 month hiatus. I have many more show scheduled and will discuss my ideas on the next show in two weeks. That show # 119 will focus on a day out at the Chianti village of Volpaia with Luca and Mary as our guides. Quite simply at this stage of my travels around Italy, I just cannot drive any longer. If not for Luca, Lidia, and Franco we would be confined to major cities (not a tragedy) or take trains and buses to the countryside which is just not so rewarding as driving. I will discuss all future plans in two weeks, but for now, yes, success!!!!
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
Relentlessly I Move Ahead
So on Friday, March 25 I will once again try to broadcast Show # 118 - Montefioralle. The original broadcast had some weird noise which both Ellen and Richard assure me will not be present again. I have made some modest "improvements" in the show and hopefully will download it to Youtube this Friday evening the first Alan's Italy in over 5 months.
Saturday, March 12, 2016
A New Beginning, Perhaps
Last evening I arrived at the studio at 4PM, about a half hour before my usual arrival time to find a studio which appeared to be about three times the size of the old studio. Also Richard, the studio technician told me he was there to help inaugurate the equipment for my first live broadcast in five months. He and Ellen then spent quite a lot of time getting things ready while I tried to do the same on my computer. Having downloaded yet another update last week, some things were again different and I had to find the correct way to make the presentation. I succeeded and off we went at about 4:50, about ten minutes ahead of schedule. I indicated to Ellen that I doubted whether my usual Friday evening audience was waiting with bated breath for the possible broadcast, so let's just get started. I did the show quite flawlessly except that some of the images with writing on the bottom were clearly being cut off. The cause was unknown to me, but that might be an easy thing to correct on my end. Other than that I felt quite strange and nervous doing the show, although as always happens to me, nobody would know there was anything different from my demeanor. The show was shorter tan usual at about 37 minutes, and I knew this by looking at the clock, but I was really happy to gotten that far. I took the DVD and went home where Laura told me she watched the show live on TV and it was good although I forgot to say some things that I honestly had forgotten about the places we visit. I did not show Laura the show beforehand, as I usually do, so that was a another problem which can easily be corrected. She did say that she heard a strange noise throughout the show. That noise is very prevalent on the DVD and I labored all last night with the possibility of doing the show over again. Ellen did not know what the noise was. I will probably do the show over again IF Richard can figure out what the noise was. If so, then I will make some necessary changes, talk with Laura about several things and try it again on the air. All this rests on what Richard can determine and I will keep you posted.
The show itself # 118 focused once again on the Tuscan adventure we took with Lidia, Sabrina and Giulio last May, 2015. It shows some very beautiful images of Tuscany in close to proximity to the region known for for its wine, Chianti. I hope you get to see it, and we will try to make that happen.
The show itself # 118 focused once again on the Tuscan adventure we took with Lidia, Sabrina and Giulio last May, 2015. It shows some very beautiful images of Tuscany in close to proximity to the region known for for its wine, Chianti. I hope you get to see it, and we will try to make that happen.
Wednesday, March 2, 2016
The Flu Grounds Alan's Italy
Sorry to all my fans, but I have the Flu and cannot do my show on Friday evening. Perhaps next Friday. Shooting for March 11.
Saturday, February 27, 2016
Oh No, Another Trip to Italy!
I planned a trip to Italy in 2016 after assuring everyone I knew, including Laura, that I did not want to go this year because of a lot of conflicting situations. There was a brief window of days available and I jumped right in. I actually asked her about two months ago where she would like to go. She said she would like to go back to the Amalfi Coast, staying in Sorrento and visiting Capri, the coast itself, Positano, Pompeii and Herculaneum. I then spent several weeks getting all that ready only to find her reading a post on Facebook from a friend of hers who is taking an artist group to Tuscany. She then said, much to my delight, that she wanted to return to Tuscany and even visit the artist group in the town of Radicofani which is just south of the val d'Orcia area of Tuscany instead of Sorento. I then planned a trip which became one of the boldest I ever planned.
It is very hard to visit Tuscany properly without driving. First of all it is difficult to pick out a base of operations. Second, you must get there without driving. Third, once you do that in order to see anything decent, you must drive. I chose Siena for several reasons. Although I had been there three times and Laura twice, I never stayed overnight. To truly experience a town you must stay at least one night. You just feel the mystery of the place in the darkness, smell the soot and smoke from the chimneys, and get lost amid the medieval streets. Also, Siena was big enough to allow for a lot of wandering, a lot of restaurants, and hotels. Also it was a good transportation hub for exploring Tuscany since I had NO INTENTION of driving anywhere. We decided on 4 days in Siena, 4 days in Florence, and then two days in Orvieto visiting with Franco Sala whom we missed the last time we were in Italy. Because the hotel I really wanted, the Palazzo Ravizza (rated number 3 out of 39 hotels by TripAdvisor) appeared to be fully booked (I assumed we booked too late for a lot of choices), I chose the Hotel Duomo which still appeared to be quite nice.
Then I had to figure out a way to see the rest of Tuscany, especially places I had never seen. I relied on Lidia and Luca who both graciously and wonderfully agreed to drive us around for two of the days in Siena. I also booked a taxi service to drive us to Siena from Rome Airport, and then on to Florence four days later, a very expensive proposition, but for a non driver, absolutely essential. I then booked our usual hotel in Orvieto, the Hotel Duomo (there are a million Hotel Duomos, LOL) and asked them to book a taxi to the Rome Airport for the trip home, a total of 10 days. A lot, a lot, a lot of money for taxis. To rent a car, however, would have cost just as much and caused me untold anxiety and gastro issues. I bit the bullet. While in Florence, we could see some of our favorite museums and Lidia promises a day out again with Sabrina and Giulio and dinner cooked by Giulio who is a chef at the Westin Excelsior in Florence. All set. Short trip, as we had decided last year. Trips seem to be longer and longer the older we get.
Suddenly without much reason I went back to look at Palazzo Ravizza and found they had a couple of rooms open. I did this on the bus getting to my teaching job in NYC, so spent a whole trip down there emailing with the hotel and texting with Laura. We now have the palazzo with a garden level room for two nights and a regular room for the other two. I cancelled Hotel Duomo. I felt really badly about since they had treated me very nicely, but the thought of spectacular Tuscan views from our room in a magnificent palazzo type hotel was overwhelming. It will be more costly, but I hope worth it.
While in Siena we will try to get west to Volterra, a place I spent time in with Lidia almost 15 years ago. Also we will try to get down to the val d'Orcia area to San Quricio, maybe Mt Amiata, and then Radicofani. Great material for TV shows.
So there it is, yet another trip to Italy and probably if all works out well a year's worth of Alan's Italy broadcasts.
It is very hard to visit Tuscany properly without driving. First of all it is difficult to pick out a base of operations. Second, you must get there without driving. Third, once you do that in order to see anything decent, you must drive. I chose Siena for several reasons. Although I had been there three times and Laura twice, I never stayed overnight. To truly experience a town you must stay at least one night. You just feel the mystery of the place in the darkness, smell the soot and smoke from the chimneys, and get lost amid the medieval streets. Also, Siena was big enough to allow for a lot of wandering, a lot of restaurants, and hotels. Also it was a good transportation hub for exploring Tuscany since I had NO INTENTION of driving anywhere. We decided on 4 days in Siena, 4 days in Florence, and then two days in Orvieto visiting with Franco Sala whom we missed the last time we were in Italy. Because the hotel I really wanted, the Palazzo Ravizza (rated number 3 out of 39 hotels by TripAdvisor) appeared to be fully booked (I assumed we booked too late for a lot of choices), I chose the Hotel Duomo which still appeared to be quite nice.
Then I had to figure out a way to see the rest of Tuscany, especially places I had never seen. I relied on Lidia and Luca who both graciously and wonderfully agreed to drive us around for two of the days in Siena. I also booked a taxi service to drive us to Siena from Rome Airport, and then on to Florence four days later, a very expensive proposition, but for a non driver, absolutely essential. I then booked our usual hotel in Orvieto, the Hotel Duomo (there are a million Hotel Duomos, LOL) and asked them to book a taxi to the Rome Airport for the trip home, a total of 10 days. A lot, a lot, a lot of money for taxis. To rent a car, however, would have cost just as much and caused me untold anxiety and gastro issues. I bit the bullet. While in Florence, we could see some of our favorite museums and Lidia promises a day out again with Sabrina and Giulio and dinner cooked by Giulio who is a chef at the Westin Excelsior in Florence. All set. Short trip, as we had decided last year. Trips seem to be longer and longer the older we get.
Suddenly without much reason I went back to look at Palazzo Ravizza and found they had a couple of rooms open. I did this on the bus getting to my teaching job in NYC, so spent a whole trip down there emailing with the hotel and texting with Laura. We now have the palazzo with a garden level room for two nights and a regular room for the other two. I cancelled Hotel Duomo. I felt really badly about since they had treated me very nicely, but the thought of spectacular Tuscan views from our room in a magnificent palazzo type hotel was overwhelming. It will be more costly, but I hope worth it.
While in Siena we will try to get west to Volterra, a place I spent time in with Lidia almost 15 years ago. Also we will try to get down to the val d'Orcia area to San Quricio, maybe Mt Amiata, and then Radicofani. Great material for TV shows.
So there it is, yet another trip to Italy and probably if all works out well a year's worth of Alan's Italy broadcasts.
Alan's Italy is Back on the Air..........Maybe
To all my loyal fans around the world all I can say is, as disappointed as many of you are, I am having an even worse time. The last broadcast was show # 117 back on October 9, 2015, almost 5 months ago. My engineer just told me to prepare for a show for next Friday evening, March 4. I spent yesterday and today trying very hard to get back into it. It was not easy having not only lost some (although as it turned out not much) interest, but also forgetting how to do some of the computer stuff on IPhoto. But as of this moment, I have a very nice show prepared Show # 118 - Montefioralle, the day we spent with Lidia, Sabrina, and Giulio showing around the stunning area of eastern Chianti. In fact I became so enthused that I actually had prepared 115 photos, way too much and spent the last hour paring that down considerably. Of course, I always have a very hard time dropping beautiful photos from a potential broadcast.
Now I wait. Next Friday I not so confidently place myself into the hands of my engineer who will probably be doing her first show in the new studio. Very, very scary!!!!! I am fully prepared to do the show, and then do it over again; that attitude is very unusually for me who always gets upset when I have to do a show over. I haven't even seen the new studio, but, again, I place myself in the hands of the person who has taken me this far - which is very far indeed. If it comes off successfully, I then must remember how to download to my computer and upload to Youtube. Gulp!!!
We shall see what happens but I also prepared for the next show # 119 which will focus on the day out in the heart of Chianti with Mary and Luca when they took us up the steep hill to the amazing town of Volpaia. We had a spectacular lunch made slightly less wonderful by the fact that my chronic gastro intestinal problems were bad that day. Still that show was quite nice ending up at Luca's and Mary's house and spending time with Luca marvelous daughter, Greta, who also took us back to Florence on the train. Then I still have two shows (which may become one) on two side trips from Varenna on Lake Como, a lunch several hundred feet above the town of Bellagio and a stroll along Lake Como to the tiny town of Fiumelatte which has a wonderful small waterfall on what is billed as the world's shortest river.
Then I would like to do two shows which I do not know if my audience will like. I would like to spend two shows talking about how to plan a trip to Italy and then how to actually navigate through the many difficult anxious aspects of actually taking such a trip. One of my followers, my friend Shawn from Chicago, loves the idea and even wants to contribute his own experiences with planning a trip. I wish other people would email me their thoughts. The show will not feature a lot of photos, but merely be me speaking directly at the camera using lists and some visuals. I have thought this for quite some time, but never actually did anything. Now I have the skeletal outline of such a series of shows. I hope that will be a public service to assist people who are thinking about taking a trip to Italy. Please let me hear from you at alansitaly@gmail.com Thanks!!!
Now I wait. Next Friday I not so confidently place myself into the hands of my engineer who will probably be doing her first show in the new studio. Very, very scary!!!!! I am fully prepared to do the show, and then do it over again; that attitude is very unusually for me who always gets upset when I have to do a show over. I haven't even seen the new studio, but, again, I place myself in the hands of the person who has taken me this far - which is very far indeed. If it comes off successfully, I then must remember how to download to my computer and upload to Youtube. Gulp!!!
We shall see what happens but I also prepared for the next show # 119 which will focus on the day out in the heart of Chianti with Mary and Luca when they took us up the steep hill to the amazing town of Volpaia. We had a spectacular lunch made slightly less wonderful by the fact that my chronic gastro intestinal problems were bad that day. Still that show was quite nice ending up at Luca's and Mary's house and spending time with Luca marvelous daughter, Greta, who also took us back to Florence on the train. Then I still have two shows (which may become one) on two side trips from Varenna on Lake Como, a lunch several hundred feet above the town of Bellagio and a stroll along Lake Como to the tiny town of Fiumelatte which has a wonderful small waterfall on what is billed as the world's shortest river.
Then I would like to do two shows which I do not know if my audience will like. I would like to spend two shows talking about how to plan a trip to Italy and then how to actually navigate through the many difficult anxious aspects of actually taking such a trip. One of my followers, my friend Shawn from Chicago, loves the idea and even wants to contribute his own experiences with planning a trip. I wish other people would email me their thoughts. The show will not feature a lot of photos, but merely be me speaking directly at the camera using lists and some visuals. I have thought this for quite some time, but never actually did anything. Now I have the skeletal outline of such a series of shows. I hope that will be a public service to assist people who are thinking about taking a trip to Italy. Please let me hear from you at alansitaly@gmail.com Thanks!!!
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