Before I visit Europe, in my mind, Netherlands is a distant country at the other end of the continent which is famous of tulip and windmill. I never imagine that one day I will have a chance to visit this wonder land like Alice visiting the world that exists in the imagination. Netherlands also means ‘lower country’ due to to its low elevation. Only about half of its land is above sea level. Canal and wetland spread over the whole country and this forms an unique idyllic landscape that you can not find in other places.
In September 2020, after I finished the trip in Brussels, I took the train towards Netherlands directly. My first stop is Dordrecht. It is a small city near Rotterdam. Actually urbanization in Netherlands has reached a high extent so there is not too much difference between city and rural area. The most common scene in the city of Netherlands is the interleaving of canals flowing through many small bridges.
I got off the train at the station of Dordrecht in this cool morning as it is the nearest place towards my dreamed destination Kinderdijk. This is my first time of visiting Netherlands so I was curious of every thing here. I didn’t stay a long time in Dordrecht but I still tried record what I had seen in my camera. There are not many high rise buildings in this city and most of the mansions and resident house look quite modern and new.
Next in a short while, I took the direct bus from Dordrecht to Kinderdijk and began this fantastic trip. The name Kinderdijk in Dutch stands for “Children dike”. The windmills of Kinderdijk are one of the best-known Dutch tourist sites. Tourists could rent boats to visit this village. It has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997 since it represents the Dutch outstanding technology of handling water. From far away, their silhouettes against the sun light are really amazing, like the giants waving lance in the novel of Don Quixote.
Kinderdijk is a fascinating village with rural landscape of a total of nineteen 18th-century windmills. These ‘giants’ dancing in the wind are always the icon of Netherlands. These windmills are built to pump excess water into a reservoir from the polder and pump water from the reservoir into river when water level is low. Polder is a piece of low-lying land reclaimed from the sea. Its level will be below the surrounding water level in the long run due to the ground subsidence. As a result, it is a priority for Dutch people to get rid of water from the polder. Even today, this complex system composed of windmills, dykes, reservoirs, pumping stations are still used.
Among the 19 windmills, two of them are built as museum and open for visit. This Nederwaard Museum in the center of this photo was a wooden windmill built in 1738. If you observe closely, you could find the word ‘Anno 1738’ on the white plaque of the mill. You’ll feel like a time-traveler when you enter through the ancient small wooden gate and stare at those remaining black-and-white photos and items used by real miller families. In the creak of the antiquated wheel axis, everything here breathes the atmosphere of ages past.
Kinderdijk is situated in the Alblasserwaard polder at the south side of the river Lek. There is a visiting center at the entrance of the village. I walked along the canal from the entrance towards south. There is no need to buy any tickets if visitors just walk on the footpath at the both banks of the canal. 19 windmills are distributed evenly southwards. The distance between each windmill is quite large so I could just take picture with only one of them. Now I was standing at one small pier. It’s like a platform protruding from the path and is suitable for taking a perfect picture.
On the way, I met a group of local people riding bicycles. Unlike other countries, cycling is a very common mode of transport in the Netherlands. Dutch have built a vast network of cycle paths even in the villages around the country. In Kinderdijk, there are some small bridges connecting both banks. They are convenient for the bicycle riders and me as well to cross the canal.
The wide footpath is paved by bitumen flatly. It is well designed for both cyclists and pedestrians. On the road sides, reeds are planted and grow in exuberance. Here is a world away from the hubbub of city life and everything is so refreshing. The weather in Netherlands is not so good compared to the sunny Mediterranean coast. It has a typically moderate marine climate so in September, it is usually rainy everyday. I was fortune enough to see blue sky over this land on the day of my trip.
Dutch culture is closely interwoven with the water. It is easy to find small rivers or canals or ponds in the country. The local people like to walk at the riverside or shuttle back and forth in the canals on small boat. This kind of landscape is extremely close to the southeast of China at the side of Yangtze river. At the start of Autumn, numerous dead reed leaves fall all over the sandbar, and the shallow cold water flows and hits the bank silently.
Netherlands will give people an impression of a country with green, flat landscapes and grazing cows. Of course when I stepped on this land, I would know that such a porotype impression is 100% true. In the south of Kinderdijk, there is a large area of meadow where hundreds of cows live in. Cows do not like soggy meadows so it’s important to exclude the extra water and keep the meadow dry. The cows in Netherlands has a more free and better life as well. Based on statistic, 71 percent of Dutch dairy cows were allowed to graze in the meadow. They are fed by grass of high quality in this land. Holstein Friesians is one famous breed of dairy cattle that originates in Netherlands.
I definitely believe Kinderdijk is an heaven for animals. Many pieces of lands are reclaimed from the sea and lined out for raising livestock. One horse family was browsing on the meadow silently beside the sluiceway. Their territory is separated by the fences so that no one will disrupt their peaceful life. I like the idyllic landscape here. Every creatures could live well in harmony.
I gave a close-up shot to one of the horses browsing grass. Horse is one of my favorite animals because my Chinese zodiac belongs to horse. I believe that horses will bring luck to me but I did not have chance to observe closely at them before. It’s possible that this horse is the breed of The Dutch Warmblood. It is an athletic breed of competition horse with better stamina and courage.
I took around 2 hours to finish my trip in the country side of Kinderdijk. I seemed to gain endless energy from this magic land. Followingly, I walked around their residence area in Alblasserdam without any rest. The rural areas of Netherlands including their houses and streets really impressed me. These small canals which surfaces are interspersed with water lily pads extend to every corner of the neighborhoods. Small mansions with span-new walls and windows are lined up neatly along both banks.
The urban landscaping in the community is fantastic. There are always many trees, meadows, and water ponds. I love the cozy environment here. Under the umbrage of willows, I could tranquilly observe the ripples on the water, the frolics of swans, and overhear the whispers of the wind.
In the afternoon, I bade farewell to the windmills in Kinderdijk and headed towards my next destination Rotterdam. The public transport system in Netherlands is really convenient. Boat or called water bus is one main mode of transportation is well. In the water bus station Alblasserdam, travelers could take the waterbus No.20 towards Rotterdam Erasmusbrug. In Netherlands, you just need to buy one OV chipcard then you can go anywhere with just one card. It covers all the public transport like metro, bus, ferry, water bus and even train.
Lastly I would like to highlight that Kinderdijk is a really fantastic and worthy place to see the beautiful landscape of windmills but it is not the only one. Zaanse Schans is also one recommended place to see the similar scenery. As for which one is better, I could not make comments easily. It depends on your personal experience when you explore them by yourselves in reality. After that definitely like Alice you will find a new world that only existed in your dream before.
Brussels is the capital of European union and it is the first stop of my graduation trip in Low countries in September 2020. This was my first time of visiting Belgium and I had quite a high expectation of it. I took Flix Bus from Lille and it took around 1.5 hour to arrive at the city center of Brussel. When I was a child, I knew the legend story of the ‘Peeing Boy’. This time on my way, I really could not hold up the excitement in my heart.
Brussel is famous of its architecture art. When I walked around the central boulevards, I took notice of its buildings which were somewhat similar of Paris. The first one is the former Brussels Stock Exchange building built in 1873. It combines the neo-Renaissance and Second Empire architectural styles. The Ionic column and entablature decorated with bas-relief is always my favorite. There is one interesting point: the two monumental lion sculptures on each side of the main entrance’s staircase represent the two stock market trends “bull and bear”.
In each city of Belgium, the unique city square in the city center justifies the aesthetic wealth and highly successful blending of architectural and artistic styles that characterizes the culture and society of Low countries. The square in Brussel called Grand place has been a marketplace since the 12th century. It is an enclosed area and surrounded by guild houses and market halls, which are still mostly built of wood. It is highly recommended to have a drink at the cafeteria in the square and admire the splendid beauty at the same time. The square has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998.
It is a cobbled rectangular market square, surrounded by Baroque guildhalls in the west and the city’s Town Hall in the south, and the Brussels City Museum in the north. In this picture, the neo-Gothic building with steep-sloping roof and spires is the King’s House in 1860 which houses the Brussels City Museum. It collects paintings, sculptures, and tapestries from medieval times. It is called the King’s house because the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V was crowned King of Spain in 1516. This building has a neoclassical arched portal and is decorated with the baroque style’s small elliptical oeil-de-boeuf windows. Many green-colored bronze statues are easy to be identified and have a stark contrast with the grey color of the main body.
This square is called the ‘Grand place’ but obviously it is not so large. At this moment, I was standing in the center of the square on the historical stone-paved ground. Usually this place is extremely crowded however during this special period of coronavirus, most tourists are forbidden to coming Europe and I seemed to be the only one existence here. Behind me, a number of guildhalls and a few private houses are reconstructed after the bombardment of 1695. Their stylish golden facades with their rich sculptural decoration including pilasters and balustrades and lavishly designed gables are based on my favorite Italian Baroque with some Flemish influences. I enjoyed the special feeling of standing or sitting in squares and looking around the old buildings like I have done it before in Venice, Paris, Florence etc. Feeling the culture of the city is the meaning of travel.
The tallest building in the square is the town hall which was built between 1401 and 1455. It is very large building and is difficult to take the picture of its whole appearance. I tried to zoom in and record the numerous small statues on the façade clearly in my camera. These statues represent the local nobility and saints. The most spectacular thing is the 96 meters tall tower and is capped by a 2.7 meters statue of Saint Michael slaying a demon. Saint Michael is the patron saint of the city.
When I was in the square, I was so busy in scrutinizing the every details of the buildings of different styles that I felt only two eyes were not enough for me. On the eastern side of the square, it’s one building close to French style, the House of the Dukes of Brabant. It is actually a set of seven guild-houses combined behind the same monumental façade and named after the nineteen busts of dukes of Brabant on the facade’s pilasters. It currently houses a restaurant and the square’s only hotel. Visitors could find the golden seals of the merchant trades that worked here centuries ago so it represents “Recovery of Trade and Industry.”
In the south east corner of the square, there is a block of houses named in French. The house with a golden statue of a rider mounting on a horse is named of L’arbre d’or which means the tree of gold. It is House of the Corporation of Brewers dated from 1698 and is now converted into a brewery museum. Another houses at the right side of the L’arbre d’or is named of Le Cygne which is a romantic name, means swan. However, in the history of 17th century, it was the House of the Corporation of Butchers. It is very famous because Karl Marx wrote the Manifesto of the Communist Party in this house.
The house at the rightest side is the Maison de l’Étoile which means the house of the star. At the archway of this houses towards the square, the monument of Everard t’Serclaes can be found on its wall. It was created in memory of Everard t’Serclaes, a Belgian hero, who led the local people dispelling the Flemish troops out of the city. He breathed his last breath and died in the Maison de l’Étoile. It is said that touching the hand of his statue brings good luck and health so don’t miss it when you visit Brussel.
上图最右边的房子是 Maison de l’Étoile，意思是星辰居。 在这栋房屋通往广场的拱门处，可以在墙上发现 Everard t’Serclaes 的纪念碑。 它是为了纪念英雄 Everard t’Serclaes 带领当地人民将佛兰德军队驱赶出城市。 他生前最后的弥留时刻就是在星辰居。 据说触摸他的雕像的手会带来好运和健康，所以访问布鲁塞尔时一定不要错过它。
The Royal Gallery of Saint Hubert
Brussel is good place of shopping as well. In the city center, there is one shopping arcades which is similar to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan. The Galleries Royal is a long gallery of two upper floors designed by Belgian architect Jean-Pierre Cluysenaer, and established in 1846 as a fashionable place for shopping and chocolate tasting. Belgium is very famous for its chocolate so around this area you can find many stores of the most prestigious Belgian chocolate brands for example Pierre Marcolini.
布鲁塞尔也是一个购物天堂。 在市中心，有一个类似于米兰维多利亚长廊的购物商场。 这个皇家画廊是由比利时建筑师让-皮埃尔·克鲁伊森纳设计的两层长廊，建于 1846 年，是游客购物和品尝巧克力的绝佳场所。 比利时以其巧克力而闻名天下，畅游此地遍寻例如 Pierre Marcolini等众多负有盛名的比利时巧克力品牌。
Here is the end of the gallery. We can find many Italian Renaissance architecture elements here, for example, the utilization of columns, pilasters, and entablatures as an integrated system. It has one arched glass-paned roof which allows sufficient sunlight coming in.
There are so many architecture master pieces in Brussels. However, when we talk about this city, the first impression will be this famous statue called Manneken Pis which means little pissing man. It is a naked little boy urinating into the fountain’s basin. The statue was designed by the sculptor Jérôme Duquesnoy and put in place in 1618. The Manneken Pis is located in the corner of one street, just a stone’s throw away from the Grand Place. It originates from the legend in the 14th century. Brussels was under siege by a foreign army who conceived of a plan to place explosive charges at the city walls. A little boy named Julianske happened to discover the plot. He urinated on the burning fuse and thus saved the city. Manneken Pis is dressed in different costumes and changed several times each week. It is an unique feature of this city. Honestly saying, at the first glance, I was a bit disappointed because the statue was too small and always surrounded by tourists…
After several hours’ walk, I decided to find a place to fill my stomach. This restaurant is called Nooedzee, Mer du Nord is a bit different with the usual ones. It has a very large blue name plaque with a symbol of fish on it so people will think that it is fish shop. All the tables are outside the store maybe because of coronavirus. Their menu is written in French on the blackboard by hands. People just order at the counter and tell them your names. Then the food is served based on your names. I tasted the fish soup with cheese, oyster with lemon and fried cod which is suggested by the staff. The food ingredient is extremely fresh but the amount is too small. Anyway this is my first taste in Belgium and it’s always imporatnt to keep a good mood..
几个时辰的奔波后，我决定找个地方大快朵颐一番。 这家名为Nooedzee, Mer du Nord的海鲜餐厅与通常的海鲜餐厅有些不同。它有一个很大的蓝色牌匾，上面有一个巨大的鱼的标志，路人们也许会误判它为鱼店。可能因为新冠疫情它所有的桌子都陈列在餐厅外面。 他们的菜单是用法语手写在黑板上的。 人们只是在柜台订购并告知店员你的名字。 然后根据姓名上菜。 我品尝了工作人员推荐的搭配奶酪的鱼汤、牡蛎和炸鳕鱼。 这里的食材确实非常新鲜，不过分量略少。 不管怎么，这是我在比利时的第一次的品尝, 保持好的心情才是最重要的。
The Place des Martyrs
In every city of Europe, there are many squares with hundred years history. You don’t need to look for them intentionally. When you pass by them occasionally, you will be amazed by their elegances. ThePlace des Martyrs is a historic square which name represents the martyrs of the September days of the Belgian Revolution of 1830. It symbolizes the sacrifice of 466 persons who died in the fights of September 1830 for the independence of Belgium from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. This neoclassical square was designed in 1773. It is paved by cobble stone. Walking around the square, I could discover some monuments memorizing the heroes of Belgium.
Next, I was travelling along one street called Royale Street. There are many historical buildings relating to the creation of Belgium Kingdom and the royal family on this street. The first one is this high rising column that looks like Trajan’s Column in Rome. It commemorates the creation of the Belgian Constitution by the National Congress of 1830. It was erected between 1850 and 1859 according to a design by Joseph Poelaert. At the top of the column is a statue of Belgium’s first king Leopold I and at its base, the pedestal is surrounded by bronze statues personifying the four freedoms guaranteed under the Constitution including freedom of education, association, worship, and press. The tomb of the Unknown Soldier with an eternal flame lies at its foot. Brussel is the capital of Belgium so there will be some landmarks relating to government.
Neoclassical architecture is very popular in Belgium during the period of Austrian occupation in the mid-18th century and existed through periods of French and Dutch occupation, until the birth of Independent Belgium. This royal square is a typic neoclassical architecture and built between 1775 and 1782. The Governor of the Austrian Netherlands, Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine proposed to build it like the Place Stanislas in Nancy so its design follows the Place Stanislas with a statue in the center of the rectangular and symmetrical square surrounded by pavilions in the corner. The statue represents Godfrey of Bouillon the leader of the First Crusade waving the standard.
During the period of constructing the Royal square, Brussels Park is another part of the urban project as well. It is formerly known as the Royal Park because it lies on the site of the gardens of the former Palace of Coudenberg. This entrance is directly opposite to the Royal Palace of Brussels. It has a monumental fountain.
The royal palace of Brussels is just in the south of royal square. This area is the location of old Coudenberg Palace, a very old palatial that dated back to the Middle Ages but was ruined in a fire. The new palace is built on its original site. It is the official palace of the King and Queen of the Belgians and houses the services of the Grand Marshal of the Court, the King’s Head of Cabinet, the Head of the King’s Military Household and the Intendant of the King’s Civil List. The Palace is also the location of receptions of foreign Heads of State during official visits. However the king and his family don’t live here. Their residence is in the Royal Palace of Laeken in northern Brussels.
This building has an impressive façade. Its main color is gray with classical decoration and its style especially the flat roof really looks like a French building. The entrance of the palace is free and it’s worth of visiting it that records the history of Belgium. I enjoyed the cozy environment in this area. There are many open spaces. I could walk around freely and take the pictures in the preferred angle.
In this old royal district, there are many museums. The most representative one is the Royal Museums of Fine Arts. It collects over 20,000 drawings, sculptures, and paintings, which date from the early 15th century to the present. The museum was founded in 1801 by Napoleon Bonaparte. On its façade, 4 sculptures of figures atop the four main piers represent 4 forms of arts: Music, Architecture, Sculpture, and Painting. The three rondels represent the greatest Belgian artist at that time: Rubens, Van Ruysbroek, and Jean de Bologne.
The museum is famous of collection of Early Netherlandish painting. This is one of the Netherlandish master piece drawn by Pieter Bruegel the Elder. The theme of this painting derives from one famous Greek mythology. In the story, Icarus flies with wings made by his father Daedalus who uses feathers secured with beeswax. However he ignores his father’s warnings and flies too close to the sun, melting the wax, and falls into the sea and drowns. In this picture, his legs can be seen in the water just below the ship.
When I continued to walk along the Royal street, I passed by one small garden and took a short break inside it. Opposite the garden, there is one cathedral called the Church of Our Blessed Lady of the Sablon. It was built in the 15th century with a Brabantine Gothic exterior and two Baroque chapels. Numerous small turrets and pinnacles make it different with other churches. In Europe, there are so many churches so most of time tourists could only pass by and leave a glimpse on them.
The urban design in the low countries is superb. Even in this limited space in the city center, there is one small garden with benches for people to rest. This small garden called Square of Petit Sablon was built in 1890. It is surrounded by a wrought-iron balustrade, decorated with 48 bronze statuettes which represent the ancient crafts once practiced in Brussels. There are ten statues decorating the rear of the park, illustrating the country’s celebrated scholars and humanists the 16th century. The statues of the Counts of Egmont and Hornes in the fountain symbolize the fight against Spanish tyranny in the 16th century. The pedestal is decorated with the coats of arms of their families. The travel in Brussel is interesting. I just walked slowly and stopped when I found the new attractive elements.
At the end of the Royal street, there is a huge building standing on the high land of 20 meters’ height. It was the Palace of Justice, built between 1866 and 1883. It was the largest building constructed in the world in the 19th century. It’s a court building including the Belgium’s supreme court of law. This magnificent building suffered heavy damage during World War II even today most part of it is under renovation. Its dome and façade is covered in scaffolding.
Even from far way, I could still distinguish this immense grey building with a large golden dome. Its style is a mixture of different styles. The interior of the building is decorated lavishly. It has a monumental marble staircase with Roman columns. The statues at the two flanks are Demosthenes, the famous orator of ancient Athens and Lycurgus, lawgiver of Sparta who established the military-oriented reformation of Spartan society.
Brussel is a large city with so many travel attractions that I had to take two days to visit them. My first day trip focuses on historical buildings in the city center. My second day trip includes some parks, gardens and private houses in the suburb. It was a sunny morning. Firstly, I visited this botanical garden. It’s an Italian garden with an orangery of a French geometry and a rotunda of French baroque style with dome and columns. The middle terrace in an Italian style, has a star-shaped rose garden and an Iris garden. I like this kind of green landscape interspersed in the crowded city.
In the east of city, there is a district of middle-class residential area. There are some gardens around this area. Marie Louise square is one of the elegant gardens with ducks swimming in the pretty tree-lined pond surrounded by greenery. A jet of fountain water comes out of a small island in the center of the pond. The garden is named by the French queen Marie-Louise, the wife of Napoleon.
There are numerous eclectic style mansions around the park. In front of the houses, there is a large surface of lawn decorated with bronze statues. I believe that the residents in these house must have a pleasant life every day when they open the window and face the greeneries and beautiful view outside.
Then I passed by a series of common resident houses of Art Nouveau style. Nouveau means new in French so it means new art or modern art. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and flowers. This house only has three floors. Each block is separated by a rail fence. Although the court yard is very small, there is still a small area left for planting roses. Green moss leaves marks on the upper step and the rose vine looks like a green curtain in the yard. The small balconies are designed in different forms and their walls are painted in different colors. This kind of house is more interesting compared with the monotonous high-rise condominiums in Asian countries.
Continuing towards the east of the city, at noon I arrived at another landmark of Brussels, the Cinquantenaire Park which means the Fiftieth Anniversary. It is comprised of a set of gardens dotted with monuments and museums and dominated by a U-shaped triumphal arch with three arches. At this moment, I was standing at the large esplanade in front the arch, a very good place of taking pictures.
The most notable building in the park is of course this arcade. At its top, there’s a bronze quadriga entitled of Brabant Raising the National Flag and several sculptures representing the major cities and province of Belgium like Antwerp, Liege, Namur… This monument was built in 1880 for the 50th anniversary of the independence of Belgium. The pedestal in both directions bears the inscription: “This monument was erected in 1905 for the glorification of the independence of Belgium”. (One direction is in French and another direction is in Dutch.)
In the suburb of Brussels, there are some Art Nouveau style private houses which are listed as World Heritage Site by UNESCO. They illustrate the outstanding local architecture arts to the utmost. The Stoclet Palace is a private mansion in the east of Cinquantenaire Park, very far away from the city enter. It was designed by the Austrian architect Josef Hoffmann for the Belgian financier Adolphe Stoclet between 1905 and 1911. It is built in the Vienna Secession style. I have never seen this kind of style before. The artistes of this style resigned from the Association of Austrian Artists in protest against its support for more traditional artistic styles. It is a kind of transition from Art Nouveau toward modernism. This house has a tower of stacked cubic forms with minimum ornament on the façade. Of course from my view I could not get its aesthetical value but it is listed as UNESCO heritage site in 2009 due to its influence on modernism in architecture. This house is still a private house owned by the Stoclet family and not open for visit.
Before I visited Belgium, the only private residence that I visited was the house designed by Gaudi. This time, I was standing in front if the house of Victor Horta’s former house and workshop. Horta was an excellent Belgian architect and designer, and one of the precursors of the Art Nouveau movement. Four of his designed houses in Brussels are listed in UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000. Among the 4 houses, this museum is the most important with display of furniture, utensils and art objects designed by Horta. He has a great reputation of brilliant joining of the curved lines of decoration which can be expressed in his design of the balcony.
This is the living room of Horta’s house built in 1898. Horta is good at using steel frames , large windows, and skylights above stairways to bring light into the structures. His style is totally different with Gaudi. He prefers the single plain color theme in his design. The design like wooden floor, wooden door frame, and metallic doorknob is a bit closer to the modern interior decoration.
This is his bedroom. The wall and carpet is in dark blue which has a contrast with the yellow furniture. Horta is a great designer who designed large projects like Brussels central station. However all the furniture in his house like chairs and wardrobes are designed by him as well. Generally his room is arranged in relatively simple way. He like the big glass window that looks like a modern floor-to-ceiling window as well. Due to his great ideas of open floor plan, sunlight could come into the house easily and create a cozy environment.
Brussels is large city and it has a perfect urban development plan with a good transportation system as well. For tourists it is easy to travel all the sites that I mention above in two days. Belgian city is not so famous compared with France and Italy. But there are different elements like parks, museums, palaces, squares and private houses for you to explore the history of Belgium. The trip could also widen your visions especially if you have not any ideas of the Art Nouveau. So don’t miss it as your next travel destination after the coronavirus ends.
In the morning of September 10th, 2020, I was on my way back to France from Amsterdam. My planned trip was from Amsterdam to Antwerp, Ghent, Bruges, then Lille. In September, the weather in Low countries is usually rainy. I was really favored by the God that when I arrived at Antwerp, it was a sunny day with little breeze. I could bask in the warm morning sunlight freely when I just stepped out of the gate of station.
Antwerp station was one of the most beautiful train stations in the world. I was stunned by its elegant designs when I got off the train. The architecture style of the station is eclecticism. It knits together the materials of the past (stone and marble) and the present(metal and glass). It was constructed in 1895. Its façade combines the neo-classical architectural elements characterized by the simple geometric forms and the Doric columns and the neo-renaissance architectural elements characterized by order and symmetry.
The luxury design of the entrance hall of the station was really amazing. The staircase is decorated with marble balustrade like a Baroque palace. The big clock installed on the semi-circular glass panel is decorated with the gilded coat of arms of the city. There are many columns and arcades that makes me feel like that I was inside a renaissance building in Florence. The vast dome above the waiting room hall was designed by Louis Delacenserie and the vast (185 meters long and 44 meters high) iron and glass trainshed was designed by Clement van Bogaert. The principal designer Louis Delacenserie drew the inspiration from Lucerne Station in Switzerland. If I have a chance to visit Lucerne in the future, I will compare the difference and similarity of both stations firstly.
车站的入口大厅的豪华设计令人闻之瞠目。楼梯上装饰着大理石栏杆，宛如一座巴洛克式的宫殿。安装在半圆形玻璃面板上的大钟装饰着镀金的安特卫普城市徽章。众多柱子和拱廊仿佛将我置身于佛罗伦萨的一座文艺复兴时期的建筑中。 候车室大厅上方的巨大圆顶由 比利时建筑师Louis Delacenserie 设计，巨大的（185 米长和 44 米高）钢铁玻璃候车棚由 Clement van Bogaert 设计。 车站首席设计师 Louis Delacenserie 从瑞士的卢塞恩车站汲取灵感设计了本站。 愚以为若以后有机会去卢塞恩旅游，首先就会比较两个站的不同和相似处。
The most spectacular architecture of the hall is the 75-metre-high dome decorated with different types of marbles. The huge dome of the hall remind me of the Pantheon in Rome. At this moment, I felt like I was standing under the cupola of a cathedral.
Outside the train station, there is a district of China town. As a Chinese, I was excited to see this Chinese style golden Pagodepoort (which means pagoda gate or paifang) in the land out of China. The Chinese character on the gate means the Chinese market in Antwerp. Another traditional Chinese element is the pairs of stone lions at the gateway. Antwerp Chinatown’s archway was the second Chinatown archway in Europe.
Antwerp is famous of Flemish arts. The most well-known local painters are David Teniers and Peter Paul Rubens. Their statues in the city square of Antwerp are worshipped by visitors all around the world. Near the train station, the first statue that was seen immediately was the statue of David Teniers. He was a Flemish Baroque painter, born in Antwerp in 1610. He is an innovators of painting and remembered as the leading Flemish genre painter of his day. From this statue, I was walking towards a notable pedestrian street called Meir with many shops and historical sites and started my trip in Antwerp.
安特卫普以佛拉芒艺术而闻名世界。 当地最著名的画家是大卫·特尼尔斯和彼得·保罗·鲁本斯。 他们的雕像自然在安特卫普的城市广场上接收各地游客的膜拜。 火车站附近，第一眼映入眼帘就是大卫·特尼尔斯的雕像。 他是一位佛拉芒巴洛克风格画家，1610 年出生于安特卫普。他是巴洛克绘画的创新者，被世人铭记为引领潮派的佛拉芒流派画家。 从这座雕像出发，我走向一条名为 Meir 的有众多商店和历史遗迹的著名步行街，开启了我的安市之旅。
Paleis op de Meir
The historical city center is just in the west of the train station so it was convenient to visit all the monuments within few hours. The first famous building on this street is called palace in Meir. It is a beautiful rococo palace with three wings around a small courtyard. This building traced back to 18th century is used for reception of important rulers such as Napoleon Bonaparte, Willem I of the Netherlands and it is also used as the Belgian Royal House. Nowadays after so many years, it becomes a museum but when I arrived the museum was closed temporarily.
历史悠久的老城区就坐落于火车站的西边，几个小时以内就可方便地参观所有的古迹。 这条街上第一座著名的建筑叫做梅厄宫(Paleis op de Meir)。 这是一座美丽的洛可可式宫殿，三翼环绕着一个小庭院。 这座建于 18 世纪的建筑曾用于接待拿破仑·波拿巴、荷兰威廉一世等重要统治者，它也被用作比利时王室驻地。 如今时过境迁，它已经摇身一变成为了博物馆，遗憾的是，在我造访之日博物馆暂时关闭了。
Rubenshuis
Another well-known building in the Meir street is this ordinary-looking residential house. When we talked about the painting of Belgium, the painters that we can first remember must be Rubens and Van Dyck. Peter Paul Rubens is definitely the forever pride of this city. His house Rubenshuis not fat away from the royal palace is well preserved. Rubens purchased the house in 1610 and renovated it on the basis of designs by himself. After the renovations, the house had the outlook of an Italian palace, which reflected the unique artistic ideals of Rubens.
Rubens is regarded as the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque tradition. His Baroque style painting emphasized on movement, color, and sensuality. He ran a big art workshop in Antwerp so he had very close relationship with this city. Most of his works are history painting which are conserved in the reception room of his house. This photo shows his self portrait. From these artworks, you could get the insights into his talent heart even after 400 years.
Through the entrance of the house, there is a Roman arch of triumph leading to a garden. This is the place where the artist, who acted as the official diplomatic role at the court of the Spanish Netherlands, grew his plants. Rubens designed everything of the house by himself based on Italian Renaissance palace architecture so we can find many elements of renaissance here. As an admirer of Renaissance building, I appreciated his design of Italian style which gave me a similar resonance.
Rubens created most of his works in this studio in the picture. There are many bas-reliefs and pillars on the façade of the studio. It looks like the palace in the street of Garibaldi in Genova. Outside the studio, it is the garden designed by Rubens based on his painting “Strolling in the Garden” . It’s an oasis of quiet in the bustling city. Rubens planted sunflowers, orange and fig trees in his garden. He could sit down at the window side and watch the shadows of garden in his spare time. After visiting this place, I think Rubens really had an admirable life. He could live in his own world leisurely and enjoyed the life in his own way. If you are interested in Flemish art or his life, Rubens house will definitely be a wonderful place to visit.
Rubens is so famous that his bronze statue is placed on the Groenplaats place since 1843. There are numerous bars, cafes and fast food restaurants around this historical square. It is recommended to have a cup of coffee here and stare at the high rising cathedral in the back of the square.
It is weird that Rubens’ figure is depicted as one Roman cavalry instead of a painter. He hold a sword around his waist and wore his iconic wide-brimmed hat and kept a gesture of fighting. There are several Latin words CIVI OLIM SUO – S.P. Q.A. – SUMPTIB. PUBL. ET PRIV. – P. – MDCCCXXXX on the base of the statue. It reminds me of the statues of Roman Emperors.
尤为奇怪的是，鲁本斯的形象被描绘成一位罗马骑士而不是画家。 他戴着标志性的宽檐帽，腰间手握一把剑，保持着战斗姿势。几个拉丁字母 CIVI OLIM SUO – S.P. Q.A. MDCCCXXXX 刻在雕像的底座上，不由得让我想起了罗马皇帝的塑像。
The Cathedral of Our Lady
In the photo above, it is the most famous church in Antwerp called The Cathedral of Our Lady. The church has a very tall bell tower, up to 123 meters. In Belgium, one of the special view points to be noticed by the travelers is the bell tower (belfry) in the city center. The belfry of this cathedral is included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites however when I arrived, it was under restoration and forbidden to visitors.
It took totally 169 years to complete this church, from 1352 to 1521. It is really a miracle to build the highest building in the low countries at that time. It shows the ultimate gothic architecture art in the mean time. Also this church contains the superb Baroque art. Visitors could wander in this artistic mecca and focus on the magnificent large altar paintings by Rubens. On this photo, the painting in the choir above the main altar is called ‘The Assumption of the Virgin’. Rubens has a wonderful master of the colors in this painting.
Don’t forget that this church has an awesome dome. In the palace or church in Europe, the paintings on their ceilings always impress me. In the tower of this church, there is a huge circular painting on the ceiling as well. This beautiful painting’s diameter of 5.8 meters is created by Cornelis Schut. Its name is also ‘The Assumption of the Virgin’. Antwerp Cathedral is dedicated to the mother of Christ – the Virgin Mary so many artworks in the church is related with her. This painting depicts the story of Mary ascending into heaven.
Another stylish church in Antwerp is the St. Charles Borromeo Church. This church has a very beautiful façade of Baroque style. Rubens contributed a lot to the decoration and design of the church. It was built between 1615 and 1621 by the Jesuits. There are many small sculpture of Jesus and the saints in the niches on the façade. The emblem of the Jesuits ‘IHS’ etched on a crucifix was at a conspicuous position above the entrance. ‘IHS’ is called a ‘Christogram’ and is an ancient way of writing the word ‘Jesus Christ’. This emblem hold by angels was designed Rubens.
Rubens has designed the altar surrounded by black marble as well. There is a pulley system to hang religious paintings on the altar. The Antwerp Jesuits used this system to change paintings periodically. Nowadays the paintings will be changed on important days like Easter Monday and the Feast of the Assumption.
Behind the St. Charles Borromeo Church, there is a building with Dutch letters ‘stadsbibliotheek’. Many European languages are similar so I could roughly guess out the function of this building is city library. It is named after the Flemish writer Hendrik Conscience and the statue in this photo is him. Visitors could walk in freely and find out Antwerp’s history. Here there are more than 1 million collections of books about Dutch literature and the cultural history of Flanders.
The city center of Antwerp is steeped in history. In Belgium, another special viewpoint to be noticed by visitors is the triangle roof house in the grand squares. These old houses are the guild houses in medieval times. They are used by guilds for meetings historically. The Low Countries used to have guildhalls in every city, like Brussel, Antwerp, and Ghent.
If you want to look for the remnant of the sealed history, please move to the guild houses of Sint-Joris and de Valk that can be found in the Grote Market. It is a big square situated in the heart of the city quarter near the Scheldt river. It means Great Market Square. Historically many English merchants would come here and do business with merchants from the Hanseatic cities in north Germany. From the end of the fifteenth century, Antwerp overtook Bruges as the most prominent city of the Low Countries. This square is the most representative place of Antwerp. The city hall of Antwerp is located in this square.
In the center of square, there is a bronze statue of a man throwing a huge severed hand. The statue was designed by the Belgian sculptor Jef Lambeaux and inaugurated in 1887. This statue is tribute to the great soldier Silvius Brabo. According to legend, there was a giant who built a fortress along the Scheldt River. The giant forced passing boats to pay a toll, If the travelers refused, the giant would cut off one of their hands and tossed it into the river. When Brabo arrived, he dueled with the giant bravely and chopped off the giant’s hand, which he threw into the river just like the giant once did. The name of the city ‘Antwerpen’ in Flemish also means ‘hand throwing’.
When tourists continue walking towards west, there is a castle standing at the riverside of Scheldt. It was built between 1200 and 1225, which was Antwerp’s oldest building. At that period, Antwerp belongs to county of Flanders, which was subordinate to the king of France. The name Het Steen in Dutch stands for ‘The Rock’. In history, Het Steen became the museum of archeology and maritime history as well. At the entrance, there is a bas-relief of Semini, above the archway. Semini is the Scandinavian God of youth and fertility. In medieval time, people have realized the importance of fertility. More population means stronger strength for one country.
The museum of archeology and maritime history was moved to this building in the recent years. The Museum aan de Stroom was open in 2011. It was obvious a modern building which looked totally different compared to the old buildings in the city center. This postmodern Art Deco building was made of Indian red sandstone and curved glass panel. It collects mostly the maritime documents of international trade and shipping, art and culture work of the port of Antwerp.
近年来，考古和海洋历史博物馆搬到了途中这座建筑。 Museum aan de Stroom 博物馆于 2011 年开放。很明显，与市中心的古老建筑相比，这是一座完全迥异的现代风格的建筑。 这座后现代装饰艺术风格的建筑由印度红砂岩和弧形玻璃面板制成。 它主要收集了安特卫普港的国际贸易和航运、艺术和文化的海事文件。
When I arrived at the port of Antwerp, I was far away from the historical city center and there is nothing more special to mention. Antwerp is linked to the North Sea through the River Scheldt so it is one of the most important port in the world, second largest port in Europe. It is a quite influential city and is famous of diamond industry as well. For tourists who are interested in diamond, they can visit the diamond district in Antwerp.
However for me I just enjoyed a pleasant half day in the city area which was good enough. If people asked me about this city, I would tell them excitedly that in one summer morning, I have visited the house where Rubens had lived and walked through the alleys with many towers and the medieval court yards. Of course, no matter what happens, travel in a good mood is always the most important because the golden year does not come again and it is difficult to return to the morning of yesterday.
Brugge is one small but elegant city in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is famous for its gothic architecture in the medieval time and the outstanding Flemish arts. Its historic center completely preserves the original physiognomy hundred years ago. Its quiet swan lake, tortuous canal, and idyllic park attract the touristes all around the world. I still remember when I checked in in the evening of 11 September 2020, the hotel manager told proudly to me that he was lucky to live in this beautiful city.
The historic Centre of Brugge is listed as the UNESCO world heritage in 2000. The city’s landmark is this square called ‘Market Square’. When I arrived at the hotel, it was a deep night so I only took some minutes to walk around nearby. It was a serene night with a slight biting coldness of autumn. At this moment, only a few visitors were still scattered on the square. Under the dim and shadowy lights along the streets, the darkness of night could not conceal the glamour of this medieval city.
Next morning, I started my memorable trip from the south of th city. The Minnewater park is located in this area, just a stone’s throw away from the train station. ‘Minnewater’ is the name of this tranquil and crystal lake which means the lake of love. In the chill morning of automn, the green willows on the bankside are shrouded in the light smog like water mist . The surface of the lake is flat like a smooth and shiny copper mirror.
It is a perfect place for lovers to date. There was an old story of a pretty girl named Minna who was in love with Stromberg, a warrior of a neighbouring tribe. However, her father did not agree with her love. Not willing to accept the arrangement of fate, Minna escaped sadly from her family and ran into the forest of Brugge. When Stromberg finally found her, she died in his arms. The lake was named after Minna and the bridge straddling the lake was considered as the bridge of love. It was said that if you walk over the bridge and kiss your loved one, it will become eternal love.
This lake was once the mooring place for barges that sailed the inland waterways between Brugge and Ghent. Nowadays, it is a reservoir and joined to the city’s canal system. We can see many wild animals here for example swan, the symbol of the city. In 1488, the people of Brugge executed one of the town administrators of Maximilian of Austria whose family coat of arms featured a white swan. It was said that Maximilian punished the local people by forcing them to keep white swans on their lakes and canals.
Following the steps of swan, next I arrived at one place called Begijnhof. It is an enclosed area on one peaceful island with a small garden, twisted trees and a row of low white houses. It is the only preserved beguinage in Brugge. This area could be accessed through the three arche bridge in the picture.
The beguinage is an architectural complex which was created to house beguines who are the religious women living in community without taking vows or retiring from the world. This kind of building has a characteristic white-painted gable. In the first decades of the thirteenth century, beguinages were formed as the houses for beguines and they were built around a central chapel or church where their religious activities took place. Some beguinages in Belgium are listed as UNESCO World Heritage site in 1998.
Nowadays there are no more Beguines living here but since 1927 it has functioned as a convent for Benedictines. In this early morning, a ray of slanting sunlight shined on this religious land where some devoted benedictine nuns could be observed in this area. I just lingered a while here because the racket of tourists might disrupt the halcyon atmosphere.
There is another bridge in the north to connect this isolated land of idyllic beauty with the outside mundane world. The canal of Brugge flows towards north of the city. Its bank is overgrown with a lavish profusion of vegetations.
The life style in Brugge is admirable. This is one photo taken on the bridge of Zonnekemeers. Its bridge is decorated with sun flowers of multiple colors. The carefree local people at the waterfront were having breakfast cozily and enjoyed the sunlight of early morning. What a beautiful day!
Following the babbling stream, next I arrived at this old building at the riverside. The Saint John’s hospital used to be a place where travellers could find shelter. It was also one hospital in the medieval ages and nowadays it was expanded to be a monastery and convent.
The hospital was founded in the 12th century, called Sint-Janshospitaal in Dutch. This was the entrance of the museum. Its façade was designed with a mixed romanesque and gothic style. The museum exhibits the works of one of Flanders’ most famous artists, Hans Memling.
The Shrine of St. Ursula is a carved and gilded wooden reliquary containing oil paintings completed by Hans Memling in 1489. The shrine is in the shape of a Gothic chapel. It depicted the scenes of St. Ursula like the Coronation of the Virgin with the Holy Trinity and St. Ursula Protecting the Holy Virguns and his arrival in Cologne, Basel, Rome.
There is a courtyard in front of the museum. I really enjoyed the quiet environment here. People could sit on the benches and bask in the sun leisurely. The architecture was extraodinary as well. All the brick walls eroded by ages are brown-red colored in nature with a classic style. The houses with low chimneys and gabled roof were totally different with what I have seen in Italy and France.
Through this old archway, I was at the foot of another landmark of Brugge – the Church of Our Lady. This church was famous for its 122-metre brick steeple, which could be seen in every corner of the city. It took totally two centuries (from 13th century to 15th century) to build the church. What a miracle!
This church is called ‘Onze Lieve Vrouwekerk’ in the local language. It is behind the Saint John’s hospital. This catholic church is in Gothic style with many typical flying buttresses on its exterior. Its tower is the second tallest brick tower in the world.
The most spectacular art treasure of the church is the white marble sculpture of the Madonna and Child completed by Michelangelo in 1504. It is located in the altarpiece of the large chapel and depicted the Virgin Mary and her son Jesus. This is an invaluable treasure because it was the only sculpture by Michelangelo which was outside Italy during his lifetime.
Behind the Our Lady’s church, there is a museum to memorize the richest families of this city in the medieval time, the Gruuthuse family. This house was the palace of the lords of Gruuthuse in 15th century. Nowadays it is a museum with collections of tapestries, furniture, silverware, and musical instruments. The flag with eight white-red stripes with a blue lion in the center fluttering on the top of tower. This is the city flag of Bruges.
This is the entrance of the museum. At the gate, we could see clearly the coat arm of the Gruuthuse family. In the old Flemish word ‘gruut’ means barley or wheat and huse means house. In the medieval age, Bruges was an important harbour and had a strategic location at the crossroads of the Hanseatic League and the southern trade routes. Wheat or barley was the main ingredient for beer-brewing. The lords of Bruges had full control of the trade at sea of these products. Because of the monopoly they became very wealthy and they were thus called Lord of Gruuthuse (wheat house).
The museum of Gruuthuse is at the riverside and connected to the other side by the Bonifacius bridge. This is a relatively young brick bridge that could be dated back to 1910. There is legend that once you cross the bridge the first person you see on the other side is the one you will marry.
This is one of the most beautiful places of Brugge. Many touristes will flock to the bridge to take the photo of the Our Lady’s church but for me I prefered the scenes of these old houses at the other side of the bank which was similar to the water town in southeast China.
After I crossed the bridge and continued to walked along the river, I arrived at this picturesque view point. This is the most well known landmark of Brugge – the Quay of the Rosary, Rozenhoedkaai in Dutch. All the touristes will frame this fairytale like landscape into their cameras.
From the quay, touristes could take the small boat and cruise in the canal together with the swans. The charming scenery here is like a post card. All the 15th-century buildings with medieval façades along the river, the old bridge and the wooden docks are well preserved despite their age. The white tower in the background is the belfry of Brugge.
Nextm，I would head towards the north coast of the river across this bridge. Now I was standing near the Huidenvettersplein (Tanners Square) to take this photo. This stone bridge is called Blinde-Ezelbrug in Dutch which means blind donkey.
A column of two lions and the emblem of the tanners is erected in the center of the Tanner square. It was a little square. In the Medieval Times, this was the location where the tanners worked their leather, but today it’s a place for local people to take a break on the cafe terraces.
The Blinde-Ezelstraat (Blind Donkey Street) is one alley connecting with the bridge that I mentioned above. It was called with such a funny name because there was an inn here during the 15th century called Den Blinden Ezel (the blind donkey). This old brick paved road leads to the city hall of Brugge. I liked the vault of the arch decorated with three sculptures of saints.
Exitting from the archway, I was arriving at an open space, the Burg square. In the ninth century, the count of Flanders chose the Burg square as his base of operation. It was so named due to the fortress built at this location by the first Count of Flanders in the 9th century. Nowadays, there is no more fortress but there are some major buildings instead like the city hall, the Palace of the Liberty, and the Basilica of the Holy Blood.
从拱门出来后，我到了一个宽敞的场所，即伯格广场。在九世纪，佛兰德伯爵选择伯格（Burg）广场作为他的经营基地。这里之所以如此命名(Burg意思是有城堡的城)，是因为9世纪法兰德斯伯爵（Count of Flanders）在此建造了一座堡垒。如今，堡垒已然不复存在，但取而代之的是一些主要建筑物，例如市政厅，自由宫和圣血大教堂。
The city hall
This building with 6 long windows, statues in the niche and 3 octagonal turrets was the city hall of Brugge built in 14 century. Its facade is in gothic style with the coat of arms of subordinate towns and flags of European unions, Belgium, and Brugge. The name Brugge is probably from the old-Scandinavian word ‘Brygga’, which means ‘harbor’. In 1277, the first merchant fleet from the Republic of Genoa arrived in Brugge to start the trade at sea. Its gothic hall which walls are painted with scenes depicts the historic events of this city.
In the corner of the square, we could find the Basilica of the holy blood. It is a double layer church which consists of a lower church Saint-Basilius chapel that has maintained its Romanesque character and a neo-Gothic upper church Holy Bloodchapel, in which the relic of the Holy Blood is preserved. The two chapels are connected by a brick staircase which is behind the facade facing the square.
The Basilica of the Holy Blood was originally built in the 12th century as the chapel of the residence of the Count of Flanders houseing a venerated relic of the Holy Blood. The religious ceremony ‘Procession of the Holy Blood’ is held on each year’s Ascension Day in the spring. The bishop of Bruges carries the relic through the streets, accompanied by costumed residents. The tradition of the procession started from 1291 and is still followed today. It was included in the UNESCO’s list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009.
At noon, I arrived at the symbol of the city – the market square. In the center of the market, it is the statue of Jan Breydel and Pieter de Coninck who led the uprising against Philip the Fair in the Franco-Flemish War between 1297 and 1305. This square was used as a marketplace since 958 and nowadays it became the meeting place for the local people. The square is occupied by restaurants and bustles with touristes from all over the world.
中午，我到达了布鲁日的标志-市场广场。在广场中心，是扬·布雷德尔（Jan Breydel）和彼得·德·科宁克（Pieter de Coninck）的雕像，他们在1297年至1305年的法兰西佛兰德战争中领导了反对菲利普国王的起义。这个广场自958年以来就一直被用作集市，如今已成为当地人的聚会场所。该广场到处都是餐馆和熙熙攘攘来自世界各地的游客。
Moules-frites
I had a rich lunch at the restaurant in the market square. It was a wonderful place to satiate my hunger on one side and enjoy the scenery around the square on the other side. The Moules-frites is a main dish of mussels and fries ordered by me. It can be found in nearly every restaurant in Belgium and is considered the national dish of Belgium. Mussels are cooked in a sauce containing beer together with tomato, onion, and parsley in a pan. The musselsand fries are served separately. It was definitely a nice experience to taste foods all around the world.
In the east side of the square, this neogothic building with 4 turrets and many small chimneys is the former meeting place for the provincial government of West Flanders. It was built in 1887 and used as the government meeting hall until 1999, and is now mainly a ceremonial building for exhibitions.
In the west of the square, there is a historic building called Cranenburg House that nowadays became a café or restaurant. In 1488 the Emperor Maximilian was incarcerated here and witnessed the execution of severel of his most loyal liegemen through one of the windows. Maximilian I was the Holy Roman Emperor, from the famous House of Habsburg. The flemish rebels openly rebelled against his reign twice in the period 1482–1492 and even caught him.
This square is the assembly point of horse drawn carriages as well. Touristes could enjoy a wonderful city tour on the carriages following the rhythm of the horse’s trot on the slate. This would definitely be a unique and romantic experience for everyone who has never tried carriage ride.
In the south of the square, it is the most prominent landmqrk of this city – the belfy. This bell tower of 83m height was the place where the important documents of the city were preserved. It was built in 1283 and its completion took two centuries’ time. This tower dominating the square became the symbol of city since its completion in 1483. When I sat at the square’s center, I really marvelled at this impressive architecture masterpiece.
Touristes could climb this tower from this courtyard. There are totally 366 steps up to the top of the tower. There is a carillon with 47 melodious bells in 16 century in the tower. Nowadays, the bells still ring to indicate the time or announce fire alarm to the residents of this city.
Near the market place, there are some old houses with crow-stepped gables. They are orderly aligned along the roads. These are the traditional Belgium houses. The top of the parapet wall projects above the roofline and the top of the brick or stone wall is stacked in a step pattern above the roof as a decoration and as a convenient way to finish the brick courses.
Belgium has the long tradition making chocolate. Its history could be traced back as far as 1635. The praline is an invention of the Belgian chocolate industry. It’s a form of confection containing culinary nuts, usually almonds and hazelnuts, and sugar. There are many shops of chocolate in this area but the price is not cheap. The price of this large royal box is 70 euros.
Another interesting place near the market place is the Beer museum, opened in 2014. Here you could know more about the raw ingredients of beer, the brewing process, different kinds of beer in Brugge. The Flanders region was famous for its special beers since the Medieval Times.
There are more than 600 beers brewed in Belgium varies from pale lager to amber ales, lambic beers, Flemish red ales, sour brown ales, strong ales and stouts. This is the picture taken at one beer store. The Chimay beer is one kind of the famous Trappist beer made by the Chimay brewery. It consists of three ales: Chimay Rouge, Chimay Bleue, and Chimay Blanche. Another beer in the window is the Tripel. It is a strong pale ale made from the brewery Westmalle. Drinking beer is one culture for Belgians. In 2016, UNESCO inscribed Belgian beer culture on their list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
In the afternoon, I headed towards the north of the city. This was the Jan van Eyck Square, the so called Manhattan of Brugge. In the Medieval Times, it was a lively port where merchants assembled from all over Europe. There was a statue of the Northern Renaissance painter Jan van Eyck on the square.
下午，我前往城市北部。这里就是扬·范·埃克广场（Jan van Eyck Square），号称布鲁日的曼哈顿。在中世纪时期，这是一个热闹的港口，来自欧洲各地的商人聚集在此。广场上有北方文艺复兴时期画家扬·范·埃克的雕像。
Virgin and Child with Canon van der Paele
Jan van Eyck was a famous Netherlandish painter active in Brugge in 15 century who was one of the early innovators of Early Netherlandish painting, and one of the most significant representatives of Early Northern Renaissance art. His masterpiece ‘Virgin and Child with Canon van der Paele‘ was conserved in the Groeningemuseum in Brugge. It depicts the scene of The Virgin Mary being enthroned at the centre of the semicircular space, with the Christ Child on her lap.
扬·范·埃克（Jan van Eyck）是15世纪活跃于布鲁日的著名荷兰画家，他是早期荷兰绘画的创新者之一，也是早期北方文艺复兴时期艺术的最重要代表之一。他的代表作《圣母与圣婴》在布鲁日的格罗宁根博物馆中保存。它描绘了圣母玛利亚抱着圣婴加冕的场景。
Langerei
In the north of the square, there is a new canal called Langerei. It was a part of the canal connecting Ostend and Bruges. Most view points are distributed in the south and center of the city. There is nothing special to visit in the north and east of this canal except some town gates.
The ramparts of Bruges are a six-kilometer park which almost completely surrounds the old town. Walking along this park, 4 remaining town gates could be found. This gate called Kruispoort dates back to the start of the 15th century. During its lifespan the gate has incurred some alterations. It was originally much bigger.
Around the town gates, there are four ancient windmills. They stand on the remains of the earthwork bastions of the inner fortification line. The mill Bonne-Chièremolen in the picture was built in 1844 and nowadays it could not be used. It just stood silently at the river side and witnessed the vicissitude of time.
This is another town gate called The Ezelpoort (Donkey Gate). It was built during the construction of the second ring of ramparts at the end of the 13th century. It also incurred many structural changes. The original appearance of the gate was significantly altered in the 17th century. This castle like gate on the riverside was a good place to take beautiful pictures as well.
When I left the town gates in the north, I was on my way back to the train station with endless memory and exclamations. The essence of Brugge had been visited by me in one day. Its beautiful canals, soaring towers, peaceful ambiance, brilliant culture, and old history had vividly left deep marks in my brain. I had to exclaim with amazement that this fairytale like city could only exist in the paradise and I have never heard or seen a similar one like it in the world!
Doha is the capital of Qatar. It is the political and economic center of the country. The city was founded in 1820, not having a long history. Since Qatar gained independence in 1971, Doha was on the track of booming development. Nowadays, it is a very modernized and urbanized city with many sky scrapers and an artificial island called Pearl. It is really a miracle to build a modernized island on sea within such a short time period.
I visited this city on 15th August 2019. I transfered plane at the Hamad International Airport and stayed one night in this city. This is the first time that I visited the middle-east so for me it was like a whole new world that only exisited in my imagination from the stories of One Thousand and One Nights.
The city center is not too far from the airport. This is the area where I lived. The commercial center of Doha looks like the financial center Lujiazui in Shanghai. They both are international cities with numerous high towers standing. However Doha has a hot desert climate and its average temperature in August is above 40°C. At noon, the scorching sunlight will threaten people’s health so it is difficult to find even one person around the streets.
The Corniche is a beautiful waterfront promenade with palm trees along the Doha bay. It is easily accessible from the city center and is a great place for leisure. Walking along the Corniche encircling the bay, I could get a panaromic view of the city. At the moment, vaporized water had formed a layer of mist above the bay and blocked the view.
The most striking building along the Corniche is the museum of Islamic art designed by the Chinese-American architect Ieoh Ming Pei. This museum is built on an artificial island near the traditional Doha harbor. The island is connected to the land by two bridges. The architecture combines the elements of ancient Islamic architecture and modern design.
On the bridge towards the museum, the beautiful views of the old harbour could be exactly framed in the camera. The streaks of afternoon sunlight scatter on the corrugating surface of sea. The old wooden dhows hover dispersedly about the harbour which is shrouded by the water mist formed under the high temperature. It creates a beauty of obscure hazedness like an impressionist painting.
The museum was opened on November 22, 2008. It consists of the five floors, the main dome, and the central tower. The interior of the building is decorated by several Islamic arts, and a large metallic chandelier. In the central atrium of the building, there is large glass ring. Different geometric patterns are used in the design of ceiling.
The Museum of Islamic Art houses collections from three continents over 1,400 years. Its collection includes metal work, ceramics, jewelry, wood work, textiles, and glass obtained from Islamic countries and dating from the 7th to the 19th century. This iron urn in the picture was found in Iran.
There is a courtyard outside the main building which is decorated with arches and fountains. The use of arches and water is very important in the design of Islamic building.
主楼外有一个院子，院子里装饰着拱门和喷泉。在伊斯兰建筑的设计中，拱门和水的使用是重要的装饰元素。
The arch facing to the West Bay is definitely a perfect place to take the picture of sunset and Doha skyline. Today, all the scenes are unfortunately blurred by the water vapor. Even the sun was so shy that refuses to show its face.
Doha has many mosques in the city area. This is one of the most magnificant mosques. It is the Qatar State Grand Mosque named by Imam Muhammad Ibn Abd Al Wahhab. He was a religious leader, reformer, and theologian during the 18th century. The façade of the Grand Mosque is made up of sandstone. The building was in traditional Arab style with 28 domes on the top. There is a square in front of the mosque. At night, the illumination of the square will make it more spectacular.
When the night fell, the temperature returned to normal and the market of Doha became crowded. The Sous Waqif was a marketplace near the museum of Islamic art. It comprised of many small alleys and many restaurants are hiding inside.
The market is the best place to satisfy my stomach. This is one dish for my dinner. I was alone in this city and didn’t speak the local language so I choose one restaurant that looked not so intimidating and ordered this dish called fish Kibbeh. It is actually a Lebanen dish made of fish fillet, red onions, pepper, parsley leaves… and tastes like deep fried cod balls.
This is another Lebanese dish called Shish Tawook chicken kabob. I don’t know why there are so many Lebanese food in Qatar. This dish is made of marinated chicken in yogart, lemon and garlic and is eaten together with thin pancake and onions. Honestly saying, these foods are delicious but too oily for me.
After one rich dinner, I strolled around in the small alleys selling traditional garments, spices, and handicrafts under the dim lights. Here is the wonderful place where I could see the real lives of the local people.
I was not interested in the tapestries on sale on the market but was attracted by the pet stalls selling a variety of pets like rabbits, turtles and birds. I lingered at this stall for a while because of this clever parrot. It has the multicolored feather and mimiced my speaking.
At night, I returned to the hotel located in the city center by the metro. Doha had a beautiful night as well. The surroundings are the brightly lit skyscrapers and car streaming streets. I took this picture in the hotel room to memorize this trip.
The next day’s morning, I walked along this road towards the Katara culture village. In 2019, Qatar was preparing the infrastructures for the World Cup 2022 so many constructions were on the way, including the metro station near Katara. Along this way, it was a bit desolated and I could not see anyone.
After 40 minutes’ walk, I arrived at this cultural village but I was really exhausted. The high temperature made me nearly dehydrated. I walked around to visit some buildings of Islamic style nearby.
“Katara” was the historical name used for Qatar prior to the 18th century. The center is used to hold some cultural events. The buildings here could reflect the architecture style of the country.
There is an open ampitheatre in the village as well. It is a modern building and could be visited free of charge. In October 2012, Giuseppe Verdi’s classic opera Aida was hosted in this amphitheatre. It was the first opera to be held in Qatar.
Based on my previous plan, I would visit the Pearl island which was in the north of this village after I left this place. However the high temperature forced me to give up this plan. My whole body was drenched by sweats;I felt dizzy and had to go back to hotel immediately. To travel in middle east, temperature is defintely a factor to consider. Although it was not a successful trip for me, I believe it still could broaden my horizon and enrich myself so I would like to record it down and reminisced this experience when I was boring.
Somewhere In Time: Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody On A Theme Of Paganini, Variation 18
Genoa is one important port in the Liguria region. From 12th century to 15 century, it was the most powerful maritime countries in Europe and controlled the routes of commercial trade in Mediterranean. At that time, it was the most properous city in the world. Nowadays, the city inherited the old tradition and travelling in its historical center and the port, I could still get a glimpse of the remaining glory of the city.
I took the train from Ventimigia, the town in the French Italien border and arrived at this city in the afternoon of July 18, 2020. This was the Genova Piazza Principe railway station located in the west of city.
This is the statue of Columbus near the train station. This great navigator who completed the voyages across the Atlantic Ocean was born in Genoa in 1451. In this statue, his left hand rests on an anchor while his right hand is on the shoulder of an American woman holding a cross in the right hand. At each of the four corners of the base, there are four statues, representing Piety, Science, Constancy and Prudence.
Genoa’s historic centre is in a maze of squares and narrow alleys. These buildings are extremely close to each other so it is very difficult to take the picture of their façade. This is the Via Balbi built by the Genoese aristocracy during the Renaissance. The famous Royal Palace of Genoa is on this street. The most interesting thing in Genoa is to cross numerous narrow passages and explore the ancient palaces one by one. In this picture, the old building is the university of Genoa designed by the famous architect Bartolomeo Bianco.
Another street that could best represent Genoa is the Via Giuseppe Garibaldi. This street together with the Via Balbi and many palaces in the city was listed as the UNESCO World Heritage Site with the name of ‘ Genoa: Le Strade Nuove and the system of the Palazzi dei Rolli’ in 2006. The renaissance and Baroque palaces built from the late 16th and early 17th centuries marked the glorious history of the Republic of Genoa. When I walked to and fro along this street, I was fascinated by the historical and artistical architectures and the sweet-sounding music of Paganini played from the loudspeakers on the buildings.
This palace called red palace in English was a art museum located in the street Via Garibaldi. This stylish palace made of red bricks was built in 1675 and was bequeathed to the Municipality of Genoa by the last descendant of the family in 1874. I liked its small balconies with baluster columns – a popular decoration in 17th century on its façade. This palace leaft a deep impression because it was the only red building in the street.
Another palace in the street Via Garibaldi was built between 1563 and 1569 by Nicolosio Lomellino. It was not open for public to visit. There were many renaissance reliefs of indistinguishable patterns and delicate sculptures of bust on its façade. It was hard to describe the color of the wall, looked like a dominant gloomy hue of greyish blue.
There are totally 42 palaces in Genoa that was listed as UNESCO world heritage. I will only list three of them. This palace, called Doria Spinola, became the seat of the Province of Genoa from 1877. There are four balconies on the palace and on each one of them one flag is erected. The eye appealling flag of a red cross on a white field was the national flag of Republic of Genoa.
Genoa is a populated city with many residential houses in the historical center. This is one Roman catholic church squeezed among the houses. When I walked towards the sea side, I passed by it and noticed its unique symmetrical design and two small towers with cross. The insignia on the entrance is also the St. George’s flag, i.e. a red cross on a white field.
The old harbour is an interesting place to visit in Genoa. There is a ship replica of the 17th-century Spanish galleon designed by Naval Architect David Cannell in the harbour. The ship was built in 1985 for Roman Polanski’s film Pirates. It portrays exactly the appearance of Spanish galleon oand reflects the marine power of Genoa at that time.
When the curtain of night falled down, the harbour left its silouette against the dark evening sky. The city is actually spread out along a narrow section of the Liguria coast and the north of city is blocked by the mountains. Many houses are built along the fluctuating ridge line. The old harbour is a nice place to relax in the summer evening. I sat cosily on the bench in the center of harbour and looked on the streaming crowds under the grand ferris wheel.
Other than the old harbour, Genoa is also famous for its grand squares, old castles, and medieval churches. The Piazza de Ferrari is the main square of Genoa decorated with a magnificent fountain. This square is surrounded by numerous office buildings like headquarters of banks, and insurance companies. At the end of the 19th century, it used to be the main financial centre of Italy.
除了古老的港口，热那亚还以其宏伟的广场，古老的城堡和中世纪时期的教堂而闻名。法拉利广场（Piazza de Ferrari）是热那亚的主要广场，装饰有宏伟的喷泉。这个广场周围有许多办公楼，比如银行总部和保险公司的大楼。在19世纪末，它曾经是意大利主要的金融中心。
Teatro Carlo Felice
The Teatro Carlo Felice is opposite to the Piazza de Ferrari. It is the principal opera house of Genoa. The neoclassical building designed by the local architect Carlo Barabino in 1825 was named for King Carlo Felice. The statue in front of the building is to memorize Giuseppe Garibaldi, one of the founders of modern Italy.
卡洛·费利斯剧院（Teatro Carlo Felice）位于法拉利广场（Piazza de Ferrari）对面。它是热那亚的主要歌剧院。这座剧院是由当地建筑师Carlo Barabino在1825年设计，这座新古典主义建筑以国王Carlo Felice命名。建筑物前的雕像是为了纪念现代意大利的创始人之一朱塞佩·加里波第。
Duomo di Genova, Cattedrale di San Lorenzo
As the capital of medieval religious kindom, cathedral is an indispensable element for Genoa. This church of San Lorenzo dedicated to Saint Lawrence is the seat of the Archbishop of Genoa. It was built between the twelfth century and the fourteenth century and was the major place to conduct religious ritual in Genoa. The bas-reliefs on the entrance depicted the story of Christ with St. Lawrence.
The main facade of the church with three ornate portals is Gothic from the early thirteenth century. Two marble lions of 19 century flanked its entrance. I tapped slightly the head of lion and had a short rest at the steps beside this lion.
When I was in Europe, I liked to stroll about the marketplaces . It could best show the local life. This is the marketplace on Piazza Matteotti in front of the Doge’s palace, with old books, small articles, and paintings for sale. It was the home of the Doges of Genoa, and was now a museum and a centre for cultural events and arts exhibitions. Today it exhibited the artwork of Claude Monet. This building has a neoclassical façade decorated with Doric columns qnd scupltures of god. It is in the north of Piazza de Ferrari.
Throughout the period of the Republic, there were different forms of government. The most notable was the Dogate which means an oligarchy ruled by a group of wealthy merchant families, from whom the doges were selected. The most representative family is the Doria, Spinola, Balbi family. Under their rules, many buildings were built and named after them.
Genoa is an ancient city of long history so nowadays people could discover the remainings of the wall in 10th century in the corners of the city. Porta Soprana is one well-known gate of the ancient walls. It was repaired and restored from dilapidation in 20th century. The two-towered gates are located at th east part of the city and looked over the house of Colombo.
This is the Christopher Columbus House reconstructed in the 18th-century. It was said that Christopher Columbus grew up here between approximately 1455 and 1470. Unfortunately, the house was destroyed in the war of 1684 and rebuilt on the basis of ruins. Despite of this, many touristes would like come and take pictures here.
After one day’s travel, I was extremely exhausted. On my way back to hotel, I have passed through numerous alleys paved with stone slabs. The alleys are named of Carrugi in the local language. Under the slim gleam of lamps, the dark and deep alleys evoked my imagination of the medieval Genoa but the funky graffiti on the peeling and crackling walls brought me relentlessly to the reality.
The next morning, I visited firstly this villa which is very close to my hotel. The Villa del Principe was built between the 1527 and the 1533 in the name of Andrea Doria, the admiral of the fleet of Charles V. He choose this place because it could overlook the gulf of Genoa. Nowadays, it became a museum with many splendid frescoes and tapestries.
第二天早上，我首先参观了这栋离我的酒店很近的别墅。王子别墅（Villa del Principe）建于1527年至1533年之间，以查理五世舰队的海军上将安德里亚·多里亚（Andrea Doria）的命名。他之所以选择建别墅在这个地方，是因为它可以俯瞰热那亚的海湾。如今，它已成为拥有许多精美壁画和挂毯的博物馆。
It has a long gallery displayed of plaster busts. It was a traditional Italien villa with walls painted of yellow-ochre stucco and a courtyard of renaissant style.
The villa includes a beautiful garden decorated with a small fountain as well. Previously as the wish of Andrea Doria, people could see the gulf of Genoa directly from the garden however now due to urban expansion, the view is blocked by the highway and the cruises in the harbour.
To get the panoromic view of Genoa gulf, I will recommend you to visit the castle Albertis. It was built on the top of the hill of Monte Galletto and its gothic brown red colored tower was easily recognized. This castle was built between 1886 and 1892. It was the home of sea captain Enrico Alberto d’Albertis, and was donated to the city of Genoa on his death in 1932. Its design get the inspirations from the palace of Florence.
要欣赏热那亚海湾的全景，我建议参观阿尔贝蒂斯(Albertis)城堡。它建在Monte Galletto山顶上，其哥特式棕红色塔顶很容易辨认。这座城堡建于1886年至1892年之间。它是船长Enrico Alberto d’Albertis的故居，并于1932年去世后捐赠给了热那亚市。其设计灵感来自于佛罗伦萨的宫殿。
On the top of tower of this castle, I could easily see the appearance of this harbour and the gulf. Many huge cruises berthed in the harbour and compared with them, even the tall lighthouse looks so tiny.
Now the castle becomes the Museum of World Cultures, inaugurated in 2004. The museum includes archaeological findings collected by both Enrico and Luigi Maria d’Albertis during their trips in the world. These are the findings belonging to the Maya civilization from Honduras.
现在，这座城堡成为2004年后开始启用的世界文化博物馆。该博物馆包括Enrico和Luigi Maria d’Albertis在世界旅行中收集的考古发现。这个图是在洪都拉斯发现的玛雅文明。
Palazzo Reale
For me, the most attractive viewpoint in Genoa is the Royal Palace. It was located in the street of Balbi. Its construction began in 1618 for the Balbi family. In 1677, it was inherited by Eugenio Durazzo, who transformed it into a Baroque-style building. In 1823, the palace was sold to the Royal House of Savoy. The House of Savoy led the unification of Italy in 1861 and ruled the Kingdom of Italy from 1861 until 1946.
It has the magificent and splendid mirror gallery decorated of gorgeous crystal chandeliers and ornate frescos. Its design is extremely similar with the gallery in Versaille. The hall was used as a dining room for important occasions, including the visit of Emperor Joseph II of Austria and Napoleon Bonaparte in 1805. The scupltures portrayed the Greek gods like Dionysius and Venus.
This is the throne room. There is one crown on the splendid throne with two metallic scepters on side. It marks the power of the king of the Savoy house. This room preserves the paintings by Luca Giordano. The oil painting on canvas in the right side of the picture is the Combat of Perseus and Phineus.
In the room of Tapestrie, it displayed this huge tapestry called The Impiety of Niobe made of wool, silk, thread of silver and gilded silver. It is related with myth of the impious Niobe who is proud of her divine origins and urged the Thebans not to sacrifice to Leto, who had given birth only to Apollo and Diana, and to worship her instead.
I have visited many palaces in Europe. Their overall arrangements are similar. There are always so many rooms with numerous artworks displayed. Before I left, I took the picture in the garden. This one is relatively small compared with the palace of Versaille and 1 hour is enough to visit all the places. 我参观过了欧洲的许多宫殿。它们的总体布置皆是如此相近。它们都有这么多房间，并且里面陈列着许多艺术品。在我离开此处之前，我在皇宫花园里拍了一张照。与凡尔赛宫相比，这是一个相对较小的宫殿，只需1小时即可参观所有的地方。
Palazzo Doria-Tursi
In the afternoon before I left this city, I visited the street Giuseppe Garibaldi again and this palace Doria-Tursi. From 1848 it has also become the city hall of Genoa. This is the largest palace in the street with a two-floor courtyard. It was designed in 1565 by the architects Domenico and Giovanni Ponzello, the pupils of the famous architect Galeazzo Alessi.
There is one statue on the staircase of the palace to memorize the great Italien politician Giuseppe Mazzini who was born in Genoa. He led the movement of unification of Italy in 19th century. He was a fervent advocate of republicanism and his ideas of social-democratic republicanism influenced on the European republican movements, even motivated the leaders of republican movement in other countries like Jawaharlal Nehru and Sun Yat-sen.
Il Cannone Guarnerius is the violin exhibited at the Palazzo Doria-Tursi. Its owner was the talent musician Niccolò Paganini who was born in Genoa. In the era of 18th and 19th century, many great musicians emerged in Italy. Among of them, Paganini was one of my favorite composers. I could never forget the superb melody of his violin masterpiece Caprice No.24. The other composers like Sergei Rachmaninoff and Franz Liszt had created works like ‘La Campanella’ and ‘Rhapsody variation 18th’ based on Paganini’s work.
Il Cannone Guarnerius是在多里亚-图尔西宫里展出的小提琴。它的所有者是出生于热那亚的才华横溢的音乐家尼克拉·帕格尼尼。在18和19世纪时期，意大利涌现了许多伟大的音乐家。其中，帕格尼尼是我最喜欢的作曲家之一。他的小提琴杰作第24号随想曲的美妙旋律令人永生难忘。谢尔盖·拉赫玛尼诺夫（Sergei Rachmaninoff）和弗朗兹·李斯特（Franz Liszt）等其他作曲家根据帕格尼尼的作品创作了诸如《钟声》和《狂想变奏曲18号》等伟大作品。
Arco della Vittoria
This arch of victory is located near the train station Brignole. At 4 o’clock in the afternoon, I took the trains here and left this city but I still immersed in the memory of this trip. This trip increase my knowledge of the history of the city. Genoa used to be the superpower in the sea and even extended its colonies in the Black Sea. However, since the economy and trade routes shifted to the New World and the Ottoman Empire controlled the east Mediterranean sea, Genoa lost gradually its political and economic power. Its ancient glory were buried in the dust of history little by littele but its eternity could still be slowly discovered by touristes in the historical ruins of this city.
Naples is the largest city in the south of Italy. It has history of 2,800 years with a wealth of historical buildings and monuments of Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque styles. Its historic centre was listed as world heritage site in 1995. I was familiar with this city because Diego Maradona had played in the club of S.S.C Napoli and brought great glory to this city. I was excited to visit here on 19th July 2020 by the express train from La Spezia.
When I arrived, I strolled along the seaside of the gulf Naples with a sense of novelty. The harbour of Naples is very close to the train station Napoli P. Garibaldi so I just took 10 minutes to walk from the station to here. Naples is one of the most important ports in Meditteranean that harbours many sailing boats and large ships.
当我到达后，怀揣着新鲜感沿着那不勒斯海湾边漫步。那不勒斯的港口非常靠近加里波第火车站（Napoli P. Garibaldi），所以我只花了10分钟就从火车站步行到这里。那不勒斯是地中海中最重要的港口之一，停泊着许多帆船和大型船只。
Castel Nuovo
There are some castles built near the sea side so I could see them faraway when I walked along the sea. This is a medieval castle located in front of the city hall. Its name in English is New Castle. It was built in 1279 and was a royal seat for kings of Naples, Aragon and Spain until 1815. It was defended by five large cylindrical towers.
I extremely like its spectacular arch. The white marble triumphal arch, built in 1470, commemorated Alfonso of Aragon’s entry to Naples in 1443. The kingdom of Naples was annexed to the Kingdom of Spain by Ferdinand II of Aragon so the city was under the control of Spanish in 15 century. The arch has two levels with totally 35 meters tall. The first level sculptures depict a triumphal quadriga of Alfonso’s parade. The second level has four niches with statues depicting the virtues of Alfonso.
The architecture of Naples combines the elements of modern and classic. The Galleria Umberto I was one example of employing modern elements. This Galleria built between 1887–1891 was named for Umberto I, the King of Italy at that time. It was a shoping gallery designed by Emanuele Rocco. Its entrance is flanked by the Corinthian columns. 那不勒斯的建筑融合了现代与古典的元素。翁贝托一世画廊是运用现代元素的典范。这座建于1887年至1891年之间的圆顶画廊以当时的意大利国王翁贝托一世命名。这是一个由Emanuele Rocco设计的购物长廊。它的入口两侧是科林斯式柱廊。
The inside of the gallery is similar to the gallery of Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan. It is a high and spacious cross-shaped structure. The top is a glass dome supported by 16 metal ribs. Its shiny mosaic floor could even reflect the profile of the dome. It was a early morning so the shops in the gallery had not yet been opened.
Opposite the gallery, it was the famous San Carlo theater. When I arrived, the whole building was under reparation so I could not know how this Neoclassical building actually looked like. The theatre was opened in 1737 with the exquisite decoration inside. It was one of the most luxurious theatres in the world with around 3000 seats.
Piazza del Plebiscito is a large public square beside the Teatro di San Carlo. The squre is named after the 1860’s plebiscite that brought Naples into the unified Kingdom of Italy. It was surrounded by the the Royal Palace, the Prefecture Palace and the church of San Francesco di Paola. The statue in the square is the Charles VII of Naples who ruled Naples as Charles of Bourbon (1734–1759) and Sicily.
The San Francesco di Paola church in the square is a neoclassical building with a special design of three cupola which is different with other churchs. Its façade is fronted by a portico of six columns and two Ionic pillars. This portico was designed by Leopoldo Laperuta and looked like the Pantheon in Rome.
Opposite the San Francesco di Paola church, it is the Royal Palace of Naples. When Charles III of Spain arrived Naples, the palace became the royal residence of the Bourbons. Under the rule of Bourbon Kings, it was decorated lavishly during the period of Kingdom of Naples (1735–1816) and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (1816-1861). Its façade facing the Piazza del Plebiscito displays a series of statues of prominent rulers of Naples in chronological order. The famous rulers include Frederick II of Holy Roman Emperor, Charles III of Spain, Murat, and Vittorio Emanuele II.
This is the entrance hall of the palace with the marble staircase leading to the rooms at the second floor. The whole palace is a square and there is a open courtyard in the middle. All the rooms are interconnected and could be visited by following the sequence. I will just introduce several rooms here.
In the Flemish hall, the ceiling is decorated with the coats of arm from Neapolitan provinces. The hall exhibits a collection of Dutch portraits from the 17th century. Like the palace of Verseille, the room is also equipped with crystal chandeliers and long red window curtains.
This is the office of Joachim Murat’s office. Murat was a Marshal of the Empire during the reign of Napoleon. He was also the king of Naples from 1808 to 1815. The ceiling of the room could be dated to 1840, decorated with tempera on plaster. This hall hosts some remarkable pieces of Murat period furniture, including a desk, commode, and bonheur du jour (a type of writing desk). These furnitures are crafted by Adam Weisweiler and given to Carolina Bonaparte, i.e Murat’s wife. There are two porcelain vases decorated with fleur-de-lis and delicate paintings in the room.
This is the queen’s room. Its ceiling features rare Rococo white and gilt stucco decorations made during the reign of Charles of Bourbon. The furniture was manufactured in Naples in 1840. The room is decorated with Neapolitan School paintings of 17th and 18th century.
The royal chapel was built by Francesco Antonio Picchiatti. It was used for the Palace’s religious ceremony. The altar in semi-precious stone and gilt copper is the work of Neopolitan baroque artiste Dioniso Lazzari in 1674. In the european palaces, chapel is a very important building because the power and rights of kings are endowed by the pope.
这座皇家教堂由弗朗切斯科·安东尼奥·皮基亚蒂（Francesco Antonio Picchiatti）建造。它被用于宫殿的各种宗教仪式。用半石和镀金铜制成的祭坛是那不勒斯巴洛克艺术家狄奥尼索·拉扎里（Dioniso Lazzari）1674年的作品。在欧洲的宫殿中，教堂是非常重要的建筑元素，因为教皇赋予了国王一切权利。
I spent around 1 hour in the royal palace. There is a Garden called Molosiglio behind the palace with the bronze statue of Augusto. From here I could survey the beautiful landscape of the gulf of Naples.
It was a sunny day. I was luxuriating in sunshine along the coastline. The sea lapping against the rocks shimmered in the sunlight and left ripples on the beach. The soaring mountain on the opposite side of the coast is the famous Mount Vesuvius and it seemed to wave to me endlessly.
I walked fast along the coastline until this huge castle appeared in my eyes. The Egg Castle is a seaside castle in the Gulf of Naples. The castle’s name comes from an ancient legend. The Roman poet Virgil put a magical egg into the foundations to support the fortifications. If this egg is broken, the castle would have been destroyed and a series of diaster would have followed. It is the oldest castle in Naples equipped by many cannons on the top.
There is only one road connecting the castle. I took this picture on this road. The castle is located at the island of Megaride. The castle faces Mergellina across the sea which is another harbour of the city.
Afterwards, I left the seaside and started my journey in the center area of the city. The Palazzo San Giacomo, known as the city hall, is located at the Piazza del Municipio. It is a Neoclassical style palace, completed in 1825. There is a beautiful fountain in front of its entrance. The fountain of Neptune was built in 17th century with collaboration of Michelangelo Naccherino and Pietro Bernini. It was originally located at the arsenal in the port and deplaced to the current location in 2015.
Another square that I want to highlight is the Martyrs’ Square. There is a monument in the center of the square. It is one single huge column built in the period of Bourbon rule with a bronze statue atop, depicting the Virtue of the Martyrs. The four lions at the corners of the base represent the patriots who died during the anti-Bourbon revolutions. The lion dying represents the martyr defending the short lived Parthenopean Republic in 1799. The lion pierced by a sword represents the martyrs during Carbonari revolution of 1820. The lion with 1848 statutes under paw represents the martyrs during the revolution of 1848. The lion striding on foot represents the successful Garibaldini Revolt of 1860. In 1861, Italy was finally united so this monument was to memorize the efforts and blood of martyrs during the revolutions.
In the afternoon, I visited the historical center from the Via dei Tribunal. It was a long but very norrow east-west street. Most of the churches in Naples were built in the area. The east end of the street was the Castel Capuano. It was built in the 12th century by William I, the son of Roger II of Sicily, the first monarch of the Kingdom of Naples. It was expanded by Frederick II of Hohenstaufen and became one of his royal palaces. From the 16th century, it became the hall of justice.
下午，我从Tribunali大街（Via dei Tribunali）参观了那不勒斯的老城区，那是一条漫长却非常狭窄的东西走向街道。那不勒斯的大多数教堂都建在该地区。街道的东端是卡斯帕诺城堡（Castel Capuano）。它由那不勒斯王国的第一任君主西西里岛的罗杰二世的儿子威廉一世在12世纪建造。并由霍亨斯陶芬王朝的腓特烈二世（Frederick II）扩建，成为他的皇宫之一。从16世纪开始，它后来成为了司法宫。
Obelisco di San Gennaro
The unique view points in Naples are the spires or obelisks i.e the monumental columns. The Spire of San Gennaro completed in 1650 was designed by Cosimo Fanzago, perhaps the greatest architect of the Neapolitan Baroque. The spire was built to celebrate the deliverance of the city from the great earthquake of 1631. It was located at the Via dei Tribunali.
The Spire of San Gennaro was behind the Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary. This Roman Catholic cathedral is the main church of Naples and the seat of the Archbishop of Naples. It is also named San Gennaro, in honour of Saint Januarius, the city’s patron saint. The construction of the church started from the King Charles I of Anjou, in the 13 century.
San Gennaro尖塔就位于圣母升天大教堂的后面。这座罗马天主教大教堂是那不勒斯的主教堂，也是那不勒斯大主教的所在地。它也命名为San Gennaro，以纪念该市的守护神Saint Januarius。教堂的建造始于13世纪的安茹国王查理一世。
The church has the magificant frescos drawn by Domenichino and Giovanni Lanfranco. Its dome with gorgeous colors and decorations is splendid. The church houses a vial of the blood of Saint Januarius, which is brought out three times a year. A ceremony of liquefying the blood would be hold. If the blood fails to liquefy, then it is said that disaster will befall Naples.
There are more than 100 churches in Naples so visitors will only visit few of them based on personal interests. This church San Paolo Maggiore is a basilica church, also the burial place of Gaetano Thiene, the founder of the Order of Clerics Regular (or Theatines). This baroque style church has two Corinthian columns and could be accessible by a staircase. This kind of design makes it different with other churches.
This area is full of historical buildings and monuments. This is another spire called Spire of San Domenico located in the square of San Domenico Maggiore. The spire was built after the plague of 1656 and was again designed by Fanzago. It was completed in 1737.
In the western side of the historic center, the church Gesù Nuovo could be found. It was originally a palace built in 1470 for Roberto Sanseverino, the Prince of Salerno and was sold in the 1580s for 45,000 ducats to construct a church from 1584 to 1601. That is why it has an unsual façade of the palace with rustic ashlar diamond projections.
The vault frescos representing Jesus befalling were completed by Belisario Corenzio and Paolo de Matteis. On the four pillars supporting the dome are frescos of the four Evangelists. There are three bronze bas-reliefs on a black marble base. Above the altar, there are eight busts of saints who glorified the Eucharist.
代表耶稣降临的穹顶壁画由Belisario Corenzio和Paolo de Matteis完成。支撑圆顶的四个大柱上有四位福音传教士的壁画。黑色大理石底座上有三个青铜浅浮雕。在祭坛上方，有八位圣人半身像成列以赞美圣体圣事。
Obelisco dell’Immacolata
Outside the church, there is another spire called spire of the Immaculate Virgin. It was built to invoke the Virgin Mary’s protection from the plague. Its construction began in the 17th century and was completed in 1750, also a prototype of Neapolitan Baroque art.
Besides art and architecture, Naples is also one paradise of delicious food. It is the origin of the pizza but here I will introduce one untraditional pizza. It is called pizza fritta sold in the store called Sorbillo. Unlike classic pizza cooked by a wood burning stove, it is just made by a frying pan but the dough is same as the classic pizza. It is filled with cicoli, Neapolitan salami with ricotta or mozzarella and ham. It is nice and cheap, costs only 3.5 euros. The taste is similar with one type of Chinese fried cake.
No matter how good the place is, there will be the final moment to say goodbye. The last memorable place in Naples is the Toledo metro station when I prepared for the departure. This station called Toledo, the same name of one Spanish city, has the perfect illumination effect that makes it look like a starry sky. The color of the sky will change periodically from blue to purple to green. The escalator seems to be like the steps leading the people to the heaven. I have never seen such an artistic metro station like this. It will forever leave a deep impression in my heart.
G. Puccini – O Mio Babbino Caro – Piano Solo by Matthias Dobler
In the remote coast of Mediterranean, there is such an idyllic and peaceful land called Cinque Terre. It means Five Lands in Italien and they are five characteristic villages hugging the cliffs along a short stretch of the Ligurian coast in the Linguria area. The five villages are Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore. The tortuous coastline, the villages on different levels of hillside, and the magnificent view of the surrounding hillsides constitues the Cinque Terre National Park which was listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997.
I took the intercity train from Genova and arrived at this wonderland in the sunny and scorching afternoon of July 18, 2020. This was the small train station of Manarola hiding between two tunnels in the ridges. From the platform the touristes could overlook the azure water of the sea. All the 5 villages are connected by the train line so it is quite convenient to visit all of them. Due to time limit, I only visited the two villages, Manarola and Riomaggiore this time.
The village of Manarola was accessible from the train station through an underground tunnel in just 5 minutes. The houses of the village were painted with different colors and were built on the precipitous cliff dominating the Mediterranean Sea since the start of the village. The arrangment of houses had highlighed the unique style of Cinq terre.
Beyond the coast, there was a small road leading to the restaurant at the hill top. On the halfway of the road, touristes could take the panaromic picture of Manarola at this place. It was a perfect scenic viewpoint but crowded. But everyone is patient enough to take this iconic picture of the village.
Walking slowly downwards from the steps, it was the dock of the village, harbouring many small boats. On the hill top, there was a restaurant called Nessun Dorma. It was a great place to order one drink like limoncello spritz cocktail and enjoy the beautiful view of Manarola.
Cinq Terre is famous for the luxuriant verdant lemon trees. The Nobel laureate Eugenio Montale has described it with the beautiful words like this,
The little path that winds down along the slope plunges through cane-tufts and opens suddenly into the orchard among the moss-green trunks of the lemon trees.
Except lemon drinks, Manarola also has the famous local wine, called Sciacchetrà which should be tasted by touristes.
The glamour of Cinq Terre also includes its wavy sea shore. Its upswelling tide pounds on the shore and the white waves flow over and hit on rocks like heaps of snow. At the dock of Manarola, there is one divided safety area for people to swim and experience the wildness of sea. I even saw some brave teenagers diving from the rock top into water; really crazy!
I had also spent 1 hour to walk in the village. Manarola may be the oldest of the towns in the Cinque Terre so there are many historical buildings here. Since their houses were built along the mountain, most of the time, I was padding along the tortuous mountain trail. Their houses had the decorations of warm color like red pink, and yellow.
This is one stone arch bridge in the village leading to one local residence. This bridge straddling one babbling brook had a long history. On the mountain top, there is a old church called San Lorenzo which could be traced to 1338.
There are many paths connecting the 5 villages of Cinq Terre. This is one famous walking trail between Manarola and Riomaggiore called Via dell’Amore, “Love’s Trail”. Many lovers had put locks with their names on the railings of the trail to memorize their precious loves. I firstly planned to walk from Manarola to Riomaggiore through the trail. Unfortunately, due to coronovirus, this trail was locked so I had to take train instead. At the train station, I really felt pity because I had to leave this beautiful place and I never knew what is my next time to come here.
When I arrived at Riomaggiore, it was nearly at dusk. There are many restaurants and bars in the village. I could smell the intoxicating scent of wine from the valley when I walked along the street. The colorful houses here are similar with the ones in Manarola. I did not visit many places here. I just sat on the bench at sea side and gazed at the village and its sea shore and enjoy this peaceful moment.
At 8:45 pm, the sun started to fall down slowly. The setting sun illuminated totally the sea level and tinged the water and sky with gold. The stylish houses along the mountains were silhouetted against the sun. At this moment, all the touristes pressed the button of their camera to grasp this incredible beautiful view. The distant horizon line waded little by little under the afterglow of the setting sun, leaving behind the last faint golden color. The breeze hits the flutuating waves and scatters the glow into numerous stars.
When the night resumed her reign, the sea shore of Cinq Terre falled into silence again. The skyline became a total darkness and the crowd gradually dissipated. The only remaining was the twinkle of distant lights of the village and the whisper of visitors who was not willing to miss every moment of this beautiful place.
Pompeii is an ancient city of Roman empire located in the south of Napoli. It was buried under volcanic ash of thickness up to 4 to 6 m in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. The city was well preserved under the ash for 2000 years. After the excavation, it displayed the unique view of Roman life and Roman buildings. It becomes a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997. For the fans of Roman Empire, this will be a place of must-see.
I took the circumvesuviana train to the station Pompei Scavi-Villa dei Misteri and visited this place on July 19th 2020. This is entrance of the pompeii archaeological park. From here to the insides of the city, the aspects of the city are gradually shown to my eyes.
我乘坐circumvesuviana火车到Pompei Scavi-Villa dei Misteri车站，在2020年7月19日参观了这个地方。这是庞贝考古公园的入口。从这里进入城市深处，庞贝的风貌在我眼里逐渐展现出来。
I walked along the streets of the city under the scorching sunlight. The wide streets are made of uneven stone blocks. There are many similar streets in the city arranged horizontally and vertically. The city is planned like a chess board. The brick made houses along the streets were the residential place for local people when they were buried under the volcanico ash. When I idled along this road, I was really amazed at the historical vicissitude.
The Via dell’Abbondanza was the main street of ancient Pompeii, which was in the direction east/west from the Forum to the Porta Sarno. The street used to be full of hustle and bustle with many shops, snack-bars and restaurants but now the only things remaining are the cold stones and bricks that recorded the city’s history.
There are many houses in the city and most of them are forbidden to visit for the reason of protection. This is one of the common residential houses that allow visitors to enter. I could enter and know more about the structure of their houses and how the room is arranged. The wall faces had showed signs of decay due to the infestation and erosions of ages.
In the southwest region of the city, I could see this small theatre The Odeon. It was a smaller roofed theatre built in 80 BC that could contain 1500 spectators. The Large Theatre in the city was used for staging drama whereas the Odeon was built for a more educated audience, as well as a musical concert performance.
It was said that Roman empire finally collapsed because they lost the desire to fight and indulged in comforts like baths. It was true that I could find the ruins of bath in many Roman cities like Arles, Pisa, Roma, Tarragona … Roman citizens really enjoyed having bath so they built many luxurious bath houses in their cities. The Central Baths were under construction at the time of the eruption so it was just an open court yard after it was excavated.
In Pompeii, every house records the daily activity of the local people before they are buried under the volcanico ash. This is the house of Cecilio Giocondo who was a banker. His identity and name was deduced from the archive of 154 waxed boards excavated which recorded the amounts paid by the persons who buy the goods or paid the rents.
This house attracted me a lot because of its elegant garden surrounded by the perystyliums; in the Roman epoch, perystylium is the symbol of residence of wealthy family and is regarded as the symbol of upper class in the classical era.
The garden was also decorated with reliefs and marble sculptures, and was dedicated to the Egyptian gods. There was a painting of Anubis, god of the dead, here. The house is called in this way because Cupids is engraved on two gold medallions that decorate the portico.
Before visiting Pompeii, I did not make a specific travel plan so I just visited in the city aimlessly and entered the room that I thought beautiful. This house has a small garden with a marble fountain. The statue inside the fountain is Silenus, a companion of the god of wine Dionysus in Greek mythology. The wall of the house is decorated with fresco and on the floor, there is a delicate moisac diagram.
The interesting thing in Pompeii is when you cross one street by street, you could not find any modern elements in every corner of the city. Every piece of stone and brick in this city has the history of 2000 years. In this street corner, I found this building called Lupanar which stands for brothel in Roman word. The building was classified as brothel because many erotic paintings and graffis were found after excavations. Prostitution in ancient Rome was legal and licensed so it would not be a surprise to find a brothel at that time.
The Pompeians relaxed in the weekends not only in brothels but have spa as well. The Stabiane bath is the place for them to have their daily break in the spa. The baths culture of Roman Empire had a long history. This bath could be traced back to the 2nd century BC. The heating was guaranteed by a piping system in the walls and double floors that circulated the hot air coming from the furnaces and from braziers.
This spectacular house was built in 2 century B.C. It belongs to Marcus Epidius Rufus so it is called house of Epidii. It draws my attenton due to its 16 doric columns in the center of the house. The columns are located in the atrium of Corinthian type which is widely applied in Athens but quite rare in Pompeii.
To see the most traditional building of Roman Empire, the Forum is always the best place. It is the core of daily life of the city and houses all the main public buildings for city administration and justice, business management, trade activities, and religious worships.
For example, we could find this temple of Jupiter at the north end of the forum, built in mid-2nd century BC. Jupiter was the ruler of the gods and the protector of Rome so his temple was always the center of Roman Religion. Unfortunately, now we could simply imagine how it looked like because the only remaining on the square is the base and several columns.
On the east of the forum, we could see the Macellum, the market of Pompeii. It is difficult to know the function of the buildings for me but the archeologists could judge it from the remains of cereals and fruits in the north side of the building and fish scales and bones in the middle of the courtyard. The entrance of the market could be recognized by the three marble columns at the left side of this picture.
On the sides of the temple of Jupiter, there were two old honorary arches made of bricks. This arch dedicated to Drusus, son of Emperor Tiberius was built in the era of Tiberius (14-37 AD) near the temple of Fortuna Augusta. The arch together with many buildings represented the imperial cult. It is a form of state religion in which an emperor of Roman Empire are worshipped as demigods or deities. This is an effective tool for dictators to rule the country.
This is the temple dedicated to the Emperor Augustu. It has marble capitals and columns and with the altar at the front. It is also one example of the imperial worship throughout the Roman Empire. This kind of worship has left a deep impact to many people even after the empire collapsed. Many european rulers had claimed that they inherited the Roman empire but obviously there is no such a relationship at all.
Another typical symbol of Roman city is the Amphitheatre. This one is the earliest Roman amphitheatre built of stone. It is located at the east side of the Via dell’Abbondanza. Its past represents the bloody gladiatorial culture of Roman Empire. Now it becomes a place for public event and concert.
I totally spent more than 5 hours in Pompeii. Lastly I have to highlight this one, Casa del Fauno. It was one of the largest and the luxurious private residences in Pompeii. The house was named by the bronze statue of the dancing faun located in the impluvium, a basin for catching rainwater. Fauns are spirits of untamed woodland.
我在庞贝旅游总共花了5个多小时。最后我要特意提一下这个房子Casa del Fauno。它是庞贝最大的豪华私人住宅之一。这座房子的名字是由舞池中的青铜雕像福恩命名的。福恩是未驯服的森林精灵。
Alexander Mosaic, the Battle of Issus
The House of the Faun covers nearly 3000 square metres and has two atriums, the Tuscan and the peristyle atrium. Its colonnaded gardens contain Ionic and Doric columns. The jewel of the crown for this house is the famous Alexander Mosaic, depicting the Battle of Issus in 333 BC between Alexander the Great and Darius III of Persia. The mosaic is now preserved in the museum of Napoli so we could not see it here.
The house 2000 years ago includes one kitchen, one living room and many bedrooms with furnitures. It is even equipped with a private bath system. Its owner must be a very wealthy person.
This is the exit of the archeological park. The park is so large that it is difficult to cover every corner in the city but for most people it was enough for them to familiarize with the buildings of Roman empire. In this picture, we could see clearly the volcano Vesuvius that caused the ruin of the city. On one hand, it was a tragedy that the volcano was the murderer who had killed 20,000 people in the instant. However, on the other side, the volcano ash kept the original form of the city and Pompeii is the only city of Roman empire that is well preserved. So whether the volcano did it correct or not? Who knows ?! Let the history jusge it.
When I was in high school, the name of Sorrento was known to me because of the famous Neapolitean song Torna a Surriento by Luciano Pavarotti. The outset of the song is ‘Vide ‘o mare quant’è bello, spira tantu sentimento’ which means ‘Look at the sea, how beautiful it is, it inspires so many emotions’. From that time, I wondered how beautiful the coast is until in 20 July 2020, I finally visited this place and glimpsed the eternal azureness.
Sorrento is a town located on the Sorrentine Peninsula accessible by the Circumvesuviana rail line from Napoli. It is quite convenient to come here from the Napoli Centrale station with just 3.6 euros. This town has the area of only 9 km2 so there is nothing special to visit here. This is the central area of Sorrento, the Piazza Tasso, named after the poet Torquato Tasso.
The town is surrounded by rough cliffs that rise 55 meters above the sea. The town look like being built on different layers. The town’s weather is the traditional Mediterranean weather; it is rich of vegetation like lemon trees. Lemon is the best choice for making homemade limoncello liqueur in Sorrento because its lemons are extremely aromatic with very few seeds.
The Piazza Sant’Antonino is one square that is close to the Piazza Tasso. There’s a statue of Sant’Antonino in front of the Conservatorio Santa Maria delle Grazie which forms part of the Santa Maria delle Grazie church. The color style of many building in this town is light yellow, traditional color of Italien renaissance building.
The Villa Comunale is small park on the cliff with beautifully-manicured gardens and the visitors could see one of the best views of the coast. There is a charged lift here and the visitors could take the lift down to the Marina Piccola coast.
After short thinking, I didn’t take the lift because there is a steep paved road towards the bottom of the cliff. When I travelled in Europe, walk was always my first choise. For me, it was the best way to relax.
This is the transportation area of the marina. When I went down quickly to the bottom of the cliff, I found many travel boats and some crowding restaurants and bars here. Please stop here for a while and enjoy the most beautiful view of Sorrento is in this area.
The visitors could enjoy the beach in the summer, warm sun light and endless blue sky as far eyes can see at the Sorrento coast. Also the stylish houses faraway on the cliff hiding in the trees are remarkable.
Most touriste will come here from Napoli or the coast of Amalfi by boat and rent a chaise longue under sun umbrellas at the sea side. They will bask idly in the bath of sun light for a whole beautiful day accompanied by red wine and beautiful girls.
This is one picture taken at the port. At this moment, when the warm intoxicating winds were blowing ashore, I am staring at the Mount Vesuvius which is visible at the far side of the sea and the sky. The sea reflects the pure azureness of the sky and both of them fuse together. Now it seams that my heart has also melted into this beautiful sea. Just as the song Torna a Surriento extolled ‘ chi ha girato tutto ‘o munno, nun l’ha visto comme’a ccà.’ (Even he has travelled all over the world, he has never seen a sea like this one.)
It is convenient to travel to other place nearby like Capri island and Amalfi from the port if the time is enough.By boat, you could fully experience the charisma of the sea in the Campania region.
For myself, travel is like on the way of looking for the new elements that I have never known before. I have to say that if I didn’t know the song Torna a Surriento, I would never come to this new land and would not know how it is. So I have to tell myself endlessly the meaning of the life is ‘always keep on exploring the novelty and your soul will be refreshed.’
Verona is a small city in the west of Venice. It is an old city ruled by the Della Scala Family in 13th and 14th century. Its old history could be traced back to the Roman Empire. Nowadays there are many monuments in the city center built during these periods. That’s why it is classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The famous love story of Romeo and Juliet is set in Verona so it attracts many touristes to visit every year.
I arrived at this city on the noon of July 23rd 2020 and afterwards I would catch the train towards Turin in the evening so there are only several hours for me to visit it.
我于2020年7月23日中午到达这座城市，之后我晚上乘火车前往都灵，在此期间我只有几个小时参观它。
This is the statue of gladiator outside the Verona train station. When I left the station and walked towards the city center, I could see this statue. It seems to tell the visitors that this city has an old history and the culture inherited from the Ancient Rome.
The Portoni della Brà is the town gate, enclosing the Piazza Brà to the south. Originally the Portoni della Brà was not designed as a city gate but as a passageway between the Castelvecchio and the Citadel. Now the last remains of the walls of the former Citadel could be seen. Both the archways and the former citadel were built by Gian Galeazzo Visconti in the 14th century.
When I entered the city gate, I could find this palace at the Piazza Brà. The Palazzo Barbieri looks like the Roman building but it is actually the neoclassical style; it now serves as the town hall. It was designed by Giuseppe Barbieri and was completed by 1848.
In the north of the Piazza Brà, it is the famous Verona arena which is the third largest Roman amphitheatre in Italy. The arena was built in the 1st century AD by the Flavian emperors. The gladiators fought here bloodily for 400 years until the emperor Honorius prohibited the gladiator games in 404 AD. Nowadays, it became a perfect place to see the opera and theatre performances.
This was one old church nearby, the chiesa di san fermo maggiore. Its history could be traced to the 8th century.
这是附近的一座古老教堂San fermo maggiore。它的历史可以追溯到8世纪。
The campanile was completed in the 13th century and contains six bells cast in 1755. It rung with the Veronese bellringing art which is a unique style of ringing church bells that developed around Verona from the eighteenth century. The bells are rung full circle, being held up by a rope and wheel until a note is required.
Near the church I could find the statue of Umberto I who was the King of Italy from 9 January 1878 until his assassination on 29 July 1900. Under his reign, the Triple Alliance with the German Empire and Austria-Hungary was formed. Also Italy has expanded their colonies in Eritrea and Somalia at that time.
Next I visited one square with very old history. The Piazza delle Erbe (Market’s square) was once the town’s forum during the time of the Roman Empire. Now it becomes one crowded marketplace selling clothes qnd small articles. The fountain in this picture is the Fountain Madonna Verona built in 1368 by Cansignorio della Scala. The statue called Madonna Verona was a Roman sculpture dating to 380 AD.
接下来，我参观了一个有着悠久历史的广场。香草广场（Plazza delle Erbe）曾经是罗马帝国时期的广场。现在它变成了一个熙熙攘攘的杂货市场，出售衣服和小物件。这张照片中的喷泉是维罗纳圣女喷泉。它由Cansignorio della Scala于1368年建造。这座雕像是公元380年的罗马雕塑。
Torre dei Lamberti
In the square, there is one 84 m high bell tower. The Torre dei Lamberti was constructed in 1172. This tower could be seen from the city streets very far away. The main color style of city is brownish red, the tower and archway on the square also follow this pattern.
On the north-western side of Piazza delle Erbe, we could find this Baroque style building Palazzo Maffei in the 15th century. It has five arcades. Over each arcade there is a window with an elegant balcony separated by Ionic semicolumns. There are six sculptures of Greek god on the top of the building. In front of the palace, we could see a white marble column. It is St. Mark’s Lion, symbol of the Republic of Venice.
Near the Piazza delle Erbe, there is another square, the Piazza dei Signori which was surrounded by the main buildings of the former city government, including the court and the seat of power of the Scaliger family. There is one statue of Italian poet Dante Alighieri in the middle of the square. Behind the statue, the yellow building is the Loggia del Consiglio. The Venetian Renaissance style house was built in 1476 by Fra Giocondo. It was decorated with columned double windows and small statues on the roof . The loggia with this kind of decoration is quite popular in Italy.
The Scaliger family ruled in Verona from the 13th to the late 14th century so it has left deep imprints on this city. This is the view of the tombs of Scaliger family. The gothic style tombs are located in a court outside the church of Santa Maria Antica, separated from the street by a wall with iron grilles. The rule of the Scaliger reached its peak during the period of Mastino II (1308-1351) and his son Cansignorio (1334-1375). A statue of the knight locates at the top of the tomb of Cansignorio.
The Santa Maria Antica church is Romanesque in style and dates to 1185, rebuilt after the earthquake of 1117. The original building could be dated back to the end of the period of Lombard domination in the 7th century.
The church has a small bell tower with three bells cast during the 17th century ringing in the Veronese syle.
教堂有一座小钟楼，钟楼上是17世纪铸造的钟，也是维罗纳式的钟鸣风格。
Casa di Romeo
‘Two households, both alike in dignity, In fair Verona, where we lay our scene ‘; this is the prologue from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. For visitors especially lovers, it is meaningful to follow the steps of Romeo and Juliet and visit their houses. This is the house of Romeo located in an alley, just behind the Scala Family tombs. It looks like a brick castle.
In Shakespear’s play Act 1, Romeo has tested Juliet’s feeling towards him using the metaphor, he said ‘ If I profane with my unworthiest hand This holy shrine, the gentle sin is this: My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss. He uses the metaphors of shrine, and pilgrim which is romantic in the poetry.
This is the Juliet’s house with the most romantic balcony in the world. It was a beautiful Gothic style house from the 14th century. The city of Verona bought the house from the Dal Capello family in 1905 and made it to be a touriste attraction. It was said that the lovers who write down their love vows and stick them on the wall of the house will stay together for the rest of their lives.
In Shakespear’s play Act 1, Juliet answered Romeo with metaphor as well, ‘ Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much, Which mannerly devotion shows in this; For saints have hands that pilgrims’ hands do touch, And palm to palm is holy palmers’ kiss.’
The so called Juliet balcony actually never existed. It was famous because there was the well known scene ‘ when the moon shone unusually bright, that whilst Romeo was climbing the balcony, the young lady … opened the window … After this they have a conversation in which they declare eternal love to each other. ‘
Of course people are willing to talk delighly of this romantic story for thousands of years and Verona have attracted many touristes looking for romance because of this. There is a bronze statue of Juliet in the small courtyard of the house. It is believed that touching the right breast of the statue will bring luck to all who are trying to find their true love.
When I walked northwards, I arrived at the river side of the Adige River. The five-arch bridge was originally built in the 16th but it was destroyed during the second world war. The bridge nowadays was restored in 1959 based on previous design. It was also a testimony of the city’s history.
I took this picture on the stone bridge. The sight of the city from the bridge has brought my memory to the time of reading Shakespear’s Romeo and Juliet. Shakespear has never gone to Verona in his life but he could write such a good story and whelm so many readers in the world. For me I was lucky enough to visit this wonderful land under the pens of Shakespear. My life is always full of imagination and travel is like a way to convert rich imagination to reality.
Gone like the wind 