Ravenna - history and art

A much better day than the previous day, as I knew it would be. It started with a less than promising walk - not a pretty part of the city and very hot - but things improved from there. I had a shower and then walked to a coffee shop open on Sunday. It’s on the Piazza di San Francesco (that guy is all over!) and when I arrived there I found an outdoor orchestral performance in progress. A small but good orchestra (strings, woodwinds, percussion) was playing while a couple of men and a group of children acted. I have no idea what it was about. Music sounded a bit like Copland but I don’t know what it was, either.

Dante’s tomb was between my room and the piazza, so I stopped there. V. interesting info about how his remains moved around about - they were missing at one point and were hidden during WWII. Very odd to see families happily posing in front of the tomb!

I practiced a bit, had a little nap and a nice lunch, and then went on a 🎶three hour tour of the various historical sites with mosaics. These date back to the Byzantine empire of the 5th and 6th centuries. It was hot and more walking than I had anticipated but very interesting.

A light dinner, some laundry, and some practicing before bed - a very early train to Assisi in the morning!Read more