This was taken from the office window in Rio de Janeiro during my last trip. Today here in Italy is so freezing cold that my brain wanted to escape…
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So we’re done with 2008. As expected, this has been a tough year that brought us a worldwide economic downturn and many people who lost their job will remember it as one of the worst in their life. On the other hand we also had good news and lately I can feel a general sense of hope springing, at least in this part of the world. Who knows, are we in the middle of the avalanche effect and the real crisis has yet to come or have we reached the bottom already? We’ll see. Meanwhile I wish a wonderful 2009 everybody!
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On Jan 1st 1999 a new currency was officially born: the Euro. It was the result of the efforts of most members of the European Union aiming to create a single currency to foster growth in the area, be strong against market storms and cut down on banking costs. That day the exchange rate with respect to the 11 initial participating currencies was set in stone and the European Central Bank took control. For three years the Euro remained something untangible, but on Jan 1st 2002 actual coins and notes were circulated and the now obsolete national money retired. Read the rest of this entry »
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In Ferrara I used to sing in Coro Polifonico “Santo Spirito”, where we performed mostly baroque sacred music. I was very proud of that hobby, that allowed me to sing in prestigious theaters together with famed orchestras and world-class directors. Unfortunately when I moved to Florence I had to give up on this activity and I missed it a lot. I tried to look for something similar in my new location but couldn’t find anything that matched my time budget and my taste. Read the rest of this entry »
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So… last time I blogged was months ago. Back then I was in Brazil. Where have I been since then? No, I was not kidnapped in a favela. No, I was not out of topics. Actually, I had many things to write. Just for starters I traveled back and forth to Brazil, drove to Berlin, joined a gospel choir and sung in a famous theatre. The problem is, I just got sucked into Facebook. Read the rest of this entry »
So here I am, back to Brazil one year after last trip. This time I flew TAP and had a short connection in Lisbon, just 75 minutes. Of course the flight from Italy took off 45 minutes late and things went wrong. When we landed I had already given up any hope to make it but, surprise, while descending the staircase to get out of the plane I noticed there was a little man waiting with a “Rio de Janeiro transfer” banner in his hands. Read the rest of this entry »
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After an entire life spent with professional laziness and no sport activity whatsoever, a little more than one year ago I began running. When my friends discovered what happened they were shocked. It happened while I was in Brazil. Weather, mood and nature in Rio De Janeiro invite you to open air lifestyle and when you see… you know… people running on the beach all the time you end up wanting to try yourself. Read the rest of this entry »
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Last Tuesday night I attended a concert where Maggio Musicale Orchestra played Beethoven’s 9th Symphony directed by Zubin Mehta. The concert was in Piazza della Signoria and was for free, so it was packed. It was a very hot night but despite the sense of suffocation I was glad to be there cause the concert has been great. Read the rest of this entry »
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A new tradition has been established in Ferrara lately. Every year we celebrate the new summer with a city-wide night party thrown on the solstice day. In yesterday’s edition I attended a wonderful fireworks show where music and light synchronized together built a moving synesthetic show. Fireworks went on for about 45 minutes, with a sequence of several songs, each one with a different choreography. Read the rest of this entry »
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Last weekend we celebrated the bachelor party for one of our friends. People usually organize late-at-night bachelor parties in dancing places, but we picked him up at his home Sunday morning at 8:30am, saying we had to drive a long way before getting to the place. He was then blindfolded, confused with earphones and loud music and brought in the countryside a few minutes out of the city center where half a dozen warriors were waiting for us, all dressed up in military camouflage, guns and all sorts of strange equipment. Read the rest of this entry »
