{ May 2011 - Florence, Italy } I have seen more statues and painting of naked men and women during the trip to Italy, than I have ever seen, and will probably ever see. You just need to scroll through all the photos I have posted under Italy to see some of the many that I have seen. And Florence, the birth place of Renaissance, probably has more statues and paintings of naked men and women, not to mention, of Gods, Goddesses and their children, then any other cities in Italy. David If there is one masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture, it has got to be David by Michaelangelo. The 17-feet marble statue of a standing male nude, is definitely an exceptional piece of sculpture. It could probably be due to the position in Galleria dell'Academia that houses the sculpture, or just the tall white polished marble. But I stood right in front of it, and walked around it, a couple of times, awestruck by the imposing and yet relax statue. Muscular and yet gentle. Photos were not al...
"... they are human beings seen in their agony. This is not art, it is not imitation; these are their bones, the remains of their flesh and their clothes mixed with plaster, it is the sadness of death that characterises body and form. I see their wretchedness. I hear their cries as they call to their mothers, and I see them fall and writhe..." Luigi Settembrini (1813-76) The haunting words described the emotions and struggles of the Pompeiians that had been frozen in time since 24 August 79 AD when Mount Vesuvius erupted and buried the city of Pompeii. The plaster casts of the victims of the volcanic eruption evoke a sense of helplessness, and it seemed appropriate that we shared some thoughts for the victims that died almost 2,000 years ago - for the volcanic eruption that buried their city, their homes and themselves provided a snapshot of Roman life in the first century. The National Museum of Singapore presents a special exhibition, Pompeii: Life In ...
Travels have probably changed for good - our last big trip was in December 2019 and last flight taken was coming back from Penang, Malaysia after the Chinese New Year celebration in February 2020. Little did we know then that we would be in Singapore for the next 2 years (and hopefully not much longer)! Before we have children, we travelled extensively as a couple - averaging about 6 different countries in a year, in between our full time job. Even when I was pregnant, we travelled whenever we can and even with our little baby girl. Little Em travelled to Bali, Japan, South Korea, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Hong Kong before she turned 2. Little Ed came along, and together as a family, we travelled to Central Vietnam, Australia, Indonesia, Czech Republic, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Laos and to multiple places in Japan and Malaysia. And it all stopped. After years of travelling whenever we have pockets of time, and planning itineraries in between work and ...