-=Save the Croissants=-: GE Sponsored Tour, Day Two

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

GE Sponsored Tour, Day Two

The second day had a lot more stuff in it.

Portrait: Photographing a photographer photographing a photographer.

Included: The first time the staff photographer smiled. {The guy on the right.}

Scene: The first place was a museum about Marilyn Monroe sponsored by these people, Ferragamo.

They make fancy shoes and scarves and the museum was more about {at least at first} the early history of the company and then Ms. Monroe’s relationship to the brand.

Detail: £299 slippers.

Portrait: There was a whole bit where the guy in the back was demonstrating the different ways you can tie their scarves on the model {On the left.} And at the beginning, the old women I was sitting next to were snickering and making jokes, but after awhile even they got sucked in.

They went from {Hee Hee Hee, that’s silly.} to {OOOOoooh! Look at that!} Because really, it’s a magic trick. After awhile it was time for a little audience participation, and the woman on the right got pushed to the front by her friends.

Panorama: The Pitti palace.

This is the ‘New’ palace, where the Medicis moved after somebody’s wife said {Of their palace in town} “This palace is too small and old!” Luckily there was another old family across the river that had run out of money and was looking to unload a palace.

Because the Medicis were moving to expand they added two wings onto the Pitti, now you can’t even tell where the old palace ends and the new one starts.

{It doesn’t really bend like that, it’s pretty square, the panorama and the wide–angle lens did that.}

Portrait: The morning sun and an official guy.

Detail: The only part you’re allowed to take pictures of is the courtyard and the outside, but inside it’s exactly like you’d picture a renaissance palace.

Scene: To celebrate an important wedding a Medici {whose name I forget} flooded this entire courtyard area up to the rim and had a mock naval battle.

He was also the Medici that took the family out of the banking business, which later served to bankrupt them. {He figured taxes were enough.}

Included For Scale: My tour group. {Tour Group #1}

Italian Vignette: One of the more adorable Café’s I’ve seen in italy.

Detail: A Fountain.

Italian Vignette: A really cool door.

Italian Vignette: One of the few days the sun came out.

Scene: After the Pitti they bused us to some other palace on the other side of town, {The name started with an X.} Where there was a quote “Indoor Market” and an arranged lunch.

Detail: A branch with some berries.

Detail: Lemons.

Detail: Angles.

Scene: This isn’t a great picture, but it is what it felt like.

I walked around the “Market” in five minutes and realised I didn’t need any pottery, chocolate, pasta, knitted goods or metalwork, {Especially since everything that wasn’t food was girl stuff} and decided to have lunch.

Turns out lunch was in an hour. No negotiations.

And I was basically trapped here.

But it was okay, because there was frizzante. {Italian Sparkling Water.}