Pigeon Chronicles

I don't understand pigeons.

 How does Darwin explain the evolutionary process of pigeons? They are the evolved version of a prehistoric bird species and after millenia of evolution they've ended up as the modern day pigeon. This is their peak of evolution to date! These birds scrounge around for food all day, on their feet! They can fly. And they can fly much better than they can walk. When they walk it looks like some sort of slinky toy, kind of like the dog in Toy Story. 

The beast is not meant to walk, and yet it seemingly prefers to do so. The Italian pigeons are very brave. My dad literally brushed them away with his feet while walking and they didn't fly away! It's as if they aren't afraid of their superiors. I don't see what their part in the food chain is. 

Today we spent the day around Venice. A very different city, more different than any other I've seen before. A city connected through waterways that people need to navigate through boats. (You wouldn't want to swim in these waters.). There are paths for people to walk but they seem to yield to the canals. The pathways are maze-like in design. One could get lost for hours without a map. 

Little narrow paths that seemingly lead to nowhere are in fact major pedestrian arteries. To get from point A to point B on foot is a game of snakes and ladders - taking one step back to go two forwards. 

On the other hand the canals are relatively straightforward and understandable. In fact, compared to some small town automobile streets, they are luxuriously wide and follow proper parking ettiquette. 

It's a backward place where land animals have chosen to live in a water-world. Kinda like pigeons. 

- L.P. 

PS. My mom is afraid of pigeons; she believes they will peck her eyes out. 

TMNT

Leonardo da Vinci is quite a legend here in Italy, as he is in most of the world. In Paris we saw the Mona Lisa and it was quite an ordeal just to get close enough to see it. We also saw a number of his works during our three weeks and most post museum shops have books or posters about him. He's known as the genius; artist and scientist and great ones at that. His place in history is secure. 

Michaelangelo, is also brilliant. Today we a little sculpture. 

It's pretty awesome. Hadnt really appreciated sculptures before  but this was really quite something. I think most other sculptures will be anti-climatic now, which means this may be the end my sculpture watching career. Even though Miggy was a sculptor, they asked him to paint a chapel. Apparently he was insulted (?) as he should have been known as a sculptor. Painting was an art form he had not practiced in years. So after accepting the request from the pope, Miggy paints a ceiling in seclusion, keeping his work a secret, and ends up with a masterpiece. Wasn't allowed to take any pictures. Fuji owns the photographic rights to the ceiling. 

Rafael was a gifted painter in his own right and was a contemporary of Michaelangelo. From what I remember during the tour of the Vatican, he was at the time, more of a celebrity than Miggy was because of his painting. He died at 37 though due to too many relations. Miggy surpassed him in accolades as he lived a long life and produced many works. 

But what about Donatello?

The only thing I found was a statue of him in Florence. 

I'm sure he was great, but doesn't seem to fit with the other three: Leo, Miggy and Rafa. 

Seems to me as though maybe three ninja turtles would have been enough. Who would have wanted to be named after the perceived lesser genius anyways?

It's like, these are my children: Isaac, Aristotle, Galileo and Tim. One doesn't seem to fit. (No offense to any Tim by the way.)

- L.P

Identifying non Italians in Italy

10.  On narrow sidewalks, non Italians will make room for pedestrians walking in the other direction. 

9. A non Italian can talk without moving their hands. 

8.  A non Italian will respect a lineup

7. A non Italian will know how to whisper

6.  A non Italian wears shorts in 30 degree weather

5. A non Italian will think its appropriate to wear sandals without socks

4. A non Italian will wonder about how Italy's ancestors were so organized

3. A non Italian will be surprised that there are more churches than Starbucks 

2. A non Italian will think this isn't suitable children's food

1. A non Italian wouldn't wear quilted jeans

Longer in than out

'Twas nine months ago that I left the inner sanctum of my mothers womb. I feel like I've accomplished so much and still have so much to do. Like, first of all, what is this?

 I found it months ago and it's useless. I put in my mouth (like everything) and nothing happens.  If I don't start using it for something soon I'm going to start to think like there's something wrong with me. 

Went to the pantheon in Rome.  Pretty cool. Funny how it's now a basilica. Changed from roman gods, to Christian saints. The planets however remained with the roman god names. I wonder if they tried to rename the planets to something like "Jesus" or "Allah". Or "Jehovah". I guess the problem is that when you have a singular deity... Too many planets to name. 

I have no idea what this is used for. 

 

On orchestral score

When travelling I've noticed that there is usually a song that I associate with the trip - a theme song, so to speak. When my dad went to Africa for the world cup, it was Shakira's world cup song. When he went to California it was "You've got another thing coming" by Judas Priest. During this trip, I don't think just one theme song will do. When in Paris it was "the girl from ipanema" (French version - not that I know the words in French). In Avignon, it was Frere Jaques. In Spain, anything from gypsy kings. While in Rome, I go between two movie soundtracks: gladiator theme music and the godfather. 

Anybody have any other suggestions?

- L. P. 

PS. There is a real theme song... I'll share it later. 

On returning to the homeland

It's not too often one can return to the land from where my in-utero name originated (baby Julius). I believe there is a temple honoring me (or Julius Caesar) that we will visit shortly. Nevertheless my celebrity status in Rome is confirmed as I have many people wanting to have their pictures taken with me. Follow me on twitter with #babyjulius !

This lady doesn't even speak English, yet the international sign of "photo" was clearly understood. It almost looks like she's trying to steal me. I have a grandma in Ponoka that would have something to say about that!

So far, Rome has been quite excellent. The ancient buildings merged into modern Rome is quite something. The area and size of the ruins is much larger than I was expecting. Despite all the grandiose history, one of the more amazing things was captured in the following image. 

This has to be one of the smallest gas stations I've ever seen. Maybe I'm just used to seeing the large luxurious stations where people can get out of their vehicles and stretch their legs, get a Starbucks, stop at Wendy's or Tim Hortons and take a nap, but this seems like a Lego gas station starter set where you want the impression of a gas station with the least amount of peices possible. In contrast to the colosseum, which is about 200 meters away, this seems out of place. 

I've also taken to heart what I've learned at the "le louvre". A sculptures is 3D art and it should be appreciated as such. Here's a statue viewed from the wrong side. 

It may be 3d art but it's definitely not the part that people look at. I'm not sure how many people take time to notice the backside of a sculpture. If it were a scultpure of a mountain, with no front or back I could see the need for 3d. I guess it does make it more life like - something that a painting can't do even though it has the advantage of color. The statues do make a nice backdrop for more photos of me though!

- L.P.

PS. You guys need to try this at some point.  Yummy cow stomach! Tastes like chicken!

Fighting rude with rude

Service in Europe has been a story of extremes. There have been really good sotries and some really bad ones. It is unfortunate that the poor experiences tarnish the memories even if they do make up the minority of the instances. 

It is difficult to maintain a level of civility and patience when people are so clearly being rude. 

What recourse do patrons have? Argue with the waiter and have an unpleasant experience for the rest of the dining experience. It could even go worse if you get a sneeze in your food! One could just grin and bear it, although that does seem to just condone the behavior. One could fight rude with no tipping or just leave when the behavior is unacceptable.  

My strategy is to fight rude with cute. I think it works pretty well. 

-L.P

On the origin of original thought

Pablo Picasso knew how to paint from a very young age. It was if he was born with a gift - the ability to  capture images with paint, realistically and then later on in somewhat abstract forms. Seeing his early works in a museum in Barcelona today made me appreciate his work to be more than just his polygonal representation of people. I think like with most great artists, the greatness comes from beyond just accurately replicating an observation but also to illicit thoughts or emotion. As his career progressed Picasso led the way in exploring new artistic forms of expressing ideas. Moving away from such realistic portrayals of what was observed actually made me think more of what Picasso was trying to share with the viewer. Maybe it was nothing at all and just a way of showing what he saw through his kaleidoscope-like brain. 

Eventually I wondered how he came up with new ways to think, new ways to express himself. Or how anyone comes up with original ways of doing things. Or if anyone actually has any original thoughts at all. Picasso seems to have influences from many different cultures and he's borrowed many of the methods he's seen and made them his own. Perhaps original thought is really just taking what previous thnkers, people, and/or cultures have done and pushing the limits just a bit more. More than what is the norm, more than what is expected. 

Perhaps just as my dad built upon what his dad had done, I will stand on his shoulders and reach new heights!

Maybe I'll have Picasso-like gift! Maybe I'll discover how to travel at the speed of light! So many paths I could take. 

But first I need to master walking on my own. 

- L.P.

Dress code is business homeless

Barcelona is a really nice city. Maybe better than Paris. Hard to say because the weather is so much better in Barcelona. Being near the coast is a nice bonus as well. It doesn't match the Parisian variety and quantity of incredible buildings but it does have Gaudi. 

Gaudi was alive during the late 1800's and early 1900's. He was basically an architect that rethought gothic techniques and popularized modernism. Walking throughout the city one can see a number of Gaudi buildings. 

The buildings aren't like any I've ever seen. It's almost like they are too crazy to be taken seriously. It's as if a child designed the castle, asking for an inordinate amount of towers, candy lining the roof tops and then having it built. 

La sagrada familia is still being built over 75 years since Gaudi's death. He died in 1926 after being run over by a tram. Apparently he dressed very shabbily and somewhat like a homeless person so that when he was run over, no one recognized him as "Gods architect". It wasn't until a couple days after that he was recognized but at that point he had succumbed to his injuries and died at the age of 73. 

Walking back to the apartment we are staying at after a long day of walking and sight-seeing, we saw a man in the corner of the apartment building laying down on a mattress with a sleeping bag reading a book with his Armani reading spectacles and dressed in a suit. He was dressed quite formally (business homeless). It made me wonder if he was like Gaudi. A genius, dressed like a bum. He must see the world quite differently than anyone else, living his life the way he does. It allows him to see perspectives and beauty in things we take for granted. Maybe he was reading some philosophical works of masters long gone. Maybe he was reading up on the latest in nanotechnology. 

Given that a Gaudi comes a long once a millennium, it's likely that he's average (and special) just like everyone else. It's fun to wonder though. 

I tried dressing like a genius would. I'm not sure if it's working. Mostly this is just a place on my head that I just can't seem to reach. The arm length to head circumference is working against me at this point. Maybe I could become an evil genius - the large head size would give me a great evil nickname! El McBraino! A name that would pay homage to my heritage and my melon. 

People watching people who watch people

Today was spent in the town of Avignon. Quite the place. During the 14th century it was the home of one of the popes. Apparently there was a great schism in the church. Different kings supported different popes likely to get support for things they wanted to get done. The pope in Rome eventually won but the dual papacy lasted for over a century if I recall correctly. I wonder how a dual papacy would go over now? 

The town is enclosed by a wall and aside from the castle where the pope resided the town is filled with shops and cafés. These cafés seem to be set up just as a venue for people watching. There is no such thing as a bad seat as all the chairs are oriented to allow for viewing of the people passing by. 

No more pretense - we are just here to watch. At some point there will be cafés facing each other having people from one side of the street watching people seated at the cafe on the other side of the street.

We saw the old statue trick being done - paint yourself in silver and don't move. Not bad. Mommy and I got a picture taken with the statue. I wanted to be in the middle but mommy wouldn't let me. 

We also saw some guy playing some classical guitar in front of the palais de papes. Pretty good. He held the guitar in an almost standing bass formation. He had super long nails on one hand and short nails on the other. Without guitar in hand must be kind of weird to explain the asymmetry. 

Public washrooms have come in two different varieties: ones with a separate hot and a cold faucet or ones with a basin so small you can only fit one hand at a time. Are they against hand washing after using the washroom or is it more a conservation of water?

I'm not sure how many espresso cups you could fit in the basin. Three or four at most! (Also the no toilet paper in the toilet is weird - what are you supposed to call toilet paper that doesn't go in the toilet anyways? I can understand no diapers...)

Anyways. A bit of a ramble. Tomorrow is our last day before we head off to Barcelona. Switching from French to Spanish... Curious to see if it's only the language that changes. 

More later!

- Lucas Perez 

On the concept of cheese as a dessert

Today was spent in the more rural areas of France, southern France near Avignon to be more specific. 

The drive was a bit of an adventure with narrow roads and being stuck with a 9 person van. It's hard for dad to imagine he's in a sports car, winding his wha through windy roads with such a top heavy box on wheels. 

We made two stops: the first at St Remy de Provence and the second at a town of Arles. Every time we drive into or past a small town I expect the villagers to break into song, much like the Disney movie "The Beauty and the Beast". The lack of mimes snaps me back into reality. That and the absence of the easily identifable French villain with his thin moustache sinister sneer. I figure French crime rate must be very low since bad guys all just look like thieves, right?

St Remy de Provence was nice. There was a market in town where we spent about two hours milling around the town square which was overrun by salesmen and tourists looking to purchase items that would capture the essence of France. I have a dream that I come across a valuable item, like a first edition copy of Principia or the declaration of independence (why I would find it in France I don't know) but I have yet to come across it. My mom buys things of which there are thousands of copies - like a mug that says "Provence" on it. It ends up next to the framed map of Chile or the disney t-shirt. Quite the keepsake!  The stay ended up with some crepes and coffee at a little plaza. Its kinda cool to see the cobblestone pathways, the narrow streets and the crowd while sitting at a small little table. The be thing I didn't expect to see was the police on roller blades. On cobblestone roads. Doesnt seem to well thought out to me. 

In Arles we visited ancient roman ruins. Amphitheater that fit 5000 people. An arena that could fit 20000. Huge buildings made out of stone. I wonder which of our buildings will remain in a thousand years that future geneerations will want to keep as a demonstration of how we used to live. A library would be a cool thing to keep.

 - "Imagine that they they had to keep physical copies of everything they wrote. And if this building burnt down, no more books!"

Or also something like a car wash. 

- "this is where they brought their motor vehicles to get cleaned. Yes, even in the winter when the water would freeze, they still washed their cars. Yes, even in the spring where the slush and mud would ruin all their cleaning efforts immediately."

Today we are off to visit a Fortress and castle. Hopefully. If I'm a good boy and don't cry too much. 

- Lucas Perez. 

 PS. Cheese! It's good. But I think I prefer it as a snack or an appetizer. It's not a fruit plate but I think it's soemthing that I'm willing to adopt at home. 

On the concept of beautiful living

Paris is a beautify city. Everything is very nice to look and is esthetically pleasing.

I would think that most calgarians would like to see some cultural influx into the city, a change in architectural style that reflects the sophistication of Calgary itself. At least a modern version of urban design and not the classical French influence. However, having seen the size of the apartments, I wonder if we would sacrifice the space we afford ourselves for beautiful cramped living. Given that c-trains are too crowded and that yards are too small I find it hard to believe that people would be ok with an apartment that could only fit a 5-in-1 microwave/oven/washer/dryer/tv and a parking spot that requires the George Jetson suitcase car.  After having to shower in a space smaller than my office closet which can't fit all my books, I'm not sure if I could. 

We could bring beauty to Calgary instead. The proble I think is that it costs money. Money that people would rather spend on other, more practical things, like homeless shelters, public transportation, snow removal, etc. That and when a somewhat artistic effort is attempted, half (or more) don't like it, don't think it's necessary and that it's a waste. 

Maybe gold plated governmental buildings is a waste. But I'm sure there's a middle ground. 

PS. Left the big city to enjoy the countryside. I'm having a great time. 

QOTD: "Lucas has blue eyes!" 

- "No he doesn't."

- "Yes he does. Let me show you. Now his eyes have changed color." 

- "Amazing."

The "Le Louvre"

The louvre is a pretty amazing place. Large collections of many artifacts and paintings and antiquities. We spent most of our time in the Greek and egyptian collections as well as the Italian gallery and napoleonic apartments. One of the good things about the museum is that they rented audio guides (nintendo ds systems that were loaded with maps and information about the important exhibits). This makes the museum much more informative I find as it lets me understand what I'm looking at and why it's important. Today Lori asked why a small egyptian dagger was given such a large display case. Turns out its about 5000 years old - seems like something of value! There was some art that to me seemed to blend in to the many other paintings. I didn't realize it was the "first time" Mary was represented as an ordinary woman, wearing normal clothes and without the aura of holy-ness. Quite a scandal at the time. 

The other thing that caught my attention was the sense that the  French see themselves as guardians of world art and culture.  As if they are the curators of the world museum - caring and understanding art that only they could appreciate. Hard to argue when you see the spectacular settings in which the paintings and antiquities are displayed. 

I'd like to be educated in art history but without being a snob about it. Like a wine connesieur but not one that you want to punch in the face. One that you'd like to share a bottle of wine or two with willingly. Sort of like a GOOD WILL HUNTING version of intellectual. "Surprise! You didn't know I was Mensa did you?"

More updates to come. I need my diapers changed. 

QOTD: "Marco, come take a selfie of me!"

Versailles garden party...

May 24th, 2014 - Paris, France

After much needed rest, it was an early morning for the three generations of Perez males. Given that it was an early night due to lingering effects jet lag, it was not a major struggle to wake at first light. After some quick showers and half a croissant to eat, we were out the door. We were on our way to see the Chateau du Versailles. 

To get the the chateau we used public transport  Paris has one of the largest train/metro systems I've seen. Smaller than London's system but still pretty big. It's been around since 1900. Figuring out how to get to Versailles using the train system was a little complicated because the line we had to take was actually under construction but we didn't know until we had to get off mid route. After a bus ride, more trains, a walk and about 90 minutes in travel time we arrived at the chateau. 

The place is huge. Tour guide said that there was 8000 people working the chateau during the times of Louis xxiv, with about 2000 visiting courtiers and about the same number of horses meaning that there was about 10000 people at he chateau at any given time. And from what the tour guide said, the courtiers job was to watch the king do .... things. Watch him wake up, eat, go to bed, play pool or whatever else. I think you have to have the right temperament to be in that sort of spotlight all day. Or maybe you learn to be that way being born into it. I wonder how people I know would change, or not change, if they were suddenly named king. If being in the spotlight is something that can be learned, could a 40 year old learn to have that much attention? Such a crazy life that such a small percentage of people get to expereince. How could a king possibly relate to the people he is meant to rule? I wonder if kings saw themselves as lucky... Or if they actually thought they possessed a skill that merited their lofty position in life. 

The French monarchy didn't survive the revolution. There is no king/queen of France. The chateau, much like the monarchy is a thing of the past. It is now a museum and it shows paintings depicting the French military history and a sprinkling of some of the great French thinkers (there are a lot of great French mathematicians!). Quite a place overall - I've never seen anything else like it. 

Three pseudo random thoughts

1. Would you rather be a king but die at 25 or live an average life and die at 65?

2. I like French coffee. I'm fighting the urge to use Starbucks terminology - haven't seen a Starbucks yet. 

3. Accents are funny. People infer so much from an accent. All it really says is where you learned to speak. 

4. What's the one thing from Paris that you would put into calgary and how much would it change Calgary?

5. Juanfran from athletico madrid looks like the last person I would pick in a pickup soccer game. He has a strong visual accent. 

Back to the Old World

First entry of a daily (hopefully) chronicle of events, meant to log all the adventure, intrigue and mystery of intercontinental travel! The adventure divides itself into 5 parts. Parts one and two are in France, starting off in Paris and then heading south to Provence. Part three is takes place in Barcelona while part 4 and 5 are in Rome and Florence respectively. A somewhat random sampling of Europe, guided unconsciously by culinary expectations. 

It will be a planes, trains and automobile affair. I'm looking forward to seeing the driver - pedestrian relationship in different countries and cultures. Do drivers yield to pedestrians? Is the sidewalk considered an extension of the road? Do the painted line dividers of roads actually influence a drivers decision making? How much honking will there be? Are there local honk and or light patterns that drivers employ to signify "Careful! I'm about to do something reckless!"

We speak spanish and english so as travellers in europe we should be ok. During the time that my dad lived in Montreal, there was some french being spoken so I can assume there will be some understanding of what is going on. No doubt grandpa will be trying to blend in as if he were a native frenchman. Its been over 30 years since French was spoken in the household yet I expect he will be offended when the locals respond in English. Spain will be interesting in that we speak Spanish yet the accent will brand us as tourists (that and the blonde nanny that we employ). I also expect Spanish speaking to continue in Italy with the expectation that everything be understood completely because they sound so similar. 

Manwhile, I'll just sit back and watch, enjoying the sights and sounds. Leisurely strolls, exploring new countries, seeing new sights. I'll try and give an accurate report on what I see and any insight that come to mind (similarities amongst the human race regardless of where they live and the differences that make different countries seem so foreign). 

Off for my first flight! Next time you'll hear from me I'll be in Paris!

- Lucas Perez