Italia 2017 - Ravenna, Paradise Found & The Bus Version of MUPGT

On Sunday, we took a day trip to Ravenna. Ravenna is a magical place. I've wanted to go to Ravenna for years and years and years. You know how you get yourself all excited about the prospects of  something, then the experience isn't anywhere near the anticipation. That WAS NOT the case with our visit to Ravenna.

A little history is in order. Ravenna has a special place in history. It was the last capital of the Western Roman Empire. And it was a last bastion of Byzantine power in the West. Byzantium, that Eastern part of the Roman Empire that lasted for another thousand years after the fall of the Empire in the West, has become an afterthought in the teaching of Western civilization when it should be a major focus. It was a major power for centuries and it influenced the retaining of knowledge and had a refined culture and aesthetic. Unfortunately because Byzantium was eventually conquered by the Ottoman Turks, very little of their art work remains. Ravenna, however, former Imperial city is an anomaly. For it contains some of the best know examples of Byzantine art, in particular mosaics.

The use of mosaics to create spectacular works of art were a Byzantine specialty and I have never seen anything like it in all the rest of my travels. We saw samples of these when we were in Istanbul but this was far better. So forgive me if I go crazy over the pictures but that's what happens when you are in love LOL.

The train ride to Ravenna takes about an hour and a half. On Sunday morning the train was just about deserted. Arriving a Ravenna it is a short walk to the center of town and tourist information office. Armed with our map we head out to the first two of the sites we wanted to see, the Mausoleo di Galla Placidia and the Bascilica di San Vitale. The former was built in the mid-5th century for the sister of the Emperor Honorius. The Basilica was consecrated about 100 years later in 548 AD. Please note the construction of these and most of the building you will see is of brick. Although common imagery has Roman architecture being of massive stone buildings, in fact brick was the much more common structure used for building.

Bascilica and Mausoleo from outside

Note brickwork detail

Even I could pick up the guide speaking Mandarin with a heavy Italian accent

Inside the Mausoleo

Detail

Now into the Bascilica

Showing some of the building in its unrestored state. It is a fact that virtually everything one sees in Europe of a historical nature is rebuild and restored as most was destroyed by the World Wars.

Getting into the detail, I think it is amazing how the faces have so much life and are clearly individuals. And the colors of these done in mosaic and the painting as well are bright, not like the dark pictures of the Western European school.

On to the Domus Dei Tappeti

This was not one of the major sites but was fascinating nonetheless

It is one of the only residential buildings excavated in Ravenna

If you've seen other Roman houses from earlier periods, such as Pompey, this will look very familiar, even though it dates to almost 40 year later.

Here to get an idea of the size and scale

Detail

They had to go through many layers of changes put over the original

Here is an idea of what it looked like prior to the restoration

On to the Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo!!!

This was build in the mid-6th century by the Gothic King Theodoric (and you thought the Goths were...well Goths!). This is one of the oldest and largest works of Byzantine mosaic.

The Exterior and nearby Palace

A panorama to give you the full scope of the work

And now into the mosaics themselves

The Emperor Justiian

And painting as well

Did you know the Magical Unicorn Pony God of Travel does city buses too?

As walked out of the Basilica we saw the bus we wanted to take go down the street. No problems because the tourist information office said they run every 30 minutes. Except they don't on Sunday. They run once an hour. We were headed for the one site located out of walking distance, the Basilica Di Sant'Apollinare en Classe. Once we finally got on the bus, the bus driver seemed to take particular joy in jolting every passenger so they lost their balance. Then we finally get there and it is the least interesting of the places we visited. We also haven't eaten anything since a sandwich we brought on the train except for some gelato and it is now 3 PM. We finish this site in 15 minutes. We ARE NOT going to miss the bus back. We managed to grab a sandwich which we gulp down and do catch the bus, while sadly watching another tourist couple who got the timing wrong looking wistfully at the bus as we jolt down the road

Back into the town again for two more great sites, the Battistero Neoniano and the Cappella di Sant'Andrea. Unfortunately they don't let you take pictures of the later but I think you will agree the Battistero is really head of the class.

It really amazes me the facial expression they were able to get using this medium

And I will finish up with this painting which I loved because of the effect showing the body semi-submerged

The train back was as packed as the one going out was empty with people returning on a Sunday night. We exhausted got a pizza for dinner at a place near the rental. But gad what a great place.