Palm Sunday in Lodi

Over the past year, it has become somewhat of a tradition of mine to go for a late morning stroll through Lodi’s historic centre on a Sunday. Usually many people are out and about and I love the relaxed atmosphere that stresses the importance of family and friends.

Today was no exception and the beautiful April temperatures brought out even more locals than usual. As I wandered down the cobblestoned streets and lanes, I noticed something out of the ordinary. Many people were carrying what appeared to be olive tree branches as they looked in shop windows that have now been decorated for Easter, or Pasqua as it is known in Italy. “Ciao Danielle!” I heard a voice ring out over the crowd. It was a friend of mine and I asked her what exactly was going on. “It’s Palm Sunday today!” she replied laughing “Go to the cathedral and you will see for yourself.” I took her advice and headed to Piazza della Vittoria where the Basilica Cattedrale della Vergine Assunta is located.

For those of you who are not familiar with the celebration, Palm Sunday marks the beginning of holy week in Italy. It is said to be the day that Jesus Christ rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and was greeted by hoards of followers. The bible describes how the people lined his path with their cloaks and palm leaves, thus giving birth to the name Palm Sunday.

When I arrived at the cathedral, many worshipers were entering and exiting the side doors and I decided to do the same. Once inside I saw that there was a service taking place and all of the seats were occupied, with only standing places remaining. I watched from the shadows for one moment, observing the proceedings in silence along with countless others around me. After several minutes, I noticed a large pile of olive branches on the cathedral’s floor. People exiting the church were taking several of them and leaving a small donation in a collection plate that had been placed upon a table near the door. I asked one woman what the olive branches were for and she explained that they had been blessed and that many people would adorn the crucifixes in their homes with them. Apparently they use olive branches in Italy because they are easier to obtain than palm leaves. Although I am not religious, I made my offering of one Euro and took a neatly packaged bundle of the branches home with me. Perhaps they will bring me good fortune this year.

I returned later on in the day to explore the inside of the cathedral for myself without the masses. I figured that since today was a day of religious significance, I might as well immerse myself in all things catholic. While the outside of the duomo is certainly more impressive than the inside, the cathedral boasts a few beautiful displays. There is also a wonderful museum located up a flight of stairs that houses some of the building’s historic artifacts and sculptures. Oddly enough, although I have lived in Lodi for almost a year now, I had never actually been into the duomo until today and the positive experience has definitely spurred me on to check out the insides of more historical buildings in the area.

After my brush with religion, I elected to explore the Sunday market, which congregates directly behind the cathedral. Although it is not a particularly large market, it is always a fun place to hunt for bargains and to purchase clothing especially.

On the first Sunday of every month in Lodi there is also an antiques and crafts market which takes place near Piazza Castello. This particular market is a treasure trove of oddities and one can spend a great deal of time rummaging through everything from old military helmets to antique furniture. As I strolled at a leisurely pace, greeting various acquaintances of mine along the way, I couldn’t help but feel extremely lucky to be in Lodi. In the background, a band began to play and a man’s voice echoed through the streets. “Summertime, and the living is easy. Fish are jumping and the cotton is high.” He sang with a thick Italian accent. “Your daddy’s rich and your mamma’s good looking. So hush little baby don’t you cry.” It’s moments like these that make you appreciate the beauty of life and pause for just a moment to smell the roses.

While I’m sure that Palm Sunday celebrations may have been more extravagant elsewhere in Italy, the simplicity of Lodi’s observance of the occasion was charming. I love these people’s zest for life and I think that we could all learn a thing or two from the Italians.

Filming with Andrea Pirlo

I was watching Italian television today in the early afternoon, mostly because all of the North American shows that I follow are currently on a mid-season hiatus and also because I was searching for a mind-numbing pastime that might help me to kill the hour before work. After being somewhat mesmerised by a program that featured a chimpanzee that no one seemed to realise was not in fact a human being, I began to flick through the channels aimlessly. Suddenly something caught my eye, it was a television commercial for a national Italian bank. The reason why this particular commercial was of interest to me was because it was set in Lodi. The advertisement featured various people in business suits walking around the city with red coat arms. It sounds a little bit strange I know and I remember wondering what the deal with the coat arms was when I passed by the crew filming in Piazza della Vittoria a few months ago.

For most cities, a film crew along with minor celebrities would be a big deal, but to the locals of Lodi, it is almost a regular occurrence. Lodi is actually a very popular destination for the filming of movies, television shows and advertisements. I think that its proximity to Milan, along with the beauty and charm of its square and surrounding streets make it the ideal place to showcase traditional Italian living. It is not uncommon during the summer months, to take a stroll through the city centre and stumble upon photo shoots complete with glamorous models or massive buffet tables filled with food and drinks for hungry camera men in the piazza. The most amusing thing is that ninety percent of the time, the locals simply go about their routines as normal; weaving their way through the mess of tangled wires and crew members that occasionally litter the streets without so much as even casting a glance in the direction of the action. Of course there are rare moments, such as when a truly massive superstar comes to town, when even the most jaded of the Laudense take notice. I witnessed one of these moments up close last summer.

It was just like any other day in June and I was headed towards Piazza della Vittoria to buy more minutes for my cell phone when I noticed a huge crowd gathered around the square. As I approached it to see what all of the fuss was about, I quickly realised that a film crew were shooting something and that there was some kind of a football player at the centre of all of the attention. After a few more moments I recognised him as Andrea Pirlo, one of Italy’s most famous players.

Personally I have only a passing interest in football, or soccer to many of my North American friends. I grew up watching every World Cup with my father, who is somewhat passionate about it, and listening as he launched into an array of tirades aimed at different players who he believed were underperforming. The one that I recall being the most frequent of these rants was “Baggio…Baggio!” After Italy’s disappointing defeat in the final of the 1994 World Cup, that was all I heard for the next several months and to be honest the chant is even still brought up to this day! Anyway, back to Andrea, for those of you who are unfamiliar with him, he helped Italy to win the World Cup in 2006 and currently plays for Italian Serie A team Juventus. In Italy, the man is basically a God.

So there I was, standing shoulder to shoulder with people dressed in AC Milan (Andrea’s former club) jerseys, complete with Pirlo’s name emblazoned on the back, while struggling to take pictures of the megastar. After all, my father as well as every European male acquaintance of mine would surely kill me if they learnt that I had seen Andrea Pirlo and not managed to take at least several photos. The scene that was being filmed seemed to involve Andrea kicking a football towards a group of school children and the director, who looked slightly goofy sporting a Mohawk and wearing army shorts, made the actors involved repeat their lines at least twenty times before calling for a short break. While his young co-stars took a few minutes to drink soft drinks and eat from the buffet, Andrea greeted his fans, who swamped him for autographs the moment that he made himself available to them.

It seemed as though it would be virtually impossible to get within several feet of Pirlo, let alone obtain his autograph or have my picture taken with him. Luckily for me, however, just when I was about to give up hope and move along, fate provided me with a backstage pass to the film set. The whole crowd was being controlled by several security guards and kept in check by a barrier of caution tape. Basically those who were on the right side of the tape were allowed unlimited access to the filming and everyone else could get no closer than about twenty meters away. When a city bus had to pass through the square, the tape had to be raised momentarily and when it was lowered once more, I suddenly found myself on the desirable side.

When one of the security guards smiled and nodded at me, I took it as a clear sign that I was being allowed access to the area and decided to inch ever closer to Andrea Pirlo and the rest of the film crew. There were quite a lot of people involved and I doubt that they all knew one another. The atmosphere was fairly relaxed and a number of other spectators had also randomly been granted a closer view of the action. As various passers by nodded at me as if I was one of the group, I did what anyone else would do and nodded back in acknowledgment. I told myself to keep my mouth shut because although the security guard seemed fine with me being there, I didn't really want to disturb anyone who might want to kick me off of the set.

After my initial nervousness, I soon relaxed when it became apparent that nobody was concerned with my presence. Andrea had now moved on to a photo shoot where he had to hold a ball with wings while wearing what appeared to be a Juventus-themed housecoat. The whole thing was mildly comical and Andrea looked a little bit fed up as he posed uncomfortably for countless shots. I positioned myself directly behind the camera man and took a few pictures of my own. Once again no one even questioned my presence; they simply smiled at me and nodded. At one point even Pirlo himself noticed me and squinted in my direction. His face pondered who I was and after a few moments he simply gave up trying to figure it out.

I waited patiently for the shoot to finish and when Andrea Pirlo stepped away from the cameras, I swooped in and asked for a photograph. I told him that my father and boyfriend are both huge fans of his and he happily agreed. Although he was obviously tired, he was friendly and very down to earth. He was certainly a great deal more relaxed than some of the other famous sports personalities who I have met over the years. Once my mission had been accomplished, I slipped quietly back onto the other side of the caution tape and rushed home excited to see the photograph on my computer. Unfortunately it is an absolutely horrendous picture of me, I look like I have a double chin and I am making a very rodent-like expression that has since been named “the chipmunk face” by my family and friends. I think that the person who took the photograph snapped it while I was in the midst of talking to Pirlo or something. Still, as embarrassing as it is, I proudly display the souvenir in my apartment. After all, I have a photograph of myself with Andrea Pirlo, can you say the same?

Just in case you were interested in the actual commercial itself. It turned out to be for the Sky Sports television network. Here is a link to the finished product: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YA4UPxRmOmI

Gelato Gratis

What’s one thing that’s better than ice cream? Free ice cream! That’s right, today while walking in town I stumbled upon an ice cream parlour that had the two sweetest words in the Italian language posted on a sign just outside the window. “Gelato Gratis!” It stated in bold letters. The announcement alone was enough to stop me dead in my tracks, after all who wouldn’t want a tasty treat free of charge? The fact that this was also no ordinary ice cream, but rather Italian gelato, which is basically frozen heaven in a cone, made the whole thing even sweeter. It seemed as though the locals were also fans of a bargain as they flocked in hoards to sample the ice cream for themselves. Men in business suits stood in circles outside, happily eating cones filled with various pastel-coloured flavours. Groups of school children crowded together inside the shop. They demanded chocolate, pistachio and every other kind of ice cream imaginable from the exhausted ladies behind the counter. While waiting in line, a breathless teenager asked me if all of the ice cream was indeed free. When I replied that it was, he turned around to his group of friends and exclaimed “Si!!!” In an instant it was as if they all became little kids again. They abandoned their blasé attitudes and bored facial expressions, cheering out loud while giggling excitedly. It’s too bad that Kimi Raikkonen is currently busy preparing for the second round of Barcelona testing. If anyone in the paddock knows how to enjoy an ice cream, it is certainly him!

Speaking of the Barcelona test, all of today’s major Formula 1 headlines circulated around the upcoming engagement. It seems as though both Ferrari and Red Bull will have to run along with the masses starting on March first and finishing on the fourth. As I stated in Sunday’s blog post, the two teams had originally planned to start the test a day later than the rest of the field and finish on the fifth. The FIA, however, decided today that all the teams had to complete the meeting together, thus putting an end to Ferrari and Red Bull’s logistical plan.

There was disappointing news too for Marussia, who announced today that they will miss the Barcelona meeting because their new single-seater failed its final FIA crash test. The failure means that Marussia will arrive at the first race (assuming that they indeed pass the crash test before Melbourne) with no mileage on their new car. This is surely not the way that drivers Timo Glock and Charles Pic wanted to start the 2012 season.

The final piece of news that caught my eye today was another story about Kimi Raikkonen’s motivation. It seems as though the resurrected Finn is keen to shed his reputation for falling asleep behind the wheel. “People always talk about motivation, but the people who write it probably don’t even know me.” Raikkonen told F1 Racing magazine. “It’s not a lack of motivation if your car is shit and even if you drive your best and still can’t get a good result. My feeling is that I drove one of my best years in my last year for Ferrari. I’ve never had a problem with motivation.” Until I see otherwise, I will believe Kimi when he says that he is adequately motivated for the season ahead. Still, if I were Eric Boullier, I would have a fridge stocked full of ice cream and an electric cattle prodder on hand during every race! As I said earlier, it's a shame that both Boullier and Raikkonen didn't make it out to Lodi today, they probably could have gotten themselves a pretty good deal.

Carnevale in Lodi

The north of Italy is about to experience a warm front that will apparently reach up to twenty degrees Celsius this weekend and today was the first day in a long time that the locals put away their heavily padded coats and opted for something lighter. It was mid-afternoon by the time that I emerged from my apartment and as I unzipped my winter jacket, I couldn’t help but feel that spring is just around the corner. Even though I had heard that Lodi’s Carnevale celebrations were kicking off today, people had warned me that the city does next to nothing to mark the occasion. Still, I ventured towards Piazza della Vittoria, curious to see what, if anything was happening. I should have guessed that the people who are known throughout Italy for hosting an annual competition that involves grown men pushing wooden horses around in circles wouldn’t leave me disappointed.

As I entered the square I was surprised to see hoards of small children and their families, all in costume and having a wonderful time. The children had just been let out of school for the day and clutched bags of confetti. They threw handfuls of it at one another, screaming joyously as they ran amongst the crowd. Princesses battled with lions and a boy dressed as a clown clutched a superbike balloon while picking his nose. Stalls had been erected amongst the mayhem, selling cotton candy and silly string and a large inflatable slide drew a line of eager youngsters. Several horse drawn carriages and chariots took excited passengers for a ride around the piazza’s perimeter free of charge. The proud animals remained calm amongst the confusion and allowed their adoring fans to caress them when they were not on the move.

There was a very Italian situation when several city buses attempted to cross the piazza only to be met head on by a fleet of horse-drawn carriages. The humorous stand-off lasted several minutes and created an animal pile-up which somehow ended up with a llama rear-ending a chariot! Thankfully no one was injured and after extensive police direction, the carriages, buses and of course, the llama, were all able to continue along their separate courses.

In addition to the horses and llama an exotic guest had been invited to the party. A large dromedary joined the festivities and mingled amongst curious bystanders who flocked to greet it. Various costumed youngsters worked up the nerve to touch the beast as it paraded around and even stuck its tongue out, much to the amusement of those in attendance. A group of teenaged boys sniggered amongst one another as a little girl recoiled when the dromedary came a little too close. Hearing their commotion, the single-humped creature quickly turned its attention on them, provoking several high-pitched shrieks and much laughter.

Although Lodi’s Carnevale celebrations only lasted a few hours and cannot even be compared to the festivities that I witnessed in Venice, they were still a lot of fun and somehow fitting for this quirky Italian city. There may not have been fancy buskers wearing elaborate costumes like you see in Piazza di San Marco, nor were there thousands of international visitors in attendance. Still, Lodi does have one fantastic thing that the world-famous Venice does not. Lodi has a dromedary!

An Italian Dog’s Life

I had a rather relaxing Sunday today! It is getting warmer again and the last of the snow is melting. I decided to take advantage of the milder temperatures and took a canine friend of mine out for a walk and play in the snow! She is Canadian like I am, a black Labrador, and she had a great time bounding around and sniffing other dog’s bottoms!

One thing to note about Italians is that they are passionate about their dogs. Walking through town, it seems as though everybody has one and they are always eager to talk about them. I don’t see many larger dogs, mostly the little ones wearing hooded jackets and tiny matching booties. The smaller dogs are so funny because they are always so feisty and rambunctious, I often hear them yelping at one another in the street throughout the day. There is even one that lives near my apartment whose bark sounds like an old man trying to shout! The first couple of times I heard it I wondered what all the commotion was about, until I finally managed to observe the quivering white mutt standing on his balcony antagonising canine passers by.

Dogs are allowed to go into shops and restaurants here, so it is not uncommon to be shopping and look down to observe one sniffing your leg. There is also an upscale clothing store in Piazza della Vittoria that has a dog permanently roaming around inside. He does not seem too bothered by the people all around him and prefers to sleep on the welcome mat just inside the door, so that he can observe all of the customers coming and going.

It is a wonderful life indeed for those canines lucky enough to end up in Italy. Pampered doesn’t even begin to describe them and at times I feel that many local owners tend to go overboard babying their pets. There is even a special dog store in Lodi that sells bejewelled collars, scented poop bags and mini tiaras. Still, maybe the Italians are onto something, after all a dog is a man/woman’s best friend!

Pizza Caption Competition

Today I visited my favourite pizzeria in Lodi for lunch. The little family-run shop, known to many of the locals as Castello, is located right beside Piazza Castello and sells amazing pizza and focaccia by the slice! My current favourite is their potato pizza. I have no idea how they make it taste so phenomenal, but it simply melts in your mouth and the little herbs they add give it an extra kick that sends me back for more at least once a week.

If you decide to take your pizza home, they give it to you in a variety of random and humorous boxes. I’m not sure that the boxes are supposed to be humorous, but I always see each of them as a caption competition waiting to happen. Today’s box depicts two men making pizza and I thought that it would be fun to hear some other people’s thoughts on the design.

Don’t be shy and post your captions in the comments section, you can always leave your comment anonymously. I will be sure to announce the winner in a few weeks time. I’m looking forward to reading your response!

Winter Wonderland

It is really coming down out there! I went outside to take pictures and ruined my so-called winter boots in the slush and snow...looks like I may have to go shopping before Maranello! The city is absolutely stunning covered in a thin white blanket. I decided to share a few of my photos of Lodi with you.

In other news, I read an article on espn this morning talking about how the snow may cancel the proposed shake down of this year's single-seater. Rumor has it that Felipe Massa has been selected to drive the car first at the inaugural test of the season in Jerez. Once again, I am keeping my fingers crossed that this weather settles down and that the team decide to run the car around Fiorano on Friday. Here's the link to that particular story http://en.espnf1.com/ferrari/motorsport/story/68965.html