VISIT ITALY: SIRACUSA

In Syracuse, very armored sets set up in two of the most evocative places in the city: at the Neapolis archaeological park, and in particular at the Ear of Dionysus and at the Grotta dei Cordari. Then to the Maniace Castle, in the historic center of Ortigia. In addition to Harrison Ford also the female protagonist Phwoebe Waller-Bridge. Ropes, very steep wooden stairs, a chase between tunnels, even in the unique scenarios of Syracuse the archaeologist (or rather his stand-in) seems to have been put to the test. And here is that the Ear of Dionysus lends itself to being transformed into a mine, and the Maniace Castle is the heart of several scenes shot between the mainland and the sea with spectacular special effects: explosions, smoke and gunshots.

Eagle Pictures has chosen Sicily and in particular Trapani, San Vito Lo Capo, Cefalù and Syracuse to set the fifth episode of the saga. The mega production booked luxury villas and hotel rooms on the island, and of course the various services such as restaurants and drivers for the approximately 600 people working on the film. Millions of euros for traders from all over Sicily.

Pizza, pistachio desserts and almond biscuits. The most famous archaeologist of cinema lands in Sicily and chooses a bakery in Paternò, in the Catanese area, for a quick lunch. Harrison Ford, 79, arrived at Catania airport for a week of filming the new Indiana Jones in Sicily (theatrical release scheduled for July 2022). First stop in Syracuse for the Hollywood star, then by car to Cefalù where the set designers have been working for several days to give the city the image of a 1969 town.

Syracuse, a fascinating and evocative place that Cicero defined as “the most beautiful city of Magna Graecia”, bears intact the signs of its history as a cultural capital from the Greek age to the Renaissance and Baroque periods.
Unesco World Heritage Site since 2005, the city stands in the setting of a suggestive natural harbor, closed to the east by the island of Ortigia and behind the Epipolis plateau.

The city preserves in every corner the testimonies of its past. Greek, Roman and Baroque styles come together in an irresistible scenario that tells millennia of history.
Starting from the ancient nucleus on the island of Ortigia, you can admire the cathedral, with its Baroque façade that rises on the peristyle of the Doric temple of Athena of the century. V BC, remodeled in the Norman era and later. Other important churches are that of San Giovanni alle Catacombe with the crypt of San Marziano, and the Church of Santa Lucia alla Badia with the painting by Caravaggio "Burial of Santa Lucia"

Going around Syracuse and observing the ancient vestiges of the city is surprising. Other examples of the archaeological wealth of Syracuse can then be admired at the "Paolo Orsi" regional archaeological museum, the largest in Sicily.
Absolutely not to be missed, on the extreme tip of the islet of Ortigia, a visit to the castle of Maniace, a remarkable example of military architecture built by Frederick II in the first half of the 13th century.

Those who love nature, must go a short distance from Syracuse, in this small area, located at the southernmost tip of Italy, which has become a paradise for those who love the environment, where there are four protected areas: the Anapo valley , the Cava Grande del Cassìbile, the Pantani di Vendìcari and the river Ciane with the Saline of Syracuse.
Finally, to be able to relax by the sea, near the city you can visit the seaside resorts of Lido Arenella, Ògnina (port-canal) and Fontane Bianche.

The Reserve is located between the municipalities of Noto, Avola and Syracuse. It is a complex of soft limestone rocks, located in the low Hyblaean plateau excavated by the Cassibile river, which over time have formed steep valleys called “caves” due to the action of erosion. One of the most spectacular is the Cava Grande crossed by the Cassibile river. 10 km long and 250 meters deep, it was the site of inhabited settlements in the Paleolithic era. Eight thousand cave-like rock tombs have been excavated in the walls, dating back to between the tenth and ninth centuries. B.C.

https://youtu.be/0BkAHkXf1zc

PAN’S LABYRINTH

The labyrinth of the faun is a parable full of esoteric meanings. An example is represented by the transformation path that the young Ofelia will have to face by overcoming her fears and making choices. The three tests to which the guardian Faun of the labyrinth subjects her are the initiation rite necessary to return to her kingdom. But it will be precisely by not completing them that the child will prove that she is the chosen one.

THE BLACK SWAN

We all know history. A young, sweet and pure, prisoner in the body of a swan, desires freedom, but only true love will break the spell. Her dream is about to come true thanks to a prince. But … before he declares his love for her, the envious twin, the black swan, deceives and seduces him. Devastated, the white swan throws itself off a cliff and kills itself and in death finds freedom.

DARK VIRTUALITY

I didn’t think the bottom of hell was that bad. It is filled with fear, tears, despair, anger, resignation and time does not flow here. It slips through your fingers but every day is the same as the others; filled with suffering. Sometimes you get out of breath it hurts so much trying to survive. It is called hell for a reason and as much as you want to make it, you are helpless. Crushed and reduced to a small and insignificant voice in an unprecedented din. We might as well adapt anyway, I’ll stay here for quite a while …I’m fine, but sometimes I break down and don’t notice. I’m fine, but sometimes my walls collapse and I realize I’m fragile. I’m fine, but sometimes I cry in front of a movie for too much love that I want and don’t have. I’m fine, but sometimes I don’t understand myself. I’m fine, but sometimes it still happens that I always hope too much and more than I should. I’m always fine, but sometimes I’m tired and my eyes shine less.

BOYS DON’T CRY

In January 1993 Brandon Teena arrives in Falla City (Nebraska), a cute young man who kills hearts among his peers and conquers that of Lana, who gives herself with passion and satisfaction. When Brandon is revealed to be a girl, two of the group’s goofy boys lose their minds and violence erupts. From a news story on which the debut director and Andy Bienen worked for 5 years creating a painful movie based on a true story.

VANISHING ON 7TH STRET

Have you ever wanted to wake up one day and never find anyone around? All vanished into thin air. And what could have happened? But will you really be alone or not?

CAMILLE CLAUDEL

CAMILLE CLAUDEL is a french female sculptress. She lives her life in an extraordinary and contradictory context in Belle Époque France where the realization of female identity was still very difficult. Despite the various obstacles, the sculptress managed to establish herself by carving out an unprecedented and not small space for action in art - there are over fifty works that document the entire span of her production - despite the existential junctions that strongly influenced her: the problematic relationship with the family, the strong bond with his brother Paul, who converted will become an exponent of the uncompromising Catholicism of the French society of the times, the love and hate story with the sculptor Rodin and finally the mental illness, the twist in itself - as in the statue of the cover image - and internment in an asylum.

The academy Camille attended was mainly dedicated to sculpture, offered women the same opportunities as men and left the pupils great flexibility in the curriculum. Shortly afterwards Camille decided to move to an atelier in Rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs, where in 1882 Auguste Rodin came to teach. At that time, the master had been fighting for a quarter of a century against the classicist sculpture of the time. After two years under the direction of Rodin, Camille perfectly modeled the human body especially her hands and feet, thus she became one of Rodin's assistants, preparing clay, plaster and armor or modeling the hands and feet of sculptural subjects. Their works in fact in that period are very similar, obviously Rodin used Camille's genius as it was normal at the time to use his assistants. It is also true that we have a large production of Rodin in this period, of Camille almost nothing.

Their well-known love affair, which was born working side by side, leads to fifteen years of a passionate and stormy affair, from which Camille will however emerge exhausted, defeated not only humanly but also as an artist to the point of destroying her own works. Camille ends her relationship with the sculptor after realizing that no marriage would be possible between them - Rodin will always remain attached to Rose Beuret, his constant companion for years that the sculptor will never leave. Most likely, from some sources there is also evidence of an interrupted pregnancy, it seems that this very event has seriously undermined the balance of the young woman. An unhappy love, that for Auguste Rodin, exclusive, tinged with professional jealousies and above all poisoned by the prejudices of society, by the distance and then by the abandonment of Camille by the Claudel family in solitude and in precarious economic conditions.

Camille has always shown that she has a unique talent and genius, she has absolute mastery of movement, think of one of her most famous works La Valse (1895-1905) where movement and stillness are in perfect balance. For the client, the figuration of an embrace was clear and the work even scandalized the inspector of the Ministry of Fine Arts.

Here it is a perfect whole of strength, screwed on itself, pushed by the dynamism of the male figure that wraps the female one tied and held by the dress that descends to the ground. For the artist it is an attempt to grasp life in its movement, in its transformation, in the precarious balance of a tormented bond. What matters is that over time, the artist will not want to depict a single figure, he is not satisfied with the character but wants to tell a story, a complete narrative. A talent, that of Camille, which already leads her to distinguish herself from her peers at the age of 12, took inspiration everywhere for her drawings and clay sculptures from old engravings to anatomical models using her brothers Paul and Louise as models.

Camille had a limp defect and this perhaps led her to seek perfection in art with an impulsive gesture. She was very attached to her father, who was in fact her greatest ally until his death in 1913 - once he died, perhaps the only ally in his life was interned in a mental hospital. Perhaps in Rodin he saw precisely his father, often absent for work: in the Buste de Rodin the master sculptor looks much more than his forty-four years, he looks like an old man with a thick beard, a severe but affectionate father figure.

Camille also had a close bond with her brother Paul, from an early age in fact their great imagination gave them a unique cohesion. Although after his law studies he embarked on a diplomatic career, he devoted himself to art through poetry and dramaturgy, after his conversion to Catholicism in 1886 he became one of the exponents of intransigent Catholicism, that Catholicism that felt public reproach in name of atavistic prejudices for nonconformist women like Camille. Camille's very religious middle-class family reacted to her crises by having her interned in a nursing home for the mentally ill in Montfavet, where she remained for thirty years until her death. According to a journalist of the time, Paul Théodore Vibert, Camille had been arbitrarily interned for persecution psychosis only because her family was ashamed of her and her unconventional behavior.

The story is quite well known today and the French have dedicated two films to it, one in 1988 with Isabelle Adjiani and Gérard Depardieu directed by bruno Nuytten, the other in 2013 with Isabelle Binoche and directed by Bruno Dumont. It was 1913 when her mother and brother Paul sent her to hospital. Camille died in an asylum in 1943, without ever creating works of art again. It is she herself who does not want to be given the materials for sculpting. Yet she still writes very lucid letters to her mother (who will never go to see her), to her brother, to some friends. From these letters Chiara Pasetti freely drew a play entitled Moi, contained in her book, which premiered in Genoa in September with the actress Lisa Galantini in the former asylum of Quarto. The book ends with photographs of many of his works and also some of Rodin's works.

GETTING BORED

Everyone has experienced boredom, perhaps on a rainy Sunday afternoon where there is nothing to do, it's cold outside and there is no one to go out with.
The boredom I am talking about in this POST comes from a deeper experience.
It is not boredom that arises from the absence of stimuli: it is boredom that arises from not being able to feel interest in the things we do and the people around us.
Anyone who gets bored in this way lives a daily life where nothing excites, involves and excites him.
The bored person dreams of a radical change, something that adds color to his existence but in the concrete he cannot indicate what could improve his life. new friends, try new clubs, invent a thousand things to do and even (in particular cases) try extreme sports or sexual experiences at the limit.
In fact, those who have this problem often manage to feel emotions and feel alive only by putting themselves in risky, extreme and transgressive situations which, however, over time lose their charge of exceptionality and become .. normal (therefore boring).
Those who are bored complain of easily getting tired of people, hobbies and anything: once the initial enthusiasm is exhausted, everything becomes obvious and the search for new friendships, interests and more stimulating and exciting situations begins again.

Boredom is not overcome by always seeking new stimuli or by radically changing my life (from the series "I quit everything and open a farmhouse in Tuscany") but by learning to value what you do, and to find a broader meaning in your daily life.
Small things are important but we often underestimate their value: for example, cleaning the house can be experienced as a tedious and tiring task but it becomes rewarding if I live cleaning as a means to create a comfortable environment for me and my parents. Dear.
Likewise, one's work can be immediately seen as an ungrateful duty, a source of boredom or considered in a more amapy perspective as a service to one's family or to the community.
The winning solution against boredom is to learn to be fully present in one's own reality and in one's family, work and social context.
The film "THE GROUNDHOG DAY " contains a masterful recipe to overcome boredom and apathy.
The protagonist of the film, a cynical and bored man, is forced by a spell to always relive the same day of his life, the day of the groundhog.
He finds himself stuck forever in living in a small provincial village, on a winter's day in a social context that seems to have little to offer him.
Every day the protagonist of the film wakes up knowing in advance how his day will unfold: it will be cold, he will always meet the same people and always make the same speeches. More boring than that!
To escape boredom, the protagonist does everything (including seducing some local girls) but nothing seems to give him satisfaction and his apathy increases day by day until he learns to live his day with a different spirit, looking at hers with love. everyday life.
The turning point comes when instead of focusing on the negative aspects of his situation (the cold, the small province, etc.) he begins to value the positive aspects of his life.
Instead of complaining about the winter weather, take advantage of the fun aspects of winter by learning how to make beautiful ice sculptures.
Instead of focusing on the flaws of the people around him, he learns to listen to them and help them by making so many friends. In a short time he begins to appreciate his reality that he previously considered banal and oppressive. And at that point his life changes radically, giving him everything he had always wanted (I don't write the predictable ending in case someone wants to see the film).

Finding yourself spending almost all hours of the day at home, following the Coronavirus emergency, and finding yourself at some point without knowing what to do, bored and almost, more tempted to go to bed in the middle of the afternoon because you really do is in the throes of personal despondency.

All is not lost, there is no need to break down but to find new life blood to face this period and come out stronger, when you can finally go back to making your everyday life.

Watch a documentary on a fact of history from the past to find out more

Start writing a personal diary, it doesn't matter if the first first does not coincide with January 1st
Take an online course on an unfamiliar topic that excites you

Write a map starting with one word and sequentially writing the first ones that come to mind

Order your desk, you will struggle less when you look for some precious papers in the morning

Read the book you've always promised yourself to do

Create a keepsake box by placing cards, photos, objects and holiday souvenirs inside

Try writing a fairy tale or a short story: you will remember when you heard them from your parents

Set up your favorite room

Scan with the scanner and archive your most important documents

Help a loved one in need: a phone call, right now, is worth so much more

Sort and catalog all your photos on your pc, creating easy-to-find folders

Cook a particular dish by leafing through a recipe book

Improvise a guide for a tourist in your city by walking around the house and improving communication

Delete bad memories from your social profiles

Listen to a new genre of music: who knows what different sensations you may experience

Enhance your resume to make it more attractive

Browse a geographical atlas to remember the countries and cities visited

Try drawing a landscape or a face

Watch a good moving film, comedy or thriller

Learn to take pictures with your smartphone

Start studying a foreign language

THE NEW AUDREY HEPBURN

Doesn't Lily Collins remind you of the famous and mythical Audrey Hepburn? The deeply dark look, the sober style, the simplicity of her elegance, all bring back to the actress we appreciated and loved in Breakfast at Tiffany's. 

I discovered it in the film Inheritance, which I loved very much. I see that she is an inconspicuous and not redone actress. I see her simple makeup and her essential style and it reminds me of the divine Audrey. What do you think?

Lily Collins evokes the myth of Audrey Hepburn, who has always been her great source of inspiration. And the similarity between the two is truly remarkable. And it is precisely her charm that reminds many and makes us think of another great actress, in this case from the past, whose resemblance to Collins is truly impressive.

The clothes she wears do not require a perfect physique. They are simple and the style can be imitated by any girl. Its beauty is simplicity. No heavy makeup, no very long nails, no too flashy shoes. Only herself in an exemplary mîse.

If you have to go to an event, a party, a wedding, here, you can take a cue from her. Be simple and cute with clothes that are not vulgar and not too expensive.

Even in a tank top and ponytail, Lily looks elegant and fabulous. You can be the queen of charm even just by wearing very normal and casual clothes.

So this post of mine is an invitation to all girls to look for a simpler, less flashy, and more elegant but not flashy style. After all, it takes very little to be cute. Don’t use kilos of makeup, don’t wear false eyelashes, don’t stand on the toes of stilettos to look beautiful. You already are and those who don’t appreciate you don’t deserve you.

A DRAGON’S HEART

Some of you will know that I don't like romantic films (in fact I prefer thrillers and horror) and that the only love films I like to watch are period films, based on novels, in the original English language. So when they recommended this film to me, I was amazed. However, I decided to see him and in the end I was very excited and even moved. He is truly magnificent and I really recommend you to see him. Because it can happen to you too to feel something dormant emerge from your heart and you will have a big surprise.

For some people, fooled into becoming adults, dragons died out millions of dreams ago, but the worst is that for many other people, deluded by rationality, dragons never existed, while I have one right here, by my side.

He thought that there were no more dragons, because loneliness had extinguished them. He thought that one cannot live century after century, harboring one’s own magnificence and solitude. He thought that the important thing is not things, but the meaning we give to things. Sooner or later death awaits everyone. More important than postponing death is to make sense of it

You know when you are in the water, you try to dive and touch the bottom? At some point you feel you have to go back up, because there is no more air. And you push yourself higher and higher, but you don’t move. And then you close your eyes and you say to yourself “come on now I resurface, resurface, just a little while .. god how much I miss the air” and instead you never reach the surface? When you are there to let yourself go to the force of the waves, but suddenly you come up. Breathe. Feel life again. Here, you are this. I resurfaced, with you, I breathe.