Friday, July 22, 2005

Klee Down Under

[x-posted at the Cashmere Gallery]

How I wish it was 50 degrees outside these days instead of 100-- because I've been hankering for a chance to wear a Klee scarf. Until the dog days of summer are gone in this hemisphere -- and I'm finally able to roll down the car windows, I'm going to indulge my dreams of cashmere and show you the wonderful photos of the gorgeous Klee a prolific and talented knitter sent from Melbourne, Australia:





I love the accent colour she chose, as well! Don't know if you can see it, but rather than the standard black, the accents are in a lovely burgundy/aubergine that sets off the warm, rich tones in the multis. Just beautiful!

Be sure to check out the other goodies at the inimitably chic Clementine's Shoes (one of my favourite knitblog names of all time)!

Sunday, July 17, 2005

New Bamboo Colourways

This is going to be a quick post because the lightning and thunder have started a war outside the house today!

The List of Colourways has been updated to include two new bamboo colourways --

Mediterraneo:



and

Cair Paravel:



(Only somewhat related to the nomenclature of the latter, this, coming in December, looks incredible.)

Monday, July 11, 2005

La Dolce Vita, Part III

... in which Axe discovers what sweet sorrow it is to part from Paradise.

But first: a private boat tour around the Isle of Capri...

At the port are scores of boats of all shapes and sizes, zipping in and out of the harbour bearing islanders and day-trippers alike. And at the tip of one of the cliffs, barely visible from the water's edge is the statue of a waving boy, a permanent welcome to all visiting Capri.



It's easy to see how the craggy face of the island has inspired so many artists, poets and musicians.



Some adventurous folk explored the rocks on the cliffs more closely than we dared.



But given the choice between rock climbing in 100 degree weather or paddling in the crystal clear waters of a multitude of hidden coves and grottos, what would your choice have been? (See? I thought so.)



Of all the natural attractions around the island, perhaps the most famous is La Grotta Azzurra (the Blue Grotto), which can only be visited during good weather conditions. The entrance to the cave is this tiny opening. Unlike the other grottos, entry can only be made via one of a small fleet of rowboats at hand to escort visitors from their own boats into the grotto...



...where we discovered that it is often customary for the boatmen to show off their operatic talents in the grotto's astounding acoustic space.



You can see for yourself where the grotto gets its name. The blue reflections of light through the small opening create a stunning, ethereal display in the cave. Pictures simply cannot do it justice.

"NO SWIMMING ALLOWED"

Swimming in the Blue Grotto is "strictly" forbidden. But that didn't stop us from jumping straight into the cool water at the very mildest suggestion from our guide that we might be able to steal a chance for a swim. ("I can resist anything except temptation," Wilde used to say. I'm sure he would have approved.) And it was, in fact, the most fantastic swim we had on the island. As we dove and paddled about, our guide serenaded us with several verses of "Santa Lucia".



It was heaven.

The water was so wonderful, it was painful to climb back into the rowboat and back to our driver. But even that brief spell, engulfed in the magic of Capri, was more rejuvenating than a month of massages. With renewed spring in our steps, we hopped off the boat and back through the marina.



After a brief siesta, we walked uphill towards the center of Anacapri.



Nestled in a side street among strings of souvenir shops and handicraft boutiques we found a knitting store. Of sorts.



It was, rather unfortunately, closed at the time. However, it wasn't at all a traditional LYS. In fact, it seemed that you could just walk in and have something Knit-to-Order. Through the windows, we could just see knitting machines set up and ready to go in the back room. Handy to note for all those times you visit the island and find yourself in sudden need of a knitted bikini.

Compared to Capri, Anacapri was fairly deserted on Sunday afternoon...





... but the artistry put into the most commonplace items spoke volumes about the people who make this their home. Just have a look at this bench, embellished with painted tiles. Mind, this is a public bench.



And see this tile stairway. Upon closer inspection, you'll see that a different bird adorns each step.



There is such beauty on this island, tiny though it may be. I can understand why natives like our host Franco would never really want to leave for very long.

After all, who could possibly bear to part with a place where the day begins like this:





... carries on like this:



... and ends like this?



It takes a stronger willed (and perhaps even more jaded) person than this fashionista to resist the call of the Isle of Capri.

So, when we boarded the ferry home, it was less "Farewell" than "Arrivederci"...



FYI -- Just in case you forgot (or thought that I had forgotten) that this was a knitblog -- there is yarn and knitting news to come! Stay tuned!

Tuesday, July 05, 2005

La Dolce Vita, Part II

In which the mystery of Axe's favourite swimming hole is revealed...

After Pompeii, we left the quaint, touristic port of Sorrento and took the ferry to the Isle of Capri (which Amy spotted instantly! Amy, look for an email from me about your bamboo.)



The first glimpses of the port were just as you might imagine of a luxe holiday spot in the Med.





There are only two towns on the island: the glamourous resort town of Capri, and its more tranquil cousin, Anacapri, at the top of the island. After a little gelato along the waterside, we made our way by taxi (big mistake, by the way), to our hotel in Anacapri, where the digs were... not too shabby.



Our host, a distinguished gentleman named Franco, who was the perfect blend of Mr Roark and Tattoo, took it upon himself to show us around our temporary home on this fantasy island. And we embarked upon an immediate inspection of the essential facilities:





Tempting as the infinity pool was, we caught a ride back down the only road that zigzagged along the rock face to Capri.



... which could probably by characterized by one of the first shops to greet us along the walk in:



A word to the wise: for this place, the plastic that you never leave home without is probably best left... at home. The operative word in this town is most definitely BLING. And it often comes at an eye-popping price.

The town bustled with extremely fashionably -- and less fashionably -- dressed people. The distinction between the two, I leave to you.



In Capri, shopping is more than just an afternoon activity, it is an art form -- and the pulse of the little town. Not surprisingly, this is one of Michael Kors' favourite sun spots. While we didn't see Kors, more than once we ran into Valentino himself, flanked by members of his staff (in coordinating attire).

Giving our feet a break, we had lunch in the Piazza Umberto I, in the shadow of the Chiesa di Santo Stefano, where guests had begun to arrive for a wedding.



Random guests in their attire, loitering glamorously in front of the church and the adjacent Frette boutique:



The bride arrived to the applause of the entire square -- friends, family, and starry-eyed strangers. No pictures of her, unfortunately, because by then the crowd had grown and obscured any good vantage point. But her dress was a bodice of white lace mesh and a meringue of tulle. On a mere mortal, it would have looked frumpy, but this bride was stunning.

Continuing on the walking tour, there was much to enjoy in the way of architecture and flora, before settling down to dinner after the sunset.







(to be continued...)

Friday, July 01, 2005

La Dolce Vita, Part I

I've been inundated with work and other things since being back, so this will be a brief post (filled with lots of non-knitting-related photos and commentary -- consider yourself warned!).

Those of you who guessed anywhere in the Mediterranean have a keen eye. And kudos to all of you who guessed Italy...

After an extremely long day of traveling and connections, we woke up on a hill, amid acres of lemon groves, in the quaint seaside town of Sorrento, across the bay from Naples and Mount Vesuvius.



The coastal drive along the cliffside was breathtaking - if a little harrowing.



Getting used to reading clusters of signposts totem-poled upon each other at every crossroads was a challenge, but eventually, we made our way around the modern day city of Pompeii to the ruins of the infamous eruption of Mount Vesuvius back in 79 A.D.









I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but once there, it's impossible not to see that the city and people who had made Pompeii their home were far from primitive. Did you know that Pompeii had once been a prosperous port? It had been about 500 meters from the water's edge, but after Vesuvius emptied itself onto the land, the buried city was then 2 km from the gulf. Today there is a weird Lost-City-of-Atlantis feeling about the place.

Some of the homes had clearly been truly magnificent, finesse in every architectural detail. This fountain at the rear of the interior courtyard, like others in the city, was worked all over in an intricate mosaic and fashioned with delicately forged statues.





It seemed that the entire city had flourished with a healthy sense of aestheticism (which, in my opinion, is sadly lacking in most modern architecture that settles for function to the exclusion of form). This mosaic at the entrance to one of the grand homes of the city (now known as the House of the Tragic Poet) was meant as a clear warning: cave canem, "Beware of Dog".



And they made aesthetics a high priority in just about everything they crafted. Assuming that that tradition had continued, if old Pompeii had survived to the present, it would probably be one of the most beautiful cities in the world. The frescoes, of which there were many, still possess their beauty, even tainted with the patina of weather and time. Just imagine how vibrant they had been in the halls and dining rooms of pre-eruption Pompeii.



Personally, I have a penchant for simple, clean linear furnishings, but was awed by the work that had been put into these:





... as well as into even the most functional of food and water containers:





Look closely at the last picture. At the rear is a human form, molded in plaster that had been poured into an empty space archeologists had discovered in the layers of ash. There were, and probably still are, thousands of these imprints of volcano victims who had been buried in 4 meters of ash and sediment.





Old Pompeii was cobblestoned, with pavements set a foot or two higher than the road.





Midway through our casual meandering, dark clouds rolled in swiftly and obliterated the sun. Lightning and thunder on the horizon drew closer by the minute and the other tourists converged in the main streets, trying to make a hasty exit. But even with trainers on, it was a real struggle to get out of the city before the rain started. And all I could think of was how truly impossible it would have been for Pompeiians to run from the clouds of ash and sediment that were about to bury them alive.

They stood absolutely no chance.

So we left, only slightly soaked, but incredibly humbled. How many Pompeiians who were busy at work or play, rushing from one errand to another -- not having time to simply look up -- could have forseen what was to come? If you come away with anything after seeing Pompeii firsthand, it's a humbling sense of your own mortality.

And on that note, with the thunderstorm behind us, we reckoned it was time for a nap.



More on the trip (more upbeat, I promise!) and the swimming hole contest, next...