Lacristina's VirtualTourist Home Page

My first day back to work, after a trip to beloved Italy, visiting friends in Rome, Milan and Desenzano on Lago di Garda.

I was sad to leave - already trying to figure out how and when I could return.

And then, as if to show me that, yes, even Pittsburgh has its moment of extreme beauty, I saw this incredible sunrise as I drove past the University of Pittsburgh's Cathedral of Learning.

I had to stop. It was better than this. But it's the best I could do with my camera. Beauty is everywhere (but the food is definitely better over there.)

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The Cathedral of Learning is not a religious building - it's called a cathedral only due to its shape. It's the main administration building and is filled with classrooms and offices. It has an unlocked stairway from the basement to floor 36 - 450 vertical feet (I've checked it with my altimeter). This makes it a pretty good aerobic training ground. Most weekday evenings and weekend mornings, you'll find folks, including me, huffing our way up (and sometimes down) the stairs. Some are training for mountains, some are cyclists - grounded by snow or darkness, some just there for the sheer pleasure of the torture.

My fastest time ever: 7:15. The fastest time ever by an iron-madman: 3:38. The same crazy guy, Daniel Chew, did it the most times in a row: 86 in 12 hours.

A good thing for mountaineers to remember is that there are hardly any mountains that you climb up that you don't have to climb down. Most would-be climbers soon learn that entirely different muscles are used for each process. Woe unto him or her that hasn't trained both ways!

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By the way - my travel slogan has nothing to do with reincarnation - though that is a lovely thought. Rather, it is the answer to the question (often asked in the Italy travel forum) "How many days does it take to see Rome?"

My friend Abarbieri tells me that "Roma, non basta una vita" was coined in 1962 by Silvio Negro, a famous writer. It was the title of his loving book on visiting his favorite city. Unfortunately, the book is out of print.

That was the title of the email my VT and realworld friend effeti (Francesco) sent me.

Santa Cristina? Trust me, she's no relation, so a question mark is appropriate.

Francesco found the photo accompanyiing an article in an archeology magazine within a detailed report on the Byzantine jewels of Ravenna.