The Oltrarno
After you cross the bridge, flooded with tourists fulfilling their jewelry fix, you begin to enter a Florence of years past. You have just transversed the Ponte Vecchio to the southern side of the River Arno.
If you awake before the mopeds, mini-cars, and other motorists hit the streets, you experience the small town feel of Florence. At the newsstand there are several people talking politics over a morning cigarette. Furniture makers are lying out the plans for their days work in their shops. Storefronts are being swept to welcome in the neighborhood customers.
On the Oltrarno you go into specialty shops and are forced to speak Italian. The older woman behind the counter knows no English. Because of the small town atmosphere, you don't have to go far to find the things you need. On Borgo S. Frediano there are many shops, all catering to different needs. You can find bakeries, cheese shops, wine stores, delis, small produce markets and other stores which sustain the lives of the Florentines who live here. On the southside, contrary to the north, the stores are not catered towards tourists, but towards locals.
Staying on the south but heading upriver, you can find yourself on the famous overlook of Piazzale Michelangelo. From there, drift along Viale Galileo Galilei to Piazzale Galileo for exceptional views of Florence, with rolling hills filled of olive trees and grand villas in the foreground. Continue from Galileo on the meandering Viale Niccolò Machiavelli you settle at Piazzale di Porta Romana. You can enter the Boboli Gardens through Palazzo Pitti on Via Romana. The Garden is preserved to resemble the antiquity of centuries past, when it was owned by the Medici family.
If you find yourself in Florence for a weekend, venture to the south side of the Arno and explore. It will be a retreat from the crowded city center.
Vice Presidential Match-up
For many of us, this is going to be our first time taking part in a presidential election. This will be the most important election of our life thus far given the state of the world’s economy and popularity of the current administration. As part of our responsibility as United States voters we should be finding out as much as possible in regards to the election.
While the two candidates should be the primary focus in our decision-making, there should be some knowledge of their Vice Presidential running mates.
As we know, John McCain's running mate will be Sarah Palin. She began her political career as a member of the Wasilla City Council in 1992 and in late 2006 she took over as the Governor of Alaska.
Jesse Oney, a student of FUA who lives in Anchorage, AK described Alaskan politics as being, “very different from other states and national politics.”
Joe Biden, Barack Obama's vice presidential running mate, has an expansive career in politics. He began in 1970 as a County Councilman and was elected a Delaware Senator in 1972. He has been a chairman of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary and of Foreign Relations as well as the International Narcotics Control Caucus.
One of the two, Sarah Palin or Joe Biden, will be the next vice-president of the United States. Have you given them enough consideration in your choice in the election?
To learn more about the two candidates and their vice presidential running mates, I suggest checking out the popular D.C. based political blog, Politico. You can find it at; www.Politico.com
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