Bellissima: The Beauty of Age

October 25, 2011

Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art.

Eleanor Roosevelt

Sicilian Woman in a Pink Apron, copyright Jann Huizenga
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The Man in the Pink Coppola, Part 2

August 28, 2011

Bella Figura in Sicily, copyright Jann Huizenga

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So after obliging me with a mini photo-shoot, the signore in the pink cap takes off. I walk up and down hills to another part of town.

 

 

Bella Figura in Sicily, copyright Jann Huizenga

Note the wrist and waist decor.

I find a house dripping with flowers–some real, some plastic. I start poking around, trying to separate reality from illusion. It’s still early morning; the light is gold.

Sicilian balcony, copyright Jann Huizenga

Out steps a man from a doorway. That manStill in his pink cap.

Ciao, he says. Do you like this building? Yes? Wanna have a look inside?

I hesitate for a split second then follow him in.

The first room is dark, lit only by an enormous psychedelic fish tank–a swirl of purple lights and brilliant tropical creatures. A few chairs line one wall.

Salla d’attesa, he says. Waiting room.

Waiting for what, in God’s name?

We enter another room. It is festooned with masses of plastic red roses, vines dangling from the vaulted ceiling and curling over the walls.

In the center of the room stands an examination table.

A stethoscope hangs from a hook.

“Are you a doctor?”

“Sí, internal medicine.”

I try to hide my surprise. ”You’re an interesting man!” is about all I can muster.

Then I’m back on the street, regretting that I haven’t even asked his name.

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The Man in the Pink Coppola, Part 1

August 25, 2011

I was stalking photos in Palazzolo Acreide, a sweet town in the hinterlands of Southeast Sicily, when I spotted a pink coppola in the distance.

I needed a picture of that cap.

I ran after it.

“Scusi, Signore!” I caught up to it as the owner was putting a key in his car door. “Can I take your photo? Put it on my blog?”

He smiled and nodded good-naturedly. Odd that he seemed to know what a blog was–many Sicilians don’t.

I shepherded him away from his car and posed him in front of a blank wall.  Snap, snap, snap.

Bella figura! A fine specimen, indeed.

Bella Figura in Sicily, copyright Jann Huizenga

Note the jewel-studded lizard crawling out of the pocket. The bling around his neck?  Greek masks, he said. (Just above Palazzolo lies the ancient Greek city of Akrai.)

Greek Mask Necklaces in Sicily, copyright Jann Huizenga

The man in the pink cap sped away, and I continued stalking photos.

Thirty minutes later, something a little odd happened, and I discovered what this man does for a living. Can you guess his job?

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Summer Styles, Sicily

August 19, 2011

Here’s what they’re wearing this summer, those stylin’ Sicilian gals.

Summer 2011 Fashion in Sicily, copyright Jann Huizenga

Summer 2011 Fashion in Sicily, copyright Jann HuizengaSummer 2011 Fashion in Sicily, copyright Jann Huizenga

Summer 2011 Fashion in Sicily, copyright Jann HuizengaSummer 2011 Fashion in Sicily, copyright Jann HuizengaSummer 2011 Fashion in Sicily, copyright Jann HuizengaSummer 2011 Fashion in Sicily, copyright Jann Huizenga

Summer 2011 Fashion in Sicily, copyright Jann Huizenga

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Flowers on their Toes in Sicily

July 11, 2011

Italians–those wily sorcerers–know how to prettify everything. Cocoa hearts on their coffees, flowers on their prettily painted toes.

“You have the ugliest feet I’ve ever seen,” a good friend once commented.

Since then I pretty much refuse to wear sandals in public.

So you can imagine how jealous I am of Italian feet.

The sandal style this year often has a Greek thing going on at the ankle and a sexy flower at the toes. And, damn it, your toenails better match.

Beautiful Summer Feet in Sicily, copyright Jann Huizenga

Pretty Italian Summer Feet, copyright Jann HuizengaWhat are you wearing on your feet this summer?

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