It's Race Day: Getting Ready to Watch Siena's Palio
At Siena's Palio horse race, bleacher and balcony seats are expensive, but it’s free to join the masses in the square. And those who are really well-connected get to watch from the comfort of an apartment window. Roberto’s friend, Franco, shared his apartment overlooking the race course...and we’re enjoying the best seats in town. From this vantage point, we watch as the square fills, lots of pageantry unfolds as each neighborhood does its flag-waving thing, and race time approaches. The ritual and the strict traditions are inviolable. The excitement builds.
Siena throws a great party, and they’ve had plenty of practice. During our several days in town, things went smoothly, security was solid yet very low-key, people had a rowdy great time but nothing got broken, and wherever the horses went...so went the unheralded pooper scoopers.
This is Day 96 of my 100 Days in Europe series. As I lead tours, research my guidebooks and make new TV shows, I’m reporting on my experiences and lessons learned in Vienna, the Alps, the Low Countries, England, Siena, and beyond. Find more on my travel blog at
Exquisite Mid-Century Modern Residence in Sarasota, Florida | Sotheby's International Realty
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Located on a large private lot in the sought-after neighborhood of Lido Shores, The Pavilion House is an exquisite display of Mid-Century Modern Design elements and their purposeful integration with the surrounding tropical landscape. Designed by William Rupp, one of the original members of the Sarasota School of Architecture, and renovated by Seibert Architects, this home embodies the Modernist style in its use of expansive walls of glass, clean lines, functional design, and open floor plan. The understated front faÁ§ade of the home is highlighted by bright red double doors that open to the captivating interior courtyard. Shell stone paver pathways and river rock edging accent the outdoor space and provide just the right accent to the black river stone walls of the lap pool. Once inside, one is struck by the sense of space and the delicate balance between indoor and outdoor living creating greater depth to each area. The galley kitchen, at the center home, is open to both the living and dining room. The master bedroom features three walls of floor-to-ceiling glass, custom organized master closet and his and her bathrooms with a shared shower. There are two additional bedrooms and bathrooms. Lido Shores, located just minutes from St. Armand's Circle, Longboat Key, and Downtown Sarasota, is home to some of the area's most significant waterfront estates and iconic modern architecture creating a unique neighborhood with a vast history. Lido Shores homeowners have deeded beach access to a private beach park.
Property ID: 8JXCGD
Ship's captain arrives for hearings which will decide whether he faces trial
(16 Oct 2012) SHOTLIST
1. Wide exterior of theatre Moderno, where the preliminary hearing is taking place
2. Various of police in front of theatre
3. Pan from police checkpoint to theatre
4. Car carrying Francesco Schettino, captain of Costa Concordia cruise ship, arriving
5. Top shot of Schettino getting out of car
6. Top shot of Schettino talking to other men outside theatre
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Ronai, Defence attorney for Sandor Feher, Hungarian violinist, and other Costa Concordia victims:
They are going to decide more motions, if they are going to bring the ship's mate in for criminal charges as well and furthermore they are going to present the evidence of what mechanical failures were wrong on the ship and who was trained in the policies and procedures that were put in place to evacuate people and make them safe.
8. Wide of Schettino and others outside theatre
9. Schettino walking in to courtroom
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Ronai, Defence attorney for Sandor Feher, Hungarian violinist, and other Costa Concordia victims:
Schettino's actions were horrible but Carnival is just as much to blame as Schettino.
11. Police outside theatre
12. Close of sign reading (Italian) Teatro Moderno
13. Pan from reporter to police checkpoint
14. Wide of newspapers
15. Headline of La Nazione newspaper, reading (Italian) Schettino before the bar
16. Article headline, reading (Italian) Schettino in court, high tension
STORYLINE
A theatre in Italy has been turned into a courtroom to provide extra space for all those who needed to hear the evidence against the captain of a shipwrecked cruise ship.
The case of Francesco Schettino, 51, has generated such interest that the Tuscan city of Grosseto chose the larger space to accommodate all those who had a legitimate claim to be at the closed-door hearing.
Thirty-two people died after Schettino, took the Costa Concordia cruise ship off course and brought it close to the Tuscan island of Giglio on January 13.
The ship ran aground and capsized.
On Tuesday morning, Schettino appeared at the hearing, as well as passengers who survived the deadly shipwreck, the families of those who died and the scores of lawyers trying to get them compensation.
Wearing dark glasses and a suit, Schettino used a back entrance to slip into the theatre, making no comment to reporters outside.
Lawyers said during Monday's hearing, he listened intently to the proceedings, where his attorneys raised some objections to the evidence being submitted against Schettino and eight others accused in the shipwreck, including crew members and officials from Concordia owner Costa Crociere SpA.
A key question is how much of the blame should Schettino bear and how much responsibility for the disaster lies with his crew and employer, Costa Crociere, a division of the Miami-based Carnival Corp.
Costa Crociere has denied that it was negligent and has distanced itself from Schettino, firing him in July although he is fighting to get his job back.
Lawyers for some survivors and families of the victims are seeking to point blame at the corporate level, alleging negligence.
Among them is Peter Ronai, a lawyer for the family of a Hungarian violinist on the ship who, survivors recounted, helped children don life vests before perishing.
Schettino's actions were horrible but Carnival is just as much to blame as Schettino, he said.
Hearings this week through Wednesday will help decide whether the judge will order a trial for Schettino, who is accused of manslaughter, causing the shipwreck and abandoning ship while passengers and crew were still aboard.
He denies the accusations and hasn't been charged.
potentially saved lives.
Any trial is unlikely to begin before next year.
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Melges 24 Italian Open Championship at Marina di Scarlino - Day 2
Marina di Scarlino, Tuscany, June 14th 2013 - Puro Beach Party and race 5 (abandoned)
Update on rescue, salvage operation on stricken ship
(25 Jan 2012) SHOTLIST
1. Wide of press conference and Franco Gabrielli, head of the national civil protection agency, taking his seat
2. Camera cutaway
3. SOUNDBITE (Italian) Franco Gabrielli, Head of the National Civil Protection Agency:
It's obvious, and I told the relatives (of the missing people) that, because of how much time has past and the conditions, at this point thinking that you can still find someone alive, at this point, belongs in the category of miracles. But since no one, among us, wants to give up the hope that this might be possible, we will continue.
4. Wide shot of Gabrielli during news conference
5. SOUNDBITE (Italian) Franco Gabrielli, Head of the National Civil Protection Agency:
We will continue until all the parts of the ship are inspected, all the parts that can be inspected.
6. Mid shot of prow of Costa Concordia
7. SOUNBITE (Italian) Ennio Aquilino, Grosseto fire chief:
I can tell you, as your colleague already said, that decks one and two are not reachable.
8. Mid of Costa Concordia funnel
9. SOUNBITE (Italian) Ennio Aquilino, Grosseto fire chief:
We already reached all the cabins and verified by listening, which means we passed in front of all of the doors, and if someone asked for help - let me remind you that we saved three lives that way during the operations - we would have pulled them out already. So, if someone is still there, they are not in a condition to make sound sound.
10. Wide of Costa Concordia
STORYLINE
The official overseeing the search effort of the capsized Costa Concordia acknowledged on Wednesday it would take a miracle to find any survivors from the January 13 cruise ship grounding.
Franco Gabrielli, head of the national civil protection agency, told reporters that recovery operations would nevertheless continue until the ship, which is half-submerged off the Tuscan island of Giglio, was searched as much as possible.
Operations continued on Wednesday as crews set off more explosions on the submerged third floor deck to allow easier access for divers.
On Tuesday, the body of a woman was found on the deck.
Rescuers have found 16 bodies, with 17 people still unaccounted for.
The Concordia ran aground and capsized off the island of Giglio after the captain veered from his approved course and gashed the ship's hull on a reef, forcing the panicked evacuation of 4,200 passengers and crew.
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Luxury real estate update
Berlusconi promises less taxes and to repatriate 600,000 illegal migrants
(25 Feb 2018) Italy's Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi promised higher pensions, less taxes and the repatriation of 600,000 irregular migrants speaking during a rally in Milan on Sunday, one week ahead of the Italian general election on March 4.
Berlusconi spoke for two hours in front of a crowd of supporters gathered inside the Manzoni theater in Milan, the city which used to be one of his strongholds in Italy's north.
The 81-year-old pledged to bring pensions up to at lest 1,000 euro per month and promised less taxes for companies and families in a bid to relaunch the stagnant economy.
Berlusconi did not reveal on Sunday who will be the prime minister if his centre-right coalition wins.
He cannot became premier because he is not allowed to assume public roles, after being convicted for fiscal fraud in 2013.
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Сильный Торнадо, Италия. Strong Tornado, Italy
17.11.2019 г. произошел сильный Торнадо в Орбетелло, провинции Гросетто, Италия. В результате буйства стихии были повалены деревья и повреждены дома.
#Торнадо #Гросетто #Италия
11/17/2019, there was a strong Tornado in Orbetello, province of Grosetto, Italy. As a result of the violence of the elements, trees were felled and houses were damaged.
#Tornado #Grosetto #Italy
Captain Schettino leaves hearing, lawyers comment on day's events
(16 Oct 2012)
1. Various of Concordia captain Francesco Schettino, (in grey suit) leaving preliminary hearing and getting into car
2. Wide of media
3. Mid of Schettino's defence lawyer approaching media
4. SOUNDBITE: (Italian) Bruno Leporatti, Defence lawyer for Concordia captain Francesco Schettino:
You should just listen to the audio recording of the command deck to understand that Captain Schettino, from the very beginning, from the first moment, when he said: 'I made a mess', said clearly what was going on. Thus there was absolutely no delay in the communication. But in such a difficult situation, where the technical support was damaged and the human support was not very collaborative, you should at least leave a person in a position of command the time to assess the situation
5. Cutaway of media
6. Exterior of Moderno theatre, where hearing takes place
7. SOUNDBITE: (English) Peter Ronai, Defence lawyer for Hungarian violinist Sandor Feher and other Costa Concordia victims:
We learned that the Carnival cruises trained the band members to evacuate people, which we think was horribly negligent. They should have had trained people - not musicians - evacuating people, putting on life-vests and they had no trained people to evacuate them
8. Cutaway of media inside lobby of theatre
9. SOUNDBITE: (Italian) Mario De Luca, Defence lawyer for Costa cruises company:
I can't say that Costa's position is not more positive, I think that Costa has never been in doubt. I think that the experts' conclusions confirm that, as far as it was possible, Costa did everything
10. Wide of Costa Concordia officer, Ciro D'Ambrosio, leaving with his lawyer
STORYLINE:
A second day of preliminary hearings against the captain of a shipwrecked cruise ship has taken place in the Moderno theatre in Grosseto.
Thirty-two people died after Francesco Schettino took the Costa Concordia cruise ship off course and brought it close to the Tuscan island of Giglio on January 13, where the ship ran aground and capsized.
On Tuesday morning, Schettino appeared at the hearing, along with passengers who had survived the fatal shipwreck, the families of those who died and the scores of lawyers trying to win them compensation.
Bruno Leporatti, Schettino's defence lawyer, said that his client had responded swiftly in giving the Costa emergency unit all the necessary and complete information needed to assess the damage.
There was absolutely no delay in the communication. But in such a difficult situation, where the technical support was damaged and the human support was not very collaborative, you should at least leave a person in a position of command the time to assess the situation, Leporatti stressed.
A key issue is how much of the blame Schettino should shoulder and how much responsibility for the disaster lies with his crew and employer, Costa Crociere, a division of the Miami-based Carnival Corp.
Costa Crociere has denied that it was negligent and has distanced itself from Schettino, firing him in July, although he is fighting to get his job back.
Lawyers for some survivors and families of the victims are seeking to point blame at the corporate level, alleging negligence.
Among them is Peter Ronai, a lawyer for the family of a Hungarian violinist on the ship.
We learned that the Carnival cruises trained the band members to evacuate people, which we think was horribly negligent. They should have had trained people - not musicians - evacuating people, putting on life-vests and they had no trained people to evacuate them, Ronai said.
Costa denies any accusations of negligence in the training of its crew.
He denies the accusations and hasn't been charged.
Any possible trial is unlikely to begin before next year.
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Captain of shipwrecked ship contests firing, lawyer critical of helmsman
SHOTLIST
1. Wide of courthouse in Torre Annunziata, where shipwrecked Costa Concordia captain Francesco Schettino attended the second hearing in his appeal trial against his layoff
2. Mid of Schettino's lawyer, Rosario D'Orazio, walking and talking on his mobile
3. SOUNDBITE (Italian) Rosario D'Orazio, Francesco Schettino's lawyer:
I don't think we are talking about a 'touristic navigation', there is a route that's closer to the coast and that normally, also according to my experience, I sometimes went on cruises and for example in Venice we enter at 2 meters from St Mark's square, and if that is not a 'touristic navigation,' or a route closer to the coast... I remember having read compliments to Captain Schettino on the Costa Crociere website, this was on Costa's website for the 'touristic navigation off of Procida', it was quoted like this, but that also was a route, which I think was done with the Concordia, that was meant to salute the Island of Procida. So I think that, or at least I am perplexed when I hear (Costa) saying that the company didn't know that certain routes are followed for the benefit of the tourists on board.
4. Mid of Schettino entering court room surrounded by assembled media
5. SOUNDBITE (Italian) Rosario D'Orazio, Francesco Schettino's lawyer:
The experts called by the judge in Grosseto point out that when Captain Schettino takes command of the ship, the point where the ship should have started to turn had already been largely passed, therefore not by him. The experts also say that the helmsman makes a never-ending series of mistakes, like confusing right and left.
6. Tracking shot of assembled media surrounding Schettino as he walks out of courthouse to his car, journalist asks UPSOUND (Italian) How do you feel? to which Schettino replies UPSOUND (Italian) Very well. Journalist asks Are you serene? Schettino replies Yes, absolutely.
7. Mid of Schettino's car leaving courthouse
STORYLINE
The captain of the shipwrecked Costa Concordia has returned to court to contest his firing, and says he'll certainly take command of a ship again.
Francesco Schettino attended the second hearing of the appeal trial against his layoff from Costa Crociere in Torre Annunziata, near Naples, on Wednesday.
Schettino is challenging Costa Crociere SpA's decision to fire him after the Concordia ran aground off Tuscany January 13, 2012, and capsized, killing 32 people.
This new trial was initiated by Schettino, who is contesting the layoff by Costa, stating that he was not negligent and that therefore the dismissal is wrongful.
He was accompanied by Rosario D'Orazio, one of his lawyers, who is in charge of the trials relating to his employment status with Costa.
The company claims that Schettino took the ship on a detour from its official route in order to sail closer to Giglio Island.
Court-appointed experts have blamed Schettino for the disaster, saying he took the ship off course in a stunt.
Schettino insists his deft steering saved lives and that the reef the ship hit wasn't on his charts.
D'Orazio said that the experts called by the judge in Grosseto point out that when Captain Schettino takes command of the ship, the point where the ship should have started to turn had already been largely passed, therefore Schettino is not to be blamed for this manoeuvre.
The experts also showed that the helmsman makes a never-ending series of mistakes, like confusing right and left, added D'Orazio outside the courthouse.
That helmsman has been identified in court as Rusli Bin Jacob from Jakarta - the person who steers when the ship is not on auto-pilot on verbal orders of the commander.
The decision is expected to be communicated within 7 to 10 days.
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#Volterra Tuscany, April 2015
Volterra - the ancient Etruscans town / Volterra - staro etruščansko mestece
Italian Championship Regatta Talamone - DJI Drone PHANTOM 3 - Este 24
Finale del campionato Este 24, nella splendida cornice di Talamone. Un ringraziamento speciale all'assistente Claudia Marcoaldi.
New crop circle Westwoods near Lockeridge, Wiltshire, UK 21 June 2011
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Rescuers comment on search operation, update on missing people
(15 Jan 2012)
1. Wide of cruise ship Costa Concordia and helicopter rescuing Marrico Giampietroni, staff survivor
2. Mid of rescue boat next to ship
3. Wide of helicopter rescuing Giampietroni
4. Mid of divers climbing onto dinghy next to stricken ship
5. Wide of Costa Concordia and rescue boats
6. SOUNDBITE: (Italian) Francesco (only name given), diver working at rescue operation:
We are working on the opportunity to pass some ropes or chains through one side to another of the vessel to secure the ship.
7. Mid of rescue boat
8. SOUNDBITE: (Italian) Cosimo Nicastro, Coast Guard spokesman:
The main difficulties are the underwater searches. The vessel is located at a depth of 27 metres at the bottom, very close to a step going down to 70 metres. Therefore if the vessel, for any reason, should shift, it would go to the bottom with big danger for the divers working on the rescue operations. If this happened, it would be impossible to go ahead with the search for missing people.
9. Mid of Nicastro talking with journalists
10. Mid of Coast Guard vessel landing
11. SOUNDBITE: (Italian) Enrico Rossi, Governor of Tuscany province:
At the moment according to the report released by the rescue workers the missing people are 17. We are double checking with authorities, we hope to find some more.
12. Mid of boat entering arbour
STORYLINE:
A helicopter on Sunday airlifted a third survivor from the capsized hulk of a luxury cruise ship 36 hours after it ran aground off the Italian coast, as prosecutors said they were investigating the captain for manslaughter charges and accused him of abandoning his ship.
Authorities reduced to 17 from 40 the number of people still unaccounted for, with an Italian who worked in cabin service pulled from the wreckage of the Costa Concordia off the tiny Tuscan island of Grigio.
Italian coast guard said 2 more bodies found aboard Concordia cruise ship on Sunday, although further details weren't immediately available.
Previously three people had been confirmed dead.
Police divers and rescue crews on Sunday circled the wreckage searching for more of the 17 missing.
Crews in dinghies touched the hull with their hands, near the site of the 160-foot-long (50-metre-long) gash where water flooded in and caused the ship to fall on its side.
Coast guard officials have said divers would enter the belly of the ship in case anyone is still inside.
Coast Guard spokesman, Cosimo Nicastro, explained the difficulties of searching for victims underwater.
The main difficulties are the underwater searches. The vessel is located at a depth of 27 metres at the bottom, very close to a step going down to 70 metres. Therefore if the vessel, for any reason, should shift, it would go to the bottom with big danger for the divers working on the rescue operations, he said.
The huge cruise ship carrying more than 4,200 people ran aground on Friday night, forcing a chaotic and frightening evacuation. There are now six crew members and 11 passengers who haven't been located, Tuscany's regional president Enrico Rossi said.
Authorities were holding the captain, Francesco Schettino, for suspected manslaughter among other possible charges and a prosecutor on Sunday confirmed they are investigating allegations the captain abandoned the stricken liner before all the passengers had escaped.
Asked Sunday by Sky TG24 about the accusations, Grosseto prosecutor Francesco Verusio replied, unfortunately, I must confirm that circumstance.
According to the Italian navigation code, a captain who abandons a ship in danger can face up to 12 years in prison.
Schettino has said the ship hit rocks that weren't marked on his nautical charts, and that he did all that he could to save lives.
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WONW Cable Cut, GoPro Challenge winners, Tom Court & Brandon Sheid
This is a short cut from the Wind or No Wind event in the Philippines, most of this footage is from the Best Trick/Shot contests hosted by GoPro. Brandon and Myself won this event with some of these shots...
There will be some more footage from the event coming out soon! check back or subscribe for updates!
Shot on:
Canon 7D
Go Pro HD
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Gothic Line | Wikipedia audio article
This is an audio version of the Wikipedia Article:
Gothic Line
Listening is a more natural way of learning, when compared to reading. Written language only began at around 3200 BC, but spoken language has existed long ago.
Learning by listening is a great way to:
- increases imagination and understanding
- improves your listening skills
- improves your own spoken accent
- learn while on the move
- reduce eye strain
Now learn the vast amount of general knowledge available on Wikipedia through audio (audio article). You could even learn subconsciously by playing the audio while you are sleeping! If you are planning to listen a lot, you could try using a bone conduction headphone, or a standard speaker instead of an earphone.
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The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.
- Socrates
SUMMARY
=======
The Gothic Line (German: Gotenstellung; Italian: Linea Gotica) was a German defensive line of the Italian Campaign of World War II. It formed Field Marshal Albert Kesselring's last major line of defence along the summits of the northern part of the Apennine Mountains during the fighting retreat of the German forces in Italy against the Allied Armies in Italy, commanded by General Sir Harold Alexander.
Adolf Hitler had concerns about the state of preparation of the Gothic Line: he feared the Allies would use amphibious landings to outflank its defences. To downgrade its importance in the eyes of both friend and foe, he ordered the name, with its historic connotations, changed, reasoning that if the Allies managed to break through they would not be able to use the more impressive name to magnify their victory claims. In response to this order, Kesselring renamed it the Green Line (Grüne Linie) in June 1944.
Using more than 15,000 slave-labourers, the Germans created more than 2,000 well-fortified machine gun nests, casemates, bunkers, observation posts and artillery-fighting positions to repel any attempt to breach the Gothic Line. Initially this line was breached during Operation Olive (also sometimes known as the Battle of Rimini), but Kesselring's forces were consistently able to retire in good order. This continued to be the case up to March 1945, with the Gothic Line being breached but with no decisive breakthrough; this would not take place until April 1945 during the final Allied offensive of the Italian Campaign.Operation Olive has been described as the biggest battle of materials ever fought in Italy. Over 1,200,000 men participated in the battle. The battle took the form of a pincer manoeuvre, carried out by the British Eighth Army and the U.S. Fifth Army against the German 10th Army (10. Armee) and German 14th Army (14. Armee). Rimini, a city which had been hit by previous air raids, had 1,470,000 rounds fired against it by allied land forces. According to Lieutenant-General Oliver Leese, commander of the British Eighth Army:
The battle of Rimini was one of the hardest battles of Eighth Army. The fighting was comparable to El Alamein, Mareth and the Gustav Line (Monte-Cassino).
Quadra Key Residence
Il residence Quadra Key Residence e' stato costruito a due passi dal metro', nella localita' di FIRENZE , in provincia di FI. Si puo' definire un hotel attento ai servizi di business.Offre ai suoi ospiti un numero complessivo di 58 camere, 58 appartamenti.
Nella struttura si parlano diverse lingue tra cui: francese, inglese, spagnolo, tedesco.Tutte le camere dispongono di moltissimi comfort. Tra questi: climatizzazione, in tutte le stanze e' presente un asciugacapelli, i vostri averi saranno al sicuro grazie alla cassaforte in dotazione, presa modem per il collegamento internet, un telefono disponibile in ogni camera, la TV per riposarvi in camera.
Puoi consultare maggiori dettagli su
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