Posts from the ‘documentary’ Category
LUNGOTEVERE – after the flood
I’m going to keep this post short. Because it is heartbreaking.
As my last post showed, Rome nearly flooded on November 14th. The city center was mostly spared. But all kinds of people were badly affected. The homeless, for example, who ordinarily pitch camp under the bridges, near the water’s edge. Or the many sporting clubs along the river banks where Olympic dreams are nurtured. Boats large and small went destroyed. Plants, animals and even fish were destroyed en masse. I saw a fish dying in a field about one kilometer from where the river normally runs. As usual, ordinary people bore the brunt.
Photo essay taken along the banks of the Tiber river after the eleven-meter (!) surge of November 14th 2012.
Up to a foot of silt was left behind on the Lungotevere, the pedestrian road with bicycle path that runs along both sides of the Tiber. At least one large “barcone” – boat – similar to the one pictured was destroyed when it tore free of its moorings and smashed into the Ponte Milvio bridge.
A homeless person used to camping under one of Rome’s larger bridges sleeps on a mattress after having been evicted by the rising waters. On the large travertine steps someone has scrawled “You and me. One thing only. I love you.”
The possessions of the man in the other photograph were spared being washed away, but not getting wet, so they sit drying in the unseasonably warm november weather. The tent is pitched literally a few feet away from a busy, multi-lane road.
Sanpietrini – Rome’s classic cobblestones – morph into ripples of fine silt left behind by the high waters of november 14th.
One’s loss, another’s gain. This bicycle was deposited, along with other flotsam, near the Tiber island, in Rome’s center, after having been washed downstream, possibly for miles. The man toiled a few minutes to dig it up and pry it loose, then rode off on it.
This fiberglass dinghy complete with Evinrude outboard engine washed up on the Tiber’s right bank a little downstream from Ponte Milvio.
Entire trees were washed downstream. This pile of logs was fished out of the river with a crane as they were stacking up against a boat moored to the river banks. Note the carbon-fiber professional rowing oar washed away from one of Rome’s many riverside sporting clubs.
This is farther downstream, by the Tiber island. Another professional rowing oar was left stuck in the branches, along with all kinds of rags and bits of plastic.
Most of the things washed away by the raging waters were total write-offs. This canoe, deposited next to a car tire along the banks of the Tiber island appeared in brand new condition, but was badly cracked.
A small leaf stuck in her hair, our neighbor Anna is far too proud to betray any emotion as she stands outside her house, flooded in two feet of water in the countriside just north of Rome. In order to spare the city center from flooding, engineers operated the dams in order to flood this part of the river valley instead. The losses suffered were incalculable: people had to dump mattresses, furniture, electronics and all sorts of personal things…
We are not complaining. It could have been worse.
Had, however, Romans been given proper warning of what was rolling down the mountain towards the city (we weren’t), much of the loss could have been avoided. Those canoes, just one example, are neither cheap nor heavy. Raising them a few feet would have taken mere minutes. Had we been warned.
Alessandro Ciapanna
H2ROME – high Tiber times
I’ve always hated those tall, soulless walls that sear the city of Rome off from the gently rolling Tiber, the river which crosses the city center and around which the city itself was founded and flourished. I hated them until November 14th, 2012.
That day heavy rains in the hills and mountains inland conspierd with gross mismanagement of the three dams that regulate the river’s flow and levels to cause the Tiber to start rising. And rise it dangeroulsy did. By a full eleven-plus meters above its ordinary level. That’s very well over thirty feet of brown, swirling water more than is normal.
And those walls, which normally appear as oversized fortifications, were able to keep the monster at bay. But only barely. That day i was out with my camera to document what hadn’t happened in at least sixty years. Now the water – and adrenaline – levels are back to normal, so i went back to show you what had Rome holding its breath just a few days ago.
I tried my best to shoot the same angles at the same time of day. Enjoy.
This is the isola Tiberina, or Tiber island, in Rome’s city center as it normally appears from the bridge immediately upstream.
Same place early afternoon november 14th 2012.
The Ponte Cestio, normally.
On november 14th 2012.
Lovely and very ancient Ponte Fabricio, normally.
Kinda scary, no?
Ponte Fabricio and a bit of the Tiber Island, normally.
November 14th, 2012. Note the windows just inches above the waterline.
Lower left, one of Rome’s “barconi”, large stationary boats permanently moored along the Tiber. This one near Ponte Garibaldi held out quite well. Other barconi were not so fortunate.
Same bridge during the “piena”, or surge. The boat is straining at its moorings, while a fiberglass dinghy, reduced to flotsam, swiftly makes its way towards the Mediterranean Sea.
Another barcone, just north of the city center, at its normal level.
Same boat, more water.
Back to the Tiber Island. Note the human figures strolling by the riverside, lower right.
Same place, a few days earlier.
The Tiber Island houses a very large hospital. The radiology deparment, normally underground, was flooded and rendered unusable. However, it was not necessary to evacuate the hospital. This is as it normally looks.
November 14th 2012.
Today is Thanksgiving day, and i wish all my American pals all the very best. Although Italians do not normally celebrate it, i can assure you there are many a Roman giving many, many thanks to the powers who be. It was bad. But it could have been so much worse.
Thanks for being here.
Alessandro Ciapanna
CHINA TODAY – a photo essay
big city street scenes from an extraordinary country
i got you covered. shanghai, china
loose ends, shanghai, china
oh, the car will be fine right here… i’ll only be gone a few minutes anyway. shanghai, china
recycle tricycle. shanghai, china
yeah, sure. i can talk now. i’m only in the middle of a busy street. shanghai, china
bicycle? sure. if you put an electric motor in it…
chef relaxing. shanghai, china
processing an until-recently-alive turtle. yuck. shanghai, china
fixing the lamp. china
the object is to dance and swing without dropping the ball off the racket. china
let’s just sit and wait. a boat is bound to come by, sooner or later…
are you sure you really want to stand in that huge line just to see a dead mao? beijing, china
keep it moving! stand up strait! no, i’m not going to stop. i’m payed to scream at you all day. beijing, china
you, soldier! take this enamel basin and start scrubbing! beijing, china
so… tell me again why this guy is such a big deal? beijing, china
hope you enjoyed this.
alessandro ciapanna
SANT’ANGELO – Rome’s castle
Right in the center of Rome, on the western banks of the river Tiber, is a massive castle; Castel Sant’Angelo.
As urban as it gets. Castel Sant’Angelo is right in the middle of Rome’s busy city center.
As every touristy area, the roads around the castle are kept spotlessly clean. Not exactly so in the rest of the city…
Cars are no longer allowed on the Lungotevere in front of the castle, but someone always manages to sneak his little Fiat in the restricted areas.
Run, run! they’re closing the drawbridge…
Here a souvenir peddler is arranging his wares to be sold on the streets in front of the castle, while a lost tourist tries to decypher the map.
What once was Castel Sant’Angelo’s defensive moat is now used for sunbathing and other leisure activities.
Kicking the soccer ball between the cypress trees, Castel Sant’Angelo.
Modern folding bicycles are the latest trend among Romans of all ages.
This stylish lady has had enough of sitting in the sun and is shuffling off to whatever comes next.
People sunning in castel sant’angelo’s green while Rome’s maddening traffic rolls by nearby.
Tourists checking the guidebook. The plants growing in the castle’s wall behind them are delicious capers – Capparis spinosa.
The view of Rome from the top of castel sant’angelo is breathtaking.
Just as lovely as the castle itself, are the huge stone angels that adorn the bridge over the river Tiber.
Castel Sant’Angelo and Roman traffic as reflected in an antique shop window across the river from the castle itself.
Currently a museum, this is a real, fortified castle in the middle of the city. This time around i didn’t go inside, but i did spend a while capturing the snippets of daily life that happen right outside its massive walls.
Alessandro Ciapanna
GIOLITTI – rome’s best gelateria
the narrow alley is packed solid with kids of all ages happily slurping away. getting a cone at giolitti’s gelateria is a true roman tradition well over 100 years old.
the most difficult part is choosing the ideal combination of flavors
scooping it up. you can get your gelato on a cone or in a paper cup.
a whipped cream topping is another option. loved this guy’s expression
the annoying part is you got to stand in line twice: once to pay for your ticket, and then to exchange your ticket for your ice cream. obviously, complications sometimes ensue
sitting indoors is a classy experience that comes at a premium price. free wifi, though
most people eat their gelato on the street, standing, sitting, or walking
many people just get their cones and then plunk themselves down on the little tables outside, but the waiters don’t like this
it’s probably impossible to lick a cone and preserve a dignified expression at the same time… and she doesn’t seem too happy about this
young romans have no qualms about sitting on the sidewalk for a gelato-fortified chat
artsy doorknobs and gilded g’s on giolitti’s glass door reflecting the crowds of kids slurping their cones in the alley outside
happiness is a couple of good friends and a gelato di giolitti
oh, man. that was unforgettable!
few would argue that italy has some of the world’s best gelato. and rome being rome, it has attracted italy’s most talented over thousands of years. so it is fair to say that rome offers some of the best that italy has to show off. today’s photo essay was taken in rome’s most celebrated gelateria, giolitti, smack dab in the heart of ancient rome.
alessandro ciapanna
