United States or Kiribati ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
I blessed a day which was to give me the greatest of musical pleasures, and travelled gaily towards Lucca, along a fertile plain, bounded by rocky hills, and scattered over with towns and villages.
These ten beautiful figures are seldom noticed, but evidently Raphael thought them worthy of study, as may be seen in the lovely child-figure attributed to him in the Accademia di San Lucca. The whole vault contains hardly one unworthy human being, the only sins they commit are the Sins of Adam and of Ham, necessary for the story. They are all beautiful and all holy.
He explained that he had not talked English, had not talked to an Englishman, 'for oh, hundreds of years. He said that he had, in the course of his long residence in Lucca, seen two or three people whom he had known in England, but that none of them had recognised him. He laughed with pleasure and surprise at finding that he could still speak his native tongue quite fluently and idiomatically.
The lesser of the two palaces the one on the right hand as you ascend the street of San Simone coming from the cathedral is more decorated to-day than any other in Lucca. A heavy sea of Leghorn hats and black veils, with male accompaniments, is crowded beneath. They stare upward and murmur with delight.
When the passer asked him "Where are you from?" he held a morsel in air long enough to answer "Da Lucca, signore," and then let it fall into his throat, and sank deeper into a reverie in which that crude accent even must have sounded like a gossip's or a kinsman's voice, but never otherwise moved muscle, nor looked to see who passed or lingered.
An eager fantastic look shot from his eye, "when I gambled this away at Lucca," his hand drew the bundle closer to him "but I won it back again at a price!" he gloomily added, glancing sideways as to someone at his elbow. He remained, eyes hanging upon space for a moment, then he recollected himself and continued: "I became wiser; I never risked it again; but I loved the game always.
An imperceptible ascent conducts from the town of Lucca towards its baths; and you may expect, in about three hours, to have accomplished its sixteen miles. The road follows the long windings and beautiful valleys of the Serchio, of which, harmless as it looks, we read on all the bridges records of its occasional violence, and of their repeated destruction.
"Yes, love," Nobili answered to her question. "I must return to Lucca to-night. I started on the instant, as the cavaliere knows. Before I go, however, all must be settled about our marriage, and the contract signed. I will take no denial." Nobili spoke with the determination that was in him. Enrica's heart gave a bound. "The contract!" She had never thought of that.
The dialect has lost much of the guttural sound that hurt one's ear at the last place of residence; but here is an odd squeaking accent, that distinguishes the Tuscan of Lucca. The place appropriated for airing, showing fine equipages, &c. is beautiful beyond all telling; from the peculiar shadows on the mountains.
The earliest bill of exchange of which we have any notice, is one dated 28th April, 1404, which was sold by a merchant of Lucca, residing in Bruges, to a merchant of Barcelona, also residing there, to be paid by a Florence merchant residing in Barcelona.
Word Of The Day