Size Matters

For me, when it comes to enjoying museums, public buildings, art galleries, etc., size really matters, with my mantra being “the smaller the better.”

So, give me Dickens' home (London), Rodin’s home (Paris),

The Alamo (San Antonio), The Scottish Parliament House (Edinburgh), Jervaulx Abbey (Yorkshire, England), Peneda Monastery (near Porto, Portugal), Kesava Temple (Somnathpur, India), Pantheon (Rome)

and you can keep The Vatican, St. Peter’s, The Louvre, or the inside of any of the large buildings in Florence, Italy. I know the latter are celebrated by all and sundry as being the best-of-the-best, but I just find them repetitious and, dare I say, boring. I am not passing judgment on those who enjoy these sites, they’re just not for me.

But, even more than the small museums etc, I am captivated by those special events and places that surprise us – that we just happen upon. These include the silkworm processing building in which Indian women in their beautiful saris sat cross-legged while sorting and cleaning the cocoons to be sent to the silk factories.

Or the small, private museum near Chiang Mai, Thailand, that we found accidentally while looking for the toilet; this museum was not normally open to the public, but the owner of the coffee/tea shop at which we stopped was gracious enough to show the white guys his pride and joy.

And of course the elderly musician and his small friend that we discovered unexpectedly as we rounded a backstreet corner in Kunming, China.

And, finally, the wedding-photo shoot on the island of Ischia, Italy – with the members of the party and the photographers all taking turns to arrange the bride’s and groom’s clothes, posture and attitude.

In other words, I love most of all witnessing slices of real life, involving real people.

I should finish by saying that even when I find myself in one of the huge ‘sites’, I poke around to see if I can locate one of those, nearly-always-there, hidden and wonderful nooks and crannies. For example, I was pretty underwhelmed by the St. Francis cathedral in Assisi (just another overblown church to me). But, by descending into the lower levels I found myself watching, and listening to, a wonderful, intimate mass being given for young people. The singing and the low-keyed attitude, along with the small size of this inner chapel stopped me in my tracks. I could not understand the Italian lyrics, but the ‘feel’ was both peaceful and comforting – even though I was surrounded by the completely overstated grandeur of the rest of the church.