Feelings of the Day: Nostalgia is a powerful thing. The memories we make in our youth and teenage years form much of who we are later in life. When confronted with substantial reminders of that past we can easily become emotional when those mental pathways open up into the peripheral sphere of the past and events that surround it. Today I had a multitude of those moments during one visit to a special museum.
Full Day’s Events: The area I walked in the last two days, the Santa Croce and Dorsoduro districts, swaths up from the area around the Guggenheim and up to the bus depot, in Western Venice. I covered a lot of this area, but there were patches left to explore. At 815am, I started walking so I could finish seeing this area.
Walking West through the Cannaregio district, because it is a faster route, I saw alarming things. Flat things…with four legs! Platforms! Natalie and I experienced them 14 years ago, after a swelling of the waters in the lagoon due to high tides and a full moon. The lower areas of Venice were flooded and we had to use these platforms to walk around and through Saint Mark’s cathedral. I checked my phone and indeed there was a weather and flood warning. I carried onward, hoping it would not be as bad as predicted, and finished the two bridges missed in this area.
I saw many green areas, a wonderful architectural arch joining two buildings on the Rio dei Tintori, generous public spaces, and nice buildings.
By 1015 I had finished the areas not seen and crossed the bridges I was permitted to cross. I rewarded myself with a visit to a place of reliving the fun of the past, as advertised on posters around the city. A toy museum!
Fabrizio Fontanella founded the museum, Museo Creature di Gomma, after 30 years of collecting in 2018. It exists inside a former paper mill. For a five euro fee, you can tour this beacon of nostalgia and fun, with over 6000 vintage toys from the 60’s to the 90’s. All figures in the museum are made of rubber, vinyl, or plastic and the owner’s rule is that they must be originals and not remakes.
This museum immediately brought back memories of my youth and teenage years. With toys of Japanese robots, Micronauts, Gerry Anderson shows, a Lupin diorama, Meglo brand superheroes and Star Trek figures, Corgi superhero vehicles, Nite Racer (Knight Rider) knockoff, CHiPS, Masters of the Universe, and so much more.
Their Disney and 60’s toy displays made me dimly remember them in friends' toy baskets and chests because they belonged to their parents. I smiled and laughed out loud a lot walking through these isles. It made for a different kind of art gallery.
I headed back to my place for a late lunch. The UV was getting pretty high so I did laundry, a pre-pack, read, wrote, sent some FB posts, made supper, and had an early night. 9.5km, 9 flights, 19 previously crossed and 16 new bridges walked.
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