*3 Cities Poem by Tiffanie Lein

1) Bella Donna.14 Dec 08
(Rome)

Posturing still as the sun shone high
Whiz of cars spitting out exhaust
Fixated gaze and a revealing sigh
Waiting, looking out for a lover lost

Flowing frock yet stiff as lime
Not once did she twitch a bit
All o'er her face, smeared of grim
Still; past periods of streetlamps lit.

Left hip lent to the weight of a basket
Woven of ivory ratan
Around her hands of time rocket
Witness evolution along setting suns.

The lady stands, the lady waits
Till the day she walks through diminished gates.


2) The Market.16 Dec 08
(Florence)

Frosty yellow halo burns
- As the street blinks its lazy eyes -
Hazy vision as the rain god churns
Chilly droplets, washing sleep good bye

Colours springing into life:
Hues of blue dancing in the rain,
Red slices through all like a knie,
Stopped by cream with sobering pain.

Wool spub to different lengths,
Pickled glass beaming out at us;
The cobblestone takes in a huge big breath,
As we tarry a lil, to make a fuss.

Exchange is done, we all pared;
The buzz of morn has now started.


3) The Orchestra.18 Dec 08
(Milan. Specifically, the Duomo)

14th century gothis marble
Perched atop the cascading spires
Imposing on the new and age-old fable
The past amidst this modern hire

Reverberate around the tunnelled walls
An organ, two, three, more:
Sanctioned pause and crescending falls
Bellowing magnet; crowd to its lore.

Three dimensional skills they prove
Tug, compress the rigged air pipe
Left and right fingers press and soothe
Two pairs producing tunes just ripe

Deserving a concert in the Kodak,
Yet here; attention they do not lack.