Tag Archives: Alfano

Several years ago I took a guided tour of the harbor in Antwerp, Belgium.  As we passed each place of interest, the guide would give a short spiel in English and would repeat it three or four times in French, Italian, German, and maybe Flemish.  Speaking in English, he pointed out a statue with a large nose and compared it to Jimmy Durante.   Then when he gave his spiel in Italian the comparison was to “Pinocchio,”   and in German to “Till Eugenspiel;” in French he made a comparison to (you guessed it) Cyrano de Bergerac. Continue reading »