Ecomostro Installed in Venice

NEW YORK--(Italy Watch)--Apparently, Santiago Calatrava knows nothing about aestethics or architectural continuity, because Italy has a new ecomostro (see "martedi, aprile 25, 2006 for more on Italian ecomostri). Calatrava, the Spanish architect who won a 1999 competion to design a fourth bridge spanning the Grand Canal in Venice, has finally installed his monstrosity, angering many Venetians.

Some Venetians call it Il Ponte Roma, some Il Quarto Ponte, and others simply Il Ponte della Vergogna -- The Bridge of Shame. In a city whose future is so dependent on preservation, it's disappointing to see an eyesorer of a project like this gain approval (in 2002), and finally be completed.

One of the main groups that fought against its approval was HBGroup, Human Basics, a consortium of architects and engineers that ensures that projects are suitable for use by the disabled. According to the HBGroup, the Calatrava bridge is in violation of Italian laws on accessibility, and the disabled will now have to cross this bridge using a tramway, still to be installed.

Pictured below is the El Puente del Alamillo (Sevilla), another questionable Calatrava-signed ecomostro, looming over the Sevillan skyline.

A New Mosque Every Four Days

NEW YORK--(Italy Watch)--Egyptian-born Corriere della Sera columnist and author Magdi Allam recently put forth an eye-opening statistic: a new mosque is born in Italy every 4 days.

That's 7 a month, 91 a year. Since 2000 il Belpaese, the territorial mass in which resides il Vaticano, has doubled in Islamic institutions (351 mosques in 2000 to 735 today), and at the current growth rate, it's not inconceivable to envision a future where there are more (functioning) Islamic institutions in Italy than Catholic ones. Italy abounds with churches, but they have become largely tourist attractions that struggle to maintain membership levels.

The biggest mosque in Europe, the Mosque of Rome (pictured above), was desired by and paid for by King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. Construction of La Moschea di Roma started in 1984 but was not completed until 1995. La Moschea di Roma is in the north of Rome, at the foot of i Monti Parioli in the Acqua Acetosa neighborhood. (N.d.R.: See below, F/green line)

Italy, unlike its other European neighbors, has not had any significant problems with integrating its Muslim population. Nevertheless, many Italians, who are still largely "culturally Catholic", fear that Italy is becoming irreversibly bound to Islam. Magdi Allam, the biggest voice on Islam in Italy today -- and also its fiercest critic (since the passing of Oriana Fallaci) -- aims to educate and "alert" the Italian public that a conflict is forming under their very own eyes.

Magdi Allam does a daily column called Noi e gli altri -- Us and the Others -- and is the author of a half dozen books: Jihad in Italia, Kamikaze made in Europe, and Vincere la paura. La mia vita contro il terrorismo islamico e l'incoscienza dell'Occidente (Defeating fear. My life against Islamic terrorism and the unconsciousness of the West).