Otzi the Ice Man

Today we left Fie/Vols and returned to Bolzano to get the train back to Rome.   We left early so that we would have time in Bolzano to visit the Museum of Archeology where they have the 5300 year old mummy that was found in the Alps in 1991 which was later determined to be the body of a man who was killed on the trail where he was found 5300 years ago.  The entire museum is about the find and the process of bringing the mummy back to the labs and the forensic work they've done to date him and figure out where he lived, what he ate, what medical conditions he had etc.  The mummy itself is in an air conditioned (mostly freezer like conditions) room and visitors look through a window at the mummy.  They mostly keep the conditions as close to what they were outside for the thousands of years that the body lay buried in the ice and snow.  He's called a "wet mummy" for that reason!  It is simply fascinating to look at the body of someone who live so very long ago!  I had heard about Otzi the Iceman over the years, so was really glad to be able to see the exhibit.  We timed everything perfectly.  We got to Bolzano a little before ten, checked our bags at the bus station, found the museum without too much trouble and were in there shortly after they opened at 10.  By the time we left at about 11:20 the place was really getting packed and the lines were very long.  We went back to retrieve our luggage from the bus station and then went and had lunch in an outdoor cafe on the main plaza in Bolzano.  Then we got the train back to Rome.  At this point I'm all packed and ready to depart tomorrow morning.  Monday night, back in Rochester!

Pics today are some shots of the Bolzano town square and the life size reproduction of "Otzi" that the museum created based on what they know of him from the mummy itself and the clothing and tools they found with him.  They don't allow photos of the actual mummy.