Hi everyone and Happy New Year! Wow, today marks 6 months since we touched down here in Italy! It's been a fun-filled time for sure, and I hope you've enjoyed my humble attempt to share it with you.
We especially enjoyed the last few weeks - Nick and Celeste came to see us here and we had a blast over the holidays with them. As a bonus, Celeste's boyfriend Jack came as well - he had just completed a semester as an intern at the UN in NYC and flew straight from JFK to spend the holidays with us. I'll try to share photos and memories from the holidays in our next post. But for now...
First of all: Announcement! Barbara and I are going to visit Atlanta in February! It's my winter/spring break so we're going to come back for a week. Looking forward to seeing any ATL'ers then; please plan to set aside some time between February 22-28.
For now, I thought I'd share some quirky little things we've experienced these last few months: Make no mistake, we are "embracing the lifestyle" fully, but you can't help but laugh at some quirky things you see:
1) August: This is old news to many of you, but this country literally shuts down in August. We mentioned it when we arrived, and meant to show you what it looks like for 3-4 weeks across so much of Italy - the big cities keep chugging along, but smaller towns really slow down:
August: Bar Tandem shuttered for three weeks; where is everyone?; the sign says it all
Now that we have lived here for a summer, it all makes perfect sense - it's super-hot, with very little air conditioning available, so it's time to head to the sea. And it's rather efficient if everyone takes off at the same time - requires less juggling of schedules and having to work during your holiday if you know everyone is on holiday just like you! But for a first-timer, it feels like a Twilight Zone episode ("What's that you say? A coffee shop? Why, there hasn't been a coffee shop in this town for 30 years!").
2) Health and Safety! Italians love to promote health and safety, and they are unabashed in implementing and enforcing the rules. I don't think we are anti-health and safety in the U.S., it just seems more explicit here. And I don't think it's unique to Italians; we experienced this back in England too (perhaps it's just a credit to the advanced civilization in which the EU aspires for us all to live!). Of course it's hard to argue with...
Easy access to easy-to-use defibrillators!
or...
Super-clear instructions on how to use (and not use) an escalator
And check this out - in a world with no 24-hour CVS/Walgreen's, there's some kind of regulation requiring all of the pharmacies ("Farmacia") in a given area to coordinate their hours of operation so that there is always at least ONE pharmacy open at any given time - here's the sign in our neighborhood telling you who's open at any given time.
Public health advocates (and many others) will enjoy this one - the omni-present condom dispensary! You'll find these prominently positioned on well-lit streets, no shame or embarrassment involved (as it should be). Safety first!
3) Italian men: I must say I am very impressed with how comfortable Italian men are in their own skin: To be clear, they are as "manly" as any men around the world (some would say quite chauvinist in fact), but they have no problem appearing...not so manly, at least to the American eye. You might not find me enjoying a glass of white wine at the train station, and I'm not quite ready to get myself a man purse (Jerry Seinfeld would call it a "European carry-all"), but hey no judgment! And check out the guy with the little doggie peeking out of his bag!
4) Drinking Water: Students of ancient Rome know that the Italians have a history with bringing good drinking water from faraway places, and letting it flow abundantly in their cities. It's still true to this day - first of all, the tap water everywhere is very drinkable, which makes us wonder why we are always paying for bottled water in restaurants ("would you like still or sparkling?"). But water seems to be available everywhere in the street:
Matt helps himself to a glass in Torino; a continual water supply in Rome, Barbara in Chieri
5) The Blue Bag Man! We haven't figured out who this man is, or what scam he's running (or even if he's running a scam), but we enjoy seeing him every day "working" in a parking lot near our apartment. The Blue Bag Man hangs out in the parking lot and helps cars park - it's a crowded lot, with small spaces, so he (a) flags approaching cars to show them where the vacant spots are (b) helps them figure out how to get into the tight spots, and then...proceeds to try to sell the driver/passengers all sorts of items - umbrellas, phone chargers, sometimes a t-shirt, just a random assortment of stuff he keeps in these large blue bags. gotta hand it to the guy, he is making a living by adding value as the self-proclaimed parking assistant, not asking for handouts, just pleasantly offering his wares to the neighborhood!
Hoping you can come and visit and experience all of these quirks and more!