Thoughts on Italy

We have been here for 13 days now, and my homesickness is not as strong now that the kids are here! There are many differences between how we live and how the Italians live; some good and some bad depending on your point of view

Everyone is thin here! And their clothes sizing is much smaller than ours- Lara wears a medium in the US but she is an XL here- something she wasn't very happy about! I asked some locals why everyone is so thin, and the two answers I got was that the food is much more natural and the portion sizes are smaller. I didn't see any "gyms" like we have all over our town; they don't make a point to work out, but walk everywhere. Most everywhere we eat, the food is local, so given that it is winter- there was a lot of cabbage in the food we were served. I liked eating locally grown food, but I missed my "american" food after a week! There aren't any "Walmarts"; people shop at the local small merchants- the butcher, bakery and produce stands were always busy with locals. I found that particularly charming. Bigger isn't always better :). Extensive public transportation system, along with a bustling local economy means many don't need cars and have everything they need (including employment) is within a short distance from their homes.

They don't smile here, and I didn't like that. The people were friendly when you would talk to them, but getting a smile was rare. No one said "excuse me" at any time, even though I was always saying it; they just jostle you until you are out of their way. Not many speak English, and some would try and be helpful, but others seem to make fun of us and our lack of the Italian language. We lost Steve in Bolagna (long kind of funny story), and a young woman helped us enormously in finding him and getting it fixed. Her kindness was so needed and I will remember this the next time I encounter a foreigner at home.

The Italians dress beautifully and wear cool shoes; very beautiful people! Their subway has so much garbage that it makes NYC subways look pristine!

There is so much to see here, it's overwhelming. Ancient ruins right along side, or in most cases under, centuries old churches. It's impossible to ever see everything so we had to pick and choose. We are such a young nation, but also very flexible and diverse. We have been influenced by so many other cultures and we have had a lot of social change.

We are in Venice now and fly home tomorrow. Venice is beautiful! But very quiet. It has lost 100,000 people since 1950 who moved to the mainland. The population is at 60,000; many stores are closed, and the streets near where we are staying are deserted. It's eerie walking around the small alleys at night. From what I have read, Venice may no longer be inhabitable in 100 years due to global warming; the water is already 4 feet higher now than it was in 1900- very sad!

I miss home and am glad we leave tomorrow- can't wait to see my puppy; and I am looking forward to getting back to work. It's wonderful to have a job that I love!