On a recent rainy day in Firenze I decided to stay in and take it slow. I arrived here with a pretty bad cough and had been pushing myself, but the heavy rain gave me permission to hang inside and be ok with it. I love me some guilt-free vegging, especially when accompanied by a room with an interesting view.
As I watched the raindrops dance off of the classic Florentine terracotta rooftops, I started to take stock of some of the little things I forget that tend to surprise and delight me when I first arrive. For instance, how the hot water is always turned to the right instead of the left. (This is best learned pretty much right away.) How light switches flip down (to turn on) instead of up. How the house keys look like something that will gain you entry into a mysterious old castle.
How in order to conserve electric, and save money, you must hit the light switch in the stairwell, otherwise you descend in darkness. The savvy apartment dweller gauges how long it will take to get to the next landing before the light goes out. How my shoes and jewelry get a little loose as my body loses the inflammation from eating healthier foods, senza GMO's and all that other crap that's in our food. Sorry USA - it's true. I know...ouch. And lastly, how personal space is not as much of an issue, even with cars & motorinos. They will almost brush your elbow as they go by if you don’t get out of their way. And to avoid all of this, you are constantly walking up onto the sidewalk, then back into the street...up and down..up and down... Being annoyed doesn’t accompany this. It’s just the flow and way of life. Il ritmo. (the rhythm). And you accept it without pause.
As the rain moved on, I contemplated how I love the first sitings of these little things that throw me off. They are a sign of the excavation to come; the real digging down that accompanies traveling, especially for me here in Firenze. When I remain in the familiar layers of my life I don’t give myself the opportunity to explore deeply within. It can be a tricky process this excavation. It brings with it a myriad of emotions and sensations, most of which are blissful. However, it also requires enormous amounts of patience (especially when it comes to wifi) and courage. I'm just at the beginning of this excavation and extremely excited at what I will uncover this time around.
Buon Weekend & Big Love, PatriciaG aka Patrizia Fiorentina
