24 dicembre, 19:00

ciao tutti!
Welcome to my blog and i hope that I can somehow share how fantastic it is in Italy... I am happy as can be right now... it's christmas eve, and I am in a lovely hotel room in Rapallo, having a glass of nebbiolo d'alba wine, and just finished eating a piece of foccaccia with onion, and drizzled with the most delicious olive oil, and Andrea Bocelli is singing for me from my laptop... I am tempted to write many words in italian, but if I do that I will take forever to look up spelling in my dictionary... and my goal is to write about this place in a way that is not too boring, not too sentimental, but just right! Giusto!

Where to start... quickly--I arrived in Pisa at about 14:00 on 21 dicembre, only about 3 hours late after the flight from JFK was delayed from 20:30 to 24:00. We took off at midnight on an Alitalia flight direct to Pisa. I reminded myself that I was on local time, even though I'd been up for many hours. For anyone who wants the cure for jetlag, or to avoid it altogether, be on local time, and don't go to sleep until about 23:00 the night you arrive. Then you are completely exhausted, and have just enjoyed a wonderful dinner with wine, and you will sleep soundly until abut 6 or 7 the next morning... anyway, Pisa... I took the bus to the train station (stazione) which took all of about 5 minutes. I walked for about an hour, crossing the Arno, looking for a store where I could buy a new chip for my italian phone--the old one was non funcionata (see--that's probably misspelled...), asking for directions 3 or 4 times, and I eventually found the Tim store right around the corner from il stazione... typical of my wanderings. Another tip--buy a cheap phone, and for 20 euro buy a Tim card chip, and then charge your phone with prepaid minutes...

I took the train to La Spezia (passed Carrara where Michelangelo hand picked his marble), then a quick switch (with a gentleman from Corniglia showing me the way to the correct track) to Vernazza. It was dark so I didn't get to see much--the train goes in and out of a series of tunnels, and the first time you take this train you are awestruck by the little bits of il mare--the sea--that you see in between tunnels. In Vernazza I walked out of the stazione and on to Via Roma, the little street that runs down through the town--the only street with shops and restaurants. It ends a little way down at the harbor in the only square. In the summer it is loud and busy with tourists and every shop and restaurant open, but in the winter it is so quiet. I was glad that I was there in the days before Christmas because people were out shopping, saying buon natale! and auguri! which will soon be replaced with buon anno! and auguri! Auguri is best wishes and is definitely the catch-all greeting this time of year.

My landlords have no other guests now, and only have a few rooms in a remodeled house on the hillside by the path to Corniglia. Michele met me--she met her husband Giuliano--a Vernazza local--and has lived in Vernazza for 4 years. They have adorable 2 year old Sofia, and Giuliano is a stonemason who has built the houses and walls of their camere (rooms) and also works to repair the many dry stacked stone walls that hold the city from sliding down to the sea. My cottage was pretty adorable--just renovated and a perfect little place. It had a super heater, which was nice since they had had relentless rain, and with the clouds it was pretty chilly out.

Before leaving I said I was going to go to Vernazza (pop. ~500) to decompress, and that's what I did. I'm proud to say that 3 days into Italy I declare myself officially decompressed! No more continuous but sometime random thoughts of worry and obligation--Brava! I was going to hike the trails either to Monterossa to the west, or to Corniglia to the east, and yesterday morning I did walk a bit toward Corniglia, and would have gone further, but Giuliano told me that the trail was closed because of some landslides, and that there is no maintenance or monitoring of the trail. So I walked until I came across a little landslide that I could easily have crossed (I encountered a few people who were traveling the trail in each direction) but being alone I didn't want to end up in some kind of Lucy-like predicament, so returned to my cottage.

Part of the decompressing thing was to go back to my place, turn up the heat, and proceed to read an entire book... ok, i read some of it over wine at the bar and restaurant where I took all my morning coffees and evening dinners (colazione= breakfast=due cappucini e un brioche) (cena=dinner=trofie con pesto e una insalata mista con olio d'olova) and some when I went to bed until I finished, but sill--a book in a day is something that I can't remember doing for many, many years...

As I was eating I noticed a fellow outside the restaurant but didn't think much about it... but when I left and came out to the square he came up to me and in very good english, started talking to me... he was at least 3rd generation Vernazzia, and we talked for a bit and he asked me if I wanted to go for a walk, or to have a drink, or a coffee. We did end up talking, and sat on a bench at the harbor, then walked to a promitory to look over the city and the sea. I left him at about 21:00 to return to my book and my bed, but in the morning I saw him in the bar while I was drinking my caffe' and he walked up to the stazione as I was leaving to say ciao and arrivederci.

As I said, I am in Rapallo. This is the town where my mother's mother was born along with her 12 siblings. Only one is left, my mother's zia Elisa, and she lives in the hills above Rapallo on the land that she lived with her husband, and that he farmed throughout his life. Elisa's daughters Rina and Maria live in Rapallo, and today I took a taxi to the home of Rina and her husband Angelo and we talked (my beginner's Italian, and Angelo's little bit of English). Unfortunately, Elisa is ill (I can't figure out what it is--something along her right chest-to-back with nerve pain) and is in bed... this is a very difficult thing for everyone, because Elisa is used to living in her home in the hills (Foggia) and now is in a bed in her daughter's house. Elisa is 90, and i have visited her 3 times before in her home, with its old rooms and crumbling walls holding up the terraces that her husband used to farm... She can't see and can barely hear, but when she is in her home she is fine--knowing the place by rote, and living her days in peace. She has chickens and uses their eggs, and her daughters help her to plant a small plot of tomatoes and basil and lettuces in the summer, and she is as content as she can be. But now I am worried that she will never return to her home and I am afraid for her. Thanks to God that she has a daughter who will care for her, but her life as she knows it is probably finished. Rina and Maria have been driving up and down the winding roads to Foggia to take care of their mama for many years, so at least it is a relief that they won't have to take that time and engergy to travel to take care of Elisa...

Rina invited me to come tomorrow for pranzo di Natale, so I will go there at around 11:00 and we will have dinner at noon. I took a taxi there today, and Rina drove me home, but tomorrow I will walk... Rina is completely tired out taking care of her mother and her husband and said that the ravioi is homemade, but that she made it in advance and it is frozen. Today I brought a bottle of prosecco, and a sweet cake with raisins, and some chocolate and honey that I bought in Vernazza. Tomorrow I will bring flowers and will try to help with the dinner. I told Rina that I am una buona cuoca (good cook) so I hope she lets me help. I am sure we will laugh and try to talk together and I hope that Elisa will be able to sit and eat dinner with us... Rina said that Elisa eats only minestrone and caffe latte, so we'll see...

I have used my italian in the restaurants, in the Tim store, in the stazioni to buy train tickets, to order caffe, etc, but to try to carry on a converstaion is another thing... but somehow it works.

Now, it's 20:00 and I have heard about a little trattioria (Trattoria Genovaise) that serves local food, and that will be comfortable for a woman traveling solo...ciao e ci vediami presto!
C