(Written in parts)
I got up super early, for what reason? I now have to wait @ the train station forever to get on a train to Brescia, only to then have to catch another to Bergamo. I have about 2.5 hrs to wait for my train and nowhere to sit. So I'm outside on the dirty ground with the pigeons. I was thinking yesterday about all the romance that revolves around Italy, the uber touristy side of Venice, Verona, Florence, Rome, etc. I am definitely not experiencing that. I am experiencing the raw and gritty and rough side. Bergamo, I hope you're worth it.
After figuring out which train I was taking, I waited at the track. I was approached by some guy who must work for the station who wanted to do a survey. I didn't mind, it presented an opportunity to practice my Italian. I feel I can listen better than I can speak. It's trying to form a sentence or searching for words that gets me. Anyway, I think he thought I was Italian until he asked where I was from. Then he started speaking in English about how he loves American muscle cars :) it was an amusing distraction from my wait and some good practice.
I arrived in Brescia and the train for Bergamo was on the next track and leaving in 3 minutes. So I hobbled on over with my heavy bag and gimp hip and the train was freakin packed to the doors. I found some standing room in the last car with a bunch of dudes, I was the only female in the car. Some Italian guys and a group of black men that were definitely not Italian, I'm pretty sure they were immigrants. It was a long, uncomfortable and awkward ride, but I arrived in Bergamo and am now waiting for my room at the hostel.
Probably going to be an early night for me. My bum hip hurts from either walking around a lot or my backpack weighing on it. Right now I've got the hostel room to myself, would be nice if it stays that way. After settling in I decided to walk around the city a little, see what Bergamo is all about. Didn't have a map but I found things pretty well. There were so many people out, I think the entire town was out for its evening passeggiata, so I slid right in and joined them. There was some big event going on in the main piazza, some jazz in another area. I crept into 3 churches. The first - San Barolomeo, was beautiful, with this huge tromp l'oiel painting on the ceiling. Of course I wanted to walk around and gawk and take pictures, but there were 2 nuns praying and people waiting for confession so I just sat and gazed. I walked a little further with all the families and couples and found another church - Santo Spirito - where organ music was playing. So I snuck in there and listened to the organ for a while. One again, beautiful paintings in the chapels that I wanted to see up close, but people were sitting and listening and praying. I found some food, then continued back to the main intersection, which is really cool cause you can look up and see the citta alta in the distance beyond all the buildings and behind a big stone wall. One more church, so I decided to check it out. There was an actual sermon going on in this one, so I could only stand in the back and look around, but I was kinda stoked because I've wanted to go to mass in a big old beautiful church in Italy, and I just walked right into it. So I stood there for a few minutes and listened and watched, then made my way back to the hostel. A long, mostly uneventful day, but I like the feel and energy in Bergamo, and I'm excited to see the citta alta tomorrow.
