It's hard to believe that I've been here for 3 weeks already with only 2 more until I leave Italy. I"ll be sad to leave la bella vita here but I have other plans to be completed. My Italian has improved immensely and I have been complimented twice recently on my Italian:)
I am now driving confidently on the wrong side of the road...something that worried me before I arrived. I just repeat to myself when I go around a corner " tight right, left loose" if I need reminding which side I should be on. But all in all, the adjustment hasn't been difficult at all.
It's fun ( mainly) living within another family with different cultural ideals. We eat heaps of vegetables, little meat, and fish quite often. I am getting used to having oil on EVERYTHING. I have experimented with some Italian recipes usually with pleasing results and have produced a few recipes from New Zealand which have generally been well accepted.
Montegrotto Terme (meaning thermal ) is a small town about 20 minutes from Padova. It's a little like Rotorua in New Zealand but without the stink of sulphur. I had my first Fango which is a relaxing mud wrap ( mud is between 38 -42 degrees Celsius) and you end up empathising with a hotdog wrapped in a bread bun cos that what you feel like! You are then helped to a shower where you are water blasted with hot water , which actually only feels warm after the hot mud, and then you step down into a hydrating deep, bubbling water bath. It was so relaxing that I felt totally serene all day. It cost €28 which I believe is good value for a one hour treatment. Apparently a course of Fango ( or is it Fangi??!!) is supposed to be very beneficial to those suffering from arthritis and other aches and pains.
I was able to join a bus tour to Torino for 3 days with about 12 hours notice last weekend. Northern Italian countryside on the way there was gorgeous and I especially want to go back to explore Verona which looked amazing. I especially enjoyed the Museo d' Arte Contemporanca, The Nazionale Museo Automobile, the Opera " Don Carlo" featuring music from Vivaldi and a "Bicherin" which is a traditional hot drink of half hot chocolate, half coffee and then topped with frothy milk and served in a wine glass.
Unfortunately we had wet weather ( and cold temperatures) most of the time in Torino and I am now onto my 3 rd umbrella in 2 months after my pink one collapsed around my head with broken metal prongs only just holding the nylon in a sort of 3 cornered hat shape! I' ll try and upload the photo one of the guys took of me with my umbrella on the brink of total destruction - the umbrella that is, not me.
The totally random act of the weekend was when a guy from the tour walked up to me one night and recited " How much wood would a woodcutter cut if a woodcutter would cut wood". Maybe it was his way of welcoming me and showing me that he knew some ( useless) English!
I have taken a couple of day trips on my days off and have visited the beautiful, medieval town of Ferrara (40 minutes by train) with its famous via delle Volte . This is where much of the commercial activity of the medieval city took place. There are still many elevated passages
(volte) which join the merchants houses on the south side of the street with their warehouses on the north side. The streets are still made of round stones which are a killer on the feet - they would be even worse for those wearing high heels. Ferrara has been classified as a World Heritage Site which is " a fine example of a city designed during the Renaissance that has managed to retain the integrity of its historic centre".
Mantova is another lovely town about 2 hours away by train and is surrounded by 3 lakes. The 1 hour boat trip on the lakes was good value for 9€ and made a nice change from palaces, cathedrals, museums and churches.
This week there is a public holiday (1 May) so I have bought a train ticket to Monfalcone ( just before Trieste) and 2.5 hours away by train. I also plan to visit Aquilia which when looked down on from above, is a 9 pointed star shaped town that apparently is beautiful.
Verona and Venice are on my list during the next couple of weeks and possibly Palma and Modena.
Ciao for now.
l
