Feel It All

I’m more than half-way through my trip. It’s day 18 and 12 more to go. I have never been away from home for this long. Turns out I like home. A lot. I had a video visit with my cats. Real tears happened. I think Wallace actually heard my voice and remembered it. He acted like he missed me. Ru just came out from his hiding spot for a bit, sniffed the air and was curious about the noise he was hearing (basically me saying his name on repeat). Typical.

I saw the garden I planted before I left. It’s growing! Bursts of red and other colors have appeared. The peonies are in full bloom. I’m sad to miss that.

I miss my people too. I can only walk around with confidence here by myself because I am held up by the love of my family and my friends in Minnesota. I am known and I am not ever truly alone. Being loved and known is an extraordinary gift not to be taken for granted. I wish everyone could get this perspective. It does require willingness to put oneself in vulnerable and challenging situations. My song “Feel It All” expresses that thought. Give it a listen.

I continue to try and stay in the moment here. Some of the lovely things that surround me on a daily basis ❤️:

* Italy has the best tasting coffee. I don’t know what they do to it. I’ve settled on cappuccino as my daily routine. My spot back home (Corner Coffee) has a great tasting espresso and each day I get an iced Cortado (shot of espresso with 4 oz of milk). I like it because it has less milk than a latte and you really get a good balance with the espresso. This being said. Italy wins. The foamy cappuccino with a little sugar and accompanied by a croissant. Perfecto.

*The sound of the sea. It is literally my soundtrack everyday. I tolerate the little biting gnats that come in to my apartment because I simply must hear it when I am awake and to put me to sleep at night. I do wish this apartment had SCREENS though. Oh…Italy.

*The lemon tree in the backyard and really…all the fruit around here. We even have an apricot tree and my sister and I were able to pick fruit from it when we first got here. This is the perfect climate for fruit and it is everywhere! The fresh food market is THE BEST. I learned about the fish market, the butcher shop and a great store to buy cheese yesterday during my cooking class. Tomorrow’s adventure is the market. :)

*The color of the water. It is so many shades of blue. I love to look at it against the green of the palm trees and the foliage of the umbrella pines. All the plants and flowers here are bold and beautiful. Different textures and bright colors. It makes me happy.

*The history. The architecture.

*How easy it is to get food that is free of preservatives and additives. You gotta eat fresh food quickly but that’s a good problem to have.

If you wanna see pictures of all of these cool things, follow me on Instagram. @slurenner

A few things that aren’t so lovely. Every place has it’s good and bad. 🥴:

*The train, at least the regional train that I have been depending on, is super unpredictable. It can be confusing and can cancel for no reason. It is impossible to get a refund if you already bought a ticket. Seriously, the form they give you to fill out and MAIL for a 3 Euro ticket! The process is hilarious! Then you are forced to rely on a taxi and get ready to PAY for it. You just hope to find someone that is kind. I’ll have a car again next week and I cannot wait! So much easier.

*Garbage and graffiti. You stop noticing it but it’s everywhere.

*Working Italians are not helpful. There is no incentive for customer service here.

The best part of making a list of not so lovely things is that it really makes you appreciate home. Things bug me because I have the privilege of a life at home that ISN‘T surrounded by graffiti, garbage, disorganization and rudeness. If this is your reality as well, take a minute and appreciate it.

Buona giornata amici! Ciao! ~sara