Mei's vakantie

I called it a centrifuge holiday. Full speed in a short time, in short. I had already been in Italy for a week, but on Friday my love came to leave again tomorrow morning, so everything went into fifth gear. Eating at Carolina and Martino (Tetino for intimates) from the restaurant across the street, a party at the neighbors from Pistoia, heavy shopping at Malibu, my favorite store in Ostuni (where the sale is still happily ongoing, hooray hooray, the haul: a shirt-top, a T-shirt, and two dazzling evening dresses for a bargain price) and another beach afternoon with lunch with prosecco and a deep dive in the Adriatic Sea.

I almost forgot to mention the neighbors who thought it was so sad that the ice cream cake we had brought had melted when it was served that they brought a fresh one the next day. And handyman Mimmo, who just brought two little rabbits for our daughters. Life in Italy is beautiful. Although I have learned a few things again.

1. Alcohol

Italians are the sweetest, but their alcohol consumption is really lower than ours. Especially during a party. Man. Man. Man. We had experienced it before and now saw the evidence again. They are generous with everything, except with the bottle. Lesson learned: make sure there is a bottle hidden in your own bag, it helps you through the evening.

2. Italian calling

While New Yorkers all walk around with earbuds and are gesticulating wildly having their own conversations, in Italy it goes differently. You answer, put the phone on speaker, hold it five centimeters from your ear or mouth and chatter away. And you let everyone enjoy it, no matter where you are. During a wedding, in a restaurant... ‘I call, therefore I exist’ is the motto.

3. Anything goes

My parents have a house here, so we are dealing with local Italian life. What stands out is that the prejudices often do, but very often do not hold true. I find the Italians just (they are on time), decisive (nothing domani, just oggi) and very much living according to the rules. Maybe I will feel differently in a year, but for now, I am happily and contentedly cruising here. Or as my daughters say: this is the land of fun and enjoyment. And so it is.