Last Day in Italy

Palermo, Sicily, Italy


(Note: I wrote this last night, so "today" actually refers to yesterday.)

It’s late and I’m ready for bed. I arrived in Palermo this morning on a night train from Napoli. I managed to get a little sleep and not have anything stolen. Upon arrival I took care of some business, including shipping my large piece of driftwood to the U.S. When I walked away from the Mail Boxes Etc., I felt so much lighter. As much as I enjoyed seeing the look on people’s faces as they stared at my driftwood, I don’t think I could carry it around anymore. Eventually I arrived at my host’s apartment. I showered and then headed out to explore the city. Palermo is an amazing place. It is so old. It is so dirty and downtrodden. However, there is also a sort of majestic quality to it. It is very rich with life. I wandered around for awhile occasionally taking a picture with my semi-functioning camera. I wanted to eat something traditional, and eventually I found it. As I walked down the main street, Via Roma, massive amounts of smoke wafted up some stairs from a side street. I went down them and was lead to a man grilling meats and several Italian men standing and eating. I knew this was my lunch. I ordered two and waited as they were thrown on the grill. I sprinkled some salt and squeezed a lime onto the meat, as the Italian men had done. Then I proceeded to enjoy my lunch, which was grilled animal intestines of some sort. The texture was strange, but it was a fun experience. I wandered around for awhile more, taking more pictures and shooting some video. At some point, I stopped and sat down to write some postcards. I was sitting near an open-air market that smelled of fish. There were a bunch of men nearby yelling and talking rather loudly and enthusiastically. Being in Palermo, I felt very much as if I’m in an Italian movie. Everything is so classic… the buildings, the sounds, the people, the food. It’s magnificent. I will definitely return to Sicily. I had a Sicilian swordfish spaghetti for dinner with my host. A fire-twirling dancer performed for a few minutes. After dinner, we walked down the street and I ate a true cannolo – the Sicilian pasty filled with a sweet ricotta filling. I have had a wonderful last day in Italy. As much as I Love Italy, I know it is really just the beginning of my Italian adventures.


And now I will list all the things I will miss and the things I will not miss in Italy, and the Central/Eastern European excursion.

The things I will miss in Italy (and Central/Eastern European Excursion):

- Chasing pigeons
- The Macro world of insects
- Inside jokes with Josh
- Beef goulash with sauerkraut… Mmmm.
- Palermo
- Eleonora’s home-cooked meals
- Cannoli
- Speaking Italian
- Gesturing in Italian
- Photoshoots in Cinque Terre
- Como
- The “David”
- Classically Italian-looking old men
- The colors of the ocean water in Cinque Terre
- Collecting obscure souvenirs, i.e. large, heavy piece of driftwood
- The strange looks that I got from people checking out my obscure souvenirs, i.e. large, heavy piece of driftwood
- The leaves on the trees in Budapest
- Budapest in general
- Pizzas, especially the one in Napoli
- The words, “Franco Bolli,” which mean stamps



The things I will NOT miss in Italy (and Central/Eastern European Excursion):

- dirty trains
- Venetian toilets without seats
- Milano
- Creepy, gay men in the Turkish Bath
- Dealing with exchange rates to Crowns and Forints
- The crazy drivers in Napoli
- The Hungarian gypsies that stole Josh’s camera
- Gypsies in general, even the ones I never came in contact with
- Milano
- Grumpy train ticket salesmen
- Poorly designed graffiti
- Bland dinner from the food court in Budapest
- The hostel in Venice
- Lack of sleep
- The hostel in Prague
- The Brazilian guy who woke me up at 1:30 in the morning to tell me that I was in his bed
- The crazy Turkish guy that was angry at me for dancing with his friend
- Milano
- Dog poo smeared on the sidewalk
- Carrying around a large, heavy piece of driftwood
- The intense rush of adrenaline after taking prohibited photos and video of the “David”
- Not having enough water to drink on the 16 hour train rides to Prague, and then trying to avoid that experience by purchasing several large bottles of water only to carry them around and suffer the weight without ever drinking all the water
- Oh, and… uhm… Milano