Bankers, Porto San Rocco, Scott the Wolf, Weddings, Romans, and the Beach

Hi, everyone! Sorry I haven't written... I haven't really had access to a computer. I also don't have a whole lot of time right now, but here goes the cool stuff, too briefly to do it justice:

• I met a neat older lady on the flight from Rome to Venice. We chatted easily (in English) and struck up quite a little friendship on the plane. I thought she was seventy or so, and she was full of life, vigor, energy, and mischief. At the end of the plane trip, she asked if she could give me her phone and address, and if I would ring her when I came to Rome, London, Biarritz, Cortina, or Lazio. I gladly accepted, but didn't quite understand the deal with all the different places. She then explained that she had houses in all of these places and spent her time among the different locales, all of which are quite exclusive if you own property. Wheels started turning... she must be somewhat wealthy. As it turns out... she's a banker and heiress (!!!) and is truly a lady of leisure. Wow. Boy, will I conatact her when I'm in any of those places! I wondered why she was flying on an airline instead of traveling by more chic means, but she answered my question before I could ask it--she's a major stock owner in Alitalia and can fly at a moment's notice. Her driver was waiting for her in Venice and it was easier for him to get to that airport than any other place on such short notice. Imagine! Then she winked at me and asked how old I was. I told her I was 26, and she said I looked younger. Then she said, "Ah, you are young!" She pinched my derriere, told me I had a good figure, and told me to go enjoy the Italian men while I was young! What a character. Then she said, "In December, I will be 89... and still I enjoy life more each day than the one before. Live! And come visit me and tell me about your travels." I was stunned--I would swear she was only 70. She winked at me and was escorted off the plane to meet her driver. Wow.
• Porto San Rocco and Trieste were beautiful. I was hoping Nonna (the Italian grandmother) would cook for us, but sadly, Umberto and Luciana are on some sort of diet and eat only health food. So my dreams of a heaping, steaming bowl of pasta and copious amounts of wine were thwarted for vegetable soup, spelt, and fresh vegetables. It was still wonderful--just not quite the cuisine I'd hoped for. We stayed at Porto San Rocco in a fabulous apartment--probably 1200 square feet, a 2-2 with hardwood floors, high ceilings, a wraparound veranda, and plenty of luxury. Caterina met me in Trieste and we stayed there for two days, and then headed inland to her hometown, Modena, to pack, pick up her friend Maria (Meri) , and catch a train down to the beach. The train ride was 9 hours long and ... miserable! It was completely packed with vacationing Italians, but it was quite an adventure. We didn't have seats, so we slept in the floor of the train. We arrived in Lecce where Caterina's friends, Sebbastiano and Tina, met us at the station and took us to rent a car. We're down South for Sebba and Tina's wedding on Saturday the 13th, which should be amazing--Caterina is calling it "the Godfather wedding" because the mafia is quite real in the South, and these are two very old and established Southern families marrying. I can't WAIT!!! At the car rental place, we met a lady who had the most beautiful puppy I'd ever, ever seen. Elegant, poised, intelligent, responsive, obedient, and there was something in his eyes that was sizing you up; something that made him more of a rival or a true companion than a pet, though he was perfectly obedient--actually, much more than most dogs. I chatted with the lady and asked about the dog-- "No, no," she corrected me. "He is a wolf. He's 3 months old, and his name is Scott." I was absolutely captivated. A wolf! It was the predator I saw in his eyes that made him a rival--he was absolutely mesmerising. Caterina saw how fascinated I was and her friend Meri took pictures of me playing with the wolf. There was something so much more intelligent about him than any domesticated animal, and it was the raw instinct; the wild animal whose greatest instinct is self-preservation... It was absolutely amazing. Yes, I want a wolf now. Yes, Mom and Dad, I know that I can't have one. But I will never forget looking into his eyes and seeing an equal; a rival; a true companion that demands respect.
• So we went to the beach house, and it's actually more of a country house than anything else. It's nice and cool, and very quiet. We found a little domesticated rabbit who'd clearly escaped from his home, and we've taken him in. As cute as he is, he's a little bit of trouble--he keeps wanting to bite us; I'm sure he doesn't understand that we are trying to save his life from the highway, and we're trying to find his owner. Since he's a little ornery, I have named him Stew... as in rabbit stew... lest he get a little too cocky. It's always good to remind him of his place. I think that on some primal level, he knows what stew means. =)
• We've spent every day so far at the beach, and it's beautiful! We're all quite tanned, and we've met some great people. We met a group of Roman guys--a lawyer, a doctoral candidate in economics, a fitness instructor/ massage therapist, and (my favorite!) a high school teacher who is going to the Italian naval academy (like West Point) in September. Let's just say that life is BEAUTIFUL... they took us out salsa dancing until dawn, and the next day we met on the beach again. They invited us to their house, cooked dinner for us, gave us massages, and then took us first to a big shooting star / bonfire / fireworks party (Called Festa San Lorenzo) on the beach at midnight, and then we went salsa dancing again, until 5am. The club was outdoors and beautiful, and then we all spread towels on the sand, listening to the salsa music and the waves, and slept in a crumpled heap. I mean, wow. I lay there, half asleep, looking up at the stars through wine-starry eyes, full of pasta the Romans cooked for us, and nestled into the towel and all of our friends, who were curled together in the cool night air. Life is... amazing. I thought of the Dave Mathews song, "Tripping Billies"--"I remember out on the beaches we wore pineapple grass bracelets... Now we sit, legs crossed 'round the fire, my yellow flame, she dances... tequila drinking, oh, our minds will wander to won'drous places. So why would you care to get out of this place? You and me and all our friends; such a happy human race..." Hah! Beautiful, beautiful vacation.
• We've gone out dancing almost every night, and tonight we will again! It's Tina's bachelorette party, and we're going first for dinner and then... you guessed it... dancing! It should be fantastic. It's also quite fun for me because of my Mediterranean heritage--mostly visible in my skin tone and eyes. Everyone thinks I'm Italian (until I open my mouth!), and once they figure out that I'm not, they all want to teach me to dance / speak Italian / appreciate the local area. It's fantastic to be a foreigner and have an accent--I'm so much more interesting here than I am in the States! Maybe I'll just start pretending that I'm foreign when I'm in America, just for fun.
• It's the season of local festivals, called sagra, and we've been to several. My favorite was a little local dance festival for the danced called pizzicati. It's a true courtship dance, almost Celtic in nature, where the woman leads the man in a playful dance-chase to mandolin, violin, bodhran, guitar, and flute. It's magic! We danced and danced and danced... and quite unexpectedly, one of the musicians from the stage came off the stage and asked me to dance with him! not on the stage, of course, but on teh floor. It was great... he was from the tiny town and was a fantastic dancer. So are the salsa dancers around here... I'm amazed at how popular Latin dance is, and how good people are at it. And there are about an equal number of men and women who dance, so you change partners all the time and really, really learn a lot. It's such a carefree, whimsical, fun atmosphere!
• We will stay at the beach until the 15th of August at least. The wedding is the 13th, and after that is a huge party called Ferragosto. It's kind of like New Year's Eve and 4th of July all rolled in to one, and there will be once again bonfires and fireworks on the beach. Beautiful. Simply beautiful!

So that's the quick, quick version! I'm planning on going back to Modena with Caterina and Meri, staying there for a day or so to see the area, and then striking off on my own to France for a little while, adn then up to Denmark to visit my friends there. I love to be with friends, but it will be very nice to spend a little time alone, traveling, to gather my thoughts and just enjoy being alone and anonymous. I'll sit in cafes and drink espresso and write, read, or just people-watch. I'm meeting my French friend, Jean-Claude, in Paris on the 28th, and then I fly home on the 31st. So life is really pretty amazing. I want to spend a few days in Paris to visit places I've never been--principally museums--I really want to go to the smaller museums and bring a sketchbook and doodle some. I'm really a terrible artist, but I love to try! It's calming and soothing somehow, to create something that's your own. And there's something about a graphic medium that feels more expressive and free to me than writing --it's boundless and formless, and no matter what it looks like, it's yours. And you always remember what you were thinking and feeling when you created it. I guess a picture's worth a thousand words, even if only to the wannabe artist!

It feels SO GOOD to have written and to be in contact with people! I miss my friends and family so much. I love being here--I really do--but I am definitely an American girl, and my home, my life, my family, most of the people I love are in the States, and I can't wait to get back home and see everyone, and in a sense, start my new life. Work! Midtown! Susie (boy, I miss that puppy...)! Friends! Family! Local concerts! Discovering new places, like the Cuban restaurant! Guitar! Dance and Italian classes at Emory! My very own life, whatever shape it takes. Travel and vacation are great--nothing can replace its value--but it is always so beautiful to return home, to your own place. I am so excited to start this new chapter in my life, to be settled indefinitely in a place for the first time in 8 or 9 years. I want to grow roots in Atlanta and make it home, which is a luxury that the student simply doesn't have. I am bubbly happy just thinking about what's ahead, and what makes all the difference to me is knowing the people I love and will come to know will be close by.

So please email or post to the blog or, if you're feeling wealthy (which i decidedly am NOT, by the way--the exchange rate is murder!) , give me a call! This vacation has been exactly what I wanted and needed, a break in which I don't have to think or make any decisions (the biggest decision I've made so far is which kind of tanning cream to put on and which earrings to wear...). l return soon to the things I really do need, that help make my life wonderful--the people I love.

Love,

Tif