Here is my first blog!! At my mothers suggestion i've set one up. Here I will chronicle my current stay in Naples and small trips around Italy, as well as, my coming journeys through Greece, Tunisia, Morocco, Spain and Iceland.
To start: Naples. Naples is fantastic. Its loud, boisterous, smelly and fun! Just walking around and viewing the daily interactions between Italians is interesting. Italians don't converse like Canadians, far from it, they use a whole body approach when talking. They place their legs a certain way while their hands rove through the air waving and shaking to underscore spoken sentiments. My favourite "hand gesture" is when the fingers are squeezed together and the thumb is placed on the ring and the middle finger, this whole setup is then extended from the body, about an arms length, and shaken up and down slowly. The same hand formation when shaken above the head means "What the hell do you want?"
The foundation on which Italian discussions take place is no less interesting than themselves. The majority of roads and sidewalks (when there are any!) are made from rectangular basalt blocks. The stones are hewn from nearby Mt. Vesuvius and dragged over to Naples. Mt. Vesuvius is the active volcano that was responsible for Pompeii! When walking around on daily errands one can glimpse Vesuvius hanging over Naples like a silent sentinel. Vesuvius isn't Naples only sentinel they have hundreds of Churches, watching over their sinful lives. Italians have one type of church, BIG. The churches are massive feats of construction with interior decor to match! Every single nook and cranny is carved or gilded and shows-cases the skill of Italian craftspeople. While the streets and churches are awe inspiring other simple buildings like apartments and shops have received slightly less attention. Apartments are often lacking paint and stucco can be crumbling or falling off in great lumps. The ground level of every building is usually given a little redecorating by friendly graffiti artists. But rather than taking away from Naples, all the crumbling buildings add to the place. The feeling is one of venerable age rather than abject decline.
Onto scooters! Scooters are the Italians preferred mode of transportation. They permeate every street and sidewalk. Italians begin scootering at age twelve with a 50cc bike. When they reach sixteen they get to move to a 150cc bike and then as eighteen year olds whatever they like. To warn pedestrians that they are approaching scooters toot their horns in rapid succession. I now find myself unconsciously flowing with the crowd and moving left or right when the scooters blast sounds.
I really want to rent a scooter, however Italians have suggested that I remain alive by not riding one. Many people die every year from scooter crashes. Its not hard to see why! Scooters don't obey regular driving rules they just weave in and out wherever they can fit. You'll see scooters passing buses on the right or blowing red lights!
To start: Naples. Naples is fantastic. Its loud, boisterous, smelly and fun! Just walking around and viewing the daily interactions between Italians is interesting. Italians don't converse like Canadians, far from it, they use a whole body approach when talking. They place their legs a certain way while their hands rove through the air waving and shaking to underscore spoken sentiments. My favourite "hand gesture" is when the fingers are squeezed together and the thumb is placed on the ring and the middle finger, this whole setup is then extended from the body, about an arms length, and shaken up and down slowly. The same hand formation when shaken above the head means "What the hell do you want?"
The foundation on which Italian discussions take place is no less interesting than themselves. The majority of roads and sidewalks (when there are any!) are made from rectangular basalt blocks. The stones are hewn from nearby Mt. Vesuvius and dragged over to Naples. Mt. Vesuvius is the active volcano that was responsible for Pompeii! When walking around on daily errands one can glimpse Vesuvius hanging over Naples like a silent sentinel. Vesuvius isn't Naples only sentinel they have hundreds of Churches, watching over their sinful lives. Italians have one type of church, BIG. The churches are massive feats of construction with interior decor to match! Every single nook and cranny is carved or gilded and shows-cases the skill of Italian craftspeople. While the streets and churches are awe inspiring other simple buildings like apartments and shops have received slightly less attention. Apartments are often lacking paint and stucco can be crumbling or falling off in great lumps. The ground level of every building is usually given a little redecorating by friendly graffiti artists. But rather than taking away from Naples, all the crumbling buildings add to the place. The feeling is one of venerable age rather than abject decline. 
Onto scooters! Scooters are the Italians preferred mode of transportation. They permeate every street and sidewalk. Italians begin scootering at age twelve with a 50cc bike. When they reach sixteen they get to move to a 150cc bike and then as eighteen year olds whatever they like. To warn pedestrians that they are approaching scooters toot their horns in rapid succession. I now find myself unconsciously flowing with the crowd and moving left or right when the scooters blast sounds.
I really want to rent a scooter, however Italians have suggested that I remain alive by not riding one. Many people die every year from scooter crashes. Its not hard to see why! Scooters don't obey regular driving rules they just weave in and out wherever they can fit. You'll see scooters passing buses on the right or blowing red lights!
No comments:
Post a Comment