One Year!

It's amazing to look at at the calendar and realize that I'm already into year #2 here in Italy. I know some had doubts that I could really make it to this point (even I did in my weaker moments) but like I said when leaving Monterey- "I can do anything for a year."

And that's exactly what I've done.

Although the job is very much routine at this point (and bordering boredom some days) life here in Naples is anything but. You'd think I'd be used to this crazy city life but I still find myself laughing or asking "did I really just see that?" as I navigate the roads. Honestly I don't think any of it will ever come routine, and if it does it just means it's time to move on!

There are things that I loved as soon as I arrived and still love them now: gelato in various flavors, fresh pizza on just about every block, the kindness of the people (unless you're trying to merge...then good luck!), tiny coffee cups, not having to commit to a certain lane on the road. 

Some of the quirks have grown on me: creative use of emergency SOS spaces on the side of the road, the lack of obeying traffic laws, shutting everything down after lunch, coffee breaks every hour, dressing up to run weekend errands, dramatic conversations, beeping at every intersection to let others know you are there.

Then again there are still some things that I just don't understand coming from the states like, why can't I have a garbage disposal? What do you mean it's normal to have paint chip/peel of the walls? Wait. You just let your cat/dog out to fend for itself when you go away in August? Dinner starts at 9- that's my bed time! What's the reason for the strike this time?

All I know is I've got my work cut out for me. I've managed to see and do a lot this past year but somehow there is still a ton of Naples I have yet to explore! If year one flew by this quickly, you better believe years 2 and 3 will do the same. Lucky for me, my summer line up of guests start off with my siblings so you know we're going to go to some major exploring!

The Heel of Italy: Santa Maria di Leuca

What better time for a Sunday drive, than on a Sunday? For my last day we opted to drive down the coast to the town located at heel of the boot, Santa Maria di Leuca. Just like on my drive to the Bari area, I was stunned at just how familiar the view looked from the car window! The only difference was I was in Italy and the in Marine Headlands in the Bay Area or on HWY 1 along Big Sur's rocky coast line.  Okay, so maybe the gray sky had something to do with both of those comparisons but check it out for yourself in those pictures!

An hour into the drive we reached the coast and decided it was a great time for coffee and morning snack. At the coffee bar we were asked if we wanted chocolate on our drinks. Si was the answer, thinking that a light dusting of cocoa powder would appear. Nope. Full out chocolate syrup art work on my cappuccino! At first it was almost too pretty to drink, but that thought passed about as quickly as it arrived in my brain and I enjoyed every last drop.

We continued down the coast, and experienced some torrential downpour in the process. You know, the kind of rain that resembles your car being sprayed with a hose? Yep. Like that. But just like the day prior, the gray sky only intensified the grasses and wildflowers on the hills, the blue of the sea, and the stratification of the rocky edge connecting the land and sea. Two hours later we had arrived at our destination, marked by the lighthouse just like Jess had promised as we came out of a curve in the road.

The town was situated on a bay and in the direction we came from the sky was black with clouds ready to drop rain at any second. In the other direction? Blue sky because for the moment we had once again out ran the storm. So we found ourselves in another popular tourist destination but with only a few tourists scattered among locals. Not a big deal and in most cases preferred if you ask me!

Having our pick of both where to eat and where to sit,  we ended up at a place called Nautilus serving, you guessed it, ITALIAN! While I went for their namesake's pizza topped in different veggies than I can get in Naples, Jess ordered some fabulous ravioli looking things. Although not sure what sort of ground mixture was in each of the pockets she was positive she made the right pick after spying them on a neighboring table.

Post lunch we walked a little longer around the water before getting to see the rest of the town driving out to the more direct route up north. How much more direct? I think we took an hour off the return time? Sometimes it's all about the journey and other times it's all about getting home so you can take a Sunday afternoon nap because driving (well, riding in my case) is exhausting!

East Coast Italy: Alberobello

Note to readers: This post is part of the previous post (Ostuni)

Around some curves and over a few hills we reached our next stop- Alberobello. I've been hearing about this town since I first arrived to Italy because of its proximaty to Naples and the oh so adorable trulli houses. 

So what's a trullo? 

One of these round roofed buildings. They are unique to Puglia region of southern Italy and seem to have prominent the 19th century. It is thought they were originally built to serve as temporary store houses in the fields for crops. The dome roof allowed for a loft like structure, keeping the harvest dry in the winter and up off the ground. As they grew in popularity, some people actually resided in these houses, but with multiple domes each serving as a room.

Of course one of the most famous stories for the creation of these homes is just how easily they can be knocked down. Why? Well, in true Southern Italy fashion it's rumored that these houses were dismantled when inspectors made their round to avoid high property taxation. Yep, only in Italy. 

At any rate in our post yummy lunch state (grilled meats) we were two of the few tourists walking the streets of this popular destination. As we walked up to check out the view from one of the houses (now transformed to shop) we heard it: thunder. And no, it wasn't hard to hear at all considering the dark clouds and location of the lightning flashing wasn't too far off in the distance. Luckily, the partially blue sky held for us as we continued to explore more allies and shops. Our favorite shop? Oh the one selling pasta, sweets, and lemoncello...but in just about any flavor. The girl waved us in the shop and within seconds told us to sample the chocolate and rice candy before setting it aside to pull out cups and the first flavor of 'cello.  And then the second, followed by the third, followed by, well, you get it. Almond, Olive & Rosemary, Chocolate & Pepper, Hazelnut, Passionfruit, Bitter Almond, Rose, Strawberry, Coffee.
 
I think that's all we "sampled" and of course each round had a candy, nut, or cookie to taste. Our search for gelato was quickly abandoned. When I told her that I lived in Naples she said she'd skip the lemoncello one then, because Sorrento had the best. At least she knows that! We left there with 3 bottles each.

Our meandering through the rest of the hill was meandering. I mean...have you carried a box of 6 bottles of before? Arm work out! As we continued there was the cutest little boy sitting at the entry way of the trulli arranging plastic fruit on his table. I was too busy snapping a picture but I should have asked him how much and made his day with a sale. Of course you could hear his mom laughing at him from inside the house but he was providing some great entertainment of us. 

As the weather continued to turn for the worse and the desire to nap kicked in, we decided to call it a day and head back to her new trulli for riposo before continuing enjoying the delicious beverages we purchased later that evening.

East Coast Italy: Ostuni

Memorial Day 2011: I had just arrived to Italy and was ridiculously jet-lagged. This condition highly influenced my decision to remain in my TLA room for the entire weekend. Well, a year later- no longer jet lagged (but still keeping crazy early morning hours) I welcomed the 3 day weekend and hit the road as soon as work let out.

Heading? SouthEast
Estimated travel time? 3.5 hours
Destination? Martina Franca

You see for some time I've been meaning to pay a visit to someone I met last summer shortly after she arrived to Italy. With the weather finally warming up and the strong desire to flee Napoli on my anniversary date I told Jess to get ready for me.

The drive was absolutely beautiful! After crossing through the mountains via so many tunnels the green rolling hills scattered with vineyards, orchards, and farmland was a welcomed sight. With the windows down, Dixie Chicks blasting, and Ravi going speeds over 70mph since arrival, it felt like I was on my way down I-5 to some central valley town. The air was filled with the sweet scents that only sunny spring day can produce. Well, then again maybe it was just the lack of trash burning, car exhaust and cigarette smoke...

After following the most straight road ever I ended up at her adorable trulli house (more on these in the next post) on the outskirts of town. Talk about a 180 from where I live: neighbors present just a ways off, fresh cut hail bales, sparrows darting through the air, cars following (most of) the traffic laws. Absolutely beautiful!

Saturday morning we headed over to Ostuni, The White City, for the Saturday market. This market was probably even larger than the Caserta market but with the same types of vendors: produce, shoes, fabric, kitchen stuff, fish, meat, cheese, plants, clothes. Once we walked 80% of it we headed over to the old portion of town where the buildings were painted, you guessed it, bianco! With the dark storm clouds forming in the sky the city was radiant and looked so clean. Here we walked the cobble stone hill up to the church and picked a few random allies where the restaurant owners were already recovered from the night before and readying tables for opening at 2pm for lunch.

After our hill side adventure we headed down to the main square for cafe since although our stomachs were requesting lunch we knew nowhere would yet be opened. As we sat on the piazza a wedding let out so we felt the need to critique the outfits of the guests while we waited to see the bride's selection. There were so many short dresses and stiletto heels in attendance that I couldn't help but wondering if some of these girls had worn the same outfit to the club the night before. That thought was quickly replaced when we witnessed a pelting, yes pelting, of rice. Note to self: if ever invited to Italian wedding stand in back of crowd while waiting couple to exit church. Eventually you will get your pictures and won't be stung by rice being hurled at your head. Just when we thought that was enough entertainment, the Fiat 550 we walked by earlier pulled up into the piazza for the couple to drive away in. Now these are tiny cars. Although the bride didn't have a princess gown on, it still was lots of fabric to get in the car! Unfortunately even after finishing our coffees, playing the "can you please bring the check" game with the waitress, the bride still hadn't walked her glitter covered self to the car. We actually were never sure who she married either...At any rate, we had another destination to get to -Alberobello!

La Bohème

Yep, it was time to add to my culture just so my favorite quote, "Support Bacteria. They're the only culture some people have," doesn't apply to me!

Sunday afternoon I headed downtown Naples to the San Carlo Theater for the evening performance of La Bohème with several other coworkers on a group trip. Well, technically we first went to Gran Caffe' Gambrinus for our afternoon coffee and delicious sugary pastries. This famous spot located near Piazza del Plebiscito is always full of people and that was no exception as our group walked into one of the back rooms...maybe where Ernest Hemingway, Oscar Wilde, or Jean Paul Sartre sat when they frequented this spot. Or you know, in one of the once closed rooms due to their use by anti-fascists in the 1930s...

Caffeine loaded we crossed the street back towards Teatro San Carlo to find our seats for La Bohème. It is named after the Bourbon Charles III of Naples (Carlo III in Italian), the theater was inaugurated in1737. At time of construction, it was the largest opera house in the world. Teatro San Carlo is the oldest continuously active venue in Europe (shows since 1874 except for a short span after the unification of Italy). A fire in 1816 destroyed the entire building, but Ferdinand I of Bourbon ordered the theatre to be rebuilt just six days later and after 10 months shows once again started- miraculous if you only knew just how long things take to complete around here!  

The interior is rather gold and velvety. It is said that the soft fabric (literally covering so much of the place) is what creates the fabulous acoustics. Only later did I learn why each of the boxes had mirrors- to sneak glances at the Royal Box without gawking (major faux paus!) to make sure the royals always started the applause. 

Situated snugly in our balcony box, the lights flickered indicating the show was getting ready to start and then just like that the lights dimmed and curtain raised to reveal the set on stage. While I was taking that in, the air was filled by the orchestra and Italian. Yep. Italian. I realized quickly that I should have cheated on the story since I really had no idea of the plot and although the words being sung appeared on a screen above the stage, my Italian level 4 left many lines meaning nothing to me. Then as I was translating every 5th word...I got to thinking...if this is a show performed in different countries do they always translate the music? And really isn't the title in French? Well, again, after a little investigating it turns out La Bohème originally was written in Italian. Although, yes, it takes place in France. Totally validates my confusion if you ask me. 

The end of the performance left me confused and sad. Confused as to what I really had just watched, but still sad that it ends how it does. Even now, after reading the story I feel like the story needs improvement? (Yep. I'm always the critic!) At any rate, it was a fabulous time and it's always fun to dress up a little bit. Okay, maybe a lot? Only here in Italy would "afternoon elegant" translate to "cocktail dresses" or even "gowns" if desired.

Productive Weekend!

With my siblings' tickets booked, it's do or die time with getting my house really together. Granted, they are my siblings so even if casa mia doesn't look like it belongs on the cover of BH&G I'm pretty sure they will be just fine, ma this is a great reason to kick it into gear. And yes, I'm almost to the 1 year mark so in theory I'll be out of this place in just about 2 years? (Shhh, I don't want to hear one comment about all the empty boxes and Nico's stack of packing paper.)

At any rate, this weekend was spent spending money, cleaning, and decorating. Of course the items I really need, like a guest bed, weren't purchased but I found some awesome kitchen stuff at Ikea because when in doubt, I'll always be found looking at kitchen items even when my kitchen is pretty much at full capacity and dishes are already being stored in my living room?

The bulk of my weekend was spent prepping, painting, and cleaning up my sunroom/office area. This is what is looks like for the time being so we're going to call it Phase II. There are still several pictures needing to be put up on the walls & the desk area needs to also get cleaned up (not pictured for that reason.)

Isn't it great that I started with the room that my guests won't be spending much time in? Oh well, it's my favorite place to hang out so if this room is squared away it's alright that my room still looks like a mess.

The other place I spent a lot of time were my patios. The narrow one on the street side of the house (ie sunset viewing decks) are now clean with the herbs growing in the sun. Short of a small table out there they are done. The main patio...well, that's another story. Most of the planters are now planted with veggies and flowers germinating however it's a big old mess out there. I am never home long enough to see which parts get the most sun, to optimize plant placement. Plus, the furniture needs some serious cleaning. I started on one set but the wind kicking up dust made it nearly impossible to make any progress so I gave up. I'll try again once this rainy weather clears out.

All Ashore Going Ashore

Last week another one of my customers and I finally met! The USS GRASP may not be a frequent customer of ours, but she's low key so it's always fun to sign the documents when they pass over my desk. On field trip Friday, the entire SSU emerged from our "Ship Fixin' Cave" into the blindingly brilliant blue sky to head down to the Port of Naples. There we were greeted by the ship's crew as they moved fresh produce on board in preparation for their departure just a few days. The ship's master met us and took us around each deck talking a bunch of stuff I still don't fully understand, but I didn't care because my coworkers would "translate" for me while we walked to our next location.

This salvage ship was a lot different than the others I've seen to date....don't ask me how but just trust me. I mean, the (lack of) size alone was an indicator. All of the dive gear around the decks was an another indicator I guess. It seems like they have some pretty sweet missions. Best part? They've converted a ton of the berthing which now allows for female passengers. When I asked where to sign up, I was told that I'd need to find a roommate because they can't afford to let me have my own room. So, ladies- any takers?

As we made our way to the engine room, more introductions were made. I find it hilarious that when our port engineer introduces me, everyone always asks if I'm the Katie O. Um yes I am. I'm not sure when the PE started calling me Katie O in all of his emails but he did and now the ships we deal with know me as Katie O. Oh well, I love my name and as I continue to make a name for myself within this organization it will be fun.

After another engine room tour (not nearly as fun as the other ships) and a few more conversations we bid the crew a farewell and left them with recommendations for their shore leave. Well, that is after my picture with another customer since who knows when I would see her again.

Well, turns out that the following Tuesday I'd get permission to head back down to the pier to check the welding work done prior to credit card payment. Hey, my boss realizes that I'm swamped with work (the 100 binders around my desk and taking over my coworkers' spaces sort of give it away) and figured a little sunlight would do me good. We got a few strange looks showing up at the pier when we did, but the gangway was still on place and we got permission to board...so we did for just a few moments.

When we figured it was time to leave, the "All ashore going ashore" warning came over the PA system confirming our suspicion so we made it to shore while we still could.  And just like that my chance to head off to somewhere really fun was gone. Then again, it was still early on a Tuesday morning, I told my boss I'd be back by 11, and I was completely inappropriately dressed to go spend time at sea in my pencil skirt and wedge heels...but if I made it up the gangway there was a chance?

Yep you read that correctly. Add wedges to my list of shoes worn on working boats by Katie O.