Pinning Italy

Periodically on Pinterest, you will find pictures that appear too good to be true.  Pinned with hope of going there one day.  Recently I was lucky enough to have one of those days.  Italy for 2 weeks with 3 friends, 4 cities and 1 academic conference.   (Disclaimer: this might read as a boondoggle but with all honesty it was a helpful conference convened by the International Society of Third Sector Research – i.e. international NGOs). 

Months ago on Pinterest I had found some pics – a market in Siena, the coast of Cinque Terre.  As the days rolled by in Italy, I took great delight in seeing the Italy I had pinned – the Italy of the tour books.  The canals of Venice, the blue sky of Florence, the stacked colored houses of Cinque Terre, the rolling hills of Tuscany.  It was one glorious sight after another.

Travel for me is about the food and the people.  You can’t go to Italy and not talk about the food and wine.   The pasta cooked just so, the flavors of pesto and fresh lemon, amarena/cherry gelato, panna cotta that made you want to lick the bowl.  Chianti in the Chianti region, Prosecco on a patio near the beach, homemade lemoncello, grand crema frozen coffee.  Sure it was rich, sure I don’t usually drink wine in the afternoon but it was all glorious.  And yes, I did bring back a shirt that says I heart gelato. 

And the people - talking at bus stops, lingering in the piazzas, gathering under lampposts for late night community conversations, the drama and intonations of an ordinary conversation.  In Siena the celebration of one neighborhood’s win in a horse race was continuing 2 weeks after their victory – complete with impromptu parades that attracted all generations.  In Vernazza, old men, assisted by their canes, were eager to give directions. 

I could go on about Italy but there’s also more to be said about the experience of travel.  Getting away from a routine and then deciding weeks later that a routine is good to return to.  Having 3 girlfriends that want to travel together on the first day and the last day.  Conversations that continue seamlessly, laughs and inside jokes that emerge from the experience. Seeing the art and churches of the ages. Finding your way – whether it’s navigating the train stations or the backroads of Tuscany that don’t even show up on GPS and force you to talk to locals whose words you don’t understand but hand gestures you do.  

 So my review from pinterest is to do something you have been wanting to do.  Don't take the privilege of travel for granted.  Enjoy the adventure and eat good food.