Carpe Diem

 "Carpe per Diem—

Seize the check."

 ~ Robin Williams

After I posted the note about being 10 days without internet on my Facebook page yesterday, I received an email from the apartment owner telling me he had hooked up a mobile connection and that it should work.  YAY.  I got back to the apartment and tried.  It didn't work. Boo. So, I'm back at the bar having more caffeine.

I was going to post something about my trip to Ravenna, but I'll save that for tomorrow.  In honor of Robin Williams, I thought I would muse about a few things I've seen over the past few days.  I saw a graffiti tribute to him on a wall I've passed a few times (Photo above).  Someone must have put it up there within the last two or three days as it hadn't been there before.  I saw another one a block or so away, too. I've said this before, but I think graffiti is the pock on the face of every city in the world.  Fortunately, there's not a lot on the street where I live, but go a few blocks away, and all that changes.

Speaking of famous people, I was in Ravenna on Tuesday.  Famous for its mosaics (I'll tell you about that tomorrow.), Ravenna has them all over.  Street signs have mosaic frames. Bus stop seats have mosaics on them. And, one shop had Jimmy Hendrix in gold, black, and copper glass pieces (Photo below).  I forget how much they wanted, but it was over 1000 euro.  I bought two.

When I was in Florence on Friday, I walked through the Mercato Centrale and Mercato San Lorenzo, and look what I found!!  Lace and 100% lino puro!  Made in Italy!  Guaranteed! And, while no one told me so, I bet the stall owner's mother was sitting in back hand-sewing every piece.  The lady in this stall did tell me that the styles were *unique" to her stall. 

And if anyone believes that, I can sell you a piece of real estate on the Strip in Las Vegas for $100.


Speaking of "Made in Italy," I was walking home from the train station and walked through the Friday market here in Bologna. Have you ever wondered what happens to the clothes that TJ Maxx and Marshalls don't sell?  I think that someone's mother takes them and hand-stitches tags in them (Photo below).  By the way, I saw another stall that had home goods from TJ Maxx in them.  I need to research this a bit.

Anytime you go to a bus or train station, you'll see bikes parked all over the place.  On my way back to the Ferrara train station last week, I noticed this bike.  Something tells me it's been there a looonngg time.

 This morning, I visited a church and piazza I discovered yesterday by accident. As I was leaving, I saw this German Short-haired Pointer intently watching a pigeon. His owner wanted hi to walk down the street, but he was slowing walking towards that bird. Having never had a hunting dog, I couldn't believe the intensity with which he stalked that pigeon.  The pigeon must have know he was on a leash, though, because when the dog got close, the pigeon just ran.

I mentioned the food in Verona yesterday, and showed a photo of "cheese" pizza.  The one below is another from the same restaurant and includes tuna (GAG), onions (TRIPLE GAG), tomatoes, and basil.  There was no cheese, and there was no way I would touch it with a 10-foot pole.

(Side note:  Besides the fact that they make me nauseous, I hate onions. Always have. Always will. I also hate tuna.  I used to eat it, but when I was pregnant with Jason, I got sick on it, and that was that. I also got sick on turkey and shrimp, and It took a long time for me to be able to eat those.  That said, there are times even now that I look at them and know I can't eat them.)

 Am I the only person over the "Keep Calm and......." phase?  Please. It's supposedly British. Let's move on.

And, while I'm on a rant about the phrase being British, let me say that I would love to buy a t-shirt here that actually has something to do with Italy. I can buy a "NEW YORK," "LONDON," "PARIS," or "AMSTERDAM" t-shirt there. Let's print some Italy shirts.

By the way, the sign says, "Keep calm, we're on sale."

 While I was in Verona, I saw two guys who lost their jobs at Caesar's Palace when the economy tanked a few years ago. Same Roman soldier costumes. Same Roman soldier shtick.

 I love how Italians name streets. All around me are Via Santo Stefano, Via Castiglione, Via Farini, Strada Maggiore, and more.  My favorite, though, is Via Malcontenti.  I MUST find out why they named it that. The only thing I can figure out is that someone's internet was out for a few weeks, and she changed the street name.

Tomorrow: Ravenna.... and I don't mean Ohio....