Once while out on an evening walk, Tony and I decided to cut through the cobblestone stillness of our little town square. At that time of day, with the bells striking and mists curling up around the church tower, the town resembles nothing more than an Italian Brigadoon, about to disappear again into a hundred-year enchantment. However, on this particular evening it just so happened that the entire square was full of chairs, and a stage had been erected on one end. A local acting troupe was performing a play to the rapt attention of what must have been half our little village.… Read more
expat issues
Pizza and Conversation
Sorry you didn’t hear from me yesterday. But I have a good excuse. We came home from Church at mid-day, opened our front door, and were nearly bowled over by the heavy scent of gasoline emanating from our apartment. I took a deep gulp of fresh outside air and dashed heroically into the house to see if I had left the gas stove on. I hadn’t, and we don’t really have any other ways to leak gas into our house. So we went upstairs to talk to our landlord. He was not at home, but when his wife phoned him, he confessed that he had indeed spilled gasoline that morning as he was filling up his car in the garage.… Read more
I’m in a Turkish Magazine
My first experience abroad (that I remember) began in Istanbul, Turkey. As I walked out of the airport, I felt like I was stepping into the Arabian Nights. Everything, from the architecture to the language to the maniacal taxi drivers, was different from what I had ever experienced, except in books. I had known about other cultures and other countries before. But that was the moment I first truly comprehended the richness of variety that exists on planet Earth.
I spent the next six months living and traveling in the Middle East, studying Arabic, and imbibing the exotic, fascinating, yet at times strangely familiar oriental air.… Read more
The Mother of Invention (aka Sarah)
Faithful readers, thanks for indulging my bad day/week/year. And I really appreciate the responses, both public and private. I was especially touched by the personal stories of your own challenges that you so generously shared with me. The difficult roads we travel are a little less lonely when we walk them together. And of course, Goethe said it best:
The world is so empty if one thinks only of mountains, rivers and cities; but to know someone here and there who thinks and feels with us, and though distant, is close to us in spirit – this makes the earth for us an inhabited garden.
Unromantic Interlude
So, it’s been a pretty stressful week. (Couldn’t you tell from my heightened irritation with politics and Facebook?) Today being Saturday, Tony was home, and stayed with the children while I took a much-needed walk alone in the beautiful rainbow autumn of Piemonte. I had been out walking perhaps five minutes when I saw a man on a bicycle up ahead, and instinctively avoided eye contact. There was something just a little creepy about him. He said good morning, and I repeated the greeting tonelessly, still without looking at him. “Hey,” he said (in Italian, obviously), “Aren’t you even going to say hello?… Read more
In Which I Do Not Discuss Politics
So I, um, forgot to (register to) vote in the American election. This is not at all funny. My only excuse is just having moved from one foreign country to another. I got no mail about the election, no phone calls, not even a button on Facebook! I was forced into complete personal civic responsibility, and I totally dropped the ball.
The real problem is, even on a good day I always have to psyche myself up to actually vote for someone. You see, I never learned very well to color inside the party lines. So I’m always getting stuck with double deal-breakers.
… Read more To Facebook or Not to Facebook
We skipped Halloween this year. There are people who celebrate it in Italy, but it’s more of an American fad, not a culturally entrenched tradition. Not one person has asked my children what they’re going to “be,” nor have I seen a sudden overabundance of pumpkins appear at the supermarket. The good (bad) news is, in Italy nobody seems to need an excuse for giving my children candy. Everyone, from little old ladies to policemen to shopkeepers, has a stash of caramelli in a pocket or purse, ready to be relinquished to children. And there’s no need to beg or threaten tricks.… Read more
Adventures in Language Acquisition
I don’t study Italian a whole lot lately. In college most semesters I spent a good twenty hours a week studying various languages. Even on my mission, we had an hour set aside each day for language study. But that was all before I became the homeschooling mother of two preschoolers (with no dishwasher, dryer, or Trader Joe’s). Excuses, excuses. I know.
So last week I decided to turn over a new leaf, the leaf called Livemocha, which I mentioned a few days ago. I can communicate with people pretty well, and understand just about everything, but I conservatively started myself out in Italian 201, which describes itself as “For students who are comfortable enough to ask a few questions and follow simple conversations.”
… Read more Confessions
You know I stalk you, don’t you? Writers love readers. To the point of distraction. Because without a reader, does a writer even really exist? I mean, if I talk to myself in the forest and none of the trees are listening, do I even make a sound . . . ?
So yes, I stalk you. And what makes it even more tantalizing is that I can’t stalk you quite directly. It’s true, unfortunately. I can’t peer through my webcam into yours to see your face as you read my blog. But there are other things I want to see almost as much as that.… Read more
How to Eat in a Foreign Country Without Going Crazy
I love kneading bread. There is nothing like the magic of pounding that sticky, lumpy mass of flour and water into a silky, smooth, obedient ball of dough. If only all of life’s sticky problems could be so quickly transformed into valuable assets. Luckily (for me), moving often, especially internationally, does expand (if sometimes painfully) one’s toolbox for solving problems. And nowhere is this more apparent than in our food choices. Different foods are just easier to find in some places than others. And if you don’t want to spend a fortune shopping at an international grocery store for foods imported from much too far away, it behooves you to learn to eat like the locals.… Read more