You know you're in the middle of nowhere your GPS identifies the street you're on as simply "Road"

Hi everyone!

I had myself several little adventures today, of various types :).
It's funny, being a traveler in a foreign country for so long makes
some things finally become routine, but at other times it seems that
there are new experiences at every turn.

This morning, leaving the Cinque Terre was the first challenge. Why,
you ask? Too beautiful? Didn't want to go? Nope, not that. A
verbose older Italian man; and limited parking. Andrea - the owner of
the hotel I was at - became extremely talkative as I was trying to
check out. But, because he is a wealth of gastronomic information
across this country, I gave him the floor. Hey - we can all be bought
for a price. And mine was several recommendations in Parma and Venezia.

Then, I needed my car. It was blocked in by three other vehicles in a
tiny little concrete-walled parking area under a little bridge.
Yeeeaah, in Italy there are no valets. You get handed a big box of
keys and get to move all the cars yourself. Uh-huh. You bet. I had
worked up a full sweat by 9am, so worried that I was going to scratch
the Audi, VW, or Ford of my fellow travellers as I was backing them
out, rearranging them on the street, and then moving them back in.
But finally, mission accomplished.

My next adventure - I decided to take a side trip on my way to Parma
and have lunch at Ristorante Manubiola, in a tiny hamlet called
Berceto. All I can say is - thank goodness for GPS. Now, the GPS
boyfriend of mine might like to take me on little hair-raising
shortcuts through the wilderness (apparently he does NOT like to back-
track) - but, I often get to see some lovely countryside. Today was a
nice example - I drove the hillside on tiny little backwoods roads,
going through teeny little villages (seriously - like 7 houses for
some, but the town is announced with a big proud sign). I love it!

As for the lunch. Well, you would be proud of me. I drank bug-parts
and just muscled through it. Fortunately, the actual food was very,
very good :). You see, I ordered a small carafe of wine. Some was
poured into my glass, and as I took a sip I noticed 2 or 3 fruit flies
floating in it. So I fished 'em out as best I could, then went to
take another sip and noticed a few other body parts floating. I have
come a long way. The bottom line is - you pick your battles in a
foreign country, and you go with the flow. Besides, don't we all
supposedly consume quite a few bugs every year, unknowingly?

As for the lunch: little toasts with creamy cheese and porcini
mushrooms, raw porcinis sliced thin with parmigiana and olive oil,
rich porcini soup with bread cubes and parmigiana melted on top, fresh
tagliatelle pasta with porcinis and butter, and cinghiale (wild boar)
with polenta and porcinis. I KNOW!! Talk about a feast! I was the
only non-Italiano there, and at the restaurant they do not speak any
English (and there were no menus - they just rattle off the choices
they have that day). So it was a fun adventure :). And the cost? 32
euro. Amazing food, amazing experience.

Then I was on to Parma. Arrived at my WONDERFUL hotel (1 night here,
2 nights somewhere else). Almost half of the cost as the one in
Monterosso, but modern, spotlessly clean, big bathroom, easy parking,
super quiet, and a shower I have room to shave my legs in (I may need
to rent a weedwhacker - most showers since I've been here have been
too small to do anything but stand under). I love the mixes of places
i've stayed in, but i will definitely enjoy this 85 euro including
breakfast stay :)

When i arrived, I decided to just go for it and jump on a bus into the
city center - pretty easy to figure out, and a quick trip in. So far,
I have this to say: Parma is my favorite city in Italy so far! There
is a wonderful mix of gorgeous, historic buildings but yet modern
amenities; tons of bicyclists and much fewer motorbikes; lots of
students adding a youthful feel; an immediate presence of art and
culture; many green spaces; and wonderful food. What more can I say?
I wandered around the city for 2 hours, made my way back, and had
dinner at the hotel. Will use the workout facility in the morning,
then move on to my next hotel here so I can really explore (it's right
in the city center - no bus required).

I guess that's it! I realize this was a pretty long post. Thanks to
all of you who are reading this - to me, it's very much like a
converstaion (albeit one-sided) :), but it helps me feel connected to
all of you. Especially meeting so few people who speak English here!

Lots of love to all,
L

Sent from my iPhone