it's not me, it's you

this postcard is from my final days in italy. i was spending a few days in napoli before going to sorrento. if i had this trip to take again i would skip napoli altogether and head straight for sorrento. it was, in general, a sketchy kind of place with absolutely insane drivers - the worst in italy, without a doubt, and not a whole lot to do or see. in fact this postcard, which i sent from napoli, is actually of the island of ischia, off the coast.

11 april 2003
"can't wait to be around people i care about! the man at the desk says i'm so quiet for an american, when really i just don't want to talk to him..."

i found this to be a funny comment - those of you who know me well will attest to the fact that i can, when the situation merits, be chatty to a fault. but when it comes to people i don't like or who annoy me i find the best way to deal with them is to actively not engage them in conversation.

so needless to say after spending the day walking around a city i was not enjoying (i believe it was also raining) i was *not* in the mood to make small talk with a man who spent more time on his hair than i do and who thought he was god's gift to women. (and he was short).

i wrote about another little incident with this same desk guy (receptionist seems to be the wrong word) in my personal journal:

"also a little sketchy is the man at the desk this morning in the hostel. he gave me creepy eyes when i brought out my breakfast tray. and when he said something i didn't hear, he stepped closer and said it quieter. do not like him."

the above picture is what i thought was the best part of napoli - my bed (even though it was part of a four bed area, from wall to wall, with about a foot of space between it and its neighbor), my book, and my chili-chocolate bar

so that's the end of my france and italy extras. my next post, and the ones following it, will start to talk about going to japan and the experiences i had there.

panini e birra

i know, i know... i'm already off my schedule for posting. but i've told myself it's because i wanted to give everyone i e-mailed about this site a chance to view the first posting at their leisure and decide whether or not it's amusing/interesting enough to read on a regular basis... or i could just be a procrastinator. ;P

this postcard is one i wrote to my family on st. patrick's day from milano, italy:

"..since arriving in italy i've discovered just how bad the french "panini" are, here they are sooo delicious. in france they are just warm. also had a can of beer from the sandwich stand on the side of the road. have decided i'm not doing enough casual european drinking. you can even get beer at McD's!"

it really was very amusing - there was a small hut that made sandwiches and some picnic tables right on the side of the road. luckily it was a sunny and somewhat warm day.

it was a quiet st. patrick's day in for me. the hostel had a kitchen available for guest use, so i cooked up a packet of instant risotto milanese accompanied by a bottle of white wine. from my personal journal:

could be the vino, but i'm v. excited about my upcoming travels. keep thinking of molto mario!

i have food on the brain at all times... a few days later i got it into my head that i could re-create a spinach and ricotta panino i had in milano by simply buying and mixing spinach and ricotta... i do not reccomend this.

next post will be posted next week (first week of may), i promise!