15th April 2006, Easter Saturday, Napoli
It’s a beautiful day, open blue sky, and the sort of temperature where you can wear just a shirt but if you are wearing a jacket it’s not uncomfortable.
We had a 4 o’clock appointment to view another apartment at Pomigliano. It’s the first one we’ve seen as a family group that meets the majority of criteria i.e. three bedrooms plus a room for guests/study, two separate bathrooms, and a kitchen with enough space for lounge and TV. It was advertised as luxurious, 5 minutes to the Vesuviana train station, extremely central, luminous, completely renovated, first floor with 4 ½ rooms. We’ve all agreed that while it’s spacious, it certainly isn’t luxurious, the kitchen being the only room that has recently been renovated. We need to check how far it is from public transport. It needs a little work, some ceiling paintings and external blinds fixed. Irene has expressed her opinion, largely a list of all the problems and negatives, the only thing she did really like were the balconies that look out over the street. Ironically I disliked the balconies because of the uninspiring view of the street, the pollution, street noise and lack of privacy. However the others have also expressed concerns about the doors and windows, whether they seal properly keeping out the wind and cold. We didn’t have a chance to properly access the hot water and heating systems either as the apartment is still occupied.
I’ve resigned myself to the fact that we cannot and will not find a place that suits everyone. Learning to compromise and adjust is one of those great lessons of adulthood. I’ve made my needs clear – private bedroom and bathroom for Gi and I, somewhere for guests to stay, hot water, and access to public transport (for me this means within half hour walk or bicycle ride, for Irene and Rosa it means less than a five minute walk). It’s the same whether we live on our own or with Gi’s family.
One of the problems is that Gi and I are accustomed to making the best of wherever we are living. Any space can become a home with some imagination and innovation. And we are working to a budget. His sister will only contribute financially if she works and doesn’t go to college, so by and large the budget is not her concern and her expectations are quite different to ours. I’m afraid Irene has a lot to adjust to with her big brother in town and planning to stay.
Watching the evening news on this Easter Saturday, reports of all the tourists that have hit Italy for the long weekend. They are expecting 1.6 million through Rome, 50,000 tourists caught the ferry across to Prochida Island in the Bay of Naples today. I’ve been feeling bored and caged in today but perhaps it is better if we stay at home and avoid the crowds. It’s cold up north, and rain is predicted for Naples on Monday and all of Italy on Wednesday. It’s flooding in Romania and Bulgaria; the banks of the Danube have burst.
About a week ago a special police operation in Sicily captured the boss of all Mafia bosses. Each night there is a news update. On the day that the news broke the newsreaders publicly congratulated with police on the arrest. He’s been hiding in the Sicilian countryside for the last 40 years and is believed to be responsible for countless murders, including children in bathtubs of acid. On the television he looks like an average elderly Italian gentleman. Much like the man I photographed this week sitting in a plastic chair on the edge of his garden, a block of land that was being ploughed by a tractor in preparation for planting the new seasons vegetable crop. Of course, the captured boss will continue to run the operations from inside prison. In fact I believe that often their accommodations are more comfortable when incarcerated, wanting for nothing.
Big Brother is also currently on the television. There are six contestants left in the house. Last night we watched the eviction of one young woman, who has fallen in love with one of the guys. It was heart wrenching, the goodbyes were strung out and teary with Big Brother affording them a private room. The Romeo has a girlfriend out in the real world, but the audience seemed completely enamoured with the romance and their very obvious desire not to be separated. However it seems that boredom and silliness are a problem in the BB house in Italy as elsewhere in the world. Tonight they are having a silent protest, demanding a video to watch. The next step was putting large black garbage bags on their heads to hide their facial expressions. Now, think about it, a group of Italians not talking and covering their faces. How long can this last, I hear you ask? Not long, they all regularly visit the diary room and by bedtime were without bags and conversing again. There is no denying human nature.
It’s a beautiful day, open blue sky, and the sort of temperature where you can wear just a shirt but if you are wearing a jacket it’s not uncomfortable.
We had a 4 o’clock appointment to view another apartment at Pomigliano. It’s the first one we’ve seen as a family group that meets the majority of criteria i.e. three bedrooms plus a room for guests/study, two separate bathrooms, and a kitchen with enough space for lounge and TV. It was advertised as luxurious, 5 minutes to the Vesuviana train station, extremely central, luminous, completely renovated, first floor with 4 ½ rooms. We’ve all agreed that while it’s spacious, it certainly isn’t luxurious, the kitchen being the only room that has recently been renovated. We need to check how far it is from public transport. It needs a little work, some ceiling paintings and external blinds fixed. Irene has expressed her opinion, largely a list of all the problems and negatives, the only thing she did really like were the balconies that look out over the street. Ironically I disliked the balconies because of the uninspiring view of the street, the pollution, street noise and lack of privacy. However the others have also expressed concerns about the doors and windows, whether they seal properly keeping out the wind and cold. We didn’t have a chance to properly access the hot water and heating systems either as the apartment is still occupied.
I’ve resigned myself to the fact that we cannot and will not find a place that suits everyone. Learning to compromise and adjust is one of those great lessons of adulthood. I’ve made my needs clear – private bedroom and bathroom for Gi and I, somewhere for guests to stay, hot water, and access to public transport (for me this means within half hour walk or bicycle ride, for Irene and Rosa it means less than a five minute walk). It’s the same whether we live on our own or with Gi’s family.
One of the problems is that Gi and I are accustomed to making the best of wherever we are living. Any space can become a home with some imagination and innovation. And we are working to a budget. His sister will only contribute financially if she works and doesn’t go to college, so by and large the budget is not her concern and her expectations are quite different to ours. I’m afraid Irene has a lot to adjust to with her big brother in town and planning to stay.
Watching the evening news on this Easter Saturday, reports of all the tourists that have hit Italy for the long weekend. They are expecting 1.6 million through Rome, 50,000 tourists caught the ferry across to Prochida Island in the Bay of Naples today. I’ve been feeling bored and caged in today but perhaps it is better if we stay at home and avoid the crowds. It’s cold up north, and rain is predicted for Naples on Monday and all of Italy on Wednesday. It’s flooding in Romania and Bulgaria; the banks of the Danube have burst.
About a week ago a special police operation in Sicily captured the boss of all Mafia bosses. Each night there is a news update. On the day that the news broke the newsreaders publicly congratulated with police on the arrest. He’s been hiding in the Sicilian countryside for the last 40 years and is believed to be responsible for countless murders, including children in bathtubs of acid. On the television he looks like an average elderly Italian gentleman. Much like the man I photographed this week sitting in a plastic chair on the edge of his garden, a block of land that was being ploughed by a tractor in preparation for planting the new seasons vegetable crop. Of course, the captured boss will continue to run the operations from inside prison. In fact I believe that often their accommodations are more comfortable when incarcerated, wanting for nothing.
Big Brother is also currently on the television. There are six contestants left in the house. Last night we watched the eviction of one young woman, who has fallen in love with one of the guys. It was heart wrenching, the goodbyes were strung out and teary with Big Brother affording them a private room. The Romeo has a girlfriend out in the real world, but the audience seemed completely enamoured with the romance and their very obvious desire not to be separated. However it seems that boredom and silliness are a problem in the BB house in Italy as elsewhere in the world. Tonight they are having a silent protest, demanding a video to watch. The next step was putting large black garbage bags on their heads to hide their facial expressions. Now, think about it, a group of Italians not talking and covering their faces. How long can this last, I hear you ask? Not long, they all regularly visit the diary room and by bedtime were without bags and conversing again. There is no denying human nature.
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