Freedom is within you

The other day I went for a bike ride. This was not a race. In fact, I went the same speed as a silver haired woman for most of the ride. How do I know that?  Because I followed her and an older opera singing man with a camo head scarf to find the good paths.

I started with the lungomare street that runs along the sea and followed it to the next town. On the way home, I found Pizzeria Re ('king'-it really is the best). Salami Picante is the name for pepperoni here. My favorite but difficult to find.  Black olives, corn, potatoes, zucchini, and hot dogs are oddly more common toppings.
So this is what makes me happy.. bike, fresh air, pizza. 

Also watching a 7 year old girl eat two slices of cake with nutella in about 3 minutes.

And listening to non-sensored pop music full volume with these kids in the car. No one seems to be preoccupied with bad words or provocative  hand gestures here.

And also if I actually understand something Nonna says. Hey, sometimes it happens.

I'm trying to stay positive and definitely excited to go back to the states soon (10ish days). I get to see Istanbul one more time. Wish I had enough time to go to the cistern. After reading the Inferno, it's more appealing than just a hole in the ground.

Anyway, the title of this post is from a song "Alive" by Emperor of the Sun. It's catchy and this phrase is what I keep telling myself now. I realize this recurring theme in my life. Maybe you do too. Too often I feel stuck.. in a major, in a dead end job, a daily routine, a relationship, a town, an expectation. There's usually something..

Like now, I'm in someone else's routine and I go to sleep earlier than my friends, think to myself most of the day and sometimes have no clue what the hell is going on.

I had this self created burden to learn something substantial coming here. Like I needed to undercover some lifechanging wisdom.

My uncovered wisdom so far is a good appreciation for my parents. These children are such a handful and I know I was just as bad. I also think that sitting at every one of our soccer, volleyball, softball, basketball tournaments, and other games, track meets, cross country races, must have been awful.

But you pick your path and you make the most of it. Freedom is within you. If you don't want to do something, then don't. If you don't have a choice, change the way you think about it. 

Our Pastor in Orlando pointed out that every time we look in the mirror, we're thinking of what we would change for a better appearance. Then, sometimes we have to pay thousands of dollars to repair one tooth. If we could just stay in awe of what God has given us, being thankful, appreciating each little tooth, surely life would be more joyful.

bella vita

well first, the house is beautiful and perfect. My Italian family lives above their nonna (grandma) and she takes care of the cherry and apricot trees, the beautiful roses and flowers-pink, purple, yellow, red, fuschia .. and brings in zucchini, lettuce, and tomatoes . She doesn't know any English so her charades  and  frantic loud voice  make me think that the basement is flooding, she's upset about something,  or there is a fire somewhere.
At the train station, Merri-mother, Samuela-daughter, and Claudio- her friend that reminds me of Chunk from the Goonies, met me with a hand drawn welcome sign and quickly asked if I wanted ice cream(gelato).  with 'Lauren, ice cream?' being the most popular first week question..I  quickly learned 'non ancora' = 'no more/ not another'.

The children are very talented. Alessandro is the best on his water polo team. This week, they won 18-3.. Samuela is great at figure skating on roller blades. At the match last weekend, the girls seemed almost good enough for tv. When sports are over, they love playing ipad games. We're up to level 39 in candy crush. Rigazzi also like to play Foosball or 'Bigliardino' and hide & seek or 'Nascondino' as they call it.
We take about two hours a day to learn English. It's difficult to come up with material but  there are some books and videos, games, that we use.
I enjoy going for walks after dinner by the beach with Merri. We spend a lot of time at the beach and at a mini sports complex/cafe where Merri works. Its also where the girls have skating lessons and hosts hip hop dance classes on fridays.

I love the family and community bonds here. Small town, safe, everyone knows everyone, and they socialize constantly. For me, its overwhelming to listen to Italian the majority of day. They will try to speak English every so often, but give up easily. I am learning more Italian every day..
The father, Maurizio is very nice and makes a point to try and speak in English with me. We went for a long bike ride around town the other day and learned some traffic words.

Last week, we went to their church which was beautiful like any European catholic church and actually completely full to my surprise. I didn't understand anything and every song, response, was from memory.Finding a video feed of the Celebration community services made me feel more hopeful.

Finished the Dan Brown, Infermo. The history thrown in between the action in addition to Italian phrases and trips to Florence, Venice, and Istanbul made it a perfect read for this trip.

Living with another family is taking a while to get used to.. the schedule is not mine and requires total flexibility. I almost feel like I was adopted because the family is very nice and including and because we spend a lot of time together.

This time of year in Italy, feels like Florida. With limited a/c, no exercise is required to start the day off sweaty. But if I'm not already glistening, being put in a large group of new people will take me back to fifth grade first day of school jitters.

But at night, the air is cool, the windows are open, the streets are bustling and carefree. Gelaterias offer  stracciatella, fragola, pistaccio as the town takes its evening passegiata on the lungomare seaside street.  Bars serve Morretti, Granita and espresso. When life gives Italians lemons, they make Limoncello. Which tastes like a drop of sweet sunshine. And once or twice in a blue moon, the night is illuminated not only from the street lights glowing in the distance on the surrounding hills.

When in Rome.. is that similar to YOLO?

As I'm winding down a huge walking day in Rome, I look forward to meeting my Italian family tomorrow and look back on a great trip with my mom and brothers.
We toured Crete at the end, getting to see some beautiful beaches. The icy cold water was refreshing to jump into at Rhythmon after hiking down an adjacent mountain.
Crete, land of sheep and olive trees was just as rural as much of Rhodos. Gyros/kabobs and Greek salads were our go to food for the entire trip.
Able to stop in Athens for an afternoon layover, we had just enough time to hike up the Acropolis.

So one thing I really don't enjoy is walking down a set of stairs.. especially without a rail. I always feel like I will wipe out or my knees will not be strong enough. That and people peddling anything and everything all the time are my least favorite aspects of travel.

I love going places with Nick and Grant because they are so good at navigating and are always up for walking. Work out.

Rome has been pretty exciting. I met some ladies from Canada yesterday and we went to dinner next door then the bar down the street= Limoncellos for one dollar. Lots of Americans and Canadians staying nearby.
One of them had just come from this meditation getaway place near Asisi that is like in Eat Pray Love. Others were traveling for months on their own and going to Morocco or Southern Italy next.

Today, I tested my inner navigator. Headed towards the Trevi fountain, spotted the Colosseum first. Every road and corner was so beautiful. Filled with countless columns and statues.
Later, I went to see The Great Gatsby. The 18:30 show would be in English. About 20 minutes early, I walked in to the cinema and realized it was already playing in Italian. It was only 16:30. Time fluke. Well it was still exciting and hopefully I learned a new word or two.

Santorini

So, I admit it..Istanbul was really the only place I read about before coming on this trip. Besides watching Anthony Bourdaines No Reservations Greece episode which was terrible, I basically had only seen a few pictures.
Well Santorini is more than just blue roofed churches and pretty sunsets.
A huge volcano errupted and turned one big settlement into several smaller ones around a giant crater called a Caldera.

The main island is a very steep mountain, many types of stone. There's a gorgeous red beach-pictured below, black beaches, a white beach, and countless cliffs to climb.

The first day was great. Rented a car, drove around to multiple beaches, hiked by the lighthouse, watched the sunset by the iconic view in Oia.

Santorini is made up of multiple towns. We stayed in Thira.

So we were all the way at the top of the mountain and the second day, we wanted to walk down a curvy path to get to the sea.

Well we noticed a bad smell from the start. This path was lined with donkey droppings from the top to the bottom.. maybe a mile downhill, slippery cobble stone path. We thought it would clear up..got worse

So we slipped a few times coming down the hill but made it and decided to ride a donkey up. No reigns, can't really control which way they go, the path is still slippery, and lots of people are still walking down.

Whew, we made it.

So our time was up in Santorini and a megajet ferry would get us to Herakleon, Crete. The ship was very fast, waves were very high, babies were crying, cafe dishes flew out of place. About 8 attendents struggled to pass out & collect paper bags fast enough. Applause upon arrival.

Whew, we made it.

Rhodos, Panda express

We're currently on a 8 hour ferry from Rhodes to Santorini- if I use my imagination enough, it could feel like a cruise ship. There's cabins, a cafeteria, a bar, and even a pool! with no water ..But you would be amazed  seeing all of the automobiles it can carry.

This morning was spent driving to Lindos and throughout the rest of the island. I finally got to ride in a Fiat and this one was called a Panda! Surprisingly, the majority of the island is rural inhabited only by olive trees and  roaming goats. I always have had automatic cars and wanted to learn to drive a manual. Since we found some empty roads, Nick turned off and let me take the wheel. Grant gave me instructions and I felt 15 again. At the end of the road we found a beautiful vacant beach access! Pictures to come.

Yesterday , we did something I will never do again, but will happily remember. We went to a fish spa. For 10 euro, you get a foot massage and then get to put your legs in a fish tank for 25 minutes. They take off a little layer of skin, and its hard to sit still if you are ticklish. Just take a deep breath, imagine you're in a hot tub with lots of bubbles.

Earlier, we had hiked to acropolis-that's the highest point.
ooh and we had my favorite food so far.. falafel. Amazing and only 2.50 but the chef used 14+ spices and two homemade sauces  so recreating would be a huge challenge.

So Rhodes I think was a good page in this adventure. Excited to see the blue roofs at our next stop.

Lauren

Istanbul sightseeing recap

Istanbul was like the hunger games 12 Districts of Panem, divided based on goods that were sold. We noticed large areas for music (my favorite because it was such a Hipster area), sports, wedding stationary, plumbing, sewing supplies, etc.. we were surprised to find all of the competition in one place stretched out several blocks.

When traveling, we look for places that the locals would go to. In Istanbul, my favorite place was a coffee shop called the Lanterne Cafe. We were somewhat lost and walked in to use the internet. But then noticed some games, started playing chess and didn't want to leave. Funny how the best things are stumbled upon when you're busy looking for something else.

Also below is an interesting story about a man who jumped off of the Galata Tower in Istanbul and flew across the Bosporus with a set of man-made wings.

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Galata Tower - man's first flight, Istanbul (from pbase.com)

Hezarfen Ahmet Celebi (1609-1640), an inhabitant of Istanbul in the 17th century Ottoman Empire is credited with the first appropriate flight with artificial wings in the history of aviation. The event took place in the year 1638 during the tenure of Sultan Murad IV. Hezarfen took off from the 183-foot tall Galata Tower near Bosporus and landed successfully at Uskudar, on the other side. This feat was 200 years ahead of its time. Evliya Celebi, historian and chronicler and an eyewitness, recorded vividly in his Seyahatname (a book of travel), the jubilation that followed. Sultan Murad IV was inordinately pleased. Hezarfen was awarded a thousand gold pieces. He was bound for greater glory when religious intolerance and political asininity cut him down. Palace advisors and religious heads forced Sultan Murad to do otherwise. Hezarfen was exiled to Algeria. (In this irony of fate, he had another illustrious contemporary as company. Galileo had been sentenced for life and put under house arrest in 1633 for unmitigated brilliance that religion and politics found hard to digest.) 

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Jumping ships

<p>We're wrapping up the last night in Turkey, heading to Rhodes tomorrow. Over the last 24 hours, we spent about 14 on a bus, 3 waiting for Ephesus to open and walking around touring the partially restored city, and a few at the Marmaris beach. Right before we caught the bus, Nick and I ran over a few blocks to grab dinner. As we headed back, several others had started covering their mouths. Nicks eyes started to tear up. <br>
We had noticed several groups of police gathering in full armour with gas masks and shields thoughout the week. Of course we tried to get out of those areas but had not seen any escalades before.</p>
<p>Not knowing how serious of an issue the gas was, where it was coming from or why it was released- my heartbeat raced and we walked very fast back to the bus. </p>
<p>The city is so windy that later we saw others affected by the same issue blocks away.


Anyway, we are totally fine.. besides tired and sore from walking so much.
Today we got to see were John the apostle and Mary the mother of Jesus lived at the end of their lives. I stood where early Christians were baptized in the 6th and 7th centuries.
Excited to see Rhodes tomorrow morning!