Month: April 2015

Off to school again this morning. It was the last day for this week so most of the class were moving on. Only Susana and I go back next week in this class. I have really enjoyed my week of lessons, it’s not that I am making great progress but I don’t feel like quite such an idiot. The class was much much better suited to my level which gave me greater confidence. It is also a much longer lesson and I felt as if I was making a little bit of progress albeit still not able to speak!!

After lessons today Susana and I went to a restaurant I wish, wish we’d known about when H, A & R were here, you would have loved it. It is a special project to give employment to disabled people with both intellectual and physical disabilities. Most had intellectual disabilities including Downs Syndrome and other. They were fantastic and it was uplifting. The menu is adapted with pictures and numbers which taught us all about the different pastas etc. The pads they took the order on was adapted to use numbers. The food was fantastic and unbelievably cheap. We were joined there by 2 other woman from ‘school’ who walked in and all up, for the 4 of us it cost 36 EU. We had a pasta each, a salad, a bottle of wine and a shared desert. The people who joined us from America and another woman from France. We had a lovely lunch and a lively discussion. The restaurant is called ‘Pecora Nera’ – Black Sheep!!

After lunch Susana, the American woman and I headed off to find a wine shop someone had told us about. We found it but the price range was way outside our schema of things but we had some tastes and enjoyed that. We also got all sorts of information about a visit to the Fubbiano Winery which we may well do next week but have to work out some transportation!! It was a shopping day today as everything (literally) is closed tomorrow. The other 2 women came with me to some of the places I shop because they wanted to know some good places to go. Then we parted and I came home ladened with food shopping.

I haven’t got plans for the long weekend unlike most people who are heading off to the obvious places, Florence, Pisa, Siena etc. Tomorrow will be closed wherever you go so I will potter around Lucca doing my homework/ revision. Then saturday…well who knows.

It has been a much brighter week and once again school has been a very good addition to my life.

For the next couple of weeks (except Friday is the May Day holiday so no school) I have a strict routine that I have to stick to. Up and out by 8:30, stop for my coffee and Cornetto, weather permitting (it just permitted today by the hair of my chin chin chin) on my bike and peddle to school. I’ve only been able to do this today but it is what I always imagined…cycling to school in the Tuscan sunshine.

There was a new person in class today. At least she isn’t new, she was there last week but didn’t come yesterday. She is a retired woman from Bristol and she is a great asset for a number of reasons. She is lovely and friendly, doesn’t take herself too seriously AND I think she’s worse than me at Italian!! One of the Australian women goes straight from the 4 hours of our class to a one on one lesson and she is incredibly ERNEST!! Anyway the English woman, Jackie, the Mexican girl, Susanna and I went off at coffee break to the piazza to get a good coffee so that was really nice.

After class I headed off on my bike while the weather was holding and did my round the wall gig…this time I went around 3, (3, 3) times for the first time….god!! Then I went home and had my soup for lunch then out to do a bit of shopping, then home for homework/ write-up of the lesson which I still haven’t finished…huge!!

It’s still trying to rain but tomorrow it seems will be a better day before more rain for the long weekend. Tomorrow I’ve signed up (with Susanna) to go to a villa outside Lucca on a school excursion.

It is a much better class than Bologna (except for Madeleine) and much more intense but I still cannot talk to save myself although I do all the grammar really quite well. What is it with me????

Oh dear, here I go again and the Lucca Italian School is FULL ON!! Much more intense than Bologna and exhausting! Got going early this morning. It was raining steadily so no bike today. Went and had my early morning coffee and then walked up to the school (just past the underground carpark for those familiar with the walk). First I had to sit with one of the teachers and have an embarrassing ‘conversation’ while they assessed your level….oh shit, it beginners for me but not beginner/ beginner!!

I’m in a class with 3, that’s right, 3 Susan’s. Can you believe it?? There are 2 other senior Australian’s one from Canberra and one from Sydney and a young woman from Mexico who lives in Colarado. Then there was 4 full hours of full on conversation. No emphasis on grammar like Bologna and it all gets a bit hard trying to understand everything. I’m truly not good but probably fit into this group OK. It did exhaust me in a different way to walking around the wall.

After the lesson the Mexican girl and I walked back so I could show her where Piazza San Francesco and the supermarket are. She is sweet. I then came home for my soup lunch and to write up the lesson.

Like Bologna the school put on a walk around the town and the Mexican girl and I signed up. I have to push myself but feel I should. So at 4.30pm we met up (about 6 of us) and set off walking around the town. You do learn a lot going on these walks. Also I was struck by how much more I understood on this walk compared to when I did the Bologna one. The similarity between the two walks, however, was that it was pouring both times. This time it REALLY poured i.e. thunder, lightning and the whole bit. Thanks for the big umbrella all…I didn’t think I’d be a grateful for it as I was tonight. Also today is the day of St Zita whose mummified body resides in San Frediano Church (one with mosaic on the front). There was a massive queque to view her body despite the weather and a lot of idolatry (is that a word??) going on. Her body just looked revolting to me…desiccated and macabre. Anyway we completed the walk despite the conditions. Home I came drenched despite the umbrella, raced to turn on the heating and get myself something to eat.

Tomorrow is another day. The good thing about going to school is that you do get lots of extraneous information about places to go and things to see!!

For today, read yesterday basically. Rode around wall twice after coffee and cornetto. Rode around town and read a little. I have to say, and this is likely to be famous last words, but I do love riding around without a helmet. I love the wind in my hair, ridiculous though that may sound.

Today I didn’t have lunch out but came home and had some of my most delicious homemade soup. I then took a deep breath and did a walk of the wall. I think I must be crazy. It is totally exhausting and doesn’t do any good for the blister on my toe. There was a lovely flower market in Piazza Antiteatro today. So many beautiful roses on display and the Italians buying up big for their spring plantings.

School starts tomorrow…a source of considerable anxiety!!

The last 2 days have been very ‘normal’, rather mundane but settling too. Yesterday I spent the morning laundromating and shopping. An elderly Italian gentleman appeared while I was trying to organise myself at the laundromat and insisted that he would move my washing from machine to dryer and I could go and do other things. He insisted and short of insulting him I had to accept graciously and off I went envisioning him inspecting my undies. It did give me the opportunity to do a big shop as tomorrow, actually it is now today, (ironically the 25th April) is a holiday here to celebrate the liberation of Italy after WWII. I got back to the laundromat and of course absolutely everything had gone through the dryer at 90 degrees including rubber backed bathmat (it seems to have survived!!).

I then decided to sweep, clean and make the bed etc. After lunch I got the bike out and rode a bit through town…not a very rewarding experience as you try to dodge massive groups of Italian school children of varying ages who hunt in feral packs and couldn’t give a flying fuck about the precarious nature of little old ladies on bicycles, as well as the tourist packs. So you head for the wall…safer but the packs are still there, this time on bikes…around I went for my X 2 circumnavigation, sore bum notwithstanding!! I then had a bit of time out in my lovely reading spot, a beautiful walled garden that is so lovely and so peaceful. But yesterday…you guessed it, a group of Italian school kids descended on my garden. They had a lesson about it’s history and the plants in it and then off they went, saying a cheerful goodbye to the perplexed straniera reading on her kindle…very cheerful and lovely!! The best thing about this day was that, even so far from home, the D’s came home and killed the Tiges….I was enthralled and kept looking up the scores. Heard from Ang a couple of times before half time but there has been an eery silence since!!

Today bore a strange similarity to yesterday except it is Italian Liberation day and the Lucchese were out and about in force. My bar wasn’t open and my No. 2 bar wasn’t open until 11am. Lucky I had a viber chat to Rose to fill in the time in the morning. That is always so ‘connecting’. After coffee I headed straight for the Wall to do my ride before lunch. That was good and I know you are absolutely hanging out to know how my bum is going. Well, I have to say it isn’t getting worse and while that is the case I’ll keep going in the hope of toughening up!! After my ride I felt I needed to make some human contact so I went and had lunch at a little place I’ve been to a few times, once with Rose and ever since they are always surprised that I am alone!! That was nice and I took my time. Then I had a break at home and decided because I had my ride before lunch that I could do a walk too. So around the wall I went on my feet this time. I have to say it nearly kills me to do both but Rose tells me I will get fitter!! Nonetheless, don’t think I’ll keep this regime up. In fact won’t be able to when I start Italian lessons again on Monday.

There was a bit going on this afternoon to celebrate the Italian Resistance Movement and the liberation in 1945. The Italian perceptions of the war years is quite ambiguous…they celebrate the ‘liberation’ now but during the war the north was under Mussolini while the south was occupied by the allies. True to Italian form, they just can’t really get into war and get confused!! They are such lovely people on the whole and they were out in their masses this afternoon…the streets were jam packed.

I came home and had another massive cook-up, doing soup for the coming week and greens for my evening meals…VERY uncharacteristic wouldn’t you say??

Getting nervous about having to go back to school on Monday and make a fool of myself again. Oh well…more bike riding and walking tomorrow!!

I think today that my efforts to entertain myself went a bit too far…so sayeth the blister on my toe and my sore bum. The problem is that this really isn’t a tourist town in as much as there aren’t endless ‘sights’ like Rome and to a lesser extent Bologna. So I have to work out a different approach to filling my days and today I went a bit mad in my efforts. After coffee I got out ‘Bitch’ the Bike and off I peddled. I got really reckless and went outside the wall to cycle around. It didn’t take me long to realise that that was a mistake…I don’t like cars that close to me even though there is an advantage in learning to ‘drive’ on the right. I got myself back inside the wall feeling a bit nervous and then I cycled around the wall twice. got home, had my delicious home made soup for lunch and then headed out on foot to do some shopping, collecting a gelato on the way, mouched about a bit and came home. Then I decided I couldn’t just stay home so I decided to walk the wall. This was actually a mistake and exhausted me. As I said I have blisters from the bike and the walk now!! All in all that’s about 15kms one way or the other by the time I get too and from the wall…too much for little old ladies.

I got back after 6pm, got myself some tea, am ready to watch an episode of House of Cards and then go to bed. But first back to yesterday as I forgot to say that I went to Puccini’s House and it really was very nice, I enjoyed it. He wrote his opera’s there and it had a really nice vibe.

Slower day tomorrow. No-one has commented on my lovely bike!!

Two more days have gone by as I keep up my efforts to feel at home…today was my biggest achievement. I bought myself a Bike!! I’m so proud of it. If ever anything makes you feel at home in Lucca it’s joining the bike riding masses!!

But I will start with yesterday and get myself up to date. Yesterday (Tuesday) I set off in the morning and went to the National Museum at Villa Guinigi…the one we walked past on the way to the carpark H,A &R. I wandered around there but I must confess that it was a bit under-whelming. You see so many absolutely amazing museums that a little piddly one like the Lucca one just doesn’t match up. Anyway, I enjoyed pottering around, it’s my forte. I then went home to afford myself the pleasure of my homemade soup for lunch. Delicious…that bit of grappa just gives it an edge. Couldn’t be more divine. I then went off to do my little double circumnavigation of the wall on my hired bike. This arrangement of the hired bike wasn’t great because if I stayed out longer I wasn’t sure what would happen as we had hit on a reduced price for 1 hour…limiting!! Anyway, I enjoyed it. I then reward myself with a sit in the sun and a gelato. I wandered a bit more and actually then decided, a bit randomly, to have an Aperol Spritz at that place on Piazza San Michele that where we had one Rose. But it doesn’t feel right indulging by yourself so don’t think I’ll do that again. Then home and an episode (two actually) of House of Cards.<

Today I had arranged to have morning coffee with Cristina, my lovely landlady. I have to say if I’ve done anything right it is to have had the best landlords in both Bologna and here (not Rome). She is a delight. So we went for coffee on the wall at that Columbine place… So we chatted about everything…she really is lovely. So then she took me to her bike man and negotiated for me to buy a brand new bike…even with gears for 190 Eu. And he will buy if back from me when I leave (if I don’t decide to just give it to Cristina who’s bike was recently stolen). So off I went to pick up the bike later this afternoon. Then Cristina got all anxious about where I would keep the bike safely. She rang a man who owns the ground floor of his building. It is an unused office sort of area. She cajoled him into giving me a key and now my bike has a lovely safe home too. I spent the day doing fun things like booking flights and accommodation to meet up with Ang and Kirst and getting myself to Sicily. That always makes me feel cheerful. I also did some shopping. I went to that Alimentari where you bought your beer Rose…it is the one that Cristina recommended too and they were just lovely. The whole shop was engaged in my purchases!!

I wandered a bit until it was time to pick up my bike. Oh dear, I get so anxious. He insisted I go for a test ride and he was a bit anxious himself that I’d make it OK. But off I went, even riding along the streets and then around the wall. As I went home on the bike the bike shop man was very enthusiastically giving me the thumbs up as I wobbled past!!

Cristina met me back home with the key to the my ‘ragazza’s’ new home. She is locked up safely and I am about to heat up some of the yummy food I bought.

So…maybe I am a little more Lucchese than I was yesterday!!

Loads of love to everyone…I can see you all being very proud of me

Today was a get back on your bike day and sort yourself out. So I did just that…got back on the bike for another double circumnavigation which send my legs into orbit for most of the day but what the heck. So instead of walking the wall today I walked the town. I found a lovely little garden to read my book in. The sun was back into full form and blazing away so I sat in a piazza and had a gelati. I did a whole lot of shopping and even bought a little ‘stick thing’ …just a very cheap, crappy one so we’ll see how it goes but it inspired me to stock up on veggies with a view to making some soups.

Then I decided it was time to get brave Sue out of her box and I took myself off to find an Italian School. I have booked in to start next Monday for 2 weeks, a 2 week break and then another 2 weeks. I’m utterly terrified!!! Far more than last time in Bologna when I didn’t know what I was getting myself in for. This time I know positively that I’m doomed to frustration, failure and embarrassment!!! After I left there I went to some crappy church….what the hell does that say???

I then came home, had a 5pm lunch of cheese and bread and then started chopping up a mountain of veggies, as I said with a view to soups!! I was cooking up leeks and thought damn, no white wine but then I had the inspired thought that I would use a splash (or 2, or 3, or 4) of Grappa…I’ll let you know if it was inspired or just me in the kitchen making a shit mess.

Ciao ragazzi

Well, I think I’ll sleep well tonight!! In my efforts to entertain myself I went a bit too far I think. This morning after spending more endless hours trying to send photos via iCloud (and failing) I set off to find a Sunday morning coffee. This is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. I went to a place and got totally ripped off because they charged massively for table service. So the search for Sunday AM coffee continues. Then I came home and put more effort into stupid iCloud. Then off I went, taking a deep breath due to the challenging nature of the enterprise for me, and hired a bike and set off to cycle the wall alone. In fact it went well and I was able to get around the wall twice on the bike. Clever me I thought…think I’ll have lunch somewhere!! So I went (information for Rosa) to the place on Via Giorgio (the street on the way back from the laundromat) that we went to with the little courtyard area in the front. That was nice…I had a seafood spaghetti and a little vino. I then came home for a bit and then decided to now walk the wall…which I did, but golly the old legs felt it. That’s nearly 15km one way or another by the time you get to the wall and back. So now I’m home and have a glass of wine firmly in hand.

I’m trying to download House of Cards Ham but that is also proving challenging. Not to worry I’ll talk to you soon and in the meantime I have bought Olive Kitteridge from iTunes and am half way through that…it is depressing but I’m involved!!!

That’s it from here.