Author: midgeguerrera

Regole di Caffè – Coffee Rules

by midgeguerrera, posted in Food - Eating In and Out!

IMG_20130710_112337Hmmm, maybe I should really call this Coffee Etiquette or “How Not To Be An Obvious Tourist.”  We all know the adage – “When in Rome do as the Romans do.”  Well, we know it, we’ve heard it and we may have even spouted it, but do we do it????  Those silly ladies in tube tops and short shorts who want to see Italian Cathedrals don’t do it and sometimes – gulp – this is embarrassing – even the folks who come to see me here in this little Italian village don’t do it.  They don’t do as the Romans do – they want to drink cappuccino after lunch or dinner!!!!

In Italian restaurants, Jack and I giggle at people in the USA who order cappuccino after dinner. We know that Italians would never dare. That said, I still sometimes appear teary eyed at around 11:00 AM at Bar Elimar and in a soft, sad voice say to Marilina, “un cappuccino per favore.”  The other day I really got in trouble –

Midge, said my favorite barista, ora è mezzogiorno (noon) – no cappuccino per te!  It was time to review the rules. Marilina spouted them off –

  1. Capuccino is a breakfast drink. You do not drink it close to lunch. All that milk and primo piatto pasta do not mix! In Pontelandolofo no one orders a cappuccino after 10:30 A.M. I take that back – non-Italians do. This is not Starbucks country. It is a small village in Southern Italy with traditions that hearken back to the middle ages. Everyone here is shocked when I tell them that in the USA you can order a cappuccino anytime – even after dinner in an Italian restaurant. Try to order a cappuccino after dinner in a restaurant here and eyebrows will be raised, trays will drop to the floor, waiters will faint and diners will know you are an uninformed tourist.
  2. Caffé macchiato – that is a shot of espresso in a small cup with a small hit of steamed milk – is acceptable all day long. So I am thinking, why can’t you make me 4 of those and put them in a big cup???? “Midge,” says Jack, “don’t be a smart ass.”
  3. Caffé – espresso – is available 24/7!  Folks stand at the bar before work and shoot back that succulent cup of caffeine. It is drunk all the time – after pranza – lunch, after cena – dinner, after you hang the laundry, after a fight with your kids. Caffé is immediately offered when you go to visit someone. Caffé is king.
  4. Un po di acqua – A small glass of water – frizzante o naturale – is often served with that cup of coffee. Do not be surprised if it appears on the bar without you asking.
  5. Zucchero? Jack and I are part of the minority. We do not put sugar in our coffee. At a bar, this is not a problem because the sugar is in packets. Visiting a home the sugar issue can be a problem. After the coffee has steamed up to the top, people often put the sugar right in the two tiered coffee pot. Then it is poured from the pot into the cups. When someone offers us a coffee we always say immediately, grazie, senza zucchero.
  6. You do not – I repeat – Do NOT – order a fruit juice and a coffee together! One or IMG_0414the other. Your stomach will appreciate it. I will admit, I misbehave and have often done this – I really like succo di arancia rossa.  Maybe that is why I feel quesy ten minutes later.
  7. I love hearing this – “Hey do you have American Coffee?”  This is Italy dumb-nut! At the bars they say yes and add hot water to espresso in a big cup.  Ugggggg
  8. Caffè lungo is an espresso made with a tad more water – it still fits in the teeny, tiny cup.  Lots of folks order those and tell me they are just a little less strong.
  9. Before bed it is OK to drink hot chocolate, camomilla, or a cappuccino. Now the milk helps you sleep. Zzzzzzzz

There you go. A quick guide to how not to look like a tourist, enjoy coffee where the beans are ground just before it is made, stand at the bar and enjoy la dolce vita.

Ci Vediamo!

Verizon Wireless – Evil,Evil,Evil

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

Evil, have I mentioned that Verizon Wireless is F%$#$%n EVIL????  Why you ask?  Oh, I don’t know.  Perhaps, the smiling voices in the call centers really can’t override the corporate computers.  Perhaps, they have the best network and enjoy yanking the proverbial balls of their customers?

I have now – in one month – called Verizon Wireless from Italy, no fewer than 5 times.  Actually, I started in March before I left to alert them to the fact that I would be in Italy AGAIN for six months and wanted to suspend my phone service.  Suspend it with out being billed – you know  -I’m not using it so I won’t pay for service.  For two years I had to argue with Verizon about suspension – their website said you could suspend without billing for 6 months once a year.  Perfect, we are gone for six months once a year.  For two years, I pled, argued, referred to the jargon on their websites and was eventually able to suspend for 6 months.  It took weeks of wrangling, moving up the food chain and feeling tension invade my entire body.

This year, after noting that now you could only suspend for three months, once again, I tried to suspend on-line – once again their web site sent an arrow to the pain in my butt.  Hence, I called to make the suspension happen.  Once again, I jumped through hoops, argued and pontificated.  Finally, I got a sweet young woman who said why don’t we also change your plan to a flip phone cheap plan so that after the three months you will only have to pay $40 something a month for the privilege of using Verizon when you get back.  Wow – a bargain!  I get to pay for something I’m not using!  Weeoooo

That sounded like a plan so, with her I downgraded the phones to flips and allegedly suspended the lines.  Allegedly, because being the good administrator, I went to My Verizon on line and checked in three days.  Now remember – the Verizon sim cards are no where near the phones. WHAT!  Not suspended.  I called and got some other nice sounding smiling person.  That person said, oh I see the notes, but the order never got processed.  WHAT!  So he allegedly processed the order to downgrade us to two flip phones and suspend us for three months.  He rambled about how we would have to be reimbursed we would get a credit etc.  Fine.  Just do it.

April 30 I got the e-mail from Verizon that they had paid my bill with my credit card.  What bill?  I went to the website.  I was charged $97.22 something for March 10 – April 9. Of course, I was in Italy on April 1st and had promptly put in my Vodafone sim card.  That bill included data charges for April and – get this a 36 minute call to someone in Long Branch, NJ on April 2nd when I had just landed in Italy and swapped sim cards????

My mistake was not shutting off automatic bill pay – World Travelers learn this lesson from me.  Turn off automatic bill pay for those bills that are always a pain in the ass to deal with and usually wrong.  The $97.22 was paid automatically.

I called Verizon.  Verizon didn’t recognize my magic pin number.  I called Verizon.  After being in the cue, I was disconnected.  I called Verizon.  I got a nice young lady – notice that all of the Verizon call center people and nice.  They are well trained to be nice.  The company breeds them to be nice.  Effectual??? Not so much.

She explained that there was a BIG NOTE on my account that I was to be credited for the data and for a good junk of that bill.  I explained that I remembered the credit but why didn’t they just put it on the bill.  She explained it would be on the next bill.  WHAT?  I pointed out that the phones were suspended so the bill would be a whopping negative number.  I asked her to send me a confirmation of the credit and a confirmation that my phone plan had been downgraded.  She said she could text it.  I started to give her my MagicJack New Jersey number so that she could text.  Oh no – I can only text to the numbers on the account.  I explained again – they are suspended – the sim cards have been taken out of the phones.  She put me on HOLD.

She came back – I asked – send me an e-mail.  I can’t we don’t have private e-mail accounts at work.  WAIT – Verizon e-mails me my bill – you must have my e-mail address on file and you must be able to e-mail.  She put me on HOLD.

Miss Margaret – Do you have the cell phones with you.  Yes.  I will call Global and they can text.  WHAT!  The phones are suspended.  I do not have a Verizon Global plan!  But do you have the phones – were they Verizon phones?  No, we bought them from Apple. I refuse to buy anything from Verizon.  But do you have the phones.  I am talking to you through the phone – with my wonderful Vodofone sim card.  She put me on HOLD.

Do you have the Verizon sim card in the phone.  ERGGGGG No I have an Italian cheap sim card.   Do you have the Verizon sim.  You could put it back in the phone.  You can only text me the information to that sim – but the phones are suspended.  I know ma’m but we can only text to the numbers on the account.  But those numbers are suspended. If I activate the sim so you can text, I will have to go through the seven levels of Verizon suspension hell again.

Wait, listen my MagicJack VOIP number is the contact number on the account – I can see it on-line at My Verizon –  text to that.  I can’t ma’m it isn’t on my screen.  But I can see it on My Verizon – don’t you have the same screens.  No Ma’m, I understand your frustration.  Hold.  Hold.. HOLD…

I could continue the rant but what would be the point.  Allegedly, some supervisor  would e-mailed me the note about the reimbursement.

This is what I got – with lots of Verizon Happy Faces: This is a confirmation that an adjustment has been made to your account balance. Your new balance can be obtained in the following ways:  Dial #BAL and SEND 24 hours after receiving this email. (Bet I need to do that from my Verizon phone number.   ERRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGG)

25 Aprile- Festa Della Liberazione

by midgeguerrera, posted in Practical Matters - Living Abroad

It started with me looking out the window, and wondering if the post office was open today. Why am I wondering? Because it is a national holiday here – Festa Della Liberazione.  Over the weekend, Jack and I both voted absentee in the June 2016 New Jersey State Presidential Primary. After emailing a PDF of the ballot to New Jersey, the rules say we must immediately  airmail copies of said ballad. (Does that mean I’m voting twice?)

Since things close here when there are no holidays and some are open when there are holidays – no I haven’t figured out the system yet – I wondered if the Ufficio Postale would be open. It was freaking pouring buckets of freezing rain and I didn’t want to go to the post office if it was closed. The Ufficio Postale web site didn’t have a list of hours or holidays.  Many Italian websites are difficult for me to explore – it isn’t the language barrier – it is the – who the hell designed this – barrier.  Maybe the hours are buried somewhere – or maybe the hours change from region to region or province to province.  The province of Milan had its own easy to use website and list of post office hours. La Provincia di Benevento did not.  Bo!

The temperature dropped to close to freezing, the rain turned to slush and I decided it would be more interesting to find out what Festa Della Liberazione was all about then to walk down the hill to the post office in the pouring rain to find out if it was closed.

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Men and Women Partisans – We Honor You!

Thanks to Giorni-Festivi.it, I got the story –

L’anniversario della Liberazione, conosciuto anche come Festa della Liberazione, è un giorno festivo italiano nonché festa nazionale. Essa è conosciuta anche come anniversario della Resistenza, o semplicemente “25 aprile”. 

The anniversary of the Liberazione, also known as the Liberation Day is an Italian public and national holiday. It is also known as the anniversary of Resistance, or simply “25 April”. The day honors those partisans  who, during World War II, opposed the fascist government of Mussolini and German occupation by Hitler’s Nazis.  It is a symbolic date.

My favorite source of information, The Pontelandolfo News, has a full story and you can – on my computer anyway – read it in English.

There are celebrations in big cities – particularly the north where citizens eagerly joined the partisans to help kick out the Nazis.  Jack and I celebrated by going to Don Peppino in Campolattara.  When I think about it – we were thinking and talking about partisans (including the briganti)  who suffered for freedom – while we gorged on great artigianale food – hmmmmm.  Is that like having a beer blast at the beach on Memorial Day?  Our hats are off to all those brave men and women who fought for freedom then and continue to fight for freedom now.

PS – we drove to the piazza and the Ufficio Postale was closed.  So was the bank, edicolo, tabacchi etc.  Guess what was open???

Ci Vediamo!

 

 

Alex’s Take on Aunt Midge’s World

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

My talented and delightful niece, Alexandra Rose Niedt, takes her Italian heritage seriously! She was the third person in our immediate family to apply for – Italian Citizenship.  (She would have been second but her mom had to get it first.) The winsome lady also has the wanderlust! Not afraid to travel alone she often pops into Pontelandolfo – when we are here and when we’re not! We had only been in town for three days, when with toothpicks holding open our travel weary eyes, we headed to the Naples airport. She glided into the airport pulling a suitcase bigger than she was and people noticed her.  The kid is a chip off the Guerrera block and carries herself with Una Bella Figura – just like her ancestors.  Shut up Auntie M!  OK, OK, here’s Alex –

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Annarita Mancini fills Alexandra in on the latest gossip.

Dear Readers,

Years ago, I started coming here to see my family, so not too much surprises me when I come to my ancestral home. Though this trip, I did notice something that took me for a slight loop that I wanted to update you all on: my Aunt Midge has become a complete local.

Now let me clarify a few things on this topic-

• I don’t know if it’s because of my roots or because of the bond I have with my family here, but I always feel somewhat like I’ve been here forever. Whether that be all of the familiar faces I see in the piazza, or the friends and family members that make me laugh entirely too hard, it’s difficult to say. All I know is that I always feel a sense of belonging.

• Midge has been spending more and more time here over the past 3 years, from 4-7 months at a time, so granted there has been time for this all to take effect.

• Being considered a local and simply feeling like one are two drastically different things.

Midge arrived back in Pontelandolfo nearly 3 days before I got to our gorgeous little village, so she’d really only had the chance to see our family, go to IKEA to buy some more furnishings for her house and drive to Naples to pick me up at the airport.  (A task which I am always grateful for, as taking the train from Naples in the evening is not on my top 10 list of things I most enjoy.) Because she hadn’t had the chance to fully settle back in to the swing of things I got to bear witness to her complete transition from “that crazy American lady that’s always writing at Bar Elimar” to “one of our own.”

I thought, as my generation is obsessed with them, I would present this to you in list form.

1) Walking through the Piazza random people come rushing over to my aunt saying “Bentornata!” (Welcome back) with hugs and kisses all around and excited conversation. This happens frequently, with people I know and also people I have never seen before. I thought I knew everyone! Dead wrong.

2) While sitting in the Piazza drinking a macchiato, a school bus full of children drives by and the kids lean out of the windows screaming “Hello!  Hello!  Hello!” to their former English teacher. I laugh for a solid minute at the ridiculous nature of little heads popping out the window in Italy shouting hello!

3) We need cheese, so I say why don’t we go to the caseificio in town? My aunt responds with “Oh no, we can’t go to him…” And follows with some story about the inner workings of the politics of the town and our family… Or was it that he sold her bad mozzarella once and she won’t go back? Same thing!

4) When we do make it to the caseificio (the one she frequents a little outside of town) after more hugs and kisses from Nadia, the long time employee, she proceeds to ask for specific cheese. Nadia on the sly tells her what is most fresh and what to stay away from today. Because you know, she’s a regular.

5) Sitting at one of the bars around 9pm Midge is about to leave when one of the women we know stops her. She asks for help making costumes for the town play “Dramma Sacro du Santa Giocondina.” Midge, being the true thespian she is, heartily agrees. This play is so important, it happens once every 4 years and is taken very seriously. Go Midge!

6) We are having a little gathering at Midge’s house the night before I leave for London, so of course we have to go to the pasticceria to buy dolce for after dinner. Upon arrival we begin to talk to the girl behind the counter, when out from the back (having recognized Midge’s voice) comes the owner Nicola, who immediately takes over our order and starts shooting the shit with us. After we’re finished he takes the treats to the register, tells the girl to give us the friends discount and waves goodbye. I mean, what a life?

I love this town, it’s home. It’s beautiful in the morning, and lights up after 10pm- literally and energetically. I hang out with the same people whenever I’m here, and have created really beautiful relationships with friends and family alike. But I’m always just visiting. Sure, I’m from here, sure I feel like a local, but I haven’t put in the time to truly deserve the right to be considered one.

My Aunt Midge has, and is now sitting back and reaping the benefits of a truly loving community. And I am forever impressed.

Questa e l’Italia- La dolce vita.

Ci vediamo la prossima volta,

Alex

(Thanks Alex, I actually cried when I read this.  I love you to pieces!  Auntie M)

Wind Closes the Market?? Nah!

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

Here in Pontelandlofo, Wednesday is market day. The trucks parade in and transform Piazza Roma into a Centro Commerciale.  People come into town to buy everything from soap,shoes, clothes to baby chickens.  When I got up, I yelled down the stairs to Jack  – are you ready to go?  The wnd was whistling and I remembered those hot summer days and how great that forceful breeze felt.  Then I bellowed, there is laundry in the washing machine.  (I had put a load of towels in last night.)  Jack,if you’re ready please hang the towels up, outside. 

 I love the smell of air dried clothes.  It is one of the perks of not having a drier.

Jack came back in red faced and said the towels will be dry in about ten minutes if the wind doesn’t take them to London.  Then he said, it is too windy – there won’t be a market.  Psshaw, I thought. Pontelandlofese are mountain people.  What’s a little wind.  I shoved Jack back out the door.

When we got outside the wind grabbed my hair and whisked my head around – think horror movie rotating head.  Ouch.  It tossed me towards the car.  Jack said, “there won’t be a market.” Not be a market, I screamed over the wind.  These venders are tough and I have to buy Zia Giusipinna a sweater for her birthday. Jack sighed and drove us down to the piazza.

I see the trucks! I shouted.  Jack pointed out that the owners were still in the trucks and nothing was out to be sold.  There were lots of cars so people are here. Oh, they are sitting in their cars too.

Jack parked and I dashed up to Dr. Polumbo’s office to try to get rid of my evil sounding cough.  When I came back down I saw that the market –  

 
shoot I can’t lie.  Out of the twenty or so normal trucks full of stuff about three braved the wind. They partially set up.  

Sadly, no one was walking around, chatting, haggling or buying.  Sigh…..  Ain’t living in a Windy City grand!  

Welcome to the Province of Benevento!

Ci vediamo!

Perché la Strada Più Comoda Per Andare A Votare È Chiusa.

by midgeguerrera, posted in Politics - Quirky Aside

Maybe it is because I grew up in New Jersey where political manipulation runs rampant.  Or maybe it is because I remember the Chicago of Mayor Daley.  Or maybe it is because at this point in my life I’m cynical and see corruption and conspiracy behind lots of doors.  Whatever the reason,something happened today that made me angrier than hell.

Today, Sunday, April 17 is voting day in Italy.  There is only one item on the ballot.  Thank you Wikipedia for laying it out – 

A referendum on oil and natural gas drilling will be held in Italy on 17 April 2016.[1] The referendum proposes repealing the law that allows gas and oil drilling concessions extracting Hydrocarbon within 12 nautical miles of the Italian coast to be prolonged until the exhaustion of the useful life of the fields.

It will be the first referendum requested by at least five Regional Councils in the history of the Italian Republic: all the previous 66 referendum questions since 1974 were required after collection of signatures of citizens. 

So this is green legislation, and doesn’t make big oil companies happy, I’m guessing skids can be greased.  Look at the skids greased in Washington.  Here is what pissed me off.  My niece is here and wanted to vote.  She needed to get a tessera elettorale – like a voters registration card.  Because of the election, the municipio was open. Now there are two ways to walk there – which is also how you walk to the polling place. One is the lower easy walking medieval viale – which takes un-athletic me five minutes. The second requires legs of steal, is up hill and longer.  Guess which road was closed? You got it, we walked the lower road and came to a temporary barricade that closed the road. Of course, we walked around it! Because we did not see anything wrong with the road, we continued on. A group of young men were right behind us. Eventually, however, we came to barricades that were a fixed between two buildings.  One of the young men leaped over it and offered to help us over it.  We were 30 seconds from the municipal building.  Since I didn’t want to give them hernias, we walked back the way we came.  There was no way I could walk up the other street.  Alex grabbed a pal and went on.

Here is my conspiracy theory.  In researching, before I voted absentee a few weeks ago in the USA, I discovered –

Il referendum è valido se si raggiunge il quorum ovvero se un determinato numero di persone si reca a votare.

That essentially means the referendum is only valid if a quorum of Italian citizens who are able to vote – actually vote!  So if car-less folks want to walk they can’t.  I mean they can, but is more difficult. If you want to easily access the municipal building you can’t.  So, less people vote and maybe then there isn’t the necessary quorum for the referendum.  I wonder if there are some types of road blocks to voting in lots of town? 

Here is a road block that happened to my sister and I. We got our absentee ballots and noted you voted Si or No.  Just like double negatives have peppered American referendums, we immediately thought – we don’t want those rigs off our coast we will vote no!  Oops, it is a vote to “repeal” the law so we would have to vote yes.  Even some Italians I spoke to here agree that if you are not paying attention it is easy to get confused. 

Just like the majority of windmills- which now predominant some vistas are in the south and appear absent in the north – it looked like most of the drilling is in the south. Hmm.

After I took a breath I thought, maybe it is not a conspiracy – maybe they repaired the road 4 months ago and forgot to take the barriers down.  I mean, Questa è Italia.

PS. My niece was told she couldn’t vote because she lives abroad and even though she was here in person, she should have voted absentee. One less body count toward a quorum.

Ci vediamo.

Train Travel Hints

by midgeguerrera, posted in Practical Matters - Living Abroad, Travel Comments

Class counts!  If you can swing it – go to the head of the class! Our business class seats on Frecciarossa between Milan and Rome had all the bells and whistles. Imagine, electric leather seats that accommodate a butt of substance and can slide into an almost sleep mode. Wifi that works was a plus as were the electric outlets.  All the seats had tables for two or for the working team or card sharks, seats and a table for four.  Each seat arrangement had a cute little clear plastic wall that separated the chosen few from the folks walking down the aisle.  Hey look at me – walking down the aisle to the clean and large bathroom.

First class seats are not leather and may or may not move – depending on the train.  They too have mostly four seats configured around a table with places to plug in.  But they were a wee bit more squished than business class.  I hate sitting near the window – great view but I have to climb over someone to get out.  That means they have to unplug their laptop, move their stuff and get up – ugggg.

The stewards come around in both first and business classes offering the included prosecco, caffè, tea, water and juice.  Both have a choice of snacks and my favorite – little packets of wet style wipes to clean up your yucky travel hands.

H’mm other differences?  I think it is just the size of the seats. Oh yeah, in both classes, the steward also offers newspapers and will take orders for the food available in the snack bar car.  Wow – a rhyme – I’m sure there is a classier name than snack bar car though the bar was stocked.  Adjacent to our business class car was a real dining car with menus, linens and comfy seats. We didn’t try it but plan to on another adventure.

Stop pouting. We’ve taken the slow poke regional trains too.  The too many hours in a hot sweaty car kind of trains that didn’t have enough seats – you know like New Jersey transit’s old diesel war horses during the commuting rush.  The regional train from Rome to Boiano can be standing with your suitcase room only.

Trenitalia offers the super speedy Frecciarossa family of trains.  Intercity and regional trains connect big cities and pokey little towns along the way.

Italia Rail offers background information on the train system. I just discovered at that web-site that Trenitalia and a private French rail company combined forces to create Thello (pronounced tell-OH), which operates overnight long-haul trains between Paris and Italy!  How glamorous to take  Thello through Switzerland and wake up in Paris!  Rats, what would I wear???

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Marta waves bye-bye from the Benevento Train Station

Train Hints

  1. When you are on line or in line figuring out which train to take from point A to point B make sure you look at the duration of the ride.  What?  It takes ten hours from here to there? Rats – is there a connection too?  Changing trains when you don’t speak the language can be a real adventure or a night mare.  Keep looking at the schedules.  Wait, look this train is only 4 hours – how could that be?  One is a local/regional train which may have a connection and one is a super duper fast train.  The fast trains cost more but….
  2. My good buddy Nicola looked at Jack and I and asked why we were taking the fast train to Venice.  He said we were pazzo! A flight from Naples on a budget airline was half the price of the train ticket and got there in an hour.  So check out other transportation options.  Here are some of the budget airlines – Easy Jet, Ryanair, Meridiana (Meridiana also has cheap flights, but I’m told uncomfortable unless you are a size 4, from New York to Italy.)
  3. When your get to a station use your train number to identity what track – binario – your train is on. My cousins had first class tickets from Rome to Benevento but didn’t realize it was the fast train to Lecce with a quick stop in Benevento. They inadvertantly got the slow boat to Benevento with the pigs and chickens. No one looked at their tickets and when the train poked along they panicked.  I panicked too when the didn’t disembark at the appointed time. Lesson learned – use the train number on your ticket to identify your train.
  4. If you are going to change trains – we do that from Milan to Benevento – it is super important at the station to look for the train numbers.  For example, the fast train from Milan to Rome that we take really goes further south.  If I didn’t look for the train number I’d get on the wrong train.  In Rome, the train we take to Benevento ends in Lecce.  We always look for the train number.
  5. Especially for the regional trains, make sure you go up to the box near the track and validate your ticket.  Sometimes you have to look for the boxes.  I tried to do this once with an e-ticket that I had printed and folded to fit.  It wouldn’t work, the train was coming, I yelled bad words in a lot of languages and stomped off.  So I stopped trying to validate  an e-ticket and  I haven’t gotten a fine.  Though I could – but hey, I’m a middle aged plus woman with a great smile. If you have a ticket make sure you stick it in the slot at the bottom of the box and get it stamped.  This is also important on buses and subways.
  6. When you find the binario – track – that the train is on you then have to find the right train car.  For the fast trains, your ticket has a carrozza – passenger car – number on it AND the seat number.  Don’t be fooled by the big number painted on all the cars – look for the smaller numbers near the doors. The signs will give the car number and what seats are near that door – cars have doors at both ends.  Even the regional trains are labeled.  We made the mistake of getting in a first class regional car – that looked as dumpy as the rest of the cars – and paid an up-charge.  PS – not all regional trains are dumpy.
  7. The train app – Info Treno- is helpful.  I like to follow my travels and get a handle on what stops are coming up.  You can use the application to help you pick trains too.  Following your train with the train number, however, is easier than trying to figure out what train to take.
  8. Luggage is a pain in the butt.  You have to schlep it.  I’m sure there must be porters but I’ve never seen anyone hustling for our bags.  The platforms are not all level with the trains.  There are steps up into the train.  That means you have to haul a suitcase up.  We only take small carry-on luggage when we take the train.  Even when we fly into Milan and train it to Benevento we send our big luggage on ahead. (Mail Boxes Etc.)  Business and first class trains have slots behind the seats for luggage. I tried to explain that to Jack as he was hernia bound lifting a bag onto the overhead shelf.  The big hint – was the picture of a suitcase in the space between the seats.  At the front of some cars on all trains – note the word some – there are shelves for luggage.  Luggage is a pain in the ass.

These hints are not meant to dissuade you.  We love the take the train.  The views are incredible.  I get to talk to all kinds of people and we sit back and relax.

Choo Choo!!!

Ci vediamo!

Albergo – Il Girasole a Milano

by midgeguerrera, posted in Travel Comments

Hmm – should I take a picture of Jack napping in our comfortable room at Il Girasole in Milan?  Nah, that would be nasty – and you my readers know that I am never nasty. Besides, surrounded by the warmth and love that emanates from every inch of Il Girasole  it would be impossible to think a nasty thought.  In the city of Milan, the Negruzzi family has created and warm and winsome atmosphere .  The three star hotel is a short subway ride to the historic and arts filled center of the city.  What I appreciate is that it is in a neighborhood where we felt like cittadini di Milano – not tourists.

When our taxi pulled up to the industrial looking portone of the exterior, Jack and I looked at each other.  My  cousin Rich and his wife Lynn had recommended the place so we knew it had to be OK – but the big metal gate???  We rang the bell and all of our concerns were swept away by the effusive smiles, laughter and bubbling personalities of Matteo and Nicola – the two brothers who manage the family business.  Nicola schlepped our 4 huge suitcases up to our room while we enjoyed a prosecco and conversation with Matteo.  (Yes you read that right – 4 large suitcases – we are here for 7 months.  Most of the stuff was Jack’s.)  Matteo whipped out maps for us, and in perfect English gave us restaurant hints and immediately made us feel comfortable with where we were.

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Matteo threatened to put Jack to work!

Our room was large – by European urban standards – and had a desk, couch, armoire and large bathroom.  It costs us €303 for three nights and included a continental breakfast. I loved the smiley faces on the cappuccino.  The hotel has free wi-fi that worked quickly everywhere – including outside in the small garden.  There is parking and a meeting room.

The first night we took Matteo’s advice on a restaurant, Vineria San Giovanni, and came back to peels of laughter bursting up from the breakfast room.  Never one to miss a party, I dragged Jack down the steps and discovered three men and Nicola swapping tales.  (He speaks English, Spanish, Italian and is studying Chinese.) Nicola  promptly poured us each a beer and we joined the party.  The three guests were regulars.  They worked for an international company – one was from Taiwan, another Hong Kong and the third a Chinese American.  We prattled on about politics, food, fun and I felt like I had known them forever.  That is what Il Girasole does to you!

One morning I asked Matteo to tell me how the hotel came to be.  The building was originally a bicycle factory.  His mother, Bianca, and brother Nicola started the business in 1998 as a B&B.  The original space only had 3 rooms.  As they continued the renovations, they opened for guests .  Their first international guests were from the USA and stayed for three months.  The family relocated for the dad’s business – he worked in radio and actually got the B&B a month of free spots!  They are all still friends.  The hotel now has 16 rooms and three star hotel status!  Bravo.

The brothers grew up in a “culture of responsibility.”  Bianca was a community organizer who – through a not for profit agency – spear headed local projects. The family feels that their home is the entire city and that means they have a responsibility to help solve the city’s issues.  Nicola is currently president of the parent organization of the public school and organizes fund raising events.

It was joyous to hear Matteo tell me about his city, his family and the passion they all have for the hotel. Even their website is steeped in sunflower good cheer.

Il Girasole  – Via Doberdò, 19, 20126 Milano, info@ilgirasolemilano.com

A sunny spot of home in a big city.

Ci vediamo!