Tough decisions...

Here are a few of the tough decisions I've been facing my first week in Italy:
1-Do I live in the heart of the city in the apartment w/ the great roofdeck and awesome views or in Cava..a much quieter town, by the Amalfi coast? Well, to try to figure this one out, I went for a 2 hour walk yesterday to check out more of the Mergellina neighborhood where the cool apartment is. It didn't take me 2hours to walk there, instead, I meandered down lots of cobblestone streets, eventually finding my way to Piazza Amedeo (near the apt), and Via Filanieri, a street considering one of the quaintest streets in Italy. Both of these spots were recommended by our real estate agent, and both are a quick walk from the apartment. My walk yesterday was quite enjoyable, unlike the stressful walk I had a few days earlier, when I couldn't get away from honking horns, car exhaust, and my stroller seemed to bounce and jolt poor Evan all over the place. No, yesterday's walk was so much better. I think because I found a few more pedestrian friendly, quieter streets which were really pretty and which had the perfect blend of clothing stores, markets, and restaurants (actually of all types: Bars--the casual places you grab a cappucino at, Cafeterias--offering sandwiches, paninis etc, Pizzerias-obvious, Trattorias--a step below a ristorante, and a Ristorante-more formal sit down type place. Now that I found some quiet walking areas, and was able to get away from the constant traffic noise, now I can see us living in the heart of Naples. There is just so much color to this culture, and every street offers something new to see and cool to check out. I could get used to the city life...I think....but then again, ...I did really like Cava...ugh..such a decision!
....ok..I had started writing this in the morning before Evan woke up, and am now resuming writing. I just got back from another 2 hour walk w/ Evan in the stroller, and now I'm leaning more towards Cava. It was another stressful walk---hard to go 1/2 a block w/o hearing multiple car honks, super loud moped motors, and having at least 2-3 cars blow by you even though you are in the crosswalk w/ a stroller. So, the quiet, more pedestrian friendly town of Cava, may be a better bet, given that we have Evan. I have also had a mild sore throat for about a week,and am starting to wonder if it is from the smog/fumes that I'm inhaling on my walks? If that is the case, it makes me a bit worried about Evan, and therefore, another good reason to check out Cava.

2-To push or to pull?
Josh and I went to dinner last night at a little Ristorante a few blocks from the hotel. I had checked out its menu earlier in the day, and since it had lasagna on the menu, I wanted to try it. Surprisingly, in Naples, I hardly ever see lasagna on the menu..that must be more of a Northern Italian specialty. Anyways, so we went to this place around 8:30 pm. We were the only ones in the restaurant. What the heck..its not like it was 6pm, and we were the obvious Americans, going to eat dinner so early. No, it was 8:30pm, and we were the only ones in the place. Anyhow, we ordered our dinner, both getting the same thing--Bruschetta, Insalada Mista, Lasagna Napolitana, and Prosecco..actually, Josh ordered a Bierra, but as often happens, that part of the order was forgotten about, so Josh just enjoyed his Prosecco instead. Sometimes you might think they totally forgot your drink, or your entree, or to bring you the check you requested, but they didn't, they just aren't in a rush, so they just bring you things at their own pace, which is kind of nice once you get used to it. I'm still getting used to it, but the relaxed pace is good for me I think:) Anyways, so we enjoyed our dinner..and BTW..Lasagna Napolitana, is more like ziti...we are learning the Naples has its own way of doing a lot of things. (i.e I got what I thought was like a gyro the other day, but it had frenchfries and ketchup stuffed in it (kind of like Primanti sandwiches in Pittsburgh, and Josh got a panini the other day that he thought just has prosciutto and cheese in it, but some bacon and egg was thrown in there too..interesting). Ok, I digress, so we finished our dinner, pleasantly satisfied, but not 'roll me out the door, I can't believe I ate all that' stuffed, and I decided that I wanted to get some gelato for the walk home. We decided to stop at the same gelateria that I had gone to the night before, where I had found my combo of chocolate, chocolate chip (stracciatella) and tirimisu flavors delicious:) So, we got to the door, and despite the lights being on inside, as hard as I yanked on the door, it wasn't budging. So, we tried the side door, same story! We assumed they were closed, until I looked in and saw the shopkeeper laughing at me, and demonstrating how to "push" a door...ahh...push(spingere) vs. pull(tirare). Those were my italian words to learn for the day. I've since noticed those words written on most publicly used doors..i.e at the market, hotel etc..so I have constant reminders of those new vocab words:) The good news is, evenutally, we got into the Gelateria, and I got the gelato that I had worked so hard for:)
3-Carbs or no carbs?
ha--that ones easy. In Italy, no or low carb is just not an option. I have been craving non-bread type menu items, but they are hard to find around here. Am also trying to find things I can eat w/ one hand while pushing the stroller, and so far, a cone filled w/ gelato seems to be the best option. I mean, I truly am trying to find other, healthier things to eat on the go, but in the meantime, gelatos will have to do.