Sua Amico Gabriel

Evan loves having another baby around, and he and Gabriel have become fast friends, as have Gabriel's mom, Rosa, and I.

Carnevale

When Rosa and I went out last week, she introduced me to "chiacchiere", a special sweet that we had at a nearby bar/ coffee shop. "Chiacchiere" is also the Italian verb to 'chit chat', but as a pastry, it is eaten mainly as part of Carnevale which is celebrated for 4 weeks, and begins 60 days before Easter. Chiacchiere look kind of like lasagna noodle shaped fried dough, covered in powdered sugar, and served w/ some liquid chocolate that you can dunk it in. I had one bite and Rosa said, "oh..you made a mess!". I looked down, and my black coat was covered in powdered sugar, as were my black shoes. Mamma Mia...you can't take me anywhere!ha! Anyhow, while Josh and I were out walking this weekend, we came upon Piazza Plebiscito and noticed kids running everywhere, shooting off silly string, and throwing tons of confetti. Then, shopping yesterday, I saw huge bags of confetti being sold at all the stores. I checked in with Rosa to learn more and she said that for Carnevale,for 4 weeks, especially during the weekends, you can see kids dressed up in costumes, throwing confetti (coriandoli) in the street and spraying white silly string..they can even spray it on you as you walk by minding your own business. Rosa also informed me that "the kids make jokes (some not nice at all), but you can not protest!" Ok..if I can't protest, can I at least throw a zinger of a joke their way?ha!

Cosa fai questa weekend?

This weekend was sunny and mild, and we had a fun time just strolling the city, making our typical Saturday shopping trip, and relaxing together.

On Saturday, we decided to venture to a new mall, called Campania, that we had heard was nicer than the other one we had been driving to when we needed to shop for diapers, groceries etc. Only about 25 minutes away, we found the mall no problem. The first thing you do at the mall, is get your sideways driving shopping cart from the parking lot. It costs one euro, which you slide in a slot attached to the 'handle bar', and that will release it from the other carts it is chained to. My friend Janine told me a trick though. Instead of a Euro, insert a quarter, and that will also cause it to release, and when you return your cart, the quarter gets pushed back out of the slot. Since we will never spend the quarter in Italy, it's convenient to just keep it in my wallet, so i'll never be without the proper fitting coin whenever I go to the mall. Yeah..that was a good time Janine!

At the mall, we found most of the things we needed (except index cards for me to use for flash cards to study--according to my friend Rosa, they don't sell those here), including a gelato cone w/ whipped cream on top:) Can't go without the whipped cream on top of an icecream cone..love it! After the mall, we had planned to check out some Roman ruins that are in our tour book, but since they were an hour away, we decided to save that excursion for another day.

On Sunday, the sun was shining and everyone was out and about enjoying the great weather. Josh had to do some work from the hotel room, so I decided to finally check out Castel dell'Ovo which is across from the hotel. The site of the Castel has quite a history, initially existing as part of a 5th century estate of a General, then an order of monks founded a monestary there, and then the Normans built the first Castel at the site. Succeeding dynasties modified it after that, and it acheived its present form in the 16th century. Legend has it that its name derives from a magic egg (uovo)hidden inside and placed there by a Roman poet named Virgil. The Castel is now open for free to the public to stroll through and is also used for cultural events. While I walked through it, with Evan in the Baby Bjorn, (or mucipial as Neopolitans call it) there were a bunch of temporary art galleries set up in several of the rooms of the Castel, so it was fun to not only take in the amazing views from various windows throughout the Castel, but also wander amongst some original art--from classic to very modern (and strange) pieces. You definitely get a sense of old history as you pass through the walkways of the castle, and I was so glad to finally explore it.

Later on Sunday we walked to a late lunch to check out Donna Marguerita, a restaurant that had been recommended to me. It was about a mile walk, and it was so peaceful. Sundays are the quietest day on the streets, with stores all closed, the locals usually stay at home and prepare and indulge in huge Sunday dinners. If only every day was quiet like that!

Pictures (bottom to top): Evan and I enjoying the sunny day on our hotel roof terrace; Walking up into the Castel dell'Ovo, Inside the Castel--huge archways; Vesuvius from castel window, our hotel (farthest on the right) from the barred window of the Castel.

Mia amica Italiana

On Friday I had a great day hanging out with my Italian friend, Rosa, and her 6 month old baby boy, Gabriel. Rosa and I met through the Yahoo Group, "Naples Moms", and after emailing while I was still in Seattle, and then chatting on the phone once we got to Napoli, she and I finally connected in person yesterday. It was a great visit, and so fun to have a new Italian friend. Evan also got a kick out of having another bambino around, and he stared at Gabriel a lot while flashing him a wide grin every once in a while. It was so cute.

Rosa and I spent about 5 hours hanging out, and as we walked and chatted, she answered quite a few of my questions, and gave me some great insight on life in Napoli. Some of the things I learned or we discussed:

-Every morning, as I walk along the water, I wonder what all the padlocks are for that are hanging from the railing along the sidewalk that lines the waterfront of the Bay of Naples. There are tons of them and I wondered if they were for crab pots..but where are the pots? For boats...but there aren't tons of boats lined up there? For bikes...but hardly anyone is brave enough to ride a bike around here..!?, so what are they for? Rosa explained that there is a famous movie where the main characters write their names on a padlock as a symbol of their unending love and locked hearts. Now, the people in Naples "are just copying the movie" as Rosa said, and so there are hundreds of locks. Today on my walk, for the first time, I noticed that there are names on all of them. I guess Josh and I will have to add one soon:)

-Rosa's never heard of Starbucks! I love that! And, that adds validity to the claim I had heard that Italy has some sort of ban on Starbucks. When I told Rosa what my typical Starbucks order was "Venti, decaf, non-fat, extra-hot, no foam, vanilla latte", she was amazed by all the customization we can do. She was surprised that we could pick the type of milk and the flavor etc. After I told her how large a Venti cup is, she said, "No wonder you like to have 2 cappuccinos, you are used to your big Starbucks!"

-After lunch, Rosa and I walked around the city a bit more and then I suggested we stop for some Cappuccinos. She said, "ahhh..Italians never have Cappucinos in the afternoon, just in the morning, and usually,just one". I told her it looks like I'll be standing out as an American again!

-There is no return policy on purchased goods in Naples. If you buy something, that's it, you can't return it. I said, so if you buy a shirt, and it doesn't fit, you can't return it even if it has the tags on it. She said..."No way...they would laugh at you." I told her about Costco and Nordstrom's generous return policy and she couldn't believe it. She said she would bankrupt them because she'd do all her shopping there and then return things when she got sick of them. She said she would take total advantage of it. I told her some people do, but for the most part, we are used to being able to return things, so it's not that abused. She said the exception here is shopping at Ikea since they allow things to be returned. She said, it's so nice to shop at Ikea because "you don't worry, you just buy what you like, and if you change your mind, no worry, just return it. It is so nice at Ikea!"

-She said Naples recently passed a law about making the city more wheelchair accessible. We were talking about how difficult it is w/ strollers and I said I can't imagine what people in wheelchairs do. She said there are just parts of the city they can't go to at all, because even with help, there are too many stairs connecting some areas to others, and most shops, restaurants, public transportation etc, don't have wheelchair accommodations.

-There is a no smoking rule for all shops and restaurants are supposed to have smoking/non smoking sections. The problem is, it isn't much enforced. When I picked up my laundry last week, the 2 owners and their friend were all chain smoking amidst the clean clothes. Nothing like having your clothes all reek of smoke after paying to have them cleaned.

-I said, why do you think Italians are so much thinner than Americans? She said when she was in the states for a bit, she couldn't believe how much Americans snack. She said, there will be fat people eating chips and nuts and tons of soda. She also said, "You drink milk with meals! Milk has all the nutrients and ingrediants to be it's own meal, and you drink it to go with your meal. That is part of the overweight problem."

-Rosa was dressed so stylish for our visit, but she downplayed it,and felt like she was just dressed totally comfortably. She had on stylish boots, wool,tailored pants, a nice sweater, gorgeous long coat, and a fur hat. I told her I hope to expand my wardrobe and become more fashionable while here, but until then, it's jeans and sneakers for me...especially when out walking the city.

-Employment--Rosa said many companies totally take advantage of their employees because the unemployment rate is high, and bosses figure if their employee quits due to bad conditions, there are hundreds of other people who would love the job. She used to work at a hotel, and she said that it was normal for her to have to work an extra day a week with no pay, or even though her shift was supposed to end at 4, she might be asked to stay until 9--all for no pay. If you complain, the boss will just say, too bad..if you don't want to do it, someone else will gladly take your job. She is glad that she was able to leave after her 2nd baby. In Italy, you get 6 months of 100% paid maternity leave from the government--a generous benefit, but Rosa said taxes are so high, it's just good to get some of what you pay in, back.

There were lots of other things we talked about, learned from each other, and shared, and we are looking forward to hanging out some more soon. She wants to have us over her apartment for dinner, and she said once we get settled into an apartment, she'll come over to show me how to cook Eggplant parmigiana (since that has been a recent favorite at restaurants) and tiramisu. Yum!

No news is good news, we hope!

We have started the negotiations process with the landlord of an apartment that we hope to get in Posillipo. I've been dying of suspense, so I called our Realtor today who said that the landlord's lawyers are currently reviewing the corporate lease document that we would be proposing to use. Our Realtor said he had hoped to hear from the landlord tomorrow, but "since we are in Napoli", he'll give it until mid next week, since things do take a lot longer here. In his opinion, "no news is good news", and being an optimist, he thinks we will get the place, but he's basing that solely on the fact that he is an optimist, not on anything he heard from the landlord or legal team. I'm also an optimist, so I'm hopeful we'll get it too! I'll definitely keep you posted, and would love all the luck and prayers you send our way so that we can hopefully soon be settled in this apartment and out of the hotel. Hard to believe we have been living in a hotel since the day before Thanksgiving, and with a newborn:) Calgon, take me away! ha!

I've attached some pictures of maps (and one of the view looking towards Posillipo) to give you an idea of where we currently are, and the different neighborhoods, including Posillipo, where we hope to be.

If you click on the map that is the 2nd to the bottom, it will enlarge. Our hotel is on Via Partenope in San Lucia neighborhood. I do my powerwalks through San Lucia, to Chiaia, and in the park between via Francesco Carriocciolo and Riviera di Chiaia. I sometimes also walk up to Via Posillipo, but the park is quieter. To get to the apartment we want, you have to go all the way up Via Posillipo, and then head down towards the water. Hopefully, we'll get settled into a new place soon, so that you can come and visit and we can give you a tour in person, vs. virtually:)

Planes, trains and automobiles..

Translates to Mopeds, busses, trains and funiculars in Napoli! I had my first experience with Napoli public transportation yesterday when my friends Jordan and Jen met Evan and I and showed us how to use the funicular. With all the hills in the area, funicular railways are considered a charming necessity. The most accessible and important ones in Naples are the ones that take you from the historic centre of the city up to the Vomero neighborhood--a bustling neighborhood with incredible views, lots of shopping, and of course, a ton of traffic. I learned that there used to be a funicular that went up to Vesuvius. It is now defunct, but that one inspired the song "Funicoli, Funicula"...I haven't heard of it, but in case you have, now you know where the inspiration came from.

So, yesterday, we took the funicular. You can buy tickets at the station, but like the bus tickets here, you can also buy tickets at the Tabaccaio shops. Tickets are1.10 Euro, and are good for 90 minutes on any bus/funicular or train. We got our tickets and ,thankfully, Jordan and Jen were there to help me navigate some of the stairs in the station. Naples is hardly wheelchair friendly, and the lack of ramps and elevators not only poses a hardship for people in wheelchairs, but also for moms with stollers. I have bruises on my shins from having to constantly use my shins as levers or props to maneuver Evan in his stroller up and down steps. (Thankfully tall boots are in fashion here, or those ugly black and blues would be fully exposed!).

Once on the funicular, we had 3 stops until we exited at the top of the hill in Vomero. We decided to take a stroll through Villa la Floridiana park, and then go for lunch. Villa la Floridiana has been a public park since the 1920s, but originally, it was a gift and love token to Lucia Migliaccio, Duchess of Floridia, from her husband, Ferdinand I. So, what started as a romantic gift to a duchess, is now a park that offers some of the best views of Naples and the bay (and considered one of the top 10 romantic spots in Napoli). There are lots of trails, gardens, a turtle pond, and the main building on the grounds is now a museum filled with some remarkable treasures I have yet to check out. That will have to be what I do on my next funicular ride to the top.

Tummy Time!

All the baby books say that I'm supposed to be giving Evan tummy time, but with the lack of carpeting in the hotel, I have to admit, that I've been slacking on that. I did lay down some blankets this week for him though, and when he came up from his time on his tummy, he all of a sudden had a new hair part. I always comb his hair to the side, but maybe he's trying to tell me that he prefers a middle part..just like his Uncle Tom had throughout highschool:) ha!