Lucca, Italy
(Copied from my journal–stay tuned for pictures coming soon!)
I write from a gelato shop in Lucca where a smokin’ hot waiter just served me four different flavors of gelato in a fancy glass dish with a cookie wafer garnish. I got in good with the waiter because they had the wrong world cup game sign on their TV and I correct them. The waiter tried for my phone number, then said he would follow me to Pisa (where I’m staying) and then Florence. Oh, Italian men… 
I have to say, it is rather gratifying that I’m snarfing a huge glass of ice cream in front of him and that’s considered attractive. And yesterday I was talking to Emanuele about eating pastries and gaining weight in Spain. I bemoaned the fact that I was heavier now than I was in the U.S. He replied, “But you’re so tiny now! You were too small before, then.” In the U.S. you’re just supposed to get skinnier and skinnier, but in Italy it seems they like women with curves. Why do I live in the U.S. again?
I have to say, I’m getting a little crush on Italy. Ok, a big crush. I’ve always loved it from a distance, but now that we’ve been introduced I’m totally enamored. Where else are you supposed to eat gelato every day when it’s hot? Where else does a waiter ask for your phone number two seconds after you ask for a huge order of ice-cream? (I’m noticing a lot of my love stems from ice cream–maybe I’m just on a constant sugar high here…) But it’s also beautiful. The colors of the buildings–rust, orange, green, yellow, sometimes blue thrown in for a little variety. The narrow streets, the cathedrals around every corner with perfect stairs to sit and rest and watch the world go by. The musical cadence of the Italian language rings constantly in my ears. Last night on the steps of the university I listened to a guy complaining about his adviser or something, but because it was in Italian his griping sounded like a song. The sounds tickle my ears because they’re so similar to Spanish yet not–it’s like I’m on the brink of understanding, right on the edge, but it keeps eluding me. I think some summer I’m just going to come live here and figure it out.
Ok, I’m going to watch Brazil vs. Holland. I’ve been sitting at this cafe for quite a while but hopefully they’ll let me stay a little longer…
