22 April 2010
sicilia
ok i am a lazy blogger, i admit it. but i have been blogging in my head for 9 months now, i think of all the internal thoughts i have had that i should have written down, and to be honest it just makes me feel anxious. so...... here i am. i will stick to this now. although no promises, that seems to be the mistake i keep making.
i am not going to say much about the past 9 months except write a brief list of the places that i have been to, and maybe if i can remember things that have happened in these places i will write about it in the future, but probably not. the future starts now, here.. but first, the list:
from my last post - hmmmm...
The south part of USA
The east coast of USA
The middle of USA
The west coast of USA
hmmm then back to australia for 4 months, then another US tour, but this time a lot more fun...we played in:
USA - LA, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, New York, New Orleans (a place where my soul found peace), Greenville ( North Carolina), Charleston (South Carolina - a perfect place in my humble opinion), Atlanta
then..... France - Paris, Lyon, Marseilles, Montpellier
then... Berlin.. we spent 8 glorious days here with beautiful friends - organising, walking, sleeping, drinking and talking.
we also went to krakow poland for 3 days for my birthday..
ok i nearly forgot we then spent a week in brussels....ah!
which brings me to the present. sicily. or as the locals say, Sicilia, only the c is like a "ch" and it sounds so beautiful when a local proudly corrects you. european and mediterranean cliches aside, i don't care if a lot of people find this place amazing, i find it amazing for myself, and for my own reasons. at the moment i can put these reasons in a very concise list for you:
1. people are laid back.
2. the food is beyond fantastic - local, fresh and quality ingrediants, simple but serious flavours, a good use of homemade olive oil.
3. people are always late (as am i).
4. people take the piss out of each other, just like in australia. i often get in trouble for this in other places, but in sicily it is nearly me that gets offended. i love this.
5. people drink a lot of coffee. it's everywhere, cheap and very good.
6. people are passionate.
7. when people speak it sounds like they are either shouting or singing.
8. people get to work when they want to (as do i, though in australia i am regularly repramanded for it).
9. and mostly for my own vain reasons, men and women in sicily generally like a full figured woman.
this is my list for now, i am sure i will find more reasons and probably if i spent longer here i would also have a list of why i don't like sicily, but for now this is how i feel.
i had the strangest experience 2 days ago. for 3 years i have wanted to climb up mt etna, the spectacular and active volcano dominating the landscape of eastern sicily. i ended up going alone for various reasons. i have dreamt of seeing this volcano ever since a friend told me about it briefly, and in that exact conversation i made up my mind that i would visit sicily. anyway i twiste my ankle on the way to the bus station before i even got to the volcano. i thought it was minor so i stupidly carried on. i took the local bus, followed by the regional bus, the cable car and the jeep up an area close to the base of the summit. and then i kept walking, foolishly, until i got so far up that to come down would make it very hard on my ankle - navigating a combination of small lava rocks, snow, ice and dirt. it was also very steep. so my mildly sprained ankle became inflamed and by the time i made it back to the jeep i was in severe pain. by the time the jeep dropped us off at the cable car i could not even walk, i had to humbly hop to the cable car. the guy operating it must have signalled to his co-worker at the bottom, as when i arrived at the base they stopped the whole cable car so that i could literally hop off. seeing i was in distress, and in severe physical pain, two men had to carry me to the bus, neither of them speaking a word of english. i was an intense mixture of humiliation, embaressment, pain and emotional distress by this point. i cried to myself while i waited 30 minutes on the bus alone. by the time the bus made it back to the town i'm staying in (catania), i was a wreck. i had spent one and a half hours in extreme physical pain, all alone, and didn't know what to do at this point. i tried texting the guy i was staying with to get tammy to call me but he didn't know where she was. i don't have any insurance so i didn't even know if i could go to the hospital...by the time we got to catania i didn't care though, i was in such agonising pain that i decided just to go anyway. at the very same time the bus stopped, we were told to all get off quickly, tammy called, i started crying, my bag broke and everyone gathered around me realising i was in pain. they carried me off the bus and pulled up a chair outside a pharmacy on the edge of a huge piazza right by the main train station. 3 sicilian men were around me as well as an english speaking woman.... it felt like a very awful nightmare, but i was so consumed by the pain and the intensity of the situation that it felt very real. or not. to this moment i can't tell. i felt like a little baby, wanting to curl up, cry and call for my mother to save me. the english speaking woman turned out to be from rome, but had lived in london for 8 years, and could speak perfect english and italian, and so acted as my translater. she called an ambulance for me, and waited with me, right by my side, for one and a half hours for the ambulance to come. she then came with me to the hospital, telling the paramedics what was going on with me. despite the pain, it was actually a very pleasant ride, and by the end of it we were all exchanging personal details and planning to stay in touch.
once we reached the hospital i was put on the waiting list of 25 people, so i waited in more pain for nearly 3 hours, while i was told i couldn't have any medication for the pain as the doctor needed to assess me "undrugged". i could not even explain what it was like to be in such pain for a prolonged period of time, other than it felt very, very long, and i knew there was nothing i could do about it.
i was kept company by a sweet girl who could speak only a few words of english, and despite her age of 13, was very mature for her own age, asking thoughtful questions and telling me about her life in a mixture of italian, bad english and hand signals. she kept me company. she went and got me a peach tea..
by the time tammy and marko (we are staying with him) arrived, i was so exhausted that i was ok. the pain had not subsided but i was very relieved to have my people beside me. they warmly tended to my needs, looked after my possessions, and hassled the doctors about when they would see me. it was truly beautiful.
by the time i was seen i was given an injection of god knows what, which did nothing, then wheeled to the x-ray room where i was treated like an animal, they grabbed my leg without any thought, moving it around, while i was screaming with pain, the technician didn't even make eye contact with me. well.. once the x-rays came back it showed luckily that there was no breaks or tears, and that it was the inflammation that was causing the pain. he added that i was lucky nothing happened, as it clearly came very close. they still wouldn't give me anything for the pain, and instead sent me home with a bandaged foot and a prescription for anti inflammatories. i spent that night tossing and turning with the pain, i couldn't lie still without the constant sting of pain, as well as the mosquitos buzzing and biting above my head.
i am ok now, only 2 days later. i don't even know why i had to share this story, other than i fet like i needed to get it off my chest. i'm sure many people go through similar situations like this every day, but for me it was intense, and i guess that is the point of a blog.
i have spent the last 2 days hoppng around the apartment in catania, and even took the stupid but worthwhile risk of going on the back of a motorcyle to go out for lunch with our friends, to an incredible local family run eatery (it's not a restaurant, they have made every effort to tell me!). i ate the most beautiful food you could imagine for a sicilian restaurant, really for me right now, the best in the world, it is so good i have no cravings or wants for any other food but this in my mind right now, which is not normally the case. barbequed eggplant marinated in olive oil, garlic, chilli and parsley ( a sicilian classic dish), chickpea soup in a clear broth (so simple but so umbelievable in flavour), a simple tomato pasta, cauliflower cooked in vinegar and olive oil (i really had no idea cauliflower could taste this good), olives, cheese, bread that was as rich as cake, and a special sicilian lunch time workers drink of wine mixed with lemonade.
this delicious lunch was followed by another glorious espresso in a typical bar, and then another beautiful bicycle ride back home. riding on the back of a motorbike in sicily, especially when the driver is a local, is one of the most harmonious, thrilling, natural experiences i have had in recent times. i can't explain it properly in words, i just feel so happy when i am on that seat, we are dodging cars, making sharp turns, watching the sicilian vegetable stands pass by in the blink of an eye, without a care in the world, is a truly free feeling. it's as if time stands still.
before i forget last night we were treated to another local specialty - a simple entree of chargrilled artichokes stuffed with an intense mixture of parsley, garlic and chilli. wrapped in foil and brought to the apartment by marko and silva's friend, andrea. sucking on those charred leaves for the smallest amount of tasty flesh, piece by piece, and slowly making your way to the heart as the flavour intensifies, and to be rewarded with the parsley/chilli/garlic combination makes for a truly mouth watering appetiser experience. hopefully i will have these again before i leave, if not when i come back.
ok i am going to leave this for now, all i really wanted to say is that my heart is engaged in this island, and i feel a peace in my mind and spirit i have not felt for a long time. of course it is easy to feel this good while traveling, but as i have been traveling so much lately, it has become increasingly harder to find rest and peace, and in these moments where i do feel it, i try to tap into it further to see where it can take me. right now i am still figuring this out. i am allowing myself to be swept away by the dreaminess and romanticism of this beautiful place, and only hope that i evolve from these thoughts. we will see.
i am not going to say much about the past 9 months except write a brief list of the places that i have been to, and maybe if i can remember things that have happened in these places i will write about it in the future, but probably not. the future starts now, here.. but first, the list:
from my last post - hmmmm...
The south part of USA
The east coast of USA
The middle of USA
The west coast of USA
hmmm then back to australia for 4 months, then another US tour, but this time a lot more fun...we played in:
USA - LA, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, New York, New Orleans (a place where my soul found peace), Greenville ( North Carolina), Charleston (South Carolina - a perfect place in my humble opinion), Atlanta
then..... France - Paris, Lyon, Marseilles, Montpellier
then... Berlin.. we spent 8 glorious days here with beautiful friends - organising, walking, sleeping, drinking and talking.
we also went to krakow poland for 3 days for my birthday..
ok i nearly forgot we then spent a week in brussels....ah!
which brings me to the present. sicily. or as the locals say, Sicilia, only the c is like a "ch" and it sounds so beautiful when a local proudly corrects you. european and mediterranean cliches aside, i don't care if a lot of people find this place amazing, i find it amazing for myself, and for my own reasons. at the moment i can put these reasons in a very concise list for you:
1. people are laid back.
2. the food is beyond fantastic - local, fresh and quality ingrediants, simple but serious flavours, a good use of homemade olive oil.
3. people are always late (as am i).
4. people take the piss out of each other, just like in australia. i often get in trouble for this in other places, but in sicily it is nearly me that gets offended. i love this.
5. people drink a lot of coffee. it's everywhere, cheap and very good.
6. people are passionate.
7. when people speak it sounds like they are either shouting or singing.
8. people get to work when they want to (as do i, though in australia i am regularly repramanded for it).
9. and mostly for my own vain reasons, men and women in sicily generally like a full figured woman.
this is my list for now, i am sure i will find more reasons and probably if i spent longer here i would also have a list of why i don't like sicily, but for now this is how i feel.
i had the strangest experience 2 days ago. for 3 years i have wanted to climb up mt etna, the spectacular and active volcano dominating the landscape of eastern sicily. i ended up going alone for various reasons. i have dreamt of seeing this volcano ever since a friend told me about it briefly, and in that exact conversation i made up my mind that i would visit sicily. anyway i twiste my ankle on the way to the bus station before i even got to the volcano. i thought it was minor so i stupidly carried on. i took the local bus, followed by the regional bus, the cable car and the jeep up an area close to the base of the summit. and then i kept walking, foolishly, until i got so far up that to come down would make it very hard on my ankle - navigating a combination of small lava rocks, snow, ice and dirt. it was also very steep. so my mildly sprained ankle became inflamed and by the time i made it back to the jeep i was in severe pain. by the time the jeep dropped us off at the cable car i could not even walk, i had to humbly hop to the cable car. the guy operating it must have signalled to his co-worker at the bottom, as when i arrived at the base they stopped the whole cable car so that i could literally hop off. seeing i was in distress, and in severe physical pain, two men had to carry me to the bus, neither of them speaking a word of english. i was an intense mixture of humiliation, embaressment, pain and emotional distress by this point. i cried to myself while i waited 30 minutes on the bus alone. by the time the bus made it back to the town i'm staying in (catania), i was a wreck. i had spent one and a half hours in extreme physical pain, all alone, and didn't know what to do at this point. i tried texting the guy i was staying with to get tammy to call me but he didn't know where she was. i don't have any insurance so i didn't even know if i could go to the hospital...by the time we got to catania i didn't care though, i was in such agonising pain that i decided just to go anyway. at the very same time the bus stopped, we were told to all get off quickly, tammy called, i started crying, my bag broke and everyone gathered around me realising i was in pain. they carried me off the bus and pulled up a chair outside a pharmacy on the edge of a huge piazza right by the main train station. 3 sicilian men were around me as well as an english speaking woman.... it felt like a very awful nightmare, but i was so consumed by the pain and the intensity of the situation that it felt very real. or not. to this moment i can't tell. i felt like a little baby, wanting to curl up, cry and call for my mother to save me. the english speaking woman turned out to be from rome, but had lived in london for 8 years, and could speak perfect english and italian, and so acted as my translater. she called an ambulance for me, and waited with me, right by my side, for one and a half hours for the ambulance to come. she then came with me to the hospital, telling the paramedics what was going on with me. despite the pain, it was actually a very pleasant ride, and by the end of it we were all exchanging personal details and planning to stay in touch.
once we reached the hospital i was put on the waiting list of 25 people, so i waited in more pain for nearly 3 hours, while i was told i couldn't have any medication for the pain as the doctor needed to assess me "undrugged". i could not even explain what it was like to be in such pain for a prolonged period of time, other than it felt very, very long, and i knew there was nothing i could do about it.
i was kept company by a sweet girl who could speak only a few words of english, and despite her age of 13, was very mature for her own age, asking thoughtful questions and telling me about her life in a mixture of italian, bad english and hand signals. she kept me company. she went and got me a peach tea..
by the time tammy and marko (we are staying with him) arrived, i was so exhausted that i was ok. the pain had not subsided but i was very relieved to have my people beside me. they warmly tended to my needs, looked after my possessions, and hassled the doctors about when they would see me. it was truly beautiful.
by the time i was seen i was given an injection of god knows what, which did nothing, then wheeled to the x-ray room where i was treated like an animal, they grabbed my leg without any thought, moving it around, while i was screaming with pain, the technician didn't even make eye contact with me. well.. once the x-rays came back it showed luckily that there was no breaks or tears, and that it was the inflammation that was causing the pain. he added that i was lucky nothing happened, as it clearly came very close. they still wouldn't give me anything for the pain, and instead sent me home with a bandaged foot and a prescription for anti inflammatories. i spent that night tossing and turning with the pain, i couldn't lie still without the constant sting of pain, as well as the mosquitos buzzing and biting above my head.
i am ok now, only 2 days later. i don't even know why i had to share this story, other than i fet like i needed to get it off my chest. i'm sure many people go through similar situations like this every day, but for me it was intense, and i guess that is the point of a blog.
i have spent the last 2 days hoppng around the apartment in catania, and even took the stupid but worthwhile risk of going on the back of a motorcyle to go out for lunch with our friends, to an incredible local family run eatery (it's not a restaurant, they have made every effort to tell me!). i ate the most beautiful food you could imagine for a sicilian restaurant, really for me right now, the best in the world, it is so good i have no cravings or wants for any other food but this in my mind right now, which is not normally the case. barbequed eggplant marinated in olive oil, garlic, chilli and parsley ( a sicilian classic dish), chickpea soup in a clear broth (so simple but so umbelievable in flavour), a simple tomato pasta, cauliflower cooked in vinegar and olive oil (i really had no idea cauliflower could taste this good), olives, cheese, bread that was as rich as cake, and a special sicilian lunch time workers drink of wine mixed with lemonade.
this delicious lunch was followed by another glorious espresso in a typical bar, and then another beautiful bicycle ride back home. riding on the back of a motorbike in sicily, especially when the driver is a local, is one of the most harmonious, thrilling, natural experiences i have had in recent times. i can't explain it properly in words, i just feel so happy when i am on that seat, we are dodging cars, making sharp turns, watching the sicilian vegetable stands pass by in the blink of an eye, without a care in the world, is a truly free feeling. it's as if time stands still.
before i forget last night we were treated to another local specialty - a simple entree of chargrilled artichokes stuffed with an intense mixture of parsley, garlic and chilli. wrapped in foil and brought to the apartment by marko and silva's friend, andrea. sucking on those charred leaves for the smallest amount of tasty flesh, piece by piece, and slowly making your way to the heart as the flavour intensifies, and to be rewarded with the parsley/chilli/garlic combination makes for a truly mouth watering appetiser experience. hopefully i will have these again before i leave, if not when i come back.
ok i am going to leave this for now, all i really wanted to say is that my heart is engaged in this island, and i feel a peace in my mind and spirit i have not felt for a long time. of course it is easy to feel this good while traveling, but as i have been traveling so much lately, it has become increasingly harder to find rest and peace, and in these moments where i do feel it, i try to tap into it further to see where it can take me. right now i am still figuring this out. i am allowing myself to be swept away by the dreaminess and romanticism of this beautiful place, and only hope that i evolve from these thoughts. we will see.
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