![]() Wow on a lot of fronts!!! It is the end of July, and the temperatures continue to soar here, but that is nothing new. It hovers between 98 – 102 F (38 – 40 C). It is coming up on my first month back in Rome, this time to stay, but sometimes I wonder with the bureaucracy that is Italy. Rosa and brought in the paperwork back in April regarding our marriage status and when she went in yesterday, 3 months later, to find out if anything had been done, as this relates to my getting permanent residency here in Italy, saving hundreds of euros in import fees of my stuff etc., they had done nothing and the papers continue to sit in a pile collecting dust with the bureaucrats, saying they have up to 6 months to deal with this. In the meantime, I need documentation to stay beyond the 90 days showing I am allowed to stay here. She even was told by some non – natives, awaiting their immigration status, to speak Italian at the city hall when she started speaking English to the bureaucrats. I think the American in me sometimes rubs off on her. I am surprised she didn’t go off on them in Italian saying some choice words. I am glad I was not there. I would have. I was here opening doors for the workers, working on our new home, or gutting it, so that everything new can be done and something to look forward to, as well. Oh, and we flew to Catania to attend the wedding of one of Rosa’s friends, where we spent the weekend. I am not saying that Italian bureaucracy is slow. It is and everyone knows it, but I must deal with it and honestly, it is hard sometimes. I have said in the past that I have gotten used to the slower pace of life and that is true, and I understand, although sometimes begrudgingly, how painfully slow the wheels of government work here. I accept that as I love my wife and I am here to be with her. I have been assured by several bureaucrats, the state police, and others in the system that if the paperwork is in process, and I have receipts to prove it, then I will be fine. That is not totally reassuring, given that nothing has been done in three months to register our marriage here, but it seems if they can’t get paperwork done, how can they find me, but since I had to register with the state police, have a fiscal code which is similar to the social security number in the US, they can find me if they want. Seems that this is very one sided and I am at their mercy if they want. Come October 2, unless the wheels are turning, and they are, but slower than a snail’s pace, I feel like I will be looking behind my back. I have faith that everything will fall into place and Rosa who is doing everything she can in this regard, and I have so much to do beyond her guiding and library and my travel planning and potential teaching and August starts tomorrow where slow becomes almost stop here in Italy and we are supposed to move into the new place on October 5, supposedly. Okay, enough of the negatives here as I need to keep a balance. The past week’s highlight was flying to Catania for Rosa’s friend’s wedding outside Catania. It also marked the first time I have driven since I left the states. It was weird, and everything worked out well, but when you are not used to driving, it is tiring, especially when the rules of the road are different. Actually, they are not really different, just the natives, go by their own rules, again something I will have to get used to again when I get my vehicle back later this year. The church ceremony was very nice and very traditional. I remember going with Rosa last year to another wedding and it was substantially shorter. This one was apparently much more traditional and much longer. Of course, I understood bits and pieces as in any wedding. The setting of the church, a block from the sea, was beautiful and the venue in an agritourismo for the reception at the base, and far enough away from Mt. Etna, which did not have any action while we were there. Good thing I suppose. We did, given the time in Sicily get to go to Messina, a place that neither Rosa or I had been to and found it interesting that when I said I had been to Taormina which is between Catania and Messina, she said, no, it is south of Catania. Both are north of Catania for the record. My wife’s geography prowess was lacking, which I found interesting as we passed Taormina on the way to Messina. We had a bit of a laugh about that. In any case, for me, the reason for going to Messina was to see the place where two armies met in the liberation of Sicily. Patton’s army and Montgomery’s army. As it turns out, Patton’s army reached Messina first and then Montgomery. It was originally supposed to be that Patton was to cover Montgomery’s flank as his army moved up the east coast of Sicily and Patton would come from the west. In the end, Patton, the commander he was and the competitor he was, had to get to Messina before Montgomery and although I have read his biography, seen the movie, and read other accounts, I read that Montgomery was not there in Messina, but one of his underlings to be received by Patton and his army who go their first. In the end, we took a tourist train around the city to get a feel for what Messina is and I am glad we did, but once again, there was no acknowledgement of this major account in history anywhere we were in Messina. As with no acknowledgement of Operation Husky on the island, simply remnants of the beaches now littered with hotels, which was the invasion of Sicily, there was nothing we could find to give the history of the two armies meeting up. All we saw was a statue to the fascist heroes who died in front of the city hall. As we had a very late scheduled flight back to Rome on Sunday, the day after the wedding, which became later and later with delays upon delays upon delays upon delays upon delays at Catania airport on Sunday, we decided to that a drive to Syracusa would be good, and it was. I had been there before, but simply to see the British cemetery on the outskirts, but that was it. We hired a tuk tuk to take us around and we had a nice overview of the city. Of course, I get stressed on travel days, so even though we were less than an hour away from the airport, and being the busiest travel weekend in Italy, even being a Sunday, I wanted to give enough time. In any case, we then had beyond enough time with all the delays, but we did not know. We could have spent more time in Syracusa and I hope to get back again. In fact, a holiday to just relax would be good and I am sure it will happen. In the end, we returned very late, stayed at the Hilton Airport hotel, and drove back on Monday, to get back to real life. August starts tomorrow and I am looking forward to simply living life and getting into some sort of routine. Yes, I am home, but the first month here has been hectic, exciting, stressful and all the emotions that come from changes. It is not culture shock, as I have been here before and I can find what I need. It is just a reset and with the world here in Italy, in August, if not shutting down, slowing to a crawl and Rosa, and not having anything scheduled except everyday life, it will be nice. She has her world and I have my world and we have our world together and that is what I want to get back to and I think that is what she wants also. I have some appointments in August and clients will be here in August and Rosa is guiding them on one of the days. Otherwise, we can be husband and wife and do what we do best, love and respect each other and leave the outside world outside and our world together separate as when September and October come, the craziness will start again, so it will be nice to have a reset of sorts in August with the usual interruptions that life brings all of us. I hope you have enjoyed my offerings each week and appreciate that you have read my blog posts and look forward to continuing with sharing. As always, thank you so much for your support of Rosa’s and my crazy little world here in Rome now that they have been merged into one. We truly appreciate your support. Stay safe, healthy, and most importantly happy, and as always, your shared comments and thoughts are most welcome!!!
Share the knowledge
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Wandering PuffinWeathering the Storm with the Wandering Puffin Archives
February 2025
Categories |