There I am - arrived in Milazzo, Sicilia, Italia via train! Then checked into the hotel with a sea-view (the Tyrrhenian Sea (yet another name I will learn to not only say but also spell before I leave here LOL - remember Aberystwyth? It's now about 18:00 - where can I get something to eat? I ask the very nice Italian woman at the reception desk. It's been a long day - train ride from 9:42 Napoli to 16:23 Milazzo. Ahhh...a restaurant just there she says - on "la spiaggia", and shakes her head as she looks at her watch - not open now.
Ahh, yes, how soon I forget..."mangiare per la sena" begins around 20:00 -- way past my usual eatting time for "la sena". Oh well, it is what it is! As I do not feel like walking into town (wherever that is).
Anywho, I can certainly amuse myself for an hour or so until the restaurant opens, especially since I have this cough and congested sinuses to keep me company.
So I walk into the restaurant sometime after 19:00. Large place overlooking "la spiaggia e la mare". Empty - but of course, it's 19:00. Yes, I am a tourist. Yes, I stand out. So what's new, you say? Anywho, not feeling so well, I am not up to speaking in Italian. Yet my comprehension is far better. So I manage to say I'm here for dinner. One man sends me out to the patio. Where the man there sends me back inside. LOL. So I sit inside and order. "Caponate al formaggio y orrechetti al fruitte de mare!" YUMMMMMM! Even with congested sinuses, these two dishes were delightful and tasty. And a huge portion as I was STUFFED!
As I wait for my order, I realize folks are not in a good mood. So I ask Source - please replace all of our etheric grids now. And as for me, let me be as fun as possible. As time went by, I noticed that the waiter was a bit nicer to me. Thank you Source. And then when they put on a movie - I asked in broken Italian and pantomine, to move outside because I did not want watch the movie. What followed was so comical. The waiter handed me my wine glass while he and another waiter lifted up my table and moved it out into the patio. LOL LOL. I got to sit outside after all.
So what's the coincidence you ask? Ok, ok...the waiter makes the usual small talk only it's in Italian. So I surprise myself that I'm able to have a conversation with him off & on as he walks past my table. And towards the end, I introduce myself.
Mi chiama Nina, et tu? Nino. Come e scrivi? N..I..N..O. I laugh at the coincidence. And tell him Nino. Maschile. Nina. Femminile. And point to each of us. He's somewhat amused, yet does not break a smile. Oh well, I was amused at the coincidence of it all. And the fact that I am remembering maschile and femminile for the Italian nouns.
And the coincidence with names continues...
So I'm walking to l'ufficio postale one day ... and thinking, I need to find something herbal for the last bits of my cough. I pass by this small shop and notice the word "erboristeria" and something tells me to go in. I did not make it to the l'ufficio postale because for the next hour or so, the lovely shop owner and I managed to "converse". She knowing no English. Me minimal Italian. Yet we did it - thank you Italian dictionary & intensive Italian class! Turns out her name is Pena rhymes with the Italian pronunciation of Nina. She's a naturapath. Also teaches yoga and is familiar with Reiki. So I show her how to use a pendalum.
From the erboristeria I move to my manicure appointment ... the manicurist knows a little English, so I end up managing to chat with her in Italian. Turns out her name is Lina. LOL LOL. Pena. Now Lina.
This is not the end of coincidences with names...
Days later I take day tour via ferry to two of the local isolas (islands)...Panarea and Stromboli. As I stand at the front of the boat a-awaitng our departure, the woman next me strikes up a conversation. She's Philipino and lives in Germany with her husband (who's standing next to her). So after a good while of chatting, I tell her my name and she laughs and says 'that's my name also'. I laugh and tell her she's kidding. No, seriously, that's my name. Only she spells it Nena which in Italian would be pronounced Neh-na. And I spell mine Nina. We got a good laugh out of all this. Especially when her husband was calling Nina later and we both turned around.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Saturday, October 9, 2010
i just love the italian way of...
...wrapping your food items up for you to carry home. See next two photos of la mia sena (dinner) tonight & salume e bresaola per a dimani. So pretty and neat. And I have now eatten one of the two items (the 3rd photo). YUMMMMM! I have to say, whatever I have eatten here in Milazzo, Sicilia has been DELICIOUS! Could not say that for Napoli.
...i negozi chiuso dal 1:30 al 4:30 per un pranzo (lunch) - see next photo. Milazza is a town and definitely, like Napoli, abides with the closing from generally 1:30 TO 4:30 per il pranzo. Given my experience of the last three years, that's about the time when the body slows down and wants nourishment AND a rest. Three hours definitely allows for un pranzo e un pisolino. The Queen of Sleep definitely approves! America, will you adopt?
Ciao! Baci! Abbracci! Luce!
...i negozi chiuso dal 1:30 al 4:30 per un pranzo (lunch) - see next photo. Milazza is a town and definitely, like Napoli, abides with the closing from generally 1:30 TO 4:30 per il pranzo. Given my experience of the last three years, that's about the time when the body slows down and wants nourishment AND a rest. Three hours definitely allows for un pranzo e un pisolino. The Queen of Sleep definitely approves! America, will you adopt?
Ciao! Baci! Abbracci! Luce!
Friday, October 8, 2010
Scotland East Coast -- 31 July to 7 August 2010 + another reminder LOL
What other things do I remember from Tanfield, England? The ARGHHHH morning that stretched into the afternoon, sitting in front of Jan's computer looking for the next place to sleep. The tedious and frustrating and NOT FUN time!
So there I was @ Jan & Justin's on that Wed - searching. searching. searching. Asking Jan & Justin what they thought. Weighing the pros & cons of staying here versus there. Was I using my intuitive sense. Yes. No. Yes. No. I was dancing. Mostly with the Not Using. Which contributed to Me, end of day, no closer to a place to sleep than when I began! I kept going back and forth. I pretty much had ruled out heading to Sicilia as I had planned. Yet finding a place in Eastern Scotland was really testing me.
Oh well, reminder #XX (lost track of the numbering) - when ARG, frustrating, non-productive moments come (AND they certainly will), take a break instead of continuing with the ARG, frustrating, non-productive stuff I'm doing. HMM, easier said than done (which is the reason I probably created these moments again later on this walkabout LOL).
AMAZING what happens when I let go and just flow with what's before me. For the next day, I did not get jump right in front of the computer. Instead I did my balancing. Then some energy processes to clear my system of non-bene stuff. And then it was time to find the next place to sleep. And thus it happened, that I landed in Perth, Scotland for the next 8 days to experience Scotland for the first time. And explore its East Coast.
Yes, my walkabout is for among a lot of things -- using & honing my 1st sense. The one we are born with & then develop the others. And at least for me, relegate it to my 6th sense. Perhaps that's the reason I use a dowsing tool when I'm balancing or doing energy processes, to help me hone my 1st sense. Because as I've seen time & time again with myself, my mind, my ego, my brain, can & will override the 1st sense IF I allow them. So as Diane once told me, the dowsing tool keeps her honest. And for me, it keeps my mind, brain, ego in check.
Anywho...Scotland is BEAUTIFUL! And Perth was perfect. The weather was great. Thank you Source. A city yet small enough that I did not feel urban! The train and bus station were walking distance so I was happy (and so was my back) that I physically was able to walk and go up/down stairs without the body going "what the hell are you doing to us?" So thankful for the restorative time at Linda, Jan & Justin's!
Now to use the 1st sense to guide me on what to do each day.
That's how my planned train ride to Aberdeen turned into a train ride to Inverness. 1st sense plus asking the ticket person which destination he would chose. The Scottish countryside & mountains, even viewing from the train, is so BEAUTIFUL. And all that Mother Nature..Gaia..Beauty is joyful in and of itself. Thus the train ride to/from Perth/Inverness was FAB! Relaxing. Not a lot of folks on the train that day so it was fun to just sit and stare out the window. Or videotape (Zackti the videorecorder I bought back in June, is getting a work out)...and I see I can add a video to this post...later LOL.
And this lovely couple I met while eatting dinner one night in Perth -- when I asked them what was the one thing in Perth that I should do, did not respond. Instead they said I should go to St. Andrews. They had been there that day and liked to visit. So I went there one day. And in the process, got a lesson in what it's like when things do NOT go the way I, yes I, planned them. I laugh at myself even now as I type. And shake my head at myself.
Now I'm using public transport the entire time I'm in England, unless someone else is driving. And the one thing about using public transport, is that you flow with that schedule. To get to St. Andrews via public transport, requires a train ride to Dundee, then a bus to St. Andrews. Well, when I finally figured out where the bus stop was (thanks to the GREAT info point on the pedestrian mall), there I was standing at the bus stop. AND the bus sails past. ARGH! So I look at the posted bus schedule..next bus in one hour. HMMM...time for bathroom break and return to the info point to see if there's another option. There is...return to the train station, take a train to Lechuars, then a bus to St. Andrews. At this point, I'm still in my ARGH state. And once I decide to take this route, then as I walk to the train station, I tell myself, I do NOT need to be in St. Andrews at a particular time. I will get there when I get there. I will see what I need to see. And this ARGH state is not helping so please go into the Light. Reminder: When things do not go as I plan, I can choose. Hmm? ARGH? AHHH? The 1st sense chooses AHHH! The other senses are all over the board LOL LOL LOL LOL. Thus contributing to me being in ARGH state longer than I need to be.
Anywho...what do I remember about East Coast Scotland? The sense of peace & groundness as I viewed and traveled the countryside. The strong mountains. Or walked the beach at St. Andrews.
The interesting people I met: the couple who sat at the table next to me at dinner & struck up a conversation with me. Delightful dinner conversation & we'll stay in touch. The woman who owns a crystal shoppe in Crieff. That's the most pendulums I've ever seen in a shoppe before. And she taught me how to use a pendulum. We'll stay in touch. The bellman @ the hotel who made me laugh - what are you carrying in that bag, a dead body? he said with a stern, serious look & then laughed.
The food? Haggis & tates is very tasty. I like it. Then again, I grew up eatting scrapple, which is probably a Southern USA cousin of Haggis. And it's common to find lamb burgers on the pub menu, which I love lamb.
At some point, I'll update this post with photos and videos. Until then...onward to Mallaig, Scotland on the West Coast...
So there I was @ Jan & Justin's on that Wed - searching. searching. searching. Asking Jan & Justin what they thought. Weighing the pros & cons of staying here versus there. Was I using my intuitive sense. Yes. No. Yes. No. I was dancing. Mostly with the Not Using. Which contributed to Me, end of day, no closer to a place to sleep than when I began! I kept going back and forth. I pretty much had ruled out heading to Sicilia as I had planned. Yet finding a place in Eastern Scotland was really testing me.
Oh well, reminder #XX (lost track of the numbering) - when ARG, frustrating, non-productive moments come (AND they certainly will), take a break instead of continuing with the ARG, frustrating, non-productive stuff I'm doing. HMM, easier said than done (which is the reason I probably created these moments again later on this walkabout LOL).
AMAZING what happens when I let go and just flow with what's before me. For the next day, I did not get jump right in front of the computer. Instead I did my balancing. Then some energy processes to clear my system of non-bene stuff. And then it was time to find the next place to sleep. And thus it happened, that I landed in Perth, Scotland for the next 8 days to experience Scotland for the first time. And explore its East Coast.
Yes, my walkabout is for among a lot of things -- using & honing my 1st sense. The one we are born with & then develop the others. And at least for me, relegate it to my 6th sense. Perhaps that's the reason I use a dowsing tool when I'm balancing or doing energy processes, to help me hone my 1st sense. Because as I've seen time & time again with myself, my mind, my ego, my brain, can & will override the 1st sense IF I allow them. So as Diane once told me, the dowsing tool keeps her honest. And for me, it keeps my mind, brain, ego in check.
Anywho...Scotland is BEAUTIFUL! And Perth was perfect. The weather was great. Thank you Source. A city yet small enough that I did not feel urban! The train and bus station were walking distance so I was happy (and so was my back) that I physically was able to walk and go up/down stairs without the body going "what the hell are you doing to us?" So thankful for the restorative time at Linda, Jan & Justin's!
Now to use the 1st sense to guide me on what to do each day.
That's how my planned train ride to Aberdeen turned into a train ride to Inverness. 1st sense plus asking the ticket person which destination he would chose. The Scottish countryside & mountains, even viewing from the train, is so BEAUTIFUL. And all that Mother Nature..Gaia..Beauty is joyful in and of itself. Thus the train ride to/from Perth/Inverness was FAB! Relaxing. Not a lot of folks on the train that day so it was fun to just sit and stare out the window. Or videotape (Zackti the videorecorder I bought back in June, is getting a work out)...and I see I can add a video to this post...later LOL.
And this lovely couple I met while eatting dinner one night in Perth -- when I asked them what was the one thing in Perth that I should do, did not respond. Instead they said I should go to St. Andrews. They had been there that day and liked to visit. So I went there one day. And in the process, got a lesson in what it's like when things do NOT go the way I, yes I, planned them. I laugh at myself even now as I type. And shake my head at myself.
Now I'm using public transport the entire time I'm in England, unless someone else is driving. And the one thing about using public transport, is that you flow with that schedule. To get to St. Andrews via public transport, requires a train ride to Dundee, then a bus to St. Andrews. Well, when I finally figured out where the bus stop was (thanks to the GREAT info point on the pedestrian mall), there I was standing at the bus stop. AND the bus sails past. ARGH! So I look at the posted bus schedule..next bus in one hour. HMMM...time for bathroom break and return to the info point to see if there's another option. There is...return to the train station, take a train to Lechuars, then a bus to St. Andrews. At this point, I'm still in my ARGH state. And once I decide to take this route, then as I walk to the train station, I tell myself, I do NOT need to be in St. Andrews at a particular time. I will get there when I get there. I will see what I need to see. And this ARGH state is not helping so please go into the Light. Reminder: When things do not go as I plan, I can choose. Hmm? ARGH? AHHH? The 1st sense chooses AHHH! The other senses are all over the board LOL LOL LOL LOL. Thus contributing to me being in ARGH state longer than I need to be.
Anywho...what do I remember about East Coast Scotland? The sense of peace & groundness as I viewed and traveled the countryside. The strong mountains. Or walked the beach at St. Andrews.
The interesting people I met: the couple who sat at the table next to me at dinner & struck up a conversation with me. Delightful dinner conversation & we'll stay in touch. The woman who owns a crystal shoppe in Crieff. That's the most pendulums I've ever seen in a shoppe before. And she taught me how to use a pendulum. We'll stay in touch. The bellman @ the hotel who made me laugh - what are you carrying in that bag, a dead body? he said with a stern, serious look & then laughed.
The food? Haggis & tates is very tasty. I like it. Then again, I grew up eatting scrapple, which is probably a Southern USA cousin of Haggis. And it's common to find lamb burgers on the pub menu, which I love lamb.
At some point, I'll update this post with photos and videos. Until then...onward to Mallaig, Scotland on the West Coast...
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