what i learnedlast entry – le marche 2013

This was my sixth summer in Italy and a bunch of things fell into place. For example, I learned that I:

• am OK with staying in a comfortable house on a remote hill-top
• want to avoid beach resorts especially in August
• like taking naps in the afternoon and avoiding the miserable heat
• like being in a dark house with all the shutters closed
• speak Italian like a native (The little nun in San Ginesio wanted to know where in Italy I was from.)
• can understand what people are saying almost 100% of time
• am OK with asking hotel receptionists and car-rental agents to explain things in English
• know how roundabouts work
• understand many of the Italian road-signs

• need to stay out of the right lane when coming up on a highway exit
  (After the exit is a very short entry lane and drivers tend to be aggressive about pulling into traffic.)

• will see the real Italy when driving on the paved off-roads
• like Meletti Anisette better than Sambuca
• can go into a specialty store and buy extension cords
• can be organized even though the Italians default to laissez faire