What I learned in Italy

I've put off writing this more substantive side of the travel post because I kept hoping I would think of something more substantive to say in it. No luck. But I do have a few thoughts about my first venture to Europe that I'd like to jot down, so here goes.

Honestly, I was a little surprised by my first European destination. I've been to several places with old sites - ruins, churches, etc, but I guess I expected historic sites in Europe to be a cleaner, more Disneylandish type experience than sites in third-world countries I've visited. I was surprised at how much Rome and Florence, especially, reminded me of past South American and Asian trips. There were huge differences, but I thought a few times while looking down a row of apartments on a side street, "Take a picture, and this street could be in any city in a variety of countries." Of course, put people on that street and the differences become more apparent. The crowds were dressed more like home, and we saw very few beggars, compared to other vacations I've taken.

I was particularly shocked by the amount of graffiti we saw. All over the outside of the Accademia. All along the staircase up to the top of the Duomo and on the outside walls once we reached the peak. I guess I didn't expect it because I thought these sites would be better guarded or preserved than sites of similar ages in poorer countries, but at some point, maybe old is old, and wear and tear starts to show. I also think I'm sensitized to graffiti because we see so little of it in New York, compared to other large cities.

Another thing that surprised me was the degree to which the cities we visited felt very unlike the city in which I live. In my mind, I can say New York, Rome, Florence, in the same sentence without immediately thinking, "One of these things is not like the other." I don't feel that way about saying, for example, "New York, Boston, LA." I had this notion that I'd be walking around Rome thinking, "This feels more like home than other American cities." That the great capitals of Europe would be New York alternatives to me in a way other American cities aren't. I didn't feel that way, and no surprise. New York really is much bigger, not to mention much newer than the other cities we visited. It's different.

I read over the above, and I'm a little afraid I sound like a spoiled brat. We had a lovely time. It was an amazing trip. The culture, history, art, architecture, food, etc was wonderfully rich, and we enjoyed it. So much so that John, who is usually keen to escape early or avoid entirely a museum visit, actually offered to go to the Met with me when we get back (if we can rent or download audio guides). But none of these things surprised me. I expected them. The other things are more interesting, then, to me, because they revealed something about the biases and stereotypes I hold. When I travel, I am always surprised that, at the end of the day, one place in one country with one culture can be so similar to another place in a country halfway around the world with a completely different culture. Being human really gives us a lot of common ground.

On a total side note, hallelujah for city planning, especially for relatively wide sidewalks. I think I had nightmares when we were there about trying to navigate even the Maclaren on those sidewalks the size of gutters, never mind the bigger stroller.