Quiet walks by quiet streams

Ciao! Happy Sunday!

This is the day I sleep in. This is a good day.
I would like to point out that a miracle happened. And I owe it all to complaining. Blogger has changed their uploading format for pictures. I can now do it with much more ease and much less angst.

Dear Blogger,

Thanks.

Signed,
Carrie

Allora. Allesandra got home today from a four day conference in the northern Italy. Guido has been here to help. He works in Tuscany normally, and comes to visit when he can. It was a really great week for the kids to have time with their dad and to be together as a whole family before and after the conference.

I have not spend a lot of time with Guido, so it was nice for us to be able to talk and get to know each other. The first day he was here, he drove me to Pesaro, the neighbouring town, because I had an appointment for my Residence Permit. What I like to call a Ridiculous Permit. I think I have mentioned it, but they have passed an anti-terrorism law here some months ago, and it involves me having to check in everywhere I go. They take my passport at internet cafe's.  Anyways, it cost nearly 80 euros for the form, then the form informs is that we have to get three more documents to go with it, then we have to drive to Pesaro at a date and time that they choose and wait for three hours so they can check the papers and take my fingerprints. I mean, for me, not so bad. I get to see Pesaro and I feel like James Bond because of the sweet scanners they have these days for fingerprints. But, for Guido it was a whole half day thay he spent taking me there.

Anyways, now everyone in Italy knows I'm no terrorist and we are awaiting the permit. Sweet deal.

 I decided to stay in Pesaro for the day, since there are buses going to and from Urbinoall day, because I had only been to the bus station on my way to and from Paris. After a quick tea, I started looking around. There was a civic museum I wanted to see, but they had just closed for the day, so I just started walking. All of a sudden I realised there was a wonderful smell in the air and a distant haze to the east. Then it hit me.

I walked towards the beautiful, endless, tumultuous, careless Adriatic Sea.

It was amazing walking towards it. Part of the reason I chose Italy, was because it is almost surrounded by water. I love the ocean. I was getting more and more excited as I walked. I could hear birds and see brightly colored shops and beach huts. It was a place begging to be inhabited by sunshine and carefree people. However, being the time of year, I was truly the only one walking through this part of town. I walked through a sort of change area, and to a large fence that looked to span the whole beach. I opened the gate and there it was. The Sea meeting a sandy beach meeting me. Ah.

The wind and sand and sky and water. I thought about lighting a fire in the garbage can for a great elemental picture, but decided against it on grounds of wanting to stay in the country and not getting kicked out for arson.

The beach huts

Boardwalk

A fountain on the boardwalk. It was really flat and tranquil. The reflection was perfect.

An English style hotel called Victoria

The cutest caffe.

View of the Sea from the boardwalk

The man in the water...

The not so classic feet in the sand pose. In three months, barefoot!

View of the boarwalk from the sea.

A man walking the beach in a business suit.

Boardwalk

The beach and the hotels. That's all the street along the beach is. About 50 hotels.

My favourite sign in Pesaro. I can go to Urbino, the train station, or the sea from here. Or the hospital. But we'll leave that out.

An abandoned building. I see them here and they always make me daydream of owning it and building the best hostel ever.

One of my favourite pictures to date. This runs from the ocean into town. It is dry now, but I think in the summer they fill it for a nice little river.

I walked along the sand for some time until I saw a small resteraurant that sat on some land that stretched into the water. I went in for a salad and watched the water through the big windows and the people inside as they ate. There were two English guys, but I could not tell where they were from. I've decided eavesdropping is ok, apparently.

Allora. I walked back down to the sand. And I walked right up and touched the Sea. It was cold and elegant and I liked it. I cannot wait until summer when I can just hop a bus for 2 euros to the Adriatic Sea. There was a guy about waist deep in the water. Now, when I say chilly, I mean cold. I would not go in for fear of hypothermia. This guy was just chilling out. He was pretty far away and I don't know if he was catching something or doing Tai Chi. Either way, I think it was a little nuts.

After I had sufficiently stared down the water and looked around, I walked and got lost. That's always fun in a new town. I mean this for real. After about two hours I found myself back where I wanted to be. The centre square is really great. There is a truly wonderful fountain and the buildings surrounding it are magnificent.

In another square, there was a quaint fountain, a carousel and a theatre:

^ This picture belongs to the fountain below

There are some little shops on all adjoining roads, all of which are REALLY expensive. I'm talking 300 euro blouses and 4800 euro jackets and who knows how much for the shoes. They really do love their shoes here. I did, however, find a nice gelato shop. Alex was right when he said it was like Italian crack. I try to tell myself one a week, but, I mean, how can I deprive myself?

These pictures are from a museum I had wanted to see, but it was closed. This was the just the hall leading up to it.

I really liked these flowers! Partly because their beautiful, partly because it's November.

A tree which I think knows everything in the whole world.

A poster for November 4th, a sort of Rememberance Day in Italy.

Giuseppe Garibaldi! I see him everytime I walk to or from the bus station to centrale.

A winding way.

A church near centrale. These huge marvels tend to be hidden. I don't know how. But I always see them tucked away in corners or dark alleys.

A wedding dress. This whole building is filled with clothing stores. Usually pretty modern thing showing through ancient windows.

Building for employment, I believe.

The cutest door ever! I don't know if it's intentional, but I love this entrance.

A bicycle shop where I found a bike that I would like.

I also found a great music shop with both American and Italian and world music. There was a gallery I wanted to see, that was open at 5. It said so on the sign. However, at 5, the nice security guard told me it was closed. Generally, I believe signs before people. But when said people are guarding the entrance, it's hard to argue. It is also hard to argue when you do not know the word for sign.

I was raining by now, and if I caught the next bus I would be home in time for supper. So that's what I did.

Pesaro was very nice and I think it will be quite fun in the spring, and even the winter when events are going on, but it is very big and I prefer the quaintness of Urbino.

In other news, the german girl in my class asked me to go out on Thursday, but I ended up being very exhausted. I think we will plan again for this weekend and I will nap and everything in preparation.

Also, I had a dream that I took the kids to Canada with me and I met Leila in Peace River by taking a sweet foot bridge across a lake and afterwards I kept falling in the water when Sarah and I tried to get back across the bridge. It had become very icy and slippery. After this, I went to go back to work at Ascendant books and I had forgotten how to turn on the lights. Every one looked very worried.

There is a very interesting thing that is happening to me, being over here. I am truly very happy here and I feel great everyday and I know I will make friends and have a great time with the family and with my hobbies. However, one feels homesick quite often and I miss everyone everyday, and certain smells make me wish I was certain places and I wonder what I would be doing right now in Edmonton or Grimshaw. So, what happens, is that when I am homesick, I feel guilty for not being happier in such a great place, and when I am feeling so great here, I feel guilty for not missing home more.

This is why you should analyse your dreams, people. It leads to some great discoveries.

Alessandra thinks I want children. I prefer this version.