Leaving Milan

Leaving is hard. Not just the saying goodbye, but physically as well. I was sweating and my back was killing me as I hurried to repack my bags before leaving Marisa’s. Of course, I had planned carefully so that I would only have to open one of the vacuum bags and thus this wouldn’t be too difficult--but with my suitcase containing the one bag holding the clothes I meant to wear in Italy being one its own little vacation for five days, I had had to open three of the four. Fortunately, Marisa has a vacuum! I was concerned that she wouldn’t as she doesn’t have any carpets...but she is a professional cleaner and has one anyhow for cleaning out window sills, etc. I’m almost glad the airport kept my bag so long; I don’t know how I would have moved all of this stuff several times; just the one suitcase along with my backpack and purse nearly killed me. Also, of course, the day we left was also, by far, the hottest day since we’d been in Milan. The cool, comfortable, cloudy days were over and the sun was bright.

Fortunately, Michela came out to help me roll the other one, and Marisa pointed out that a taxi to Cadorna where we were catching the airport express train wasn’t all that expensive (ended up being about eight dollars, and was worth every penny not to have to drag all that down the stairs to the metro). Lewis and Tammy and the other girls had gone ahead on an earlier train, as they needed to redo their bags they had left in storage at the airport. It was Janfor’s day off, and he had come up to the church building to spend a bit more time with them, and got roped into helping. They left the keys with him as well as our tickets, which they had already bought. He met us, had already figured out the time of the next train and the track, and helped Michela and I load the suitcases onto the train; he was such a huge help. I don’t know how we would have managed it all without him.

One Last Gelato

It's not a proper day in Italy without getting gelato at least once. (We might have had it more than once some days...).  So, the last things the girls and I did before packing up to leave Milan was stop one last time.  My usual choice is one scoop of chocolate and one scoop of strawberry, but this particular shop's specialty is peach, so I tried that in place of the strawberry since I'd had it several times already.  It was wonderful of course.  Michela was adventurous and got lime and sedano.  Both of us were trying to remember what sedano means in Italian--it was familiar to us both but we couldn't place it.  I didn't get it looked up on my phone until she was tasting it.  Oh.  Sedano is...celery.  Fortunately, the lime flavor was very strong, but the celery was still there.  It was interesting (she let me try a bite).  And so the time has come to leave Italy.  I am so grateful to have had this chance to catch up with people I loved and to remember everything I loved about my life when I was here.  

Return to Via Tesio

It’s weird to return to somewhere you used to live; so many things are exactly the same, and so many things have changed. Now, there’s a subway stop right across the street from my old apartment. That sure would have been convenient! Of course they didn’t get that done until after I moved away… It did make it easier to pop over and walk down my old street, though.

I had an attic apartment in the middle of three buildings within the gate of number 11; there was a small elevator up to the fourth floor, but only stair up to the fifth floor where I was. I took the stairs all the way up anyhow a lot of the time for exercise, but that last floor was a pain when carrying groceries. My studio apartment was nine square meters; it was one room with a kitchenette and fold out bed and a bathroom, along with a small balcony. A huge fir tree was just outside, so tall that I still wasn’t quite at the top. Despite its size, it was perfect for me at the time; I was only a year out of college and didn’t own much anyhow so one room was plenty.

Other than the subway stop, nothing’s changed at all on Via Tesio.

My Youth Group Kids

After the fellowship meal, the Shorts and I walked down to the castle along with “i ragazzi” (can be
translated ‘the young people’, ‘the guys’, etc).  These are the kids I taught in Sunday school and took
to camp and bowling and all when they were in middle school; when I met them they barely knew each
other and it was wonderful to watch them build relationships over the two years I worked with them.  
I’ll probably always called them “i ragazzi”, but now, nine years later, they are all in their twenties,
ranging from 20-25. I’m officially old now.

I’m proud of them and the people they are becoming.  

Matteo was the baby of the group; he was 10-12 while I was there.  Now he is twenty. He is still very
active in the church; he’s on the rotation to lead the communion every fourth week.  He has now been
dating Francesca, a girl from the church in Vicenza who is now in college in Milan, for over two years.
I remember her from the Christian camp we all attended back then, as well.  They make it over to
Vicenza to worship with her family and home congregation pretty frequently, too. This past summer,
they returned to camp to be counselors themselves. I hadn’t known that before seeing them this time,
and it nearly brings tears to my eyes to see one of the kids that I drug off to camp years ago now
completing the cycle by mentoring younger kids.  

Rovelyn and Rodalyn are cousins;Rovelyn was part of my little youth group from day one, when she
was about eleven.  Rodalyn came later, near the end of my time in Milan, but in time to go to camp
with us in 2009. Rodalyn is now twenty-five and works in a restaurant; she comes to church
occasionally but definitely needs more encouragement (her parents have stopped attending, but her
aunt and uncle are still very active, so they keep trying.)  

Rovelyn is now twenty-one and is in her second year (high school lasts a year longer here in Italy than
in the US, so most people start college at age nineteen or twenty) of university for mathematical
engineering. She always been a good student, and I’m so glad she’s doing well in college.  

The Shorts were visiting in Italy a couple of years ago, and Lewis sent me a message on facebook
messenger that Rovelyn had decided to be baptized, and then, a bit later, that Nico had decided to be
baptized as well.  I was so happy to hear about it even as it was happening!

Janfor and Nico are brothers who had just arrived in Italy from the Philippines when I met them.  The
third brother, Ever (Nico’s twin) was still with family in the Philippines at the time, so this was my first
time meeting him.  Janfor I mentioned in my previous post; he’s doing well as a cook in a restaurant.
Unfortunately, he’s the one of the group that very rarely comes to church (he’s usually working
Sundays even if he wanted to, but he’s not all that interested at this point anyhow), but with his family
all there maybe someday he’ll see the value again.  

Nico and Ever also work in restaurants; Ever was a Christian before coming to Italy, and Nico, as I
mentioned earlier, was baptized a couple of years ago.  It was a bit weird meeting them; Ever looks
just like Nico did when I knew him, while Nico has started wearing glasses and has done his hair
differently. The twins have been saving up their vacation time and are hoping to make a trip back to
the Philippines to spend Christmas with their grandparents this year.  

The only one I didn’t get to see was Manuela; she now lives in England (her older sister had married
and moved there right after I left Italy, so it wasn’t a surprise that Manuela followed her to do university
there), where she is an active member of the church.  Rovelyn has talked to her more recently than I
have, and said she’s graduating from nursing school this month.

In all my years in some form of ministry, these kids were the best part.  It was great to see them all
and how they’re doing now.

Agape in Via del Bollo

On Sunday, the church was full, and they had organized a fellowship meal (called an ‘agape’ in Italian) since they knew we’d be there.  The food was great; it’s always interesting to have potlucks in the Via del Bollo congregation since the members are from so many different countries.  I don’t think I’ve ever had lasagne and jiaozi (Chinese dumplings) and pigs in a blanket and Filipino noodles all on the same plate before. (Or at least not since the last agape I participated in in Milan--although then we also had Ghanaian food).  

Fratelli di Bufala with Friends

On Saturday night, we went to the restaurant, Fratelli di Bufala, where Eric, one of the leaders of the church of Milan, and Janfor, one of the middle school students I worked with at the church (who is now twenty-five...I’m not old, am I?), work. Janfor’s parents, Domingo and Lydia, came, as well as Robert, Evangelina, and Rovelyn (another of the kids I used to work with).

The food was great; I had hoped to have time for a traditional Italian pizza, and this one did not disappoint. Of course, there were many choices as to toppings; I chose just as I would have when I lived here--eggplant and zucchini. I wish these toppings were available elsewhere…

Tammy and I went and stuck our heads into the kitchen to see Janfor working (she’s done it before when visiting, and as long as we stay out of the way, no one minds--but then Eric is the one in charge of the kitchen, so what he says goes). He didn’t know I was coming--he saw Tammy, and then I popped in too, and he gave me a huge smile. It was so good to see him doing well in his job; he’s worked his way up from a dishwasher as a teenager to now being one of the main cooks. He’s come a long way from the shy, silent child hiding behind the hair he kept flopped over his eyes that I met eleven years ago.  

After dinner, he got the chance to come out and say hello on his break, and I got a picture with him and Rovelyn. It was a busy night, though--many Italian go on vacation during the month of August, and it was Saturday, September first. We theorized that many had just gotten home and found they had nothing in their fridge and decided to go out to eat. He was called back in soon, but there is a big window into the kitchen from the street so we could watch him working for a while. He certainly never moved that fast back when I told him to do something. :)

Nine Years Later

It’s a beautiful day to see friends in Milan.  Surprisingly, it’s not even that hot, and though it's cloudy, we haven't been rained on yet. The cathedral is still as incredible as always; it's been nine years since I've been in Piazza del Duomo, but I suppose that's not much time for something that's been around since the 1300s. I’ve really missed this place and these people.

Autostrada del Sole (ITC Week 19)

Indie Travel Challenge Week 19: Road Trips

 For week 19, we’d like you to design the perfect road trip. Who’s with you in the car? What kind of car are you driving? What snacks are in the cooler? What music is playing? And, most importantly, where are you?

When I read this prompt, the first thing that popped into my head was  sunlight pouring in the windows, catching a glimpse of Orvieto, an ancient town built on top of a cliff, out the window as I head south towards Rome on the Autostrada del Sole.  Giorgia’s Girasole (Sunflower) is next on the playlist, and I’ve brought along a bottle of A.C.E. fruit juice. It’s hot outside, but the air conditioner is thankfully working at the minute. 

 Even the name Autostrada del Sole, the Highway of the Sun, Interstate 1, seems an invitation to find out where it goes.  It’s the backbone of Italy’s interstate system, running like a spine from Milan to Naples.  In between, it passes through most of the major cities of central Italy, including Bologna, Florence, and Rome. 

When I lived in Italy, I traveled every mile of it at some time or another, most of those in a large and crowded van (the rickety old gray Bible School van on our way to a convegno in Velletri, just outside of Rome; crammed in the back of the di Marco’s van with the Naples crowd as I bummed a ride down to explore Naples after another trip to Velletri) or else riding along with the Shorts to Florence, or again Velletri.  I guess those trips to the women’s retreat and family retreats held at Velletri really added up the highway miles. 

However, the thing all of these trips had in common was that I was in route somewhere, and I had a time I needed to be there.  And while the sights along the way are nice even in passing, it would make a beautiful road trip if I had the time to wander: a side trip to the independent country of  San Marino, parking and taking the tram up into Orvieto to see the famous old church,  fields of sunflowers with the Tower of Pisa floating on the horizon behind them, eating the original ragu (meat sauce) in Bologna, meandering off side roads to explore the small towns perched on top of hills in rural Tuscany, parking at Piazza Michelangelo for the postcard-picture view of Florence, passing miles of empire-era aqueduct just south of Rome, and finally taking my life in my hands driving into the chaos of Naples, with Vesuvius looming over the city.  Dozens of other side trips would be possible, if the time and money held out. 

Sadly, it’s been three years since I left Italy; nearly as long as I lived there.  I still feel homesick sometimes to walk across Piazza del Duomo in Milan.  I thought when I left that I’d find a way to visit frequently, but as always, life hasn’t worked out that way.  Life instead took me even further the opposite direction, to China.  My Italian is getting rusty as there’s rarely anyone to talk to around here. You would think that after living for three years in Italy, I’d have seen it all, but I only scratched the surface.  I could spend three more years and still not make it everywhere I’d like to go: I’ve never seen Juliet’s balcony or the ancient amphitheater in Verona, taken a cable car up over the Alps into France from the mountains near Aosta, visited the Borghese Gallery in Rome (I could spend three years just in Rome), or gone to the little republic of San Marino, and the whole mainland of Italy south of Naples is unknown territory for me.  I’ve been to Catania and Mt. Etna in Sicily, but making the loop around Sicily would be another road trip of a lifetime in itself.