I moved to Italy a year ago this week. I feel like I am not the same woman who arrived here last August but like any evolution, there have been many variables affecting that transition. Last summer I retired from a full-time career and moved to a foreign country. I went from living in a house on a quiet suburban street to living in an apartment over a cafe in an historic pedestrian district. I couldn't speak the language and I knew no one. I didn't get a car and I didn't know my way around. Dave went to work every morning and I stayed at home. I jumped into deep water.
Today as I reflect on my first year, here are some ways in which I think I have changed:
1. I am living more simply.
I have been very happy living in our four room apartment. I do miss some of the comforts I had in the United States (such as high-speed Internet), but we are accumulating less stuff, have enough room for guests and are living more economically. And when we want to go away for the weekend, we just lock the door and leave.
2. Feet are the best transportation
I walk or ride my bike just about everywhere. Everything I really need is within a one kilometer radius. I have the time now to shop for what I will use for today's meals. I know the shopkeepers and recognize many of the regulars around town. I listen to the musicians and give coins to the street people I know. I feel the seasons change and notice details like never before.
3. I wander off the beaten path.
All over this region, there are trails that lead up the mountains and around the lake. Many of them are stone mule tracks that have been there for centuries. I don't worry about getting lost because the trails connect villages and generally there is always a bar where you can get a cup of coffee and ask for directions. One finds tiny, old churches perched on the edge of the hillside; you can sit on a bench for a few minutes and enjoy the view. The sights that stay in my memory are not the ones in the tourist guide but the unexpected beauty that I find in a cemetery statue or on a winding trail.
5. We linger over meals.
Yes, the food here is very good. But it is surprisingly repetitive and predictable. In a restaurant, you generally know what is on the menu before you look at it. But that is fine with me because I can enjoy pasta everyday. The difference is in how it is prepared and that the ingredients are fresh and of a high quality so that the traditional risotto is spectacular or the penne arriabbata has the perfect zing. Nothing is rushed and everyone is relaxed, including the staff. My favorite days here are when I spend a few hours sharing a meal with friends.
5. I go to fewer places more often.
There are a lot of shops and restaurants in town. Shortly after I arrived here, a neighbor told me that once you return to a place three times, you will be considered a regular. It seems to be an important part of the culture here that one has their "regular" people and places and that has helped me figure out the puzzle of life here. I have some favorite baites up in the mountain villages where we like to make return trips. We hike many of the same trails during different seasons and are amazed by the changing views. Having our familiar places has helped this area feel like home.
One of the hardest parts of coming to Italy was adjusting to a culture that revolves around family life while we are so far from our own relatives. Fortunately, now I feel like I have my own Como family made up friends from the International Club, the group of women with whom I volunteer and my hiking group friends. Just like a biological family, there is a diversity of age, personality and role. Many of them are also far away from their families so a strong bond has developed. I no longer feel like I am on a trapeze without a net.
7. I am experiencing La Bella Vita
Life seems very vibrant here and I sometimes wonder why that is. Is it because I have had so many intense new experiences? Is it because I am aware that it is time-limited since I know we will move home to the U.S. in a year or two? Is is because I have the time now to appreciate the life I am living? I need to discover ways to maintain some of these changes when I return to my life in America. In the meantime, I will appreciate and love this chapter of my life.
