After a two-hour flight, I landed in Italy safely. My friend, Virginia's husband, Vittorio, was supposed to pick me up at the airport. He was waiting for me with a woman I didn't know. She introduced herself as Marlene, speaking in English. Vittorio and I were happy to see each other again. Having Marlene in the car was good because Vittorio doesn't speak English well. Marlene translated what Vittorio said into English to me. Three of us headed to the museum for the art show Marlene and I were entering.
At the museum, I reunited my friends and my teacher. We were so excited that some of them even started crying, which brought teas to my eyes as well. For years without seeing them felt like a long time. I believe that, even though language is a barrier, we are truly good friends. I really appreciate our friendship. I used to visit Brescia to learn Western porcelain painting techniques, and last time I was there was just as the pandemic started in early February 2020. Back then, Japan had only a few cases and Italy had none, so all my Italian friends tried to convince me to stay longer. I had no choice but to return to Japan because I was very worried about my family. Seeing all my Italian friends again made me very happy.
The museum was beautiful, and I took some time to explore both inside and outside.
Yay! Japanese restaurants everywhere!!!!! I spotted a ramen shop even in Italy!!! Although, technically, ramen isn't traditional Japanese cuisine .
I came across some English graffiti.
I love narrow streets like this. Italy is full of them, and I think they're very charming.
I believe it's an old church. I have no idea how old it is, but it looks ancient.
Since I stayed at my painting teacher's art studio, I had to make my way back on my own. Marlene explained how to take the metro and find my way home.
I was super nervous because I don't understand Italian, but somehow, I made it! It was my first time to take the metro on my own in Italy.
Here's my first metro ticket. The Italian metro was very clean and smooth, just like ours.
On the way home, I saw some familiar signs that made me feel nostalgic. I used to see them every morning during my exercise walks.
(4700)
Wonderful, as always!
Amazing!
@Sunflower1234 and @Lariza Thank you so much for taking a time to read my post!
How I love Italy! Very nice pictures, @yumiyumayume
@druida So do I! Thank you as always for commenting on my journal entry.
That rhinoceros suspended in air looks interesting haha. What's the story behind it?
@hdrx Yeah! It looks very interesting, and I was curious about it too. I asked Marlene about the rhino, and she told me a famous artist from Brescia made it, but she didn't know why it was flying. In Italy, everything looked art.
I've just come back from Italy. There was a Poke Ramen shop even in the small town where I was staying. It was much smaller than the one in Brescia, though.
Yahoo, @Dripdrip ! Welcome back!!! I'm glad to hear from you. Where did you stay? The ramen shop looks a chain store. How was your trip in Italy? Did you speak Italian? I'm looking forward to hearing from you more!!
I stayed in Rapallo in Liguria. I didn't speak as much Italian as I'd hoped, since the problem is always understanding what someone is saying when they reply. People often started speaking in English when I didn't understand them.
I visited the small towns along the coast and walked a lot. Unfortunately the weather was quite wet, although there were some sunny days. I travelled by train, which was fun when I reached Italy, but not so much fun getting there and getting back.
@Dripdrip Sounds awesome! I'm glad to hear about your trip! I've never visited the place where you traveled. I didn't speak Italian either. I've promised my Italian friends to practice it, though. It's cool that you traveled around by train!! Thank you so much for sharing!!