More things I have learned about Italy

1. There are scorpions here. Let me say that again: THERE ARE FREAKING SCORPIONS HERE! GAH! So far, I have not been directly confronted with any of these devils, but I have squashed some large-ish earwhigs while fervently praying that they were not baby scorpions. Apparently scorpions like cool, flat places. Like basements. *shudder*

2. The weather is wildly varied and inconsistent. Thunderstorms can come up with very little warning. There is usually a breeze at my house. Weather.com sucks for the Vicenza area.

3. Sorting and taking out the trash and recyclables can be a full time job. Seriously, we got a four-page set of instructions. Organics can be picked up on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, but only from May to September. From October to April, it's just Tuesdays and Saturdays. Paper is picked up on Thursdays, every two weeks. Glass is picked up on the alternate Thursdays. Plastic and cans are retrieved on Mondays. The humid waste (organics) must be in biodegradable (preferable) or regular plastic bags, in the provided bucket. Paper and cardboard can only go in the proper yellow plastic box issued by the municipality, and all other trash goes in the provided bags, which are labelled for each municipality. Everything else must be delivered to the Ecocentro, which is open from 3-7pm M-F and 8-12/1-5 on Saturdays March through September, and 1-5pm M-F and 8-12/1-5 on Saturdays October through February. Whew. See what I mean? It's a good thing I have those flyers. They live on the side of the refrigerator. And I'm not above taking a grocery bag full of trash to base with me when I have to go check the mail or hit up the commissary to dispose of it there...

4. The stove is marked in degrees Celsius. I should probably get a conversion table and post it on the side of the refrigerator, too.

5. Electricity is fickle. And unreliable. It tends to go out without warning, for no reason. But the breakers are very easy to locate, even in the dark (but I keep a flashlight by the bed), and easy to reset. And when there's no power, I have to have a key to get OUT of the house through my front door. Otherwise I have to go out through one of the garage doors.

6. The roads are narrow. Especially in city centers and rural areas. I don't know why this continues to surprise me, even after two months here(!), but it does.

7. Northern Italians don't butter their bread. Nor do they dip it in olive oil. They just...eat it.

8. Ragu = bolognese, and alfredo is not an Italian sauce.

9. You order a pizza for yourself, and eat the whole thing. You will get funny looks if you decide to share.

10. The price of produce varies wildly. It's cherry (ciliegia) season, and you can buy them on the side of the road for dirt cheap. It's also asparagus season; I have no idea what it costs to buy them locally but we wanted a bunch from the commissary the other day and they wanted to charge us $9.86. Um, NO THANK YOU. Zucchinis sounded equally delicious.

11. Right-tighty, lefty-loosey does not always apply. Case in point: the drain in the bathtub.

May Days

I haven't forgotten to update this blog, I just haven't made it a priority. You know, life happens and all. Also, since we moved into our house (yayyyy!) we haven't had internet (booooo!) so when I've had access I've been doing things like paying bills, taking tests, and seeing what everyone else is up to on Facebook...

Our movers came just over a week ago, and we were very happy with the quality of service we got on both ends of the process. One of my bookshelves has a nice ding in it, but otherwise we haven't found a single thing broken. Even all of our foodstuffs and glassware survived the transatlantic voyage just fine. The house is coming together nicely, and we are really happy with it. It's starting to look like a home, now that we have a few things on the walls and my shoes are scattered all over the place. I think this weekend we will concentrate on some of the nice finishing touches, though of course it'll take a while for us to be fully settled here. We keep finding little quirks in the house, but there's nothing major or too annoying (yet). I think the funniest things are bathroom-related. We had to rig up two shower curtains in the main bathroom, because the tub has two exposed sides and one curtain was too short. In the other bathroom, the shower curtain doesn't reach the floor, so we haven't used it yet, although the wooden door has some water damage so we know previous tenants experienced the same problem. I'm sure we will eventually rig up something, but in the meantime it's just something to smile about and live with. One of my personal pet peeves overall is lack of storage space, shelving, and closets. A trip to Ikea helped a lot, but since we didn't really bring any office furniture we still have to find a home for a lot of random paperwork and our computer stuff. On the plus side, I love our main balcony and the view of the trees from our upstairs windows, plus the sounds of birds chirping. I'm pretty sure there's a dove nest in our palm tree, and our roses are in full bloom!

This afternoon I took my final exam for my government budgeting/finance class, which was much more interesting and enjoyable than I ever expected it to be. I think it went well, but it'll be a week or more before I get my grade. I decided to sign up for only one class next term as well; I'll be traveling for 3 weeks smack in the middle of the term and don't know what my workload or internet access will be. I think the tradeoff will be better for my sanity, and I'm still hoping to be able to finish up by December. Next week I don't have any school, since the summer term starts on May 26th, but next week I'm enrolled in Benvenuti class Wed-Fri. This is my Italian Cultural Orientation class! I'm excited for it; we get a crash course in how to ride the buses and trains, and get to take a couple of field trips. Hopefully I will meet some nice new people and find a few more fun places to visit.

A couple weekends ago Tony and I went to the Camisano Market. It's held on Sundays in the town of Camisano (duh) and is one of the bigger markets in the region. We knew that little tidbit going in, but we didn't understand just HOW big until we got there. We are talking several city blocks of vendors. Tents and tables full of fruits, vegetables, clothes, kitchenware, artwork, curtains, shoes, cheese, plants, and who knows what else! We walked around for a few hours and came home with a bunch of produce; we ate lunch while we were out and really enjoyed the experience despite the crowds. It's not too terribly far from our house, maybe 7-8 miles, and I can see myself whiling away many a Sunday morning there.

I'm trying to think what else we've been up to. Tony's been working very consistently now that we are pretty much settled in, and he's staying very busy. This job will require a lot of travel, and he may get to see more of Europe than I will! [Challenge accepted] While he worked the first half of this week, I went to Red Cross newcomers' orientation. Basically, I signed up for a bunch of accounts and took a bunch of online training, and completed a basic lifesaving course. I still have a lot more training to do now that my accounts have mostly been processed. A couple of them I have already taken through CG duties, but now I have to re-do them through the Army's databases. BLECH! Cyber-security awareness, phooey! (Just kidding, Big Brother, I know it is important and I promise to protect PII and not spill sensitive information to the Bad Guys.) I also had to take a FEMA course, but it took a few days to process because FEMA couldn't reconcile my SSN with my last name. Go figure. And my HIPAA training was expired, but I couldn't get in to take a refresher course; the old training kept popping up as completed and the only completion certificate I could get was my old one. These are the kinds of administrative kinks that make me twitchy, but I'm resigned to accepting that things are just different now, and may be redundant, and it's all just part of the process. Eventually I hope to volunteer in the pharmacy and as part of the Red Cross Disaster Assistance Team here; cross your fingers for me!

Oh, and yesterday I went rock-climbing! One of the women I met at the Red Cross Orientation mentioned it; I'd been on the fence, but she told me MWR was on the verge of canceling it due to low registration numbers. So I got to be a hero and save the day! I mean, I succumbed to peer pressure and signed up. Whatever, it was fun. The Outdoor Recreation Center put together a women-only climbing day. For $25 we got transportation to a real live outdoor climbing location (Lumignano, about 20-25 minutes away) and all the gear, plus instruction. It ended up being 4 customers plus two female ODR workers and we had a really fun time. They set us up on 5 different 10-meter routes; nothing too difficult since we were all beginners. I've climbed at a few different indoor gyms, but this was my first outdoor experience and I really enjoyed it. I finished 4 of the routes, but the last one I kept slipping and losing height, and after many attempts I finally gave up even though I only got about 2/3 of the way to the top. Oh well, next time, right?! I'm quite proud of myself. My body is feeling the exertion though. I definitely used some muscles I haven't worked out in a while; it feels great! On the way back to base we stopped at a little cafe and treated ourselves to ice cream. I think I deserved it. :)

Housing...Getting Closer to a Decision

We got up bright and early this morning to view two more rental properties. This time our translator was Luca, who took us out on our first field-trip to view the government-leased house. Our first stop was in Marola, and the home was  listed on the Army's housing website as an apartment. In reality, it was a duplex that felt a lot more like a house. It was pretty darn huge, too. (That's what she said...) It was built in 1981 and is on the corner of a dead-end street. 3-for-3 on the dead ends so far, but I like that they have less traffic and are generally a little quieter. From the street it looked well-maintained, with a tidy wrap-around yard. It had a little concrete wall surrounding it, with a pedestrian gate as well as a vehicle gate. We walked into the foyer and met the landlord, who had been puttering around upstairs, probably opening windows. Mario, I think his name was. Luca asked where we should start, and gestured inwards toward the ground floor, but the landlord ushered us upstairs, "to the living apartments." I thought maybe it was a shared foyer with a neighbor or something, but it turns out the whole ground floor was included. Anyway. Upstairs had a small-ish kitchen, living area, and three bedrooms. The master would be big enough for our enormous American-sized furniture, but we noticed the bathrooms were pretty small with some rinky-looking PVC; we learned it also has a septic tank instead of being connected to the city sewage system. There was a decent balcony upstairs, too. All of the doors and windows have pull-down screens and most had roll-down shutters as well, and there were two little a/cs in the upstairs area. Downstairs was a den/bonus room with a fireplace, laundry, two storage areas, and a double-garage. The garage doors were very narrow though and not automated; I don't know if Tony's Accord could even fit in there. Maybe if we put the side mirrors in. I liked this place. It was bigger than we expected, the layout was nice, and I liked the location. It's only about a block to the bus line which goes right past the main base (which is not where Tony will be working, but is where the commissary and Post Office are located) and into Vicenza proper.

The second place was in Torri di Quartesolo, which is basically one town over from Marola, and a little larger. It was also a duplex, but also felt like a house. It fronted one street and the attached duplex fronted the street behind us, instead of a side-by-side layout. When we pulled up, the landlord (Gino, I think?) was just putting the lawnmower back into his car. The yard wasn't in the best shape, but it had a lot of potential to be very nice. We could tell there was some work going on inside, but we couldn't tell what...turns out the whole place was basically getting upgraded! There were no light fixtures yet, but there were plenty of windows so we could see what was happening. The heating system was upgraded and split into two zones with two thermostats, hot water heater was new, and all the plumbing fixtures were so new they haven't even been installed yet! The kitchen was empty as well, so it'll need cabinets and whatnot. We learned housing provides a dishwasher, stove/oven, and refrigerator, so those would be delivered after we sign the rental agreement. Usually Italian renters bring those things with them. (Side note: In Italy, lease terms are for 4 years, and if you extend, you extend another 4 years.) This one had two different storage closets as well as an outside sort of attached storage area, too. Not like a shed, but like a separate little room only accessible from the outside. There were sliding doors that opened onto a little patio, and next to that was a covered carport. There were lights outside along the carport area, with an automated gate. The landlord told Luca he could change to have them automated via sensor, if we wanted. No a/c, but the landlord said there were two prior to the renovation and that could be negotiated as part of the rental agreement if we wanted. As with the other place we saw today, all the bedrooms were upstairs, though the kitchen, dining, and living areas were downstairs. The layout was a little strange to me though. It was also in a fairly quiet location, and the landlord pointed out Americans living across the street; Luca took us one street over and showed us a row of government-leased properties, as well. The street wasn't a dead-end, so we broke our streak, but it was basically a small loop so there wouldn't be any through-traffic anyway. It felt a little more cramped to me, with neighbors on either side. I think it is also on or close to the main bus line, but I'm not 100% sure. The landlord told Luca the place needed about 10 days before it would be fully ready for us; that's not such a big deal to us as the lease negotiations and utilities set-up takes roughly a week anyway.

So, two more good options! Basically, charmingly-situated older place with nice layout & good storage vs. upgraded, more efficient model.  Both places are on the east side of Vicenza, and either would probably work out to a 20-25 minute commute for Tony. We still have a few more places we are interested in, but only have one more allowable excursion with a translator. After that, we're on our own; the housing office will help us set up appointments with landlords, but transportation and translation are not provided. We are close to a decision, but will sleep on it tonight before we take any action.

Housing...First Look at Private Rentals

Friday afternoon Tony and I met our translator, Fabio, and took a field trip to look at two private rentals. The first was in Cavazzale, slightly to the North of Vicenza proper. We loved the location; it was the center unit of a triplex on a dead-end street, near a small school. To reach the home we had to go past the school and loop around because there were a few one-way streets, and it was all very residential and proper. We pulled up to a beautiful little iron gate as a man in his 60s (or so) was walking out. White hair, cute soccer jacket, engaging smile. He said "Ciao" and spoke to the translator for a few minutes. As it turns out, that was the landlord's brother, and he is in one of the end units.

The first place, built in the mid-1980s, was pretty darn huge. Technically it had three bedrooms, but there was a bonus loft upstairs and a bonus room in the basement. That basement room was AWESOME. It had a sink, a long table set for twelve, and a wood-burning fireplace in the corner. Basically it's the "entertain and feed your guests" room. Poker room, maybe? Most areas of this house, including each of the bedrooms, had very ample balcony space with a nice view of the neighbors' houses. We're talking wisteria vines and brick arches and church steeples in the background. This place is walking distance to the train station and probably walking distance to the grocery store, though it might cross over into better biking distance. Anyway, in between the three rooms upstairs was kind of an awkward walk-through that was set up with a row of wardrobes to be a giant closet and dressing area. You see, houses in Italy don't come with closets, or even much room in the kitchens, for that matter. I keep wondering how they cook all that amazing food in those teeny-tiny kitchens! There was actually some cabinetry and shelving in the bathroom and a closet-sized storage room in the basement next to the laundry room though. Major cons of this place are the fact that it had no lawn or yard whatsoever, and was split into four levels with a very tight and twisty staircase. There is no way that our bedset and mattress would make it up those stairs, and even our dressers would probably be difficult unless they went vertically, and those things are damn heavy. We learned (and sumised) the big stuff would have to go over the balconies via a pulley system. The previous renters were American, as is the other non-family neighbor, and the house is already set-up for AFN satellite and internet.

On to the second place! It was only a mile or two away, in Monticello Conte Otto, and the ride out there felt like going into the country. This one was a lot newer, and in fact has never had any renters. It was a duplex also situated on a dead-end. It's really in a corner, with the duplex neighbor obviously attached and one other house in front of it. The other side was wide open and behind the home is a corn field. Well, actually the field was unplanted but Fabio is pretty sure it will be corn. We opened the car doors and heard yapping- a Napoleonic Chihuahua was announcing his presence in the yard next door. Behind us was an older lady hanging wash; I waved and her two dogs ran up the driveway to say hi, wagging their spotted tails. No barking from them, but we noticed they did leave a present right in front of the pedestrian gate. Nice. What a great welcome. Anyway, inside the gate is a gravel driveway (with a lot of weeds, I should point out), which makes a 90-degree turn into a pretty substantial carport. When we walked into the home there was a foyer with stairs, and the living room to the right. Under the stairs were cupboards (no shelves or hanging rods, though) and to the back was a long and skinny garage. In between the garage and living room were a bathroom and laundry room. Upstairs a very shocking teal dining area, with a very new-looking kitchen. It had a decent amount of storage built-in and a nice balcony. I think it had a retractable awning, but I can't remember - I know the first place had a few of those. Anyway, another bathroom and two bedrooms upstairs. The master would be big enough for the bed, certainly, but no room for the dressers or probably even side tables. Much easier to get everything up those stairs, though. And the other bedroom was probably normal-sized for Italy but on the small side for the states. This house had a nice little yard in the back, though it was quite overgrown. Good place for grilling, catching some sun, playing bocce ball...the layout of the house was a bit more typical than the first one, though I think it's kind of weird to have the kitchen upstairs. Layout would be tricky given our particular collection of furniture and stuff, but we could probably make it work.

So, that was our first foray into the private rental market! Two very nice options. Neither of them really sang to us, though we liked them both. The second one was very attractive, but we'd really have to play some Tetris to get a usable set-up with our furniture. Our next appointment is on Tuesday; we have a confirmation to see one place in the morning, and we have to call the second one tomorrow to double-check. The landlord wasn't home when our housing lady called on Friday; her son answered the phone and asked us to call back after the weekend. Hopefully we can set that up for Tuesday morning as well. We have a couple more options we wouldn't mind looking at, but are approaching the 5-home limit with an interpreter. Keep your fingers crossed!

Housing...Should They or Shouldn't They?

Today we took a field trip off post! We went with our guide/translator Luca to view a government-leased home. I'd call it a townhouse more than a house or duplex. A cute little two-story place in a row of others exactly alike, with a security gate and teeny-tiny yard. Basically, if we want to go government-leased, this iss our only available option, so we have to make a decision whether or not we like it. Otherwise, we decline it, get issued a Statement of No Availability (because it is literally the only one available commensurate with someone of Tony's rank and family structure and they like to give people at least two to choose from), and begin looking for a private rental.

Pros:

Relatively close to Ederle (with Commissary and post office), easy to navigate

Close to town center, shops, restaurants

Very new

Well-built and insulated; built-in screens

Security doors, camera, electric gate

Decent-sized

Tiny yard

Housing maintenance staff on call

Already set-up for all utilities, including satellite AFN TV and internet

Lots of military/English-speaking neighbors

A/c in most rooms

Floor heat

Garage; open parking out front

Multiple, good bathrooms

Cons:

A bit further to Del Din (where Tony will be working) than we were hoping for

Nothing to compare it to at this point

Tiny yard, close proximity to neighbors

Tiny kitchen

Small-ish bedrooms

No internal storage

Rooms not as big as we were hoping for

We lose out on potential extra $ from conserving on utilities

Lots of military/English-speaking neighbors (miss the real Italian experience?)

Sorry, I don't have any pictures, but trust me, it's cute!

So, what do you think?

Bye, house!

I had my last massage at Hand & Stone this evening while Tony stayed behind and did laundry at the hotel. Something is either very wrong or very wonderful about this picture! But now I am relaxed and ready to hit the road early tomorrow morning. Our flight is at 0630, so we will be up and about at the crack of dawn. Actually we'll probably be checked in at the airport before the sun even thinks about appearing.

We also made one last pass by the house today. The mailbox is empty, I collected my flowerpot from the backyard, and everything is locked up for the next owners. Whoever they may be, I hope they show up soon! After that, we swung by the realtor's office to drop off keys, and donated a few more things to the local Goodwill. The attendant commented about the flowerpot being wet...hello, it's been raining for the last four days! To be fair, it's probably more because I rinsed it out with a hose before putting it in the rental car, but I did attempt to dry it off first.

It really hit home that this is really good-bye. We had lunch with some friends today, and Jamba Juice with another friend later this afternoon. It's not good-bye forever though, just for now! I'm sure our paths will cross again, and I hope this isn't the last I see of Washington. I can't say I'll miss the weather, but it's been a fun ride. I caught my first salmon here (on a fly rod! Thanks, Shane!), and made an awful lot of life changes in this neck of the woods. This is no time to be scmoopy though...as I always say, I'm trying not to be sad that it's over; I'm trying to be happy that it happened. Now, on to the next adventure!

I like how he rolled his cuffs.

Bye, house! I will miss you!