To the Water

Soon after returning to Italy, a small group of visiting friends arrived, each family with a gaggle of children. Okay. Anything above one is a gaggle in my book. There were five in total in the two families. We were fortunate to spend nearly every waking hour for two days with these lovely people, with some local friends smattered in a time or two. And in case you haven't noticed, it is HotHotHot right now in these parts. We had to find water.

Love this! Young One is encouraging the young man to "Hurry up, already!"
Leaping off of cliffs takes a bit of time for some people, no doubt. Nine year olds have no fear!

Terme di Giunone
One day we drove out to Terme di Giunone in Caldiero, province of Verona...near Soave. Still lovely as ever. Still a favorite water park option for my family as it is a perfect combination of chlorinated water slides (for little & big people) and spring water-filled ancient Roman baths with a great playground, multiple lawns, and plenty of shade. And coolers are welcome. Admission is also reasonable: 9Euro/adults; 6Euro/children on this day. (Sorry, I don't really have photos.)


La Pria
The second water day was spent at a gorge in Arsiero (province of Vicenza) at the River Astico in an area commonly referred to as La Pria. The Torrente Astico originates in Trentino and is as frigid as it is wonderfully clean. Daredevils (and nine year olds) flock to the area during the hottest parts of summer for a bit of sunbathing, cliff diving, and relaxing among friends. We also spotted several pairs of SCUBA divers making their ways along the deeply carved river.

La Pria is indeed a beautiful little piece of nature...and it's absolutely free! While swimming is certainly allowed, it is nearly impossible as the water is frigid. Alpine frigid. The kids did it anyway. We brought picnics and umbrellas (that we wedged between a couple of rocks) along with our gang of children and one visiting dog.

We followed the lead of the friends who brought us there and headed for the area on the left at the end of a wee trail and not near the big bridge where most of the crowd gathered. My girl loved this place. There is a bar of sorts with snacks and drinks but I imagine its hours are spotty. We were there on a Sunday when the place was full of visitors, mostly 20-somethings, but there still seemed to be enough space for everyone. We hope to return before the end of the season.

Hot@Home

This kiddo is happy to be back with her Italian peeps, and they have welcomed her home to the paese with gusto. No one here has a pool, and to go to a pool costs money and takes time and "We're going to the seaside next week anyway." So. Where there is a will there is a way, right?

It's good to be home. Tonight we are going to a block party with 140 of our neighbors in the paese. Down in the piazzetta, right past the tiny grocery store. Don't try coming up our hill because the road will be closed, my friends. Party in the paese.

PS. They are going to the seaside. Remember beautiful Caorle? We will just melt here and wish we were at the seaside with the rest of the citizens of Veneto.

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body image @ the pool

We met up with some friends at the American pool today, the pool inside the guarded area of the military housing complex; it's not my favorite place to visit, but I went for the sake of the friendships.

As we were prepping to leave, Young One was quite upset because she was unable to locate the top half of a particular swim suit, the one that offers the most coverage without being a one piece, the one we bought in the States. When I suggested that she just wear the other bikini, the one with far less coverage, the one bought in a local Italian store, she absolutely refused. She has worn both all summer, mostly in Italy. After a bit of conversation between us and some pressure from me, including a reminder that she was entirely comfortable in this swim suit and with going topless at the beach and pool in both Caorle and Ischia, she told me that Americans wear different swim suits and when she is with them, she wants to be like them. "I don't want to be different, Mamma." Fair enough.

Topless with Matteo in Ischia 

We reached a solution when she found a suit tucked away for next year that is a bit big now. I let her wear it.

After a couple of hours at the pool, I noticed the young lifeguards on the other side of the pool preoccupied with something near us. I looked around and all seemed well. Kids were well-behaved...adults, too. I could not imagine the source of their concern. Eventually one of the young lifeguards came over to tell the German mother next to us that her toddler must wear a bottom at all times. The baby was maybe 18 months old. The baby was not in the pool. The baby was not running around like a crazed kid. It was break time, and her mother removed her swim diaper for a bit. She must wear a bottom. It's the rule. (Ironically, she didn't require a swim diaper bottom, you know, for the purposes of hygiene. No, just a bottom, even while hanging out on the deck with your Mom and her friends.) What the heck?

With Crazy Cousins at Grandma and Paw's Pool

Later, as we were leaving, an Italian friend arrived at the pool with a gang of his visiting in-laws and his two young boys. (Both wore bottoms, by the way.) I just happened to be near a couple of the young lifeguards when one of the well-tanned bikini-clad aunts ( in her late 50's) entered the pool. Those teens snickered and sneered and giggled...obviously bothered by the body of the woman. What the heck?

...................

Young One already feels the different attitudes about body image between the two cultures. Those teens are simply products of our American culture. I just hope with all my heart that my girl is blessed to be able to choose Italian on this one and reject all those Puritan influences that haunt American culture today.

PS. If you think I'm suggesting that I think she should be running topless at the American pool or on a beach with Matteo when she is sixteen, then you have sorely missed the point! And I have no doubt that Italian women deal with body image issues as well. What I experienced today is somehow a separate issue from those. 

i love late summer

It's the time of year that we reacquaint with friends that we haven't seen for most of the summer months. In some cases, these are the very same friends who become our families throughout the year ... the ones with whom we share holidays and vacations across Europe, the ones whose children Young One has known since she was a toddler, the ones who understand and accept our ways of life because of the shared (expat) experiences. During summer, we barely even communicate and never, ever see each other as we each go our own ways, with some spending the entire summer in the arms of family Stateside. As one friend pointed out the other night, it's as though we all lead multiple lives: the Stateside ones and the Italy (or Europe) ones. I guess we do, in a sense.

This is about the time that everyone returns. It's a sweet time for us. This year we've been lucky to have a couple of extra families in the mix, ones who once lived here and are passing through on summer travels, so it's been even sweeter.

Another thing we also seem to fit in at this time of summer is a visit or two to one of the local (-ish) water parks. With the unrelenting heat, there is not much more to do than hit the water...or at least that's what all the children believe to be true. Just listen to the squeals...you can't deny that joy!

Are you still enjoying summer? I know a few people who have returned to school ALREADY! Yes, already!

@ the seaside

We are at the seaside in northern Italy this week where the sky is bluer, the water is fresher, the breeze is cooler, the friends are happier, the Prosecco is bubblier, the sun is brighter ... I dare say the grass is greener. In love.

 

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cool, clean & free : water

Public water spigots can be found in most of Italy, though I don't think we have one in the paese. It sure was nice to find these, which are good for both a cool drink and a refreshing splash in the face, in Verona Friday.