thanks yo

USA- Hungary- Netherlands- Austria- Romania- Ecuador- France- Italy

Thank you for showing the love! I am not sure why but y’all are reading this but it makes me feel special knowing that you take the time and do :3

I want you to know that I have 16 drafts… so it’s not that I haven’t been writing. But I don’t go back and edit especially when it isn’t for the public e.g. contemplative topics.

It was spring break and life is ridiculous. Remember my last post where it was 3-5 AM, inside Mickey D’s? Well, we went from homeless to Vienna penthouse in 4 hours. The apartment  in the first district of Vienna, overlooking an offset of the Danube. After arrival, we took showers and toured the city with my cousin who lives in Gratz(two hours away from Vienna).

Now, before I make this a real blog post, I will warn you that it isn’t. I will be posting one, each day, for the next few days with the purpose of filling you in on our spring break whereabouts. Rather, this post is about thankfulness.

S U R P R I S E ! Happy Thanksgiving!

I know, I know… I never intended to be one of those “list writers”. To be frank, I never considered writing but this being the age of internet gives me an opportunity to be candid and I quite enjoy the idea of being published and unable to take back words- it makes me think twice. Or not. The risk factor does intrigue me. In any case, spring break has reminded me about how blessed I am. We had a few near catastrophes and bumped into a few unconventional situations but the truth is that I’m still not as thankful as I should be.

Florence isn’t my favorite spot but it makes a great home base. Reba and I were discussing it in the train on the way home from Milan (which was boring as far as activities go but immensely enjoyed due to the weather, beds, showers, etc). We have come to the conclusion that Florence has given us the opportunity to be more appreciative of things you wouldn’t think twice about, normally, as a contrast. I hope you enjoy my list or if anything, I hope you realize how blessed you are.

1. Good Weather

The interpretation of “good weather” is subjective, I understand. Personally, the simple presence of the sun can fix almost any situation. Florence deprived me of this for over a month. Needless to say, it was torture especially on my spirit. The moment I felt the sun on my face- maybe I was just vitamin D deficient- I felt significantly happier. This is not to say that I’m not joyful because I very much so am. It was simply easier and I felt brighter(this is a sentiment easier to express in latin but that’s a discussion for another day). When we got back to Florence, the weather was supposed to be raining. That dampened my mood for a second. Hahahahhaahhahahahaha get it? Dampened. Wow, I’m so funny. So, our heads hung low for approximately 2.5 seconds. For Reba, maybe 5 seconds since the humidity was abnormally high. I enjoy humidity. I don’t get icky from it so it hasn’t prosed as an issue. As we stepped out of the train, we took a deep breathe and noticed how gentle the air felt. There was no curt wind threatening some sort of ailment. It was mild and pleasant. Okay, enough of this neutral topic of weather.

2. Beds

Honestly, my bed at homehomehome and I don’t have such an intimate relationship. It’s more of a gathering point where my friends, family, and I sing quite often in fact. It’s queen sized. I have absolutely never realized how awesome that is. I tried to convince my friends( that’s right, my mommy gave me permission but my friends did not) to revert to a twin size. I had one back in the elementary school days. It was a bunk bed with my sister who was not fond of sharing a queen with me. She also happened to kick me out of “our” room when I turned 12. #notsalty #noshade #whatever

From this, you can probably gather that I’m not used to sleeping alone. Good because I’m not. So the issue with having my own room(which most students covet????) started with sleeping alone. Next, the bed was a terrible twin. I mean, if the room were warm this wouldn’t have been as big of an issue but it was freezing. The bed, itself, happened to be made of pins and needs( yes, hyperbole- I am capable of it).Two weeks ago, I moved into the living room which( yes, we are also very blessed) has 3 couches. This is so #rare. A few nights before we left for spring break, Reba moved into the couch parallel to mine, across the living room so two issues have been resolved a) bye-bye bad bed and b) it’s like a forever sleepover with your best friend that literally sticks closer than a brother. The couch isn’t comfortable but it’s better than the bed. When we get to the Air B&B’s, we get to appreciate beds. By the way, my bed at homehomehome has a name: Heaven, appropriately named by Grampa( Lisa or Lysol or whatever your nickname for her happens to be).

3) McD’s

Manga Manga Abbodanza! Not really, actually. The food in Italy isn’t half as spectacular as you’ve been told. Sorry to break it to you. Maybe this is because I’m a brat that gets to live here and is exposed to it everyday but as far as I’m concerned, you can definitely get a taste of the top 5 restaurants in an area and be done with it. Either way, nothing is open 24 hours unless you’re going to a bar which I have not and will not. There are a few bakeries that open from 2-4 AM but there aren’t any establishments meant for late night munchies… or when you’re stuck at the train station for an extended period of time. Another thing is that it’s quite pricey here. The Milan McD’s was my least favorite with Germany(Frankfurt) being my #1 and Vienna being my #2.

Mickey D’s, the great Mc Donalds, fast food extraordinaire, I almost love you. You have great wifi, are open 24 hours, and are clean. Too bad I’ll never go for you back in the states.

I don’t really eat fast-food at home. I try to support local joints or establishments that support local farms, clean energy, non GMO ingredients, etc. But in europa, McD’s is elite.

4) Fruit

I want my avocado trees. I want to be able to eat berries whenever I want, fresh berries.

My family keeps sending me photos of avocados. The world is cruel.

5) Hipster Coffee Places

They’re so pretentious but so perfect at the same time. Here, coffee is a commonality. There are very few artisans that give coffee the prestige that it deserves( shout out to Ditta Artigianale) but other than that, the average cafe gives more attention to the humble expresso. Expresso promotes quick, easy, and out the door. I like expresso but I like vibes+ chill more. I miss having elaborate vegetation as art at Blue Bottle. I miss the aesthetic of St Franks on Polk St. I want the quality of Bicycle Coffee, with love behind every cup. I need the activity that Ritual Roasters in Hayes Valley attracts. Keep up the A+ quality!

Coffee is blasé here as is art, architecture, food, anything that I am accustomed to constant competition and improvement about. Does that make sense? In a way, Italy isn’t going to be my favorite destination simply because it is complacent. Italy knows that is has the Vatican, 51 UNESCO world heritage sites, 60 % of the worlds art, and so much more. However, Italy doesn’t want more. The youth are discouraged to attain higher education in technical skills. It’s disheartening. There is no range of anything. Yes, brava for preservation of culture and blah but how long can you live in the past without feeling the negative affects of regression? At this rate, Italy could backtrack to developing.

Jk the Vatican won’t let that happen, ever. Or maybe the Vatican would move? France? Nah, not catholic enough. They can’t be sold religion there. #saltysaltysaltysalty

I digress a lot. I’ve noticed.

6) Smiling

The only time people smile is when it’s a dude that’s trying to hit on you. Otherwise, Italians are quite cold, loud, and entitled. This is more common in the North and amongst older folks. Coincidentally, I’ve seen more old people than children.

Americans are so nice. Why?!??!?! How?!?!!?!? Say you walk somewhere; more than likely, you’ll walk into fellow human beings that may smile at you, say hello or nice day, or nod in  acknowledgement that you, too, are human. Holding the door for others is expected. Shoulder checking doesn’t happen. Manners are observed and discrimination is politically incorrect.

Truthfully speaking, equality is overrated. I’d love for it to happen but communism, in it’s purest form, cannot be attained without society transforming to a dystopia so nice try @blacklivesmatter it ain’t gonna happen.

7) Paved Roads

Cobblestone is sometimes cute. That is a lie. Cobblestone is not cute. Cobblestone is bad. When it rains, cobblestone is the worst. When it rains and you’re walking a mile to the train station, cobblestone is your worst enemy. We don’t like cobblestone.

#firstworldproblems

It’s not that Florence is crazy or that Italians are particularly off-putting( low-key …) but these are a few of.. well… these count as culture shocks, right?

goodnight

 

no, i don’t proofread posts that get published. it’s ironic but oh well.