The August Exodus

Time for a break from Korea. I've been back in Bologna for three weeks, and have been trying to combine work and summertime. So far that's meant one day at the beach, another day at a pool in the hills, and lots of days spent staring at a computer. Oh well. The culture of summer here is somehow more frenzied than in the States. Because of obsessive beach visiting, everyone is extremely tan. Proof: not only is sunscreen exorbitantly expensive, but the SPF system is skewed. My SPF 20 is marked as "high protection", whereas SPF 6 is seen as "adequate". SPF 20 is not high, and any self-respecting recovering sun worshipper like myself knows that SPF 6 practically worthless. All this aside, I'm conscious of the fact that compared to everyone else, I'm white as a ghost.

I've started to look out for wrinkles, but somehow Italians aren't really more wrinkly than we are. How is that possible?

This is one of the most famous meeting spots in Bologna, at the Neptune Fountain. I loved it the first time a friend told me to meet her at the "culo di Nettuno" - Neptune's ass.


All the photos on this entry are from a photo assignment that I did for my boss - to be used for future photo assignments, I had to prove that I could take a picture. So I was asked to create a photo study of Bologna, in a way that would appeal to tourists (as this would ideally be my job). It went well, though it's still unclear (this being Italy) what photos I'll be taking in the future. It was great to get a chance to take photos of Bologna - it's something I haven't done enough, and it helped me see how gorgeous this city is.

This is San Luca, a church perched on the hills outside Bologna. It was originally a pilgrimage site, and you can walk here all the way from the center of the city - and be covered by a portico the whole time! There are 600+ arched porticoes on the way, some with little altars inside. It's beautiful - especially because it becomes a reference point as you enter and leave the city. At night, as you approach Bologna, you know you're getting close when you see the lights of San Luca glittering in the hills. It's visible from the train, the highways, you name it.


The portico walk:


There is some news, which is that I have two new roommates. The first is Massimo's new girlfriend, Paola. By "new" I mean that they got together a few months ago; he promptly asked her to move in. Their relationship is so, so much less dramatic than the Massimo-Lucia scene of a few months ago that I'm really enjoying my peaceful home. Paola's job is also super interesting (to me, at least): she's a lawyer and recently has been concentrating in immigration law. In Italy right now, being an immigration lawyer guarantees you a lot of work and almost no pay - Paola usually asks her clients to pay her around €100 for every job she takes (some may last for weeks or months). It's been really fascinating for me to be able to ask her questions about the legal process for immigrants in Italy - I've also translated some documents for her, which was both riveting and depressing - they were asylum applications for two Nigerian kids who had had some terrible experiences.

In September, a new roommate from Puglia will move in. Her name is Francesca. Thus the household will go back to its original state, with 4 inhabitants. It hasn't been that full since March.

August in Bologna is super empty, but it's been nice to see a different side of the city, and spend time with new friends. Since most of my close foreign friends are away on vacation, I'm getting an intensive dose of Italian culture. This has mainly been demonstrated through dramatics - for example, debating driving methods with Massimo after he declared that he "has never once braked while driving" due to his excellent stick shift skills. He still refuses to back down. Does he really think that he doesn't use his brakes? I don't want to get in a car with him ever again. Massimo also moped around the house telling me and Paola that his mother may have had a stroke. We felt terrible. Later it turns out that she swam 10 laps in the pool, for which she is too old/not fit enough, and had a moment of dizziness. That's all. His mother continues to do her laps.

One of my favorite new characters is Paola's coworker, Pau. She recently bought a new yellow Vespa - it's gorgeous. However, she's still lamenting the loss of her old Vespa, which she'd had for years. It was named Camilla. After a few gin and tonics, she told us this story of Camilla's demise:

Pau drove Camilla to a metal impactor (?? is that the right name??). It was in a basement, and Pau got upset when she smelled the moldy, stale air. She had to leave Camilla in a dark corner. As she left her, Pau got teary-eyed. The owner, trying to comfort her, told her not to worry - Camilla would be reborn. He said (as Pau quotes): "One day you'll open a can of tuna and hear it crying, 'Hello Pau, it's Camilla!'" Apparently this pushed the already-vulnerable Pau into a real emotional crisis and she started sobbing. The owner, who didn't understand why she was upset, repeated the tuna can line a few times. Pau left in tears - and almost cried while telling the story! But she looks at every tuna can differently now . . . I suppose it's possible that she'll see Camilla in another form, right?