Life as an Italian

My last post left off in a small Tuscan town just north of Pisa. Lucca, Italy. I spent three full weeks in the splinded city living in small apartment right in the heart of the town. If you're looking for the Italian town that depicts romantized Italy, Lucca is your destination. It's not a city overrun by tourists but one in which the restaurants, gelaterias, churches are very much maintained by the locals. It was easy to feel immersed. A part of the crowd. There was less English spoken here than most other touristy areas of Italy. I can't tell you how many times I was approached with a flash of Italian words, and all I could do was give the dumb American look and with a smile say "no Italiano". Sometimes this meant that we just understood each other through a mutual language barrier. Neither understanding the other's way of speaking, and it was ok. The universal use of English is so often used as a crutch when abroad; and without it being a constant, I actually made some small (very small) headway in my Italian. There is nothing more satisfying than being able to communicate what you need in the native language. 

So twenty-one days in this amazing little city, and I can say that I had the true Italian experience. I lived with a host named Juan Pablo, a native of Chile who has lived in Lucca for nearly thirty years. He rents out three rooms in his antique apartment to travelers stopping through Lucca. With the amount of time I was there, I met some pretty cool people just in the apartment. That revolving door I spoke of before.. Not sure I ever want to live without it now. It has a place and a perspective, but it is special and has already enriched my life in so many ways. 

My first week was spent recovering from the Italian marathon of cities I had run the previous week. I rented a bike which would be my only form of transportation as it is for many of the locals. One of the most appealing trademarks of this town is the 500 year old medieval wall that closes it off from anything other than bicycles and pedestrians. No cars allowed on the main city streets. Although, even without cars, bicycle/pedestrian traffic is still a lot like Frogger especially when the bicycle driver hasn't ridden a bike in probably ten years :/ A wobbly first few days, but by the end of my stay I was the pro swerving the crowd with as many bottles of wine that would fit in the front basket. Anyways, week one was about finding some routine. Mostly good routine: groceries, laundry, gym, showering everyday. Life. There was some routine, however, that came back all to quickly. With constant, reliable wifi I found myself drawn old social networking habits.  Habits from which I had just days before felt so liberated. Browsing Facebook, Instagram, and twitter simply because they were easy to access. I won't lie, there were days in Lucca where I spent a lot of the day on my ipad, and those days are the only days I have regretted thus far. Maybe things feel a little more extreme over here because living life here means seeing and experiencing new things daily, and maybe the regret here is a little stronger than it would be at home. It shouldn't be though. A day lost is a day lost regardless of the life you're living. When I'm consumed in the lives of all of my friends, I'm missing out on the here, now, this of my own life. I've been okay with that for too long. I've deleted all of the social networking apps from my phone, and I'm Focusing on directing my full attention on each day and the people who cross my path in the present. This may be one the most rewarding realizations for me over here, and one that I will carry home with me. Here. Now. This. All of the time. 

The remainder of my time in Lucca was spent exploring. I had the opportunity to hear the Dalai Lama speak in Livorno, Italy. I did the Leaning Tower in Pisa, the Duomo in Florence, and a part of the five city hike in Cinque Terre. I made friends with the bicycle rental guy who would trade my basket-equipped city bike for a road bike, and I went on a few too many bike and wine tours. Biking through the Tuscan hills actually became one of my favorite ways to spend the day. New respect for all of you cyclists out there by the way. My bum stayed sore. I could have used some of those fancy padded pants for sure. I cooked numerous Italian dinners with Pablo and whatever guests were there at the time. I Indulged in the Italian slow food experience several times. Five course meals across a four or five hour span. More of an event than a meal. And of course I worked out :)

 

I found an Italian home at Crossfit Lucca. The gym was about 4 miles from the city walls. My first day in Lucca, I was under the impression that there was a bus that would get me close. I waited for about forty-five minutes at the bus stop. No bus. So what does any crossfitter do.. I took off walking. Not really sure where I was going with the exception of a Google maps screen shot that I had taken before leaving the apartment. I left about 5 pm hoping to make the 6 pm class. I barely made the 8 pm class. One of the great things about crossfitting around Europe is that it definitely gets you off of the beaten tourist path (aka lost, and the people are just phenomenal. Roberto and Carlos are the two trainers at Crossfit Lucca, and they welcomed me with open arms. They actually laughed at me for walking and kindly found me a ride home that first night. The bike made the trip much more feasible and allowed for a scenic twenty minute warm up and cool down every day. There were a lot of great training days in Lucca even though I swear everything is heavier in Kilos, and that surely couldn't be the result of my increased wine consumption :) Regardless, a month and half of traveling so far, and I've been able to maintain a consistent schedule the entire time. Still getting stronger half a world away from my home. There is no other sport that would allow me as a recreational athlete to continue to train while I made this journey. None. Other travelers think I'm crazy, but they don't realize that it's so much more than just working out. It's about friendship and camaraderie. The Crossfit community is real. And it's worldwide.