Sicilia = Multa ospitalita

7/2/11


Modica, Sicilia

As the sun beats down on the patio outside this window, not even a wisp of a cloud in the sky; with my stomach full of pasta al dente, gorgonzola, and the world's best arance (oranges); and with the aroma of cafe still in my nostrils; I cannot help but reflect on how lucky I am to be living such a life. To those on the outside, it might seem difficult, dangerous, or downright crazy - and there certainly are elements of each of those things -, but in the end I acknowledge that I am experiencing a special and priveleged life, one that benefits from the kindness of all people. Indeed, an English girl I met yesterday asked me what the best part of traveling is, and I know I am repeating myself for the tenth time, but I answered that meeting people from around the world and being open to their generosity and warmth has been by far the most rewarding experience by far. Here are two stories to illustrate the awesome power of "random" kindness.


First, let's go back 4 days to February 3. Oh, look, it's my birthday, but I'm so far from home; what's a lad to do? I was staying in a hostel in Catania, which was in the middle of its annual festival of Sant'Agata. At this hostel, I had met a man from Austria who was a veritable encyclopedia when it comes to festivals all over the world, which is why he knew to come to Sicilia for February 3. Then there was a Sicilian from the center of the island who was trying to find work due to the problems of unemployment that are the same in Italy as in America. He was extremely kind and very grateful to have met such friendly people, and he even invited us to a friend's flat for some pasta al dente with pesto (I'm back with pesto, baby!). We met on my birthday two more cats, one by the name of Johan who is originally from France but lives in Munich and will be doing his own bike trip in California later in the year, and the other known as Ellie, who is actually from Chicago and is about my age. Andy made it a point that we celebrate the birthday in some way, for which I am very grateful, as I am not one to convince people to celebrate my life with me. It just so happens that on the night of my birthday, a huge and wonderful celebration was to take place in the main square. We headed down some 30 minutes early and almost were without space to wiggle our big toes if we so wanted. After a lackluster choir concert, which I could not hear too well, there followed two of the best birthday presents I got: a surprise tray of pastries with a candle burning on top, and the most magnificent fireworks/water/fire show I have ever seen. It was synchronized with the most epic of classical music, which made for a potent brew. For some reason the bass was turned all the way up and reminded me of when the Wu Tang Klan came out to Harvard for a concert. After the show, we headed to a bar for a beer and just had a great time together: the four of us from different backgrounds and there for different reasons, all enjoying life together for the moment.

The second story is even more wonderful, but I have very little time to recap it. Suffice it to say that I was riding on a busy road in some wonderful scenery, then turned off for a less traveled path, where I met a fellow biker who took me to an even less seldom traversed road that brought me by all sorts of rural castles (in truth!). We rode into Modica, a beautiful city in a valley with Baroque buildings, and set about replenishing our energies with some 'za ('zza?). In discovering the rest of the city, my cyclist friend, who was perhaps 40, also helped me find lodging for the night. When a B&B failed, he asked a lady hanging up her clothes to dry for another B&B, and she instead offered her home to me. Wow, right? But wait, there's more!

Later, we met these two English girls who had quit high school and came to be au pairs (a pair o'u pairs?) here in Modica. We four walked the streets while the sun set and saw some wonderful sights. The man left, and the girls and I walked around for a bit more before calling it a night. The next morning, I accompanied this woman to her school to teach her high school English class for the day, talking about Chicago, America, my trip, and what we think of Berlusconi (Burlawho? but really he's a terrible man and the current leader of Italy). Great, eh? BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE!

After class, I was planning my route in my head that I was about to take, when one of the girls came up to the teacher and offered her house to me for the night. Would I enjoy staying with her family? Of course! By the way, I just have to say that Italian girls are very beautiful, having that natural beauty that you don't see in models. I walked around for a bit until school got out, then I accompanied her and her brother to their house in the hills.

After a quick lunch of pasta and Gorgonzola, we chilled out for a bit and then went to a neighboring town to visit some relatives of theirs, specifically their grandparents and cousins. My oh my, this visit was amazing, and I have truly never experienced anything like it! Everyone was interested in what I was doing, and they were all very patient (nay, they even enjoyed it!) with my difficulty in speaking complete sentences in Italian and a few stumbling blocks when it came to understanding (Sicilian is kinda hard when I've been used to other dialects of Italian to this point). The coolest part was the little boy, Luigi, who was around 9 years old and loved to tell me jokes. He also made me a paper airplane and really wanted to sit next to me at dinner, where we had pizza (very similiar to back home, actually, except much less cheese and everybody gets their own small pizza). I can't fully describe how wonderful I felt and how amazing of an experience this was, but I hope that this can show a bit of how good it was: When we were getting ready to leave, everyone wanted to take multiple pictures of the moment and the entire group gathered together, and I had multiple goodbyes that felt like I were leaving a lifelong friend. They treated me as part of the family. And they made certain that I would be welcoming them when they came to visit Chicago, which I most certainly will!

Ah, there are pictures to accompany all of this, but I am not on my computer at the moment, as has mostly been the case here in Sicilia. Oh well. Until next time, say hi to a stranger or invite someone over for an evening where you normally wouldn't. I mean that! That encounter proved to me how important a relaxed and endless evening with family and friends is to health, wellbeing, and happiness.