An Adventure of an Aged Lady

“No distance of place nor lapse of time can lessen the friendship of those who are thoroughly persuaded of each other’s worth.”
Robert Southey, English Poet 1774-1843

Yesterday Chris’s post was entitled “I am Where I’m Meant to Be”.
This immediately transported me back to 2013 and my brief sojourn in Florence.

At the time, I ws beginning to be bored and at 75 decided that if life was to change, I had to make the changes. I determined o go to Florence for two, maybe three months. So I sold the house – it was 100 plus years old and one cannot leave a tenant to attend to the many and varied things that require attention on such an aged property. I note I use that word aged to describe both the property and me.

I had a month with my sister in London before I set off on my adventure.

But back to being where I was meant to be.

I knew nobody in Italy and didn’t speak the language. I did have a compact disc to help me with pronunciation and several guide and phrase books. I booked into a total immersion school for six weeks. No English was to be spoken once over the doorstep. And I booked an apartment for two months in a suburb. Not for me the centre of Florence amongst ‘i turisti’ – (the tourists). In the suburb nobody spoke English and my Italian was virtually non existent, so rapid learning was called upon. Thus all set and Florence, adventure,undaunted, I set forth.

On Day 10 and by now feeling confident finding my way around (note here I got lost only twice during my stay) I went to the railway station to find out about trains to Siena. (another note – Italians spell Siena with only one N). Then leaving the station, I saw a big red double-decker sightseeing bus. For just 20 Euros you could travel all day getting on and off as many times as you wished.

I stayed on until we reached Piazzale Michelangelo.  I was totally amazed/blown away/awe-struck at the sight that confronted me.  Spread out before me was Florence and from this high vantage point it all looked like Lilliput but clearly defined, and with the Tuscan countryside spreading out behind it like a theatrical backdrop.

And here’s the thing. From my blog post of October 18, 2013

“Lunch today was taken at a table overlooking the Duomo and all of Florence.  I ordered a Pizza e funghi (mushroom pizza) e acqua frizzante (sparkling water).  And as I sat in the sunshine looking at that view I experienced one of those rare moments of pure joy, knowing I was exactly where I was meant to be at that particular moment in time. My pizza and water tasted like manna from heaven  because of that.“

And from Mary Oliver –

“It is a serious thing just to be alive
/on this fresh morning in this broken world.” 

JB December 16, 2021