A Morning of Dental Chores Today I had a full social agenda, preceded by a morning getting my dental x-rays. I rode my city bike to the Centro Odontoiatrico Radiologico (the dental x-ray lab) in Porta Romana, just outside the city wall of Florence. The office was modern and well organized. Although they were expecting me, there was some confusion as to what kind of x-rays I needed, because their system had been "down" for 2 days and they couldn't look it up. So I spent the next half hour trying to contact my dentist, whose phone rang off the hook. Luckily I made contact with Luca, who called me back with the information. He told me that I needed a "panoramica". The receptionist asked for my identification and I gave her my Carta d'Identità. Then I entered into a room that had a very modern looking x-ray machine like I had never seen before. The machine walked around my face, while taking a complete set of x-rays, all in one photo. Then I went back into the waiting room and about 10 minutes later, the technician brought me a large envelope with my own personal set of x-rays. He told me that a digital image would be sent to my dentist, and that this set was for my own records. I thought that was neat, because in the U.S., you never get your own copy, even though you pay for it. The whole set of x-rays cost 45€, which I thought was pretty reasonable.
A Neighborly Visit
Then I pedaled over to the San Ambrogio outdoor market near my casa, where I bought a baby gift for Giorgio, the newborn son of my neighbors, Samanta and Riccardo, who invited me over for caffè and dolce this afternoon. I've been very excited about this invitation, because it is the first time that anybody in my building has invited me into their homes. For me, it's another sign of progress. Samanta lived in this house all her life and then it was passed down from her mother. All 7 families who live in my building are wealthy long-time Florentines whose families have owned these apartments for generations. I am the only renter. They don't accept foreigners very easily. They tend to stick to themselves. But they've seen me coming and going now for a year, and they are finally accepting me and allowing me into their worlds. What a great feeling.
Their home was beautiful, on 3 levels with a terrace that offered beautiful views of Florence, true to its original 15th century character, but the inside was renovated to look more like an upper west side apartment. Riccardo owns a transportation business and Samanta just got her tourist guide license, which requires 2 years of school and the passing of a test which requires in-depth knowledge of Florentine art, history, museums, and culture. She is a bonafide expert and her passion for Florence is obvious. Samanta explained a few things that I didn't know about my own street. She explained to me that my street is a historical landmark because it was Florence's first street. It is called a Borgo instead of a street, because borgo means "the main east-west street that approaches a city and enters its center." So, in the Roman days, there were only two streets, the north-south street and the east-west "borgo", which is why my street is named Borgo degli Albizi. She told me that underneath the street lies layers and layers of Roman and medieval ruins, which is why it is so difficult for the road to be maintained....the city doesn't want to disturb the history that lies beneath.
Their home was beautiful, on 3 levels with a terrace that offered beautiful views of Florence, true to its original 15th century character, but the inside was renovated to look more like an upper west side apartment. Riccardo owns a transportation business and Samanta just got her tourist guide license, which requires 2 years of school and the passing of a test which requires in-depth knowledge of Florentine art, history, museums, and culture. She is a bonafide expert and her passion for Florence is obvious. Samanta explained a few things that I didn't know about my own street. She explained to me that my street is a historical landmark because it was Florence's first street. It is called a Borgo instead of a street, because borgo means "the main east-west street that approaches a city and enters its center." So, in the Roman days, there were only two streets, the north-south street and the east-west "borgo", which is why my street is named Borgo degli Albizi. She told me that underneath the street lies layers and layers of Roman and medieval ruins, which is why it is so difficult for the road to be maintained....the city doesn't want to disturb the history that lies beneath.
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Giorgio was sleeping while the 3 of us got to know each other better over a caffè and a pear torte that Samanta baked, which was splendida! When Giorgio woke up, I got the chance to coddle him for a while before he fell back asleep again. I hope that Samanta and I will become good friends. It is a great feeling to have good, friendly neighbors.
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Caffè With Rebecca
I was planning on getting some work done today, but Rebecca called me to see if I would like to take a caffè with her....that she was working too hard and needed a break. So we met at the bar down the block for an hour and caught up with each other. Rebecca is on the same bike team and she is starting her own textile business, but in the meantime, she translates documents from Italian to English to get her by, while establishing her private company.
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Dinner with Angella
Angella and I are becoming good friends, since we met in April. Angella is one of the people who sublet my apartment while I was back in California this winter. Then when I came back to Florence, we connected and have been developing a strong relationship. Angella is Bulgarian by blood but has been living in San Diego, and in the past 2 years has been working here in Italy in the real estate and tourism industry. She enjoys alot ot the things that I do, such as classical music and opera. Tonight we met up for dinner at La Giova, a restaurant in my neighborhood that I've been wanting to try. I've seldom seen a tourist in there, and it was recommended to me by one of my Florentine friends, so we checked it out, and had an excellent meal. Angella had the duck with pomegranates and I had an outstanding baccala which sat on a bed of arugula and a ceci that was very similar to a Sicilian panelle.
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