Look'n Good...maam
I walk past a 7-11 every morning on my way to work. Not sure what it is but there is always someone standing in front of it asking for change. I generally don't give out change, I may occasionally give out an apple or a granola bar if I have one with me, but I always smile and say hi. This morning was no different but as I walk past, the man standing out there yells out, "look'n good Maam, have yourself a good day" I am not sure if I should be flattered or not, the looking good is nice but the maam. Do I look like a maam?
Tuesday, October 04, 2011
Adventures in Italy
The last thing my sister said to me before I left for Italy was be safe and don't talk to random men. Of course for some reason in my life that is unavoidable. Plus it makes for great stories for my friends.
I was wandering the streets of Florence not really with a destination in mind. I was just wandering around watching people and trying to absorb the sights of Italy. As I was walking towards the Piazza Republico, I spy a man holding an umbrella but all over the umbrella were silver things. As I got closer I realized it was earrings that he had stuck in the umbrella and he was selling them for 2 Euros. Given my jewelry addiction and my travel tradition to pick up earrings for my friends, I had to stop and look. The man turned out to be pretty friendly and was very patient while I closely examined each and every pair so that I could pick the right ones for my friends. He held up a few to me and had this big grin on his face. The man was from Bangladesh but he did not speak much English and I didn't speak any Italian but somehow in the span of 10 mins I had a marriage proposal. He first made sure that I was old enough for him, found out where I was from, how long I was going to be in Italy for and then asked me if I would marry him. Perhaps it was the dimples or perhaps it was to get me to buy earrings. I smiled at him and said no and then proceeded to pay for my earrings. He did not seem too upset with my decline of his offer because when I went to pay and I was a bit short, he smiled at me and said it was okay,
I was wandering the canals of Venice, slowly making my way back from St. Mark's square and came across this shop where there were these beautiful paper lanterns in the window. I stopped and looked through the window and the man in there smiled at me. I smiled back and then started to walk away but that man's smile lingered in my mind and I was about 5 meters away I turned around and walked back in. Once again, the man didn't speak English and I didn' t speak Italian. He tried Spanish and then he tried French. Thus began a 20 min conversation with me racking the recesses of my brain trying to conjugate verbs. I must have sounded like an idiot but it turned out to be a really memorable experience The man's name was Fernando and he owned this paper shop that made these sculptural paper pieces by hand. He showed me each piece and explained what they all meant. He showed me this paper necklace and noticed my tibetan prayer charm. He asked me what it was and I explained it to him and he thought it was beautiful. He was so sweet and charming and let me look at all his work without every pressuring me to buy anything. As I left he kissed me on both cheeks and wished me safe travels.
It is encounters like these that stand out in my mind. The museums and churches are stunning but it is the interactions that make the experiences for me.
The last thing my sister said to me before I left for Italy was be safe and don't talk to random men. Of course for some reason in my life that is unavoidable. Plus it makes for great stories for my friends.
I was wandering the streets of Florence not really with a destination in mind. I was just wandering around watching people and trying to absorb the sights of Italy. As I was walking towards the Piazza Republico, I spy a man holding an umbrella but all over the umbrella were silver things. As I got closer I realized it was earrings that he had stuck in the umbrella and he was selling them for 2 Euros. Given my jewelry addiction and my travel tradition to pick up earrings for my friends, I had to stop and look. The man turned out to be pretty friendly and was very patient while I closely examined each and every pair so that I could pick the right ones for my friends. He held up a few to me and had this big grin on his face. The man was from Bangladesh but he did not speak much English and I didn't speak any Italian but somehow in the span of 10 mins I had a marriage proposal. He first made sure that I was old enough for him, found out where I was from, how long I was going to be in Italy for and then asked me if I would marry him. Perhaps it was the dimples or perhaps it was to get me to buy earrings. I smiled at him and said no and then proceeded to pay for my earrings. He did not seem too upset with my decline of his offer because when I went to pay and I was a bit short, he smiled at me and said it was okay,
I was wandering the canals of Venice, slowly making my way back from St. Mark's square and came across this shop where there were these beautiful paper lanterns in the window. I stopped and looked through the window and the man in there smiled at me. I smiled back and then started to walk away but that man's smile lingered in my mind and I was about 5 meters away I turned around and walked back in. Once again, the man didn't speak English and I didn' t speak Italian. He tried Spanish and then he tried French. Thus began a 20 min conversation with me racking the recesses of my brain trying to conjugate verbs. I must have sounded like an idiot but it turned out to be a really memorable experience The man's name was Fernando and he owned this paper shop that made these sculptural paper pieces by hand. He showed me each piece and explained what they all meant. He showed me this paper necklace and noticed my tibetan prayer charm. He asked me what it was and I explained it to him and he thought it was beautiful. He was so sweet and charming and let me look at all his work without every pressuring me to buy anything. As I left he kissed me on both cheeks and wished me safe travels.
It is encounters like these that stand out in my mind. The museums and churches are stunning but it is the interactions that make the experiences for me.
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