Buongiorno Tutti!

Four days in Italy!

I set out from St. Louis, Missouri, to follow a rather indirect route to Roma via Chicago and… Warsaw.  Please remind me next time that on a long journey it’s quite worth spending the extra $50 to fly more directly.  I always seem to forget this.  So, the flights were of course long & uncomfortable but, I made it. 

me, stepmom, grande luggage

I retrieved my massive baggage & fairly easily met up with my Italian contact picking me up at the airport.  I had decided to bring only what I could pack into 2 large 50 lb. suitcases, a roll aboard carry on & a large “purse”.  I repacked meticulously to ensure that my heavy bags weren’t over 50 lbs as there is potential to have to redistribute weight at the airport or be charged a hefty overweight fee.  After leaving behind a lot of stuff I had hoped to bring to cut weight they didn’t even bother to weigh those bags.  Oh well, probably didn’t need that stuff anyhow. 

My employer & business partner met me @ the airport and we then departed for our business partner's home.  He lives about 20 minutes outside of Rome in a "hunting lodge" of an old castle and I'll be staying in the guest house for the time being.  It is a nice little spot & very peaceful.  He's got a big pool that I've been utilizing.  (not bad considering it's HOT)  

Yesterday we went into town to sightsee.  We opted to take one of those cheesy double decker bus tours to see more sights & to avoid having to walk around too much in the heat & sun.  Rome is spectacular!  It seems there are ancient sights around every corner & history abounds!  Tourists also abound!  Apparently all Romans leave town for the month of August to go on vacation because it is so hot, which leaves only the tourists, and there are mobs!  I was going camera crazy, here are a few notable photos: 

il colloseo!  Where gladiators met in mortal combat & prisoners fought off hungry lions.  Now, it's just right in the center of the city.

Castel Sant' Angelo & river Tiber.  There is a secret underground passage from the Vatican to the Castel so the pope can escape in case of danger!

Piazza Navona, Rome's most iconic public square.

looking Roman

the Pantheon is AMAZING!  Considered the Roman's most important architectural achievement.  There are also many Egyptian obelisks around town commemorating Italian occupation of Egypt back in the day.

inside the Pantheon.  Raphael's tomb is in here as well as those of some other kings.

"the oculus" of the Pantheon.  Open to the weather, rain can fall right in & the floor is sloped so it flows out into the street.  This was built about 2,000 years ago (120 A.D.) & remains the largest unsupported concrete dome ever built.  This was the invention of concrete, mixing ash from Mt. Vesuvius w/ water!

the Trevi Fountain.  throw a coin in & you are destined to return to Roma.

piazza san petro.  St. Peter's square in the Vatican City!

St. Peter's square

I learned a lot!

A bunch of logistical things have turned out differently than I'd expected since I've been here, so I'm having to adjust to that.  My employer leaves tomorrow & I'll be here basically on my own.  I have this nice place to stay & so far have been well taken care of but, I had imagined I'd be in the city & turns out it is a 40 minute bus, then train ride into town.  I am feeling a bit isolated but...  do have books to read & study as well as a nice, big pool.  I hope to start language school next week & learning Italian proficiently will be my main objective for a bit.  At this point when someone speaks to me I become flustered & answer them in spanish, oops!

I am planning to move into the city, my business manager is hoping to find me a sweet, free flat to stay in.  He happens to know everyone in Italy & has LOTS of stories to tell.  

It is seeming that I won't be practicing chiropractic inside of a hospital as I had imagined but, will have my own clinic space within a multi-disciplinary building.  I thought that I wouldn't be able to take my own films needed for my chiropractic technique but, turns out I can as long as I am working under a medical doctor.  We are meeting with this doctor tomorrow to hash out the details.  

I am used to being able to get things done independently & also used to being very busy with lots of activities.  So far in Italy it seems I may be spending a bit of time chilling by the pool.  This is a good exercise in patience & a good challenge for me.  I will be able to practice the Italian art of enjoying doing nothing.  We'll see how this goes.  Also, my internet connection is crappy.

Fortunately I have found a nice space to do some yoga, that way I won't have to buy bigger pants like Julia Roberts does when she lives in Italy in Eat Pray Love.

Next time....  FOOD & eating lots of dairy!  (or maybe I will get those bigger pants :)

gelato extravaganza

I hope all is well with you all!! xo

New beginnings!

I left Seattle on July 31st.  Left my chiropractic practice, my friends and community.  I knew that Seattle wasn't the place for me in the long run for various reasons but, it was still REALLY hard to leave a place that I had worked so hard to build a community in.  Despite my challenges with the weather and the hipsters I felt very sad to leave and definitely shed a few tears as I drove out of town.  My Seattle experience was defined by my fantastic and supportive friends, my amazing patients and my inspiring yoga students.  I will never forget you all and I'm so thankful for all the lessons I learned in Seattle!

Seattle skyline from my deck

Mt. Rainier from Madrona Park on Lake Washington

my old hood

ye olde space needle

That being said, after I shed those tears I felt liberated!  I felt as if I had escaped from a place that was not a good fit for me.   Owning my own business turned out to be more responsibility and stress than I had bargained for and I was consistently longing for the free and easy salad days of being an employee.  I absolutely love being a chiropractor but I have learned that I am not so into the business end.   As one gets older and gains more responsibilities in life it isn't as easy to simply up and move, right???  Through a stroke of fate at a conference in April I had found out that a colleague was looking for a chiropractor to staff an office in Rome.  My first gut reaction was an immediate  "I'll do it!".  I was half joking but, after thinking about it for a bit and finding out more I applied for the job.  Lucky me, I got it!

So, over the past few months I have been prepping for a move.  My only communication with my future employer has been through email which has required a lot of trust on my part and there have been a multitude of details and changes.  I am the type that usually has to have things planned out and dialed in; this transition has been a good test for me.

After departing from Seatown I drove, with my cat Circe, down to California, specifically the eastern Sierras near Mammoth Lakes to visit my best friends and go backpacking.  We had a fabulous time and managed to climb 2 14,000 ft. peaks on our trip!

three wolf one moon mission

Crabtree basin

I then cruised east to Minnesota, a 30 hour drive, cat still on board.  She only meowed about... half the time.  I managed this drive with only once locking the keys in the car, once running out of gas and just one warning for speeding (was also informed that my tabs had recently expired).  :)

checking out the scene

yeah... there was a load of stuff in the car

I dropped my beloved kitty off with my mom and spent several days in MN catching up with friends and fam.  Then, it was on to the final leg of my road trip to visit my dad and step-mom in Springfield IL.  I managed to drive away from a gas station with my wallet on top of the car at one point and luckily found a trucker inspecting it on the side of the highway.  He was happy to return it, thank goodness I have been storing up good karma for ages (and will continue to do so!).  After a run of good luck on the road trip I'm more than happy to give up car driving for a while.

Here I've been in Springfield repacking, turning my car over to my dad, going waterskiing (harder as an adult than in youth) and tying up any remaining loose ends.  I leave in a day!

I've never been to Italy but everyone who has been seems to have absolutely loved it so...  I'm happy to go with that!!

More to come!