Ultimo Giorno in Italia

I write this last Penguin post with a slightly heavy heart. I am in the Bologna airport bar having decamped our apartment and taken an Uber out here to the airport earlier in the afternoon. We fly to London tomorrow morning at 7am which will necessitate our arrival at the airport no later than 5am. Hence, the stay here overnight so that we can avail ourselves of the hotel shuttle bus to the international terminal.

As much as I love the UK, and I really do, it feels like I am not quite ready to let all this go.

Visiting Europe with a spouse has been a dream of mine since I was old enough to understand the concept of Europe. Back then, I thought this spouse would be a wife, but life has a way of interposing and before you know it, you're no longer flowing along with the main current but are in fact diverging into one of life's tributaries.

This trip to Italy is my first time on continental Europe. I have waited until 66 of age to do this. An impatient know-it-all Stuart in his youth would never have countenanced such a long wait, had he known. He would have intervened in some way.

But thank goodness he's not running the show any longer. Had he had his way, I would not have discovered my true identity, would not have entered into my own power, and I would not have met the love of my life, Chris.

It is incredibly wonderful to me to have Chris here discovering Italy alongside me. And I have to say, that he has handled himself in this foreign land amazingly. Four weeks ago, he had no Italian. Now, he is ordering food and drinks and explaining who we are in excellent Italian. Everytime he does it, my admiration for his intelligence and courage goes up even further. Just amazing 😍

As for my own Italian, in some ways, it has improved, much I think to do with so much listening to the flow of the language around me. However, when you're in the middle of a conversation with someone who is probably trying to 'English' you (pushing to revert to English because it's easier for them), I am not really using the more intricate and complex forms of verbs and nouns that I have learned. All my books and notes are back home and I am looking forward to revising those more advanced forms of the language so that I don't forget it all.

Having said that, I have loved using Italian here, in simple ways often, but occasionally in longer and more interesting conversations, like the one with the Roman taxi driver, some with Manuel our favourite waiter at L'Incontro, meeting my extraordinary teacher Andrea at Salerno, and even today explaining to the Uber driver that I would tip him through the app. It's been truly wonderful. At the beginning of this year, I could not speak a word of Italian other than a few musical terms. Learning a new language, and a romance language at that, has been a delight and a blessing for me.

I am quite sure that I have fallen in love with Italy. I have heard experienced travellers saying things like, 'you won't want to come back'. In some ways, that is true. But I don't think the feeling will last. But I do think the love of Italy and of its culture, food and language will last. I can see myself returning.

Finally, my childhood dream has come true. Travelling and discovering Italy with my wonderful man Chris has been a delight and something I will never forget. Finishing the our little epic here in Bologna is perfetto. It is beautiful, not too big, historic, learned, friendly and unpretentious. Thinking about all this makes me teary, a phenomenon that occurs much more frequently as I get older. Thank you Chris and thank you Italia for the trip of a lifetime. A treasure memory.Read more