3 Weeks in Tuscany: Living Like a Local

As I may have mentioned, I have some extended family in Tuscany who took the leap to move there in their mid 60's and have made a great life for themselves. As a bit of background, my cousin had Italian citizenship because her dad - my great uncle - was born in Italy and she was able to procure her citizenship early in her life. She married a really great guy and they had a family and careers and lived on the east coast of the US for a number of years. They finally decided to make their big move happen a few years ago and truly have forged their own path in Italy. Now, they still have grown children back on the east coast, so they decided that they needed to go back to the states for a few weeks to visit family and take care of some additional business. Enter their dogs, the girls, as I affectionately call them - the Dingoes. They are sweet girls and they are the Italian herding farm dog called the Maremmano - Abruzzese Sheepdog. They love (and live) to guard, alert and generally make sure that you know if anything is in the vicinity of their protection area. They are, however, a lot - especially two of them and not very many people feel comfortable with them because they are loud and can sometimes be a little aggressive.

Last year, Tom and I spent a few days at their house and got to know the girls. Because we are generally pretty good with dogs, they asked if we could house sit / dog sit for them while they went back to the states to get some loose ends wrapped up. We, of course, said yes and started preparing for an extended stay in Tuscany in February. I should mention here that Tuscany - nay - Italy from the mid country to the northern mountains is pretty dreary in the winter - January and February. The south is always nice, and the north at the mountains are nice, but mid Italy can be rainy and overcast for days on end in the beginning of the year. And it was - lots of rain, not too much sun and lots of brown. But this was a good example of - can we live here like the locals during the not so great time of the year? The answer is, yes, we were able to and we found it pretty great.

I think one of the most important things when considering moving to Italy - or anywhere half way around the world - is: can you live there and not be a tourist? Immerse yourself in the day to day, learn how to take the bus, how to take the train, how to drive like the locals, how to navigate the grocery store and the butchers. Learn the language, be appreciative when someone helps you with your terrible Italian and when they switch to English to help you, thank them. Learn where to find the things that you need in your household. Figure out if there is a public pool in the area, learn where the local library is, explore the little towns in the area and have lunch at a local shop. Fill up your water bottles at the free water stop in town, park like an Italian and always greet the shopkeepers with a Salve or Buongiorno.

I need to add here that when we are travelling, I never feel the 'pull' to get back home. I miss my puppies and my kitties and that's about it. I talk to my parents at least a few times per week on video chat and Tom talks to his mom weekly so we are still able to connect with them regularly. Also, this may sound a bit banal, but I've never felt that I 'belonged' anywhere that I've lived. When I lived in San Diego, I always felt out of place. It's a fantastic place and a beautiful city that has lots to offer, but having the feeling of wanting (or being able to afford) to stay there felt pretty pointless. I came back to the East Coast and started college, and stayed here because of financial obligations - I had to pay for my college. I didn't care about staying here, I financially had to stay here because I had a support system here.

As we have gotten older and have had the opportunity to travel, I feel more and more at home wherever my suitcase is. I would hazard a guess that Tom feels the same way - your 'home' is where your stuff happens to be. So going to Italy for three weeks was a great exercise in 'how will I feel'. It was a great way to emotionally navigate the concept of moving from a place of relative comfort to a place where you have to figure out everything anew.