Waiting...

So, I've been in Italy for almost three weeks now. Some days it is hard to believe it has been that long and other days it feels like it has been much longer. And, even though I packed and shipped 700 lbs of my belongings on June 18th, I am still waiting for my stash of prized belongings. The Italian government is basically holding all our things hostage until paperwork upon paperwork is put in order. So, as it happens, the most commonly said phrase these days is, "I have it, BUT it's in my shipment!" If only I had a €1 every time I heard that statement.

In other waiting games, this past weekend eight of us took off to discover Colico, Italy, a small town on the north shore of Lake Como. Similar in style to Bellagio, where we visited the first weekend here, but quieter and less busy with tourists. To get to Lake Como, we took a bus from the town we live in, Opera, to the tram station. The tram took us into Milan, where we took the subway to the train station. At the train station we navigated buying train tickets and successfully boarded to make our way north.

The town was quaint, but lively. Surrounded by Alps, and nestled in the curves of the lake, it is quite picturesque. There was a small beach, and it was evident that this is a local spot used for many kite boarders and wind surfers on a regular basis. Of course, you can always count on the overexposing men's hot short bathing suits to leave little to the imagination! And, yes, they sell these suits in white too, though I haven't figured out why! The waiting came when we discovered we had misread the train station departure board and waited an extra hour for the next train back to Milano Centrale. Oh well, staring at the Alps and watching the cute little Italian lady bring her dry laundry in the window make up the difference.