Well, sunny it is. With the temperature exceeding 100 degrees, we are spending most of our days inside. I drove by the beach yesterday, and it was crowded! Way too hot for me.
My good news is that I passed the theory test for my Italian driving license. This was a huge milestone. I’ve been studying since last December. Of course, if I knew then what I know now, I probably would have been able to accelerate my studies and perhaps even passed the test the first time. Oh yes, my first attempt was a failure. But, I did pass. What a relief! If I hadn’t passed, I would have had to start all over again with the autoscuola. A long and expensive ordeal.
Now I am taking driving lessons. I have to take six hours of lessons with a certified instructor. Doesn’t matter that I’ve been driving for 50 years. In fact, during my first lesson, I became aware that I have picked up so many bad habits. It’s like learning to drive all over again…
Everyone hears about how good health care is in Italy. Even Mike’s cardiologist wasn’t concerned about his moving here: “They have good doctors Italy” he said. How it works is that each town has general practitioners, and when you sign up for the health care system, you either get assigned a primary care doctor or choose one. Here in Casalanguida we have only one doctor, and he covers two towns. He can treat minor ailments, but mostly he just refers patients to a specialist in Gissi or Vasto. I went to see him about my sinus infection. He gave me a script for antibiotics and some anti-viral stuff. A week later I was not better. Still really sick. So he said “Let’s go deeper” which meant a series of six shots, one a day, in my hip. Thing is, he is not in town every day. So my last three shots were administered by his assistant’s mother, who I think was a nurse, in her kitchen. Life here is truly a family affair.
The shots did not help. So the doctor called a specialist in Gissi, told him my problem, and made an appointment for me. The doctor was very nice, spoke just a little English, and gave me a thorough examination. He says my problem is not allergies, but is seasonal, and gave me a prescription (all natural herbs) to take the first 10 days of September, October, and November. And then told me to go to the beach. The salt air and water would be the best for me. I can’t imagine a doctor in the States telling a patient to go to the sea.
One thing we have learned about the health care system is that it is very holistic. They firmly believe in natural remedies, herbs, and healthy foods. They consider the body as a whole system, not isolated parts. Very refreshing.
On our tour of San Buono (see my blog) we met a couple, Cecil and Valerie, who had recently purchased an apartment in Pescara. Turns out that they live in Evanston, not far from our daughter Caroline. And, Valerie used to live in Oak Park, and she attended Unity Temple. Such a small world! They plan to do the three months here/three months there thing that many foreigners who own property in Italy do. So we will see them when they are here in Italy and when we travel back to the States.
They love jazz and told us about the Pescara Jazz Festival. So last weekend we booked an Air B&B and drove to Pescara. We had a delightful lunch with them at a restaurant on the beach, and thoroughly enjoyed the Manhattan Transfer concert. The next morning we went to their apartment for breakfast/lunch.
I had planned to host a gathering of our neighbors to celebrate my passing the driving theory test, so we invited Valerie and Cecil to come to Vasto for a day and stay with us that evening. They discovered how easy it is to take a bus in Italy. The bus/train station is a short walk from their apartment. It was way too hot to be outside, so we set up the food for aperitifs inside. Unfortunately, I forgot to take photos.
It was such a fun evening. Maria and Robert, Paul and Justina, Angela and Giuseppe, and our new neighbor Cathey who moved here from Phoenix. Angela and Giuseppe brought their grandsons.
Valerie got a bit of heat stroke and had to step away from us for a while. She recovered, though, and then the next day we drove to Tornareccio to show them the mosaics. We had lunch in Vasto at a restaurant that Maria recommended (Ristorante La Transumanza), and it was excellent. The next morning our breakfast was leftover deviled eggs, salmon/cream cheese sandwiches, and homemade donuts from Angela.
Mike has been working diligently on his Italian. He’s completed the first section of Unit 4 in the Edx.org Beginner Italian course. He is determined to be able to converse with our Italian neighbors, and I give him a lot of credit for his efforts.
We are actively planning our next few weeks here before we return to the States to visit family. Last year, we came home exhausted, so this year we are staying for 4 weeks rather than 3, and skipping Connecticut. That’s because Kate, Lane, and Frank will be coming here in October. We are SO excited!!
We also are beginning to plan for a move. The wonderful people who own the house that we are staying in plan to relocate here next April. At the rate things move here in Italy, we need to start now to search for our “new” house. And, nothing happens here in August. So we are just kinda looking around now. Will get active in the Fall.
The weather is supposed to lighten up on Thursday, maybe only reach the mid- to high-80s. So we are hoping to go to the beach. We really do enjoy having our own chairs and a table set up and waiting for us at the beach club. The water is very warm and shallow. It's also very salty!
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