"My Favorite Colour Is October"

The temperature has suffered a significant drop, the sun has started to leave the stage to be replaced by grayish clouds, rain is becoming more and more frequent and the first leaves are starting to fall. Yes, autumn is here -not yet winter, that is coming afterwards ;-)-  and with it, here comes that which happens to be my favorite month, my dear October.

Yes, yes, I was born on a cold night in October almost 24 years ago, that obviously is quite enough to make me rather fond of this month. However, it is not the only reason. Incidentally enough, I can link some of my most precious memories to the 10th month -such a nice, whole number, 10-.

For instance, I recall managing to safely ride a bike without wheels for the first time in October -although my technique had yet to be improved by quite a lot eh ;-)-, and what a success for any kid (and for his already quite scratched poor knees! ;-) ) that is!

Jumping ahead into the future, I realized my dream and finally managed to visit London for the very first time in October, and that happened in 2016. Of course, back then, I couldn't know London was going to become something similar to a backyard to me in a few months time, but that is another story ;-).

I also passed my very first exam at university in October, and with a pretty decent score too -again, my month cannot let me down, can it? ;-)

I could go on talking about such things forever, till next year's October, trust me, but it's not just about personal experiences, there's much more that one could say.

This is a month that has something magical in itself, something that, to my eyes, makes it unique compared to the remaining 11. It's the month right in between summer and winter, the month when the old starts to fade, but it's not dead yet, thus allowing us to appreciate its beauty one last time and then to wave goodbye. The leaves are turning colours into beautiful shades of red, gold and orange and there's no snow yet to turn into muddy slush. I have witnessed this cycle repeating for quite a few years, yet I can't help but fall in love with it over and over again. It's autumn, yet everything seems more alive than ever.

Quoting a dear friend of mine, it's also the time of the year when the cozy and delicious food makes its triumphant comeback onto our tables, some of the best treats ever are there for us again!
Comfy jumpers and scarf too, they're out of the wardrobes again and wearing them without the risk of self combustion is something I had missed! :-)

The best for last, Halloween. This means fake blood and cobweb decorations, Disney movies, candies, haunted houses and so much more. All things fun. Halloween is exciting at all ages too. Everyone can participate because you're never too old to dress up as something you are not and have a little fun along the way. Just, this year, let's try to keep cars and windows out of the equation when choosing a suitable target for the jokes, shall we? ;-)

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Or maybe it's just me imagining things while sitting on my bed, surrounded by absolute silence, occasionally interrupted by raindrops welcoming another special October.


"Each month paints with a different brush, and takes colors from a different palette and its inspiration from a different artist. If dreary winter is, say, something from Picasso of his Blue Period, October is a Van Gogh creation, a runaway riot of color that dazzles the eye and wakens the senses."

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This is probably the first time since I started the blog that I feel I want, no, I need to write despite not having a real "event" or topic to talk about, or to create a story from. It's just the atmosphere, the thoughts, feelings and stuff, everything put together that's given me the urge to come back here and just type, regardless of how boring or out of context this might end up being. Unfortunately, communicating certain stuff has never been my forte, nor has it been writing in general...Oh well, I guess I can be forgiven for once? :-)

A Special Week, Special Places & A Special Person

Well, it's truly been an awful lot of time since the last post got published, I believe we're past the 4 months!

At this point, only something special was going to bring me back here and, guess what, it's precisely what this holiday of mine was, something unforgettable that requires some lines to be jot down! :-)

-I haven't written much lately, please forgive any mistakes/confused and imprecise bits and just focus on the story itself, as it's definitely the main thing here! ;-)-

Now, what happened? Well, I went to Poland! It was a plan I had been cooking up for quite some time, hence why I was ready to take up any convenient offer that was going to come out.

But why did I go there? Admittedly, Poland wouldn't be the first choice for many, as that beautiful country doesn’t often get the credit it deserves and most people wouldn’t think of it as the perfect destination for a summer getaway -cold, grey, etc...(reminds a bit of certain parts of England in that sense eh ;-) )-. Luckily, I am not one of those people who get easily influenced by others' opinions and, after doing some research on my own and hearing how the mother and another couple of lucky friends had fallen in love with the country, I could but be eager to take off :-).

But I would be a huge liar if I said that sightseeing was what pulled me the most: I actually wanted to visit the dear Aurelia so bad -it had been almost a year since that way too quick meeting in Brighton, I couldn't have that, definitely not! ;-)- and she wanted to see me too, so, considering the motivation, a plan was bound to come out at some point, as it did eventually. Booked the flights, booked the hostels, bob's your uncle, I was going to Poland!!

Now, I am not going to give an accurate description of everything we did during those 4 days we managed to spend together, that'd take me ages...Knowing I won't get to see that lovely person in God  knows how long -I always get quite depressed when I think about it-, I did my best to treasure every second of that precious time (having a good memory helped a lot in that sense!), which means I have potentially enough material to write an encyclopedia size post. Nah, better if I hold myself eh? ;-)

I'll start with saying it was special. Special beyond any possible imagination. I was welcomed in the warmest of ways, both by Aurelia herself and by her parents, despite being not much more than a complete stranger to them. I know some of you might think it's normal -I mean, I was the guest and she had to take care of me/be a good host etc etc-, but I can assure it is not, at least not at this level.

-with this I absolutely don't mean I thought they weren't going to be good with me, just that I wasn't ready for such kindness, generosity and hospitality...after all, who was I to them? Why should I deserve that much? I still am a bit surprised, but oh so thankful for everything...I can't really find the proper words, it's just too huge to be put down in writing!-

To give you an example, besides driving me around on a daily basis and giving advice on where to go and which activities to indulge in, I was even invited for lunch at their place on my very first day in Katowice (after an endless walk in Park Śląski with that bloody boiling temperature -thanks for that darling! ;-) ) and had homemade Gołąbki (see, they even took the time to prepare them for me!), a traditional Polish dish which consists of a cabbage roll with meat inside (apologies for the poor description eh, I suggest you google it to have a more precise idea) which I found absolutely delicious -despite the obvious struggles to learn the correct spelling and pronunciation (I believe it was funny for them to witness my pitiful attempts at that, but oh well, it was hilarious for me too ;-) ).

That aside, as mentioned before, Aurelia was an awesome host. She took great care of me -maybe too much, I am sure it wasn't a piece of cake for her, I would have been more than happy with half of what she did for me- and well, I am thankful for that, wholeheartedly. 

-maybe my liver doesn't exactly stick with me on this one, but hey 'When in Poland, do as the Polish do', right? And they drink a lot, therefore my respect for their culture brought me to swallow quite a few liters of beer -surely more than I normally do, as I have never been a huge beer drinker haha-. On top of that, I was challenged by her -trust me, she was a tough opponent, overall we can call it a draw-, so naturally I had to take that up and go for it. Pride was involved here, it was serious ;-).-

Thanks to her I also got to see quite a lot in such a short period of time, which means I was able to appreciate Poland even more. Apart from Katowice, we spent a day in Wrocław (again, I dare anyone who doesn't speak Polish natively to guess the pronunciation. I'll pay you a tenner if you get it right on your first try and without using any extra resources ;-) ), which was simply lovely -worth the 2.30 hours on a train to get there -I was fascinated by being on an old fashioned train, that was some great experience for me! :-)- and the 3 hours bus trip on the way back spent worrying that our unlucky seats wouldn't break ;-)-.We tasted Pierogi and I fell in love with them (gotta learn to make them myself at some point, or I'll end up going back to Poland on a weekly basis to have them! ;-) ). Then she showed me more around Katowice, including, besides the huge park they have, some characteristic neighbourhoods dating back to the early 20th century, then we also visited an underground mine. It was great, even though I am sure someone was a bit scared of the lift eh? ;-). Jokes aside, it's understandable, I am a bit claustrophobic myself, and she did awesome in both trips. Admittedly, we spent most of our time underground in a lovely bar having, guess what, beer -second round of the aforementioned competition-, chatting, laughing and having an awesome time in general. 

NB: she fancies having beer with a straw, apparently it's common over there. No need to add that such a peculiar habit needed some mocking by me -I believe I will never get accustomed to it! ;-)

Sadly, those 4 days with Aurelia went by in an instant and we soon reached that 'goodbye' moment I had been hoping not to come. Realising it could take an enormous amount of time before I get to see that splendid girl again made me quite emotional afterwards, so much so that I needed an hour or so before being ready to go out again and buy some souvenirs (and paprika for the mother!). I believe emotions getting the better of me was also due to how great I had been treated and how sorry I was that such lovely people live that far from me. 

The last two days, I spent them in Krakow, exploring, eating delicious stuff and generally falling in love with another part of Poland, which was yet so different from what I'd seen before in the previous days.

One last bit of adventure, as I almost missed my flight on Wednesday, due to being led to jump on the wrong bus and finding myself lost in the Polish countryside, miles away from the airport and with my flight due to take off in 2 hours. Two bus trips, many missed taxis and an endless amount of swearing later -"Kurwa" came quite in handy I must say, thanks for teaching me darling! ;-)- I finally got to the airport, where I was further delayed by a bunch of bloody idiots who forgot to take the liquids off the hand luggage, thus slowing down the controls and wasting some crucial minutes of my time. Luckily for me, I got one single bit of positive karma, which was, quite frankly, the only thing I could hope for in order not to miss my flight: technical problems and consequent delay. I swear I've never been so happy for a plane taking off 50 mins later in my life! So much for being a thrill-seeker, eh? Never again do I want something like that to happen!

Summing up what has turned out to be quite a long post -I definitely am out of practice writing wise, but the topic being so dear to me made everything easier-, I had an unforgettable time in Poland, I am thanking for the billionth time Aurelia and her parents for being quite simply splendid with me. I hope to see her again soon (maybe it's going to be her turn visiting next, eh? That'd be great!! ;-)<3 ), I really do, she is awesome and well, she's grown to become an extremely dear person to me. If only there wasn't 900km between us...nah, she probably couldn't stand me being closer ;-P

Anyways, needless to say that this holiday has already taken a special place amongst my most precious experiences and dearest memories, I won't forget anything about it! Dziękuję bardzo, see you soon!!



"One day, you'll leave this world behind,
So leave a life you will remember"

That's my plan and so far it seems to have worked out not too badly I'd say... ;-)


PS photos will come out in the next few days on my fb. Dunno if you're reading this, but be ready for some shots of yourself too darling! And don't hate me too much for publishing them please! ;-)

Happy Anniversary To Me!!!

Ebbene sì, è passato esattamente un anno da quel 10 Febbraio 2017, giorno della mia partenza per Cambridge! Un anno bellissimo, un anno speciale che mi ha insegnato tanto e che non dimenticherò mai. Questa volta, data l'importanza dell'evento in sé - dovrebbe esserci quantomeno un articolo sul Times a riguardo, d'altronde si tratta di me... ;)-, ho deciso di fare qualcosa di un pochino diverso dallo scrivere un lungo e ripetitivo post, e questo è il risultato!

Spero vi piaccia (al di là dei numerosissimi errori che so per certo ci saranno -anche se, non essendo né Human Safari, né tantomeno un qualsiasi altro youtuber con 1/10000 del suo following o esperienza, è abbastanza logico che sia così, no? ;) -).

Ma adesso basta, ho parlato anche troppo :).

Enjoy!!

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And here we are!

Yay, it's finally time! On this same day last year, the 10th of February 2017, I was leaving home, family and friends and, last but not least, Italy and I was moving to the lovely Cambridge! What a year this has been, a special year during which I learnt a lot, one I will never forget!

Therefore, considering the importance of the event -I wouldn't be surprised should some article be coming out on today's edition of The Times or of The Guardian...after all, it's me we're talking about eh ;)-, I decided to do something a tad different from the usual and at times repetitive blogpost. This is what I came up with!
Hope you'll enjoy watching it (regardless of the enormous amount of mistakes I'm sure I made in the editing process -Ops!! But hey, I'm not a professional youtuber [although I reckon Casey Neistat may want to collaborate with me after watching this], that's to be expected haha-).

Anyway, enough talking Jacopo, you said this wasn't going to be a long post! ;)
Enjoy the video! :)



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEM8MaIva8g

2017, What A Year!!

Finally back here on Blogger to write something after such a long time. Hey, I've been busy!! ;)

Anyways, I believe a post to quickly sum up what this year has been to me has to be written. After all, 2017 has been -was by now- quite different and, to a certain extent, unique. Why? Well, many things happen, although obviously the main role has to be given to my time abroad -which has not come to an end yet!-. Yes, I spent almost 11 months in Cambridge -by the end of my permanence there, they will be 13- and what a life changing experience this has been! I've worked a lot, spoken and hopefully improved the language I love, met some new people -although, let's be honest, not as many as I had hoped-, seen some bits of England -have a plan to turn that 'some bits' into 'a part', but this is another story-, lived alone, etc...

Everything started almost by chance, I remember last January I was confused and kind of panicked because I was struggling with life in general: what should do, I have no clue, I have just graduated, yet I can't think of anywhere to go, etc...Then, almost out of the blue, I got this hint: Cambridge! Thanks to the family and their support I managed to quickly sort everything out and bob's your uncle! I was flying on the 10th of February. How scared I was, how sad -I spent the previous couple of days crying, which doesn't happen that often-, yet I made it. I was lucky, I didn't have to face any major problem -even though it wasn't exactly a piece of cake eh-, and eventually, a month later, I had a job, a place to call home and everything I needed to start a life. Then from that moment on, work became the main highlight of my days, as it was to be expected, although I managed to fill the very few gaps here and there with some lovely trips. 

The first one I'm going to talk about can but be my short and yet no less lovely comeback home for Easter: I probably didn't know back then, but that was going to be the first of many sleepless nights to catch coaches/trains/planes, etc... All the love I got at home made it more than worth it though! ;)

Second one following the chronological order, Copenhagen in June. I remember how little time I had to try and organise what little I could organise in advance -had barely time to book flights and transfer to Stansted!- but it was great! Theresa and Giacomo were so kind and generous in hosting me during that couple of days with such short notice and I got to spend a couple of days with two dear people in a city I love. :)

Then, of course, the holiday in Croatia with the lads. Again, nothing too special in terms of activities or places, just the Fantastic Four partying their way around Pag, trying -and failing- at getting some tan and generally having a blast. 

It was a hard and exhausting summer work wise, but luckily I managed to find room for another little escape: the dear Aurelia was in Brighton in late August and I absolutely couldn't miss that chance to spend a day with that lovely girl. And we actually enjoyed each other's company quite a lot! She is a fantastic person and got to become quite important to me, despite not having seen her that much so far. My only regret, not having more time to spend with her :(. Hopefully we will have another chance soon, right? I can't wait! -dunno if you're reading this darling, but if you are know this: I'm so looking forward to it!!! :)

Talking about meeting lovely people, Havanah and I got to spend a day together in London in late October -I couldn't have asked for a better present (we actually met on the 25th, literally two days before my bday ;) )-. I have already said a lot about this lovely human being, I'm just adding that I hope we won't have to wait too much to arrange another reunion -I wonder where though...We first met in Italy, then in England, which means we should probably find some "neutral" ground for the third one (good things come in threes, don't they? ;) )-. 

Last, but not least, I was lucky enough to have 2 days off in a row one last time, therefore I picked Edinburgh for a short visit. I wrote a whole blogpost about my time there, I'm not going to repeat myself, except for this: I will be back there soon! :)<3

2017 was an important year in terms of feelings and stuff as well: a couple of short stories that didn't really work out due to several reasons, and then, rather unexpectedly, she came. I have to say it, I don't have memories of times I felt like this. It's something that popped out as a consequence of that awfully long amount time spent talking to her -I don't regret those many many hours on the phone, I'd do everything again and again because she's such a special person-. Yeah, everything beautiful and sweet, except for the fact that there's only one major obstacle between the two of us, enough to make it currently impossible to work. Despite that, we continued bonding -I might seem stupid to the most of you reading, but the 'walking away' strategy turned out to be impossible to be put into practice-. I'm not even capable of doing it now that the major obstacles have become two! I won't say much, just that I was expecting this to happen and tried to do everything to be emotionally and mentally prepared...and yet it hit me so hard! Thankfully, I am at home and everything around me -including a bunch of lovely people (you know who you are, thank you all <3 )- is kind of helping ease the pain. Despite this, it's been an awful couple of days -and the weird thing is that I feel genuinely so happy she got the happy ending she deserved! You understand now how fucked up I am? I mean, this is being one of the rare cases in which I can't control and deal with my emotions, which sucks for the control freak I am! I can just wait for time to hopefully heal all wounds and understand that probably it just wasn't meant to happen, because I don't see any other rational explanation that can actually justify the current circumstances! :)

Anyways, apart from that -I've written more than enough about it for today, better to stop now-, Christmas has been as magical as always! I was so excited to see the family again, I truly love all of them every day more, they give me all the strength and support I need to go on and they are undoubtedly the main reason why I've made it so far, they deserve all the credit <3. Talking about dear people, I got a box filled with biscuits and other delicious stuff coming from meine Freundin Franzi. She was so sweet and literally made my day -if you are reading this, I won't call you greedy anymore, I promise! ;)-. Also, I wasn't expecting her to be so talented at baking (never underestimate her, second lesson I've learnt! ;) ), I will have to send the tastiest Italian stuff back to her sooner rather than later to hopefully reach the same level, because she raised the bar so high! ;)

Now, these last few lines to wish you all a Happy New Year, hoping that 2018 will be a year full of the best life has to offer -in my case, I am happy with good health and happiness for my beloved ones and all the people I care about. Then, should I get a couple of extra wishes, why not being a tad more selfish and going for a 'happy ending' for myself as well, or even for some ideas regarding my future, or for living some amazing moments with friends and other dear people...yup, those three would be very much appreciated eh, but the first one is on top of my bucket list for the year! ;)

Thank you so much 2017, for everything you gave me, you were a year to remember! Now let's draw the curtain and let's enjoy the following show: 2018 looks rather promising -but no spoilers eh! ;)

And apologies for any typo and the flat (oh so crappy) writing style, I'm definitely out of practice!!

Edinburgh

Che titolo banale, vero? Il fatto è che non sono riuscito a trovare niente di meglio! Eppure ci ho pensato un bel po' su eh, ma niente, buio totale...Io ritengo sia dovuto al fatto che le emozioni lasciatemi dalla mia -assai breve- permanenza a Edimburgo siano talmente varie che sintetizzare il tutto in poche parole è davvero un'impresa!

....

O forse è dovuto al fatto che, quando si tratta di nomi, titoli o quant'altro, la mia immaginazione fa semplicemente pena, però come scusa è molto meno ad effetto, quindi teniamo buona la prima motivazione, eh? ;-)

Comunque, dopo un mesetto ho di nuovo una ragione più che sufficiente per buttarmi sulla tastiera e passare un paio d'ore del mio tempo a raccontare aneddoti sulla mia noiosa -ma non troppo- vita.

Ormai sta diventando una piacevolissima prassi: quando ho due giorni liberi di fila -cosa che comunque capita molto di rado- devo assolutamente andare da qualche parte :-).

Questa volta ero indeciso tra Dublino, Amsterdam e, appunto, Edimburgo. Esclusa la prima per questioni meteorologiche -penso ci fosse più pioggia che aria in quei giorni-, ammetto che scegliere tra le due rimanenti non è stato facile. È da un po' ormai che voglio visitare la 'Venezia del Nord' e questa sembrava l'occasione migliore per farlo. Tuttavia ho pensato che sarebbe stato non sfruttare il fatto di vivere nel Regno Unito per visitarne quanto più possibile, anche perché non rimarrò qui in eterno. In più, io continuo a sperare di riuscire ad organizzare il mio primo viaggio ad Amsterdam con qualcuno prima o poi, penso che andarci in compagnia la renderebbe ancora più speciale :-).

Quindi, Edimburgo. A posteriori, non rimpiango assolutamente di esserci andato. La capitale scozzese è una città unica, un misto di storia e contemporaneità, una città all'avanguardia che non dimentica le proprie origini e tradizioni. Una città grande, ma non troppo -molto più "visitabile e vivibile" di Londra-, il che è stato un bene per me, visto il tempo limitato. Pur non visitando quasi niente di "specifico" (aka musei e gallerie -troppi per poter scegliere-) e non prendendo parte ai molti interessantissimi tour guidati attraverso le vie e i segreti della città, posso dire di essere riuscito a conoscere Edimburgo, a sufficienza da volerci ritornare il prima possibile :-). 

Ammetto di essere stato fortunato, in due giorni non ho beccato neanche una goccia di pioggia. Ciò mi ha permesso di apprezzare la magia e i bellissimi colori di Edimburgo ancora di più. Per farlo è bastato davvero poco: un paio di giri sui tradizionali autobus a due piani, svariate passeggiate tra Old e New Town, percorrere a piedi il Royal Mile per poi salire fino ad Arthur's Seat per ammirare un panorama fantastico reso ancora più speciale dalle luci del tramonto...anche spendere 17 pounds per fare colazione con piatti tipici fa parte di tutto questo insieme che ha reso indimenticabili questi due giorni -fidatevi, l'haggis è delizioso <3-.

Il mio unico rimpianto è non avere avuto una macchina fotografica decente, c'è così tanto "materiale da fotografia" ad Edimburgo! :'-(

Da sola, questa è una ragione più che sufficiente per tornarci, la prossima volta meglio attrezzato perché ne vale davvero la pena!

A presto Edimburgo!! :-)

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Such an ordinary and flat title, ain't it? Well, I just couldn't find anything better! Yet I thought quite a lot about it eh, but still nothing, pitch black! I believe the feelings and emotions I experienced in Edinburgh were so diverse and so many that summing everything up in a bunch of words is practically impossible!

....

Or maybe that is simply due to imagination not being my greatest quality when it comes to names, titles or captioning, but as an excuse it's far more pathetic and less captivating and profound, therefore let's stick to the aforementioned one, shall we? ;-)

Anyways, a month later I have more than a good reason to jump on my keyboard again and spend a couple of hours to narrate anecdotes regarding my boring -but not too much- life. Yes, I am back and ready to post something!!! :-)

By now, it's become quite an enjoyable custom: whenever I have two days off in a row -which doesn't happen that often eh- I try my best to organise a trip to visit somewhere new :-).

This time I just couldn't decide between Dublin, Amsterdam and Edinburgh. Taken the first one off my list due to bad meteorological conditions -to say the very least, there was going to be more water than air over that couple of days-, choosing wasn't easy at all. I admit I have been wanting to visit the 'Venice of the North' for quite some time by now and this looked like the most suitable time to do it. A great opportunity that I decided to pass after realizing that not making the most of the fact that I actually live in the UK to visit as much of it as possible would be a shame, especially considering that my time here isn't going to be eternal. Moreover, to tell the truth, I am still hoping I can organise my first trip to Amsterdam in a way to go with someone else. I really believe this would make it that extra bit special and thus unforgettable :-).

Which means, Edinburgh. Looking back at it, I have absolutely no regrets. The Scottish capital is a unique city, a mixture of both history and modernity, a place where traditions and the new merge together perfectly. Vast, but not massive and easy to "live" -a lot easier than London, to give you an idea-, which happened to be great, considering the limited amount of time I had. Despite not visiting anything "specific" -under normal circumstances, I'd have spent countless hours in the museums, the galleries and in taking part in the many guided tours through Edinburgh streets. From what I read, there's so much to find out about the city, so many secrets, so many stories and tales...Yup, I can't wait to be back there!!! ;-)

I couldn't have been more fortunate, I didn't get a single drop of rain in two days -quite a rare occurrence in the UK, as I've learnt over the past months-. This made my visiting even more special and allowed me to enjoy the magic of Edinburgh and its bright colours to the fullest. And to do that I merely needed some random wandering around, to take a couple of hop on-hop off bus tours, to move from Old Town to New Town and vice versa, to walk through The Royal Mile and then climb up to the top and reach Arthur's Seat -the view from up there was truly something special. Watching the sunset and its colours with the city in the background...Spectacular!

Even spending 17£ on a breakfast was part of the things that made my days there unforgettable -trust me, their haggis is delicious <3.

My only regret, I didn't have a proper camera to portray all of this, in fact I am quite disappointed with the quality of the photos I took -I was expecting something more from my phone (you can see what I'm talking about here, on my FB -scroll down for Edinburgh photos-). 

Oh well, this is more than enough for me to fly back there as soon as possible and spend more than literally a couple of days in one of the most beautiful cities I have seen so far! ;-)

Until we meet again, Edinburgh!

Half A Year Abroad!!

Gosh, it feels oh so weird to be back here to write something!
I know, it's been definitely too long -almost two months!- and this time I can't even use the "nothing has happened" excuse, since something actually occurred! ;-)

But this isn't going to be the blogpost in which I'll explain how much fun I had during those -very- few days in Croatia with my friends, or how come there has been photos of me in pitiful conditions spreading on several socials. No, this is just going to be a short collections of thoughts after these past 6 months here in Cambridge and, more in general, far from home.

Let's begin by stating the obvious: time flies. I mean, look at me: six months ago, at this same time, I had just landed foot on Cambridge soil for the first time in my life and now I have a house, a safe -but rather stressful at times- job...I have a routine and a life, though I'll admit not as exciting as I had hoped eh...Oh well, I guess that's a kind of price I have to pay to be able to maintain myself, right? :-) And I still have some time to turn this thing around! :-)

Anyways, to think that summer -although I wouldn't call it 'summer'- is almost over...Wow!! Apart from my aforementioned holiday, I spent most of my time working -we got quite a few busy days at the restaurant!- and generally chilling or hanging around here in Cambridge. This means that, when I get home by the end of the year, I won't have much to tell about England or the UK in general, since I won't have the time to organise many trips around the country, and that's a shame. On the other hand, considering how easy it is to fly over here from my hometown in Italy, I now I'll be coming back soon after finishing my experience here, this time with the intent of enjoying as many things as possible as a tourist, without the pressure of a deadline coming from work.

Apart from that, I am still rather satisfied with my accomplishments -pass me this word- so far. And this despite the fact that, even though probably I am too demanding, I feel I still have a lot to learn and to improve language speaking, although I am happy to see something has changed eh... ;-)

Oh well, as I've already said, I still have quite some time and I am sure with this attitude, by the end of my permanence here, I am going to have very few regrets.

Now I'm about to end this post, which is lacking in sense and order so badly, since my shift begins soon. Apologies to those who'll have to read the Google-translated version of it, I know it sucks, but I didn't feel like writing in both languages :-(. See ya all soon!! :-)

A Month Of Nothing, Then Strawberry Fair & Copenhagen (With A Hole In My Ceiling As Well!)

Avevo quasi finito il post, salvo poi scoprire che, non so per quale motivo, si è cancellato, quindi devo riscrivere tutto! :-(

È passato decisamente troppo tempo dall'ultimo post, vediamo di invertire la tendenza e di pubblicare qualcosa dopo quasi due mesi! :-)

Il riassunto di Maggio è presto fatto: molto lavoro, molta routine e poco altro. Bello, eh? 

Paradossalmente sono capitate più cose in meno di due settimane di Giugno! 

Seguendo l'ordine, partirei da Strawberry Fair. La mia padrona di casa me ne parlava da un pezzo, descrivendolo come uno dei festival musicali/artistici più conosciuti. A quanto pare, è una ricorrenza annuale qui a Cambridge da molto tempo, tanto da essere ormai diventato una tradizione e un evento che attrae migliaia di persone. Se queste erano le premesse, io non potevo certo perdermelo, no? ;-)

Detto fatto, ho trascorso qualche ora molto piacevole in Midsummer Common, l'area sulla quale si è svolto il festival (tra l'altro, ho saputo poi che ogni cosa viene organizzata e montata da volontari, il che mi ha stupito, vista la "dimensione" del tutto) -per una volta la giornata era bella, con sole e una temperatura lontanamente estiva-. Purtroppo, causa lavoro, non mi sono potuto godere il momento clou dell'evento, la serata, ma sono contento lo stesso. 

Se qualcuno mi chiedesse di descrivere Strawberry Fair in una parola, direi "colorato". Più che dalla musica e dal cibo -il cibo!!!!! Miliardi di bancarelle e stand, il paradiso <3-, direi che sono stato colpito dai colori. Ognuno vestito in un modo diverso, secondo il proprio stile e, perché no, il proprio modo di vivere, dal più tradizionale a quelli un po' più "pazzi", bancarelle e tende di ogni tinta, ecc...tutto questo ha dato vita ad uno spettacolo per me pazzesco! Mi ritengo fortunato di avervi assistito, seppur in minima parte e, forse, senza comprenderne appieno le sfumature, è stata proprio una bella giornata!! :-)

Un paio di giorni dopo, mentre il mio turno serale della Domenica stava per concludersi, la mia adorata manager ha deciso che era arrivato il momento di rivelarmi l'orario della settimana successiva  -notare l'ampio preavviso- e, meraviglia!, avrei avuto Lunedì e Martedì liberi!! Da qui la mia testa si è come ridestata da un sonno profondo e ha cominciato a lavorare: dove potevo passare questi due giorni liberi? Vista l'unicità dell'evento, di certo non potevo stare a Cambridge! Ovviamente, non c'era tempo per un viaggio "in regola", quindi Amsterdam dovrà aspettare un altro po'. E poi l'illuminazione: e se andassi a Copenhagen? Passerei due giorni in una città che adoro in compagnia di due persone che mi mi avrebbe fatto piacere rivedere. 

Bam, detto fatto, dopo aver contattato Bristy, via a casa e, tempo un'ora -21.45 > 22.45- avevo due voli -a costo di non dare soldi a Ryanair, mi sono fatto 4 ore di corriera per partire da Gatwick-, un autobus e due biglietti del treno e quindi un viaggio! Copenhagen, ovviamente, è come me la ricordavo: una delle città che più mi ha colpito. Ovviamente non vedo l'ora di tornarci, anche se per passarci qualche giorno può essere necessario vendere un rene ;-).

-il viaggio di ritorno è stato un poco movimentato (due tentativi di atterraggio falliti e parecchi movimenti alquanto bruschi, per la gioia della mia pancia), ma anche questo fa parte del gioco, no? ;-)-

L'idea di prendere e partire è qualcosa di nuovo per me, qualcosa che adesso ho la possibilità di fare e che non vedevo l'ora di sperimentare. È qualcosa di bellissimo, vista la sensazione di libertà che trasmette. Di colpo, è come se il mondo -magari non proprio tutto tutto eh, perché è parecchio grandicello ;-)- fosse alla mia portata, in attesa di essere scoperto. E questo bisogno, questa voglia di vedere sempre di più...ho la sensazione che non is placherà tanto presto! ;-)

Ci tengo a ringraziare Giacomo e Theresa per avermi ospitato a casa loro ed essere stati così gentili con me, nonostante mi fossi praticamente auto-invitato poche ore prima. Spero di poter ricambiare in qualche modo!!

Adesso si torna alla vita di tutti i giorni, sempre pronti a cogliere ogni opportunità per vivere altre avventure come questa!

PS: Ah sì, dimenticavo l'ultimo pezzo del titolo. È vero, ho un buco nel soffitto della cucina. Credo sia l'ovvia conseguenza di avere una struttura in legno e una perdita in una tubatura. Prendete nota, cari i miei inglesi, il legno con l'umido marcisce e, per quanto assurdo vi possa sembrare, diventa incapace di reggere il peso del piano superiore della casa. Lo so, pazzesco eh? E ve ne dico un'altra: con i mattoni, o quantomeno un po' più di attenzione al momento di mettere i tubi, queste cose non succedono!! :-)

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I had almost finished writing this post, but then Blogger decided I had to give it another try and deleted my draft! Hurrah!! :-(

Anyways, it's been definitely too long since I last posted something on here, therefore I believe some change is needed, the ship needs to turn around after almost two months of sailing in the Sea of Boredom! ;-)

May summary, short story even shorter: work, routine, period. Exciting, isn't it?

June's first couple of weeks have easily smashed the previous months in terms of "events", you're about to find out why!

Following the chronological order, I'll go with Strawberry Fair first. My landlord had been talking about this arts & music event for quite some time, describing it as probably one of the most known traditions in Cambridge and one of the most popular fairs. She must've used some Jedi tricks on me, because, at a certain point, I found myself eager to see it with my own eyes. Talking about persuasion, eh? ;-)

Jokes aside, I just couldn't miss it!

And I didn't come out disappointed at all! The air and the atmosphere there were incredibly alive and vibrant, I could almost feel the energy of those thousands of people gathered in Midsummer Common, some of them singing, others drinking, but all of them enjoying themselves. I believe the volunteers who allowed all this to take place are to be thanked in the first place. They managed to put up the whole thing and they did it without being paid! Hats off to these men and women, they  did an awesome job and the fair being a success was probably the best reward for them.

The weather, as weird and unusual as it might seem, contributed a lot, since we had sun and summer-ish temperature -shocking, isn't it? ;-)-. Unfortunately, I missed the fair climax, the night, having to work, nevertheless I enjoyed myself a great deal.

Were I asked to describe the event with a single word, I'd say "colourful". Yes, this is what caught my eye the most, more than the music and the food -the food!!! Countless stands and shacks where to taste so much delicious stuff, my personal heaven <3-. Everyone dressed up differently, according to their style and, why not, their way of living as well. Starting from the "traditional" items, I saw people wearing the most crazy stuff. This, their colours, the life, the energy, etc...This is what made the whole thing so amazing to me! 

A couple of days later, while my Sunday night shift was coming to an end, my oh so lovely manager decided it was high time for her to reveal me my schedule for the following week -she gave me 3 hours notice before said week started, I am impressed!-. The miracle!! I was going to have both Monday and Tuesday off!! My brain suddenly woke up from its hibernation and started working at a feverish speed: where to spend these two days? Not in Cambridge, not at all! This is the second rarest even after the Big Bang, I need to make the most of it somewhere else!! Obviously, I hadn't got enough time to plan something in details, therefore Amsterdam will have to wait just a bit longer. And then eureka!! What if I had gone to Copenhagen? That'd mean spending two days in one of my favorite places together with two lovely people I missed so much!

Bam, while polishing glasses, I was texting one of said friends and, once back home, my plan started to take form and be every minute less chaotic. One hour later -21.45 > 22.45- I had two flights -dind't give money to those bloodsucker called Ryanair, even if this meant I had a 4 hour journey by coach to reach Gatwick-, one coach and two trains booked and my stuff packed: off to Copenhagen (I was so excited I survived not having dinner ;-) )! 

Copenhagen was exactly as I remembered it, simply lovely! Needless to say I can't wait for my third time there! ;-)

-on my way back, I had some troubles due to some rather annoying and fairly strong wind which initially prevented the plane from landing and disturbed many stomachs. No, it wasn't a smooth trip at all! But it's all part of the game, isn't it? ;-)-

This thing of leaving without having planned everything at least 2 weeks before is quite new to me, but I was eager to experience it. Honestly, I have never felt so alive and free before! Suddenly, the world -not all of it eh, I reckon it's quite huge- seems to be there in front of me, waiting for me too pick a destination and take off for a new adventure. I am becoming more and more addicted by the day, I can't wait to be on the plane again -provided it's going to be a safe flight eh-. Only, I wouldn't mind finding some travel buddies with whom sharing all these emotions, but I am confident that will happen as well at some point! :-)

I cannot end this post without thanking Theresa and Giacomo for hosting me despite I had just self-invited myself there with less than 12 hours notice. They were so kind and generous with me and they had a huge role in creating the atmosphere that allowed me to enjoy such a short trip. Thank you guys!!! :-)<3

Now back to normality, waiting for the net crazy adventure to happen!!! :-)

Oh, right, I almost forgot: I have a hole in my kitchen ceiling. I am quite sure this is the obvious consequence of having the main structure of said ceiling built in wood and a leak in the pipe. I feel the need to remind whoever builds houses here that wood+water isn't a nice combo at all, since the wood rots and therefore becomes weak and unable to sustain the weight of a second floor. I know, it's hard to believe, but it truly happens! Another Easter Egg for you: using bricks might be a nice solution, especially if you aren't going to pay more attention when installing the pipes!