Chapter 2: in which Sylva discovers she is not a city girl.

Back home in Indiana, when the hubbub of life and people gets too crazy, you can usually step outside into the open air and get a fresh breath and find some peace and quiet before returning to all the goings-on inside. Here, I step out of buildings into even tighter streets, with a view of spray paint and dog droppings as I inhale the accumulation of an entire city's car exhaust. The sidewalks aren't always wide enough for both me and my umbrella (not to mention the necessary puddle-dodging of uneven stone). This week a bus hurtling towards me actually ramped the sidewalk just in front of me; my heart tried to squeeze in double the beats in case it was her last chance to pump blood. I know the day isn't over if I haven't heard at least five sirens, and even our agéd apartment speaks, its arthritic joints moaning as I lie awake each night. I was starting to get country fever, surrounded by so many stone walls, so Saturday Siena and I caught the bus to Settignano and wandered the cemetery, then climbed halfway up a hill before claiming some ground in an olive ochard overlooking a hazy Firence, skyline dominated by an old bell tower which sang out the hours as time passed and we lay in the sunshine on our backs. A family passed one by one with walkie talkies garbling "Dove sei?," accompanied by a jovial puppy who I was glad to be attacked by.

Other than the occasional need to feel actual earth under my feet, Florence is still delighting me. This weekend, I enjoyed walking the streets at night, standing unnoticed among a group of Italian teenagers discussing their evening activities (I knew what they were planning!) or finding that someone who was moving in a hurry left a fridge, a record player, a stove, and some other fun items for the first taker. I also spent some moments looking skyward while lying as close as possible to the bell tower, watching the edges of the building converge towards a vanishing point among the stars. I'm enjoying photo class, and watching for those moments of interest, like a priest sweeping the steps of the church, or a broken doorbox which shows the wires within. I developed my first set of negatives Wednesday, and Monday we should be heading to the dark room, so this week should be even more exciting. San Gallo is always good for some Miles love, too.