August 24, 2007I’m typing this as I’m somewhere over the ocean on a flight from Amsterdam to Orlando with a layover in Atlanta. I decided to take advantage of “Ferragosto” & the Italian tradition of taking a long vacation in August. Well I decided to take it after the urging of many co-workers and my Italian Global Mobility contact that said t would be best if I take some time off in August. My vacation didn’t start off so well, but thank goodness it did get better!
I guess I am getting use to living in Italy because on Tuesday night I had to go for one last piece of pizza & some gelato (because now I don’t want to eat it anywhere else!) & found myself sitting in a couple piazzas trying to get just a little bit more of Rome in before I left. And even though I was leaving for vacation, I found myself not really wanting to leave because I felt there is so much more in Rome for me to see and many things I really enjoy there! Now about a week & a half after leaving - I do miss it! I guess that’s a good sign that I’m adjusting.
August 15th is a holiday in Italy (Feast of the Assumption) and the day I started my vacation. I had a ticket for a train to Padova, Italy (in Northern Italy) for an 8:50am train. As I always do, I was up late packing the night before & woke up a few minutes later than planned. But that was okay because I wasn’t that far behind on schedule so figured I would catch my train no problem. So I lug my big suitcase & backpack outside my door, go to lock my door & am ready to go catch my bus to the train station. So I lock the door - an easy task…I’ve done it a million times. Well apparently I need to take classes on how to lock & unlock doors in Europe because lately I’ve had tons of issues with this simple task! Well I did lock the door okay, but getting the key out of the lock was another issue. I have no idea what the problem was, but I could NOT get the key out! I tried all kinds of things (including putting olive oil on a q-tip & putting it around the key thinking it would help it come out!), but nothing seemed to work. I spent over 45 minutes just standing at my door trying to get it out! About the time I was suppose to catch my train, I finally got it to come out! (Oh and there was a whole lot of pleading with God going on before that point!) So then I take my stuff down & catch a bus - which was a challenge in itself because despite my attempt to pack ‘lightly’ and using my ‘feather light’ suitcase, my suitcase was HEAVY! Try to take a suitcase that is heavy and about half your size on a crowded bus in Rome - it’s not fun, but I did get there. And luckily it is very easy to switch your reservations for the rain and there were many going to Padova, so I didn’t have to wait long.
I’m really enjoy the train rides now, especially when they go thru the countryside and the Tuscany region of Italy. You can see so much from the windows of the train & the ones in Italy (the fast ones) are very comfortable & clean. I was on the train for about 4 hrs and it went by very quickly and I even got some reading done! I read this book call “La Bella Figura - A Field Guide To The Italian Mind” that a friend gave me before I left for Italy & I loved it. It is written by an Italian (Beppe Severgnini) and he talks about various things in Italy and traits that Italians have. Now that I’ve been in Italy for a couple months, I could relate to many & some parts had me cracking up! I’ll share some of my favorite excerpts with you in another blog.
One thing about this trip is that although I did book everything several weeks before I left, I didn’t really plan all the details and figured I’d just figure it out as I go. I knew I would catch a train to Padova, then catch a taxi or bus to my hotel in the small town of Abano Terme next to it by following the instructions on the hotel’s website, then I would stay at the hotel enjoying the pool & spa at the hotel until Friday, then catch a taxi or bus to Venice where I would catch my plane to Amsterdam. In Amsterdam I had plans to stay at a friend’s apartment (he was out of town for work unfortunately) for 1 night. Then I would catch a train early Sat. morning to spend several days in Den Haag with some friends living there (doing an international assignment like me). Then I would head back to Amsterdam to see the city there until this morning (Friday) when I would fly out. I didn’t look up the exact bus numbers or anything like that…or even look on the map to see where they were all located, but just figured I’d go along and ask people for help when needed. I really didn’t do too much research about Amsterdam or the Netherlands (aka Holland) either, and just figured I’d take a tour book & figure it out as I went along. So there was some wasted time & me carrying my luggage further than I thought (and in Italy it was about 98F when I left, so it would have been hot walking around even without all my luggage). I was luckily that I found people to help me along the way & I am pretty patient so I don’t mind waiting. Of course I must admit waiting on a hot bus when I got to Padova was starting to get to me, but I was too cheap to pay for a taxi. Also on Sat. when I was suppose to meet my friends despite me waking up early, I still missed the tram to the train station (because I was trying to figure out which way I needed to go & where the stop was as the tram I needed passed by…not realizing it was the one I needed & since it was early on a Sat. only 2 went every hour). Oh and then I got to the train station in Den Haag & realized that I did not have a specific meeting place to meet my friends & I was locked out of my blackberry for several days (use it for my mobile phone & to check emails) because I forgot to write down the pin number and the one I have now requires it anytime you turn it on (like when you have to turn it off when on the plane & then on when you arrive!). Plus I didn’t even have there cell numbers to call them. So yes poor planning on my part and some wasted time, but over an hour later of the original meeting time they found me (I felt bad too for them having to wait!). But live & learn…that’s my motto live & learn. There is a balance between being super structured on trips where you are so stressed about making sure you are on schedule and get everything done vs. being so carefree you waste time and don’t get to see it all. I’m still trying to find that balance apparently.
Back to my vacation details…
I arrived at my hotel in Abano Terme around 3pm on Wednesday & stayed there until early Friday afternoon. I found this place on the internet & was able to get a package that included meals & some spa treatments for a very reasonable price. I wanted to go to this area because I’ve heard about the thermal springs that are suppose to be very healthy for you (only 2 places in Italy have the natural thermal springs where they have the spas to do mud baths, etc. I was told). I read online that this place wasn’t really for young singles if you wanted a lot of action, but that was okay with me because what I was looking for was some relaxation & sun at an affordable price. But I must say that even though I knew this, I was a bit surprised at first to see the crowd staying there. I saw maybe 2 or 3 families with younger kids, maybe 3 people there close to my age & the majority were probably retired couples (not saying that’s bad!). The lady that gave me my massage said that she doesn’t see many people my age there, but thought it was a good idea to get treatments like the mud baths early when it can help vs. later in life when it can just maybe help with the pain. Also what surprised me is that I heard mostly Italian with some French & I think German. I think the Italians (and maybe others) can even get some of the spa treatments paid for by their insurance so they go for a week or so for medical reasons.
The town where my hotel was located was a cute little Italian town. There are tons of hotels all centered around these thermal springs with people flocking to them for dips in the pools & the spa treatments. So there are little shops set up all within walking distance & all the hotels have bikes you can use if you want to ride around. The town was very different than Rome - bikes instead of scooters, very quiet & laid back, and in the evenings there wasn’t much going on except in hotels that had bars/dancing. So I spent most of the time by the pool (but it closed at 7pm!) and then catching up on my sleep!
They had about 4 pools all with this thermal spring water & the only difference in the pools other than the shape was the temperature of the water. The big pool (and coolest temp) had jet in it that they would randomly put on during the day (meaning at times half the pool would have air jets going for an hour or so), it had a couple bikes in the water you could use them underwater & it had these huge faucet looking things that would spray out water that would massage your shoulders & neck if you stood under it. It was very nice & very relaxing. I spent most of the time laying out by the pool rather than in it though. It was quite enjoyable!
I did have several reminders that I was in Europe vs. North America though! The hotel was very strict in all their handouts & signs that you were to wear the white robes in your room for the spa & the blue ones for the pool area, you were suppose to shower before you entered the pool, & it said swimming caps were required (but no one followed this one), and there were dress codes for eating in the dining area (I.e. no shorts in the dining area, etc.). BUT with all these rules, the one big different vs. in the States is that apparently tops for the females are optional in and around the pool! I know that there are many beaches in Europe that are topless beaches etc., but I just didn’t realize that at hotel pools where there are families etc. that this was the case. There weren’t many women doing it & when it was more crowded they put their tops back on, but I was just a little shocked at first. And NO I did not participate in this activity (that is to answer anticipated questions).
Another thing that was very different was the spa experience itself. First I had to have an exam with a Doctor in order to even do the thermal baths. I did that on Thursday morning & it didn’t take that long - just ask me if I was one any meds, if I had any heart problems or aches, then checked heart beat, blood pressure, lungs, etc. He said my blood pressure was a bit low (probably because I hadn't had anything to eat or drink at that point) , so he told me they wouldn't put the mud too hot because that would lower it more & he suggested I at least drink some coffee before. I ended up having a full hour until my appt, so I had a full breakfast & was much better.So first I had my mud bath. So this Italian lady did it & I have no idea what she said half the time (well she didn't say much anyway). So they have this spa bed they put this canvas like blankets on and then they put two piles of mud on it. So I sat down & she put some on my back & then I laid down in one of the piles & then my feet when in the other pile. I thought they would put mud everywhere, but they only put it on my joints, back, feet & right hand (not sure why only 1 hand), but later I realized it was in the places the Dr. circled on the diagram when I met with him. So then she wraps the blanket around me so I looked like a mummy & I laid there for probably 20 min. And oh my gosh I was sweating like crazy after a couple minutes! But it did feel really good. And the room was far from any of the spas in North America. There was no AC, just a big window opened (with blinds of course) & then just a curtain in the doorway between the room and the hallway. The walls were just white tiled walls & floors. So then when that was done I went to the shower area in the room & the lady sprayed me down to get all the mud bath. Yes you just stand there in your birthday suit as she sprays you down! Then I sat in this tub thing in the room for about 15 min that was filled with the thermal spring water & they had jet things in it.And I found out later the mud they use comes from some lakes around there & then they put it in big basins with the thermal water & let it sit for months & it forms some sort of algae that's suppose to be good for you.So after I drank some sort of herbal drink (had one before too) I went upstairs to the massage room. I only had a 28 min massage, so kind of short but still good.Ahh and the massage – they definitely don't believe in 'toweling' like they do in the North America (for those of you who haven’t been to a spa before – in the Spa in the US & Canada, they always cover your ‘private’ areas with towels…even if you are getting something that involves them using the shower.). At this place you just lay there in your birthday suit & then she used a towel but only one & would only cover small areas. I'm so glad I had a female & not male this time because I don't think I could have relaxed as much if I had a guy! (Especially just laying there with my whole top half exposed during the massage or just laying there with nothing!). Oh & the room had all the lights on & no candles or anything like that like they usually do back home. It did have AC & she had music on, but it was just a radio station that she changed several times. The massage was good, just very different from back home. I'm a very 'modest' person, so this definitely made me step out of my 'comfort zone', but I still enjoyed it. Guess it helped that 1) the people doing it were females and 2) I know there is no one that was there that I know & will probably not see any of them again! ;-)
I’m starting to get a bit sick at the stomach from typing on the plane, so I’ll close for now and write more about my Holland experiences later.
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