Bike Riding

"Life is like riding a bicycle - in order to keep your balance, 
you must keep moving."

~Albert Einstein

There's an Italian expression, "Hai voluto la bicicletta? Adesso pedala!", to describe someone who has finally obtained their goal, but who then feels overwhelmed. It means,  "You wanted the bicycle? Now pedal!"  I had a dream to live in Italy and I made it happen. I got a job, I obtained my visa, jumped on a redeye flight to Milan, took a train to Verona, but then when I woke up the next morning in a new place,  it was suddenly all too real. I had one of those "Oh, crap!!" moments. Moving someplace foreign has rattled my confidence and made me second guess my decision making skills. (Not just the decision to move here, but practically every decision I've made for the last twenty years!) I think this is normal, though. Right?


Finding a place to live, figuring out how to get from point A to point B (and then back), communicating the most basic words, and just transitioning into a new way of living has been challenging. Even the simplest things can seem overwhelming, like where to eat lunch; how to buy a bus ticket; when to safely cross the street.  I've been feeling tired, overly sentimental, a little lonely, and allergic to almost everything. Apparently, these are all signs of culture shock (even the allergies!). It's seriously strange because it's not like this is my first time here. But I guess this is my first time really, really on my own in Italy.


Turns out, a visa isn't enough to live here. I must obtain a permesso di sioggiorno (a permit to stay), which according to Italian law, must be filed within eight days of arriving. It's actually a very confusing process due to all the logistics involved, but I'm almost over that hump (I think).  Finding a place to live was possibly the most difficult task, but I serendipitously stumbled upon a super cute & cozy apartment that has a sublease for the same amount of time as my visa. It's in a perfect location, just a ten minute walk to the center of Verona and just a couple blocks from a 14th century castle.


The next big obstacle is transportation. I'd like to buy a little scooter to get around town, but the search for one seems daunting...and riding one seems a little dangerous. I've always been a terrible bike rider. I didn't even learn how to ride one until I was embarrassingly too old. And now I've moved to a city where the main mode of transportation is by bicycle or scooter. There's some irony here. I just hope I can stay balanced while I pedal my way through this new place.

The neighborhood castle

One of the best things about living in Verona is being able to travel to another
country for the weekend...like Munich, Germany for Oktoberfest!

It might seem like I don't want to be here, but that's not the case at all. I'm just freakishly introspective. I feel privileged to have created change in my life...and proud of myself for overcoming my own fears to make this happen. And more grateful than ever.


p.s. My couch pulls out into a bed. Visitors welcome!