Ode to the piazzas of Italy

I'm starting to understand that one of the big motivations I had to drop everything and bum my way around Europe for a while was the pace of my life. Everything spinning around at 100 miles per hour, you barely have time to breath, much less to think. Well, me and Tom have been cruizing the streets of italy for two weeks now, and it seems like these people have figured out a thing or two about not getting caught up in the velocity of modern living.


First of all, even if an italian wanted to work 24/7, they couldn't because the laws of italy force every store to close for two hours in the middle of the day for lunch. Also, they can't be open until after 8. So, with no option but to go home, everyone takes lunch in the middle of the day and rests.

The next beautiful thing about their way of life are the piazzas. In every city in italy there is a big square where people come down and chat every evening. I don't even remember the name of my next door neighbors growing up, but here neighbors see eachother every evening. Families come down to the streets together and take walks, eat gelatos and spend time together. It truely is a wonderful life.