It’s raining in Italy…

It’s raining in Italy, much more than I would like. Some days it’s just wet out with a light mist in the air, but others there are plenty of raindrops falling from the sky. This isn’t exactly the type of weather that makes you hop out of bed in the morning and go on an adventure. Although sometimes I would prefer to stay inside on days like this, I’m in Italy and determined to make the most of my time here. So where is the best place to go when it’s raining? You guessed it…..The MALL!

I began my journey heading south on the Autostrada leaving the region of Le Marche and entering Abruzzo. I am currently located about 5 minutes north of the border between the two regions. During the drive I was enjoying the typical scenery which is so common in Italy. Rolling hills filled with vineyards and olive groves. The most interesting thing is that on top of these hills are towns. Small, self sustaining villages that are hundreds of years old and in some ways still haven’t changed much in that amount of time. If you were standing and had a 360 degree view, there are probably about 10 hilltop villages within view. I was (and still am) amazed at this. I can’t understand how these towns were built hundreds of year ago and still remain perfectly intact today. Amazingly, since these towns were built with ancient masonry and stone structures, they have weathered earthquakes that have destroyed nearby modern buildings. These towns were built up in the hills for defense purposes to keep intruders out. Ironically, today no one even wants to travel up to the towns. In fact the exact opposite is true. Many hilltop villages throughout Italy have seen a rapid decrease in population due to the younger generations preferring a more modern lifestyle in urban areas. Fortunately, there has also been a recent interest in maintaining and preserving these villages in part due to foreign visitors purchasing properties as vacation homes. Luckily these villages are undergoing a transformation, as money is spent on the renovation and rebuilding of their historic centers and also on the nearby properties in the surrounding countryside.

After my scenic drive through the countryside, we took the next exit off the Autostrada and there we were. A giant stucco colored building surrounded by a huge parking lot. Something just didn’t look right about this modern building being nestled between so many nearby structures that were hundreds of years older. The second I stepped foot inside the mall I immediately felt like I was somewhere I had already been, and that was America. This mall was exactly the same as any mall in America. The main difference in this Mall was the food court. This food court was a cafeteria style food court with different stations that prepared whatever type of food you would like. Pasta, meat, seafood, vegetables, antipasto, desserts and almost anything else you could imagine. Not only was this food cooked in minutes, it could compare with many Italian restaurants in America. I ate a nice bowl of spaghetti and a grilled piece of pork all complimented with a fresh piece of bread. I love Italy. After my lunch I spent some time browsing through the stores and had an all around good time at my first Italian mall.

Later on at night, it was still raining. I had already been to the mall for the day so I did the only other logical thing to do. I went for a walk. What can I say? It was Friday and I didn’t feel like sitting inside. Apparently I was the only one who felt this way since it seemed that most other people didn’t want to leave their houses. I was one of the few people out and was definitely the only one walking. Here is a quick video and some pictures from my “passeggiata”.

I hope you enjoyed this post! I have quite a few exciting trips coming up within the next couple weeks. Exciting trips means good stories. Please stay tuned to see what kind of adventures I can into next…..let’s just hope it’s not raining!!…..Ciao!