Italy Top to Bottom

Velle dei Templi- Agrigento, Sicily

17 fantastical days in Italia, where a 2500-mile odyssey all came together in ad hoc fashion. Hiking up to stay at a rustic stone cabin at the base of Monte Rosa, a meaningful road trip from the Alps to Sicily exploring the mysteries of love, death, history, and love, stumping for SFTE,  enjoying new culinary delights of southern Italia, playing guitar with new acquaintances and deepening relationships old and new Italian friends. 

There were challenges; losing my wallet in the mountains, weather, lodging, navigation, mindfulness, taking time to be still, ego, and attachment. But, if emptiness is "going with the flow" and "living in the present" then this trip was not only delightful but a model for growth and enlightenment 

I arrived in Milan early on the morning of 1 Nov exhausted having chosen to try "AA Premium Economy" (not worth it) Even with an ambien it was a fitful time. My old friend Francesca was "chomping at the bit" to get to the mountains as it was an unseasonably warm blue sky day (thank you climate change). We drove to the village of Alagna located near Monte Rosa. I made the 3-hour hike from Alagna to her mountain cabin reasonably well. And we enjoyed a wonderful   candlelight meal of polenta and vegetables cooked over a wood stove.

I didn't sleep well, but my flow was to step outside and gaze at the spectacular stars and Milky Way. The next morning I meditated in the magnificent mountains' solitude and pondered about those who believe the earth is only a few thousand years old. I neither understand humanity nor feel we are not so bright as a species. As we packed up to start our next day of hiking, I couldn't find my wallet!  We retraced our steps back down a leaf-covered trail without success. So we hiked back to the cabin and found it where it had fallen in a crack! We hiked the rest of the day to the point of my exhaustion.  

My first challenge met, I spent a couple of days with my good friends Matteo and Fred around Lago Maggiore, pontificating about the mysteries of women and happiness.  The next day I spent a day visiting the impressive flight test operations at Leonardo Helicopters and getting acquainted with flight test colleagues.

The following day I drove through the fog and traffic of Milan, driving 7 hours to meet my old university buddy, Marco in Tivoli, east of Rome The 15th-century gardens and mountain-fed fountains there were impressive. Built by an exiled Catholic bishop, who evidently liked to party.  I played guitar for an old Italian who was hanging out in a park, He spoke no English but insisted I play American 70's classics, including the Beatles.  In return, he gave me a little handmade bouquet. 

Continuing south we spent a day touring Pompeii, which due to the time of year was remarkably uncrowded. This for me was a very thought-provoking experience. Pompei,  in 79 AD was a vibrant city of 20,000 with grand homes, restaurants, baths, plazas, art, theatres, amphitheaters, brothels, and plumbing. I think I could have been happy living there. They even had "fast food" restaurants next to the gyms, brothels and public baths (hot, warm, and cool baths).  A couple of rich brothers were playboys and had murals depicting their "grandeur" in their mansion (look at the pic closely). When Mount Vesuvius erupted blowing half a mountain up 12 miles in the sky it buried the residents alive in ash or incinerated them.  I meditated on this reality, trying to imagine living there preoccupied with the activities and worries of the day (Vesuvius is in the background). The reminder.  Treat every day as a precious gift.

The next day we took a ferry to Sicily and drove to the southern coast to visit the ancient temple ruins, Valle deiTempli near Agrigento, which in 50 BC was the 3rd largest city in the ancient Greek empire behind Athens and Syracuse. The ancient Agrigento residents with the help of slaves (mostly POWs) built a wall of over a dozen huge temples to all their gods to frighten would-be invaders. It didn't help. I wasn't that impressed with what was left.  Only one temple with any vestige of the ancient splendor with a 500-year-old olive tree watching over it.   

Another reminder that. All we are is dust in the wind. 

Simona

We drove to the town of Enna perched on a mountain overlooking the plains.  We stayed at a guiche place when I got to sing,  "I am a Creep" with a delightful hostess at a Sicilian hotel in Enna who has dreams of being a singer. 

The next day, weather prevented hiking Mount Edna so we left Sicily and headed over to the Puglia region (heel of Italy) visiting Lecce, Trulli huts, Ostuni, also known as La Città Bianca ("The White City"), and the seashore at Polignano a Mare, all the while "performing" in the piazzas and enjoying the amazing sites and cibo (food)

Trulli

Ostuni

This included, per the suggestion of my Italian friends, eating Pasticcotti, a delectable regional desert.  Molto Buona!  

Pasticciotti

After dropping Marco off in Roma, I headed north for a 5-hour drive back to Venegono to visit another Leonardo flight test organization, see more of the sites around Venegono, 

Santa Caterina del Sasso along Lago Maggiore

and celebrate the birthday of my friend and colleague Miriam. It was a memorable finale to my odyssey. I sometimes pinch my cheek given the experiences I enjoy at this phase of life. But delightful as they were, it was also a lab lesson that happiness derived from experiences is transitory. And if one is attached to these experiences it will never be "enough" and you will want "more."  Contentment only comes from one's mind staying aware of the futility of attachments, relishing the present, and striving to enjoy "1000 flowers."

La mansardina- A memorable Venegono abode

Flying out of Milan, I could see the places around Venegono that gave me some special memories in my last few days. I'm looking forward to a return engagement.  But I daily encourage myself to see reality as it is, fluid and open-ended. With that in mind, I must stay focused on the now, compassion for others, and of course, CARPE DIEM!