All I saw was a fleck of white, and then I heard it smash. Then a spot of green bounced in another direction. The heavy winds outside Valletta had blown a birdcage off a high residential balcony, and, as shattered as his cage, the small canary was struggling to breathe on the cement steps. The damn thing had almost hit me, missing by only about a meter. The shop on the ground floor of the building had closed for lunch, but I pounded on the door until someone answered. I explained the situation and we did what we could for the bird. Getting to Malta was the biggest travel disaster of my short life As I struggled to catch my flight to Malta, I constantly felt like a portly Dom DeLuise or Allen Funt was going ... read more

With great difficulty, on the 26th of February, I said goodbye to my family in Calabria. I had no idea what adventures and difficulties lay in the road ahead. With the unknowable time between my next visit, it felt like I was ending a life. Watch me get scammed Desperate to make myself feel better, I decided to celebrate arriving in Sicily by purchasing myself a “hot” new watch at the Reggio Calabria harbor port as I waited to load the Vespa onto the ferry. I liked the weathered face of the old black man selling the watches, and I decided to put a few nickels in his pocket. I inquired of the price and he said €50. I told him thanks, but no thanks, and he could forget it. He asked how much I had ... read more

Life in the village There’s an old woman in this town, and every time I walk past her she seems to be screaming at her husband. And always, she stops yelling at him to turn to me, smile and say, “Salve.” She then immediately goes back to screaming at the poor man. That’s the kind of odd, friendly place this is. This is life, but it feels like camp. My appreciation and understanding for multi-linguistic people has progressed immensely since the day when I pulled my brother’s 5th grade classmate Sam, a South Korean, out of his class and dragged him through the elementary school hallways to interpret for a new Chinese student who was stumping the public school teachers. I recall, in first grade, literally tugging this poor kid by his coat, saying something like, ... read more

Unbelievable fortune I lead a blessed life. Truly. What did I do in my last life that earned me all of these wonderful opportunities. Or can we all experience this, with enough determination? That’s what I prefer to believe. But why don’t more people try? I am, everywhere I go, like a visitor landing on the shore of New Zealand. I expect a “Maori greeting.” And because I hold no ill will, I am eventually accepted. Sant 'Agata I have arrived in Sant’Agata, and wow. Wow. Wow. More beautiful than I had dreamed it could be. How about a majestic town on the top of a hill, overlooking the ocean - on one side, and then overlooking gorgeous valleys on all the other sides? What strikes me as funny is that because I keep my camera ... read more

Freezing mansion "This room smells like Vicks Vapor rub," I wrote in my journal. At least the bed is warm. I am frustrated with myself that I cannot remember the new words I learn the first time I hear them. She said it several times, the name of this metal device that warms your bed for you. It would be a luxury in America, but if you live in a 200-year-old concrete mansion in the mountains of Spezzano Albanese, you may really grow to depend on it. I just spent a frustrating couple of hours communicating somewhere between bad English and bad Italian, mixed with a little poor French and Spanish. By the end I myself was confused and exhausted. When I am communicating with someone who speaks poor English, I say each word individually, waiting ... read more