A Baker's Dozen - Things We Have Learnt About Italy

1. Never pass up the opportunity to use a public toilet, regardless of its condition - you just don't know where the next one will be.

2. There is no such thing as a bad coffee - espresso, cappuccino, latte - all great, no matter where you go.

3. The train system is cheap and there are trains to almost everywhere, except when there are snap strikes, and then the system sucks.

4. Cakes and pastries of all shapes and sizes are great to eat, and very inexpensive.  They are rarely plain, being usually filled with jam, chocolate, creamy custard, fruit or other nice things.

5. A lot of people smoke and the cigarette butts all end up on the streets.

6. There are lots of dogs, mostly small cute things that would make a good entree for a bull terrier, but there is hardly any evidence of dog poo - their owners are obviously very disciplined.

7. Fruit, vegetables, cheese and smallgoods are plentiful and much cheaper than in Melbourne, and the quality and freshness is outstanding.

8. It helps enormously to try and use the few words of Italian that you know. Local people really appreciate your effort, even if it's only per favore and grazie.

9. You can't walk down any street without being accosted by someone trying to beg some money from you, or sell you something you don't want - bunches of roses, packets of tissues and so on.

10. The sky seems to be always blue.

11. There are so many basilicas, duomos, cathedrals and churches, and after several weeks of looking, it's hard to remember one from another.

12. Men are much more sociable and not reluctant to show affection towards each other - they gather in groups everywhere, chatting, laughing and gesticulating.

13. People love to gesticulate.

D2

Beggars and Bananas

You can't  go anywhere here in Paris without being accosted by beggars. They come at you in the Metro - some simply asking for your loose change, others with scribbled messages on scrappy bits of cardboard, and yet another using the novel approach of playing the piano accordian for the benefit of the commuters. The beggars are also at any location where tourists assemble and they have a variety of scams to separate you from your money. Today we witnessed a well-meaning gentleman being spat on by several young women after he tried to halt their attempt to extract money from two women in Montmarte. C'est la vie!

The other thing that beggars belief is the price of bananas. I have seen them today for around 2 euros/kg - and these bananas come from places in South America and Africa, and the cost of getting them here must be considerable to say the least. And yet here they are in all their firmness, ripe and ready to eat. The real questions are - why can't we have some bananas from South America and Africa, and why are our own home-grown bananas so expensive (cyclone shortages aside)?

D2