Bergamo, Italy –
We went to the airport in Glasgow in order to make the plane to Italy. Bergamo is such a beautiful city, not much different from Edinburgh. The old town sits high above the rest of the city on a large mountain.
The view was amazing. I watched a bike race, which was making its way through Italy during my stay. The view from my hostel was amazing. I woke up to the sound of the bell tower in town…ALMOST as good as waking up to Denny Chimes in the morning. If there was one thing I learned about Bergamo, it was this: the women wear HUGE sunglasses. Profound huh? Now it’s only appropriate that I tell you my theme for Italy. Italy is “va bene”. The Italians use this phrase tirelessly, and it means a number of things. For the most part, it means “that’s okay”. So, Jon David misses the bus into town…Va bene! Jon David walks through dark alleys to find the hostel in the middle of the night…Va bene. The cats here don’t like it when Jon David pets them (a.k.a. They claw me to death!)…Va bene. Oh, Jon David is sleeping…Va bene…I, the desk attendant, will just come in his room in the middle of the night to take a few spare mattresses and scare him half to death…Va bene. Jon David takes bus 6 into town, except bus 6 won’t let him on the bus because the driver says that he’s NOT going into town…Va bene. You catch the drift. Everything is somehow…Va bene when I’m in Italy.
When in Italy, you must do as the Italians. It makes for a very relaxing stay — laid back. This is something I definitely needed after doing so much traveling in such a short time. While relaxing in Bergamo, I met a wonderful doctor from, where else but Scotland, during my stay. He is a doctor from Glasgow, and we had a wonderful time at dinner talking about the U.S., the healthcare system in our countries, etc… I really enjoyed his company. The next few days were reserved for Florence and Venice. Then it would be off to Vienna to see the famed John Harris.