Forced Relaxation....in Italy

Since arriving on Saturday, the one thing that I have noticed is that Italians have it right when it comes to relaxing. On Saturday and Sunday, most everything is closed. Throughout the weekday, everything closes between 12:30 and 3:00 for the equivalent of a "siesta". Now, not being one for kicking back and doing nothing this bothered me at first.

I promised myself that I would not do any work at all while here (and other than this post, I have kept to my promise). Soooooooo....I have had nothing to do during those 3 hours that everything is closed....and after 2 days, I became okay with it!

Now in my 6th day here, I am enjoying and appreciating the calmness and quietness of everything around me. I don't have the simple luxuries or distractions that I have at home - TV, DVR, stores to run to in the middle of the day, or even my cell phone. But you know what? I'm okay with that. Back home, I felt guilty whenever I had nothing to do. Subconsciously, it just didn't feel right to not be productive for a few hours.

Here, I have no guilt....anymore. I spent the first couple of days antsy to do something. Anything.

Now, I spend the "town shuts down" hours to sit in my hotel room and listen to iTunes while catching up on my favorite blogs, take a walk through the vacant streets, or I sit outside and just soak in the views.

Even dinner time is an entirely different and wonderful experience. Dinner is typically around 7 or 8 (definitely much later than 5 or 6 pm dinners that I am used to). The part I appreciate most is that they expect you to enjoy dinner and socialize. A woman I met here told me that the restaurants typically only expect to have one group of people per table....per night. They don't try to rush you out of the restaurant so they can seat the next group of people. They expect you to fully enjoy your meal and spend 3 to 4 hours enjoying the company of those around you. I LOVE this!!!!

I know that when I go home, things will resume to the fast pace life so for now, I am soaking it all in. I am guiltlessly spending time with just me, myself and I while my husband is at work. For the first time in a long time, I have no agenda, no plans. I'm enjoying the peace and don't feel the need to be a tourist and constantly be on the go. I am appreciating the Italian's leisurely pace.

Next week, I can't wait to share pictures from the trip. For now, I leave you with my latest guilty pleasure (which I enjoy at least 4 cups a day of)....

A latte macchiatto....simply divine!!!!