Little Things

In Pulp Fiction's early dialogue in which two hit men discuss travelling to other countries, Travolta nails it when he talks about how it was the "Little Things" that stand out when one visits Europe.

For the most part, things work the same way here that they do back home. People commute in and out of cities to work, three meals are eaten every day, kids go to school, etc. It's the little things, however, that stand out. Businesses stay open until 7 at night, but they close for 2 or 3 hours in the early afternoon for "siesta" time. Ketchup is scarce, while manoyaisse can be found on nearly every food item. And peanut butter costs about $7 for a jar as small as most jelly jars back home, a personally brutal discovery. Perhaps the one that gets me the most, however, is the serving size for beverages. People here drink just as much coke, water, juice, etc. as we do, but instead of filling large glasses, they bring out the bottle of said beverage and a tiny cup that you have to fill up every 30 seconds or so if you drink like me.

These little things have been interesting to discover, and are fun to acclimate to. As far as big things go, classes are going well, the group of people I am with is great, and the food is still excellent. I might tell a story about my first photo processing experience later on today. Off to Assisi tomorrow for a field trip. Take care everyone!

-msr