center, north, and onwards east!

bdays come and go, but the memories of good times remain... Saturday we had a combination party for myself and another girl who was also turning 30, just 6 days before me! Yummy bbq, good friends, 4 home-made cakes... it was so nice! :D

Then on Sunday I headed off with Claudio to Torino. He had to go for work for a couple of days, so I tailed along and caught the chance to get to know another city closely related to my past. My mother used to live there, I think. A couple of days before going there I mustered the nerve to call a phone number, of a lawyer whom I didn't remember, but my father had told me he used to hang out with my family and was friends with my mother. He was from Torino, so I was hoping to seeing him. His son answered, and *he* remembered me from when we were children and we played together! The father made me feel like it was only last year we last spoke, and was so glad I called, and was looking forward to meeting me to talk. He wasn't going to be there that days I was visiting, but once I return from Macedonia I have that to look forward to! I wonder how many things he will be able to tell me about my mother, my family, my childhood...

Torino gave me the impression of a quietly grand city. The center is all old palaces, but besides a couple of markedly different buildings, or churches, they are a bit homogeneous. It could also be that we arrived before everyone returned from vacation, so the city was emptier than usual. The northern part has succumbed to the onrush of poor immigrants from all countries, so it is a bit unsafe, but overall it has a good atmosphere. I finally got to see the Po, the biggest river of Italy, and the first you learn about in school.

I only spent 36 hours there, 'cause I returned reeeeally early to Genova Tuesday to meet with the Social Services about the residence thing. I explored another section of the city, but besides that, I didn't get much more out of the deal. It seems they will do anything for hoboes, but a clean, educated professional in limbo like myself doesn't really "deserve" assistance, I can manage on my own. The girl I spoke with put in my application anyways, to see if I slip through the cracks, but she suggested I take up residence with a friend and get health papers like that. I hate to be in this limbo where I know I could use some help, but I'm just intelligent/able/energetic/educated enough for people to think I don't need it. I understand the nicety of helping the less fortunate, but the country would benefit a lot more from helping me out a little now, than helping a druggie hobo for the rest of his life..

Ah, and I looked into getting a medical check-up privately, and it's indecent the amount of money doctors ask for, even here. I guess since I am in no bad health, I just need routine maintenance, I can put it off for another couple of months. Ah, and I barely started to fully consider the implications of having worked and contributed to social security in the US for 10 yrs, which I'll never see, while in Italy I have no right to a pension 'cause I never worked here... *grumble grumble*

Anyhoo, the rest of the week was spent here and there about Genova, running errands and getting ready for the next leg of the trip: Serbia and Macedonia! We are leaving this evening around 8pm with an Eurolines bus, that goes almost non-stop to Belgrade. 16 hours (if all goes well) in a bus!! I've never done something like it... 'Hope it won't be a horrible experience... Once there, we are spending the night to recover, and then we are renting a car to go south to Ohrid, a city on a lake, famous for a monastery and some other stuff. I'll learn things along the way then write about them, I am totally depending on the other two to be fully prepared (and they are...) ;)

From there we will lazily make our way back up north, stopping here and there. The guys want to pass by Sarajevo... I am a bit nervous about the area, these are places where not long ago war and massacres were at play... There is still much political tension.

Wish me luck and look forward to hear back from me in 2 weeks! There should be internet along the way, I might be able to put up a quick update once in a while. Until then, here are the latest pics.