Dee's Exciting News and Other Things

Doesn't this trip just keep getting better and better? This latest news for Dee is amazing to me and I certainly hope it comes off. I would offer that maybe a good question to ask would be "do you think there is a chance you will come to the USA to perform? Preferably the west coast?" That might show that her interest really is in seeing him perform, not just meeting him. Fun Stuff!!

Another adventure we have come across (they just seem to keep mounting) is that we discovered another site we both really want to see, although we probably can't work it into this trip. We were told about this place called Hadrian's Wall which in northern England. It runs very close to Newcastle, which it so happens we will be arriving in after leaving Edinburgh. From Newcastle, we will catch the ferry to Amsterdam (yet another adventure we are really looking forward to). Hadrian's Wall was built beginning in AD 122 and runs about 80 miles across England. It was constructed to keep out those rascally Scots from the north. You can walk it or there is a tour where they take your luggage from B&B to B&B for you (or pub to pub :), or you can take a bus along it. Quite beautiful really. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadrian's_Wall

We've decided that this particular adventure will have to be on our next trip, but it's not the first thing we've decided we want to see on our 'next trip'. We DO love planning!

P.S. 6 months from today, we will be in London!!!

Becky

A Decision....Of Sorts.

After thinking a lot about it, I have decided the way I am going to approach the situation mentioned (well, sort of) in the previous post is:

1)  I am NOT going to ask to have a picture taken with him/them (and I don't intend to do it even if it is brought up.)
2)  I am NOT going to ask for an autograph
3)  I am probably going to be traveling on a train for several hours (dragging my sister behind me) to go meet someone who I respect, and I am going to approach him with respect, by not taking advantage of the situation.  I am simply going to say hello, perhaps shake his hand, and tell him I appreciate his talent, his work ethic, his voice, and his commitment to the people who pay money to come see him. 

I don't think because someone is a public figure, he/she should be treated like an animal in the zoo.  I think too often, when we really like a performer, we begin to think they belong to us.  After all, we pay him/her/them to entertain us, and therefore, we feel we should have access to them.  I don't think that is how it should be.  I believe we do pay them for just that, to entertain us.  Not to have their pictures take with us; not to answer endless questions (which nearly always are questions that has been asked and answered time after time); and not to be set upon by anyone who sees them on the street. 

If truly given this opportunity, I am going to look at it as a special adventure in my life, a chance to do something that I have never done before, but not a ticket to impose myself on someone, just because of who they are.  To be given the opportunity to just sit and watch, whatever the situation is, and to soak in the ambiance of a different culture, will be one of the highlights of my life.

I hope it happens.

So What If....

So just suppose you had a favorite artist.  Someone whose music or art spoke to you, and for whom you had a special regard.  Suppose it was someone whose music or art lifted you up at a time when you were really down, and sparked an interest in something when you hadn't been interested in anything for a long time.  Now suppose you were serendipitously placed in a position where you were going to meet that person. 

Are you sweating, yet?

I am, and I don't even know what the situation is, yet.  It came about on Facebook.  Now, our sister Julie is doing the "mom" thing.  You know, the one about all the evils that abound on Facebook, and how people have vanished off the face of the earth (or worse), because of liaisons started between the innocent victim (moi?), and the pervert on the other end of the Internet (Mario, obviously).  Becky and I didn't think of any of that.  To us it was just an exciting, unexpected, marvelous adventure that presented itself to us as a gift, a wonderful, happy, (and for me) spine tingling explosion of emotions.  

So back to that meeting of fan and artist.  What would you say?  What would you do?  I think Becky's take on it is perfect:  Try to not look like an idiot.  Well, that is all well and good, but how does one do that?  For one thing, I am not completely sure that he speaks English.  I know Mario doesn't because,  1) the chat was entirely in Italian, and 2) he told me he didn't.  My artist may or may not.  He does sing in English occasionally, and his favorite artist (maybe the one that would have him tongue-tied) is Peter Gabriel, so there is a small chance that I could listen to him speak English with a delightful Italian accent rather than him listening to me stutter my way through in a mess of badly conjugated verbs and confused articles.

In any case, I am not even sure I am reading Mario's email right, and won't know until I hear back from my Italian teacher who I have asked to be my definitive translator (sorry, google translate).  In any case, it raised an interesting question for me.  How would I behave in that situation?  What would I say?  What would I do?  And how would I be perceived?  What do I want to know?  Do I just let him know what his music has meant to me?  Or maybe I will simply say, "Grazie per aver condiviso il tuo cuore, e per salvare la mia anima."

(Perhaps to be continued...)

Dee

E Più Cioccolato (and more chocolate)

Becky and I are both "heavily" into chocolate (heavily being both the adverb and the resulting condition). So, as mentioned in an earliery post, we chose our date for the trip based on the dates of the European International Chocolate Festival in the city of Perugia.

Since we are coming up to an American Chocolate Festival (Easter), I thought I would insert some short videos of the festival in Perugia.

On this one, notice the people waiting for their samples.





I put this one in because I wanted Becky to see how people are dressed for October 19, 2010....Dang, it is going to be hard to keep it to a single backpack.







ALERT: ANYONE WITH DIABETES SHOULD WATCH THIS ONLY UNDER MEDICAL SUPERVISION!






And they have chocolate bananas!!!! Ok, you can watch this if you took your insulin today. Otherwise, you might want to skip it. It is just a video of a lot of boring chocolate.




Becky, do you think if we watched this about 10 times before we leave for the festival, we would be so desensitized we wouldn't even want to eat any? Ok, probably not. BUT, I have been exercising my "control muscles" in preparation by not buying Cadbury Mini-eggs. So far, at least.


Buon Appetito, e dolci sogni del cioccolato. (and sweet dreams of chocolate)

Dee

Auguri Tutte delle Donne nel Mondo.

Today is the International Day of the Woman. Apparently, it is celebrated in most of Europe, and other places in the world, but misses the US. A Facebook "friend" says that in Italy, men come up to you and give you mimosa...the flower, not the drink; sorry, Becky.

So, for all of the women in my life: Auguri Oggi delle Donne!

And also to all of the women in the world who live in slavery, poverty, despair, and hopelessness...this is a day for you... and I hope in some way you receive a bit of unexpected beauty in your day.