Più o Meno

So far, I’ve been surprised by my ability to communicate in Italian. I’m guessing it’s the same for all languages, but Italian definitely falls into the 80/20 category (i.e., you use 20% of the words/phrases 80% of the time). One phrase that gets used repeatedly is più o meno, which means “more or less”. If you ask a question asking for a specific answer regarding time or distance, there’s a high likelihood that an Italian will respond più o meno. It’s almost as if nothing is exact here.

I was successful in two missions today. First, I got my tubes. However, I almost made a costly mistake. By way of background, there are a few different kinds of valves. In the U.S. we almost exclusively use presta valves. However, in Europe I believe they use multiple types. As I was walking away from the bike shop I decided to check the valves to make sure they were long enough for my rims. I noticed they weren’t presta. When I went back to the shop the owner said they didn’t have presta valves. But he looked and found some. Phew.

As far as the maps go, I couldn’t find the right compromise between weight and convenience; however, I did come up with a unique solution. The problem with the maps is they are too unwieldy. Thus, my plan was to photocopy the areas I needed but the stores won’t let you make copies yourself. Trying to direct a shopkeeper on what to photocopy would be pushing my Italian language abilities way too far. An atlas would work well because I could show a shopkeeper the page I wanted photocopied. But atlases are huge and there’s no way I could carry one on my bike. I was a bit perplexed but thought maybe I could lookup the maps online, do a “print screen”, save it as a jpeg and then download it to my Blackberry. Guess what? It WORKED. I can even zoom and scroll. This is what touring is all about. It’s an adventure that requires patience and ingenuity. At times it can seem frustrating but the rewards are awesome when you overcome obstacles.

A bit off topic but I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention food considering I’m in Italy. So far my meals have been very good. Yesterday I went to my favorite pizza place in Italy, Capri da Nasti and had a pizza with bacon and onion. For lunch today I asked a bookstore employee for a recommendation and she gave me a pretty good place nearby. I’d have to say my discussion with her was the best I’ve had so far. I understood about 90% of what she was saying and it wasn’t as if she was babying me. She was full out talking and giving directions.