Life in Italy - A Day in Pictures

In my eternal conquest to douse a bucket of water on the hoards of wanderers and day dreamers who wont for a life in Bell'Italia...I say, of course, who wouldn't?  But lately, I see more and more bloggers and articles doing their own versions of Burnt by the Tuscan Sun 'Reality Checks' - Many of whom express my sentiments exactly, which I carefully outline in the epilogue of my book:  Italy is wonderful - but does not come without its own hassles.  And of course, this sentiment can be applied to every place on earth.  So, it's good to settle down in the place that gives you - for whatever your needs are - the best life to lead.
Having said that, here's my antidote of the day for that Quality of Life that everyone thinks they get in Italy.  These are pictures purloined from facebook and the web in just a single hour of checking my Feed.   You can chalk this post up to my being in a very bad mood, ever since Rome's Mayor Marino closed off the road to traffic rounding the Colosseum.  I no longer find joy sitting in traffic in Rome - when I could, on a nightly basis, whiz by the Colosseum and get thrilled down to my tippy-toes and recall, just how fabulous Italy truly is.  What a guasta-festa that Mayor is...so here I am, to party-poop myself:

A friend called this 'Hit&Run Party'
Sadly, it's a fairly typical feature come Saturday evenings in Italy
After all...someone else will clean it up later.
Fortunately for the photographer, Milan probably takes better care of their parks than Rome
(which is blessed with many many more, and far larger...but still)

A fellow blogger posted this from her old town center on the outskirts of Rome.
Guests (who have been arriving for months), cannot for the life of them
figure out why this trash can laden with cement has not been removed
from one of the ancient sites in her town.

Okay, I lied.  This is a picture taken in the park near my house about 24 hrs. after Rome's
Servizi Giardini came and cleaned up.  And every weekend, it's the same routine.
Even when their services are in play, in a matter of minutes, the place becomes someone's living room

I add this photo of this gorgeous building near my house that took upwards of 8 yrs
to build and, along with its sister skyscraper next door, remains unoccupied due to
nefarious business dealings by the owners [basically, the land is seemingly owned by someone else].
Across Italy, empty or half-finished concrete monstrosities are the norm. The result of people
simply running out of funds or having built on eco-zoned or residential land.
This photo is remarkable for two reasons:  One, the immigrants are now ripping the place apart - windows, doors,
electrical wiring, you name it.  I'm surprised squatters haven't simply moved straight in (doors have all been removed).
And two, on the same day I found these other photos posted, I read in the newspapers that
the City had - incredibly - given permission to build a third skyscraper on the very spot.
You can't make this stuff up.

I've seen this photo make the rounds on facebook before, but here it is again.
Made in Italy.

Taken this morning in Florence by talented sculptor - artist - blogger - author
 - teacher and best yet, Madonnara street painter (the title of her book) -- Kelly Borsheim
Reminding us why, of course, Italy still rocks.
www.BorsheimArts.com