Life in Italy - #LifeHacking the Post Office

Anyone who comes to Italy for even about 36 hours finds out sooner, rather than later, about the notorious Post Office. Their misdeeds are the stuff of legend. Day in, day out when coming across Facebook posts of new arrivals unloading about the umpteenth miscarriage of mail justice that has befallen them, I sort of smirk to myself, smug in my knowledge that while it's cathartic to vent, they ain't seen nuthin' yet.
The Italian Post Office is a singular institution hellbent on making lives miserable. So much so, that I dedicate an entire chapter in my book to it: The Postman Never Rings Even Once. But I truly believe that desperation breeds innovation and it's why we now have email. 
And this is 2016. The Poste Italiane has been growing by leaps and bounds in efficiency, branding, banking, heck even free wifi - better to allow you to bide your time while dozens of octogenarians cash their pensions and then stand in front of the clerk for those 98 additional seconds to tuck away in a safe place their cash, or while people fill out the form - three of them - whilst standing at the counter, because to put them out would incite inmates, errr, clients to take and waste untold stacks of them. Things have changed so much that they're even charging us about 6 times other countries just for the luxury (and it is a luxury brand in my book) of mailing your letter.
But recently, like many of my compatriots, I had to submit my declaration that I do not, indeed, own a television. I went to the post office for the express purpose of mailing the registered letter. Let me just say that the clerk was super nice [another humongous improvement on the days in which she would have instead refused a letter because the address was written in green pen, or you stapled rather than slathered mucky goo all over the envelope to close it, or that your stamps were crooked, or that you wrote too many lines on a postcard, or you wrote below the line clearly demarcated on the postcard, or you requested far too many stamps, or the box was too big, or too small, or there was a slight bulge in the envelope, or that you wrote a note on the envelope, or you wrote England instead of Gran Bretagna...] I could go on. And on. And on. This is no exaggeration.
And so I was quite taken aback when she told me that I couldn't send my letter that way - meaning, in an envelope. I was quite used to the practice that if you sent a letter in an unsealed envelope, it cost less. So we all used to do that. But..no envelope? This was not in my personal annals of inane postal practices. And then...she did this: Risking her electric blue manicure, she set out to carefully craft an envelope out of my letter, employing scotch tape, stamps & staples. It was an engineering marvel. Standing there, it was as if witnessing a surgeon put one final stitch into a dying patient, or Betsy Ross sewing that last star on the flag...It was pure poetry in motion (and I'm sorry, but my surreptitious video does not do it justice...Did I mention it? No cellphones allowed at the counter? You can imagine where they draw the line on actually videotaping employees.)
Italy often has a lot of wild workarounds for what in other places would be straightforward, standard practice. Like the traffic lights all flashing yellow at midnight (click here for Midnight Run post), to keep people from running red ones. Or, side streets  alongside major thoroughfares which I am quite convinced are so guys can pick up prostitutes with ease - without causing traffic jams (anyone riding up the Via Salaria will know what I mean). Recently, our Prime Minister decided that since so many people pat ignored the heinous TV Tax, he would simply tack it onto our electric bills. I don't own a TV and if you want to get my taxation without representation vibe going, this is a fairly good place to start. Thus my registered letter. 
Flummoxed, I had to ask the clerk, just what this was all about. And with a straight face she stated that otherwise, people would pay for and send the registered envelope, empty. Basically, it was nipping a he said / she said accusation assault in the bud. They'd have proof of having delivered a declaration, when in reality, nothing was truly signed and sealed. By forcing you to provide the contents via a document-cum-envelope, well, then it had to be legit. I thought it was so you wouldn't send anthrax or bullets to our friends at the tax office for this highway robbery of a TV Tax - I'm sure they get plenty.
As someone who once paid a car accident of $103 in pennies (which is also illegal, btw), I had to admit, this was one genius move on the part of government. Now, about those Panama Papers??!

glide your cursor on colored parts above for more!

Alitalia Takes a Nose Dive

I have started commenting on Current Events in Italy over at my new blog, Irreverent Italy.  I'll be keeping this one going too, for more of my classic cross-cultural commentary, but thought you all might want to go there - it's still a work in progress, but hey...

Here is the first part of the Alitalia / Italian Post Office deal.  In my book, I dedicate ample copy to both poxes on the House of Italy.  But, putting them together?  This is a satirist's dream come true...

Okay-you know things are bad with your Company when the last resort to bail you out is a company so broke it has stopped mail delivery -- and it's the one who is supposed to be delivering the mail.  This is like Detroit trying to get bailed out by Lehman Bros.  I don't know where to start with this incredible story of how - gasp! - horrors! - The Italian Post Office is going to save Alitalia, so I'll start at the end:  Let it fail.  It's not like we'll all suddenly be stranded on our little peninsula - it's a peninsula, after all, and we could always train it out if worse came to worst.  There are plenty of airlines who would gladly pay for the slots, they just don't want to buy the Company those slots come with.

Picture by Gianni Falcone - Diario Acido

Again, in my book, I declare:  We've lost TWA to the junk heap of history, we stared up aghast when the last 'M' came off the Pan Am Building in New York City (I was there), we saw Sabina take its last lap, the Concord moved to a museum, and SwissAir fall from its lofty position (okay, it was reborn the very next day as Swiss, but still...)

Read More at Irreverent Italy:  http://irreverentitaly.blogspot.it/2013/10/ahhhhalitalia-takes-nose-dive.html

Postcards from Paradiso: Touring in Italy

Anyone who has any remote connection to Italy, and surely any of my faithful readers will know that I, for one (but we number in the millions), am not a fan of the Italian postal system.  In fact, I dedicate an entire chapter in my book to it, The Postman never rings even once.  And so it is today, that I offer the adventurer and resident alike, a new Travel Tip for all those earnest communicators who desire to share lovely nuggets of their travels to and thru the Bel Paese and beyond.
But, let's start with the historical precedent.  Since, of course, Italy is still quite (pleasantly) a country bound by tradition.  When I first traveled to Italy as an adult, I would be shocked each time I set about trying to send postcards home, for three reasons: 1)  I generally couldn't get stamps for it at the post office, 2) Those purveyors of stamps, Tobacco shops, where I'd be sent on my mission often didn't know what to charge, leaving me stampless, or 3) The ensuing discussion, in the event someone had stamps to offer, of what my postcard actually would cost to mail. 

More images of the front-side &
the Regata Storica di Venezia at
http://fiammafoto.blogspot.it/2013/05/cartoline-venezia-anni-60-70.html

That's because, I would write full sentences (over 5 words, in fact) on the back of my card, informing my parents that indeed, I had yet to be sold into white slavery and was having a good time but did not necessarily 'wish they were here.'  I would soon discover that anything more than 'Saluti' and my signature was deemed 'a letter.'  And I'd have to pay full postage as if mailing a letter sealed in wax [Okay, that last part might not be true...because in the old days - and I'm talking up through the 1990s - I also discovered that letters that were not sealed meant you could pay less to send them].
They say that travel is a journey of discovery.  In fact, my 1982 trip through Europe brought many illuminations such as why my Italian relatives never offered up any actual 'news' on the backs of postcards, why letters arrived unsealed, and how one could actually pee in a hole without getting it all over their pants legs...
[For more on that, check out my post, Wearing it on my (pants) sleeve]
And so, it would appear that some traditions are hard to die.  They've since done away with the sealed/unsealed envelope thing, but writing on postcards means you're going to pay per word; as if sending a telegram in days of yore (still a common practice as well, especially to commemorate (?) the deceased -- but I'll leave that for another day).

So, my sister was surprised to learn it would run $2.88 just to send a postcard from her holiday home.  And this, only after spending 40 minutes at the dreaded Post Office to learn of the rip-off firsthand.

I explained to her the reason why (she deigned to pen a message on the back of it) and so, we came across our fabulous work-around -- especially if you want to communicate to those not on instagram or facebook (yes, these dinosaurs still exist, really and truly):  Apple, many of you will have forgotten, launched in 2011 a brilliant postcard system that only keeps getting better, aptly named (or is that app-ly?) CARDS.
- You take a picture of your fab oceanside view, charming piazza, or mountain hike
- You send it thru Apple
- They even post the actual stamp on it for you (and as far as I can tell, stand in line to do so)
- They send your letter which actually arrives at its destination
- Heck - you can even send the same card to a number of users [and that would appeal to Italians, because then, your message will most likely read, Best Wishes! or something simple of that nature.]
I have since discovered that there's another app for this same postcard & more mailing, the original Postagram - doing that much and more, and the price? Just $0.99 down from $1.99.  And for those of us who still need to send the occasional telegram?  Heck - it's a bargain! 

Note:  many live links throughout post above - just hover over covered areas.

DIY POSTAL SERVICE...Is this what it's come to?

I guess once people started emailing each other, Post Offices worldwide thought it might make a great re-branding initiative.  You know, where you can start delivering the mail yourself, much like bringing home an Ikea piece of furniture or going to a Home Depot.  And heck, they're such successful businesses...Why not?
And so, while the U.S. & Italy start slowing down the service, even the strange gets stranger...
A friend in Milan kept finding mail for other buildings up and down the block in his mailbox.  Considering the volume they now transport, you'd think they'd at least get the address right.  No matter, every so often, he'd drop the envelopes at the right address and not think about it any further.  Until he went away for awhile.  Upon return, he had quite a number of letters that needed forwarding to the correct address.
Seeing that he lives just across the street from the Post Office, he thought he'd inform them of the lapse in correct mailbox delivery, while bringing them the stack of envelopes.  You can imagine what transpired next:

- You want to post these letters?  Well, no, not exactly.
- I'm trying to tell you that the person from this very office and up & down this very street isn't very keen on looking at address numbers...so, here, go ahead & re-deliver them.

Instead of a Grazie, or even a lowly, We'll take care of it...or, any other host of intelligent responses, he was met with the most outlandish:

- If you're so concerned, why don't you just go & deliver them yourself?  Because, if you leave them here, you'll have to pay the postage to have them sent to the correct address.

Naturally, he turned and simply walked away.


** I dedicate an entire chapter in my book to the Post Office:  The postman never rings even once 
Who'da thunk I would have been so spot-on?   
 Book available thru paypal on my official blog page / Amazon & Kindle

Life in Italy Top 10 Reasons You've Not Got Mail

Anyone who lives in Italy knows that the Italian Post Office in all its forms (from mail clerks to carriers to delivery to home banking) is the bane of one's existence.  Simply put, it's the flip side of the frittata to stunning scenery, passionate people, magnificent monuments, unbelievable food, events, culture and more.   I'm amused daily by tweets and facebook postings on people's Italy post office blues.  I often repost them in the right hand column of my blog, under Overheard or on my own fb page, but I dedicated an entire chapter in my book entitled, The postman never rings even once.
After the mail carriers (supposedly) shipped back 100 copies of my book rather than bring them to my doorstep -- I have bets placed that I will never live to see their shiny Burnt by the Tuscan Sun covers -- and yesterday's defeat at the hands of the despotic desk clerks, I have decided to share with you my very own David Letterman moment:  The Top 10 Reasons Why We Refuse to Take Your Mail.  But, unlike Letterman, each and every one is an actual response I've received from the people who I am by now quite certain live out their measly existence by wielding power in their pat refusals to provide you, the person keeping them gainfully employed, with this most basic service.  Giving you stamps.

The Top 10 Reasons Why the Italian Post Office Clerks Refuse to Take Your Mail

10.  You've written the address in green pen  [note:  the same applies to red pen as well]

9.    Your envelope has been stapled [and the metal staples might cause harm to our carriers]

8.    It's ten minutes prior to our ten minutes before closing time and we won't take any more transactions [ignoring the fact that you've been inside the place for over an hour]

7.    We have a new order that only 5 transactions are allowed at a time.  You have seven envelopes requiring postage.  I will give you postage for those five, but you'll have to take another number and wait to do the next ones

6.   The USA has stopped accepting packages

5.  Waiting for my number to be called so I could post three letters, I found out they had closed down the letters & packages window altogether to provide for more windows to the hundreds waiting for their financial transactions (avg transaction time:  12 minutes per customer).  I can't reopen the window - it's the system that closed it down - you'll just have to wait til all others before you are helped [note: term used quite loosely]

4.   I can't weigh the letters at this window to determine the postage - you need to go to the window across the way and get them weighed [implying taking a new number and waiting hours in line] / [postscript to this entry: I did just that, the co-worker penciled in  the postage amounts, to wit the clerk then said How do I know that you didn't just write them in yourself and they, indeed correspond to the correct postage?

3.   You wrote 'UK' for United Kingdom on the envelope, and it should be Gran Bretagna (Great Britain) 

2.   [No explanation] They just left you standing there and went on their coffee break

1.  We have no stamps here [this excuse comes in many other forms from 'we don't have the right denominations', 'you want too many stamps', the meter is down, the meter can't post to the USA, the list is endless]

For anyone attempting to apply logic as in...Why don't they just give us postage stamp machines?  The reasons are two-fold:  

a) It would imply someone filling them up with envelopes, money and postage labels to keep them running, which, after day 3 would no longer be in service and 

b) in a country in which the second favorite national pastime is beating the system, they would need someone to check that the postage on the package was accurate, as everyone would simply weigh out boxes empty, get the stamps, and then and only then fill up their boxes with leaden materials and pop them in the mail.  

Italian Post Office Blues

I have been sending out copies of my book recently to places far and wide.  And incredibly, books were delivered to the person intended in under four days - and these were to places as disparate as outside Milan, the Siena hillside, London, and Calabria.  So much so, I thought maybe I'd have to eventually eliminate the chapter in my book, The Postman Never Rings (even) Once.  
In fact, with all the talk these days of the U.S. Postal service eliminating saturday delivery, it looks like I might have to republish the chapter in a book on the USA.
While discussing the post office and all the terrific things one can do inside this update of the Ancient Forum main square, one newcomer to Italy remarked to a colleague that he'd never set foot inside an American post office in his life but after moving to Italy, he'd already been there five times in under 2 months!  
Another Italian friend was totally bummed out because he had to step inside the post office  to make some transactions.  He was worried about the wait.  I had never thought of it, but that's because it was the first of the month.  The elderly would be mobbing the joint to collect their pension checks.  So that's why I sometimes found that I was the youngest one at the post office!  Certainly - the young immigrants now use call centers or Western Union outposts to wire their money home...
And while it looks like these days money might buy efficiency (it's now €5.50 just to send my light book outside Italy), I'll stick by my comment under the book entry entitled, Going Postal:

For any expatriate or any Italian who has lived abroad                                          Post Office horror stories are legend:  true legends.

 Feel free to post yours!

Tante Belle Cose - Sept in Italy

After the August lull, September in Italy always comes roaring in even though the hot days still make you want to escape to the beach.  This September there were so many things to be thankful for, it's hard to know where to begin:


No Pork Referendum or, as I like to call it, Stop the Feeding at the Trough
No, this referendum which garnered over 1.2 million signatures above the 500.000 needed doesn't stop pork barrel politics [Italians rely on inside deals and bribes for pet projects so they don't have to actually add extra stuff to the public votes - although Berlusconi & Co. on the latest austerity budget included a little clause serving to gag bloggers...read about it here]. This referendum aims to stop filling the entire Parliament with hand-picked cronies and reform the political process so that officials actually represent the people.
Personally, I don't think it's gone far enough:  While it may cut the number of representatives (Italy has the greatest number in all of Europe), it still allows them all the perks, (including getting their pensions even if serving in office for 48 hours - at any age, while the rest of us must wait 'til 65), and allows the corrupt ones tried & guilty to serve any way, any time.


A foray to one of Rome's main Post Offices proved (almost) delightful:  I discovered that you can now send the insidious-but-necessary registered letters (raccomandata) online - like sending a telegram of days of yore.  While there, I also discovered bands of foreign kids sitting on the floor.  
I figured they were just posting a sit-in for the chronic malfunction of the ticket lines, the lack of personnel, the striking workers, or the hours being shortened for one reason or another.  It was none of that:  The Post Office is now offering free wifi in their very offices.
It was wonderful to see people hanging out in what are often terrific buildings with frescoed ceilings.  If they could add a coffee bar inside, we'd all be all set especially seeing that the day I was there, all the systems were down.


I came across a real cool old car, like a 1950s Cadillac combing the streets of Rome.  Stenciled with the words, HELLO ROMA, it was announcing something I've been waiting for since 1981:  the opening of Rome's first GAP Store (just prior, the GAP & Banana Republic opened in Milan).
Now I know where all the Italian kids will be hanging out...perhaps the GAP should be offering wifi as well...or even better, postal services.


And last but certainly not least, Kraft Co., the best makers of faux cheese, the same company that has given us mac&cheese, philly&salmon spread and even Velveeta, the closest thing to eating rubber sheets, has branched out where no man has tread before. We'll call them delicious duos:  Philly & Ham spread, Philly & Tuna and...(drum roll please...) the awesome joint venture between Milka Chocolate & Philly 
As their jingle sings out...Spread a little love!

It's a bit much, but visit their site & you can even download an app
(does it spread the stuff for you???) & songs to spread by...

Magnifico!  This was my 500th Blog Post!  Grazie Tutti for keeping me going!!!
And...for you new readers, be sure to check out the posts of the early days for more cross-cultural insights.

Back to Business

No sooner did the lull of the holiday break subside, than we were painfully reminded of the grinds of our daily routine:  the one pitting the poor sod of a lowly consumer against the corporate pencil-pushers who would rather ‘Just Say No’ than accept the idea that, perhaps, it’s due to customers giving their custom, that they are dutifully employed in the first place. 

My own ‘giornata a no’ – the Italian expression for a ‘bad hair day’ – began like many others (and, I must say, my hair was a mess).  I tried to recycle my plastic, but every single bin within a 1/2 mile radius was filled to the brim.  So, setting my sights on the Bancomat to get some cash, it was in its customary ‘Out of Order’ status.  At the Post Office, I discover that some smart thieves – or one seriously irate customer – had rammed a truck through the front window.  Off to the main post office, the manager comes out shouting, “Tutti Fermi!” – “All freeze!”  Luckily, it was just to perform a backup (during operating hours?) and not another heist in progress.  [After they've doubled - doubled - postage rates, I pondered who, precisely, were the heisters...] Checking the movie times, I decide to head over to my favorite cinema before it is turned into a Diesel store.  Once there, I find it already bolted shut, signs plastered, “No longer in operation” – just like the Bancomat.  So much for fact checkers.  Trying to get home, I board the bus which has a ticket machine aboard.  Also out of order.

But, my favorite came in from a friend who, on his way to New York, withdrew $2000 to deposit upon arrival.  Withdrawing large sums of money in Italy comes with a lot of pomp & circumstance:  letters in writing, lots of stamps, your i.d. card; you would think you had just stolen it and they need to make up Exhibit A.  In New York the next day, his bank takes one look at a bill and stamps COUNTERFEIT all over it -- making copious copies, and having him sign declarations, and all that. 

He immediately contacts his Italian bank, forwarding the copies.

Their response: “We have nothing to do with this. How do we know it’s ours (denying the existence of serial numbers), and besides, it is your responsibility to check the bills prior to exiting the bank.”

Aghast, he mentions that, to the best of his knowledge, his iPhone does not have an incorporated infra-red machine but, besides, "Isn’t it the institution’s responsibility to check their own bills prior to issue?"

Again, the request is refused.

He then mentions his bank accounts, mortgages on two apartments and other business he may reconsider holding with them, should they not simply look into and rectify the matter.

Their response (ignoring the previous communications and reams of request papers involved): “We cannot possibly honor bills after 8 months have passed since their issue.”

He then reminds them – that those conversant in the banking world might want to keep in mind - that in America, the dates are inverted.  "And so no, it’s not from April 1^st, but rather from January 4^th," the day before, as reported in the initial request and subsequent documentation.  He goes on to suggest that his friends in the room, all NYC bankers, will reconsider their business with the bank, and one institution already refuses to do business with them for their lack of – shall we say, propriety – in conducting int’l transactions.

Their response: “We will look into it, but please know that our bank is changing hands, and you’ll have to deal with a new entity upon your return.”

After more negotiations upon his return to Italy, he finally was credited the $100.   His time?  About $800 worth.

The Postman Never Rings Once

Anyone who doubts that the Italians aren’t organizationally challenged, has never had to look for an address in the City Centre. And while having both odd and even numbers on the same side of the street, and following no cardinal order, has its charms, sometimes, if you’re in a hurry, it can get downright maddening.

Ask any Italian, and you’ll discover that the reasons for this peeve are twofold, both of which are part & parcel of the entire makeup of Italian society:

1) Nostalgia – those buildings have been around since the Renaissance and so have their original numbers cast in stone. Any new additions, buildings being divided into more apartments, etc., have to fit into the original scheme. God forbid those stones are removed! And so, later buildings naturally sport later numbers, no matter where they appear on the block.

2) Bureaucracy – Renumbering the system would probably create a backlog of bureaucracy so great, it would make taking a census in India pale by comparison.

I recently sold a house in Abruzzo where things had been (smartly, or so I thought) renumbered.

- Turns out, my great aunt said she lived at no. 10, the number on the building.

- The City documents had it changed to number 18 sometime in the past (but our number in stone stayed put).

- Roaming up the street, I noticed that we were, following logically, actually no. 19 but there was already one of those, meaning the entire block from that point on would have to change their numbers, too.

- At the notary’s office to officiate the sale, it turns out that the real number of the property was 35 & 37 as listed in the Regional office records (because of little tiny lots which made up the backyard). This came as a surprise to all concerned, including the City offices (who happen to house the local post office to boot).

This whole cunundrum almost cost me the sale—-after all, it looked like I was trying to dump a property I did not even own (a fairly common fraud here).

But it’s no wonder the Post Office is so inefficient. The mail carriers must simply give up or worse, have nervous breakdowns trying to sort it all out.

Francesca Maggi's...Strange But True!

GARBAGE - The Spillover
A guy in Naples (and he’s not the only one) just got his Garbage Tax bill. 257 euro ($400) for the year. Considering they haven’t picked up the garbage in over 8 months…But of course, if he doesn’t pay up, he'll be charged late fees and compounded interest.

So when will the residents get to levy late fees on the City Govt.??

And, to add insult to injury, this week the Garbage Collectors went on strike across the country.
I’m sure they’re not paid enough, so, I’ll let them have their way…but,talk about playing dirty...

The Riddle of the Mail Delivery
Like a bad Nancy Drew mystery, I could not figure out why all my mail would come on some days, and the box would remain empty on others. Turns out, they’ve reduced mail delivery! In Italy, the Postman only rings every other day.

When you stop and think how once the Sick Man of Europe, England, now delivers sometimes twice in a day, and a letter sent that morning will arrive in your box that afternoon…far from sick, the British Post Office is on Viagra.

EAT MCDONALDS & receive a ‘GET OUT OF JAIL FREE CARD’!!

A Big Mafioso weighing over 210 kilos (that’s over 460 lbs.), was sent home for house arrest because he was deemed ‘unfit’ for prison life. FAT CAT
So, instead of being forced to do jumping jacks out in the yard, he gets sent home for more delicious pasta alla norma?
Meanwhile, they neglected to notice that errr…he already did a pretty good job conducting his business from home while being immobile…
Coming right out of Central Casting for the Sopranos, no one caught the irony in the fact that he is the head of the ‘Lo Piccolo’ Clan.

You can’t make this stuff up.

My Funny Valentine

I received a wonderful singing Valentine - well, in the mail. It was from my mother, so I knew right away it was a Singing Valentine (I always get a Valentine’s from my mother…although at forty-something, I might add, instead of bringing cheer, it sometimes gets a bit depressing, but..that’s another story). As I pulled the red card out of the envelope, to my surprise, there was my Christmas card belting out an entire chorus of “We Wish you a Merry Christmas”!!

So, instead of kudos for having the foresight to send a Valentines Day Card ahead of time, I thought, well, “better late than never!”  But one look at the post mark, and, I knew the culprit was another: in fact, it had been posted from the USA on Dec 18th.

Now we all know that Italy’s Post Office horror stories could fill the Library of Congress. Everyone has one – well, make that a couple hundred. I’ve actually witnessed Brits try to organize mass protests to no avail, while the Italians stand idly by, shaking their heads in disgust at the Barbaric rise in decibel levels. We’ve heard all the stories: from the workers in Milan being filmed stuffing envelopes under extra-large sweatshirts to extract cheques and money orders later (they got to keep their jobs), to postcards delivered to relatives long since dead, to my personal favourite -- your ability to conduct pretty much every transaction on earth from buying a house to tickets to a Rock Concert to long-distance adoption, except stamp purchases.

And so it was, I believe, McKinsey & Co. who won the coup of actually getting a contract to evaluate the abysmal Postal Services and then recommend changes to it. Millions of euros later, they came up with what any of us waiting in the infernal lines while dozens of workers behind the windows stand around chatting would have offered free of charge: the Post Office did everything well and profitably… except deliver mail. McKinsey went on to say that perhaps they should reconsider staying in their ‘core business’.

Considering that a letter from Rome to Milan or Naples to Turin arrived faster by donkey courier in medieval times than it does today, I say, just as we are looking fondly on as Big Cities adopt man-powered rickshaws, maybe we should be looking at Donkeys as the mode of travel for letter delivery in the 21st century.

We would just have to make sure that they aren’t fitted with large sweatshirts bearing the Poste Italiane logo whilst on duty.


A few commonly shared stories have appeared from time to time on The American Magazine. Just click to read n’ weep:

www.theamericanmag.com/article

www.theamericanmag.com/article

And, drop me a line in the Comments -- I'd love to hear yours!

Bell'Italia: Great Things in Italy Dec '07

As I end the year, happily ensconsed in a tiny country house on the property of a Franciscan Monastery (ex, i might add, although the church is still consecrated) in the breathtaking Sabine Hills just outside Rome, dog-sitting for a friend (who has taken in all manner of strays...) and, in between wandering fields of olive groves, perusing 1st century ruins and a breath-taking church, while sharing convivial holiday rites with friends and neighbors, well, of course, this is, the Why We All Love Italy, isn't it??
And, while another stray just showed up today (he must have heard that the food was good in this joint), gives one pause, and tomorrow alas, I must face the evils of the Italian POST OFFICE...(and, I will spare you the gory details of the dressing down I recently received there for -- gasp! - daring to cross the threshhold -- double gasp!! -- and attempt to post 2 pkgs 15 mins. before closing time on the 24th!!!!), I do want to offer you a few things to be thankful for which occurred in December and will hopefully bring us more faith in the system in 2008:

Rome's City Govt has launched an exceptional ad campaign against giving dogs for Christmas...this is a good thing. A very good thing. At least one Animal Rights Office is trying at long last to nip the problem of dogs abandoned each summer in the bud. Let's just hope the campaign gets picked up all over the country.

The Italians have spearheaded the campaign against Capital Punishment at the UN.

Not only was a drawing by possibly Michelangelo just discovered in the Vatican archives, but they have just uncovered two stunning marble wings from the Palatine Hill. One wouldn't think there was anything left after centuries of pillaging, bombardments, and tourists.

The Rome City government has decided to freeze the Garbage Tax through 2009. The tax is so high, you'd think the TA.RI agency stood for Tax of Rumplestiltskin -- they were literally weaving the stuff into gold.

The Ministry for Youth held a competition to offer monies to young people with a terrific business or idea to improve our world. Turns out they were bombarded by "recommendations" - which, incredibly, they threw each and every one straight into the circular file...saying they were sick & tired of this culture of raccomandazioni, and wanted to base the competition on pure merit. Let's hope this idea is one that will take off.