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Italiano (Italian)
Sleeping in hostels was another big change on this trip, and for a poor seasonal student worker, it was a way to save money, but also to make friends. In fact, in the era of talking to people, interesting acquaintances were made in hostels.
The featured photo was generated by artificial intelligence.
Sleeping in hostels: American pizzas and Angelo Branduardi
This exchange I had with a U.S. girl I would call patriotic.
Pizza was invented in America
But how can you say such a thing, why?
Because it is good, so American
Apart from having chosen them poorly because they were too far from the centers and because of the inevitable inconvenience and sometimes poor cleanliness, what I remember most fondly was just how easy it was to meet other travelers.
For the first time I was comparing myself with people perhaps with similar interests such as traveling, but different and with very different backgrounds. Unfortunately, this is no longer the case; on the one hand because people are too busy with their cell phones to chat with strangers and also, at least for Westerners, even though we come from different countries, we have all become much more equal. In the late 1990s around Europe, you could tell if one might be Italian or not by the clothing; now you can tell just by the gesturing, because from San Francisco to Tokyo we all dress the same.
However, the dispute over the origin of pizza with the American girl was memorable; or seeing for the first time the one who had made himself a plate of pasta and topped it with only mayonnaise; or noting that for two Belgian girls Italy was famous because of Angelo Branduardi, of whom they were big fans.
Underwear changed on the fly
The most spectacular episode of my first experience of sleeping in hostels was undoubtedly in Scotland. I was in a mixed room and relaxing in bed in the late afternoon before going out, when a girl walked in. Convinced I was asleep, she didn’t mind me at all, and right at my eye level I saw the scene of her taking off her shorts and changing into her underwear, leaving soon after.
Clumsy romantic, I unlocked myself on the road.
As for women, even at home I had a very easy time getting to know them, and many I made friends with, but I never concluded and in particular I would get caught up for years in platonic affairs in which I was not reciprocated.
But around Europe, even speaking with my ramshackle English, I also combined something with the fairer sex. One exception of the many English-speaking acquaintances was in London. Wandering around the stalls of Portobello I met two Italians. They were standing in line in front of me; it was not difficult to recognize them because one had written in her backpack something like “Viva Ligabue.” We spent a few very pleasant hours, they were on a study vacation and from Riccione, but we never caught each other again; at least now with social media it is easier to keep in touch.
Home trip Making the Interrail: France, UK, Ireland
Next stage The top mistakes on the road?
Trips taken, travel stories divided by continent
Countries visited in my travel stories
Anecdotes, divided by type in travel narratives
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