9 Agosto 2009 – Sunday. On the Northbound Train
“The Full Italian Experience”

Fellini would do a good job with this. Train ride home to Milano. (Yes, please!) Left Napoli just before 1:00. Arrived in Rome at about 2:00. Japanese passengers 1 seat away just got robbed, on board, of their wallets. (Gypsies got on the train and made a commotion about seat assignments, then took advantage of the disarray they had caused.) Afraid of further loss, the Japanese cable-locked their huge suitcase, IN the aisle-way, to their seat armrest. Spanish travelers just got on the train and couldn’t get past the big suitcase. The conductor came on board and told the theft-victims there was nothing the local authorities could do about the wallets. He asked the Japanese man to stow the suitcase at the end of the rail car. (Right! They just lost everything else. Now stow the bag out of sight and surveillance?) The baby next to me is screaming. Her Napolitana mother remembered her own Coca-cola and sandwich, but forgot the baby’s bottle.

Three hours to go.

(Written while on the train, but no internet connection available, so this is posted from the comfort of my wonderful apartment in Milano. Ahhh. Home!)