Summertime Diversions - July

We are into the seriously hot weather in July. I think we have only had two rains since May, so it is dry as well. There are thunderstorms in the forecast for next week which is nice for the garden to get some moisture but, if it is like last time, it simply raises the humidity to a steam bath when it clears off!

Summertime clothes
I totally understand the reason lightweight, all cotton clothing is the thing here; no synthetics cause they don't breathe. Men continue to wear suits at work with jackets, ties and long sleeve shirts although they are lighter summer fabrics.

Hot Weather Meals
The Italians eat very seasonally so as you might expect, the summer diet is lots of fruits and vegetables. Very little meat is eaten in the summertime but a fair amount of fish. Grilling is popular, and always pasta!

One of my favorite beverages is limonata (lemonade). It can be carbonated or not, depending on where you get it. I mix iced tea (made a lot stronger than the Italians typically drink it) with chilled limonata, add ice and I am a happy girl!  Lemons are grown all over Italy and used for about everything. So when you get limonata here, the good stuff is fresh lemons (no additives or coloring and just slightly sweet). Yum!

Fresh lemonade

Another favorite is lemon granita in my iced tea. I am making my own granita these days since we have our own lemon trees.

Lemon granita

Zucchine, Melanzane and Pomodori

These are staple vegetables in the Italian diet and plentiful in July but certainly in other months as well. Ours have produced in July because we were late getting them in the ground. All of these love the hot, sunny weather of Southern Italy.

There are several zucchini types in Italy I don't see in the US but as far as I can tell, they all taste about the same. Italians favor small zucchini -- about 6 inches long. The ones in my garden are too big, so my Italian friends have told me. Actually, I thought so too and would have picked them sooner but I couldn't get in the garden to get them before they got too big. I would let them get bigger than the Italians do though. Italians also use the zucchini flowers in several dishes as well.

Zucchini flowers are sometimes fried alone, sometimes put into small fritter type appetizers

I got an impromptu cooking lesson from my friend Sabina yesterday. Both of these recipes she called salads.

Fried Zucchini
She sliced one of the smaller zucchini about 1/4 inch thick and fried the slices in a small saucepan with about 3/4 inches of hot olive oil for about 10 minutes on a medium sizzle. As they finished she put them into a dish. They were golden brown and not greasy. Then when they were all fried, she added salt generously, a little of my garlic powder and vinegar. All I had was regular white vinegar and she said I should have balsamic vinegar. It was surprisingly good. Also, I should have fresh mint leaves and fresh garlic, instead of the powdered. I took a little teasing about that as Italians want everything very fresh.

Fried Melanzane with Tomatoes
Next she cut a small melanzane (eggplant) into a small 1/2 inch pieces. (The ones I am growing are more similar to the Japanese eggplant but a little bigger around and shorter). She had them soaking in salted water for a while as she cooked the zucchini first. When ready to cook the eggplant, she took handfuls out of the water, squeezed out the moisture and then put it right into the hot olive oil.

Italian eggplant - melanzane

As the eggplant fried, she chopped up some onion and added that, some garlic powder (again I should have fresh), and a little water as she said the eggplant is hard and needs the extra water. I was expecting a lot of splattering by adding water to the sizzling oil, but it was fine. Toward the last, she added a couple heaping tablespoons of canned chopped tomatoes, and a few fresh basil leaves. Then she turned off the heat and let it all sit for about 10 min. It was quite delicious.

It sounds like a lot of oil, but since she used a small saucepan and cooked a little bit at the time, it really probably wasn't that much. By the time we were done, there was no oil left.

City Park of Mercogliano
On my Saturday morning walks, I always go up to the little park and enjoy it for a bit. It sits on a triangular corner on a hillside, so the park is really on two levels. It is a pretty shaded spot where I always see the nonni (grandparents) with their nipote (grandchildren).

Children run in circles around the fountain

Love the stone pattern walkways

View of the gazebo and playground equipment below

Neatly tended borders and beds in this park

It's the Little Things

Electrical outages
Since we moved to the villa, we have intermittent electrical outages. I am convinced now that there is some faulty wiring somewhere in the villa and at times the circuit overloads and trips the main breaker. I will not recount how many times this has happened but at least a dozen times since February, and, there have been just as many diagnoses of the problem.

One electrician said that the people who installed the heat pumps (not him) did a bad job and all that needs to be re-wired, and, big suprise, he can do that work! Another one says our maximum at each residence is 6 KW and we over loaded the circuits turning on too many things at once. Another time, they blamed the snow. Another time they said "Oh, they have bad electric in Mercogliano" (what does this mean when I am the only one in the neighborhood with this problem?) Another time we were told there is some wiring that is not proper but it is difficult to isolate where the problem is. Now that, I believe!

So we have studiously recorded the times, dates, places and what is on at the time of the outage for each instance to do our own self-diagnosis. When I saw the mass of wiring in the walls, I understand why no one has tackled the problem of tracing down the particular wires that are the culprits. Apparently, each person adds their own wiring to the mess and no one goes back to fix or remove the existing wiring. So when you grab a handful, some might be working and some just dead.

So when the latest blackout occurred at 2:30am yesterday morning, I am now able to refute all the excuses we have heard. I was asleep and nothing was on in the house except the refrigerator and internet hook up. So now, let them find another excuse! Electricians are coming again this week.

Post Script:
They came today. These are supposed to be the best guys -- they do repairs for the US Navy Base.  Immediately they start blaming the air conditioners, then the stair lift. I stomped my feet and got really mad and said NO! It is not that and I argued with them.

Then they said "Ok, you need a bigger main breaker". I said fine, but that doesn't fix the problem, it doesn't prevent it from happening and it doesn't keep a fire from starting. So I said I want them to test every room in the house for the wires. They argued back and forth for a while in Italian, and Carlo translated that they can't do that; it would take too much time.

I said "Well, you are getting paid, aren't you? So I don't care how long it takes! If you don't want this job, I can find someone in Italy who wants to work"

So then, they argued some more, then said just testing all the outlets and switches will only determine if there is current or not; it will not determine if there are bad wires rubbing together or moisture coming in. Since the problem is intermittent, I can agree with that. That finally made some sense to me.

So then, they said they can't do anything without re-wiring the whole house. The house sat empty for a long time and a mouse could have eaten part of the wires, or who knows what. So I turned to Carlo and said, "Ok, if these guys say there is nothing they can do, then call Dino and tell him I have to move. I am not living in a house that is a fire hazard or when I don't know if I come home to electricity or not."

So when I mentioned Dino, their ears perked up. I think Dino gets them a lot of their work at the base. Finally after much discussion, they started to actually look around. They tested the outdoor lights and the automatic ones that are programmed to come on/off at certain times. They checked under the house, they check the automatic gate, and the lights on the exterior of the house.

As they began to seriously look around, some things became very obvious. The basement of the house has large conduits of wiring running everywhere and after the rain we had last night, that portion of the basement floor is wet.

Our basement

An electrician's nightmare!

They were very concerned with all the improperly run electrical lines and how dangerous it is. I said "I know!!!! Why do you think I am so concerned??"

Obviously the drain system is clogged and water is seeping in. Also, they determined that the boiler, the exterior automatic gate, and the exterior lights on timers are all coming into the box in the house. They rewired it so those exterior things have their own main breaker and if one of those things are the problem, then it will trip one breaker. Otherwise then if the other breaker trips, we will know it is in the house.

They showed me where the people who installed the automatic gate did a bad job on the electric boxes. They removed the covers and water is getting in there. So they checked them and resealed the boxes. They fixed one of the exterior lights that didn't work.

After all the arm waving and discussion, they actually did some diagnosis and fixed some things. At least now, I feel we are on the road to resolution. I just have to wait unit the next time the electric goes out (and I am sure it will) and then get them out again to troubleshoot again. At least now we are past the excuses about the air conditioners, dryer, and other appliances, and getting down to really fixing the problem.

Personally I don't care if the whole house needs to be re-wired. I can't imagine anyone would want to live in a house with these problems. I am sure it is expensive and in the end, we may be returning to the US before it comes to that. Sigh!

Doing business in Italy is a different deal. Sometimes I think all this is just part of the game. If I didn't' stomp my foot and argue with them (they don't understand the English but certainly they understand my intent) then they would just say, "Oh it's the stairlift. Now pay me 50 Euro" and leave. You have to be very insistent and no accept any excuses. Certainly there is lots of shoddy workmanship that has been done on this house. The landlady has had repair people take advantage of her and do a bad job. It happens in the US also, but at least there are some certifications and some inspections and things that help prevent some of the problems.

Gas outages
I have heard the horror stories of landlords in Italy, from expats as well as Italians. In general it is really difficult to get them to fix anything and you will waste your time trying. One of the Italians in the office had a pipe break in the ceiling and dumped water all over his living room. His landlord never did fix it, so he had to pay for it himself and then go to court about the whole thing. For Boeing expats, we have in our contract that rent will be withheld if problems are not resolved. Still some of my co-workers have gone several days at a time without electricity or hot water, etc.

My landlady is really good and she gets right onto things. I have no complaint about her whatsoever. When I woke up one morning last week and the stove didn't work, and then I ran out of hot water quickly, I realized we have a gas problem and contacted her right away. Turns out the bill had not been paid. Sidi Gas company shows they have sent bills to our house, but I never received any of them. So the landlady thought I was paying them and I thought she was paying them, and it turns out no one was paying them and the Gas company shut off service.

She paid the bill right away and the gas was turned back on Friday morning. I had no hot water over the weekend but that is ok, because I was out of town anyway. Monday morning the technician came to re-start the boiler which provides the hot water for the house, including the radiators for heat in winter. It was so easy, I could have done it. All you do is push the reset button -- duh! Anyway, it is now on again and by tonight, I can take a warm shower. In future, she is having the bills sent to her house so they will get paid. I like a happy ending!

Postale Italiane
Good grief! Who would believe it is so hard to get mail! I did receive cards from friends sent directly to the house, and I get advertisements regularly. Anything small enough to fit in the slot of my box, seems to come ok. Other things seem to go missing and never show up. Hm. I ordered some clothes from JC Penney and got a notice in the box saying they tried to deliver the packages. I actually got two notices from them and because their hours at the main post office in Mercogliano are very limited, it was the end of that week when I was able to get down there to pick up my packages. Well, it turns out that the post office doesn't have them. The postal carrier keeps the packages and per regulation, tries to deliver it three times. At the third failed attempt, he should leave instructions for where to pick up the packages. In this case it came postage due for the Italian customs tax. Since mail is only delivered every other day, and not on Saturday, this is a very long process. If I ever track down my packages, it will be a miracle. And you can bet, I will never mail order anything again unless Johnnie is home to receive them!

Stairlift
Once I got the stairlift installed, it has not been much problem until yesterday when I allowed some laundry to get caught in the track. When the chair does down I always kick away the laundry that I have dropped from the 2nd floor and landed on the stairs. Well, this time, I didn't get the laundry completely out of the way and the chair caught a corner of the pillowcase.

By the time I got the thing unjammed, I did a manual override to move the stair to the bottom. When I tried to use it again, the bottom piece on the chair attach point fell off. I was surprised a relatively small problem caused the bottom mechanism to fall off but there it was.

The repairman came out two days later, and took one look at it and said he has to order a part. Of course, the part is not available in Italy and has to be flown in from who knows where and was supposed to arrive in three days but so far, it has been one week and I have not heard anything from them.

I am surprised that an international company like Thyssen would promise 24 hr. emergency service, when in fact, it may end up being 10 days or more to get my chair fixed. One of the reason I picked this company was the promise of 24/7 service instead of the a local company with "Italian" service. Now they are saying that you have to specifically write into the contract emergency service, and unfortunately they no longer offer that service! What good is a stairlift to a handicapped person if it breaks apart in four months of use and takes over a week to fix?! Wouldn't I be in a real pickle if I couldn't walk at all.

Stair lift with "guts" hanging out

Today, 9 days after it broke, the repairman came and fixed it. It took over an hour (they were an hour and a half late getting here) and then I had to wait an hour for the battery to recharge. But it works! Yea! You can bet I will be ultra careful nothing gets into the track.

Italian view of time, appointments and what is "late"

Americans and time
Americans might be one of these most time conscious cultures in the world. We value every minute of every day and we tend to budget our time everyday to put the most use of our time toward things we want to accomplish. We are very goal oriented people, whether that is getting the car washed and waxed today, or completing a degree program. Obviously not every individual in America has the same degree of time-consciousness, but I am speaking in general terms here.

Think of how many of our daily expressions and proverbs have to do with time...

"wasting time" - what exactly does that mean? think about it. I used to say that to my children "you are wasting time dawdling around". Now, older and wiser that I am, maybe they had it right and I was wrong; living in the moment and savoring the small things in life is not a waste!
"saving time" - can someone tell me how we save time? put it in the bank? we can't draw it out later -- we get one pass and that is it.

Usually what ends up with all the "time-saving" devices in our lives, is that we get so many of them, it allows us to cram more stuff and activities in our lives which really tends to bog us down, rather than "free" us. Hm.

How about...
"make good time"
"free time"
"spare time"
"it's about time"
"take your time"
"no time to lose"
"a race against time"
"deadline" - wonder where that came from?
"lose track of time" 

You get my point. It is no wonder other people trying to learn English as a second language struggle with all our expressions about time; the equivalents don't exist in many other languages. Try an experiment with me just for fun. Take one day and make a tally mark every time during the day that you use an expression about time, you think about time or you check to see what time it is. I think we'll all be surprised about that.

Italians and time
In some of my previous blogs I have commented about the differences in how our two cultures value time and how it affects daily life. At times (actually most of the time) I continue to be frustrated by Italians that are late for meetings, late for appointments, late submitting promised documents at work, late opening stores, early closing stores (not abiding by the posted hours), not showing up for appointments at all, or showing up an hour or two late without calling and just expecting everyone to be waiting around for them. Now that is hair-pulling!

I have learned, when dealing with repair people and installers, to be sure and let them know that I expect them to be on time, and if they are more than 10 minutes late, to call and let me know. I tell them that I will not wait for them, so if they fail to call me, don't be surprised if I am not there. I hear my DSP speaking to them and telling them "She is American and she means it". For the most part, that has helped assure that service people are on time. I will say though, if they arrived and I wasn't there, they would not be nearly as upset as I would be. It just isn't that critical of a thing to most Italians, and only considered mildly inconvenient. When you speak later, you make some lame excuse about why you weren't there (it can be anything really) and no one remembers that anymore.

In most other situations, I have learned to not count on promises of "tomorrow" (domani) or  "next week". Generally in my head, I do the math and add on at least one or two weeks to any of those conversations, and that way I don't get as frustrated. Occasionally, Italians surprise me and are very prompt, but that is only when they want money from me, and then, because they expect this, I put them off for as long as possible. It is part of the Italian culture to do this and I am being culturally adaptive!

So I am starting to try and understand the Italian thinking about time, some of the expressions and proverbs in Italian that are a clue to the thinking behind them. This was part of our cross-cultural training but it is different to be told about something versus living it.

An article from the UK Telegraph says:
Concept of time: Punctuality in Milan means they are up to 20 minutes late, in Rome half an hour and in the south 45 minutes. You will not be able to change this, except in a fixed-hours factory or office environment. You must therefore adapt. Be prepared to wait 15-45 minutes before your Italian counterpart arrives to let you into their office.

Another interesting read is this blog from a woman of Italian descent.
Italian words about time

Isla di Ischia

The island of Ischia is right off the coast of Napoli. It is a beautiful island and very popular tourist destination for Italians and foreigners as well.

Unless you have your own boat, you will take the ferry from Napoli, or from Sorrento. From Napoli it is a little less than one hour on the passenger ferry. Cost per person each way is 20 Euro.

My first trip to Ischia was with girlfriends and we were strictly going for the sun and water activities. There are many termi on the island; thermal hot springs as a result from sitting on top of the Campi Flegrei formation Link to more info (similar to Yellowstone Park where all the geysers are). So we set out to check out the beaches, the termi and the swimming pool at the hotel which also had a couple pools from the natural hot springs. These termi are reputed to have many beneficial affects for arthritis and other bone and joint ailments. I found them to be relaxing and that was enough for me.

Read more about Ischia here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ischia

We left Friday morning on the 9:40am ferry. The water was smooth for the most part except the last 10 minutes or so. I was glad I was wearing the patch for motion sickness. The ferry was full of people since we are in the height of tourist season.

L-R Jenny, Carmel, Rosa waiting for the ferry

Carmela disembarking our ferry

From the port at Forio, we took a taxi to the Hotel Royal Palm. This is a very decent 3 1/2 star hotel where the room price includes what they call half board; your choice of two of the three meals a day. We chose breakfast and dinner, since we figured we would be out and about during the day and not at the hotel.

Hotel Terme Royal Palm

We explored the grounds a bit before checking in. Then it is off to the beach for the rest of the day. All along Ischia shore, as on the Amalfi coast, the beaches are mostly private and you pay an entrance fee to use the beach, the lounges, umbrellas, showers, changing rooms etc. It is really not a bad deal at all since they keep the properties very clean and have the best locations. There are some public (free) beaches but usually they are harder to get to, so with my knees, we always go for the easiest access.

I equipped myself with SPF 50 for the day and kept it on religiously. It was a totally relaxing day and when the temps reach 100,  the beach is the ONLY place to be! We were getting in the water about every 10 min.

L-R Rosa and Carmela on the beach

We all bought some items from the vendors who roam the beaches. I bought a very clever lounge cover with pockets on the side for your sunscreen, book, or whatever. I also bought a cover up with lots of bling. Carmela bought a really pretty green coverup.

Jenny

Carmela helping me in the waves and we both got knocked down!

Rosa and I got the 5 Euro massage from the wandering Chinese ladies but it was not that great. We drank lots of water in the heat and I still felt dehydrated at the end of the day. I am not used to the heat or the intense sun so I stayed under the umbrella while Rosa and Carmela tanned.

Caught in the act of a good nap!

We checked out the thermal pool at the hotel and did a quick dip in the regular pool which was cool enough to be really refreshing.

Our hotel is a popular spot for German tourists. Everything was translated first into German, then sometimes into English as well. We found out it is owned by a German millionaire. That explains it!

I vowed to speak Italian this entire weekend in order to start practicing what I study on the computer, and also because Carmela speaks no English. She had trouble understanding my American accent but we managed. I did revert to English at times when Rosa and I talked because I simply don't have enough Italian to converse beyond a very rudimentary level.

Divas leave the beach

Checking out the thermal pool at the hotel -- too hot!

After a full day of sun and water, we checked into our rooms, showered and dressed for dinner. The dinner at the hotel was acceptable -- not great but edible. I fear we all were really tired and after eating, went to bed by 10pm. We had every intention of heading to town to stroll around but couldn't do it.

From the hotel terrace overlooking the bay, Jenny and Rosa

Saturday we decided to go to the Poseidon Park. Link This is a very nice, large park of thermal pools, natural  steam caves, sauna and beautiful beaches. In addition they have lots of shaded areas to sit and relax, and a fully equipped spa. We started off on their beach for a little while. The shore dropped off suddenly a few feet out and I was afraid to go out very far with these bad knees. I might never get back up!

Mascot Poseidon in modern day mosaic

Wide angle view of the Poseidon park

Rosa on the cliff where the steam cave is

We did the thermal pool circuit, a series of swimming pools filled with the natural hot springs and in increasing temperatures. Then we had massages, and spent the rest of the day at the "cool" pool simply enjoying.

Rock formations on the cliffs

Carmela cooling off 

Sauna and whirlpool 

Lots of nice shaded areas as well

I am really picky about public pools and locker rooms and I won't go in if they don't look clean. I expect the grounds and pool deck to be clean as well. Well, I am happy to report that Poseidon gets an A+ for cleanliness. Everyone wears swim caps in the pools, there are showers to rinse off before getting into each pool (and people use them) and there are foot cleaning entrances to each pool. While they sell food and drinks there, the areas for that are away from the immediate pool areas so I didn't see food litter either.

Saturday night after we ate at the hotel, we went into Forio, the port town where we arrived. It is a neat little town perched on a hill. The shops and cafes are open until 1am in the summer. We met some friends from work there for a coffee at one bar. There were lots of shopping opportunities, but again, after a full day of swimming, sun and water, we were all pretty tired. Back to the hotel and in bed by midnight.

Carmela at the shops in Forio

Too bad we didn't have more time to shop!

Sunday we spent the day at the hotel pool. I was not in the mood for anymore thermal pools; it was simply too hot outside to enjoy them. Come September or October when the weather cools off a bit, then they will feel really good.

Jenny staying cool

We caught the 4:50 ferry returning to Napoli. I didn't want to leave! It was too relaxing! This is definitely a place to return for another trip, maybe 4 days instead of 3 and next time do an excursion around the island as well.

At the sea

I finally had my first opportunity since I arrived one year ago to go to the beach! With the hot weather we are having, it was a welcome break.

Getting there
This particular stretch of seashore is south of Napoli on the Sorrentine Peninsula. We went to an area called Vico Equense. On the weekends it is horrible traffic along the two lane winding road that goes along by the sea. Plus the beaches are wall to wall people. So we opted to go during the week when there would be less traffic and less people on the beach. It worked out perfectly weather-wise and with just the right amount of people.

The drive is beautiful and the views are wonderful. We were on the south side of Vesuvio and looking back you get a magnificent look at the volcano.

View of Vesuvio from Vico Equense

Another view of Vesuvio

The road along the sea reminds you of just about any other coastal road in the world where I have been -- Australia, Mexico, Spain, Canada, US. There are plenty of roadside snack bars and souvenir stands, places to rental snorkel and diving gear, and have your fortune told.

Some of the best lemons in the world are grown along this coast

The Amenities
This area (and maybe a lot of the coast in Italy) is mostly filled with private beaches, some associated with hotels and some that are just beach resorts. It seems you pay to get in and then pay extra for a lounge chair, lawn chair or beach umbrella. The Strajo Terme is an upscale resort with hotel, thermal hot springs, nice bath houses, pretty gardens and terraces and restaurant. The cove is protected and the water fantastic!

From the terrace at Scrajo Terme

http://www.scrajoterme.it/

The beach areas here are narrow and perched on the hillside. Parking is topside and typically you have to walk quite a ways to get down to the shore. With my friend Rosa along to plead my case, they let us drive down this very narrow road to almost the bottom. At the very last stretch, it was so narrow that I was afraid to take my car down there so the parking attendant drove it for us. Later when we were ready to leave he drove us out as well. We gave him a 1 Euro tip for his help.

View of Strajo Terme from the parking lot

Rosa ruled out several of the beaches for me because of all the steps involved and fortunately, she knows this area pretty well and knows where to go. There were about 15 steps in total that I had to negotiate but that was very doable.

The Water
It is always hard to capture in words or photos the beauty of a place. Once you get down to the water and look back up at the cliffs in both directions you are amazed by the green and rock and brilliant blue sky.

Crystal clear water

Rosa and Jenny.
 The bottom here is smooth pebbles, not hard to walk on except that you sink in about 6 inches with each step.

We swam and layed in the sun and swam some more. In fact, it was hot enough that in about 10 minutes our suits were dry and we were hot, so back in the water! Rosa is naturally darker skin, and definitely more used to the sun than I am. I lathered on sunscreen relentlessly and at one point I put on a cover up and had my legs covered with a towel to keep from burning. Still I wouldn't leave until we absolutely had to go -- it was just too wonderful for words!

We met some friends there and they joined us for a panini and lots of water.

Stefania, Ernesto, Rosa, Jenny

It was hard to leave but no regrets about this day. We relaxed, had fun, enjoyed some incredible God-given beauty, and had lots of good conversation as well. It doesn't get much better than this!

Rosa and Jenny - before shower

Jenny - after shower
What a beautiful place!

Saga of the Mattress

Most people blog about all the beautiful and extraordinary sights they see when in a foreign country. I enjoy those blogs and dream of when I can go visit those places also. We have some of those experiences, and I hope to have many more before we move back to the US. In the meantime, the things that strike me to blog about are the more mundane, daily living sorts of things.

Mattresses in Italy
Johnnie and I have literally "slept around" all over Southern Italy at this point. We can say with certainly that Italian beds are very hard. Typically there is no box spring, merely a frame with slats and a mattress on top. The mattresses are very hard because Italians believe that is good for your back. They think soft mattresses are bad for you and lead to any number of physical and mental problems.

These are very typical mattresses in Italy  -- the top of the line at Ikea.

Bed frame

Mattress 650 Euro (about $850)

The sizes are Singolo - similar to a twin bed, Matrimonial - similar to a double bed, and then you can find Queen, called various things but you go by the dimensions when shopping for mattresses and bedding rather than the standard nomenclature. You will not see King size or California King.

Also a comment on Italian bedding. They use mostly 100% cotton sheets but not a very high thread count (maybe 200?) so they are a bit rough. Also, you have to iron them; if you don't the wrinkles feel bumpy. Standard pillows are a little longer than US ones.

We have stayed in a few 5 star hotels that actually had king size mattresses and high thread count sheets, and there maybe places to buy, or order those things in Italy. I have not seen them but the hotels must buy them somewhere as I am sure they don't import from the US!

The Joy of our Own Mattress
 After sleeping on the mattress at the hotel, the mattress at the temporary apartment ( a queen), getting our own mattress from the US was a great relief. We both slept fitfully and suffered various aches and pains during the 7 months of temp living. Our mattress set was purchased right before we left for Italy and is a wonderful, king size, pillow top.

So comfy and big!

Unfortunately, when the movers delivered our furniture our beloved almost-new mattress was torn in a couple places and the stuffing was coming out of the pillow top. Not to be dissuaded from a good night's sleep, we put a piece of tape over the two dollar sized holes and had the best sleep since we left Everett!

Mattress punctures

Along with several other items that were broken or damaged by the movers, we filed an insurance claim for the mattress holes. I figured the insurance company would hire someone to sew a patch. When the repair people came, they took the entire top mattress with them and promised to return it in a week.

The repairman always had his niece with him when coming to the house as she speaks fluent English. She contacted us to say the upholsterer thinks our mattress is completely worn out and he will rebuild it for us for an extra 300 euro if we want to pay them directly. We declined, telling her the mattress is practically brand new and we don't want it rebuilt. She said ok, that he probably thinks it is worn out because it is so soft,  and that the upholsterer is going to put a new cover on it for us.

When we got the mattress back, we no longer have a pillow top mattress; we now have a mound-top mattress that is hard! Mama mia! It looks nice but is not our same plush mattress.  I am sure he thought he was doing us a favor, saving our backs and all that, so he made a new top for it as hard as he could make it.

New and "Improved" Mount top Mattress

Now I am haggling with the insurance company over the mattress. I will not let another Italian upholsterer touch our mattress. They offered us $200 and I said for what? That won't buy a new mattress if I could even find one in Italy. I requested they either buy us a new mattress and ship it from the US, or, they can buy us a new mattress when we get back. In the meantime, we will order a memory foam topper from the US and try using that for the next 1 1/2 years to get us by.

I am tempted to rip off the cover he put on there and see what kind of padding is underneath. Is the remnant of our old pillow top there, or did he remove it to put the new cover on? I can't do anything with it until the insurance settles.

Meanwhile I feel like the Princess and the Pea, as it seems I can feel the rocks in my mattress!

Postscript:

Several months after returning to the US we finally went out shopping for a new mattress to replace the once "repaired" in Italy. I guess we got so used to it, we had forgotten how uncomfortable it was. Well, before we let the delivery company haul away the old mattress, we couldn't resist removing the cover glued on the top by the Italians so we could see what we have been sleeping on all this time. Well, here is the reveal:

Original mattress covering with layers added by Italian repairman

The black layer of fabric is very stiff and reminds us of the compressed fiber material used as a firewall in vehicles. Then there is a layer foam, then batting, and finally the new cover. All this was glued in place on top of the original top.