Though I've enjoyed my year here immensely, and even if I were to start my year again and choose where within Italy to go, I would choose here, there are a few things I'm just not the biggest fan of. This list reflects some of the different values between Sicily and BC, but nothing is set in stone.
Obsession With Plastic
When I first arrived, I thought, oh wow, when all you drink is espresso, you don't need a "to-go" cup! Unfortunately I was wrong. Little plastic cups with lids and stir sticks are common. As are plastic plates. And, of course, whenever you buy bottled water, pop, juice, you get a plastic cup as well.
And the bags. Coming from Rossland, I am used to the "take only as many bags as you absolutely need" approach, cloth bags are normally used at the grocery store. Here, bags of potatoes get another bag, it is weird to refuse a bag, one item gets you a bag. And they love shrink-wrapping vegetables - one avocado? Styrofoam and plastic wrap.
Of course, all of this essentially disappears if you go to an outdoor or old fashioned market, where produce sellers form cones of paper, expertly wrapping so that apples and cherry tomatoes don't escape. Also, new laws are now in place, and biodegradable bags are far more popular, as are reusable bags.
And with Water
As I mentioned in a previous post, according to Palermitanans, water must be bottled or filtered to be considered safe to drink. I find this especially bizarre, as one of the first things mentioned to me by my host family was to be careful with water use at home, as city water is expensive. No problems with buying bottled water, though?
A particular irony I find with both of the above is that there is the problem of garbage. Italy is a relatively small country, with a population of 60 million. Generally speaking, lots of people = lots of garbage. Efforts such as the differentiated garbage certainly help by recycling, but the first of the three R's is "reduce".
City Living
It has plenty of great aspects - public transport, variety, the swimming pool among many - but I found the city alienating, overwhelming. And I have a strong aversion to concrete.
Though surrounded by mountains, Palermo is flat. And though I live on the fifth floor, all I really see are other buildings. From the window of my school I see Mount Pellegrino, which is lovely, but communications towers really aren't the same as trees. It's not that there's no green in the city, it's just that there's a lot more cement. There is a park nearby where I live, but it is frequented by prostitutes and drug dealers, so I'm not allowed to go in.
And I've really missed skiing and snow. The beach is not the best replacement.
Also, I missed the small town feel. My friends laughed when I told them about the size of Rossland - less then twice the population of my school here. To them, a small town is restrictive, and don't understand when I say I miss the intimacy.
So, though I feel lucky to have been in Palermo this year, I'm not sure if I would choose it as a place to live.
Being Stared
According to everyone, it is beyond obvious that I'm foreign. At first I didn't really get this, and I asked all my friends what I could do to blend in. "Michelle," they'd say, "there's nothing you can do about it. You just look foreign." I guess even without speaking (which would give me away immediately), I just have a few too many non-Sicilian characteristics. I'm too tall, too pale, too blonde, my eyes are the wrong colour. And so, since I look a little different, I get a lot more stares on the street (and far too many guys think they can woo me with their "excellent" English...). I'm sure other people would feel flattered by the attention, but I just feel like I'm on display at a zoo...
I've eventually gotten used to the stares, and looking foreign (while still being able to speak half decent Italian) means that I'm forever getting help from people.
But all in all, I've really enjoyed my year here. The amount that I dislike is far smaller than the amount that I like about it here. Canada is by no means perfect, either.
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