Making (re)Connections

This post is dedicated to Teo, Luca, Ale, who have been there lately for anything, in spite of everything. Day   3  | July 25 th I got up at 6:16, I had waken up a couple of more times earlier, but it was dark, except for the flesh blue light of the travel adaptor looking at me. I slept for more than 10hours I believe. Don't recall the last time I had slept for so long. I fell asleep around 8pm, despite the fact I wanted to force myself to stay awake till 10pm or so. I went out in the terrace and observed the moon up in the sky, it was beautiful: from dark blue the sky was transforming into lighter blue. A flock of little birds freaked out while I was walking and flied out from the tree they were attending - I didn't do it intentionally - I swear. I went to bed again, as there is literally  nothing else to do, but sleeping, dreaming and having scarse and healthy food.

This post is dedicated to DaniCo, who brought me here mentally and spiritually. Day    1 | July 23 rd Reached Faro airport with 10 mins delay but thankfully luggage delivery went really smooth: indeed the airport is pretty cozy but well organized, apparently. The driver was at the Arrival exit, waiting for me, but obviously I didn’t see him, so I had to call the owner. I didn’t take any food, despite I had spent time on the last flight to review all the logistics, and food was not scheduled tonight at the retreat center. Eventually it was not such a bad decision – you will understand this later.   We reached the center slightly before 6pm and Geraldine – the shaman – assigned each of us a room or a cabin. I was assigned to a cabin but accepted the suggestion to switch  to a room with air-conditioning: it’s already my first time with master plants , I don’t want to push myself too hard. This was the cabin instead. We then spent time just wandering around or chilling...

Not sure why I signed-up for a shamanic retreat in Portugal, but it was highly suggested by a close friend of mine. And even before the official motto, I felt I should #takelifeasitcomes , so I registered for that. While sitting in the lounge of Madrid airport, waiting for my connection to Faro, I keep thinking that there is still something I want to explore more, to know myself better. Being alone with yourself may be intense, scary, even dangerous. I did it once with my Vipassana retreat and it was mind-blowing, but still so so so tough. The one in Tavira is going to be a different retreat. Will I get off stronger , or weaker ? Will I survive ? Will I encounter my inner self? And what about that motherf****r of my inner child , who keeps creating problems every now and then with the people I love the most? Who knows... The only certainty is that I will be out of pocket, with no human connections for 10days . See you later!

Do you know when you meet someone and you feel you have known this person for ever ? Well, it's not a girl, but probably I still have time to find the love of my life during these 3 months off. I got to know him thanks to a coworker. He is Israeli, and he is doing a PhD in Archaeology in Tel-Aviv. This post is dedicated to Zvika, a wonderful Archaeologist-human I met by chance right before leaving Israel. I could not meet Zvi earlier due to logistics, but he had helped me virtually with many things TelAviv / Jerusalem / Israel related. It's incredible to find people willing to help, without even knowing you: I still have hopes for the human kind . I would always be grateful to him for this. He suggested me to leave my luggage at his place and spend time there, since I had to go to the airport around 11PM, so I would have saved one night in the hotel. I accepted and try to repay him with Ben&Jerry ice cream and Italian Cantucci, bought at a supermarket nearby. It seemed we...

I already knew from Avi that Israelis can be pretty bad-ass , and for once I was happy, as I found their style similar to Italians...BUT, the last few days were pretty intense , I had the feeling I had to use 400 eyes around me to be able to get things done. Hopefully people can get some irony of this post , which is dedicated to the BadAsses of the World. Taxi Drivers Basically, I got ripped-off three times . Once landing, when going to Mt. of Olives and one departing. But 2 out of 3 times, I used the Gett app (thanks technology!), so I got in touch with the customer service and was able to get my money back (total of USD 35). This is not the best way to deal with people visiting your country. Both taxi drivers got disciplinary action from the company since they did not use the meter. Well, I believe this is pretty similar in Italy, if not worse. Taking the train I took the train from the Dig to Tel-Aviv. The train was literally full of people (mostly military): many of them sitti...

This article is dedicated to my 49Best team  (Shira and Shani, Monica and Hannah)   and to all the people who follow their dreams and passions , not matter the age, geography, their job; just living in the moment!

Saturday was a super intense day, I did a lot, without resting, not even for a bit...I came to Israel for archaeology, but I still did not want to miss the chance to explore as much as I could. I missed all the Palestinian territories, unfortunately. But I will be back here, for sure! Exploring the Christian Jerusalem I decided not to take another tour , as I wanted to be more flexible with time - as I had also booked tickets for the Israeli Museum and the Tower of David (entrance at 15:30). Shiri gave me some suggestions on what to do at my own pace . I still woke up pretty early and at 8:40 was already out, getting a taxi to the Mount of Olives , probably the place most connected to Jesus in the Bible . The taxi driver ripped me off, but I contacted the company and got about 10 USD back, and the taxi driver will be disciplined (sorry, dude, but don't rip-off "tourists", as not all of us are stupid).  Still unbelievable for me to see with my own eyes , something I...

This post is dedicated to all the people who are looking for Peace. May You find your Peace, May Peace find You!

This post is dedicated to Avi , my Israeli friend who got so excited for me visiting his country and who guided me towards so many aspects of the Jewish culture during this part of my trip. Thanks, bro!

Last Friday our Supervisors confirmed to us that we reached the destruction level . See  STOP 3 | Israel: What do Archeologists do? (1)  to know more. We are really close to reach the floor of this building (just a couple of inches/cm away). WooHoo. But let's continue with what Archeologists do after digging :) The AfterMath 1: Pottery Washing But the work is not done yet...not even half of it. We leave our finding soaking with water for at least 24h. After such 24h are passed, we brush all the pieces with nail brushes and we put them into a container to dry under the sun for at least 24h. The AfterMath 2: Pottery Reading After they dry, Archaeologists or Professors review each container to try to understand better the finds and if this is worth saving. Content of each container will be put into bags and categorized as (thanks Shani for the clarification): 1 | Indicatives : objects such as rims, bases and distinct decorations, they tell us what the vessel was whether it...

This post is dedicated to Toul , a dear friend of mine that today whatsapped me. He shared some amazing news with me yesterday and I cannot be happier for him. We haven't seen each other for a while - we met in Dublin - in 2011. He is French and with me being Italian, it's already a complicated relationship. We haven't talked since ever, but I really considered him a great dude , (and not too French). We won Euro2020, dude: love you, bro! The Actual Dig This is the first excavation I am attending, so I cannot generalize, but I would like to flash out my learnings so far. As mentioned before, I was assigned to area S. Each area is identified based on some signals or evidence . In the case of area S, the area was identified due to the fact the Israeli authority started digging to develop parking slots in the  Tel Zafit National Park   and they found out some walls and old structure worth it and investigation. Area S diggers below: Each area is then divided in smaller parts...

 I plan to update such page every now and then: Time passed so far (since June 26), as end of day July 12th local time zone (GMT+3) | Days : 17 (SEVENTEEN) Time passed so far (since June 26), as end of day July 12th local time zone (GMT+3) | Hours :  408 (FOUR HUNDRED AND EIGHT) Working Days missed:  9 (NINE) Hours spent flying/at airport (more or less):  9+12+26 = 47 (FORTY SEVEN)* Stops planned as of July 12th: SEVEN People I had meaningful connection with so far (excluding the ones due to logistics/admin/transportation):  4 (FOUR) # of countries visited or stopped by (beyond US):  3 (THREE) # of touristic activities done:  7 (SEVEN) # of countries added to my list:  2 (TWO: Ecuador + Israel) # of 7 New World Wonders added to my list: ZERO # of COVID-19 tests done (PCR + Serological), either self-administered or at lab's:  8 (EIGHT) # of times I checked my work emails and chats:  ZERO Friends I entered in a fight for no reasons...

Today's post is dedicated to Fotissima , who sent me a message today (July 13th) and made me cry, with her genuinity : friends are the ones who are, even if you don't see them everyday.  Thank You.  And anticipated 2022 Happy Birthday (well, you know about it :D)

I want to be free I still didn't realize this morning I could go out. My quarantine lasted less than 24h , thanks to the amazing work of  Telaviv-doctor . Last night I spend a good couple of hours in booking a lot of Viator experiences that turned out to be all cancelled. Israel and Tel-Aviv are open - despite Covid - however they are official not open for foreign tourism, so in the big cities you can find either Israelis traveling or "leftover" from other immigration statuses (e.g. visas): not a lot for touristic companies that cannot reach a critical mass. The city was pretty empty, as it was Shabbat : " Shabbat observance entails refraining from work activities, often with great rigor, and engaging in restful activities to honour the day."  Anyhow, I was able to keep going and walk the city and did 36K+ steps and 25- km, which was pretty an accomplishment: my legs are still sore.   An Israeli coworker and friend of mine suggested a couple of spots, so I start...