Setbacks, Bright Side

Doing an internet search in Italian I found Genoa's busker regulations,
which are very lenient and explicit (these times and places are permitted,
no merchandise may be sold other than direct products of the artists
talents - which sounds like CDs to me!). So things are looking up :)

Setbacks

Well, I made it to Florence just fine on Monday, but once here things got
a bit strange. There is a huge police presence that wasn't here last year
(either in January or July) - every piazza in the tourist district has a
cop car and two bored-looking officers hanging out. I figured that it
might not be a bad idea to check what they thought before starting to play
right across the street from them (which seemed intimidating) and I was
told how to get a busking permit.

So half an hour after getting checked into my hostel I took the number 22
bus to its last stop, got off and walked five minutes to Piazza Artom,
where the permit agency is based (and which I surprisingly managed to
find). There I was told that the office had closed an hour before and to
come back in two days. Which I did this morning, only to be told that
they only give permits for after April 30. It's wet and cold today, but
if the weather improves I think I'm going to see what the cops actually
say if I set up to play. In any case I think I'm heading back to Rome for
the weekend to collect myself and then head out to Genoa on Monday. I'm
tempted (and train fare would be much cheaper) to just head to Genoa now,
but I really prefer to have a few days to scout the territory before the
weekend. Also, the forecast for Rome shows highs in the low fifties, and
Genoa in the mid forties, which makes a big difference.

So it's been a frustrating couple of days. It hasn't been without its
moments, however, such as finding that an Irish pub in Italy is almost
just like an Irish pub in the states (including details such as being
filled with Americans). One little quirk, however, was that on the drinks
menu the recipe traditionally called "sex on the beach" was called "sex at
the Duomo" for a local twist :)

I also had the interesting cultural experience of getting a haircut in
Italian. It wasn't nearly as tricky as the eye exam; it really isn't that
hard to say "about two centimeters shorter" and "above the ears", but
making conversation with the barber was more complicated. Since we talked
about what I was doing in Florence, which is a conversation I've had with
audience members, I think I did alright :)

So here I am, at least for another day, and then off to the next
adventure! I'm a little chagrined to be running back to Rome with my tail
between my legs, but my idea for the trip was to use Florence as a home
base and make week-long trips out from there. It looks like the basic
plan was a good one, but that Rome is the hub I should use. We shall see!