Wow, it's a month!

It's really stunning to me that it's already been a month that I've been
here. I've had some time to make some interesting observations.

No one guesses that I'm American. When I first got here everyone asked if
I was English, but now I'm usually asked if I'm German or, occasionally,
Russian. I'm not sure what that means as far as accent goes, but it
probably has something to do with the haircut I got in Florence.

Also, things are sexier here. Grandmothers walk around in fishnets and
stiletto heels. There's a clothing logo that's on the back of every bus
in Rome - see it at http://www.a-style.it/. Kind of surprising. How to
advertise bathroom cleanser on television? Show a naked woman through a
transparent shower stall. Diet supplements? More naked women. Even the
mannequins are sexier - not only are they curvier than in the states, they
actually have nipples. And not nipples in a subtle true-to-life kind of
way, but in a "hey, isn't it cold in here?" kind of way.

All this makes it interesting to see the inferiority complex this gives
women from everywhere else in the world (I've had the "no, you're lovely
and not frumpy at all" conversation with girls from the States, Australia,
Spain, Mexico, and even Brazil! What can I say, after almost thirty years
around women I know how to pick up on fishing for compliments...). Seeing
the little cultural differences is absolutely fascinating, and regional
variations even more so (there are more long-haired men and facial
piercings in Genoa, for example).

The fact that I've been here a month and I'm planning for future trips
(things that went right, things to do differently, things to watch for
next time, etc) seems like a good sign. And so the adventures continue!