Tyler’s Travels: Italy

Tyler Shea Stupor
Sep 7, 2018 · 9 min read

Ciao!

“Ciao” means both “hello” and “goodbye” in Italian. I found this peculiar at first, but now, the dual meaning is quite apt because saying “goodbye” was nearly impossible, and I sincerely hope to say “hello” again very soon. Italy was a rollercoaster of experiences and emotions, though ultimately, one of the best weeks of my life. Welcome to Tyler’s Tour of Milan, Florence, and Venice.


For starters, I should introduce the concept of CouchSurfing. It’s a website with the slogan of “Meet and Stay with Locals All Over the World.” The abridged explanation is that it’s a free version of Aribnb. The extensive, more accurate explanation is that it’s a site that offers the chance to connect with a trove of the kindest, most open-minded, well-travelled, and downright amazing humans that this world has to offer.

While the word “free” is an immediate enticement for most to partake in CS, the best part of this site is the fact that hosts are welcoming you into their homes not for the sake of a supplementary income, but for the chance to share their lives, stories, and laughter with travellers. It grants you the opportunity to truly experience a city from a local’s perspective with your newfound friend(s), rather than a cursory tour based upon Googling “10 Best Things To Do In [insert city name here].”

Now, for those of you thinking “what about stranger danger?” I completely understand your concern, as the online world can be an arsenal of Looney Tunes. And frankly, as much as I love my father, he lacks the stealth of Liam Neeson, so I’d prefer not to recreate “Taken” by being voluntarily abducted. Thankfully, CS runs background checks on each member, in addition to operating on a reference-based system, in which both “hosts” and “surfers” must write about their time with each other to ensure reprecussions for negative interactions.

In sum, there is no denying that exercising caution on the Interwebs is vital, but not every individual that you encounter is a roofie fanatic, fantasizing about the image of you in their basement. Statistically speaking, you’re more likely to encounter a fellow, semi-sane human than you are the incarnate of Jeffrey Dahmer. I’ve been a member of CS since 2015, and have yet to be greeted with chloroform, rope, or free candy, so I think that I’m clear of any Ted Bundy aspires (for now).

Here’s a screenshot of my profile on CouchSurfing.

Stop #1: Milan, Italy.

Here’s where our rollercoaster begins. While most travel blogs are constructed to capture a flawless venture, I’m going to share my favorite moments, along with the not-so-stellar ones that make me appreciate those favorite moments a little bit more.

Since I was a kid, I’ve had ocular migraines. They’re migraines that start with small blurs in my field of vision that continue to grow until the entire world looks as though I’m viewing it from a foggy window. Then, the pain settles in, and is absolutely crippling, often consuming my entire day. When I was younger, losing my sight absolutely terrified me. Now, I simply take it as a cue to rush to the nearest, darkest, and quietist space that I can find in order to attempt to sleep before my migraine begins.

When we arrived in Milan, Raven and I went to meet with our host from CS, Andrea, who worked in the city center. He and I had been messaging the past few days, and I’d already developed quite the affinity for him, and was sincerely excited to put a face, voice, and hug to my new, virtual friend. My silly, poorly-wired brain had other plans — as we waited for him outside of his office, my vision began to blur. By the time he arrived, half of my vision was already completely faded, so when I walked towards him for a hug, I stepped directly onto his foot, then I forgot about the double-kiss greeting, rapidly turned my head to do it, and nearly head-butted him in the process. In other words, I made Steve Urkel look like Fabio.

After that, I stumbled (literally) to a nearby park, curled up beneathe a tree, turned on classical music, and dozed with Raven beside me. I woke a few hours later, glanced around, and realized I was sitting outside of Castello Sforzesco, a castle that was built in the 15th century. My migraine had almost completely faded, and excitement rapidly took its place. We wandered around for a while, then met up with Andrea.

We went to his home, where I happily perused his bookshelves that were brimming with quality novels, CDs, and records — most of which nearly mirrored my own favorites. Admittedly, books and music are a litmus test of sorts for me. If I’m on the verge of befriending or dating someone, this is one of the first aspects of their identity I delve into. Andrea’s collection of books ranged from Bill Bryson to art from Mark Ryden to Paulo Coelho, and his CDs offered an even more expansive array from Stone Temple Pilots to U2 to Paolo Nutini to Otis Redding. Needless to say, he passed the test.

We turned on tunes, he cooked Raven and I pasta, and then the three of us sat, sharing songs and stories. Once Raven went to bed, Andrea and I stayed up, and I sincerely felt as though I was hanging out with a longtime friend. He taught me the meaning of various hand gestures in Italy, and we continued to talk and giggle until early morning.

Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Italy’s oldest shopping mall (left and center). Duomo/Milan Cathedral (right).

Stop #2: Florence, Italy.

You’re now approaching another drop on this rollercoaster, so toss your hands in the air, and muster a smile. The moment that we arrived in Florence, we were greeted by an immense thunderstorm and pouring rain. I’m a fan of the rain, and would’ve happily danced in it, if weren’t carrying my laptop, passport, cash, and just about every other morsel of importance. So, instead of exploring, we hid in a cafe nearby.

Once the rain stopped, we went to our CS host’s home. He was easily the strangest individual that I’ve ever encountered, though I’m not one to speak poorly of others, so I’ll refrain from sharing much. To put it simply, throughout our interactions my thoughts were “well, at least that’ll make for a hilarious story later.” If I ever decide to write a David Sedaris-esque novel depicting the quirky cast of characters I’ve met during my travels, he will most certainly be the star.

Thankfully, the scenery (and gelato) of Florence compensated for that:

View of Florence from the Boboli Gardens.
Basilica of Saint Mary of the Flower, Florence’s main cathedral, completely in 1436.

Stop #3: Venice, Italy.

Venice, Italy, was aboslutely perfect because our host, Ivan, was absolutely perfect. No words can aptly express how precious of a human Ivan is, nor how much I enjoyed his company throughout our stay.

He was kind enough to pick Rave and I up from the train station, take us to a nearby market for snacks, and then invited 3 good friends of his over for a pizza night. The 6 of us gathered around his table with 6 different types of pizza. Usually, I’m not too fond of pizza, but I could’ve happily drowned myself in this carb-loaded deliciousness. Even better than the food (which didn’t seem possible) was our company. Ivan and his 3 friends were fluent in English, and easily the most sincere, articulate, intelligent, and funny humans I’ve met in a long while, which is saying a lot because life continuously spoils me with the best possible friends.

Left to right: Francesco, Ivan (our CS host), Niccoló, and Luca. Plus, the cutest boy of all, Larry the Dachschund.

The next morning, Ivan gave us a walking tour of Venice, which was a dream. The moment that you leave the train station, it is as though you’ve transported to a parallel world that is brimming with brilliant colors, charming buildings, endless tiny streets and courtyards, captivating churches, and water in every direction. We strolled around for hours, gawking at all of it’s stunning splendor:

This is your first view when you exit the train station to Venice. As you can tell, it’s hideous.
The obligatory gondola photo (left). Raven and I at St. Mark’s Square (right).
Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s Square) is the main square of Venice, and was constructed in 1100.
Raven, some girl, and Ivan.

Towards the end of the day, we saw a man propose to his girlfriend on one of the bridges. She said yes, they hugged, kissed, and she started to cry. When the two of them walked back towards the crowd hand-in-hand to where we were standing, we all cheered loudly, and one man stood up, offering to buy them drinks. The couple didn’t speak English, so he gestured the act of drinking, and they excitedly joined his table. The entire moment caused entire-body chills that lasted for several minutes, as it was such a perfect display of the beauty of existing and sharing this world with others. I felt honored to have witnessed one of the happiest days of someone’s life.

That night, Ivan took us to a bar and restaraunt in his town, where friends of his were celebrating a birthday. As we approached the table, I was stunned by how ridiculously attractive every single individual was. It was as though someone had dressed and posed each guy and girl there for a marketing campaign to promote tourism in Italy. Even better? They were all fluent in English, and just as kind, welcoming, and enjoyable as the friends from our pizza night, who also joined us again later in the evening. At this point, I’d seriously began to wonder if Ivan had somehow managed to gather all of the best humans in Italy. Frankly, if his friends were any indication of the general demographic there, I may have to move soon.

The next day, Ivan had work (he’s a mechanical engineer). He left us the keys to his home, so we happily slept in, and enjoyed a well-needed day of relaxing, planning, laundry, finally-getting-to-shave-our-legs showers, and a stroll to the nearby market to gather ingredients to create a breakfast burrito comparable to one from California. When Ivan got home from work, he drove us to his favorite ice cream shop nearby, furthering my love for Italian gelato, which is just as delightful as the people of Venice. Then, Raven and I cooked breakfast burritos for Ivan and his roommate, Mirco. They were a hit.

Mirco, Ivan’s roommate (left) and Ivan, our darling host (right).

Then, we slowly and sullenly packed our bags, wishing that we could miss our flight to Berlin, Germany in the morning. Or, even more tempting, to stow Ivan away in our luggage for our next adventure. Alas, neither scheme was feasible, so Ivan drove us to a campsite near our airport, that spared us from attempting to navigate public transportation for our 7AM flight. When he dropped us off, we hopped out of the car, and exchanged a million “last” hugs, goodbyes, sleepy laughter, and pinky promises to see each other again.


To my friends at home, I love and miss you all. To my newfound friends of the road, I adore and appreciate you all. To life, I thank you for each and every day you continue to gift me.

*I am currently in Hamburg, Germany. Tomorrow, I board the MV World Odyssey for my job orientation with Semester at Sea. I will attempt to post about our adventures in Berlin and Hamburg before I depart. If you’d like to stay in touch while I’m floating around the world, feel free to email me at: Tyler.Stupor.FA18@semesteratsea.org.

Virtual hugs,
— Tyler Shea Stupor
💛

Tyler Shea Stupor

Written by

I'm a Human Golden Retriever // Strangers as friends yet to be made. 💛

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