Habits and my Florentine friends

For the past few days, I’ve been picking back up my daily abitudini (habits) that I have when I’m here in Florence. I go to Vivoli or Giacosa for colazione (breakfast), shop for food in via dei Neri, and visit my friends who work in centro (downtown) when I’m out walking around. One of the nicest feelings is when I’m walking down the street and someone I know calls out to me, “Ciao bella!” I love that in Florence, people I know take notice and have even become closer to me now that they see me less habitually.

At the rosticceria (rotisserie) where I get prepared food sometimes, they now know my name. I’ve been going there off and on for over five years, but never did we exchange names. Maybe it’s because now I live alone in Florence, I go more often and then disappear for longer periods of time.

It feels natural for us to now say hi to each other using our names. It’s a comfort to me: living in a place where people aren’t very mobile, I feel as if we have become closer just by knowing each other’s names. It’s as though smiles seem wider and words even kinder now when I return to Florence.

When I went for colazione yesterday, I was greeted by the two women who work there and they told me that they missed seeing me. One of the women said, “Riprendi le tue abitudini? (Taking back up your habits?)”

For me, it’s a treat to take up abitudini as if my life hasn’t changed as much as it truly has. I love sip my cappuccino and chat with them. Even if I only stay for 10 minutes, we connect. We ask each other, “Come stai? (How are you?)”, and sincerely care about the answer; it’s not just a formality between us.

Florence isn’t just a beautiful city with a powerfully creative energy, but it’s also a place where I feel at home. I feel embraced not only by the city, but also by the locals. When I walked out of the bar, I was overjoyed to be this fortunate. People I see on an irregular basis acknowledge me, notice when I’m not around, and seem to care about me. It’s as if they are friends that I can find any time I want. We don’t schedule our encounters; it all just happens fluidly and easily. When I’m in Paris, I miss a lot of the people I see regularly. All my friends I can easily contact by phone or email, but people I see in my daily life I can only connect face-to-face. I definitely feel their absence from my life.

Creating meaningful bonds with people I see regularly is certainly one of the joys of my life in Florence and I am always eager to get a caffè at my bar because I know that I will be welcomed with a warm smile. It’s part of what makes me feel at home in Florence. It’s not something I have experienced much elsewhere so I definitely cherish my amici fiorentini (Florentine friends).

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