“This way. Use the stairs on your left”

They also do not forget to invite every passing tourist to sit down and enjoy the cup of tea. However, most do not and miss a great chance to get a glimpse of life the ancient people used to live by and listen to the stories they have. And for those few lucky to learn, if they are willing to listen and have an open mind.

We happily agreed to their invitation. However, we were not as open and kind as these two Bedouins. We had some tainted thoughts and reservations. We had to ask impolitely “How much is the tea?” to which they said, “It is free or if you want you give what you feel”. And so without a thought that they will earn anything they shared with us their hospitality. While we were sitting down and getting comfortable one Bedouin said “One is happy while giving, not taking. Instead, people, these days want to eat, but not to give. The Government took Petra and gave us nothing. Some moved to a city, but I don’t like cities, the mind-set of the people is different. I like it better here. But I don’t worry about the locals, I worry about Petra. As you can see there is a lot of wrong things. This is a holy place, we live in it, we live from it, we learn from it, we must respect it. You see, I’m local, I see it differently.”

After a few cups of tea, they have shared their dinner with us. It was a very simple but delicious meal. With a homemade or so I think Pita bread. And from what I can guess a broth of chicken peas with local spices.

While we ate, talked and enjoy the serene feeling one of the brothers kept on repeating “There is no need to rush, there is plenty of time here.” for which we had no reply. Tho now when I write it all goes down to the perception we create. And each and every one of us has our own. I think this quote perfectly sums up what I mean “No two people see the external world in exactly the same way. To every separate person, a thing is what he thinks it is — in other words, not a thing, but a think.” Penelope Fritzgerald

Surprisingly it took us a while to get to the traditional questions. But nonetheless, we go there.  One of my friends asked them “How old are you?” the reply we received was a surprise for us. I do not know why as this is not the first time I heard such a reply. But coming from them it was a surprise. “4” he said. “It doesn’t matter how old I am”. Knowing that he did not want to reveal his age we followed up with another question. “Do you live here?” a simple and innocent question to keep the conversation going. To which we knew the answer already. But not the whole of it. “Yes” he replied. “I do not like living in the city. The people mentality is different they are all restricted. Here I am free” He spills some water. “No worries.” he says and continues his though. “People in the city they think only about themselves. But in life, you have to give to receive.”

Lastly after chatting about things that I can’t remember any more. We asked, “Where did you learn English?”. One of them replied “From life, not from school. One must learn everything from life.”

As you can see their philosophy is simple. However, to reach this level it requires time to be perfected to reach such level. One must learn from life. So it happened that when we finished the conversation that the last bit of the hike I was so deep in my thoughts that I had no memories how we got to the spot where we stood above the treasury looking at the world wonder and deeply in my thoughts feeling a bit down. As I felt that I was a step away from opening the doors to something remarkable.

This is a slightly different story about the charming country of Italy. In this first installment out of three, we will cover the dark side that really upset us… It upset us sooo much that we simply had to write about it in the first post about Italy. This post will focus mainly on Taranto and the surrounding areas but the problem we noticed here repeated across the whole Puglia region.

But before that a short prelude

Vilnius – Bari flight with Wizzair. Sitting near the emergency exit with extra leg space. So good! In addition, our neighbor is super friendly. So friendly that while we chitchatted about Italy I decided to check our flight backdate… We by accident the ticket back on the same day…

With a bit of an adrenaline once we landed we rushed towards the lounge to get some wifi and buy tickets before they went sky high. We managed to buy them at a fairly low price. Went to Bari got a ticket to Taranto. Saw some palm trees and got happy with the 37 degrees and finally the hot weather. However, shortly after we were shocked that the so-called European country that prides in clean energy and landscapes, progressive mindset and a leading shining star in the world is full of trash and little respect for nature.

The shame of Italy

Now let me tell you the story of the Italian shame. We would say it was one of those rare moments when you are personally ashamed but not because of something you did but because of other people actions.
We will share it with you through the pictures taken in Taranto and areas surrounding it. However, as I mentioned earlier we saw this problem everywhere. Just for simplicity, it is much easier to demonstrate through the scope of one place.
Taranto has a hidden beauty but beauty nonetheless. The old town even if most of it is run down and half-abandoned and if you would be in South America you would not set foot there, has its charms. It has historical buildings to explore at night and frescos hiding in alleys just waiting to be found. Quiet streets with one or two picturestic cafes and restaurants. A different world from the commercial street where the majority of Italians spend their time at night.

Nevertheless, there is foulness in the air. Repulsiveness that is created by the habitats.

We do not claim to be garbage saints. Our country doesn’t have the system to recycle but we are moving towards it. However, we do not leave the trash nor we pollute the environment that surrounds us.

It is very hard to understand the cultures that enjoy living in a place filled and surrounded by trash. Especially in a developed country with all the necessities to keep it clean. It is sad because I do not want to see the nature to be further incapacitated by the things that can be easily changed on a personal note.

But the Italians seem to like it. They have beaches that the rest of the world can be envious of. However, most private beaches are being kept clean. The rest is treated as a massive public ashtray. Leaving plastic bags and cigaret stubs right on the beach.

And if you walk 10 meters towards the wild beach. You can even find washing machines, car parts and etc being thrown out in heaps. And the best part of all people sunbath surrounded by all the trash.

The country has beauty, unimaginable history, and friendly people. But skewed mindset towards the environment and the land they live on. We truly hope this post will reach some of them and will open their eyes to start the change. Even if it is only one person we will be happy.

Authors

Simonas R.
Arune M.

P.s. Pictures are all originals. If you would like to copy or use them you have to get a permission from the authors.

P.s.s. Part 2 of the trip can be found here – Puglia – The hidden Wonder Of Italy