Il traduttore is 32 years old and celebrates his birthday one week after me. We have in common : the same zodiac sign and couple of other things, which at the end might be rather a lethal combination.
Diminutive of a medium height, wearing something earring alike or stud alike God only knows what was the metal thing tagged to his ear.
We meet 4th of June its Saturday as far as I remember. I'm sitting at the stairs of the statue at Piazza Bologni waiting for him. We take a long walk around the city, discovering it's beauty. There is a scent of the sea coming from the port levitating and mixing up with the air making the hit more bearable.
It's the best fragrance ever...The smell of the sea. How I missed that.
The more we talk the more resemblances we discover about each other. Since we get along he takes me to Poggioreale (the place I have described in the previous post). On the way back i rest my head on the car seat and fall asleep immediately just to be woken up in Palermo.
We meet again the day after to go to see L'Etna and climb up to the craters together with his friends that are amusing and have a specific kind of humor oscillating from irony to even offenses. They vested on me a responsibility of choosing the CD as the IPOD lost the connection. Once pondered we insert Carmen Consoli's disc inside. La signora del quinto piano is now the background for our trip :
La signora del quinto piano
The lady from the fifth floor
ha un pitone in salotto She has a python in her living room
un guardiano fidato. a trustworthy guard.
Il suo ex è ogni sera davanti al portone
Her ex is there every night in front of her door.
con un martello in mano. with a hammer in his hand
Non v'è ragione alcuna There is no reason
di aver paura To have fear
di aver paura
To have fear
questa è una conclusione This is the conclusion
dei funzionari della questura. of the police officers.
Bizarre ....In fact this song overtly speaks about women that are stalked by their exes so topic is rather important, but mind you you are having your vacation in a sunny Sicily and you are kind of forced to listen to this tremendous, profound lyrics.
We arrived. It's foggy and we decide to drink something before climbing. The view is amazing I feel as if I was brought back to Iceland. I still wonder why Marco Mengoni had to shoot his video "Ti ho voluto bene veramente" there whilst you can find exactly the same places in Sicily, i guess it would be even cheaper.
On the way back we are sliding down from the hill. Finding through the rocks ladybirds.
We arrive in Catania and impossible happens. A Polish girl is guiding people of Palermo through the city! Yes it was my second time, so I could show off a little bit in front of Palermitians with my knowledge of Catania.
The usual after- meal visit to the toilet finishes with me destroying the flush. Luckily I got away with the murder.
We see each other almost everyday and I have an opportunity to learn more about Palermo that an ordinary tourist. Examples? 800 A - it's basically a swearing that would be understandable only in Palermo but I think I will avoid explaining its inner sense so deem it as your homework dear reader.
The last day was about to be the best one as I stuffed myself with tagliatelle con gamberi e pistacchi di Bronte (the best thing ever - if you will be ever go to Palermo please visit this restaurant - Osteria Ballaro)...ah maledetto Ballaro - I got food poisoned my very last day eating sardines at the market of Ballaro - dear tourist please add it to the 10 things absolutely not to do once in Palermo.
And I had to go and wave to the traduttore from the bus. Yes the same tradutore that did not know how to translate muratore to English. Shit happens even to the greatest ones.
That was the traduttore remaing always a bit aloof and restrained and maybe conservative, but the tradutorre is a good person.
Cheers
