A Room With a View

Every town has a heart: the marketplace, the square, the park.  However, Todi is so special that it has two hearts; while one is fairly predictable—the 13^th century piazza in front of the duomo, very popular with tourists—the other is a little less so.  It is the modestly sized Piazza Jacopone, through which everyone passes on the way to the main piazza.  It is a convenient location, sandwiched between the two biggest tourist attractions in Todi, the piazza and San Fortunato, as well as being a shortcut through town.  It is also home to Dige’s Pizza—known to our readers as Massimo’s—the best pizzeria in all of Italy.  Dige’s is the teens’ hangout.  Dige’s is the locals’ coffee shop.  Dige’s is the tourists’ lunch stop.  In short, everyone goes to Piazza Jacopone.  It is the people-watcher’s land of plenty.

Imagine, therefore, Ashley’s and my delight upon discovering that our bedroom overlooks not only San Fortunato, but also Dige’s Pizza!  While other members of our family are thrilled to have windows to the private courtyard, Ashley and I can (and do) stand for hours watching people passing by.  As I type, in fact, Ashley is hanging out of the window on the pretext of getting some fresh air—but I know that she’s keeping a close eye on the teens who have congregated below.

Our window is absolutely ideal for this type of entertainment.  We are several stories up, so almost no one looks towards us, and it is impossible to hear what we say.  We also have a very clear line of sight up and down the main street, to San Fortunato, of Dige’s Pizza, and on Piazza Jacopone.  In fact, the only thing lacking is window seats—but we would probably never leave!

And, let me tell you, we have learned a good bit from this habit.  We have picked up fashion ideas.  We have discovered that the vast majority of tourists here are other Italians.  We have found that the boys here are every bit as attractive as people say.  We have learned that teenagers gather to smoke and hang out here at night—and that only the elderly appear before 9:30 the next morning.  I even experienced the absolute silence that settles over the town at three a.m. when I was suffering from jet lag.

And that says nothing of the laughs we have had.  There is one boy (he’s right outside the window at the moment) with whom we had a rather peculiar encounter last time—that’s another story in itself—who has cut the hair on one side of his hair short but left the rest shoulder-length.  He and his buddies are rather amusing to watch because they just goof off and generally act like hoodlums.  Then this morning, long before our lopsided friend emerged, I observed one elderly and portly man carefully measuring another equally elderly and portly man’s stomach.  However, this was nothing compared to our favorite sighting of all.

Yesterday in the mid-afternoon, during the course of usual tourists and such, we spotted a fifty-or-so man who was clearly in the height of fashion—Italian fashion, no less.  However, this was one of those irritating fashions that famous designers endorse but don’t actually expect anyone to wear.  He sported a white, long-sleeved blouse with a V-neck nearly to his belly button (I don’t exaggerate) with a gold wristwatch to complement it.  In addition, he wore bright green skinny jeans.  We stared, open-mouthed, as he strode confidently down the street until his green pants and bald spot disappeared around the bend.

And, though I would love to write more, I have to go.  Ashley tells me that another cute guy has appeared, and this I really can’t miss.

Eleanor

PS You asked for pictures, so here they are.  Sorry, none of the green pants guy, although we've seen him a few more times (in the same jeans).

Piazza Jacopone and Dige's Pizza

The steps of San Fortunato and the main street into town

Where the teens congregate after dusk

Everyone else's view.  Yes, that car did drive through that doorway.