I remember last year I had imagined my life in Italy involving many relaxing days at the beach. Walking, jogging, sunbathing, reading. I was more than a little disappointed to arrive in Naples and find that not only is there no beach, but you cannot go in the sea because it is polluted and will leave you with a very nasty rash.
But yesterday my dream came true. The teacher who I give private English lessons too is a bit of a free spirit. Her home life has been rather stressful at the moment and she’s found that fleeing to the coast for a few hours is the prefect was to escape reality. While she dropping me off home on Tuesday she asked me if I would like to join her after school on Thursday (yesterday).
Yesterday was the perfect day for lounging around by the sea. It was 25C yesterday (finally!) and there was no breeze, so you can only imagine how unbearable the heat was in the city. We drove to a piece of the coast in a town called Lago Patria, which is only 15 minutes away from the school by car.
Yesterday I discovered how different Italian and English beaches are. For a start we had to pay to get onto the beach. Although the coastline is long, it is divided into many tiny “beaches” owned by different people/companies. The prices of each beach differ, as well as what they offer. For example a few beaches down from the one we went to, there was a Thailand themed beach. The beach we went to was very simple. We paid 5 euro to get onto the beach and then an attendant came and set up too sun loungers for us in the spot of our choice. When we were all settled he came back with a menu. We ordered two paninis with fresh mozzarella and tomatoes (delicious). I’ve never seen this type of service before. If you want to eat at the beach in England you either bring a picnic or walk to the nearby chippy.
Another difference was the people. Because of the time of the time of day that we arrived the beach wasn’t ridiculously busy. In fact most of the people there appeared to be beach regulars…a.k.a sun addicts. Back home I’m use to having a darker skin tone that my friends, it’s inherited from my father, but today I have never felt so white. While I was there applying my sun factor 30, everyone else was rubbing in the baby oil. Everyone was a over-roasted chicken colour. But it wasn’t just their colour that shocked me; it was their dedication. There was retired couples topping up their tan, mothers with new born babies, and middle aged men on their own. Surely going to the beach alone to tan yourself loses you man points!?!?!
(Tanning Addict!)
All this aside, I had an amazing few hours at the beach. I wasn’t able to go into the sea because it wasn’t very clear but hopefully next time we go back it will be cleaner. It was really weird being at the beach. I felt like I was on holiday. I felt a million miles away from the chaotic, rubbish filled streets of Naples. We were only there for two hours, but they were the most relaxing two hours of my time in Italy so far. Also there was something addictingly liberating about being in my bikini. I have a lot of body issues but being surrounded by people who are just there letting it all hang out made me appreciate my body a lot more than before. It’s easy to forget that most people don’t look like model in a bikini. It’s ok to be normal.
I’m looking forward to my next trip to the beach. As long as the weather behaves itself then we will be off to the beach again next week. :D
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