Florence, As seen from Il Duomo

Florence, As seen from Il Duomo
Originally uploaded by alpharat.

Far away
This ship is taking me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die.
-Muse "Starlight"

That's one of my favorite songs right now (You can here it here), and while we were in Italy, that verse was absolutely perfect. Couple that with the fact that it was a song that popped up all over the place while we were there, and it becomes the theme for the trip.

Music bridges a lot of barriers. One day in Florence, we were wandering the streets (as we are prone to do whether or not we're on vacation; it's the Gypsy in me, I guess). It was a cool morning, and the Florence marathon was going on. We had just cheered on the leading hand cyclists as they roared by on the cobblestones, and ducked into a cafe for an espresso and a panini.

I stumbed my way through the order, starting with my traditional opening phrase, "Mi dispiace, parlo pochissimo di italiano." This is a very rough, grammatically incorrect way of saying, "I'm sorry, I only speak a little Italian." It always got the point across, though, and bought me patience from shopkeepers, concierges, deli workers and the like.

After we sat at the table (which costs more than standing at the bar, but is worth it when you're walking all day), "Starlight" came on the radio. I was absentmindedly singing along, relishing that verse, when I looked up and made eye contact with the barista. She was singing along as well. We smiled at one another, we were both Muse fans and music fans.