Looking out the window on our turn to final into the Pisa airport, we could see the white sand beaches and the sparkling blue waters of the Mediterranean. We were almost there – we could practically taste paradise. Our golf clubs were in the cargo hold, our shorts and shades were in our carry-on baggage, and our attitudes were adjusted. From the coast to the runway, we were flying over our home for the next 2-3 years (1 ½ to 2 ½ years by now as we had lost most of the first half of the year trying to get here.) The small town on the coast gave way to the national forest and the golf course; then the beige buildings with tiled roofs of the small base provided a stark contrast to the green of the parkland. Upon landing, we collected our myriad of belongings and struggled through customs, pushing an overcrowded baggage cart, wearing back packs, wheeling a couple carry-ons, and dragging our golf clubs; looking at the others who were arriving, it reminded me of Sesame Street, “One of these things is not like the others.” However, we soon exited the airport and were met by my wife’s new boss.
Damn it’s cold. The first thing we noticed was that it was the weather was just a wee bit different than what we were expecting. As I said, when we conceived of this adventure, we did some quick research, relying on past recollections (when we were coming out of England), cursory Google searches, and friends’ recounts of the area . What we didn’t factor in is that Pisa is at about the same latitude as Boston (actually slightly north with a bit drier climate) and we were arriving in mid-October (rather than early August) which we discovered is the area’s rainy season. The Tuscan sun was hidden by a thick layer of clouds with a light drizzle and the temperature was in the low 50s; it was evident that we wouldn’t be needing the shorts and sunglasses anytime soon.
The more things stay the same, the more things change (or something like that). While we experienced some slight déjà vu (familiar restaurants – we like Italian food) from previous trips, we noticed some changes (what appeared to be fences) inside the base area. This was when we discovered that a large part of the facility had been given to the Italian government within the last three years – much of the main base was repatriated, but more importantly (for us), the golf course and the beach area had been ceded. Uh oh, two-thirds of our ideas about coming to this place had just vanished; and I am thinking, “Five years in a research program and possibly our last opportunity for an extended adventure outside the US and I screw up the findings this bad.” But we were still in Italy, and even if the beach and golf resort were no longer part of the experience, we were tickled pink about the opportunity to enjoy the lifestyle and culture of our new home. All we had to do was process into our new organization, community, and country and set up those things we would need to live in our new locale – such as cell phones with plans, a place to live and utilities, register our vehicle (we shipped over a Mazda 3 – something big enough to drive on the autostradas yet small enough to drive in the cities), and let our friends and family know where we were and that we were prepared for visitors. Each of these could be a story onto itself, with its own set of trials and tribulations, but suffice it to say, we made it, we figured most things out (we still find things that we either have overlooked or have put on a back burner only to have them flare up at inopportune times), and we have taken care of most of the initial paperwork.
However, before I go on to talk about day-to-day life and experiences that we have experienced and sometimes enjoyed while at other times cringed, I want to share a couple more lessons that we learned through experience – which is like saying, by living through something to figure it out rather than finding out about it through someone or something else so you could either avoid it or be better prepared. I will share what we did – what worked for us and what might not be the best choice for any or all, but it is offered as a place to start – and a couple of the challenges that we were still not expecting. When you embark on this type of journey, you will have these, no matter how prepared you think you might be – our unknowns will probably not be yours, and you will most likely have the chance to experience others. All these “opportunities to learn” are part and parcel of what comes when you decide to move out of your comfort zone and spring for one last hurrah abroad. Some of these initial issues, challenges, obstacles, opportunities to excel, or whatever you might find yourself calling them, can be found in the post titled “Congratulations, you’ve arrived – Now what?”.