13.10.2020-Beaches and Investment Ruins

13.10.2020

Dear friends,

The drastic change between rich and poor happened so frequently and so close to each other today that it raises questions why one place is preferred and the other completely neglected.

I woke up surprisingly late this morning and even Paps sat quietly in the front seat reading. Our relaxed departure was only briefly disturbed when I found out that there were not only one, but three cats at our campsite, and they were all so cute with their tiger stripes. Unfortunately, we couldn't take any of them with us because mean Papa didn't want them in the apartment, but that's just how he is. He also thought my suggestion of frying bacon was terrible because then it would smell like a fast food restaurant in here, even though he can't even smell, but he already knew that fried food is bad (disappointed headshake on my part).

Despite everything being well planned, we quickly left the campsite and had to face the highways that were made just to confuse poor people like us. But let me tell you this: we only came dangerously close to the wall with one swerve and then got onto the road that leads us to Naples and our destination today.

After passing through Latina and finally reaching the sea, we had to stop and relax right on the beach. Many fishermen were out and about, or rather sitting on a chair and waiting, and there was also a horseback rider trying to get his horse used to the waves. I was so satisfied with successfully burying a seedling in the sand that it no longer worried my wet feet, but when it got too cold for Papa without the sun, we continued on our way. Because some higher being wanted to see us outside, we quickly felt the warm rays on our legs again, so we took a break at a tiny entrance to the associated harbor and watched the two fishermen with their interesting nets sink their construction into the water each time, only to pull it up in a moment of happiness. We even saw one of the men catch a surprisingly large fish, unlike the fishermen who tried to catch fish in the usual way with a fishing rod.

Our next stop was at another beach, but here it was clear that it was teeming with tourists in the summer. The sheer number of parking spaces was impressive, but fortunately, the barriers and ticket machines had been removed, so we could simply park in our favorite spot and admire the emptiness of the sandy beach that stretched out before us. Only a lone member of the water patrol had to sweep up the washed-up plastic and wooden remains of the past storm. I felt sorry for him, especially because he hadn't managed to clean up a large section of the beach yet, he had barely started and already seemed completely exhausted.

We could have considered the day over now and simply enjoyed our spot right on the beach, but something drew us further and brought us back to lesson one: Be content with what you have. Because the area that followed was anything but inviting. Run-down houses, overgrown gardens, and trash everywhere, and if we thought it would lead to the sea, we ended up in a half-destroyed holiday resort with individual garden houses and a barrier on every street that prevented us from driving any further. Really great, and when Paps had to drive several hundred meters backwards because the road ended at a fence, you could practically cut our enthusiasm with a knife.

But listen, listen, we managed to get out again with the escort of a garden owner who didn't even think about calling his dogs back when they ran onto the road and barked at me from all sides as I tried to help Papa with the reverse driving. Well, you can only get ahead here if you get upset, and just like he reluctantly called his yappers back to him, we also found a parking space. But the area didn't improve, so we agreed on a supervised spot in the city.

Entering at the perfect time for rush hour, we drove past Naples and saw what Paps described so aptly as "investment ruins," half-finished, abandoned buildings, and completely dismantled gas stations. The fact that I had never seen anything like it says as much about me as it does about the area, but despite this little shock, we were able to admire a beautiful sunset in our safe haven.

See you soon, and hopefully things will get better for the people here soon.