Conversazione

"I speak two languages, Body and English”
- Mae West

Italians seem to have a different (foreign) word for almost everything.
Knowing only about 10% of the Italian language makes it tricky to understand what people are saying, especially since Italian conversation is so fast and dramatic. I understand words here and there, sometimes an entire phrase, but otherwise I’m clueless.
I find that if I say certain phrases REALLY fast like “Mi scusi signora, dove la fermata del’autobus piu vicina? (Excuse me madam, where is the nearest bus stop?) I can actually sound pretty good. “Good” meaning they don’t look at me with a scowl, oblivious to what I’m saying. The problem, of course, is that they answer in equally fast Italian. Hopefully, though, they will POINT, in which case I mutter “Ah…si si, grazie” and wander off in that general direction.
My natural tendency to eavesdrop is thwarted, so I’m forced to tune in to the more subtle cues of human interaction: tone of voice, facial expression, hand gestures, intonation, body language.
Jeff was at a café as a card game was in full swing. One of the players obviously won, throwing down his cards and causing an uproar at the table. Another player piped up and, in Jeff’s words, “went on a 5-minute diatribe". Jeff assumed the man was disputing the win, but how? He was vehement about his opinion, loud voice, gesticulating wildly, and the others listened with looks of sour doubt on their faces. Was he accusing the other man of cheating? What evidence was he using to defend his position?
Or maybe he was just telling everyone he needed to go home and have dinner with his wife…?
Jenna and I were on the bus the other day when some kids got on and immediately started shouting rapid, animated Italian at each other from one end of the bus to the other. Everyone was smiling and laughing. Afterward, Jenna said that she thought they were talking about school that day. I thought they were talking about summer vacation.
I think we sometimes imagine people are talking about the stuff that’s in our own heads.
I was recently at an internet café and observed a French couple sitting at a computer next to me, apparently dealing with some business situation (maybe a car rental? Again, I’m eavesdropping, but can’t understand the words). They spoke to each other in soft voices, asking each other questions, answering. They were young and attractive, and sat very close to each other, and they sometimes giggled, so I knew they were lovers. Their sweetness and kindness for each other was evident, even in this very mundane activity. They liked and cared about each other, and I could tell that they were problem-solving, working on things together, encouraging and helping each other in a respectful way.
A few minutes later a German couple sat at the computer on the other side of me, also engaged in business dealings together. Their voices were sharp and rough, and when one asked a question, it sounded accusatory, and the other would answer defensively. They kept scooting around their chairs, practically pushing each other to get a look at the computer screen. Their interaction conveyed frustration, anger, fatigue.
It got me to thinking about how clearly we communicate our thoughts and attitudes with each other just by the sound of our voice, the quickness of our response, the look on our face, how we hold our bodies.
Two Italian women about my age were sitting on a bench outside a cafe yesterday, heads bent toward each other, smiling, talking, laughing, nodding. Their voices got louder and then one said something to the other and they howled with laughter, holding their stomachs, doubled over. I could only imagine what they were talking about (probably men). That’s when I ached for my girlfriends back in Portland.

NEXT UP: Perinaldo