A birthday and bad internet

The past few days have been fun at times and frustrating other times. It’s been a mixed bag of going to the beach, walking, reading, writing, visiting with friends, celebrating, cleaning, and just relaxing. The closing up of the condo starts tomorrow night, after a day at the beach of course.

Tuesday was a beautiful day. The Adriatic Sea was really calm, and the water was warm. It was also a sunny day with plenty of rays to help with my tan. After spending the whole day at the beach, I welcomed friends to the condo. Antonio Monaco and his wife Anna and their daughter Doris came by for a visit. We went for a passiagiata (the Italian word for an evening stroll) into town, and then came back to the condo. It was great catching up with such good people. Looking forward to the next time I get to see them. Doris was so cute as she is learning English phrases. She was the first person to officially wish me a happy birthday this year, just a little after midnight.

Wednesday was the big 44. I spent most of the day at the beach after going for a long walk in the morning. In the early evening, Zia and I headed into Termoli. We took a passiagiatta through a flea market, down the main strand of stores, and in and around the castello of Federico II, who ruled the area like 600 years ago. We went out for pizza, then I got some gelato at YoGo, the best gelateria that I’ve ever been to.

The frustrating part I mentioned earlier was starting on Tuesday evening, I noticed that the data on my phone was giving me issues when in Campomarino Lido. The wifi hotspot I use has been troublesome all month long, in fact, I started writing this on the 18th, and haven’t been able to post. I thought it was just my things, however I had a lovely conversation with my neighbors and they complained about it too. They said they’ve had trouble since they got here at the end of June. Other people I’ve spoken to have had trouble as well. Parts of the wildfires were around a cell tower, so I wonder if it is damaged.