Dude I totally learned some Italian Sign Language

Carlo arranged for me to meet some of his friends (all deaf) and eat some traditional Foccacia bread and pizziata. We hitched a ride with one of his friends and headed down the coast to a beautiful little seaside village where a couple lived.

We spent the evening chatting and getting to know each other. Carlo is fluent in ASL so until this point I had not been exposed to ILS at all. This was sort of a crash course for me. In the car ride there I learned a few words and the alphabet. As the evening progressed we were better able to communicate with each other. This is a phenomena that as far as I know is unique to sign language users. You can meet a group and you can establish a communication base including some signs and some gestures that allow you to have a full and meaningful conversation. I have a theory that this processes is quickened if the sign languages have a familial relations such as ASL, LSF (French), ILS (Italian), and Russian Sign Language. Perhaps the process may take a bit longer if one were to communicate with a person from Japan or Korea, but I do not yet know.

I had a wonderful time laughing and joking and just getting to know all the people there. I have some video footage of the evening so you will get a chance to see ILS and meet each person in the group. At some point in the evening we decided to bring all my stuff to this house where I would spend the night. The next morning four of us would go for what turned out to be a grueling hike through the Italian seaside mountains to a private beach resort.

After a great night’s sleep and an invigorating shower we headed out their front door and straight up the longest outdoor staircase I have ever seen. We hiked for about 5 hours. And I have plenty of pictures for you to enjoy. At one point near the end of the trek we had to climb a very steep hill with many switch backs. I was forced to admit I was in the worst shape of the group as I struggled to keep up. Keep up I did and I only fell once skinning my knee.

As we reached the end of the journey we were at a seaside resort that because of the nature preserve laws in this area was accessible only by boat or hiking. We rounded the final set of stairs and randomly ran into a deaf couple that the group knew. We chatted with them a bit then headed down to the beach for a swim. There was limited space to spread out on the small beach. As we were laying down our towels, another group of deaf people recognized Carlo and invited us to take their spot on the beach. Seems Genoa is a popular place for deaf people to just materialize. We swam, we laughed, we relaxed, and we for darn sure took the boat home; I was exhausted. The group I was with totally took care of me. They would not let me spend a dime and always made sure I had everything I needed. It was a marvelous and welcoming experience.

I had the opportunity to learn a few words in ILS and to film them introducing themselves. I will of course post that for your viewing enjoyment. As I am heading for the cruise ship now I may spend the money and get 24 hours of internet service just to upload the video footage I have. I think you will really enjoy it and I hope it makes you feels like you are on this journey with me.

If you ever decide to visit Italy I highly recommend it. Just make sure you know Carlo because he has made this part of my Europe trip the best and most memorable buy far. Thank you Carlo, and everyone who made my visit a wonderful one to Italy.