Arriving in San Marino: The Unglamorous Story Behind the Melons & Parma Ham
My arrival in one of the smallest countries in the world wasn’t something I could recollect with delight. It wasn’t pleasant at all. It was stressful! This story might be categorised as TMI (too much *personal* information) by certain people, but for me, this is the essence of having a travel diary, to be able to journal the details of the journey.
It so happened that when I travelled to San Marino it was the red flag week of the month. If you are male and you are reading this, you might want to refer to your wife, girlfriend, sister or mother what red flag meant =)
The ride from Bologna, Italy to the Republic of San Marino took approximately 2 hours. When you are driving that long and sitting in the same position this can have some dire consequences. I noticed right away the stains in my side crotch and thought, “Oh dear, I can’t be walking around in San Marino with blood stains on me!”
I was quick enough to find parking and saw that there is a mobile public toilet on the corner of the parking lot, the kind that is operated by coins. I checked my wallet and was quite relieved to see a 1 Euro coin that I could use the toilet. Unfortunately, the coin got stuck and I cannot open the toilet? ARGHHH. That was my last coin! I restrained myself from kicking the darn thing, which proved difficult, so yeah, I cursed it instead.
You know, cursing can be liberating. You should try it some time =)
Very desperate now for a toilet, I walked to the direction of the rotunda and here I found a small trattoria. I wanted to go straight to the toilet but there was a queue, so I grabbed a table instead. The view from the window of my table was breathtaking and this made me relax a bit.
For us women, getting period stains when outside in public is a stressful thing. You just know that people will stare at you and point at the stain. Where I am a little bit perplexed is that this monthly red flag event is a very natural occurrence, however, when people are confronted by it in public, they react uncomfortably. It does not really add up, right? Alright, I understand, it is a personal thing; it is like farting, a natural phenomenon that is absurdly part of daily life but people avoid it like the plague. I can really understand if people find this post a bit TMI by now, haha.
Anyway, I knew I was in a safe place where I can change, but I also thought it would be awkward to use the toilet without buying anything. As if the man behind the cashier knew what I was thinking, he came forward to fetch my order. I already did an earlier quick scan of the menu and knew what to take.
“Melon with Parma ham please…. and a cappuccino.” In Italy, you don’t order a cappuccino after 12 noon but I didn’t care. I was in the mood for it.
The queue to the toilet however just continued by the minute and to secure my chance, I decided to fall in line. It’s when one of the female personnel of the trattoria noticed the stain. Being a woman herself, she responded sympathetically. I mean, we all go through an embarrassing situation like this at least once in our lives. Or maybe twice. Thrice even. She quickly disappeared, and then reappeared in a flash with a napkin in her hand. Aww, that was very sweet of her, but I told her I have brought my own and thanked her. She was relieved that I am prepared.
The visit to the toilet took some time because I had to wash the stained part of the pants. Luckily there was soap and a dryer, and although I could not really dry the pants totally, at least I could partly. That was enough.
And there you go, the unglamorous, unpleasant and annoying part of travelling for (still ovulating) women. I tell you, I cannot wait for PMS (pre-menopausal stage) to come and I am not kidding at all because it is just around the corner =)
The story thus behind these delicious melons and Parma ham which have become the compensation for this unpleasant event. So all’s well that ends well.
More of San Marino next.
Travel Period: May 2016
Destination: San Marino
Keep in touch and follow me on Facebook: Travel & Lifestyle Diaries by Dutched Pinay Travels
Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =)
It so happened that when I travelled to San Marino it was the red flag week of the month. If you are male and you are reading this, you might want to refer to your wife, girlfriend, sister or mother what red flag meant =)
The ride from Bologna, Italy to the Republic of San Marino took approximately 2 hours. When you are driving that long and sitting in the same position this can have some dire consequences. I noticed right away the stains in my side crotch and thought, “Oh dear, I can’t be walking around in San Marino with blood stains on me!”
I was quick enough to find parking and saw that there is a mobile public toilet on the corner of the parking lot, the kind that is operated by coins. I checked my wallet and was quite relieved to see a 1 Euro coin that I could use the toilet. Unfortunately, the coin got stuck and I cannot open the toilet? ARGHHH. That was my last coin! I restrained myself from kicking the darn thing, which proved difficult, so yeah, I cursed it instead.
You know, cursing can be liberating. You should try it some time =)
Very desperate now for a toilet, I walked to the direction of the rotunda and here I found a small trattoria. I wanted to go straight to the toilet but there was a queue, so I grabbed a table instead. The view from the window of my table was breathtaking and this made me relax a bit.
For us women, getting period stains when outside in public is a stressful thing. You just know that people will stare at you and point at the stain. Where I am a little bit perplexed is that this monthly red flag event is a very natural occurrence, however, when people are confronted by it in public, they react uncomfortably. It does not really add up, right? Alright, I understand, it is a personal thing; it is like farting, a natural phenomenon that is absurdly part of daily life but people avoid it like the plague. I can really understand if people find this post a bit TMI by now, haha.
Anyway, I knew I was in a safe place where I can change, but I also thought it would be awkward to use the toilet without buying anything. As if the man behind the cashier knew what I was thinking, he came forward to fetch my order. I already did an earlier quick scan of the menu and knew what to take.
“Melon with Parma ham please…. and a cappuccino.” In Italy, you don’t order a cappuccino after 12 noon but I didn’t care. I was in the mood for it.
The queue to the toilet however just continued by the minute and to secure my chance, I decided to fall in line. It’s when one of the female personnel of the trattoria noticed the stain. Being a woman herself, she responded sympathetically. I mean, we all go through an embarrassing situation like this at least once in our lives. Or maybe twice. Thrice even. She quickly disappeared, and then reappeared in a flash with a napkin in her hand. Aww, that was very sweet of her, but I told her I have brought my own and thanked her. She was relieved that I am prepared.
The visit to the toilet took some time because I had to wash the stained part of the pants. Luckily there was soap and a dryer, and although I could not really dry the pants totally, at least I could partly. That was enough.
And there you go, the unglamorous, unpleasant and annoying part of travelling for (still ovulating) women. I tell you, I cannot wait for PMS (pre-menopausal stage) to come and I am not kidding at all because it is just around the corner =)
The story thus behind these delicious melons and Parma ham which have become the compensation for this unpleasant event. So all’s well that ends well.
More of San Marino next.
San Marino in the distance.... almost there!
The compensation: Melon and shavings of Parma ham.
The view from the window of my table.
The cappuccino and the rotunda where the trattoria is located (around the corner).
Travel Period: May 2016
Destination: San Marino
Keep in touch and follow me on Facebook: Travel & Lifestyle Diaries by Dutched Pinay Travels
Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =)
