Italy - Part Three

Holy gaps between posts! Lots happening, but let's get on with this Italy theme. You'll recall (and if you don't you can scroll down to catch up...) that we didn't do much the day we arrived in Italy, then booked a guided tour to Naples and Pompeii the first full day we were there. By the next day Amy was getting a cold. She wasn't feeling too well but was determined to see the sights. We decided to walk down to the Colosseum to see what all the fuss was about.


This was taken by setting my camera on a nearby post and setting the timer. We're in front of the Arch of Constantine and the Colosseum. Walking around in Rome is very surreal. I've seen pictures of these places all my life, and to finally be close enough to reach out and touch these things is pretty cool. We wanted to take a tour of the Colosseum, but the day was a bit colder and there was a line. We opted for the 5 cent tour of the outside.


After our quick walk around the Colosseum we meandered our way back to the hotel. Of course we stopped at all the little tourist souvenir shops. I noticed a cooler gladiator helmet in one of the stores and had to test it out. The thing was covered in some kind of oil or grease. I wasn't sure if that was to keep it from rusting or to act as a theft deterrent.


With Amy resting up at the hotel I decided later that night to go for a walk around the city. This shuttle bus drove past me as I got near the Colosseum, so I ran up to the stoplight to get a better picture. The snapshot still turned out a bit blurry, but you get the idea. I thought it looked pretty cool.


I've also played around with my camera and took these next few of pictures with the longer shutter speed. I headed back to the hotel to rest up for a more in depth tour the next day.

Italy - Part Two

This post will be mostly pictures. We booked a tour to go to Naples and Pompeii which picked us up from our hotel at 7am. The tour was very nice. I was mostly impressed with Pompeii and how well preserved it is. The streets look like they were in use just a week ago. With most ruins you have to use a lot of imagination to see the city or town the way it was... not in Pompeii. With a little work it could easily be what it was before it was buried.

Here's some of my favorite pictures from the tour.

Italy - Part One

For the holidays this year my sister and I planned a trip to Italy. Originally we were going to go on a Mediterranean cruise, but that got scrapped because plane tickets got really expensive. Plan B was 10 days in Rome. I can only wish that all my Plan B's in life can be that cool.

Other than taking off at the front edge of a snow storm to hit the east coast, which delayed us by about 2 hours, the flight over there was pretty uneventful. We did what you're not supposed to do when you arrive in another country with jet lag, took a long nap as soon as we hit the room. Since we didn't sleep on the airplane it was very needed.

We did manage to get dinner at the corner restaurant, and go for a quick walk to see a fountain in the Piazza della Repubblica. I was surprised how many restaurants were named after American places. The place we ate was called Washington Snack Bar. The pizza there was really good. Amy and I aren't used to thin crust. We both preferred it since it's not so fluffy-filling.


We ended the night by grabbing some bananas for breakfast from a street vendor. You can't quite see it in this picture, but some of the fruit vendors sell coconut, which is kept in a small box with water running over it. Unfortunately we never tried any of the coconut. I'm sure that it tastes the same as the stuff in Hawaii though.

Life in the Left Lane, Part 12

Theory #12, Lane Means Distance

Man, totally forgot to post the last theory. Things have been hectic, so forgive me.

This is my final post on the topic. I saved the best for last though. After years of pondering I finally decided that this made the most sense. Obviously some of the other theories I've already proposed may come into play from time to time. However, I think the majority of drivers, at least in Maryland fall under this theory.

One thing we as citizens of the Western world appreciate is organization. What would the roads be like if there were no painted stripes or dashes telling us where to drive on the big slab of concrete or asphalt? We create laws for everything, rules for things that aren't covered by laws, and social norms for the rest. We constantly strive for order in a world of chaos.

All of this is to say that our minds are set to give meaning and function to everything around us, traffic being no exception. So when a person looks at a road, beyond the markings on it, they have certain perceptions of it. While much of society tells us that the lane on the left is for passing slower moving cars, there are alternate explanations. This theory being a strong 2nd.

In Maryland many people think the lanes are representative of the distance you intend to travel. I arrived at this after hearing a colleague explain, "I-95 is horrible. In the morning when I get onto the Interstate I just get into the left lane and go!" I thought, what an odd concept. What she had inadvertently explained to me was that if you intend to go a long distance you should indeed be in the left most lane, and in the right lane for short distances.

In some ways this makes sense. As explained in Theory 9, traveling in the left lane does provide fewer distractions from people getting on and off the interstate. On some roads the left lane is actually paved better, which also allows for a nicer trip.

The problem with this mindset is that it totally ignores the intended rate of speed for the trip. For people who perceive the road this way, distance trumps speed. I would argue that much of the conflict in how to use the left lane arises over this simple hierarchy of meaning.

While I now understand this concept, I totally don't agree with it. If half of the States in the US believe the left lane equates to speed, then that has to mean something. The real bottom line is that if you are driving on the road and everyone around you is irritated you should probably evaluate your driving habits. An ounce of consideration and respect for people around you goes a long way.

As a quick side note, MSN recently had an article about driving in the left lane. Interesting timing, eh? Here's a link: Left Lane Slowpokes Drive You Crazy?

Enough said.

Playing for Change was something I first saw on PBS. The documentary is about this guy who traveled the world to see how music unites us. No matter where you live you listen to music. By focusing on what brings us together we can have hope that things aren't as bad as they can be if we go through life alone. Check out the website:

www.playingforchange.com

Life in the Left Lane, Part 11

Theory #11, Limited Space

I admit this really isn't a theory. Perhaps a better description would be a qualifier. The underlying assumption to all of these posts is that driving in the left lane can be irritating to other drivers if you are doing so outside of the unspoken rules. But those same rules say that there are times when driving in the left lane isn't all that bad.

Any road will at times get so loaded with traffic that no matter what lane you are driving in you are going no where. There's just so much space. In crowded conditions no one really cares who is driving in the left lane because they are just frustrated they aren't moving. I guess you could say that there is no distinct target of frustration in a traffic jam except for the traffic as a whole.

So traffic may cause people to drive in the left lane, it happens.

Life in the Left Lane, Part 10

Theory #10, Keeping up with the Jones'

Well, so far all of the theories have had practical explanations. Quite simply, this one doesn't. The theory is that people just want to be cool, like everyone else. Like the Ego theory, somehow driving in the left lane conveys a level of status that people want to have. Driving a BMW, Hummer, or Mercedes is not enough if you aren't driving in the socially hip lane.

Maybe they just want to be part of the herd. Here's an article that could apply to this theory: Understanding the Herd Mentality

I really don't have much to comment on this theory, because if this is why people are driving in the left lane they are just stupid. There's a whole road to drive on to look cool. In fact, I've heard that the really cool people actually drive on the right side. Yeah, seriously. Tell your friends.

White frosted donuts

I know I am messing up my on-going rant about driving in the left lane with this post, but I think it's worthy of the interruption.

Tonight my roommate and I went to the grocery store. At Shoppers they have the most wonderful donuts. Think Dunkin Donuts only twice the size. We had to get some. They didn't have the Boston Creme filled like we both like, so he settled for a blueberry filled. I grabbed about 5 more white frosted donuts (two white frosted with Christmas colored sprinkles, a white frosted buttermilk, a marble frosted, and a plain white frosted). I don't usually prefer chocolate frosted.

I made a comment about how all of the donuts were white frosted. He responded, "Hmm. What are the odds of that?" I thought about that for a moment. After realizing I had selected all of the donuts I said, "Actually, pretty good. I did choose them." He then realized why it was funny too and we both laughed.

I think he meant that having only white frosted donuts to choose from would be odd. When you say it that way it's not so funny.

Life in the Left Lane, Part 9

Theory #9, Quest for Stability

While only a few states have left lane exits, all states have right lane entrances. At least in the United States most traffic will get onto a roadway from the right side. This means that if the left lane is meant for speed and passing, the right lane is meant for slowing and merging.

Understandably, people who intend to travel a distance on the freeway may want to drive on the left to avoid the congestion and starts-and-stops of the right side. In theory, the further left you go the less interruption you would have. Well, in theory. The problem is when people choose to only drive on the left or right. For freeways, which most likely have more than two lanes, the lanes in the middle are options too. However, you have to cross through those lanes to get to either side.

Is the left lane more stable? Possibly. Should you camp out there to avoid other traffic? No. When the lanes on the right are less crowded than the lanes on the left, it's time to spread the wealth of the road real estate.

Life in the Left Lane, Part 8

Theory #8 - Is Big Brother watching?

I'm back from the break. Time to finish out these theories. You'd think I have nothing better in life to do than to ponder why people love to block traffic in the left lane. My commute is about a half hour each way, so I spend an hour a day driving in traffic. Plenty of time to evaluate driving habits... but I digress.

This theory starts with a story. A friend and I went to his hometown of Erie, PA. I'd never been, so I was up for a road trip. In Maryland because so many people drive in the left lane you often have a better chance of passing on the right. I'm used to this by now. However, a weird thing happened once we crossed the state line... everyone moved to the right. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes I wouldn't have believed it. To say the event was shocking is slightly exaggerated, but gets in the realm of what I was feeling.

You might chalk it up to a one time thing. I commented about it and my friend responded that driving in the left lane when you're not passing anyone is illegal in PA. Interesting thought. We spent a few days in Erie, then headed back. When we got back to the state line another interesting thing happened. Once in Maryland everyone moved to the left. WHAT!!! Again, if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes I would have never believed it.

Odd behavior, eh? Why would a state line make any difference, much less one so dramatic? Obviously laws and regulations can make a big difference. More importantly though, enforcement of laws make all the difference. People jam on the brakes when they see a cop because speeding tickets can be expensive. Imagine how people would drive if they got tickets for hanging out in the left lane. I'm not saying there should be a law that prevents everyone from driving in the left lane, but how about driving in the left lane with a line of traffic behind you? When I grew up in Arizona I was taught that if you had more than 5 people driving behind you cops could give you a ticket. I've never seen that law, or seen a cop pull anyone over for that. I'd love to.

Props to Oklahoma for actually cracking down on this.