5 weeks today

Nov. 24th 2012  Saturday

5 weeks ago today I arrived at the Carovigno train station after spending 5 hours on a very lovely train ride from Telese.  The countryside dramatically changed from rolling, green and brown (rich dirt) farmland to flatter, dryer, sparsely used farms.  Perhaps they were in-between plantings; from their Summer crops to now Winter ones. I saw a few tractors skimming the ground perhaps getting ready to plant.   As the train ride continued, especially from Foggia on to Carovigno, there were many, many windmills and some solar. Back at the other farm,  I only saw one area on a mountaintop near San Salvatore where there were windmills.  This was such a beautiful sight.  As I got closer to Bari and the Puglia region, all I could see were olive trees.  And that is all I've seen everyday since.

Heli arrived the same day as I at the apartment we both lived in, in the downtown of Carovigno.  So starting to work at the olive farm, a 15 min. ride by car (Junior) found us both on equal ground; both not working an olive harvest till now.  And we worked HARD.  We both ached all day, every day.
 Heli stayed for her scheduled 3 weeks during which time we got 2 mornings off because of rain.  But we did work those afternoons for 3 hrs. which felt like a gift.  All Saints day was an entire day off.  It was a Thursday.  Andrea was supposed to arrive the same day that Heli left so there would be no time when I would have to work alone.  But she didn't arrive until 5 days later leaving Gianni wondering if she would ever show up or email.  Today, Andrea has been here 11 days.  With all the rain we have had, we only worked 3 full 5 1/2 hr. shifts in all of these 11 days!  We had a few full days off and a few shifts where we worked 3 hrs. or less.  On Andreas first day,  we picked the olives from a baby tree that took  all of 30 min. when we had to leave because the rain started.  One day it started to rain but we continued to work, getting soaked, having to PEEL my clothes off.  That was NOT a good day.  And then of course as a result of all this rain, the start of the mud. (another page in this blog).

The whole point of this story is that since Andrea has been here, I have had so much time off.  Good for me and my sore muscles but with Andrea leaving here next Wed., this does not leave her with a true representation of what working an olive harvest is really like.  She's 29, graduated with a Masters degree in I don't know what and is not sure where she will be going or what she will be doing.  All she knows is she wants to go to Rome for a week and see that wonderful city, staying at a youth hostel.  She maintains a one-room studio apartment in downtown Berlin, Germany.  She sublet it  for 500Euro/ month until Dec. 31st.  Her rent in 300Euro/month.
 We had many laughs together.  She has a great sense of humor.  But she is an extremely messy roommate; leaving food out all night, dishes in the sink etc. After she leaves I will have to work alone again.  Gianni did not plan on her staying only 2 weeks.  She was supposed to stay until I left so we would work together as working with the really big nets (36x36 ft.) is difficult by yourself.  I have met a few wonderful and interesting people. All different.  Andrea is brutally honest which I admire.  I believe we may keep in touch.
Although I have no written commitment to stay and I could always leave anytime, I will not.  Finishing what I started is more important than the aches I feel.  I don't mind.   Sicily is near.