Buongiorno! This week, it has been incredibly windy which has made the weather feel much colder. Sitting in my sit spot was a challenge because I kept shivering! Despite this, flowers are continuing to bloom, the trees are budding, and more days than not are warm and sunny. 

I am so glad that this week’s prompt is about art, because I went to a recycled art fair two-ish weeks ago. Unfortunately I was not allowed to take pictures, but there were really interesting items including jewelry made from plastic bottles, upcycled clothes, and decorations made from old household items. I really enjoy the idea of using old items or items from the natural world to create art. So often, clothes and other daily items are made from environmentally intensive practices and add to the total amount of stuff in our world, and when we are done with them, there is not a new use and these items take time to decompose (if they ever do). Creating art from old items tells a complex story, and the histories of all of these items become interwoven to create something that will have its own new history. 

Most of the advertisements that I see are about events in Bologna (usually related to food). There are no large billboards, which is incredibly refreshing, and very rarely do I see advertisements for stores or items. A general trend that I have noticed is that the culture in Italy is less quantity-oriented, and instead focuses on quality. People do not have eighty different outfits, but the clothes that they do have are fantastic quality, made to last years. This is true about food; as a whole, Italians eat less but the food they eat is fresher and better quality, so it feels more filling. This emphasis on quality is something that I want to bring back to America with me, and is a change I have already started noticing in my daily life.