Meh, I've been busy, and that thing called 'life' keeps taking priority...
Anyway, I've just come back from a two week holiday in Italy.
Sicily, to be more precise.
I'll start the blog with a simple statement, then contribute a comment/view on it, and then elaborate some more.
"Broken Britain"
I'll proceed to take this statement, place it in my mouth and chew it thoroughly. Then I'll swallow it, regurgitate it, spread it out onto a road, and have a Fiat Panda (The Fiat Panda part being actually kind've relevant) drive over it until it looks like, well, I'm unsure as to what vomit looks like after being run over for an hour or so, but not pretty anyway.
I have so many points to talk about, I'm struggling to decide where to start.
I've always taken for granted what I have, where I live, etc. but this experience really hammered it home.
Palermo, Sicily, and from what I can see at face value, Palermo should be a clean, thriving city, with a mixture of modern architecture, and preserved ruins and old buildings/statues/etc. where people respect their fellow person, where rubbish is collected regularly, streets are kept clean, tourists flock to the city for the sunny weather, beaches, and the tourist attractions.
-This is not the case.
This city, that is the capital of Sicily, that is part of Italy, which is a member of the G8 (that is, effectively the 8 most powerful/rich countries in the world) is, for lack of a better word, a shithole.
Rubbish piled high on every corner, constant urine and feces in the street (Both human and animal), Beggars (some with gold teeth) at every turn, graffiti plaguing the city, and, I hear this is the case for Italy in general, NO traffic or safety laws. Or none that seem to be in place.
Helmets? They're pretty much a fashion accessory. Two people on a moped only? Rubbish, four can fit easily, including your two toddlers without helmets.
The horn is pretty much something cars live by. Pavements are an option for mopeds.
Pedestrian crossings? Pfft.
10, million different police forces.
For example;
The Carabinieri (Military Police) - They don't deal with 'small' crime.
Polizia di Stato - Apparently, these guys are in charge of traffic crimes and other small things.
Polizia Penitenziaria - Prison Police.
Polizia Municipale - Pretty much the Same as Polizia di Stato, but like, a different police force.
There's also Coast Guards, and Forest Ranger Police, and Financial Police...
You get the idea. The point is, they may do things differently with their police, cool, fine, whatever, but THEY'RE STILL NOT DOING ANYTHING. Police everywhere, and none seemed to be doing their jobs.
We climbed to the top of a mountain and saw some amazing views and wildlife, including wild snakes and lizards. But then we stumbled across woodland covered in litter, and this statue, right at the top of the mountain, ruined. Again, the mountainside, covered in litter, and filth.
I could keep going on, but I'm trying to make a point.
I'm half Sicilian. My mum was born in Palermo.
She was embarassed to be there. She claims it's gotten far worse in the last 20 years.
I've just had my first true insight into my roots, and honestly? It disgusts me.
How can a government forget about an entire region of it's country like that?
I am more than certain the Mafia have a fair bit to do with the state Sicily is in, but whatever the case, this has all led to one conclusion.
Broken Britain? When countries are in as bad a shape as that, and there are countries far worse off than Sicily is, we don't have the right to call Britain broken.
