Italia qui vengo!

I interrupt regular broadcasting on Central Coast bushwalking to bring you this breaking news.

I got an express post parcel today. I love getting mail but there is a definite hierarchy of excitement - not all mail is created equal. It starts with the politician's updates at the bottom (N.B. I don't count anything unaddressed as mail - that all goes straight to recycling, even more so if I still get it despite 2 'No Junk Mail' stickers), followed by bills, then anything else computer generated that isn't a bill, postcards, birthday & Christmas cards, hand-written letters, packages that don't fit into the letterbox and finally, packages that don't fit into the letterbox & that are also sent Express Post!

For some backstory, I've worked as a researcher for a tax barrister for 8 & a bit years now. So when I received one of the top-of-the-mail-hierarchy packages from him today, I was kind of expecting a pile of work. Imagine my delight when the package revealed not work but this treasure trove of Italian guidebooks, maps, even a Roma Pass!

I leave for Italy in 11 days & this has finally got me excited! (Not that I'm not excited to be going, it's just that I'm caught up in work, as you tend to be before leaving on a long trip).

So I'd just like to say - Mr tax boss man, you are awesome!

P.S. See that innocuous map of Italy in the bottom-left of the photo above? Turns out that it's the biggest map I HAVE EVER SEEN. Here it is spread out on my queen-sized bed:

And here I am trying to read it:

Unusable much?