In my last post I wrote that before the running races I use to wear the jacket that I got when I enlisted in the Navy in 1977. Well, I stayed in the Coast Guard for 20 years and then I changed job even if I continued to work in the ports.
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| I am the second from left |
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| I am the sailor at the helm of the Patrol Boat |
Thanks to these 20 years of service, I have acquired the right to attend all the Navy Clubs located throughout Italy. The closest to my city is in Rome:
During the Easter holidays, my wife and I spent a week at the Chianciano Terme Navy Club, Chianciano Terme is famous for its thermal baths. The city is located in the heart of Tuscany so we were able to visit dreamy towns and villages around it. It felt like we were living in a fairytale. Attending Navy Clubs is a pleasure for me because it is a step back in time that allows me to meet again old friends in an environment that I have never forgotten.
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| Chianciano Terme Navy Club |
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| Chianciano Terme Navy Club |
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| Chianciano Terme |
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| Chianciano Terme |
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| Walking through the narrow streets |
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| Tired after the thermal bath |
I can also say that, for me, the Coast Guard was and remains a family, while the job that followed was just .... a job. I still meet up with the old colleagues and it's always a pleasure to spend time together remembering the good old days. As the saying goes: "Once a sailor, always a sailor"!!!!
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| The cake after a meeting among the old colleagues of the Coast Guard |
The pictures of the other cities in Tuscany will follow soon.
Questions:
- Do you like to spend your time in the Thermal Baths?
- Have you ever visited a Navy or Army or Air Force club?
HAVE A GOOD WEEK AHEAD
Fantastic photos! That sounds like one of the nice benefits you got for your service. Have a great week.
ReplyDeleteIt's true, in Italy the Navy thinks about the well-being of its men.
DeleteAll the best.
Good to see your photos and to answer your questions - no - though I've had the opportunity when travelling central Australia I never went into a thermal pool.
ReplyDeleteI have a close cousin who joined out Navy here in Australia and was there for about 20 years, like yourself.
I think he remembers with pleasure those 20 years.
DeleteSpending time into a thermal pool is a very good experience.
L'anno scorso a Marienhamn ho visitato la POMMERN, un veliero in buone condizioni e molto interessante.
ReplyDeleteUn mio cugino ha fatto servizio di leva in marina negli anni 80.
Buona giornata e buona settimana!
Visitare le navi è una bella esperienza. Gli ultimi 10 anni nelle Capitanerie li ho trascorsi assegnando gli ormeggi alle navi che arrivavano. Buona settimana anche a te.
DeleteTwenty years in the Coast Guard, that’s not just a job, that’s a whole life chapter. You can feel how much it still means to you.
ReplyDeleteOld friends, familiar places, shared history… no wonder it feels like coming home every time.
The idea of thermal baths after a long run sounds pretty perfect!
Have the people that you meet at the reunions changed a lot? Or much the same?
The people that I meet at the reunions are always the same. We have spent many years together and shared a lot of experiences. That is more than a friendship. Next reunion on June 10th.
DeleteI am sure that many happy memories were rekindled. And to spend the time in Tuscany was an added bonus to make us all envious! All the best - David
ReplyDeleteTuscany deserves a visit. There you can find everything: nature, animals, history, architectures, amazing little towns, big cities, special food and a lot of other beautiful things. My career in the Navy started in Tuscany: Livorno (Leghorn).
DeleteI hope the spa treatments have had a beneficial effect on your health. When I was young, I often went swimming in the pool with thermal healing water in our spa near where I lived at the time. There are also thermal springs in the city where I live now and I hear that new pools with healing hot water will be built in the future.
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting my blog. Thermal baths are a good solution for many problems and/or for spending relaxing time. In my city there is thermal water too.
DeleteThat's so nice the experiences you enjoy as "always being a sailor" from "once being a sailor"! That was a special way to spend your Easter holidays! I have enjoyed natural hot springs in Banff National Park.
ReplyDeleteYes, the Navy Clubs are well organized with all the comforts.
DeleteWill you come back to enjoy natural hot springs?
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ReplyDeleteYour retreat in Tuscany looked so amazing! The scenery looks so breathtaking and the time with old friends sounded amazing. You also looked pretty relaxed, so I guess than means it was refreshing too! :)
ReplyDeleteIndeed the best way to spend a week in total relax. Tuscany is a very beautiful region.
DeleteHow lovely! I have toured a naval base in Spain but that's about it!
ReplyDeleteHowever I think it was an interesting experience and .... Spain is a very beautiful country.
DeleteYes, I love Spain and have Spanish heritage, the naval base in Cartagena is only open one day a year, too, on Spain's national day, so we were lucky to get to see it!
DeleteI went to Spain many times for work and tourism. For sure I'll come back there soon.
DeleteBoa noite meu querido amigo. Quanto tempo não teclamos, pelos nossos blogspot. Já visitei dois Museus da Marinha, na cidade do Rio de Janeiro RJ, Brasil. Foi uma experiência muito interessante. Até postei no meu Blogger. Uma excelente noite de segunda-feira, um excelente mês de maio e um grande abraço carioca.
ReplyDeleteYou're right it's only my fault, I'm sorry. I am sure that the 2 visits were very interesting. I have a lot of good memories about the ships.
DeleteFoi um prazer teclar, com você Stefano.
ReplyDeleteIt's a real pleasure for me too. thank you.
Delete20 years in the Coast Guard really is a whole chapter of life, and you can tell how much those memories and friendships still mean to you.
ReplyDeleteThe Navy Clubs sound like a great way to reconnect and relive those times.
The thermal baths look wonderfully relaxing.
Indeed it is a chapter of the life that never ends because we, the sailors, are always in touch and, as you say, the Navy Clubs are a great way to reconnect and relive the "old times".
DeleteHow fun for you and your wife to get away for a week to such a beautiful part of Italy! I'm sure you thoroughly enjoyed your reunion with friends from your naval days, too.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to seeing your pictures from the other Tuscan cities you visited on your recent trip. When we were in the Tuscan region several years ago we visited Florence, Siena, San Gimignano, and Chianti. All were stunning!
We organize many reunions to stay together, remembering the old good times and the many adventures on the sea.
DeleteI have many pictures to share and I will do it.
You visited many beautiful places in Tuscany, will you come back there? Have you ever visited Rome?
This sounds like a wonderful excuse to get together and visit a beautiful place! And even though you say it was 'just a job', you made friendships and memories--it's part of your life story. Love that you are sharing this!
ReplyDeleteI mean: I worked 20 years in the Coast Guard and 20 years in the Port Authority: the first job was a wonderful experience, the second only ...a job.
DeleteVery Interesting!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing!
Bjxxx,
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A very nice post. 2015 we were in Tuscany (how time runs!) we stayed at Montecatini Terme. So nice you call them family!
ReplyDeleteMontecatini, a very beautiful time with famous water.
DeleteYes, the time in the Coast Guard was a wonderful experience.