I have had the pleasure of meeting more girls lately who have moved to Florence and want to stay. It seems to be the usual story: the person arrives in Florence for a short time, falls in love with the city, and can't leave it. Florence seems to just take a hold of our hearts and souls and we become obsessed with staying here. I know because that's what happened to me the first time I arrived in 1997. I think it took me about three or four days before I knew I did not want to leave.
What's interesting is that none of these girls has a boyfriend (yet). It's the love of the city that pushes them to stay here...and nothing else.
From my discussions with these girls, I've found out that there is a lot of misinformation about living and staying in Italy. I can't say what because then I would be adding to the misinformation, I'm sure. I too wish things were a little clearer, but it's not always that simple. Not only is there contradictory information all over the place but the laws are supposedly changing and supposedly for the better for us.
And, of course, a few of the best places for information are all in Italian because they try to help all stranieri (foreigners) in Italy, which can be a problem for my fellow Americans in love with Florence.
In the end, my advice is always the same. If it's meant to be, it will be. Here in Italy you have to be like water rushing down the stream, when you hit up against a rock, find a way to get around it.
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