VINTAGE- TIME TO RESPECT

Today I want to speak a little more about the Vintage-mood of  Commercial drive.

I returned this saturday and I am focused to know about the Vintage-Shop.

Is one of the most popular Vintage shop in all Vancouver.

As my first observation has been about the rush and the pressure in some commercial centre you breath, in this Vintage-shop the mood is different.

When I entered I felt as at home. Everything is well disposed and you can feel the love and the passion the owners have for the items.

They select due a strong research in all the words. Every day they have fix hours to be in touch with markets of all the countries and make research in old fashion.

I can feel the respect they have for every single jacket, paints, clouds. The owner told me that they know perfectly every single part of the items they sell and they feel as if those should be part of a big family.

When I get entrance I felt just relax, I should spent a lot of time before anyone of them asked me if I was looking for someone specific. But not because they didn0t care me but only because we were in that part of the mind to understand the object in a deep way. Not only looking but observing, touching the material, feeling the sensation and the smell they have, imaging who were wearing and why. I was so deeply in this mental-travel and  also the girl at the desk has the same mood while she were selecting some different brands that suddenly when I pick up a very old pair of shoes we came up with the same word in the exact moment: Terrific!! We were more connected each other than every other could aspect in that single interaction. In fact we start to chat after that and we noticed have the same sensation in the mind. "Do you imagine wearing this with some very orange paints?"

 I asked and she answered: "of course. I just do it every time".

After that she told me about the selection they made and what about the research in which I am particularly interest. I fact I am always fascinated in how come to find the items and which are they way the follow to be update with that.

A very laid back sensation but also rechargeable. When I exited from there I was full of good energy and smile. I felt just me, relax and enjoyed that moment without pressure. I just felt respected for my person as they do for all the articles they sell. "Everything has a soul here" she said,referring with the shop, and I get it.

Respect is the verb that I liked more and often in the rush-system of economy it become difficult to remember what is that.

Every thing has a soul. Soul that it is again related with the respect as in the window I saw the Italian soul reflected. In Italian when you look your self at the mirror you are respecting (reflecting) your-self. Again that mirror with the Italian soul bring our conclusion. The connection in what we need to feel respectable. We need our personal identity reflected in the mirror.

Reflections of an Italian sole

The thing that I appreciate mostly in my observation it was to breath the hippy mood in the commercial area. So looking this "camper" or mobile-house. Very nice mood of life. A bit of easy-going. But I noticed so many vintage shop that mixed with the old-Italian fashion it is something to chaise. 

Speaking with the people inside the shop, they explained me that the Italian community has moved now on the next district of Burnaby. In fact as I mentioned I noticed in commercial drive something that has been but with a touch of old-style. So the primarily reason it is because the properties are larger and probably mostly of the Italian settled in Vancouver prefer to have a big house rather than small apartment.So for now the Commercial drive it is shifting in a Hippy, very nice, funny area that I enjoyed and appreciate a lot. With all this good smell of Kebab from the Greek restaurant around that are strongly recognizable from outside. I love them!!

I just want to let you now with this photo that I like very much. It was a window in a shop.. "Reflections of an Italian sole". It is so true!! Many times also in the movie when actors are in reflection the camera is on the shoes. Because foot is as a reflection of the body int ere. I found this picture so reflective about the relation between sole-insulate-shoes. The fashion of Italian is often measured with our culture. The reflection of the Italian sole remembered me the connection between a window and a travel inside our-self.

 Welcome to Commercial Drive.

I went to Commercial Drive yesterday and I enjoyed very much. It was for me surprising to see all this italian signs in a Vancouver context. Firstly it was as return some years back in Italy. Noticed this old-fashion shop that still remark the style fashioned 20 years ago. But it is a experience of manufact that can't be forget. Secondly I have been absorbed in all other feelings to stay in commercial drive. It was a mix of Italianity but I recognized not so crystalizzed in the past. In fact I felt a community that it is active and alive. Producing something completaly new. In fact I noticed many restaurant very accurate and ice where they propose music-live. This is an aspect very important for me to make me feel live. In that moment something new through the music was coming out from the old-shop

I visited Cafè Calabria which is the one of the oldest Italian cafe.I tried to order in Italian a cafe but the waiter didn't know how to answer. He said I can understand but no answer so far. He really would like to offer me the coffee and I realized it was so kind.

The intern of Cafe Calabria surprised me. If at first glance seems as a museum after a while all the colors and good smells of the ice-cream appealed me as never. As in all other restaurant I visited it is a mix of order-list. Not only Italian but you can find some alternative as "milk with low fat", that in Italian word doesn't make sense. So good to see the miscellaneous culture alive and propose something only in that instant I can gather. 

As it was Halloween Day, I recognized the Vancouver culture celebrating in all the street. People enjoyed to wear some funny or scary customs and for me, oh man.. It was so amazing. I always enjoyed this day of year. For me the mix-culture was more impressive because the window full of orange-colors and all the lights on as for a Party soon coming. It was as the expectation of something to come but inside the old-shop remembered me the past-Italian melted now in Vancouver.

I asked them if I should take a picture in a bakery. They were costumed also in the mood. So serious and funny in some time. They seems pleased that I would take them memory with me.

My choice why discover commercial drive

I am taking notes in how people relates in Vancouver.
"Hey how the things are going today" "It was everything ok in your sandwich".. ( as Terry said as example of a restaurant happy-time). Many things I am noticing in these days that before didn't come out. Only living in a city a person can relate in which affect most the majority of people around. In last days I sensed too times a common behaviour in Vancouver habitants. Of course I am not attesting it is in everyone but often here people are in rush. And because instead, I am usually calm. I need to observe others but to relate with them world not to envy or being jealous and sense the life. Often here people are in a sort of aggressive for example: I am in a corner of a shop deciding if take or not an item. I advert the rush of people around that must have the same I was looking. If I am stopped to read the elements inside the shampoo of course a lady will notice I am calm and come to take the same. Because they don't know really what they want? Seems that people in the shop don't know how to respect the peace of a person that it is in his own reflection.
Often I had impression they think you have something that they couldn't have before and in somehow everytime they try to interrupt me as: asking something stupid or asking if everything is ok in my day, to pass over or just staying in the some place but stressed because can't decide.
"Oh my goodness", I am saying in this days. I have a huge examples all them attested this beheviour.( I am sorry if i search inside my self what I need and what I feel and not in the "copy and paste" mood of what others do).
Is someone wants to give me his/her point of view? Probably it is related on the time-zone? Because Vancouver is the city most west compared with others? I don't know but I remember that in Sydney I never had this impression. people there know what they want and lead existence autonomy. I am sorry i know that I am boring now and maybe I wrote too long. I don't want to say that I don't like Vancouver and don't want to offend none. Only impression because last days seems to me a bit heavy for this happened often and often. All of this to give some in put for my touching the elephant. Attested what I said before i would like to observe moreover about the commercial behavior of people here that really make me upset. I will allocate in commercial drive where there are many shops and will touch if it is different the way people buy and if also there none understand timing of others. I am interested to understand how much an Italian community could bring inside a society diverse behaviours.
THANK YOU-ERICA.

www.thedrive.ca

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Commercial-Drive-BIA/231275623561227