where did the time go?

Being a pedestrian in Italy is not as dangerous a venture as it once seemed. When I first arrived in Florence I spent a lot of time waiting on the sidewalk for an appropriate gap between zooming cars to cross the street. Then I progressed to edging out into the street expecting the cars to slow down once they saw me hesitantly attempt to cross. But no, stalling on the periphery of the road only garners car horns, or with some of the more spirited drivers, an acceleration of their car so that it tears down the street at an even quicker rate edging me back to the sidewalk.
I can barely believe I leave in three days. Now, I’m accustomed to darting across a street with a car going full speed at me. There is an understanding between Italian drivers and pedestrian that neither slow down, you just make sure one of you is going fast enough to avoid crashing into the other. It’s a mini jolt of adrenaline to confidently strut into a road and know that as long as I’m visible, the zipping mopeds, bikes, or cars won’t hit me. It is just the way things are in Italia. This habit however will not be brought back to America, because I know drivers in the States are not used to this pedestrian dance. If I attempt to dash out in the street of merica, careless of crosswalks, I would probably be hit by a large SUV, which by the way are non-existent in Italy.