PRISCA
ANNA: What’s a core value you find in a friendship with a woman in your life?
PRISCA: Definitely adventure, she encourages me to take on lots of adventures. I just finished one, and it’s partly thanks to her and our daily conversations. Even though we may not do all of them together, she’s always there. With a woman, you can have a pure, soft friendship.
A: Tell me about this adventure, this journey you embarked on, what made you do it?
P: I wanted to explore what was outside of Rome, which to me feels like such an old city. My family hasn’t traveled much, so the desire came from me, I’ve always wanted to travel. Though it was thanks to the support my family gave me that I was able to do it...I wouldn’t have managed on my own.
I started in New York with my best friend, where I worked, and from there, I spent seven months in Central America. I climbed volcanoes, volunteered in natural reserves and met my boyfriend, my first boyfriend. Then I went to Brazil and, finally, Australia.
A: How did it feel?
P: Every moment was so different, I was really scared when I left New York and traveled alone to Costa Rica. But once I arrived and started the journey, I kept feeling new emotions, I experienced the greatest happiness. I felt my first bit of sadness when my family, who had come to visit me for ten days in Mexico, left…
Brazil was very different. In São Paulo, I felt like a bit of a conservative, it’s a place full of open relationships, drugs, and things so different from what I’ve always known.
A: How did you feel as a woman traveling?
P: I never felt in danger. In some places, women have much more power than men, they’re the ones keeping everything running. I met some incredible women. I felt less in danger there than in my city or Italy in general. There are different fears and worries there, and as a foreign women there is a different power dynamic.
A:What kind of woman do you want to become in the future?
P: I’d love to have a beautiful family and travel with my children around Australia.
A: And why do you want to be a mother?
P: I don’t know, I feel it deep in my gut, but I really want children. Ever since I got Balù, my cat, I’ve been thinking about it, although it sounds funny, I know. I got him when he was little, after he fell and was sick, and I immediately felt this immense love for him. I thought: if I can love a little kitten so much, I can’t even imagine how much love one must feel for a child. It must be the most beautiful feeling in the world.
A: What’s your relationship like with your mom?
P: She’s the person I love most in the world, even though we’re very different. She doesn’t really understand my desire to leave, to do other things, and not live the square life society expects of you. I think my life needs a bit of sensitivity and tact.
A: Tell me about living outside the box.
P: I’ve realized that you don’t have to be a hippie, live in a tent in the forest, or pick fruit from trees to live outside the box. You can live differently while still contributing to society, the key is doing what you truly want so you can find happiness, even outside the usual norms. Italy is a bit rigid, people often don’t live to truly live, they just live to die.
A: Tell me about this first love, how does it make you feel, especially as a woman?
P: We inspire each other a lot, and he makes me feel more beautiful as a woman. He makes me feel more human, too, with all my flaws whether I have body hair or cellulite, it doesn’t matter anymore. When there’s love like the kind I’m experiencing, those things don’t matter; flaws stop being flaws.
A: And you met during the imperfections of traveling, right?
P: Yes, we were all messy at the time—it was impossible to stay clean and fresh. Even us (referring to her and me) were beautiful despite being dirty, with messy hair, just as we were. I also learned the beauty of running, of doing sports just to feel my body, not for any other purpose like being skinny and all, but to be present with myself. I’ve learned to accept myself and to do what feels right without worrying about what others think of me.