Today and last Sunday

Last Sunday we weren't able to attend church. Why, you ask? Titus & Angie called us first thing in the morning to see what we were doing. Then in a very calm, almost nonchalant voice she asks if we can take Bella for the morning. I said sure. Then she explained that she thought she was in labor and preferred Bella to not be there. She wanted a home birth and previously wanted Bella to be there to preserve her routine. So we picked up Bella and Pam, the intern for our church for the summer, and brought them to our hotel. We showed Pam around the base because she had never been on a military base before. Then we stopped at the commissary for breakfast since none of us had eaten yet. We came back to our hotel, ate breakfast and then just spent time chatting and watching a movie with Bella. Here is Bella with the boys on their "bed". Now, keep in mind that we got the call around 8 am and arrived back at our hotel a little after 9 am. At 10 am we received another call from Titus, this time telling us that baby Kaewynn Hope was already born. She was in labor for an hour and a half before giving birth. Simply amazing. We took Bella home around 1 pm and saw the amazing handiwork of God in the beautiful, hours old, baby girl. This Sunday was a typical service for us. Service in Italian, singing in Italian, James giving a prayer for the Lord's supper in English and then Titus partially translating the service for us. (He whispered this while sitting behind us). Then they announced that after church instead of Sunday school they were taking the children to see a Children's Choir in the square. So we walked down there with them and enjoyed the show. The voices of the children was so sweet and pure. We took a short video of it and if I can I will upload it to the website as well. I must close for now. I hope you have enjoyed the update. Sorry it has taken so long.


Ci vidiamo!

ps. going to add the choir photos later. I have been sitting here for almost an hour waiting for the photos and video to load. At this time of night the hotel internet just gets so slow. I will try to add them in the morning when everyone has gone to work. Plus, I have a couple of other things I would like to blog about so I can try and add that as well.

Benvenuti - Day 4 - Marostica, Nove & the Chicken man

The above pictures were taken in Marostica. What a beautiful place. The medieval town of Marostica in northern Italy is located in the foothills, just a half hour's drive from Vicenza and 10 minutes from Bassano del Grappa. Surrounded by the ancient walls of its castles, Marostica is best known for its square which is a giant chessboard. Each September of every even numbered year, a human chess game is played in full medieval costume on the square of Marostica. The festival lasts 3 days. Starting in the second week of September, it is a tradition dating back to in AD 1923, inspired by a supposed event in AD 1454.

After we left Marostica we traveled to Nove which is known for its ceramics. Many of the ceramics manufactured there are sold in the US under the Lenox name. The ceramics can be found at Nordstroms, Macys, Banana Repulic and more. I can shop here for beautiful ceramic dishes, vases, platters, wall plaques and more for about 1/4 of the price I would pay in the US. Can't wait to go shopping - can you see me rubbing my hands gleefully? and James looking into his empty wallet? I will let you know what I get.




Finally we went to Rossano to see the Chicken Man. His name is actually Ermano and he does fantastic wood working. Just beautiful. James and I will be going to Ermano to have him make us a table. His work is just amazing. We were able to tour his warehouse and see a desk he recreated from a magazine picture. Tables, cabinets, wine racks and more. Then the most wonderful thing happened. We headed into his home and had a home cooked meal prepared by his mother. Like most people in Italy his home was located on the grounds of his business. We walked into a cute little kitchen with the table already made. We had roasted veal, roasted potatoes, a wonderful herb salad and a cheese plate. For dessert we had Foccacio bread - very refreshing, lightly sweet and very soft. This was served with Prosecco wine and cold water. What a tasty meal. Guess, I should explain why he is called the Chicken Man. Apparently a long time ago there were chickens that walked around the area, into the workshop, the warehouse etc. He would go in and have to shoo the chickens out a cabinet he was showing. American kids started referring to him as the Chicken Man and the name stuck. No chickens now though. this desk is the recreation I referred to. Amazing don't you think??
this photo is of the leaf to the table which is stored under the main part of the table. One on each side...adds about another 6 feet to the table.


Unfortunately for this part of the trip as well as Nove my camera was out of batteries. Fortunately, I did have the camera phone and so I still got a few shots. Yeah! To see some of Ermano's work you can go here to his website BizzottoSilvano click on the English enter and you will have the English side and not the Italian side.

Benvenuti- Day 3 - Downtown Vicenza

We started out our day today by taking the bus from right outside the base to the downtown area. We saw this first statue and this is of Antonio Pigafetta. He was born in Vicenza. He was engaged to assist Ferdinand Magellan. During the voyage he kept an accurate journal which gave us much of the information that is available regarding the voyages of Magellan. Another important person who was born in Padua, just 25 km from Vicenza was Andrea Palladio. He influenced the architecture a great deal here in the Veneto region and is widely considered the most influential architect in the history of Western architecture. He was influenced by Roman and Greek architecture. As a matter of fact he designed a villa that was adapted for Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. Andrea Palladio wrote several books in which he included the blue prints for the aforementioned villa and many other buildings. That is why many buildings here in the region of Veneto are considered Palladio's work. While he may not have built them (some even being built over a hundred years after his death) he designed them and put it all down on paper for others to copy. The next picture is a picture of the entrance to his home in downtown Vicenza.
Across the street from Pigafetta's statue the market starts. The outdoor market is every Thursday and covers a lot of different streets. Just when you think you've left it behind you turn a corner and there are more vendors set up. There are so many different things for sale. Clothing, shoes, trinkets, jewelry, purses etc. But the best part of the market by far (I think) is the fresh food. Fruits, veggies, separate areas with fresh fish, sausages, cheeses (you just don't know how many cheeses there actually are until you see them in the market) and then there are flowers available for purchase as well. Some really neat ones I have never seen before (unfortunately I didn't take pictures of these but I will next time I see them). Another nice thing about the markets is that the cheese place will let you taste the cheeses. The fish place has a fried mixture that is fresh and you can get a bag to walk around with. We tried a bag of fried shrimp and it was so tasty. Even James thought so and he doesn't really care for shrimp. So, if all the food makes you hungry you can get a little snack to get you through your shopping day.
Another thing we saw was a portion of the old gate (above). The oldest original part of the wall in town. So amazing to see such old and beautiful architecture. I am always amazed at things that are centuries of years old yet still standing.The picture below was taken in a beautiful old park.
We also saw the Olympic Theater which represents a valuable symbol of Palladian architecture and it is the most ancient existing covered theater in the world. In 1580 The Olympic Academy of Vicenza, an aristocratic cultural club assigned Andrea Palladio to project a site for performances and ceremonies. Andrea Palladio completed the project but could not carry out the construction which was assigend to the Vicenza architect Vincenzo Scamozzi. Here is a small peek...unfortunately for us it was closed to tourists on the day we were there because of a movie being filmed. HOWEVER!!! We just realized today that the Olympic Theater is actually a 30 second walk from our church. So next time we are there we will walk over and tour it then. So excited about that because we really were bummed to find it closed to us on our tour day.
This picture is of a high school in the downtown area. High schools are all specialized (like universities) and it takes 5 years to graduate. By the time an Italian student graduates from high school he has the equivalent of a US Associate's Degree.
Some of the other photos included are just random shots of things we really enjoyed looking at.

The only really bad part of today besides rushing through everything super fast was that we caught the bus back to the Base at the same time the high school was letting out for the day. Italian kids do not drive to school they ride the city bus. Not only that but the downtown area has several schools (probably more than 5). The buses were packed with students. There wasn't room for us to move at all. You enter the bus at the front or rear, validate your ticket towards the middle of the bus and exit in the middle. However, I rode at the front on the step while balancing on a couple of toes and trying to stay upright. Really I didn't need to bother about staying upright since I was wedged in tighter than a sardine. No kidding. And we still stopped at every bus stop to let more people on. I couldn't move forward or backwards. I had to pass our bus tickets to another member of our group to validate. And it was so hot and stuffy. Not a good end to the day but I did enjoy what we saw.

ciao for now.

I have been so bad at blogging lately

I was busy for a week with Benvenuti (welcome) - a class offered for the spouses of those who are new to the base. I will add some photos and try to explain them but I may break it up into several bloggos - because let's be honest I have a ton of pictures.

A quick recap though - Day one of Benvenuti - B-O-R-I-N-G! Mainly this was informing the spouses of what was available and I think this pertained more to the Army wives than me. But I guess it is good info (I got the same info at the briefing I attended). Day two - trip to Venice - we skipped out on this day for several reasons: first one because we had been there before, 2nd - the weather was so hot and I didn't feel like tramping all over Venice at a fast clip in the heat (our guide walks very fast and actually lost someone in February due to this) and third - since we are just getting here we have at least 3 years to make another dozen or so trips to Venice. I would prefer going when it is a bit cooler. So we will wait for fall before make the 45 minute train trip or 1 hour drive to Venice. Day 3 - Tour of downtown Vicenza. Not too bad but again pretty hot and we walked at a pretty fast pace. The boys came with us for this trip (but not to the boring meeting on day one). We learned how to take the bus, which bus to take to downtown and back - this was easy BUS 1. This was supposed to be a walking tour but it was mainly walking. Our guide really didn't give us much information but their were a couple of things she did explain and that was nice. And day 4 - this was the BEST day by far. Our guide drove us to Marostica, Nove and then Rossana. I will explain more about this trip in its separate posts. So...

Ciao for now!

Aeolia La Casa del Vento

Found it...Here is the link the restaurant I went to on Wednesday.
www.Aeolia.com/e-home you can click through the pictures and see the wine cellar (where the wind comes from) By the way the English translation of the name is House of Wind.

Pretty cool, huh? I am so thrilled I found this information so I could share with all of you.

A piu' tardi.

A

Views of a Villa

an example of the small gardens you see here in Italy.

Today I went to lunch with my new friend "D" and the Moms to Moms group. I think this is what the group is called. We went to small restaurant in a villa. When we arrived though, we still had 30 minutes before they opened for lunch. So we started walking around the small village. The images today are of some the beautiful places we saw on our walk. The one with the rock behind it is actually built into the mountain side and is part of a system of caves. From what I understood they found numerous articles from the Bronze Age in the caves surrounding the area. Very beautiful - I love seeing the old architecture. The sights are amazing.










The picture above is the view from our table at lunch. My lunch today was part of the menu prezzo fisso (fixed price menu). There were 6 items to choose from and you were able to choose 2 of those items. I choose Gnocchi con Porcini e sfogliata gelato. The gnocchi is potato dumplings and it was with mushrooms and the sfogliata gelato (which is not the full name - I can't remember it) was a baked ice cream. The bottom was a crust that was a shortbread type flaky pastry. This was covered with ice cream and the top was finished like a creme' brulee. This was very tasty. The flat price was 10 Euros for the meal. Normally the menu prezzo frisso also comes with drinks also. Today for some reason it did not. Nevertheless, it was a delicious meal and I enjoyed visiting with new friends. Oh, and the following pictures are of the interior of the restaurant. There was the wall where the wine is stored, then a room across from that went down into a cellar which was actually a cave that ran under the surrounding mountains. There is a wind that comes in from the mountain that keeps the cellar very cool. The wind was very strong and felt so nice. Though I know if I had stayed there any longer it would have started feeling cold. And one of the ladies there said that this cave under the restaurant was where Galileo hid when he was in trouble for his scientific views. Isn't history cool? Sadly, I didn't get the name of the restaurant. I will try to get that information and either edit this post or add another.
this is how the ceiling of the room above the cellar cave was painted.
this is the wall across from the cave cellar.

13th Century Villa - across the street from the villa built into the cave.

Anyway, these are a few of the photos that I took today. I hope you enjoy them.

Ciao for now. A piu tardi.

Angy

How do I use this?

Can you imagine walking into the bathroom and finding this? Exactly how is this supposed to work? There are no bars on the side to hold on to. This is the same kind of bathroom that I saw all over Greece. Let me tell you that there comes a point when your knees just say NO THANK YOU! Fortunately there are a few places that you can still find "American" style toilets. The second photo is of the tank where you push a button to flush the toilet. This is usually high on the wall above your head.

Interesting? Maybe? But I definitely prefer the American way in this instance!

Ciao for now.

A

Joint Worship Services

On Sunday, our second service with the Italian Church of Christ, it was a joint service. Italians combined with Ghanans. The church was packed. We had a guest speaker, Dan Reeves, he was the missionary for this congregation for 10 years. It was quite interesting to be a part of that. Dan brought us the lesson, he preached in Italian and then English. Abraham, who brought the message last week, translated the service into Twee for the Ghanans who were there. We also sang in Italian and English - using 2 different books. Actually, we sang (I say we but it was actually they - I only sang in English and tried to sing in Italian) in three languages. We used 2 different song books - the Italian one and one in English. However, during the collection there was a song in Twee and GLORY TO GOD, we had two baptisms and they sang O Happy Day in Twee. Took us a while to get what song it was. We laughed when we realized what it was. Even Titus, the current missionary at the church, was at a loss at first for what song it was.

The baptism was interesting as well. We were wondering how they handled baptisms here in this small church and we found out. At the back of the room there are curtains they divide the room. For the baptisms they pulled back the curtains and revealed a bathtub. One member went to fill up the tub while the two gentlemen who were being baptized were changing. After they took their confessions the man being baptized climbed into the bathtub and sat down. The person who was doing the baptizing then explained to him about covering the mouth and nose with one hand while holding onto his wrist with the other. Then he was baptized. The man doing the baptizing verified that he was totally under and they brought him up. It was awesome to see this so soon after arriving.

Because the sermon was in three languages it lasted a little longer than normal and so we did not have Sunday School. That will be back on for next Sunday and I will let you know how that goes!

Blessings to all. Ciao for now.

Angy

Joys of a Military Community

Yesterday I blogged about one of the Woes of the Military and that was the housing issues. Today I want to let you know about the joys of living in a community like this. Many of you may have never experienced anything like this but those of you who have ever been a part of the military community know all about this....

It is the ease with which you can make friends. Not only the ease but how others go out of their way to meet you, help you and make you comfortable and part of what is going on. One example I already gave you and that was Ann coming by and meeting me because a friend we made via the internet asked her to. Then she helped by taking me grocery shopping (so I wouldn't have to walk back to the hotel while carrying bags of groceries - not really far but those bags get heavy after a couple of blocks.)

Another example: My good friend "K", emailed me about her friend "T". "T" and I then corresponded via email. (I am using ititials because I don't have permission to give out my friends names - forgot to ask). I corresponded with "T" for several weeks or maybe even a couple of months while in Indiana and then several times here. I was supposed to be getting to meet her but unfortunately her father passed away and she went back to the US for that. However, before she left for the US, she asked two of her friends, "D" & "K", if she could pass their info on to me. Both are getting ready to move back to the US and said yes she could. Then I emailed both of them. "D" called me the next morning and said, "Hey, I am on base would you like to meet?" So she came by the hotel and we just visited for awhile. Then she asked me if I would like to come to her crafting day with some other ladies. I said sure. So on Friday, "D" came back onto the base to pick me up and take me to "T" (penguin lover)'s house (different "T" than the first one). I took the stamping supplies that I had brought in my suitcase with me. Two of the regulars were unable to make it. But I should be meeting them next week. Later in the afternoon, "I" came by and we visited with her as well.

So here is what I wanted to explain to you...In the non-military community you are considered the new person for a really long time. You are not always readily accepted and people tend to hold you at arm's length for quite a while until they know if you are a steady fixture in their life or not. Sometimes it takes years to break into a community - as my aforementioned friend "K" knows. ("K" tells a story in her blog about going to a homeschool meeting or classes and one person points out another person to her and refers to that person as the new girl. "K" having only been there 9 months asks well how long has she been there? The answer? 4 Years!!!) This does not happen in the military community. I have been on base for 13 days and I have already met several people who I would consider friends.

Even though "D" is leaving in less than 2 months, she has reached out to me. She invited me to a friendly crafting day with her friends. The person's house that we went to is also going to be moving soon as well as the third friend that arrived later in the day. Yet, not one of them wasn't interested in forming a friendship with me just because I was coming in while they were on their way out. Not only that but they welcomed me with open arms. Shared their thoughts and opinions with me, offered me help, readily gave me their cell phone numbers so I could call if I needed anything. In addition I was invited back for next week's Play Date (ladies crafting time) and any field trips they take. That is a great welcome when you arrive in a new place and a NEW COUNTRY.

"D" even brought me a bag of books that will be helpful here Italy. Language books, touring books, etc. She also emailed today and asked if we would like for her to come get us so that we could get off of the base for awhile. Since we do not have a car yet we are quite limited on what we are able to do and this will be a welcome change.

So, thank you. Thank you ladies of the Vicenza military community. Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to invite a new person into your group and make her feel like she is welcome. I appreciate being welcomed in even by those who are busy making plans and preparing for their own move out of here. In many places, especially those not associated with a military community, people who are in the middle of a move are too busy to even try to make new friends. Not here. Here, they welcome you in, introduce you to their friends and offer you all the help you need to get started in a new community.

What a blessing! Thanks ladies! I love it!

Ciao for now.

Angy

Housing Woes....

Yes, I am posting multiple times today. Trying to catch the blog up with my thoughts.

I have been to Housing twice, James at least double that. We found one house to look at so far but it was too small. Would have been okay but one of the bedrooms was almost too small for a twin bed in it. And no bedroom was big enough for the boys to share. Plus, the master bedroom barely had room for our bed and no dresser. The living room looked okay but then we realized it didn't have room for our beautiful German schrunk. As a matter of fact we didn't see any place that it would fit. Bummer! It was only a kilometer from the base so James getting to work and Caleb getting to the high school would have been awesome. (Jared will be going to the middle school which is on Villagio - where the military off-post housing is - it is about 3 kilometers from the main base).

James has been going daily to see if anything else has posted for us to look at. We have an appointment on Monday to see a 4 bedroom home. However, after that one they will not allow us to look at any other 4 bedrooms. The reason??? WE only have 2 kids we don't need a 4 bedroom. (The main reason we wanted a 4 bedroom was so the boys could have separate rooms and we would still have room for a guest room - we can adapt and have the boys share or store the guest German bedroom set) Shouldn't they have told us this info at the onset? When we signed in and had the Housing briefing? Wouldn't that be a good idea? Wouldn't it be a good idea for them to let our sponser know what we are allowed to look at so we know whether to store more of our furniture or not? And why does a single woman, a captain, get to look at 3 bedrooms? She doesn't have any children at all? Why is she entitled to more space for her family per person than we are? I understand the reasoning for us - 4 bedrooms are difficult to find at times and those who have 3 or more children need the room but really???? A single person with a three bedroom is acceptable but a 4 person family in a 4 bedroom is not?

SIDE NOTE: I was able to tour a new friend's house today. She is moving at the beginning of July and she has a THREE (yep 3) bedroom house. Master is downstairs with the nice open living room, dining, kitchen, bathroom, pantry, storage are and huge entry. Upstairs there are only 2 bedrooms a loft and a bathroom. However, one of the bedrooms is really long and would make a good room for the boys to share (she has two kids sharing it using IKEA bookshelves covered with fabric as a dividing wall) and the loft is very large. She has shrunks and a nice curtain dividing that area into a loft and a bedroom. Very nicely laid out with beautiful wood floors upstairs and a gorgeous ceramic tile on the main floor and in the basement. The basement has a whole other living area with a door to the garage that is underground. The garage has room to park in and a storage area for bikes etc. It also has a yard and nice patio and a great view of the surrounding farmland. We are hoping to get James a trip to see it and then chat with the landlord (who lives in the other 1/2 of this duplex and speaks excellent English) and see when he would have it ready and would he be okay with us being his next tenants. My friend has already ascertained that he will be renting it out again so that is great. Fingers crossed and prayers going up. Perhaps this will be our home. And they are moving out around the time our household goods arrive so while we would have to live in the hotel a little longer we wouldn't have to live in a house with nothing in it. Definite plus!

I am sure I will have more to share when I think on things some more. But this is about it for now.

Ciao for now!

Angy

Driver's Ed

On Wednesday afternoon James and I had to sit through a mandatory drivers education briefing. Basically letting us know information that will assist us in passing the SETAF drivers test (our version of the Italian test but in English). Apparently, it was also the place for the no drinking and driving lecture also. We went over fines, blowing hot, what could happen if we get a DUI, etc. I think this was mainly for the soldiers because he also went over what they are supposed to do if they are out drinking and do not have a "safe" ride home. I could really have done without that hour long lecture. Especially since it was smokin' hot in the classroom, we were packed in there like sardines and there wasn't really a breeze at all. Add to that the uncomfortable chairs and you make a pretty miserable and boring afternoon.

However, there was a bright spot for me! When I realized we were moving overseas I put my USAREUR drivers license back into my wallet - so that I would have it to drive in Germany. It is still valid for another year. I found out that with a valid, non-expired USAREUR (US Army Europe) license I wouldn't have to take the test for the SETAF (Southern Europe Task Force) license. This test is easier than its German counterpart so I wasn't worried about passing it. But, who takes a test when they don't have to???? Not me!! And I didn't. I took my Indiana license, USAREUR license and my slip saying I attended class and got my SETAF license right there. HE did confiscate my USAREUR license (supposedly the SETAF one is good in Germany? - have to check on that) and he will give me a certified copy of it so I can renew it. Perhaps when I renew it I can keep it since he will still have my old one? One can hope.

Unfortunately, I thought James had his USAREUR license with him but he did not. So today he had to take the test. He passed the test this morning so we are now BOTH legal to drive in Italy. Now, if we only had a car....

Ciao for now!

Pizzeria

my sweet boys

Caleb & Bella

On Tuesday we ate pizza with our new friends Titus (center), Angie (in white, left corner), their daughter Bella and Ann (right corner). We met at Titus and Angie's home and walked to the local pizzeria for dinner. When we arrived we were the only ones there. Typically in Italy and Germany most people don't go out for dinner until around 8 pm. So us arriving at 6:30 or so put us there really early.(we forgot to take pictures so this is the only picture we got of our new friends - hopefully we will do better the next time we are together.)

The owner Piero told us about his special that day. 10 Euros per person got us all a drink and how ever much pizza we could or wanted to eat. He chose the toppings but would welcome our suggestions. The first 2 pizzas were partially cheese for Caleb and then meat for everyone else. The next were veggie. He brought out two pizzas at a time. Surprising I thought we could eat more pizza then we actually did. Finally when he brought the last pizza out we remembered to take a picture. That pizza was especially for Angie and I. She wanted veggies, I wanted red and yellow bell peppers and gorgonzola cheese. Oh and just cheese portion for Caleb, of course. Man was that tasty. No one else wanted our veggies. That was okay with me.


Wish I would have taken pictures of our walk back to Angie & Titus' home. Bella, who is not quite 2 years old, walked in between Caleb and her father, holding both of their hands. I walked behind them and watched as her little head turned up and just gazed at Caleb so adoringly. It was priceless and just precious. I told him that he had an admirer. What sweet boys I have - when we returned to Bella's house, they walked around and talked with her, looked at her books with her and when she pointed to the couch and told them to sit - they did. So cute to watch. I think she already has them wrapped around her finger and they have only known her for a little more than a week.

Ciao for now!

Italian worship services

On Sunday, Ann & Titus met us outside the chapel gate to the base and took us to church. It is in a small building downtown (I think). The Italian Church of Christ has about 40 Italians, 2 from Venezuela and one from Peru plus 7 Americans (including us). There is also a congregation of about 80 Ghanans who meet for services right after Sunday School. Normally the entire service is conducted in Italain - though Ann did tell us that the first couple of weeks she came Titus translated in English as well. We were fortunate that Abraham from the Ghanan congregation was the guest preacher. In the Ghanan congregation their services are conducted in Twee but most also speak English. So Abraham preached in English while Titus translated into Italian. During the song service Titus also sat behind us and told us the song numbers. The Italian song book has a little area at the bottom of the page that tells what the song is in English - very helpful because many were tunes we knew - Standing on the Promises, I Love you with the Love of the Lord, etc. We did our best to follow the Italian but I must admit that a couple of times I sang the song in English. (another lucky bonus for us is that this coming Sunday Dan Reeves who was the American missionary here for 10 years will be there for combined worship services -both Italian and Ghanan - so one way or the other the lesson will be in English and Italian) After church we had bible classes. The boys went to theirs and James and I stayed in the adult class - their were about 7 people in class. I sure wish I understood more Italian because there was a very heated discussion going on about divorce. Much like our bible classes their at Columbus Avenue we only covered 2 verses for the day. Franchesco, our teacher, who spoke a little English said that it may take 2 years to finish Ephesians. We told him that wasn't a problem we were used to studies like that. (No offense Gary or Barry ;>)) James and I and the boys all see this as a great way to encourage us to learn Italian. Very exciting to be in this situation and what a great way to step outside our box and grow. Particularly since the entire Sunday school class was taught in Italian - though Franchesco did tell us where to turn in Ephesians and Matthew for the current study.

Maybe this coming Sunday we will be able to take some photos of the church. Although with both congregations coming together for joint services it will be very cramped and probably standing room only. Glory to God! Standing for Christ!

I did find some good material at the library to use for learning Italian in addition to the Italian language CDs we already had. One of them has written work as well so the boys and I use it for part of our homeschooling day. Hopefully, we will learn to speak and understand Italian fairly quickly. I know the immersion technique works best so having our worship services and bible class in Italian should spur us on. And we have already spoken to Titus and Angie about getting together for a mid-week English speaking bible study. Now we just need to advertise and see if we can get more people together. Of course, if the English speaking portion of our congregation grows there is also talk of adding an English service to the church services on Sunday. I don't mind going to the Italian service though. That is a great incentive to learn the language so I can better fellowship with the people.

Ciao for now!

Pictures of our "home"

So my great friend Brandi, hi Brandi, told me I needed to add photos so you can really get a feel for how we are doing. So that is today's or at least this morning's post. I hope to add more later.

The first photos are of our bedroom and the living room (Caleb & Jared's bedroom).

Here is our tiny kitchen - near the stove-top you will see a cabinet - that is actually our refrigerator.


Not sure if you read the previous post but now I will show you the key to our room

This key not only gives us access to our room but it allows us to get free cappuchinos and hot chocolates from this wonderful machine.

Here is the Italian translation of the English on the actual buttons.
My favorites are #14 cappuccino with chocolate and #43 hot strong chocolate (dark chocolate). And here is the tiny cup of cocoa/cappuccino that I get from the machine. Not the oversized American cappuccino as you can see.



Today we will be exploring the base and maybe even venture off base. James will be taking photos outside so I hope to have more photos to post later. Our new friends, Titus & Angie (American missionaries here at the Italian church) will be picking us up for church tomorrow. Titus does the preaching in Italian, sometimes there is translation into English. We will see how it goes tomorrow. But this will give us a great incentive to learn Italian quickly so that we can understand the lessons and assist in the services. Plus, Titus and I were talking yesterday about possible bible classes we could have for the English speaking part of the congregation. It looks like, with the addition of our family, that the number of English speakers will be 9. But since Titus and Angie's beautiful daughter isn't quite 2, I think that number is really 8. This will be an interesting and exciting opportunity for us.

Closing for now so we can go explore. Be sure to check in later.

A