Our Trip to Rome...

We had a great time when we went to Rome this past weekend. We stayed at a Best Western Hotel that was just a 15 minute walk from the Colosseum. It was so amazing to be walking through the city, looking at the beautiful old buildings, such great architecture and then WHAM right in front of us the Colosseum. Almost 2000 years old the Colosseum was finished in 80 AD. Really was quite astouding to see such an old structure right next to buildings that were old by American standards (only a couple hundred years old). Wow!

I am putting the photos in a separate album to make it easier for viewing. You can find them here.

Trip to Rome

We didn't find great Italian food there in Rome but we found an excellent gelato place that was just a few steps from our hotel. We had ice cream there no less than 4 times in 2 days. It was so tasty. Their lemon gelato was so fresh, sweet and tart. They even made a pretty delicious cappuccino as well.

We took a Hop On/Hop Off bus tour. The bus takes you around the city showing you the sites. We were given headphones so we could listen to facts about each site in our own language. The great thing about this tour was you could hop off the bus anytime you wanted. The bus came back to each stop every half hour. So we could hop back on and go on to the next site. It was great and saved us a lot of walking. Plus we got to see some things we probably wouldn't have if we were walking everywhere. We walked a lot on Friday and were so sore that night. On Saturday we took the tour bus and really enjoyed it.

We even stopped at the Hard Rock Cafe and ate lunch on Saturday. While waiting outside we met a family that had traveled to Rome from Stuttgart, Germany. His parents had come to see them and take a trip to Rome at the same time. We had a great conversation and I know they really enjoyed chatting with Caleb. (He was just so full of interesting facts and had them laughing.) We realized after we got back onto the bus that we hadn't even stopped to find the Spanish Steps or the Trevi Fountain. So we stopped at the next bus stop and asked for directions to the Spanish Steps. We did walk down the Spanish Steps which were pretty and packed with people. There was even a bride and groom having their pictures taken at the bottom. She was absolutely beautiful. James didn't want to take a picture of them because he felt it was a violation of their privacy.

From there we made our way to the Trevi Fountain. It was amazing and so much larger than I had imagined. Not sure how it was possible but it was even more packed than the Spanish Steps. We had a difficult time getting close enough to even get a picture.

We realized on Sunday when we were getting ready to leave for the airport that we never even got to see the Pantheon. Don't know how we missed it. In between the hopping on and off the bus we just plain lost track of what we were looking at. So many amazing sites to see - The Roman Forum, Palantine Hill, the Pantheon, the Vatican, Colosseum and more. So Jared decided we need to go back to Rome. Next time we will tour the Vatican Museum and find the Pantheon.

Compliment? OR Insult?

I'm sure he meant well. Didn't he? Maybe he speaks really good English but knew he could get away with his comments? Or maybe he just thought he was saying something nice?

By now you are probably wondering what I am talking about. Well, I guess since I have peaked your interest I should probably tell you what happened.

So today I go to my local supermercato (I am sure you can tell that is supermarket) the Aliper. I went to find goat's milk for my sick kitty and then fresh produce. I just happened to get lucky and get there at a non-peak time (first time this has happened to me). Usually the store is extremely crowded and there is no 10 item or less aisle.

I pick up 2 pints of strawberries, some lettuce and date tomatoes. I head to the check-out and miracle of miracles I find an aisle without any other customers and is open for business. I greet the cashier by saying, "Buon Giorno." After placing my items on the conveyor belt I move forward and grab my cloth bag out of my purse. The gentleman ringing up my order asks, "sacceto?" I respond, "no", and show him my bag. He then says, "Oh, your own personal shopping bag." Yes, IN ENGLISH! This has not happened to me before - most of the time there is no one in the grocery store who can speak English and help me if I have questions.

So after speaking to the cashier for a moment I then ask him, "Is it that obvious that I am an American?" Is it my hair (not many natural red heads here in Italy), my clothing?" He responds by saying, "Yes, it is obvious, you are a large woman!"

WHAT???? I said, "Do you mean tall?" He says, "Yes, you are a large beautiful woman." Now, keeping in mind that many of these Italian women are barely over 5 feet tall and extremely petite, I am pretty sure he meant that I am quite tall compared to most Italian women. However, as a woman, I am normally insulted by the "large woman" comment. Even if it is followed by beautiful. I was chuckling so hard at this point. He then proceeds to tell me that he loves America, American woman and everything about America.

So, I ask you, do I laugh or cry? Insulted or flattered? In his defense he did seem very nice and he also complimented me on my use of Italian (I use the words I know as often as I can).

Anyway, thought you might be able to use a chuckle today!

Ciao for now!

AHHHH, Finally SPRING!!!!

the tree in our front yard has started to bloom
got these shots on Saturday morning

by the time we got home that afternooon several more branches had burst into full bloom

More of Venice

huge display of seafood outside a restaurant down one of the very narrow alleyways



the street at the water end of St. Mark's Square - full of people and most weren't waiting for a vaporetto (water bus)
me at the bridge (to the left and we didn't realize it at first is a new family that just moved to Italy and James works with the man, Dave.)
beautiful old clock

a rare sight during Carnevale - quiet, empty piazza
a display of a violin and violin making tools - very old shop
cool little hand blown glass fish

amazing architecture

gondolas, we didn't take a ride today but I think we will next time we come

one of the myriad of canal streets

cool doorknocker - kind of scary looking

the door knocker's door

Venice during Carnevale

Venice during Carnevale is CRAZY! People everywhere (and we went on an off day)! Our train was super crowded - shoulder to shoulder, hip to hip, eye to eye - that close. Good thing I was with James - he's the only person I should be that close to. There were loads of fascinating costumes. Many people posing so we could photograph them while others just walked on and as if they were dressed normally. There were little stands everywhere so you could get your face painted (which we declined) though we did see some amazing artwork on the faces of passersby. Carnevale starts two weeks before Ash Wednesday and ends Fat Tuesday (Shrove Tuesday which is the day before Ash Wednesday. It is marked by elaborate masks and costumes. Some of the costumes were just breathtaking.

Venice Alleyways & Waterways

On President's Day, James and I rode the train to Venice and just walked around for the afternoon. Here are some of the interesting shots of waterways and alleyways we took. That Monday was the day before Fat Tuesday, the last day of Carnivale.

Lunch at Aelioli

One day in January, James took me and my friend Ann to lunch at Aelioli's. This place is supposed to be where Galileo hid out when he was being persecuted by the Catholic Church.

Great interior, amazing wine cellar that is actually tunnels that run for miles into the cool mountains, tasty food and fabulous ambiance.

Yes, I know I am posting these a bit late. I am so far behind in my blog updates. Hopefully, I can make up for that in the next few days.

Enjoy the photos...