Trip Highlights

I haven't been able to blog much. We have been on the go a lot and changed locations to Tuscany.

On our last morning in Rome we were picked up by the shuttle and taken to our rental car. Once again we tackled the four flights of stairs but at least it was going down instead of climbing.  Soon we were on our way in the crowded bus and dropped off at the curb of the airport to pick up our rental car. We were suppose to have a mini van but they were out of them so we got an SUV instead.  It was a little short on space...so we stuffed the rear of the SUV until Josh was afraid the luggage would force the back door open...We had bags under our feet...in our laps and in every cubby hole that existed...  Pretty much the start of a lampoon vacation.   :)  We were all smiles though to continue on our scheduled route.     The surrounding area of Rome is beautiful. Hilly and green and the prettiest villas and houses dotted here and there. The further out we got the more remote the towns and houses.

Finally we were at San Gimignano. It sits perched up on one of the Tuscan Hills surrounded by vineyards. We stayed there several days and now we are at a country villa for the next two weeks. It is very pretty here. We are down on the side of a mountain in the woods that is loaded with wild game. Deer wander around and hare ( Looks like a Texas jack rabbit) and boar. ( I don't like the sound of that but it is pretty civilized where we are with about 3 other villas right by us and the owner's parent's home across the road) We feel very safe and the villa is just lovely. We have lots of room to do all kinds of things.

The kids and I have taken some days to rest. They are just getting over colds and I seem to have picked theirs up. Thank goodness I brought plenty of meds and some antibiotics and should be up to par soon/ It is a very nice place to recuperate. Josh and Luisa have been seeing lots of churches and museums and plan to take us back to see some of them. Jonathan and I want to see the Tower of Pisa. Every little hamlet is just loaded with preserved history so you don't have to look hard for it. According to our new friends, the best thing to do is avoid the crowded areas with long lines lasting for hours and just drive around to the smaller places and towns. History is everywhere. I want to go to Sienna. I have long admired Catherine of Sienna. She lived during the time of the great schism
( split ) in the church. She was instrumental in bringing the powers that be back together again.   Because of her efforts and her devotion to Christ she was given the title of Doctor of the Church.  That is pretty huge considering the time period she lived in and the role of women at that time. Sienna has many things preserved that tell about her history.   I very much want to see all of that. We are actually very near Sienna so as soon as I am feeling a bit better we will head that way. I am thinking Monday.

Some trip highlights.

Roman Ruins
Those two words were meant to go together and this part of the trip much anticipated by me. Josh referred to it as the pagan part of the trip but I couldn't wait to touch and feel it. Lines, lines and more lines are the rule in Rome. With two little ones in tow we were going to have a look and if we had to wait in a 2 hour line we decided we would be satisfied with just seeing it from the outside.   A tour just happened to be starting up as we arrived and the price was awesome so we decided to take advantage of it and they weren't too long which would work well for the kids.   By joining the tour there was no wait in a long line.   Our tour guide was great.   She kept it brief but informative/ The coloseum was really interesting and dispelled many Hollywood myths. Nothing could take away from the grandeur of such an enormous and efficient place. I marveled at how advanced they were.

We next saw Palatin Hill.   I wasn't sure I would like it but I think it was my favorite.   It was a big hike up the hill with a baby and a stroller but we were wowed by the panoramic view of the city and ancient forum area. You could imagine great parades down the promenade area between all the old ruins. The Roman Forum up close is a must do experience. We walked the streets that Caesar and Mark Anthony once occupied.

We then took a cab to the Vatican to attend mass at St Peter's Basilica. In recent years they discovered the remains of St Peter.  After mass we toured a bit and then took another cab to where the fountains are.   I cannot think of their name but they are famous.    That was cool. We decided to eat there and then walked a few blocks away to see the Pantheon. Right smack in the middle of the retail and restaurant district is this HUGE intact ancient building with enormous Roman columns. Another surreal moment.   People were standing and sitting eating their gelatos while a group of men were playing 60's music for money tossed into a box. All the little kids were dancing and Christina, who was born with a groove, needed no encouragement to get in motion. Johnathan thought that would be a great time to show off his break dancing. He said he can tell what kind of dancing to do when he hears the music. ;) That was a particularly great night and John says it was the best day ever.

Lunch in Orvieto. 
On our way to Tuscany Josh had heard of this little town and decided to do lunch there.
There is no way to tell you how teeny the streets are. Many of the streets too small for any vehicle. Parking spaces were a mystery but finally we found one and walked to a little restaurant. We ate outside....like a scene out of Godfather and had antipasto... meats, cheese, brushetta and water.   It was delicious. Josh and Luisa wanted to check out the church in the city and the kids and I finished our lunch and poked about in the shops.   It was a nice lunch in this ancient walled city perched precariously on the top of a hill.

Thunderstorm in San Gimignano.
When we were in our rustic apartment in San Gimignano you almost got the feel of what it must have been like living back in medieval times. The people that live there are not allowed to alter the architecture and new things built must look like the old if they are even allowed to build new structures. There are certain characteristics that must be in every structure according to Tuscan rule. Because of their dedication to that and some miraculous escape from destruction in WWII it is like stepping back a long time ago in the past. When you walk around the town you get a township feel enclosed within the walled city. One afternoon Christina and Johnathan and I decided we wanted to have some pizza and gelato. Gelato is an Italian version of ice cream and it is very good. Pistachio and cream cheese are two of my favorites. Jonathan's favorites are vanilla and chocolate. ;) Christina loves cream cheese hands down. :) We decided since we were on vacation that we would have our dessert first. While we were enjoying it I noticed it got very dark outside. I decided it might be a good time to head on back to our villa. Just as we got to our door a thunderstorm broke loose, By the time I got my munchkins up two flights of stairs it really broke loose. The windows stay open. That is so hard to fathom in Dallas but is totally normal here. Most people even still hang their clothes out.   Most seem to have dryers but prefer outdoors. Watching the storm as it worked it's way over the magical landscape is not something I will ever forget. It was a scene right out of a page of fiction. We were even treated to a bit of hail and this display of nature brought the most lovely cold front...most welcome by these summer weary Texans.

Country Villa
Josh and Luisa went to mass at San Gimignano.  While there they met a couple and had coffee with them afterward.   They discovered the couple owned villas they leased out and had one available. Though San Gimignano was nice it was a bit busy with tourists and we decided the country villa would be perfect especially since the couple lived on site. We moved in the next day and loved it!   It is on one of the wooded Tuscan hills and full of deer and other wild game.   The couple that own it are interesting.   Hugo( spelled and pronounced Ugo) is from Tuscany but raised in South Africa where he met Mary. They are properly British though.   He is an architect and they have children in Dallas, Tuscon and Maria lives on site and helps manage the villa.
It is a renovated villa that they turned into several and rent them out. It is a nice retirement.   The kids and I had tea and cake with Mary and Ugo one afternoon.   I was very proud of them.   They had such good manners and John had his tea( juice) and cake sitting at the table with the grownups like he did it everyday!   He made his Mimi proud.  :)     Christina was content to sit on my lap. It was interesting to hear how they ended up back in Tuscany and especially their love for travel. It seems we share the same idea about touring the out of the way places to discover the real treasures and we enjoyed talking about that until time to head across the drive to our own villa and dinner.

Tomorrow Johnathan and I are going to make cards and a gift for him to give to his parents for their anniversary/ They are away for the weekend to have a special anniversary weekend in Assisi. I have been nursing a bit of a cold but it seems to be improving every day/

Until my next post....

This is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it/
Psalm 124