GERMANY!!!

NOTE: I started writing this over a week ago, but just now got around to finishing it...sorry for the delay folks!

Greetings from Germany!

It's been a few days since I've updated the blog, but I've been busy and trying to relax here in Germany with Kate and Miss O. The base, ('Camp' as everyone here calls it) is REALLY nice and a great place for families to live. It's nothing like I expected it to be (although I really didn't know WHAT to expect since I've never been on a base before), and incredibly well laid out.

After I arrived on Saturday morning, we drove back home, stopping by the American PX store on the way home. I COMPLETELY hit the jackpot and not ONLY did I find some normal skim milk (which I've been deprived of for the past month, which has been torture), but I also found some Kraft ranch dressing! SUCH a great find! Kate tried it on her salad that night and she liked it....described it as a cross between cesear dressing and blue cheese dressing and she's absolutely right.

That afternoon we (Kate, Miss O, and myself) went on a bike ride around the base for the 'grand tour' and played with Miss O for a bit. She's SUCH a delight and is toddling around like a pro and chatting up a storm! She said "Vicki" once (which came out more like "icky", but only once and it was when I was in the bathroom on the day I arrived and she was talking to me through the door. Not much else happened after that other than Kate making us a DELISH dinner! :-)

On Sunday morning we got up and went to this German restaurant (to remain nameless until I can get the name of it again from Kate, sadly....) for a true and very authentic (and very POSH!)German brunch. It had 5 courses (yes!) and was absolutely delicious! I tried many new things (and even some I hadn't a clue what was in them) and Miss O "socialized" with a couple of the other children there. That part was quite hilarious, as she kept the majority fo the tables around us entertained throughout! :-)

Monday morning was quite a treat! I got to go with Kate and Miss O to the "Bonnie Bumps and Babies" play group that Kate organizes at the family center on base. It's basically where mothers (and even mothers to be) come and hang out for a couple of hours each monday morning for everyone to socialize and have a good time. It's a really great group of people and definitely good for the kids to be a part of (as well as the Mums). That evening we had one of the expectant Mums (Katie) over for dinner and dessert - she's really great and a lot of fun as well!!! :-)

Tuesday was action packed with a trip to Koln (Cologne) to see the famous Cathedral and then go to the Lindt chocolate factory. We took the train there and once again, Miss O entertained the other passengers. HA! The Cathedral was really amazing and unlike many of the others I've seen in Europe, although it did very much resemble the Gaudi Cathedral in Barcelona. Then came the fun part...adventurous Kate decided that she wanted to climb to the top of the dome (dom). Sounds like no big deal until you realize that it's like climbing to the top of St. Peter's Cathedral in Vatican City and there are literally a couple of HUNDRED of steps with ONE passageway for traffic in both directions, no wider than about 1.5 adult bodies across!!! At least at St. Peter's they have one stairwell to go up and one to go down!

So let me continue to paint this picture for you...Kate has Miss O strapped to her back with one of those baby backpacks but with all of the weight included, it prolly weighs over 40 pounds or so. We start walking up the VERY narrow stairwell and then realize that it's two way traffic. People are gawking at Kate the entire time, obviously admiring her bravery in carrying a child up so many flights since many people can barely carry THEMSELVES up to the top! Let me just say though, that I didn't say ONE WORD about the number of stairs involved or achy legs b/c I knew better - HA! When we got to the top of the dome, we got an excellent view of the city of Koln (Cologne) and enjoyed the breeze and the break from the stairs. However, it was them time to climb back DOWN the stairs and continue with the constant gawking from admirers. When we got to the bottom, I officially awarded Kate the "Mother of the Year" award for her bravery and strength - incredible! (See "Mother of the Year" award photo on the left)

After our wild climb, we headed over to the Lindt chocolate factory to see the chocolate making process and of COURSE do a bit of sampling. Kate and I ended up hitting up the chocolate fountain and wafer lady three times b/c it was so delicious! Miss O enjoyed taking in the sights as well and we had a great time. Then it was time to head home...



On Wednesday, we bravely sought out again on another adventure - this time to the great city of Dusseldorf. Kate and I decided that the walking tour would be best (of couse with Miss O on Kate's back, and mine for a VERY brief period of time...). So we did that for a couple of hours, then walked down by the river (the Rhine) and had lunch. After that however, we had to hustle back home for another play date/dinner with a few of Kate's friends on the base and their children. All of the kids jumped around on a huge trampoline for a while and then we all had dinner and hung out.

By Wednesday evening, we were all 3 exhausted but still had to pack to leave for London the next day!!! The packing continued on into Thursday morning and then it was time to head to the airport. I wasn't quite sure how Miss O would be on the plane considering she still has to be strapped to Kate during takeoff and landing, but she was a trooper and made it through just fine. I actually sat behind Kate and Miss O, squished between two businessmen that didn't seem to be thrilled about sitting in the vicinity of a child. However, Miss O provided non-stop "in-flight entertainment" complete with climbing, a few leg kicks, and even a few squeals.

It was hilarious and I thought she earned a few tips, but sadly she didn't receive any...My favorite part was when she was completely turned around in the seat, looking over the head rest and down at the gentleman next to me playing Playstation. (See pic) He didn't even acknowledge that she existed so at that point, I thought it would be fun to bust out the camera and be even MORE annoying! HA! Serves him right - GEEZ!

Anyway, that about wraps up our time in Germany. It was SO good to see Kate and Miss O again and to see the base they live on (although not for much longer!). Of course it was also good to see a bit of Germany and experience some of the World Cup fever firsthand! Geoff (Stuart's Dad) came to pick us three girls up at the airport and drove us back to Basingstoke (just outside London) for a few days before it was time to head back to London, completing my crazy/whirlwind tour of Europe!

Will post a few pics from Basingstoke though tomorrow...it's time to stop for the evening and go to bed!

Love,
-V :-)

Fun in the sun and in the mountains!

OK....so now that I've given everyone a glimpse of what life was like with the family in Sant'Arsenio, I can now tell you what we did during the day...

The first full day in Sant'Arsenio, all of us drove up into the mountains for a picnic. However, we first went to the top of the mountain to see this really quaint old church on top of the hill where you can get a great view of the valley below. (See pic)

Then we went to the picnic spot. As soon as we got there and unloaded the car, we got the grill ready which meant gathering up braches and twigs (a bit foreign to me since I'm used to charcoal or gas grills in Texas....HA!). Antonio (Angelo's dad) got everything going and then he and Angela senior cooked all of the meat for the picnic. It was DELICIOUS! We had everything under the sun (including a few things I wasn't sure which animal they came from...).

After lunch, Angela, Dario and I decided to go on a hike up the mountain and we came across somewild horses, one of which was a little pony! They let us get really close to them so I could snap a few pics before running back up the mountain. It was great! :-)

Then we came back to the picnic spot, ate some more (of course!), and relaxed for a bit. Many of you will be proud to know that the Moose has now officially used "Mother Nature" as a bathroom for the first time and didn't get too weirded out - HA! Angela laughed at me b/c I was asking so many questions about the "particulars!" You know me though...I ask a lot of questions! :-)

That night after we got cleaned up, we ate a fantastic meal that Angela senior prepared and hit the hay after our exhausting day.






Day 2 consisted of a day on the beach! We drove down on the coast (almost to the very south of Italy) and spent the entire day lounging around and playing in the water. Being the pale Moose that I am, I opted out of staying in the water and sun all day, and kept a shirt on (with lots of sunscreen as well of course!).

Instead I walked along the beach and collected rocks (which are the very LAST thing I need with having to carry everything on my back in a huge backpack!). I couldn't help picking them up to bring back with me though b/c they're seriously the coolest rocks ever! All of them are the strangest shades like orange and brown striped, green, black and white striped, gold, etc. Not sure what I'm going to do with them yet, but by golly I have them! HA!

In the afternoon after lunch (yes....more EATING!!!), Angela, Dario and I rented a paddle boat for an hour and went out into the Mediterranean. The water was so blue and clear (you could see the bottom) and we even saw a jellyfish in the water!


After we returned from our boat ride, it was time to head back (since we had about an hour and a half drive ahead of us). We were REALLY gross with sand and "the beach" all over us, so we all took showers before heading out to dinner. We went to a really great restuarant in a neighboring town and feasted on pizza, fish, bread, wine, and cokes! That's where I tried the raw oysters and octopus. Everything was delicious! To wrap up the evening, we went over to Angela's parents house to have some espresso and cake for dessert. Angela's Mom (Elisa) makes this really great chocolate carrot cake that is her own "invention" she says. I love it!

Anyway, those are the major highlights of the trip. I had a GREAT time and I'm so glad that Angela and Dario were able to come with me, as they weren't going to be able to in the beginning. Angela has been my own personal "translator" for the past week and has really been a trooper since she doesn't know ALL English words herself. Angelo's parents speak a little bit of English, but Angela Junior's parents don't speak any at all. Consequently, I made sure I was never far from Angela's side!

Dario has been really good at trying to learn conversational English, and I've tried to learn my bit of Italian as well. However, I've had to stop myself from just "talking louder" when I'm speaking and the person can't understand me. It's quite hilarious, but we've all been doing it for the past week, along with a lot of grandiose hand gestures - HA! I've found myself exhausted at the end of the day though b/c of all of the effort it takes to communicate. There's no telling how tired I'd be if I didn't have Angela though - WHEW! :-)

Tommorrow I leave for Dusseldorf (Germany) to spend a few days with Kate and Olivia (Stuart's sister-in-law and neice). I'll post more to the blog when I can with pics of our adventures in Germany!

I miss you all very much and can't wait to show more pictures!!!

Love,
-V

Binge eating and generous hospitality in the south of Italy!

Ciao all! I've arrived back in Rome after spending 3 days in the south of Italy (Sant'Arsenio to be exact) with Angela's family. I'm going to try and make this entry as short as possible, but it's going to be hard b/c there's so much to tell everyone!!!

Let me just start off by saying that my visit there was one of the most humbling experiences I can remember. Never before in my life have I witnessed such incredible and generous hospitality, and never before have I been treated in the regard I was during my visit. From the moment I arrived, I felt as though I was "royalty" and I was literally doted on every waking moment.

To clarify things, we went to Sant'Arsenio (4 hours south of Rome on the coast) to visit both Angelo's family (who is Aunt Karol's friend back in Texas) as well as Angela's family (who is Angelo's cousin and the girl I've been staying with in Rome). To complicate things even MORE, Angelo's mother is ALSO named Angela so for purposes of blog entries I will refer to Angelo's mother as Angela Senior and will refer to Angelo's cousin (that I've been staying with in Rome) as Angela Junior. Whew...it was very confusing!

All of the family members I met were just so wonderful to me and the scenery was absolutely gorgeous as well! The town is situated in a HUGE valley, surrounded by green wooded mountains on all sides and is exactly what you think of when you think of a typical Italian town in the country, untouched by many of the impersonalities of modern technology. The majority of the people there aren't chained to technology and do not have computers, high-speed internet access or a multitude of other modern conveniences (other than TV sets with cable of course), but instead the result is a more relaxed atmosphere where the focus is on the family, the home, and the land. Their homes are IMMACULATE and very well taken care of. I stayed at Angelo's parents home and Angela Senior had a half dozen roses in a vase waiting for me, and gave up the bathroom closest to her bedroom so I could have it instead, even though I begged her to follow her normal routine. She literally changed the towels after each shower (no comments from everyone on how many showers I take and that she must have been quite busy!) and would empty the trash can after I'd put one piece of garbage into the can. It was like staying at a 5-star hotel on steroids!!! I kept telling her to just act naturally and she'd say, "No! No! You came all the way from America and you are our special guest!"

Each of the family members that I was introduced to, owns land on which they have some of the greatest produce gardens! Crops ranged from lettuce, zucchini, onions, potatoes, tomatoes and olives to cherries and apples as well. Being the "city girl" that I am, I was amazed as I've never seen such a sight! Angelo's Mom and Dad grow enough tomatoes to make tomato sauce for an entire year off of one crop, and they also make all of their own olive oil! They also have a crop of grapes and make their own wines....delicious!

It was just so strange for everything to be SO FRESH as I'm used to the produce you buy down at the grocery store. I had a good time asking Angelo's parents what they thought about produce in grocery stores, as I got some pretty interesting faces and expressions! HA! The fresh cherries and tomatoes were my two faves. I was eating cherries by the fistful by the end of my stay.



Speaking of eating....let's just say that I'm physically and emotionally EXHAUSTED from all of the eating we did in Sant'Arsenio. It was HILARIOUS!!! Every meal literally had at LEAST 4 courses to it and many had more. However, it was some of the freshest and most delicious food ever! And not at all like anything we non-Italians think of when we think of traditional Italian food. I only had pizza and/or pasta once. The rest of the time it was fish, meats, cheeses, breads, and TONS of fruits and vegetables!

I was quite adventurous in my food choices, and tried many new things. The highlights of the new things I tried included eggplant, the leaves and stems of the zucchini plant, raw oysters, and octopus! I loved everything with the exception of the raw oysters...I thought they were kinda slimey and too "fishy" tasting. I'll have to try cooked oysters and see if I still feel the same way.

Long story short...I feel as though I've been on a 4 day binge eating spree and my poor stomach is begging me to stop - HA! I'm coming back home with many recipes though, and hopefully I'll be able to find the ingredients in regular grocery stores. The Italian stereotype of eating all the time is literally true though (at least in the Italian countryside). If I so much as sat down and looked the slightest bit tired, Angela senior or Angela Junior's mother took that as a sign that I was growing weary and low on strength and needed to eat. Needless to say, I tried to look as busy as possible - HA!

Anyway, I had a marvelous time and thoroughly enjoyed my time in the south of Italy. I got a realistic portrayal of life in the Italian countryside and I'm so thankful that I was able to escape the typical "touristy" side of traveling. It was truly an amazing experience that I will never forget!

In the following posting, I'll share a few photos of our activities during the day (other than eating of course!).

Ciao from Rome!

Ciao from the great city of Rome!

I'm having a WONDERFUL time and really enjoying my time with Angelo's cousin, Angela. She lives very near the center of Rome and both she and her boyfriend, Dario, have been incredibly generous since the moment I arrived. They've really rolled out the red carpet for me and shown me the sights of Rome from a "local's perspective." They're wonderful! Angela speaks English very well and when either of us isn't sure of the right word to use, we have a really great Italian/English dictionary that we carry with us at all times - it's hilarious!

After my arrival on Saturday, we came back to Angela's flat for a wonderful lunch (3 courses!) and then had a rest, which I needed after my hectic morning on the train! Then Angela and I went to the heart of the city and saw the Coliseum and several other famous sights, including the famous Trevi Fountain (SO GORGEOUS!) and the Spanish Steps (kinda disappointing b/c there are no flowers on them like you see in pics - Angela said this is b/c crazy Romans use the flowers to hide drus!). It was a great time of day to go b/c the sun was just setting and I got some great shots with the camera of everything. Angela knows Rome inside and out, so I was very impressed.

Then we had dinner (ANOTHER 3 courses plus dessert!) and got ready to go out to a real Italian disco (nightclub) literally down on a Mediterranean beach outside of Rome, less than 10 feet from the water. I've never seen anything like it in my life! I felt like I was in an episode of Saved by the Bell or Beverly Hills 90210 or something - HA!

We met up with all of Dario's friends from work and although none of them speak any English, we had an absolute BLAST! The funny thing is that the discos don't even OPEN until 1am - so it was a very late night and we didn't get home until after 5am.

Then on Sunday, Angela and I got up to head down to the Vatican. We TOTALLY lucked out b/c when we arrived, the Pope was giving a blessing from his window and we got to see him! I took a video, although I couldn't understand a word he was saying since it wasn't in English obviously. There were literally THOUSANDS of people there and it was amazing to see!

St. Peter's Basilica is absolutely breathtaking though and is the largest in the world. Even not being Catholic, I was still moved by the beauty of it all. All of the mosaics on the inside walls and the sculptures inside are amazing and it's hard to believe they're as old as they really are!

After the Vatican we were super tired so we came back for lunch and a nap. We didn't do much that night other than have dinner and more gelato with one of Dario's friends.


Today, we got up and went to see the Church of the Immaculate Conception and the attached cemetary. I hadn't a clue what it was, but read that it had a really great cemetary in the Rough Guide. Well, it's literally a place where the skulls and bones of over 4000 monks are and they're all arranged in these crazy arrangements in 4 different rooms underneath the church. Very hard to describe, but it's as if the skulls and bones were used as decorations! Every inch of the wall space is COVERED in skulls and various bones of the body, even vertebrae from spinal columns. It's gross but still REALLY cool! I don't have time to describe it any more right now, but will tell all of you more when I get back!

I tried to get into the Vatican Museum this afternoon to see the Sistene Chapel, but they closed early today and I have to try again in the morning, SUPER early! That's the only remaining major spot I have to see before I leave Rome.

Tomorrow afternoon Angela, Dario, and I are driving south to the "countryside" as they call it, to see Angela's family. Both her family and Angelo's are hosting us until Friday and showing me what the South of Italy is like. I can't WAIT as we're supposed to see both mountains as well as beaches near the Amalfi coast. It's going to be beautiful!

FYI, I won't be posting to the blog again for another couple of days. I promise to get caught up again though once I return back to Rome on Friday. Then on Saturday I'm off to Germany to visit Stuart's sister-in-law Kate, and her daughter Miss O. Can't wait!

Anyway, Ciao for now! I miss you all!

Love,
-V :-)

Moose Topples Over in Rome! HA!

Ok so those of you that know me, know that I'm not exactly the most coordinated person on earth and that I'm prone to tripping over my own feet at LEAST once a day, if not more! Well boy did I EVER do it in Rome immediately following my arrival from Florence...

Let me just start off by saying that when I travel, I'm carrying a TON of stuff! My big packpack that I have all of my clothes, shoes, and toiletries in weighs about 27-28 (ish) pounds, then I have my smaller backpack with my travel books and other random necessities that weighs another 10 pounds or so, and then a small bag that I carry with all of the souvenirs I've bought along the way.

I had just arrived at the train station and was trying to navigate around the train station, looking for Angela since she was coming to pick me up there. I was walking along a sidewalk across the street from the station and turned a corner not expecting there to be hardly ANY room on the sidewalk b/c of motorcycles and other bikes. I tripped over my own foot and b/c of all of the weight on my back and front as well, I toppled over and then onto the ground like a domino - HA! I had that sensation of it going in slow-motion and knowing that I had no control b/c of the excessive weight. I just kept thinking, oh God....the ground is disgusting and I don't want to cut myself open on anything. LOL!

Luckily there was an American couple and an Italian man that saw the entire thing, and they rushed over to help me up. With all of the weight on, I wasn't even able to pick myself up and they pretty much had to pull me up - it was HILARIOUS, although REALLY embarrassing!

I was OK (It's OK...I'm OK!), but I got a lovely scrape on my ankle that is still pretty red and gross looking. It's just another scrape to add to the list of battle scars I've received during my travels...HA!

Anyway, here's a pic of my "Roman scar." Notice the tan lines from my flip flops??? The Moose is actually getting tan! (In a Moose kind of way of course....I'm not bronze for crying out loud!) :-) I'm "flip-flopping my way through Europe" and trying to stay on two feet now....

Florence!

I'm obviously behind on the blog, so I'll try and update everyone on my time in Florence as much as possible. Here goes:

First of all the train ride to Florence from Venice was BEAUTIFUL!!! Tuscany is just as gorgeous as everyone raves, and it was just like the scenes in 'Under the Tuscan Sun' with Diane Lane. I saw the most goreous golden yellow and green fields and traditional Tuscan homes with the beautiful tiles on the roofs. Tuscany isn't crowded in the slightest bit, and as Aunt Karol said - it looks as if God manicured each of the fields individually. AMAZING!!!

After I arrived in Florence, I made it to the hostel I was staying in and met my two roomies, Vanessa and Rosie from New Zealand. They're 20 years old, attend the University of Auckland, and are on a 3 month tour of the world! They've been everywhere from Thailand to Malaysia to South Africa to all of Europe. The stories they had were amazing and they said they've seen some of the most beautiful places on earth - they're a contributing factor to my recent bout with the "travel bug" and now wanting to travel the world for longer! HA!

That first day I decided to skip the famous art museums (as I'm not an artsy fartsy person really....) and go to see the Ponte Vecchio bridge and the surrounding area. WOW - a really neat sight to see! I got some really great pics with the bridge reflecting in the river below and went into some great shops along the bridge where I bought souveneirs for many of you back home! :-)

Then Vanessa, Rosie, and I took the train to Pisa to see the famous leaning tower of Pisa. OF COURSE we all posed for the totally cheesy tourist photos of us "holding up the tower" - HA! We were dying laughing while posing and had a couple of guys that were at the hostel with us take some pics of us as well. Then we enjoyed some DELICIOUS gelato (italian ice cream) out in the sun and then took the train back to Florence. By the way, I could eat my weight in gelato on a daily basis I believe - it is SO good! (Everything you said was right, Tasha!)

That night after we got back in, the three of us went out to dinner at an outside cafe and had pizza, spaghetti, and cokes and a good chat. Right about the time we were leaving, we saw a bunch of police lights and police officers starting to line the streets, and religious music started to blare through the speakers on the streets. I asked one of the policemen what was going on. Apparently it was a Catholic holy day in Italy (when is it NOT??? HA!) and there was a processional making its way from the church down the street to the famous square in Florence. We thought it was great and took some pics of all of the monks and religious figures, but decided to stop when they gave us dirty looks....Oops! :-) After that we called it a night and went to bed!

The next day, Vanessa and Rosie left to head to Germany and I roamed around the city of Florence for hours, going into shops and visiting the famous churches and squares. I literally walked for miles and miles! For dinner, I went to a small restaurant in a square near my hostel and started chatting with two women from England when they saw me pull out my Union Jack coin purse. As it turns out, one of the women used to be married to a gentleman from Orange, Texas and both of her children were born in Texas! She and her sister were in Italy for her daughter's wedding near the famous Ponte Vecchio Bridge. They were really nice though and told me all about their travels as well, which was interesting considering they had finished off a bottle and a half of wine between the two of them - HA! ;-)

And that about finishes up my time in Florence...had a blast, but I was ready to move on to Rome!

Ciao from Venezia (Venice)!

Ciao everyone!

I'm in Venice now and it's SUCH a beautiful city!!! Truly a city built on water and consequently, completely different than any other. I've been really fortunate that the weather has been gorgeous, about 80 degrees and not a cloud in the sky! WHOOP!

Today I slept a bit later than usual since yesterday was exhausting with 2.5 hour flight delays and lugging my huge backpack all over the place. However, I made up for the late start by literally walking the streets of Venice for about 7 hours. Venice is a city made up of winding streets and alleys that weave in and around the Grand Canal (where you see all of the famous gondolas and water taxis), and you completely lose track of time while wandering through all of them. Surprisingly, the streets and alleys are pretty easy to navigate through!

Venice is just SO beautiful and serene and there are so many fantastic shops that it has to offer. I (once again!) had to exercise GREAT restraint to keep from buying every piece of Murano glass in sight! That stuff is GORGEOUS and it's everywhere!

I visited the famous Rialto Bridge first (see pics of the white bridge) and then of course went to St. Mark's Square. St. Mark's is REALLY cool! For one thing, it's massive and has such beautiful architecture that you just stand there for a couple of minutes in awe. The Basilica is breathtaking, particularly considering its age (built in 1094!) and the mosaics/carvings on its outer walls are interesting as well. Had a couple of hilarious "Vicki moments" with diving pigeons, trying to avoid being pooped on - HA! There are GILLIONS of pigeons in St. Mark's Square and they're not afriad of humans in the slightest bit (particularly considering the fact that street vendors sell food for tourists to give them)! They swoop down on you (some even land on your arm or shoulder - Mom you would DIE!!!) and there are feathers everywhere. Surprisingly there's not much poop around though...they do a good job of keeping it cleaned up in the Square.

I learned a VERY valuable lesson today at a cafe in St. Mark's Square though. ALWAYS as the price of a cup of coffee before you order!!! I had been walking around forever today and decided to take a break, sit down at an outdoor cafe with a nice cup of coffee, and write postcards to everyone back home. All was well until I got the bill. It was SEVEN EUROS (over $9!!) for ONE cup of coffee!!! It wasn't even a fancy cappuccino or anything like that! When the waiter showed me the bill, I of course gasped and said that he couldn't be serious. I quickly learned that he wasn't joking at all so I grumbled and paid the bill, but not after I walked into the cafe and told the manager that I thought it was really shady to take such advantage of tourists by letting them order a cup of coffee and not even show them a menu with the price. Of course he didn't care (and I knew he wouldn't), but it still made me feel better b/c there were about 5 people in line that heard me talking to him and walked out after they heard the price. HA! A few minutes later I was chatting with a family from Scotland and the husband and wife told me they had been taken for a ride in a cafe down in the Square as well and were charged 46 Euros (almost $60!) for TWO (yes....TWO) beers! GEEZ!

Anyway after my exciting day in the city, I came back to the small town outside of Venice where I'm staying and had dinner at a local restaurant. I wanted to get back here in the room though before dark, so here I am updating all of you on my adventures. Tomorrow I'm going on a tour of Venice that I booked last night. There wasn't any room in the one today, so I decided I would just do it tomorrow. I'm going to stay in the city later though so I can see it at night. I've heard it's amazing! :-)

Have to get ready for bed now, but I hope everyone is doing well back home. Many of you can expect postcards soon!

Ciao for now!

:-) V