OUR QUICK TRIP ABROAD, PART 4 - AMALFI COAST

The evening after our jaunt to Capri, we took a tour of the Amalfi coast. If I must admit the truth, for the first 1/2 hour or so I fell asleep (we weren't getting much sleep over there, making every minute count). When I woke suddenly, my stomach did a flip because I was looking directly over a 200-foot cliff. I was one of the lucky ones to be sitting on the side of the bus that was on the cliff-side of the road that dangled precariously over the coastline. The roads were very windy and extremely narrow, so that two buses passing each other had to fold in their side mirrors so they'd have enough room to pass. It made for a bit of a queasy experience, but also meant I was in prime position for photos. I chose to concentrate on the latter. :) Again, it was a photographer's paradise. Everything was beautiful. Everything. You couldn't take a bad photo if you tried. It was just so incredible, everywhere you looked. Can you imagine seeing this sort of beauty on a daily basis?! 

The entire coastline is built up on steppes. If you live there, you're naturally very fit, since you have to climb up and down to get anywhere. Most of the coastline is open to pedestrian traffic only. Isn't that a good idea? My mind was flooded with ideas about how to rearrange American traffic and infrastructure in order to create an environment that lends itself to more fitness and less pollution.

A statue of Mary at one of our pit stops. I couldn't get around the flowers - sorry!

I loved how very blue the water was on this coast. Both in Sorrento, and the Amalfi coast - it was so blue, and sometimes almost a tropical green.

THIS IS IT! My very favorite photo from the entire trip. I love the colors, the mountains, the village on the hill, and the house that is built right above the mountain road (yes, that's the mountain road dangling above the cliff). It makes me wonder who lives in that white house, what's their history? And how many generations of the same family have lived in that extraordinary spot?

The ivy was out of control, but absolutely beautiful. You can see a few homes and buildings here completely covered in it. Then below the houses on the steppes they have vineyards and gardens trained on poles. It gives the appearance of a lush, green 3-D carpet.

Another one of my favorites.

Yum. These colors are delicious! :) No color-popping done here. That's true blue water!

And ancient lookout tower. It's still there, keeping watch.

Boating is probably a faster way to get from here to there along the coastline.

This is the town of Amalfi. The town square - cafes and shops in front of the beautiful and ancient cathedral.

I know it's not Verona, but this reminds me of Romeo and Juliet.

This is the ancient cathedral, evidently a place of retreat for popes of long ago. First we toured the very old area, that has through time been stripped of its beauty and remains now just a plain plaster building with only hints remaining of its former glory. Then we toured the newer building, which is used currently as a place of worship. 

The bell tower, seen through the arches of the ancient church.

The halls of the ancient church, once all covered with intricate artwork. Now restored with simple plaster.

This is a hint to what it originally looked like. This is the sanctuary of the new cathedral, while a priest conducts the daily mass.

A still, quiet moment at the foot of Jesus.

So much beauty surrounds him - such grand architecture, such sculptures, such stained-glass windows, such delicate portraits of saints that have been carefully inscribed on the walls. They are amazing and awe-inspiring. And yet it's the abject figure of Jesus on the cross in a simple plaster arch in a quiet hallway that causes me to stop, stare, and breathe quietly. This alone. This figure, beaten and bruised, not at all beautiful, but capable of bringing indescribable beauty, is worthy of worship.

The organ pipes, reaching to the sky in the back of the cathedral.

A quiet moment, a quiet retreat from the hustle and bustle of the street. 

THURSDAYS WITH CARMEN

Today I am thankful for…Seeming to get over a quick stomach bug that grabbed me around noon yesterday. Also very thankful for a replacement phone that is coming in the mail tomorrow after someone stole mine right before we took off for Italy. I went back to the store where I lost it, searched everywhere for my phone. Then I went to the store that I was in before the one where I lost it, and I looked all around. It was nowhere to be found. I gave them my name and contact info, and had my phone suspended so it couldn't be used. Then when we got back from Italy we tried the "Find my Phone" app and the "Find my Friends" app from Vlad's phone. Nothing could locate it. I've even been having dreams about finding my phone in really odd places. So finally a wonderful person from Verizon customer service did a customer service miracle and offered me a phone for $100. Amazing. So happy about that!

I'm listening to…The playlist from one of my favorite blogs "aplacecalledsimplicity.blogspot.com" I like almost all of her songs, and also figured out from looking at her list that Chris Tomlin is pretty much my favorite artist right now. I am also listening to my kids talk about their leggo monster thingy that they're building.

Looking forward to…umm….my new phone. Did I mention I'm very excited to get a phone back again? Also looking forward to cooler weather, and finishing up the renovation this summer in our little house in Minnesota. 

Missing…Munich, and Europe in general. No, Europe is not missing, but I miss it. This trip something very different happened in my mind, and I honestly could have stayed there forever without looking back. 

Praying for…God's guidance in directing our steps and big upcoming decisions. 

What's for dinner…again, no idea. Probably lasagna or a simple chicken salad. I'm technically on cooking duty when at mom's house, but at the last minute anyone could swoop in with a pizza, a chicken, or some take-out...so dinner is a toss-up. 

Sorry for a boring Thursdays with Carmen. Maybe I'll be more interesting next week. 

SUMMERTIME IN FULL SWING!

Before I continue with the trip to Italy, I thought I'd share some photos of the kids enjoying Grandma and Grandpa's pool this summer. There is an abundance of water wing floaties, ring floaties, goggles, and mini swim suits around here. The kids have a blast just playing in the water for hours each day. 

My nephew, Oliver still doesn't go in much, so he sits in his bouncer on the sidelines and takes it all in. 

My niece, Audrey, has grown into such an adorable little girlie.

And here is my wild child, my Katya Joy, loving on her cousin Oliver.

 Claire is my bathing beauty. She thinks water wings are awesome because she doesn't have to work at floating - she just stays at the top and lounges. I have to say, though, that a few days after this photo was taken, she figured out again how to swim without her floaters and now she is back and forth across the pool like a true little fishie.

 My baby girl, chillin' with her froggie.

My nephew Owen, complete with Cars floaters, enjoying the water.

And again, here is beautiful baby Oliver, hanging by the side and watching all the fun. Look at those eyes! Can you believe how gorgeous he is?!

Claire Bear, my little girl who is determined to conquer the water on her own. :)

It's so fun to see the kids swimming each day together. When I was a kid, swimming with my cousins was the most fun thing in the world. We lived for swimming at Grandma's in the summertime. It's so fun to see them creating the same memories. And I have to say, these days are perfect for swimming. I saw the thermometer climb to 109 F the other day! Ack! SO SO hot!! Looking forward to the cooler northern temperatures we're returning to in about one more week.

School is still going for us. We'll be schooling through June. Some of that is due to us having taken some unplanned breaks, and some of it is due to us having started a new curriculum in December, and working double-time to finish the entire year in just one semester. They've been working hard, and some of it is really paying off. But we're looking forward to a summer break.

TTFN!

OUR QUICK TRIP ABROAD, PART 3 - CAPRI

We made a really quick jaunt on a ferry to the island of Capri. We were only there a couple of hours, but it was beautiful and we enjoyed seeing it, if only for a brief time. It was strange to think that this is where the Apostle Paul was shipwrecked. It's such a touristy hustle and bustle now. But it is also very beautiful and has its own very mediterranean personality.

From the landing point, we took a funicular up the side of the mountain. The views were spectacular. 

After walking around Capri for a couple of hours, we hurried back to the mainland for a tour of the Amalfi coast. Now that was a real treat! More photos to follow!

OUR QUICK TRIP ABROAD, PART 2 - SORRENTO

The town of Sorrento was quaint and beautiful. Well-aged buildings, cobblestone streets, lemon and orange groves in every available space, ancient ragged cliffs with age-old tunnels and caverns, windy roads, out-of-control ivy, leather shops, cozy cafes and restaurants, beautiful lamps, orange sunsets.... everything was beautiful. There was nothing that wasn't worth photographing. Seriously, my camera and I were in heaven. I took about 600 photos, but I'll just share some of my favorites here with you. Sorrento's "thing" is lemons. They put up lattices and frames made of thick poles, and train lemon and orange groves in every yard, every uninhabited corner. And so there are limoncello stores everywhere, and many restaurants serve their own homemade limoncello. Take a swig, and you feel like you've swallowed gasoline. Breathe out, and you're likely to cause an explosion. :) Maybe that's why they keep the candles trimmed low on the dinner tables. (haha!) It's really neat, and really tasty all the same.  In Sorrento there is a network of old caves and caverns in the cliffs that we didn't go into, but we looked at with curiosity from the harbor. There are also a lot of old ruins under the city, which we didn't tour either.

Bikes, both pedal- and motor- were in abundance! And so adorable. Don't you just want to hop on and take a spin?!

We saw some pretty crazy antics on mopeds this time. Not only do they swerve in and out of traffic without caution or consideration for life or limb, but seatbelts are virtually unheard of. We saw one woman on the back of a moped, with no anchor and without holding onto her partner in front of her. She was, however, holding her infant child - he was standing precariously on her lap. I had to laugh, thinking of the car seat safety talk I just sat through in our Moms' Group, and the car seat safety training we have to undergo for our foster training. The difference in cultures and perception is astounding, really. And what may be more astounding is that I felt safer walking along the narrow streets of Sorrento without a sidewalk than I feel walking on the sidewalks in Canada/US. The reason is that Italians don't expect things to go as planned when it comes to traffic. They are ready at a moment's notice for someone to jump in front of them or for someone to run a stop sign....so while things look chaotic, it really seems to be much safer. Italians are well-practiced at avoiding accidents. :)

This is THE VIEW from downtown Sorrento, across the ancient roadway down to the pier.

Every town has a different personality at nighttime. Sorrento's was calm, quiet, and friendly.

It took me a day to realize that Vlad and I laugh more than most people out there. Not out of giddiness or immaturity, but we just think the same things are funny. And I like his jokes, which were in abundance this trip. We were just totally enjoying the break from responsibility and routine.

My very favorite times are when we sit and nurse a beer or glass of wine and talk for hours. We managed to do that a few times this trip. It was so nice to reconnect and regroup.

 I enjoyed spending waaaay too much time in a leather shop, buying purses and shoes. For those of you who know me well, you know that shopping in general - especially for purses and shoes - is NOT my thing; but the need for both, along with the smell of the shop, made for a very dangerous combination. :)

The grounds of the conference hotel were spectacular. There were so many varieties and species that I wasn't familiar with. And that sort of says a lot, considering the different places I've lived and visited in my life.

To be continued...