Visiting Grandma and School Starts

We've been busy since our last post. Ann and the boys spent a week visiting Grandma, John had a long business trip, Sammy started going to a weekly playgroup, and the weather has started turning autumn-like. Of course, Thomas started school. It's his first time attending school in the USA, and he really likes it. This weekend we've had a great time visiting friends and going to a minor league baseball game.

A day at Dingman's Falls

Although it seems like we've had nothing but rain recently, Ann, Thomas, and Sammy got the chance to get out to a nearby park. They went to Dingman's Falls for a little nature walk.

Happy Sam

Wine Trail

While we were up in the Fingerlakes, we took a little time to visit with friends and go on the Wine Trail. Great views and a very relaxing drive!

Summer and Reunions

So, since we've now moved back to the USA, we needed to change the name of our blog.

The past month has absolutely flown by. We've back into our home, and despite a few minor problems (including mold on a lot of our items that were in storage!), we made out fine. We're finally unpacked and (mostly) settled in. Samuel and Thomas absolutely love America. John and Ann, however, miss some things about italy - especially the food and coffee.

We'll probably blog a little less than we used to, but we'll try to keep the blog alive. We've had a lot of fun posting our adventures, and we intend to continue from here in PA.

This weekend we traveled to John's home town to go to his 20 year high school reunion. It was an incredibly fun event. We both feel lucky to have gone to small high schools, and John's classmates are all great people. Of course, while we were in town, we also visited a little with family. It was nice to reconnect.

Back in the USA

So, we've been back in the 'States for about 10 days now. We've been incredibly busy with buying cars, making appointments, preparing to move back home, and working. Although a hotel is still our temporary 'home', we'll be moving back to our real house in less than one week. We really can't wait.

Before we left Italy, John's co-workers put together a wonderful dinner, and invited our entire family. We received some gifts and felt very appreciated. Thomas' school also had a special 'farewell party' for the children who are moving away. It was really touching.
As for the return, for the most part it was smooth. Thomas is really enjoying America, and Sammy is just rolling along with everything. We're having just a little culture shock (the roads are 'HUGE', and our bodies are taking a while to get used to American food again). We've seen a few friends and had a wonderful Independence day. We visited the New Windsor Cantonment (not far from our hotel) to see some cannon and musket fire, and also to participate in a reading of the Declaration of Independence. That seemed like a fitting way to return to the 'States!

Moving Out

The past few weeks have been a wild blur of activity. On Tuesday and Wednesday of this week we moved out of our house. All of our things are loaded into a container, about to be shipped across the Atlantic. We're now living in a hotel for a few days, waiting for our flight back to the 'States.

Amusement Park

Tuesday is Italy's Republic Day, a national holiday.  So, we had an extra-long weekend.  It was a good thing, too, since we have a lot of chores to do.  We've started preparing our house for the movers, who are coming in mid-June.  We'd forgotten how much time it takes to prepare for an intercontinental move.  

However, we did take some time to bring Sam and Thomas to an amusement Park.  The weather's been great, and since Thomas was out of school, we wanted to do something fun for the whole family.  His favorite ride was the rocking pirate ship, and Sammy was happy just to get out and run around.  

The Week in London

For one of our last big trips before returning to the USA, we decided to visit London. We spent five full days in the city, and got to see a lot of the city. First, besides the language differences, it is interesting to us to see the differences in culture between Italy, Britain, and the USA. They're each unique, and very different. London really has a rougher, more urban feel than anywhere that we've visited in Italy. It's a fantastic city to visit, and we really packed in the sights.

To list just a few of the sites that we'd visited, we should mention the London Eye, St. Paul's Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, The British Museum, Trafalgar Square, and Shakespeare's Globe theater. Also, Thomas absolutely loved the natural history museum and all of the Dinosaurs. Sammy liked looking at fish in the London Aquarium. John and Ann were amazed by the history in Westminster Abby. We took a cruise on the River Thames and also took a tour of the Tower Bridge. One of the best sites, however, was the Tower of London, complete with the crown jewels and beefeaters. We also ate fish and chips, rode the 'Tube', and had a generally great time.

As an added bonus, Ann's sister and her boyfriend were also visiting London during our trip, so we got to have a few wonderful dinners with them.

We're now safely back in Italy, where our upcoming task will be to begin thinking about packing for our not-too-distant return.

Quite Weekend at Home

Just a quiet weekend at home for the Bedells.  Next weekend we're off to the UK for some sightseeing, so this weekend was for lawn maintenance and chores around the house. 

Visiting a New Lake and Otherworldly Rocks

This weekend was Ann's birthday, so she chose our destination. We went to Lago Iseo, a pretty little lake that's less than two hours East of our home. The lake has a number of small villages tucked along it's shores, and a huge mountainous island in its center. For her birthday, we had an incredible multi-course meal at a small and very fine ristorante. After the long lunch, we took a hike in the natural park at Zone, where we saw the incredibly strange Piramidi di Zone. These strange geologic formations are tall pillars of rock, capped by huge boulders. They're absolutely fascinating, and look like something from another world.

Other than our trip, we had a pretty good week. The moving company came to our home to do a survey. They had to measure and count our belongings for this summer's move back to the 'States. We'll keep you informed as the move date draws near.

Happy Sam and Homework Thomas

Thomas doesn't like doing homework when the sun is shining...

And Sammy is still Happy!

Museums in Mantova

May first is a holiday in Italy, as it is in most of Europe. So, Both John and Thomas were home. We just did chores around the house, cut the grass, and enjoyed the warm weather while sitting out on our patio.

Saturday, however, was our day to do some exploring. Mantova is a beautiful, and quite famous, small city at the other end of Lombardy. We left home early in the morning and spent the whole day wandering around this fascinating city. It's situated near large lakes, and is nearly surrounded by a beautiful park that stretches along the shorelines. The city is home to a great astronomical clock-tower, a huge basilica, and the Palazzo Ducale. The Palazzo is a mammoth, maze-like museum that houses some incredible art and historical artifacts. It was a day well spent.

Impossible Triangle

An Impossible Triangle at the Science Park in Mantova.

Swimming in Balls

Last weekend we went to a huge birthday party for one of Thomas' classmates. It was held at an indoor play-gym, complete with every type of climbing, sliding, and swinging aparatus imaginable. Of course, they also had those big bins of colored balls. Sammy was enthralled.

Short Trip to Monza

This weekend the Bedell family took the short drive to Monza to view some historic artifacts. Monza is perhaps best known for it's formula one racetrack, but we took a stroll through its streets and visited the famous Duomo and museum. We got to see fantastic ancient crowns and other Lombard artifacts in the museum, plus have some great pizza.

We don't have much to add in the news department. Thomas is going to a birthday party for one of his classmates this weekend, and we're planning some big trips before we return to the USA. The return date will be sometime this summer.

Other than that, as Thomas would say, we're just 'having a little relax'.

Rain, Sun, and a Critter

It has been a little while since our last post, but we've been awfully busy.  As we mentioned previously, Thomas had a full week off from school.  Unfortunately, much of the week was rainy and a little cold.  This past weekend, John had visitors at work, so we cancelled our usual trips. Also, we've been busy planning our eventual return to the 'States (which will be in the not too distant future...more news to come).   

Anyway, the weather this week has really cleared up, and it's been so nice that we've been sitting outside to enjoy evenings and nights.  

Also, Thomas has found a new hobby...scouring our yard to look for old snail shells.  He often doesn't have to look far, and found this fairly large one - complete with snail still inside!  We couldn't resist the picture, even if it is a little reminiscent of some of our previous posts. 

Pasqua Sunday and Monday

This was our second Easter in Italy, and we enjoyed it as much as the first. Although Good Friday isn't an official holiday (most businesses are open on on this day), the monday after Easter is a huge holiday. This year we enjoyed both days, staying home on Easter-day and going out onto Lago Maggiore on Monday. Of course, we decorated eggs, had lots of chocolate, and enjoyed a huge family meal on Sunday. Luckily, the weather (which had been a little uncooperative for most of the weekend) cleared up on Monday for our time on the lake. It was warm, sunny, and beautiful. We had a long lunch on the Borromean Islands and just enjoyed the weather.

This coming week is a vacation-week for Thomas, so no school. Last week in school, he was part of his class play, 'Elmer the Elephant'. He played the part of a tree (which, curiously, was a speaking part that had several lines).

We hope that everyone had a nice holiday and is enjoying spring!

Sanctuaries in Biella

This weekend we swapped our travel days. Whereas we typically set-out for an exploration on Saturday, this week we stayed at home to do some much-needed yard work on that day. So, the weed-eater and lawn mower were brought to life, and our 'garden' is now clean.

Sunday, however, we took a trip to northern Piemonte, to the province of Biella, where we drove through farm country up to the mountains. A unique sight that we encountered was a heard of cows being driven along the road, each wearing a massive cowbell.

On the trip, we visited two historic sanctuaries: Graglia and Oropra. Both were sites of religious pilgrimage and each remain working churches. Oropra is particularly well known, and still attracts religious pilgrims today. It was a beautiful day to visit, being mostly sunny, although there was still significant snow on the ground at Oropra. We had a great time.

By the way, early this morning there was a devastating earthquake in L'Aquila, in central Italy. We've had many friends and family ask if we were affected. We're too far north to have felt anything, but the catastrophe is all that people here is talking about. Our thoughts are with the victims.

Walking and Art in Arcumeggia

Ann decided for this weeks exploration that she would go to Arcumeggia. Arcumeggia is a one of the painted villages of Varese. This is one of several villages in the province that are decorated with unique paintings and other art work, making something of an outdoor museum. The drive up was a little hair raising with the narrow twisting road that leads to the village but once there the small mountain town is a walker's delight. The frescoes seemly come out of nowhere and made it into a very enjoyable walk.