Buon Giorno, Italia

With an apartment lined up in some small Tuscan town, a tiny Italian rental car, a fairly loose schedule and an Ipod app that could translate our allergy concerns from English to Italian we felt as ready as possible to set off on a 10 day adventure.

I should also mention that fitting a 10 day holiday into one blog post seems a bit too much. Because I view this blog partly as a family record, feel free to skim or skip my potentially lengthy Italy posts...consider yourselves warned!!

Our first night home from Italy, Devin and I were talking in the kitchen and he dubbed this vacation our "manic holiday". I think it is so fitting. It was filled with amazing times as well as difficult ones. Let's just say that traveling with us is never easy but we are so glad we did it - even if I did ask myself on a few occasions why we try??

As usual, we were the full blown circus as we checked in at the airport. Luggage that was too heavy caused us to buy an additional carryon bag to put things in and help distribute the weight better. I wish there were an exemption for people who have to fit a nebulizer, food for 1 child (because I was not sure I could read labels well enough and he'd need to eat), medical supplies, etc. but there's not...so we made due. After only one diaper change (or two) we boarded the plane and arrived to sunshine which set me off on a very good foot! That was followed by a 1 hour wait in line for our rental car at which point our credit cards were being denied. Note to self: call credit card companies and tell them you will be traveling next time!!!! After working things out and getting our car we realized it may be a very tight fit.

Poor Clara...

But we were off and immediately began enjoying the beautiful scenery. Sunflower fields, hills and vineyards were everywhere. We wound our way up to the top of a small mountain where we would be staying. It was a tiny town called San Boronto and it had the most amazing view! We immediately searched for food for our hungry children. The restaurants were all full and so thanks to a kind lady at the local cafe (and thanks to Devin's Ipod that translated for us and came in VERY handy) we got him some sliced ham and between that and the food I brought, we were set.

After Jonas was in bed Devin went next door and came back with the most delicious pizza I have ever tasted. It was about 9pm by now and we sat with Clara on our bed enjoying our dinner.

It was about now that the live music began. It was coming from the restaurant next door and was completely captivating.

A band playing and people dancing - it kept us all entertained.

To the point Clara did not want to go to bed and even brushed her teeth while watching.

The next day we all slept in and then headed to a bigger town that had a grocery store. It was fun wandering around picking out food for some meals. That afternoon, Devin and Clara went swimming at the unheated pool while Jonas napped and I read. So relaxing!! With not much time left in the day, we headed to Lucca and see the old walled city and find dinner. It was a really cool town and we found what would be Jonas's best meal of the trip - rice pasta and steak. He loved it and after the first gelato of the trip, we left Lucca happy.

Siena was next on our list. It was about 1.5 hours away and this is when we discovered that two things I never wanted to rely on as a mother had quickly become my new BFFs. They are McDonalds and movies in the car. You see, Jonas is not the easiest to travel with. For some unknown reason, the second we get in the car he thinks he needs to eat (no matter if he just barely ate) and makes this request repeatedly and loudly. I don't think this is always what he really wants because even if I offer food he likes, it may not really be what he wants. But regardless, it is what he asks for. So on our way, we stopped at McDonalds and then put a movie on our laptop. My visions of not having TVs in the car flew out the window and I completely get it now!!! It was the dreamiest drive I've had in a long time.

A pretty view and a small playground were the first things we found. The children enjoyed playing and it was fun to let them since we knew the rest of the day would be mostly focused on what we wanted to do.

Next we grabbed some Italian sandwiches (I know...of course they were Italian, but it is just fun to say that) and walked around the piazza. This is where each year they have the bareback horse racing that is a HUGE part of Siena culture. We saw the fountain and then headed to my new very favorite cathedral. It was seriously breathtaking and a camera just couldn't capture the inside well enough.

Completely done in black and white stripes...I am amazed at how this was built so long ago but how modern it felt. I just loved the black and white so much!!

Gelato was next on our list of things to do before heading home. We stopped by a busy shop and asked about allergies but they didn't have anything suitable. One employee did tell us of oa place just up the street. We were so happy to find it and it was one of the best we had. Jonas sometimes has some sensory reactions that can interfere with regular activities - like getting a treat that he wants and has been asking for. As a result, he doesn't always know how to respond and can scream instead of just happily eat. This happened repeatedly on this trip (remember how I mentioned manic??) but this one time, Clara was able to step in as the Jonas-whisperer and got him to eat his treat.

By this point we had walked back past the original gelato shop and Devin felt that the honorable thing to do would be to buy something from them to show our thanks for telling us about a different shop. So after that good deed, we wandered back to our car and drove home in time for an amazing sunset dinner 'al fresco'.

This is also where we would eat breakfast each morning. The very first word Jonas would say when he woke up was "church" and then "treat" because he wanted to go outside and sit where he could see the church, hear the church bells and eat his treat cereal that he & Clara (okay, and the parents) get on vacation!

My favorite day of the trip came next. We drove north about 1.5 hours and then took a short train ride into Cinque Terre. This is an area that is now a national park and is comprised of 5 small towns build along the rocky coast. There is no road that links them all, rather a walking path. There is now a train that goes between them and a ferry that can go to 4 of the 5. We arrived in Riomaggiore and walked along the picturesque path to Manarola. They are such colorful towns full of character, good food and amazing views.

I just can't imagine living here and what it must be like to be a local - most towns won't even allow hotels. They each have market day once a week when fresh food comes in. From Manarola we took the train past the next two towns (due to time) and ended at Monterosso where we enjoyed our first European beach. I have some really cute pictures of Clara I'd love to post but unfortunately there is a topless 14 year old right behind her in most of them (way to go Devin for not noticing) and I find it completely wrong!!! But I can safely post this one of Clara who is confused as to why I am telling her she will definitely need a shower that night.

Jonas was completely mellow this day and at first we were thrilled until he wouldn't eat (refer to earlier - NOT normal) and then laid on me the entire afternoon at the beach sleeping (again, NOT normal). By the end of the day we realized he had an actual fever and was not feeling good at all. We felt badly for ever being happy about his mellow mood once we realized why.

As I relaxed on the beach with Jonas napping on me, I was able to just look up at the mountains around me that were so beautiful and then at the vibrant ocean and decided I could stay there for a really long time.

We had to catch the last ferry back though, so we packed up and headed out in time to catch the wettest ride of my life. I was enjoying the views of the 5 towns on our way back when the boat hit some very large waves and water came pouring over the side of the boat right onto ME. It was shocking, cold and scared Jonas when he saw it that he started crying. It took a long time to dry off.

We now had one day before heading to Rome so we decided to go to the Pisa and see the tower and then the nearby US Military Base where we could get some things we needed.

While in Pisa, we also made an important purchase. Both Clara & Devin had left their sunglasses at home and were in need. Thanks to this great street vendor, we found the perfect ones. Can you guess who picked out Clara's?

We then spent the afternoon relaxing on the American beach owned by the military. Again, Jonas was sick and completely mellow which had us a little worried...until the next day when we woke up early to get a train to Rome and Jonas was back to normal!!

More on Rome to come...