And so.....
Sat, 09/29/2007 - 14:08 — Diana
And so as the moon shines brightly our journey is almost at an end! We thought we would conclude our content now because the internet facilities here are so good and we leave for Rome tomorrow beginning the long journey home. Harry can be seen enjoying our last tasty morsels in Italy at Meletti's restaurant in his home town of Ascoli Piceno of which an overall scene can be seen as well in another photo. We have enjoyed the company and great hospitality of his Ascolan family over the past few days. We take this opportunity to thank Andrew Pritchard for organising our journeys, Peter Taekema for setting up the website (and encouraging us to actually use it!), Damon Jeffrey for his tech support and all our families and friends for their prayers and emails!! We might even continue to use the sight for anyone interested! Arrivederci!!!
Siena
Mon, 09/24/2007 - 08:51 — Diana
As we left Florence to begin our journey to Ascoli Piceno (Harry's home town) the radio played "the long and winding road" - how appropriate! 30 minutes into the journey we decided to stop in at Siena to have a quick look and ended up staying for about 6 hours, it is a beautiful old fortified city home of the famous Palio. The sun shone majestically and we enjoyed coffee and panforte of course. Harry was tempted to take off on an old bike as he is suffering cycle withdrawal symptoms now while I was more interested in the cheeses, salamis and wines in the shop window! We also went to a display of falconery with both falcons and (very big!) owls swooping for prey as commanded and called by their master, with the hunting dog endearing himself to everyone. Amazingly we bumped into an Aussie couple which we had met earlier in the week at a petrol station in northern Italy - it is a small world! Due to our unexpected long stay we ended up driving at night to get to Ascoli with Diana freaking out about the tight curves along the way. However we arrived and now enjoying the lovely weather, catching up with relatives and preparing ourselves for home - and work!!
Paris to Florence
Fri, 09/21/2007 - 14:23 — Diana
We haven't had many opportunities to access the internet so here is a quick resume of our follies since our last posting! We took an overnight train from Paris to Milan (9 hrs in a sleeper cabin with 4 other people) Very cramped but we all managed, however not much sleep gained! Arrived in Milan and crashed in our hotel. Had a amazing seafood dinner with Diana's cousin Claudia and her husband Rocco who have a restaurant in Milan and the following day were treated to a surprise outing to La Scala to see Don Quixote with Diana's aunt Carla and Uncle Dino. All in all two very magical Milan experiences! Harry then hired a car (Fiat Punto) and drove across to Friuli (with aunt Carla) where most of Diana's relatives live. Again were treated with great hospitality and affection by cousins Nicoletta and Mauro where we stayed and caught up with many other great family members too. Harry then capably drove to Florence (about 4 hrs) notwithstanding a few anxious moments..................! Now staying in beautiful romantic Florence in a hotel (there's a story to long to tell in that too) just outside the city overlooking the countryside. Yesterday took a trip to La Spezia to catch up with Harry's cousin Pio and wife Rosalba and family which included a lovely car trip to the Cinque Terre. See if you can solve where and what the photos mean!!!!!
Gay Paris
Fri, 09/07/2007 - 11:40 — Diana
Once again we have been lucky in Paris enjoying perfect weather for sightseeing. We are doing the tourist thing, visiting the Eiffel Tower, Palace at Versaille, Arc de Triomphe, and attended Mass at Notre Dame (beautiful sung responses) today we go to the Louvre. The only thing driving Diana nuts is the french keyboard which has letters in the wrong places but Harry has mastered enough French to manage the website luckily! This is a beautiful city and the underground has been a lot of fun deciphering the routes, Diana has given up!
Memories of LONDON
Tue, 09/04/2007 - 07:38 — Diana
Our brief visit to London evoked memories for both of us as we walked around Picadilly Circus and soaked up the atmosphere. The weather has been very kind, perfect really, and we have been able to do quite a bit of walking.(Although, take heed not to take sandals off in Hyde Park near lake to frolic in the grass because ducks do the same and once sandals back on, bees love looking up ladies slacks to bite thighs!).
Getting to know our History in Philadelphia.
Mon, 09/03/2007 - 08:08 — Diana
The purpose of our visit to Philly was to find a branch of the family tree missing for almost 100 years! We met our extended Philadelphian family (thanks to Mike & Debbie& Sarah for their hospitality and Ann Marie, Jamie too) and were delighted to make this connection and also to discover the delights of the city too!
So much to see in Seattle.
Mon, 09/03/2007 - 08:05 — Diana
Staying with Roy, Tonia, Alana and Emma in Seattle was again another amazing family adventure, from finding starfish and crabs aplenty along the beautiful coast to fishing in the forest lakes (yes amazingly 5 trout were caught by the boys and immediately put on the bbq which the girls had been keeping alive all day in anticipation of a catch) and collecting the unusual "Sand Dollars" along the Pacific shoreline we were treated to lots of treats in Seattle.
Oh! just the Grand Canyon
Mon, 08/13/2007 - 14:29 — Diana
The sheer size of the Grand Canyon is difficult to describe, even the photos can't fully capture its grandeaur. Considering the Los Vegas heat 41 degrees we decided that the the least amount of time spent in the sun would be the best option. So we took a helicopter ride into the canyon and in the shade shelter enjoyed a champagne lunch and absorbed the magnificent view. The new walkway was booked out for the days we were there and is really busy so you can only spend about 15 minutes on site.
Fun in Vegas
Mon, 08/13/2007 - 14:19 — Diana
Despite Diana not being really keen on going to Vegas, she had a great time!
Upgrade!
Mon, 08/13/2007 - 14:11 — Diana
Sometimes life has its little rewards - checking in at Lima airport for our LAN Peru flight to Miami, our names were called over the PA system, well what haven't we done now?
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