Rome

It takes me awhile, but I eventually get organized enough to finish another Blog entry. I cannot believe it has been a month since we returned from Rome, and already, we are preparing to leave again on another European Adventure, or as we like to call it F-cubed, Forced Family Fun. However, I thought I should finish up my thoughts on Rome, before they get all mixed up with my thoughts on our upcoming trip.

Rome, it was everything one would expect it to be, beautiful, historic, and amazing. It was also a few things one would not expect it to be, or at least I did not expect it to be: Huge, crowded, hard to get around, and rain, lots and lots of rain. Who would have thought that Christmas would be busier then summer in Rome? Ok, maybe I would have, but that is not my travel style. My travel style goes something like this, "Hey, the girls have another break coming up next week. Where should we go? How about Rome? That sounds good, I will make reservations." Then, we get to Rome, with no itinerary whatsoever, and voila', we make it work.

And, it worked this time as well, with one exception. Our rental apartment was really far from the Metro. Who knew? It looked a lot closer on google maps. Thankfully, the horses of the Rome Police were between our apartment and the Metro, so that was good for a few moments of fun each morning. When you travel with 4 kids under 7, it takes awhile to walk anywhere, so being close to the sites is essential. Unfortunately, we weren't. I suppose it would help to be organized as well, but again, not really our travel style.

So, Rome, as I said, it is everything you would expect it to be and more. On the first day, we saw the Colosseum and a bit of the surrounding area. The ducklings loved it, and especially, the animal bones found during excavation. I was a little hesitant to mention that the ostrich bones were there because the Emperor at the time had them hunted for the spectators, so we just glossed over the details and enjoyed the bones. Another essential at the Colosseum, and really anywhere in Rome, is the rented headset. Signage does not appear to be a strong suit of the Italians (as mentioned in the Naples blog, they thrive on chaos), so having the headset for the basic info is vital. The only problem, is that to return the headset one must stand in the same line they already stood in to pick it up, and then, go all the way back around to the exit.....chaos, but a great time, rain and all.

Lunch was preceded by another hugely long walk, that allowed us to see more of the city. The restaurants in Italy are great for families, and Da Sergio's, in the Campo de'Fiori was no exception. Like a lot of things in Italy, it was hard to find but totally worth it. The food was fabulous and the children were welcomed. The littlest Duckling even has a new favorite dish....Fritto Misto or small, fried, whole fish: yummy. Another long walk returned us home after passing all the must-see sights, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Spanish Steps etc. Truly, there are hundreds of must-see sights, and no way to see them all.

Day 2 brought us to the Castel St. Angelo. Another favorite of the ducklings. The little one however was a little confused by the castle label, and kept asking, "where is the princess." No princess here sweetie, just a big statue of an angel, and a big fortress to protect the Pope in case of attack. The Castel was originally built as Hadrians tomb, but has become best known for the Passeto, or walled passage that runs directly to the Vatican, and, historically, was used to lead the Pope to safety. The highlight, besides the amazing views, was a special art exhibit highlighting works by Cezanne, Van Gogh, Renoir and others. We saw more art at the Castel then in all our time in Paris. Four kids=no Louvre.

After our tour (and yippee, no rain), we were off to lunch again. This restaurant was also highly recommended and did not disappoint. Alfredo e Ada's was described as, "like being at your Nonna's house". We knew we had to check it out. There is no menu, and they just bring out what they have made that day. OMG, so good. Girls loved it, we loved it. Most amazing part? The food came from a kitchen that was tops, 5ft by 8ft. The dishes were washed, by hand, in a small utility sink across from the kitchen, by a real Nonna. It was just like being at our Nonna (and Nono's) beach house. Nonna makes food for the masses and then washes the dishes by hand. Of course, another long walk followed, but we cut through the park, so the ducklings were (mostly) happy.

Our final day was spent touring the Vatican Museums. I am certain that I have never been in such a crowd of people as I was that day. The line to enter was over 2 hours long (apparently quite normal for high season) and, we were told, that the museum will see up to 20,000 visitors per day, also in the high season. We will be forever thankful that we joined a tour. Our guide was great, and we got to skip the long line....key with the girls. As it was the whole thing took almost 4 hours, so the patience of little ducks was wearing thin by the end. However, 20,000 people shoved into a museum, no matter how large the museum, is pretty crazy. If one was claustrophobic, I would think it would have been a horrible experience. People were quite literally right up against one another in many of the rooms. Our guide was great at getting us together and out of the way, but it was sheer chaos. That being said however, the artwork was, of course, amazing. I would love to return just to stare at the Sistine Chapel ceiling. One of the highlights for me? The spiral ramp that exits you out of the gift shop and museum. It is 6 or so levels and I found it slightly ironic that it spiraled down, down, down. I felt as though I was descending into the depths of hell, an apt description after being battered by the crowd. Luckily, after a quick lunch, we were fortified for another long trip home.

Our final trip on the Rome Metro was exciting if nothing else. It was New Year's Eve, and upon our exit, I experienced the first time I have ever, in Europe, felt singled out for being American. As we exited, a group of guys in their late teens, started shouting "Americano, Americano" and pushing against us as we pushed out. The Big Duck easily escaped, but I had a tougher time, screaming in my really pathetic Italian, "the children" as I grabbed the eldest ducklings hand and pulled her through the crowd while practically using the littlest duckling as a battering ram. As we were all ok, it ended up being more annoying then scary. I did however feel quite pleased, when it started pouring rain shortly after our arrival at the apartment, knowing that those nasty boys were standing somewhere and getting quite wet. That is called Karma.

With this, our visit to Rome ended, but we look forward to returning and exploring some of the hundreds of places we did not get to see this trip.

"Every one soon or late comes round by Rome." Robert Browning

Naples, Italy 2009

We just returned from a week in Rome and Naples. It was a great trip, and it is always interesting to leave France and see how the rest of Europe lives. Italy is especially interesting.

Just a little over two hours from our house is the Italian border. The biggest advantage of the new EU stuff, besides everywhere having the same currency, is that there is no check point at the border. However, if you miss the little sign, you still know that you are in Italy. Every building seems as if it might fall down at any second, and the further south you drive, the worse the drivers get. In France, there are two lanes, and two cars can drive side by side, one per lane with the occasionally passing scooter-type vehicle. As you move south in Italy, there are three lanes, apparently, these three lanes are to accommodate 5 vehicles across with the occasionally passing scooter. As you hit Naples, the chaos intensifies and some scooters carry more then the usual 2 people. Some carry whole families. It is quite a sight to see 5 cars in 3 lanes being passed by a scooter carrying 3 people. Thankfully the autoroute is in excellant condition given the fact that the tolls are hughly expensive. It cost us just under $75 (US) to travel most of the length of Italy.

After visiting Italy twice now, it is a common opinion in our family that the Italians thrive on chaos. This is especially true south of Rome, where they can only manage to get their trash picked up occasionally. Lucky for us, we were there in the winter, so the smell was not bad. However, there were piles of trash surrounding every dumpster. I will give a bit of benefit of the doubt as it was the Sunday after Christmas, and it is possible that no trash pick ups were scheduled until Monday. Our area in France however has trash pick up nearly every night. Apparently, we are a bit spoiled even though we have to hand carry our recyclables 2 blocks if we want to be good environmentalists.

In Italy, I was pretty impressed by the sense of community that existed everywhere. Small groups of people were gathered on nearly every street talking and laughing. Children played nearby and everyone just seemed pretty relaxed. And, everyone seemed to know their neighbors. There was much kissing, greeting and friendship. The Italians also treat children as a blessing. No matter where you go children and family are welcomed. We never entered a restaurant where the children were not smiled at and made to feel welcome. This is a contrast to France, where we rarely take our children out to eat, especially for dinner. I know I have said this before, but some restaurants here would rather have your dog at it then your children. Maybe the child aspect just adds to the chaos the Italians love so much.

Italy really was a lot of fun and a great place to visit. We were only in Naples a couple days, and if truth be told, we went there mostly so I could purchase a few, not available in France, necessities from the US Navy base located there. For some reason, black beans and dill pickles are not to be found in France. And, who are we kidding, we also had to by a few boxes of Kraft Mac-n-Cheese. No matter how many times/ways we make homemade mac-n-cheese, the girls like the boxed stuff best. They also really like the fact that base has a few American fast food favorites such as Taco Bell and A&W. There is a KFC and a Subway too, but they have those here if we are really desperate for a touch of home and that happens rarely. I think the ducklings favorite part of visiting the base, was that they have a movie theater that shows first run movies in everyones fave language...English. However fluent they are in French, some things are just more fun for them in English. Could Alvin and the Chipmunks 2 really translate to French well anyway?

Also, while we were there we decided to visit a few sites….mainly Herculaneum (In the photo above). The ducklings love history and especially ruins. Located in modern day Ercolano, just south of Naples, Herculaneum was perfect. Similar to Pompeii in that it was destroyed by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, it is much smaller, much less commercialized and still absolutely incredible. It was the perfect half-day adventure for the family. We spent almost 4 hours exploring every nook and cranny. It was simply amazing, just as though you are walking through a pretty intact ghost town. You feel like you are actually in a working excavation site, and you are. Although no one was working the day we were there you could see where they did work, and although they did not have any pamphlets in English (why? Who knows), they did have French. Also, much of the, mostly well marked, signage was in both English and Italian. To end our really amazing visit, we had a late lunch at a nearby restaurant. It would have been prefect had the little blond duckling not left her raincoat there, where it remains to this day. Actually, you cannot really blame a 5 year old, but I will blame the Big Duck who you would think would have learned, after 4 ducklings, that you need to check the table when you leave a restaurant. I am thankfully in the clear as I was already in the car by that point.

All in all Naples was a fun couple days. Our next adventure took us to Rome, and that is where the fun really began. Until then...au revoir.

Summer is coming to an end....

Today is a very exciting day in the Canard household. The cleaning lady is returning from her extended summer vacation. She has been visiting her mother since the beginning of July. I am quite jealous of the extended French vacation. Everyone we know has been gone all summer. Most people have gone to visit family, staying a couple weeks and then either returning sans kids or vacationing on their own. Did I mention, sans kids? As the Big Duck technically works for the U.S. we do not enjoy the same benefit. Did I mention, jealous?

Not only does Madame P come once a week to vacuum and scrub, she watches the littlest duckling, giving me one afternoon a week to myself. Granted, I usually do my big grocery trip of the week, but it is blissful to be alone. And, that is saying something as I go to Carrefour, the French equivalent of the Wal-Mart Super Store only with more people crowding every conceivable space. In Madame P's absence, I did manage to vacuum several times a week and even cleaned a few toilets, but let's face it, unless the kids knocked over the dogs water, the floors were just not getting cleaned. Having four ducklings at home and under foot every day, all day for the past 7 weeks is not conducive to accomplishing anything at the house. I consider it a miracle that the laundry got done, although come to think of it, they did wear swimsuits a lot cutting down on laundry volume.

So, although I will remember this summer, our first here in France, with fondness, what I am really looking forward to having is a clean house and more then 30 seconds to myself. Did I mention, Blissful?