The Calm After the Storm

During the downpour of rain that we received here in Sicily over this past week, we didn't catch many glimpes of Mt. Etna. She was usually surrounded by angry storm clouds, but this morning, as I looked out of our 3rd floor window, I could actually see the top, and what a sight! There is a thick blanket of snow now further down the slopes than I have ever seen! I guess all that nasty rain left behind a nice little surprise for us after all. To see some other pictures of this week's rain and cute stories, click on our friend Maryellen's blog site (in the right column). She's much better about updating her site than I am, so you can always check her out for a good read!

Swingin' London

Well, I guess old news is better than no news......about a month ago, Phil was asked to go to the UK to learn about reading PSAT scores at an air force base. We decided that since this good ol' Uncle Sam was paying for his trip there, that I might as well tag along and we would make a little trip out of his training. So, for 2 days we hung out at Lakenheath Air Force base, a couple of hours away from London, where Phil learned about things like how many students understand the quadratic formula and I got to watch lots of British morning talk shows, including their own version of "The Jerry Springer Show". Somehow, people just don't sound as trashy talking about getting pregnant at 15 ON PURPOSE when they say it with such a nice accent! Once Phil completed the training, we traveled back to London and hit the town!

We stayed in a hotel in the Notting Hill area, amongst white pristine townhouses, colorful flats, and eclectic shops. To get there, we rode the train from Heathrow, where we dropped off the other teachers who had been traveling with us. Now, this train here in London is a trip! As if London is not expensive enough, they have their subway (the tube) system so cleverly worked out that you have to pay more money to ride through certain zones of the city! Now they know that most people want to get to where the action is, so that's all in Zone 1, aka Ground Zero for your wallet! It's genius, but also frustrating to an out-of-towner coughing up $5 for one train ride! I don't know how the average Londoner can afford to leave the house! I'd become a hermit there for sure.

Anywho, we had a lovely time. We went to the theatre on Friday night and saw The Mousetrap by Agatha Christie, which is the longest running play in its 53rd year (I believe, but this could be a lie!) Now, anyone can tell you that I love me some Agatha Christie. In fact, I grew up reading all of her suspense stories about old ladies with sensible shoes and parlor maids being strangeled by a lunatic nephew, but she was not my first choice. After our first 2 choices fell through, that is what we were stuck watching. "Ewan McGregor, if you're out there and reading this, I really tried to see you in Guys and Dolls, honest!" But, it was a good show in a nice theatre and we had fun with all the other senior citizens visiting London.

On a crisp and suprisingly sunny Saturday morning we visited the market on Portobello Road, and darned if I couldn't stop singing the Sherman brothers classic "Portobello Road" from Bedknobs and Broomsticks all dang weekend! I don't know if this song takes over other people like it did to Phil and I, but it became really annoying after about the 76th time of hearing it repeated in my head (chorus only--I'm not that dedicated of an Angela Lansbury fan!) Portobello Road is a neat place and luckily it wasn't too far from our hotel, so we hauled our booty back, then hit the road in search of a double decker bus to drive us around to all of the sights.

This is probably the best way to get around and see the majority of the tourist attractions if you have a limited amount of time in which to do it, like we did. You can get off and on a bus all day long so you can actually get out and pose with the hundreds of other people in front of Big Ben or St. Paul's Cathedral. Sit on top, then you have a much better shot at taking somewhat decent pictures.

Now that we know how to get around and where most things are located, we will definitely be traveling back sometime soon. Now if a rich great aunt could just pass away and leave me a small fortune to spend wisely, I could actually afford to return to that great city of London.

Portobello Road, Portobello Road, Street where the riches of ages are sold........Saturday morning at the Portobello Road Market

Phil's senior picture moment in front of Westminster Abbey

Queenie in London 2 weeks ago

Phil and bro Ben at Devil's Lake

Phil and Aja in front of the Freak Monkey after the race.

August - October: Oh, How the Time Flies!

This is just unexcusable. I ought to be kicked out of this whole blogger business and just give up on my journalism dreams. If there is a rehab program for this kind of neglect, I want to be first on the list. I have gone 2 whole months without so much as a hello or a picture or anything. My apologies to all of you. Now, I am back on track and ready to write, so here goes......

Our time back in the States seems like ions ago. We spent our days visiting with friends and family, swimming at Devil's Lake, shopping for the little things like cow hooves (they're Oscar's favorite) and face wash that we don't have over here in Sicily, traveling to Chicago to see Carrie and Andrew (and a creepy and controversial exhibit called Body Works), and hanging out at the good ol' Lenawee County Fair. You see, Phil had it timed perfectly so that we would be home while the fair was running strong.

He said it was so we could support Ben at the pig show, but I knew otherwise. Phil had one thing on his mind, and that thing was the Figure 8 race. He's been involved in it 3 times prior, and was itching for another chance to ram into cars and leave the other hillbillies of Lenawee county in his dust. Driving in Sicily has really prepared him for this task, as we endure figure 8 style driving everyday here where the craziest and most ruthless people get behind the wheels of their Fiat Cinquecentos and Ford Fiestas (oh yeah, they're a big hit over here!). Sicilians have no concept of looking before they pull out onto the road and they will turn any stretch of asphalt into a 3 lane highway. And why should they care what happens to their cars? The majority of them drives pieces of crap anyway. So, back to the race....

If success was measured in the form of greatest number of gasps from the audience, then Phil would have claimed the top prize for sure! Every time he neared the center of the figure 8, he came within millimeters of T boning the approaching cars. Ooooooo! That was close! Eeeeek! Geeeez! That's all I heard myself saying on the videotape. Sadly, he didn't win, but there's always next summer..........the Freak Monkey will ride again!

Weekend in Marsala and Marettimo

Last weekend Phil and I traveled to the west side of the island to visit with our friends, Maureen and Rick, who live in Marsala (wine, anyone?). Well, we didn't spend much time in Marsala because on Saturday morning we boarded a ferrry which took us to one of the Egadi islands, Marettimo. Marettimo is one of 3 Egadi islands and it falls in size and population between the larger Favignana and the smaller Levanzo. Most of the tourists here are Italian, but if you come to Sicily and overlook this place, you are really at a lose! It is gourgeous! Maureen had already set up our lodging and boat trip with a woman named Pina and her brother Pietro, both of whom speak near perfect English. They are brother and sister, and shortly after arriving I can tell that this is an island made of a close knit community as everyone seems to know each other and are glad to recommend sites which are run by friends or family members! Hey, you have to get business somehow, right? Well, Pietro was our captain for the day and he gave us a splendid tour. His boat was immaculate and included a galley kitchen, sleeping area, and bathroom. Apparently he used to take this boat every year to Alaska for fishing, but now has turned it into a business venture in his later years. As we cruised around the island, Pietro pulled into breathtaking cave after cave for our viewing pleasure, but we couldn't linger too long as other boats were right behind to take it all in too. We stopped about 3 times to swim, and it was on the second stop that Phil and I were introduced to Medusa.

We were swimming into a cave which Pitero told us would open up into a little beach area on the inside. Well, Maureen and Rick were ahead with the flashlight, goggles, and mask, so they had a pretty good idea what we were swimming toward (and what was swimming around us). Phil and I on the other hand were just swimming blindly and couldn't see if the little Medusa jellyfish were heading our way or not. Turns out that they were as Phil was stung right on the chin. As soon as I saw him jump out of the water, I knew what had happened, so let's just say I wasn't worried about getting to that beach anytime soon! We started swimming back out of the cave when I felt an electric shock right on my left hip bone--ouch, Medusa! Those things are not too big, but they still hurt! After we got back to the boat, I realized that I had actually been stung in 3 places and they were swelling up quickly. An Italian woman on the trip with us had been prepared for this, as she had ammonia from the pharmacy with her, which is supposed to help with the sting. It smelled horribly, and I felt really bad for Phil because he had to hold it right below his nose. Lesson learned, no more cave swimming when the Medusa are still in season! The swelling went down that night, so it wasn't too bad, and now we both just have little blisters from the initial sting.

I have pictures to share, but unfortunately they are from a disposible camera because our camera battery died as I tried to take the first picture. We are definitely planning on going back, maybe in September or October when the Medusa should be long gone.

For pictures of the island:

http://wikitravel.org/en/Egadi_Islands
http://www.world66.com/europe/italy/sicily/lib/gallery

The Modern Stone Age Doggy

Is that Oscar in that picture or Dino from The Flinstones with that dinosaur-sized bone? If there was anything in the world that Oscar was depressed, worried, or stressed out about, he definitely forgot it all when he laid eyes on the treat that our butcher neighbor gave him! See, we have a butcher right around the corner from our house and we always see him on our daily walks. He loves Oscar and always waves us over to pet him. Phil decided that we should ask for a bone from the butcher to keep Oscar occupied. We just wanted something small, like a joint or something, but instead we got the bone of all bones! I don't even know what it is--cow, horse--but Oscar loves it and will not let it out of his sight!

The Pope addressing the crowd on St Peter's day.

Phil and me in the Colosseum

Us and the folks on the Amalfi Coast

Missing in Action

Hello everyone out there in the world! Sorry I have been missing in action for over a month, but I promise to make it up to you all by giving you loads of information and pictures right now! Here goes...

Well, school is finally over for the year and summer has arrived! We kicked off the end of school by visiting the Greek theatre in Taormina again for one of the world premieres of "Batman Begins". Toarmina has a film festival every year, as well as other stage productions and performers, so they create a stage and lots of people come every year. So, for FREE (that never happens anymore, right?) we watched Batman Begins in a theatre from way back under an eerie moonlit sky. There were some famous people in town for the film festival, but ther person who was at the screening was Andie MacDowell because she was in a few of the films being shown at the festival and she received an award before the movie began. I was excited because she was in "Four Weddings and a Funeral", one of my all time favorite movies!

The next morning, my mom and stepdad arrived in sunny Sicilia! We welcomed them with a party on Saturday night with a lot of our friends from the base, as well as our Italian friends and neighbors. I was too busy to take any pictures, but it was fun and nice to actually meet some of our neighbors--they were all so sweet!

Since then we have been toting the folks all over this country. They've been up Mt Etna, shopping and exploring in Catania, Caltigirone (famous for its pottery), Taormina, Agrigento, etc. since they are not leaving until Tuesday. We also went on a side trip to the Aeolian island of Lipari, which is one of 7 islands off the NE coast of Sicily. It was amazing--we stayed for 2 nights and explored the city's ancient castle, nearby beaches, winding alleyways and streets.

Then we drove up to Rome for another 2 nights--we needed more because there is so much to see and do in Rome! We stayed a few blocks from Vatican City and walked for hours under a sweltering Roman sun to see sights such as the Colusseum, Trevi Fountain, Roman Forum, Campo di fiori (market), Pantheon, lots of piazzas, etc. We tried to go into the Vatican museum and St Peter's Basilica the next morning, but we noticed that a lot of people were gathering there and that a lot of stores in Rome never opened for the day. We came to find out that Wednesday was St Peter's/St Paul's day and that the museum was closed and mass was being held in the church. We were totally bummed because we were planning on leaving for Sorrento that afternoon. We were about to leave after the mass ended, but we noticed that more people were gathering in St Peter's square and they all seemed to be anticipating some big event. Well, after sitting posed with my camera, ready for action, for about 10 minutes, a window opened in the Pope's apartment and he began to address the crowd! It was so unbelievable! He said a lot in Italian about the importance of the day and a prayer, but then he addressed the English, Spanish, and German speakers in the crowd. I'm not even a Catholic, but the event still felt so monumental, and we forgot our disappoint about missing the museum. Besides, now we have a lot of reasons to return to Rome!

Lastly, we drove to the city of Sorrento, which is just south of Naples. This area of the world is simply breathtaking! From our hotel we could gaze upon the slopes of Mt. Vesuvius and the Gulf of Naples. We didn't have time to visit Pompeii or Vesuvius, but we will in good time. After our exerting time in Rome, we just wanted to relax and let our sunburns take a break! Sorrento is known for the craft of inlaid wood, lemon goods, cheese, and the droves of Brits who just love to have their holiday there. It is also near the beginning of the infamous Amalfi coast. We stayed 2 nights, even though we had planned on 1, because it was so relaxing. On Friday we began the drive down the twisty coastal road on our way back to Sicily. I think the film "Mr and Mrs Smith" was filmed recently in a small town north of Positano on this coastline, as well as numerous films over the years. Many times when I was driving, I would meet a bus coming around a hairpin turn who was flying along--there wasn;t much to do except hold on and pray we would still be there once it passed!! This is a must see area if you ever come to Italy!

Now we are back in Sicily just taking it easy and preparing for the next adventure! Ciao for now, and I promise it won't be so long until next time.

Me in our box.

All the dancers from around the world saluting the Nutcracker.

The curtain call of the entire cast.

Christine and me in the Bellini

Ballet Weekend at the Bellini Theatre and Soccer in Ramstein

I know this sounds more like something that should be done around Christmas time, but my friend Christine and I went to see the ballet "The Nutcracker" last Saturday at the Bellini theatre in Catania. During the entire performance I was conflicted between watching the orchestra play and the dancers dance--they were all so amazing! I love Tschiakovsky and I love to watch dancers doing their thing--this was much more engaging than the opera I saw. We were seated in a box on the 4th floor kind of along the side, so it was a bit hard to see the entire stage. We were sharing the box with 2 other people from Sig, and let me tell you, those were not designed to seat more than 2 with a view of the stage. I actually ended up standing the majority of the time so I wouldn't have to strain my neck to see, but I actually preferred that because then I could mimic the dance moves at the same time--never should have dropped out of ballet all those years ago!! There are some pictures on my Yahoo site of the performance and my friend and I in the theatre--although we got yelled at a few times for taking too many pictures of the theatre interior with the flash on--who knew, they didn't have any signs with that info! Apparently, you can take 1 shot with the flash, but then "basta". I got 3 and talked the lady out of deleting the 2 that were only of our faces--we'll probably never be allowed back in there.

Another funny story--while we were waiting for Matt, Christine's husband to come and pick us up, we went to a bar and I ordered a White Russian to drink. So we pay, give the bartender our ticket, Christine gets her drink and I wait for mine. Then I wait some more because the bartender has decided to make this drink the best white russian I have ever had (which it did eventually turn out to be). 15 minutes later I see the guy frothing up the cream and pouring it into the drink over a spoon so it will stay on top. Then, as he hands it to me he moves his hand too quickly and sloshes it a bit. I say "va bene" and take it rather than wait another 15 minutes for the refreshment. It was, however, worth the wait. The ratios of Kahlua, vodka, and cream were perfecto and I loved every minute of that concoction. There is also a picture of that in Yahoo. Enjoy!

For all you soccer fans, Philip has finally returned to me from Germany, safe and sound. No injuries this time. Just a little lost luggage and delays, but they made it to Ramstein. The boys were seeded 8th, so they played 2 games on Thursday--won 1, lost 1. This allowed them to go onto Friday, where they lost to the number 1 seeded team 3-0. Philip said they dominated the game, but just couldn't score. Unfortunately, they did not place, but there is always next year:)

The Sig girls team was on a winning streak. They were seeded #3 going in, and they actually won the tournament! They are now the #1 girls soccer team in all of DODDS Europe for Div 3.

A detailed look at the work in Noto.

The Street of Flowers in Noto

Festa di Fiore in Noto

Last Sunday my friend Christine and I took an ITT tour down to the city of Noto, a city from the Baroque era, to marvel at the incredible works of art made entirely out of flowers, seeds, grains; basically anything natural! I think the theme this year had something to do with Opera--I'm not quite sure. What happens is people submit their design early to be considered for the annual event, then about 12 are picked to actually be created on this street in Noto using nothing but all natural materials. It was truly amazing to witness--I cannot even imagine how long those artists must have labored to create such exact replicas of their original designs! We were also just in time for a parade, which included people dressed in Baroque-style pieces. I think they were recreating some sort of event and they represented people from the big families of older times. They all met in front of the town hall and sat under their family flag, then I have no idea what was happening, but it was being televised, so it must have been pretty important!

Noto is an interesting place to visit, although a lot of its main buildings were damaged during the earthquake of '92, so there is a lot of scaffolding covering them presently. It is located in the southeastern tip of Sicily, about 35 kilometers SW of Siracusa. The original city of Noto (now referred to as Noto Antica) was destroyed in the big earthquake of 1693 and was rebuilt completely on a different site in the Baroque style. I also learned about a great drink to help cool you off--a glass of iced tea with a few scoops of lemon granita in it--so good! It's like an Arnold Palmer (my favorite summer time drink), but better!

I have posted some pictures from Noto on my Yahoo photo link.

http://www.bestofsicily.com/noto.htm for info about Noto

The 2005 Sigonella Soccer Team

The Head Guys, Lally on the left and Stuyvesant on the right singing "You've Lost that Loving Feeling".

Me and Julianna, aka "The Groupies"

The band. Leslie is in the front on the far right, and Manny is next to her. The really tall guy is the orthodontist, and Gary is in the back, second from the right.

Sigonella Idol

Hi everyone! I had the best time last night at the third annual Sigonella Idol!! It is more of a talent show than a competition and it is sponsored by the AOSC (all officers spouse club) to raise money for the senior scholarship fund. I went ultimately to see the performance of not only my neighbor, Manny, but also of my friend Leslie and her husband Gary, who all performed as a live band the song "Short Skirt, Long Jacket" by the group Cake. It was so funny! The lead singer was the orthodontist from the base, Leslie and her 2 friends were the back up singers, Gary was playing bass, and Manny was on drums--there were a few others, but I cannot remember their names. A few other really good performances came from "Madonna" singing "Dress You Up (in my love)", a man singing "Mrs. Jones" was really talented and soulful, and an Italian man named Massimiliano Constantino who sang "Con Te Partiro" (Time to Say Goodbye) so perfectly it gave us all goosebumps. As I later learned, he is on his way to "making it big", so remember that name!

Another highlight of the show was the "Kamakazee Karaoke" which happened about 5 times inbetween song blocks. People could pool money to get someone up to sing karaoke. The person nominated could either match the money raised against himself, or sing karaoke. Well, someone raised $200 for 2 of the COs (commanding officer--THE head people) of the base to get up and perform, and they did! It was so funny!

Phil was gone to Naples with the soccer team, so he missed the show. The team lost pretty majorly, like 0-9 or something. They also lost at home last weekend to the American School of Rome, 1-4. They will be playing Marymount next weekend, then flying to Milan the weekend after that, then tournament in Ramstein, Germany after that. After that, no more sports!! Oops, did I sound too enthusistic about that??:)

In the Temple of Hercules

A Spooky Alley in Erice

The Temple at Segesta

Ladies at the Murgo Winery

On Thursday, I visited the Murgo Winery in San Venerina on the slopes of Mt. Etna, only about 20 min. from my house, with the AVID ladies. Leslie, one of the tutors, knows the owners of the winery well, so she arranged a lunch and wine tour for us. The lunch was delicious, with typical Sicilian courses (antipasta-olives, salami, grilled artichokes and eggplant, sauteed mushrooms, etc.; primi piatta--penne tossed with fine breadcrumbs and olive oil; secondi piatta--meats like stuffed chix, sausages, pork chops; dolci--fresh fruits and a cake) plus tons of wine and spumante. The winery produces a brut spumante, which is made with a process identical to champagne production, but different from prosecco--very smooth! They also produce typical Sicilian red, white, and rose wines, a pure Chardonnay and Cabernat Sauvignon, olive oil, jams, etc. Leslie's friend who showed us around and ate lunch with us is named Micala, who is the son of the Baron who owns the winery. There is also a lovely Bed and Breakfast on the grounds. Here is there website and it has an English version:

www.murgo.it

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/hdlions/album?.dir=/7e4a&.src=ph&.tok=phmSV1CBIDLJSHNb

to view pictures from our visit that my friend Maryellen took

Spring Break Adventures in Sicilia

Hello everyone! I am finally able to use the internet in our house, as it has been very tempremental for about a week now! I have to hurry and finish this before a cloud sweeps across Mt. Etna and ruins my connection!!

Phil and I have been on Spring Break since last Friday, and rather than jump on another plane and head off somewhere exciting, we decided that we hadn't spent enough time traveling around the beautiful island of Sicily. We began on Tuesday morning by driving down to the southwest corner of the island where the ancient city of Agrigento and the Valley of the Temples lies overlooking the coastline. We didn't go into Agrigento, because our real interest was with the ruins in the valley. The ruins are Roman in origin, with the oldest having been constructed in the 3rd century B.C.!! It felt really strange to be climbing and exploring over things with so much history and age. The temple that is in the best condition is the Temple of the Concord, which owes its well preserved state to the fact that it was transformed into a Christian basilica in the 6th century. Other ruins include those of a Early Christian necropolis, a Hellinistic-Roman quarter where the people lived, a rock sanctuary of Demeter, the Temple of Juno Lacinia, Temple of Castor and Pollux, Temple of Hercules, and the Temple of Olympian Zeus. This is a must see if you ever travel to Sicily!

Next we drove north along the coast and stopped in the cities of Marsala (home of Marsala wine) and Trapani (known for its sea salt extraction and fishing), but we settled overnight in the medeival mountain town of Erice, located on the mountain of Erice above the city of Trapani. We stopped for directions while in Trapani, but a man at a hotel said we shouldn't go to Erice then because it was surrounded by a giant cloud. We went anyway, but it was really spooky and mysterious. As we drove up the winding road to Erice, we began to see less and less of the beautiful aquamarine water and sunset below. First came a light fog, which became a very dense fog shortly, then the rain and wind. I felt like I was in an Alfred Hitchcock movie--it really was like medieval times. It was only 7:30 at night, which for those of you who have been to Italy, you know that is usually when everyone is starting to come out. Not here--there wasn't a person or car to be seen anywhere! As we manuvered our car through the narrow and winding streets, we finally found a little motel called The Edelweiss, which my friend Leslie had mentioned, however we decided not to stay there as it was a little "rustic" (as Leslie later mentioned to me). We opted for a place called Il Moderno, which was nice and had a restaurant. The next day it was still very foggy outside, but we managed to find some of the castles and churches nestled in the small town. Another neat feature are the streets in this town. They are constructed of interlocking stones cut to form an octagon with the inside of each octagon filled with smaller stones. Very bumpy and a bit slippery when wet, but beautiful! Of all the medeival towns in Sicily, this one definitely has the most authentic look and feeling. This is also a place we will be revisiting, but hopefully it will be a sunny day next time!!!

Lastly, we stopped at the city of Segesta, which is home to another well preserved temple, Greek theater, and church. It was founded by the Elymians in the 5th century B.C., but eventually fell under Roman control in the first half of the 3rd century B.C. The temple is of the Doric style (as are almost all of the temples in Sicily), but was never completed. It is, however, among the best preserved temples in all of Italy, and sits among a beautiful landscape of green hills and colorful wildflowers. The theater and church are located atop a hill which is quite a hike from the parking area (this trip was a major workout!!). It is partially built into the hillside and has a lovely view of the countryside and the sea beyond.

We were only gone for about a day and a half, but we managed to see a lot of Sicily in that time! Here are some websites where you can find more info about these places:

http://www.bestofsicily.com/agrigento.htm for info about Agrigento

http://www.bestofsicily.com/segesta.htm for info about Segesta

http://www.bestofsicily.com/erice.htm for info about Erice

http://photos.yahoo.com/ajaphilip too see our photos

Caoch Andre with 2005 Soccer Team

Soccer 4/1/05

Dyeing Easter eggs at Matt and Christine's house.

Easter Weekend 2005

This was an interesting Easter, to say the least. I was excited, because for the first time in like 4 years, Phil and I didn't have to wait the tables of happy families celebrating their Easter holiday together at our respective college employments. We were going to have some friends over for a big dinner. Phil was supposed to be home on Saturday night from coaching his first men's soccer game in Aviano, Italy. However, I received a call from Phil on Saturday afternoon that he would be staying behind in Aviano with his goalie who had been taken to the hospital after being crashed into by 2 other players! They had to take him to an Italian hospital because there is no hospital at the Aviano base, and the doctors there told them that Andy was okay, he had just lost a tooth and his jaw was not broken. The doctors also said that he could not leave until Tuesday! I cancelled our Easter dinner because I didn't see much fun in entertaining by myself, and instead dyed Easter eggs and had an egg hunt with our friends Matt and Christine. After discovering that Andy actually could have checked himself out whenever he wanted to (darn translator!!), Phil came home with his goalie on Monday afternoon and after the boy checked in with the hospital on our base, he discovered that his jaw was, in fact, fractured in 2 places and that he would need jaw surgery--so much for that socialist medical system, eh? The boys lost their game 4-2, but apparently it was a good game, especially since Aviano is actually a Division 2 school and Sig is only division 3. Andy is currently recovering from his surgery and has to have his jaw wired shut for 4 weeks.

On a good note, Phil's boys won their game yesterday against Vicenza 2-1, as did the girls team 3-0. They play next in Naples in 3 weeks (after Spring Break).

Night at the Opera

What a husband I have.....he cooks, he gardens, and he even let me drag him to see the Puccini opera Madame Butterfly last Tuesday! Gotta love that guy! Well, we went to see the show with our friends, the Campbells. Kathy is the "Home Ec" teacher (she's not too thrilled that Phil is in the home ec room at school instead of her!!) and Charlie is the "supply" guy. He used to be an Avid tutor, but when he left, I took his place. Anyway, we all went with ITT on the tour bus down to Catania to the historic Bellini theatre. It's a beautiful theatre that was built in the 1800s. It is said to be the 2nd or 3rd best opera house in all of Italy! We sat on the main floor, which is covered in comfy red velvet covered seats. There is also box seating which surrounds the perimeter of the house and is about 4 levels high. On top of that are the gallery seats, but they're really cramped and too high up, in my opinion. Phil and I would not have had too much fun sitting up there for 3 hours--restless leg syndrome--hello?

The opera was really magnificent. We never received a program, so I don't have any info on the singers, but they were amazing. The tenor performing the role of the Lieutenant was rocking the house. He received many a "Brava!" from the Italians sitting behind us--yes, they actually do that here! The set was cool--the stage had been raised by using a grassy material which was the yard of Cio Cio San's (Madame Butterfly) house. They represented her house with delicate looking paper screens that slid across the stage to create different places in the house.

I'm thinking of going back in May to see The Nutcracker, but I'm not sure if that marvelous husband of mine will be willing to go back so soon--we'll see:) Here are some sites for the theatre:

http://www.dolcevita.com/events/opera/teatroct.htm

Oscar in the great outdoors.

A Girl and her Dog

Oscar and I decided it was time to get out of the house today, so we packed up and headed up the mountain to find some snow and wide open spaces. That's the beauty of Sicily; we have both beautiful beaches and snow covered mountains to enjoy! Afetr driving for about half an hour, I found a little road that looked promising and would hopefully lead us to a secluded and snowy terrain (also not so steep that we couldn't walk up it!!). At the end of the road was a lodge where I guess one can rent cross country skis and the like. There was no one around, and Oscar was ecstatic to be off his leash after so many months of taking walks on it! There were tons of forest green pine trees and not much lava rock in site, so that was nice for a change! It was a beautiful day, and while we were there we encountered some light snow falls as well as bright, warm sunshine. Oscar keep rolling around in the snow like a madman and searching for small critters to chase. He found a little bunny to race, but it had too much of a lead on him. We just got home, and Oscar is fast asleep after that exhausting workout. It's too bad this place isn't closer to our house, or I would definitely be taking him back there all the time! Oscar was definitely in his element there--he's not much of a Sicilian dog!

The Beautiful City of Heidelberg

The 2 days that I did manage to do some sightseeing brought me to the beautiful city of Heidelberg, which was about 10 minutes from our motel by car. On Friday I was able to stroll down the main shopping street along with Orlando and Leticia (the boys coach and his wife). We also walked along the river and saw the beautiful Heidelberg castle, which is situated on the hillside along the town's edge. Just before we left, there was a gorgeous sunset, which I tried to capture on film, but it just didn't turn out as vibrantly as it looked in person.

On Saturday I went back to Heidelberg by myself to see if I could go inside the castle and catch some more pictures before we left on Sunday morning. It was a beautiful sunny day, but a bit chilly with at least a few inches of snow on the ground. I took an English guided tour of the castle and learned a lot about the history of the place. Of course, having the bad memory that I do, I cannot remember enough to tell you about it here, but I will include a few links so you can learn some accurate facts about the castle.

http://www.visit-heidelberg.com/tours/castle.htm for history

http://www.mediaspec.com/castles/hberg/heidcast.html for room by room tour and old pics of castle

http://www.heidelberg.de/Altstadt-Information/english/Sektor16/Sektor16_schloss.htm more history

The cheerleaders.

The boys basketball team and basketball cheerleaders in Germany.

Welcome to Deutschland!

We welcomed last Wednesday before sunrise in order to get to the airport on time with the boys/girls basketball teams as well as the cheerleaders for the European Tournament of Champions in Germany. It was a long day of traveling, as we sat in the Rome airport waiting for President Bush to get out of Frankfurt's airport so we could land there. We did get to see Air Force One as we were landing in Frankfurt though!

So, we got to our motel, but soon found that we couldn't check in until 5:00 when the reception desk opened again (it was only 3:30!!), so we scoured the area on foot, in the snow and cold, for a place to eat lunch/dinner, but there was nothing since we were in an industrial area. So, the kids had delivery from some place while the coaches plus Phil and I loaded up into my rental car to drive to the coaches' meeting. Funny thing, no one really knew how to get to the base, so we got lost, as would happen quite a few times that night! We eventually found the place, but then proceeded to get lost on the way back to the hotel and have a flat tire on the Autobond (picture cars whizzing by poor Phil at 100 mph+). We hereafter referred to that day as Day -1, since we all wanted to erase it from our memories as soon as possible!

Days 1,2,3,and 4 were much more uneventful and hardly qualified to be a new title in the "Series of Unfortunate Events" books by Lemony Snicket! The boys played 2 games on Thursday, then qualified to play another game on Friday morning for the chance to play that night. They lost on Friday to the team from Rota, Spain, so they were done playing then. The girls b-ball team played 2 games on Friday (they had a bye the first round), then played for 3rd place on Saturday morning. They lost, so overall they took 4th place. The cheerleaders did not place (at least not 1,2, or 3), but I didn't watch their competition, so they may have come in 4th or 5th, I'm not sure.

Apparently, this was the first time that all the European teams have played in a championship tournament together, so it was a big undertaking, and the kids got to experience teams they had never played before, so that was good for them. They are a great group of kids, and we just had fun getting to know them a lot more!

The beautiful cathedral in Palermo which had examples of Arab influence as well as some Gothic details.

Trip to Palermo

Buon giorno, tutti!

This weekend Philip was gone to Naples with the boys basketball again, so I decided to get out of the house on Saturday and take a little trip. I went with ITT, which is a company on base that offers day trips and extended trips to anyone. This was a trip to the capitol of Sicily, Palermo. It was about a 2 1/2 hour drive on a tour bus. We visited the catacombes of an old church that contained bodies of all the old monks and nuns from the church, as well as people from Palermo who were able to afford such a luxury back then! It was pretty creepy, as some of the bodies had been so well preserved that they still looked alive! Two in particular were a baby girl from the early 1900s and a man who had a full beard on his face still! I took a few pictures, but felt kind of weird about doing so, so I stopped.

Next we drove to Monreale, which is a smaller town attached to Palermo, but more up on a hillside. There was a beautiful Normand Cathedral there from the late 1100s. The inside was glittering due to all the mosiacs created from shiny glass and real gold pieces. It was beautiful! The cathedral also contained the tombs of some Sicilian kings, Roger and William, I think. I guess I should have paid more attention to the guide, but I was busy taking pictures so you all could enjoy the views as well!

From there we drove back into Palermo and toured another cathedral which was also beautiful, with lots of marble carvings. I really don't know too much about that one, but the piazza outside was lovely. We also went to the Massima Opera House, which for all of you Godfather fans, was the backdrop for the scene where the granddaughter gets shot accidentally in the third movie. Very exciting, I'm sure, but as I've never seen the movies, I was just interested in the beauty of the structure. They were currently playing La Boheme.

Lastly, we ate a delicious Sicilian lunch (I had a stuffed swordfish dish--very good) and some cassata, a filled cake with an Arab background that was really sweet. Then we went home. It was a really long, but interesting day. The drive there and back consisted of Kelly green hillsides and snow covered mountains, very beautiful. We also drove under a rainbow for about 10 minutes--I think it was following us!

For basketball, the boys won 1 JV game, but lost both Varsity games:( Hopefully they will play better in Germany this week at the European Championships at Mannheim. Phil and I are both going, and I will be heading to the nearest H&M to load up on spring fashions for both of us (I'll watch a few games, too!:))

Hope you all are having a lovely week! Ciao ciao!

Picture Sharing on the Web

Hi everyone!

I am working on making this a permanent link on our site, but for now I am just going to post our site where pictures can be shared/printed. It is at http://photos.yahoo.com/ajaphilip

Carnavale, Sicilian Style

Yes folks, sadly all of the carnavale fun and pranks have been swept away like the confetti dotting the streets in every town. There were big carnivals in Acireale, Misterbianco, Adrano, and Catania, but most towns had some little festivities going on as well. Due to rainy weather most of last week, we only made it to the celebration in Catania. Catania was actually celebrating its patron saint, Sant Agata. For 3 days there are processions around the city with the Vara, which is a 16 foot carriage laden with all kinds of treasures that have been given to Sant Agata over the years, as well as a 14th century bust of Sant Agata and her relics. Also included in the processions are the Cannalori, which are really tall wax candles surrounded by a heavy (up to 1500 lbs.) gilded candelabrum wooden structure decorated with statues depicting saints, angels, and scenes depicting the Sant Agata martyrdom. There are 11 all together, each one represented and carried by people from a different city guild, like fishmongers and butchers. We were there late Saturday night (Feb 5th--the day Sant Agata died) from about 12:30 am-4:30 am, but the city was very much alive and celebrating! We caught up to the procession and were smushed into the crowd of people walking along with Sant Agata's carriage. It is pulled by hundreds of people wearing a traditional white tunic, which represents the nightdresses that Catanians wore the night they welcomed the relics of Sant Agata back from Turkey. People come up to the carriage with burning long yellow candles and flowers to be placed onto the carriage to thank Sant Agata for granting their prayers and blessings. Many people walk along the procession carrying the burning candles representing that the saint has granted them the miracle they requested. This is a lifelong practice, and people carry different weighted candles (some up to 350 lbs, but usually about 85lbs) on their shoulders with the wax dripping all over their white or green tunics (white=men, green = women). It was a site to see, and clearly a very emotional and joyous time for Catanians. We tried to stay for the end of the procession when they have to carry Agata's carriage up a very steep street near the Piazza Duomo before putting her back into the church there, but it was getting too late and we were tired. Turns out that didn't happen until about 8:00 the next morning, so we will have to go back next year to see it.

Last night we were invited to another carnavale inspired event, a masquerade ball sponsored by the Fillipino-American group. It was at the Catania Golf Course with a DJ, and picture people--kind of like a prom for adults! It's always good to get out and meet new people all the time--that's what is so great about our life over here b/c we have that opportunity all the time!
http://www.press.sicilia.it/sant_agata_catania.cfm for pictures from the Sant Agata celebrations
http://www.cataniaperte.com/santagata/foto/foto_s_agata.htm for more pictures

http://www.sicily.navy.mil/cgi-bin/thesig_list.cgi for English story, click on Feb. 4th issue, scroll to p. 6

Buon giorno, tutti!

Hi! I just learned abut this whole "blog" thing from Maryellen, the teacher who I mainly work with for AVID. She also lives in Nicolosi, and her site is www.sicilianodyssey.blogspot.com, if you would like to check her out and her stories/pictures. I think I will be using this from now on instead of emailing because it is easier to use and to post pictures/links. So, I hope you check this out in the future as I continue to update it! Ciao for now! Love,
Aja and Phil