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.