If You Give a Mouse a Cookie...

Christer was able to get home early enough to give us a decent amount of time in Venice on Friday afternoon.  We arrived and were checked into our hotel by about 3, and we had the rest of the afternoon/evening to ourselves.  This trip was especially nice because Christine and I were free to do what we really wanted to do and see what we wanted to see.  We didn't have to worry about Jameson or showing other people around, and since we'd both been to the city before, we each had places and things we wanted to see but hadn't yet had the chance to (I don't know if it's possible to see and do everything in Venice in an entire lifetime).  Friday afternoon we took it easy, and relaxed in true Venetian style.  We chatted with Sergio for a bit, shared a prosecco (or two or three), visited a museum in Saint Mark's Square, enjoyed a nice meal in a quiet campo, and just wandered around the city taking pictures.  I've said it before and I'll say it again.  Venice at night is not something you want to miss out on; It is a completely different and amazing experience.  You haven't lived until you've seen the lights and felt the energy that abounds on the streets.  


The museum we visited is located in the Napoleonic wing of the piazza walls, so we had a straight view of the entire piazza from the second story windows that you see in the pictures.  The view was pretty cool, but I left my camera in the hotel, so I, was unable to take any pictures.  Sergio had recommended the museum as a good overall museum for the history of Venice, and boy was he right.  The building itself was simply amazing.  It was completely unreal to be walking around in the former residence of the king of Italy when he visited Venice, and it was just mind boggling to think of who had been there and what had taken place before us.  The museum houses artwork, sculptures, documents, and anything else deemed important to Venice's history, including coins, original street lamps (which look very much like the pink ones they have now), and clothing from the time.  

Happy Quattro Luglio!

Christine and I normally sit out front with Levi and drink our coffee and chat/try to wake up in the mornings.  Friday I walk outside and Christine is already out with her coffee, watching the cars go by.  She says to me "Good morning!  Just as a warning, the rabbits got it this morning so they're hanging on the line to dry."  Umm...what?  You must not have fully woken up yet, or I'm hearing you wrong, because I'm pretty sure you just said the rabbits are hanging on the line to dry.  Why yes, indeed, the rabbits were beheaded (by Elia), and were hanging by their feet on the clothes line to drip dry before being brought inside.  And sure enough, 3 hours later the doorbell rings, and we open to see Elia standing there with a big grin on his face and a serving platter with a raw, headless, skinless rabbit (that was alive just a few hours before).  Christine graciously accepted the gift, saying "bello! bello!" (beautiful), and brought ole' thumper inside.  We were leaving for Venice in a few hours, so there was no time to cook or eat (Christer's a vegetarian), so we wrapped him up in aluminum foil and he's still hanging out in the freezer, waiting to become dinner.

That was a lovely start to the day, but I don't think anything could prepare us for what we saw later that night in Venice.  We were able to get to Venice early enough to do some exploring before it was time for dinner.  Sergio closed his shop and met us on his way home for a prosecco.  It would have been my third prosecco of the day, so I decided, with a little of Sergio's persuasion, to try a spritz instead.  It is the popular drink in Venice, and really anywhere in Italy, and I hadn't tried it yet, so Sergio ordered me an 'aperol spritz.'  The drink is made with aperol (fruit/herb mixture that the Italians consider "sweet"),  a dry, white wine, and soda water.  I've got to say, it wasn't the best tasting thing in the world, and I had the "sweet" version, as opposed to the "bitter" spritz.  It was almost like drinking a watery juice of sorts, but the aftertaste was really horrible and bitter.  Sergio said even most Italians don't like them at first..."you have to drink many before you acquire the taste."  Nevertheless, I can say I've tried it, and I have a picture to prove it.

Don't Drink the Water in Mexico

We made it out for our walk pretty early this morning, but still not early enough.  It was unbearably hot and we cut the walk short to avoid passing out.  The grapes are starting to develop on the vines, and right now they're about the size of raisins.  We passed by a small vineyard on our walk, and I know it's hard to see, but here they are:

There's a ditch on the side of the road in Santissima that always has at least 5 of the most beautiful, vibrant dragonflies, and today I was able to get a picture.  Everything is blue, from the tail to the wings to the head.

The Book Pooper

Today was super hot again, so we didn't really do anything exciting.  I went for a run, lifted some weights,  did some yoga, and probably sweat my entire body weight in the process.  We could only stand to be outside for less than an hour, so Jameson just played inside for the majority of the day.  I still have more pictures of Venice to share, so today it's more statue fun!

Meet Niccolò Tommaseo, or, as known to the Venetians, "The Book Pooper."  The books really do look like they just fell out of his butt, so the title is suiting.  Tommaseo was an Italian author and linguist, and produced a number of works in his lifetime, including beginning the weighty 7 volume Italian dictionary, which was finished after his death.  The statue is located in the campo Santo Stefano, where one of our favorite restaurants (A Beccafico) is, and also where Christine claims to have had a Brad Pitt sighting.  Her and Christer were spending the night in Venice when her mom was in town, and they were dining at A Beccafico when Christine swears she saw Brad Pitt walk by with a nanny and 2 strollers, supposedly carrying the small twins, Knox and Vivienne.  The whole Jolie-Pitt brood was staying in Venice at the time because Angelina was filming a movie, so the likelihood that the scruffy, fedora-clad, stroller pusher was indeed the-one-and-only Brad Pitt was actually quite high.

Beware the Fondle Police

Today was super hot so we just hung out around the house and took it easy.  Christer was able to come home again for lunch today, and it's so unbelievably adorable to see how Jameson lights up when he's around.  They were just sitting across the table eating lunch and making faces at each other and Jameson was laughing up a storm.  Christine and I have to work 10 times as hard to get him to laugh...normally we're sweating our butts off playing chase and tickle, and all Christer has to do is cross his eyes!  Either way, Jameson is still a momma's boy through and through.  Here he is last week in Venice, clinging to Chrstine while she talks to Sergio, on our favorite campo after enjoying a prosecco together.

Gnome on the Range

Blake and Carrie are out of town, so Christer is using their car for work, and we get to keep our car to take Levi and Jameson on walks.  Today the weather was really beautiful, so we decided to go up into the mountains to the national forest for a big of a scenery change.  The drive up is about a 20 minute drive straight up the side of the mountain (the same mountain the Caneva castle is on), and about 20 minutes of driving across to the backside of the mountain.  Full of hair-pin turns and constant weaving, this drive is not for the weak stomach or car-sick prone passenger.


We passed the Caneva castle on the way up, but, as you can tell, we were at too much of an angle for a good shot of the building itself.

Old Mac Donald

Today the entire family piled into our VW station wagon and headed to a park in San Floriano.  Yes.  Jameson in his car seat, Levi, who probably weighs anywhere from 70-90 pounds, and Christine all smooshed together in the backseat.  San Floriano is a really beautiful park in a very pretty town, but there is a very steep hill that Christine said is just nearly impossible with Jameson in the stroller.  This monster of a hill is the reason we always go to Santissima, and today I found out firsthand.  Christer was carrying Jameson in the backpack, and this trail was a workout!  I would call it more of a hike than a walk.  The views were absolutely stunning though, and very worth the calf and quad workout.