The Best Four Days

You know that episode of Xena: Warrior Princess in season 2 when she goes to the Land of Chin and she is dressed for the those below freezing nights? It is one of those high adventure story lines that gave the fans details about Xena's backstory.

Well that episode was running through my head all weekend as I paraded the streets of Eastern Europe, specifically Croatia and Slovenia. It was one of those unplanned adventures that ended up being the best four days I have had in long, long while.

To get the full effect of the trip I need to provide some context. Ryan and his brothers are serious Stars Wars geeks, with my father-in-law serving as the ring leader of the group. When he suggested Ryan come home for Christmas so they could all go see the Stars Wars premier together Ryan became a little teary eyed. It all happened so fast and my work is so crazy at the moment, it was impossible to get away for three weeks with a little over a week's notice.

Friends and family thought I was crazy. Who stays in a foreign country ALONE for Christmas, their birthday and New Years? It probably sounds incredibly lonely, sad and downright depressing. My dad kept asking how long I was planning to wait before I bought my ticket. To be honest I did think about buying a last minute more than once, but I didn't. My aunt asked how I could let Ryan take Hunter away. I reminded her that Ryan is Hunter's father not some random guy from who-knows-where. I stuck with the plan and part of the plan included taking care of our three cats while Ryan took Hunter on his own very big adventure.

It was Hunter's first transatlantic flight and it went very smooth. He watched movies, ate, slept and was in great spirits when they arrived at their final destination.

Introducing my doppelgänger, Ky. What's that you ask? What's a doppelgänger? It is a German word for twin.

Introducing Ky My Doppleganger (I am exhausted in this picture)

For a few months now I have heard that there is a woman in the community that 'some' people think we look alike. (I am not one of those people.) Imagine my surprise when my friend Ky told me she was sick of people calling her Mickie. Incredulous, I inquired about the circumstances. Of the five people that have made the mistake of calling her Mickie two of them I know fairly well. They whole thing is weird but the best part, no the funniest part is her response. It something like this:

Oblivious person: Hey Mickie how are you?
Ky: Excuse me?
Oblivious person: Oh I'm sorry. I thought you were Mickie...
Ky: (All smiles) No, I'm the other black girl.

The oblivious person responds in various ways. It ranges from embarrassment to annoyance. The weird part is the reverse does not happen to me. As in I have yet to have someone think I am her. This  confusion was the spark of our friendship. We were acquaintances before (we were in Tanzania together last year) but, the hilarity of the situation created a simpatico familiarity. It was this new friendship that took us to Eastern Europe for New Years weekend.

We took a shuttle bus of all things to Croatia. The three hour drive went quickly. We had just enough time to drop our bags off at the hotel and make it to one of the outdoor concerts set up around the city. They keyword in the previous sentence is outdoor. I was freezing and no amount of hot wine could change that. We lasted approximately 45 minutes in the below freezing temperatures before heading back to our warm hotel. The next day was filled with sightseeing and preparation for our zero dark thirty train ride to Slovenia in the morning.

Ljublijana, Slovenia has been on my must see list for years, and with good reason. It's beautiful, cosmopolitan and has a dark side. Lots of dragon and witch motifs around the city center. All told it was a great trip. Looking forward to a visit in warmer temperatures.

I am well-rested in this picture

How to Survive Surviving a Fire

Jumping out the window to save my life was just the beginning of the story. In the weeks and months that followed a lot happened. We moved twice, not including the original move from our apartment before settling down in the new place. At one point we were managing three apartments, moving our belongings around as needs arose. All that moving was exhausting and a dear friend asked what I was doing for myself to remain resilient.

Ryan's mother and childhood best friend came to visit, providing much needed support. While we had help with Hunter, I went London to see my cousin. Even in August London is cold! The cooler temperatures were refreshing. I let my cousin dote on me. She cooked all my favorites and we spent most of our time talking. Our conversations went way into evening hours reminding us both of our childhood summers in Guyana.

I returned to Italy renergized and prepared to deal with a steady stream of questions about what happened and where we were living, and keeping Hunter's routine as close to normal as possible. I won't try to pretend it was easy and it was not until my father and stepmother arrived in country that life began to feel normal again.

We had such fun together! They got to know Hunter, we took day trips and spent a lot of time at home eating, our favorite pastime. We were enjoying ourselves so much that my father extended his stay three weeks. We both had the time of our lives. The extra time meant a day trip to Rome, wine tasting at my favorite winery and more after dinner trips to my favorite gelataria for dessert. Saying goodbye is never easy, but these days with Skype and FaceTime it's not so bad. 

Our time in Italy is winding down. We should be back stateside by summer next year. The past five years here have been incredible. Good thing I took the time to make a few notes about it here!

Summer wedding Italian style

We are halfway through the summer already, and I only have one beach visit under my belt. It's been that kind of summer. Azzura and Nao's wedding is certainly the highlight thus far. Nao is one of Ryan's air soft buddies. The team and their wives/girlfriends are part of our surrogate family and the third pairing to get hitched in as many years.

Azzura and Nao are both from Soave and have known each other since grade school. They dated for seven years and got married last Saturday 20 July. The wedding was a very traditional Italian affair, which is quite different from an American wedding. For staters there was no wedding party. All of the guests waited outside the church for Azzura to arrive, and when she did arrive it was a very dramatic entrance. Her brother drove their father's cherry red Ferrari with it's feline purr of an engine up the narrow street where we all waited. Her fairytale princess dress billowed inside the car. She would later tell me how she and her brother struggled to get her and her dress stuffed completely into the Ferrari.

Finally the car came to a stop in front of the church and she emerged unruffled. Her father walked her from the car to Nao, who waited for her outside the church. Inside there was a standard mass replete with communion.

After the ceremony we headed deep into the hills for the reception at a well known local winery. Nao pointed out the different grape varietals and encouraged us to try the exquisite red wine made on the grounds. There was an endless array of appetizers. Soon the owner came by and asked in Italian how Nao came to have so many foreign friends. Ryan and I sat together with Arnell, his Soldier friend in uniform and the Japanese-German couple Azzura met at language school in Germany. Nao looked at all of us and said it's just the way it is.

Us in Soave

The great flood of 2010

My first entry on my blog. I know it’s long overdue, and since the HuffPo didn’t publish my posts I decided to regroup and start anew here. Although we are still recovering from our raging Halloween party, the follow up is already underway. With so much leftover wine and assorted liquors, including tequila and whiskey, throwing another party is the only way we can avert the inevitable guilt induced need to drink it all ourselves. I guess we could also open a bar but, that’s a little more complicated than throwing another party.

It’s been raining here for six days. Heavy clouds have loomed over Vicenza in a strict holding pattern since Thursday. Schools and businesses closed early yesterday and all day today. Many of the bridges and the main highway have all been flooded. I checked the weather forecast and it looks like rain for the next few days as well.

From my days in Rome I can tell you the Italians don’t do well with rain. A little rain can shut an Italian city down the way a snow storm can cause havoc in NYC. A lot of rain, the likes of which we have here now, is a near catastrophe. Somehow we’ll wade through all the water and make the best of it.