Weekend in Greece

We went to Athens, Greece this past weekend with 4 students. It was so nice not to eat Italian food for a change. Of course, our one full day in Athens was spent in the rain, but a at least it was not a heavy a downpour as it was in Venice last weekend. We took Claire to the Acropolis to see the ruins, including the Parthenon, but she was asleep as we walked to it. Once we got there, strollers were not permitted, so we got her up (she was craaaaaanky – just like her mom). Fortunately for us, Claire really likes the students who came with us and they like her, so we could pass her off to them for a break. Anyway, some photos of the weekend are here.

Normally I don’t like to ask people for favors, but I am making an exception this time. We have some friends who have been trying to adopt a baby for a while now. They have hearts of gold and will make phenomenal parents. They have a lead on a potential adoption. I am asking for your prayers for them, the baby and the mother of the baby that everything will work out.

Next up, Suzanne and Joanne come to Italy.

Rain, rain, go away...

Another whirlwind weekend. This time Venice was the place and did it ever rain. We stayed in Padua and took the train (30 mins.) to Venice on Saturday. It was sprinkling when we arrived at the train station in Venice, but after boarding the ferry, the sky opened up. We got off the ferry at St. Mark’s square and immediately got drenched. Claire fared a little better as we were using our umbrellas to try to keep her dry. We ducked into the world famous Harry’s bar to wait out the rain and get a bloody Mary - they were $30, so we went back out into the rain – staying dry never cost so much! After an hour, the rain let up and we headed straight for a jewelry store (not my idea). I was never so glad not to have had that Bloody Mary (or ten of them), as I needed the money to pay for Lynn’s jewelry.

Lynn and Claire headed back to Padua after 3-4 hours in Venice so Claire could nap. Lynn said Claire had a meltdown on the train. I stayed in Venice, as the sun came out and I enjoyed a beer overlooking the Grand Canal. By the time I got back to Padua (around 5pm), my clothes were complete dry – it’s amazing what a good beer can do! Saturday night, Claire wouldn’t sleep in her travel cot, so Lynn brought her into our bed. She took up about 50% of the space in the bed, lying sideways. But of course, you don’t wake a sleeping baby, so I made do with my 10%. She was an absolute angel on the four hour bus ride home, playing with several of the girls sitting near us on the bus. On Sunday evening, we got the final grades for our Italian class. There were only 5 students achieving an A+ among the 31 of us taking Italian. Yes, Lynn and I were among those 5.

Some photos of our weekend in Venice and Padua are posted here. Next weekend calls for more rain, this time the setting is Athens, Greece. Stay tuned and stay dry.