lead me not into temptation...

This morning when I woke up I didn't open my eyes right away, but burrowed deeper into my pillow and revisited the vision:

I'm in a large open dining room in a renovated ancient farmhouse. A sweet-faced woman arrives at our table bearing a large platter piled high with fragrant seafood on a bed of fresh arugula.

The kids and I tuck into trout, perch, and lightly breaded calamari. We extract tender flesh from enormous crayfish dipped in garlic butter and squeeze lemons on steaming shrimp.

My mouth starts to water. I pull the sheets up around my shoulders and sleepily await that moment when I fully wake and realize that I've been enjoying an extravagant dream.

That moment never comes.

It wasn't a dream.

It was a bit of a rude awakening to remember that after three years of strong resolve I’ve fallen off of the vegetarian wagon for the second time this week... (and it was SO worth it!)

Roman Holiday

Yesterday afternoon we wandered around in Desenzano, a charming little port town just south of here. The buildings are colorful and picturesque and many interesting sculptures dot the tree-lined streets.

After lunch we visited the remains of an authentic Roman villa that had been unearthed on the edge of town. Many of the floors were intact and were decorated with beautiful mosaics. There was also a small museum on the grounds which displayed various statues, household implements and coins that had been found on site-- it was a fascinating way to get a feel for how the Romans lived in this area 2,000 years ago!

And I was thinking yesterday evening what a gift it is that we can expose S and B to these kinds of treasures! In the past couple of years they've visited the Colosseum and other well-preserved Roman amphitheatres in Pula (Croatia), Nimes and Verona. They've seen the Maison Carrée, have explored the exquisite Roman baths and gardens in Nimes and have walked across (and later canoed underneath) the Pont du Gard in the Provence.

I keep thinking what a difference all of this would have made for me as I was struggling to stay awake during dry lectures in Latin class back in middle school!

(Not that they can fully appreciate these opportunities yet. For S and B these antiquities are just distractions from their relentless search for the perfect ice cream, which is, of course, a noble and worthy persuit in the eyes of young boys.)

I'm starting to feel a bit like a stalker of the Holy Roman Empire. Either these guys really were everywhere or we just happen to prefer the same type of vacation spots... ;-)

The best is yet to come, however. Verona holds an annual opera festival every August, in which famous operas are performed at the Roman amphitheater! Thanks to Roman ingenuity the acoustics are so exceptional that no microphones are necessary in spite of the size of the arena.

M and I have scored tickets for next week to take the boys to see Aida, and I've heard that the performance is spectacular and even includes horses that thunder around on stage!

Incredibilis!

Vacation update

We spent the first 4 days of our vacation up in the mountains in Valle d'Aosta. The campground was ideally situated with breathtaking views and great trails up into the woods where we took some really nice hikes.

Unfortunately the aesthetic beauty of the scenery was offset by a decidedly unaesthetic sanitation building which housed filthy pit toilets and moldy showers. We avoided the whole area as much as possible-- one evening when I climbed into bed I laughed and said to M: "I think I might be too dirty to sleep!" to which he replied with a good humored: "No, you're too dirty to sleep NEXT TO."

Sunday we roamed around Aosta and saw some really impressive Roman ruins. Monday we spent hiking out near the Matterhorn! The vistas were beautiful! After a steady 2 hour climb through the dust we were rewarded by a beautiful sight when we suddenly came upon a level clearing with an icy turquoise lake where D could swim and the boys skipped stones.

Tuesday we spent the day in Turin. The old center is really interesting because it's filled with covered passageways. This turned out to be handy because it was raining and we were able to wander around and explore without getting wet.

My favorite part of Turin, however, was a special trip to Eataly, a high-end grocery store/ delicatessen / restaurant / coffee bar / utopia that makes Salvaggio's in Rochester seem like a mini-market! Eataly calls itself an alliance of small-scale producers of high-end products and is a champion of the slow-food movement.

We spent a couple of hours in there, much to the chagrin of the kids, who were hungry, tired, and annoyed that they weren't allowed to play on the escalators.

This place was amazing! They had racks and racks of beautifully displayed fruits and vegetables, and clientele were provided plastic gloves so that you could touch and smell all of it! I bought all kinds of exotic things, including some flat peaches, white peaches, fresh figs, tiger-striped tomatoes and fragrant apricots. I think that that the time I spent there, browsing the spices, cheeses, sauces and pastas will end up being one of the highlights of the vacation for me!

Have been devouring books since we left. Read Ayaan Hirsi Ali's autobiography-- unbelievable that someone who came from such humble beginninngs can even function in the Western World, much less rise to become such an influential political figure!

After that I read "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini- it was beautiful but oh so sad! Those of you who have read it as well can probably picture me sitting here on the campsite crying my eyes out and blowing my nose noisily. I got more than one strange look from people passing by.

Right now I'm in the middle of "The City of Falling Angels" by John Berendt. It was a gift from Laurie and I'm really enjoying it in preparation for our trip to Venice sometime in the coming couple of weeks! (Thanks again, Laurie!)

We're happily settled in at our new campsite here at Lake Garda. The area is georgeous, and maybe no less importantly, the toilets and showers are clean.

Yesterday we spent the afternoon in Verona, which is one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen!

And now I'm running out of steam and think it's time to close this and go make some lunch...

La vita é bella!

Hello from beautiful, sunny Lake Garda! We've had a wonderful vacation so far-- have taken some really nice hikes and visited a couple of interesting cities up in the Valle d'Aosta region. I'll write more about the things we've done tomorrow, but right now I want to talk about tonight's dinner. Which was more than a dinner, actually, it was an experience!

We've got a kitchenette in our caravan and I've been cooking all week. Have been inspired by some beautiful vegetables I found at the market and have really enjoyed taking the time to enjoy the whole cooking process. This afternoon, however, we got a tip from some neighbors about a small local grill just a couple of towns further up the coast. They serve local cuisine and most of the clientele is Italian, which is both a rarity and a good sign around these parts, where most restaurants have menus in German and regularly serve Schweinebraten. **shudder**

The evening is balmy, and we sat outside near a huge old tree in a garden bordering an olive grove. Near the tables there was an outdoor sink where two people were cleaning eels and squid. B and I crept up nearby to watch and they smiled and invited us closer. Once the seafood was ready it was passed it on to be grilled over coals right next to the tables! The smell was exquisite!

After that the food orgy started. I'm almost ashamed to admit it, but I fell off of the vegetarian wagon this evening. Even if I have to wear a hair shirt for a week it will be worth the penance. We ordered plates and plates of food-- B savored grilled polenta and sardines, S had penne alla arribiata, M grilled steak and I lingered over a fresh trout. This was all accompanied by medeterranian vegetables and crisp salad. After that we couldn't help but order some of the calamari that we'd seen them clean shortly before. It was lightly fried and perfect-- the outside was crispy and the inside was soft and had that wonderful subtle flavor that calamari only has when it's really fresh.

M and I also enjoyed a really nice bottle of local wine. Now we're back at the campsite, sipping coffee and reclining in our chairs, gazing out at the twinkling lights on the lake. I've got that warm, sated, happy, relaxed feeling that washes over you after a really exceptional meal...

Will write more soon...

Summer vacation is finally here!!!

Spent the day yesterday with the Dalai Lama. The teaching itself was a little dry, but it was a pleasure to bask in his radiant charisma.

The program he's giving this weekend sounds fantastic! He'll be speaking about the links between the economy, science and spirituality and will participate in a panel discussion on the economic crisis, poverty, climate change and personal responsibility. I would have loved to have been able to see it but the timing just wasn't right for me.

Now I've got to start packing the camper in earnest. There is so much to be done before we leave for vacation early tomorrow morning! We'll be spending a week hiking in the mountains in Valle d'Aosta and two weeks on Lake Garda. Care to join us?

Spitting image of his daddy

Happy boy at the end of the school year saying goodbye to his elementary school backpack before donating it to needy kids in the Ukraine.

Procrastination

We're leaving on Saturday to go camping for three weeks in Northern Italy. And I'll be in Frankfurt tomorrow to see the Dalai Lama. There's so much to do before we leave! And here I am farting around on the Internet and checking out cool videos.

I was totally floored by this 3D building projection by UrbanScreen-- they take art in a whole new direction! Check this out!!!

An extended version of this video is available by Urban Screen on Vimeo.

They did it!

M, S and B passed their Taekwando tests this weekend and have earned new belts! M and S have earned a green belt and B has earned a yellow one.

And here's a quick video I shot-- kind of reminds me of how it was to play with D when she was a puppy! Only real difference is that B doesn't bite. or poke unsuspecting guests in the crotch...

Get along little doggies!

This weekend we went horseback riding in Münklingen. This time the horses were real, not plastic, which was a marked improvement...

What a way to start the day II

This morning before I was fully awake the cat came in and vomited on our bed.

I must have some seriously bad karma to work through...

What a way to start the day!

This morning when I opened the door to our our floor-to-ceiling bathroom cabinet, it wrenched its screws out of the wall, did a swan dive across the bathroom and vomited its contents into the toilet. (which of course hadn't yet been flushed.)

Goooooooooood Morning!

Sweet memories

I'd heard from Russian friends that there's a Russian supermarket nearby. For some reason I'd been picturing it as a dank hole-in-the-wall with shelves which are empty save for dusty bottles of vodka.

My friend and I stopped in after our Aikido lesson this morning and I was shocked! The staff is all Russian and there's Russian radio playing over the loudspeakers. I felt like I'd stepped into the Twilight Zone!

They've got all kinds of specialty foods that I haven't even thought about in years, including a wide assortment of Красный Октябрь candies that I used to eat by the fistful during my days in Moscow. Some of them still taste like cardboard, but they bring back sweet memories...

*image thanks to uniconf.ru

GAH!

There are a myriad of reasons I enjoy living in Germany, but quality of Internet service certainly isn't one of them. We have constant outages, and when we do have service it's remarkably slow. I'm willing to bet we'd be better served in a third world country!

Those of you who were around last year will probably remember the struggles I had with our previous provider. Our experience with the new one hasn't been much better.

Today I called for the umpteenth time about service outages-- Internet probably works here only about 1/2 of the time. Spent more than an hour on the phone with our provider last week and it didn't resolve anything.

Today when I called and told the guy the history and that I'd downloaded the new firmware he said "No you didn't." I was totally shocked and confirmed I had, with the help of his colleague. And he said: "OK, fine. then what did you do?" He was totally testing me!

Since I was paying by the minute so that he can be rude to me, I gave up and we went through all the same steps I did last week to download the software together.

Then he asked: "Are you connected wireless or with the cable?" When I said "Wireless" he said: "OK". I thought this was is weird, because last time I had to do it over a cable connection. He then had me download and run the firmware update. And of course it didn't work. So he said: "OK, then it's not our problem. there's nothing more I can do."

When I blew up at him he asked: "Are you connected using wireless or a cable?" And I said: "Wireless, I told you!" To which he answered: "You should never update firmware over wireless! Check the readme file-- you were supposed to use a cable! Goodbye."

My blood is still boiling!

Healthy

I just got back from a long hike along the trails in the woods near our home. The weather is fabulous and everything is in bloom. I was almost home and came upon some neighbors and we chatted for a while under a cherry tree and gorged ourselves on wild cherries! I felt like I was on vacation!

	M and I will be enjoying another treat starting this evening. We've bought a fitness station so that we can do strength training together. We've been thinking and talking about it for a long time now and decided to take the plunge-- I'm really excited about it!
	I just hope that if I keep up with the exercise and the wild cherries that I'll end up like my 94+ year old Great Aunt Irene who likes to show off her smooth yoga moves. When she's not too busy playing cards or hanging out with friends, that is....

Sand animation

This video has been haunting me for a couple of days now. I can't stop watching or thinking about it. The text at the end where they're staring at the sailor's ghost says: "You are always nearby".

Even this pacificst was cheering!

M celebrated Fathers' Day yesterday doing manly things like punching his friends in the gut and kicking them in the head.

He and S participated in a Taekwando demonstration at an outdoor festival here in town. They (and the rest of their group) did such a great job, and pulled it off with such aplom-- I was really proud of them!

Here's 9 seconds-worth of M being extremely dangerous...

Photo update

Don't have much to say. We're hanging in there, but are waiting for the other shoe to drop with M's employer. Nothing concrete, just a steadily growing feeling of dread that we will soon have to pull up stakes again and leave this place that we've come to love so much.

Some days I feel like I'm dangling out of a 10th story window, holding onto a windowsill which is starting to crumble away underneath my fingertips...

I haven't posted any photos over here in a while, so let's look at some pictures instead, shall we?

	My dad's twin sister is currently on a river cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam. The boys and I drove out to Würzburg on Tuesday afternoon to meet up with her. We've always said that S strongly resembles my Dad, and here's more living proof!
	I guess our strawberry plant loves us as much as we do it! Can you believe this perfectly heart-shaped strawberry? We loved it, warts and all! And then we ate it! Mwah hah hah hah hah haaaaaaa!
	Here's S rustlin' up some cattle out at Buffalo Bill's grave on Lookout Mountain in Colorado.
	B's obviously a natural born rider. on a motorcycle...
	Cursus! Foiled again! B makes a narrow escape. for now...
	S and B and their Colorado cousins at the Denver Zoo!
	My favorite part of our trip to Colorado was teatime at the Boulder Dushanbe Tea House, which was actually built in Tajikistan and transported piece by piece to Boulder! I was lucky enough to get to travel to Tajikistan back in 1995 and have wonderful memories of the beautiful countryside.
	B relaxing after his tea. I think he'd actually consider moving to Central Asia if it meant he could have pillows like these at the dinner table!
	I loved the traditional artwork on the ceilings! This place was so beautiful, and the tea was fabulous! It's definitely worth a visit if you're ever in the neighborhood!
	S goofing around with my sister-in-law / second cousin. Have I ever mentioned here that my cousin married M's brother? I always feel like a redneck when I try to explain our tangled family tree...
	I love this picture! This was snapped mid-chaos while visiting M's other brother and his family in Amsterdam. Those are actually real smiles on everybody's faces despite the fact that we asked them to pose for the picture!

Sad news

Chris H died at 3:15 this afternoon.

Dag lieve jongen. You will be sorely missed by all of us who had the pleasure of knowing you!

If only...

Just got back from vacation and found out that M's cousin, C, is going downhill fast. He fell unconscious yesterday and was so near death that his parents called his sisters and brother to his bedside to say goodbye.

Yesterday evening, however, he rallied briefly and suddenly woke up. When he saw the faces of everyone gathered around him he said: "It's like everyone's expecting something of me and I don't know what to do." And his mom said: "A smile would be enough." And he answered: "I left my last smile for you in the freezer next to the frozen lasagna."

The world is losing a beautiful, funny, wonderful human being...

Greetings from Colorado!

We have arrived safely and are having a great time reconnecting with family. The kids picked right back up where they all left off and are really enjoying each other's company.

This area is mountainous and beautiful and I've been slipping out for long hikes amid the wildflowers, pine trees and craggy boulders. Yesterday I came upon a group of 5 young mule deer who were grazing just a couple of meters away! We all stood still and stared at each other-- it was a magical moment!

Today I borrowed a dog and went for another hike. Have some great music with me complements of my own personal dj. :-) When Rodrigo y Gabriela came on we both broke out into a joyful run! What a pleasure!