Pinch Me...

Random shots of Pinch-Me-I'm-In-Italy moments

 The pillars of Pompeii.  I was basically black and blue at the end of this day for all the pinching.  Somewhere I certainly never expected to ever find myself but so wishing I would!

Cannoli

Not historic or recognizable art--but still...  

Everyday gorgeousness you could embrace each time you fried an egg or went to douse a salad.  Too breakable for my current circumstance.  (cue uncontrollable sobbing)

Museo Vaticano, Vatican City--Picture this in your mind.  You're dead and have taken up residence in the spirit world.  One day your mentor angel (the one in charge of you until you learn the ropes) says, "Pack a lunch.  We're going on a field trip."  So you (and it wouldn't be beyond my imagination to imagine inviting someone else along as we whisk out) and your accompanying angel friend soar to this place.  The art and sculpture here are so heavenly that you request an extension--perhaps 5,000 years.  Then you take baby steps past each and every piece of art--one by one, backing up every so often to do it all again.  I'm not kidding.  It is freaking unbelievable.  The following are just a few that caught my eye as I slobbered my way along, pinching myself as I went.

This Roman was just sitting and taking it all in.

I. Just. Have. No. Words.  I stood here and absorbed this beautiful ruin of a thing.

I'm feeling a new low level of shallow even trying to add some words.

Matisse design for papal attire.

And yet another.  Shout outs to my favorite "aht teachah"!

When my time had expired at Museo Vaticano, I inadvertently followed the wrong exit sign and got swept up in a crowd headed for St. Peter's instead of the coat check room with no option for reversing my steps barring special papal dispensation, apparently.  That mistake cost me about 30 minutes and required that I LOPE clear the heck across and around the entire Vatican.  I was going to be very late in meeting my group and worried that they might think I'd rashly joined a Vatican nunnery, but I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw this and whipped out my camera.  Pinch.

Our internet research when we got to Milano indicated that tickets for entrance into Michelangelo's "Last Supper" could take upwards of months to get and set you back dozens of Euros!  We were heartsick.  You cannot even imagine our fantasmic ecstacy (as compared to our previous agony...) when Paco naiively requested AND scored tickets for 6 Euros each at the counter!! Within minutes we were herded into an environmentally monitored room and then ushered into this.  January, I bless your very name.

Truly a life pinnacle--perhaps the high point of the trip.  Unfortunately, our high resolution camera finked out on Day 3, but I still love the pictures because they recall it all for me.  The timer is set here, and each visitor gets exactly 15 minutes. I'll take it.  Our camera has recuperated, thank you.

A nativity

Ponte Vecchio, Firenze

Breathtaking marble sculpture in the Uffizi in Firenze

Uffizi again

and again.

 

Yes, he is this tall.

David's neighbors

And one of a series of sculptures by the master emerging from marble.  Pinch.

Pinch.

Pinch.

Three Coins in a Fountain--Rome

Rome again

 

Intermission

One of the bonuses (as if they were even necessary) of being married to Paco is that he periodically does magical things like slip me a spring festival ticket to Maryland to visit the monkeys.

Rosie is a one of those monkeys--a full-time four year old.  She works cheap, doesn't shy away from overtime, and has fleeting moments of true brilliance.  I am completely a fan and will drag doll clothes for her across the continents until she goes to high school if necessary.  

Her textbook scowls at the Hershey Chocolate Factory were prize winning (but probably not the best of advertising).

Somewhere in the course of my intermission, someone suggested we should all eight of us jump in the van and set off for Civil War battlefields in the midst of the lowest temps of the year.  Mr. Lincoln was stunned at our naked bravery:  "Five kids, four states, and forty seven pounds of car snacks ago..."

Late morning jammies and motel cartoons!

The highlight for at least one of us was kicking it up in a shallow bathtub.

Lorelai was a major cave fan.  We did two down old Virginny way.

Caroline in her zen cave mode.

Skyline Caverns near Front Royal, VA,

and Luray Caverns not too far away.

It is no easy task being Pete...or his mom.  He tackles the task with aplomb each day.  Who would ever guess that under his bouncing rambunctious seven year old exterior, he's an artist!

He expresses himself in all manner of mediums.  I got to bring this smashing giraffe back to Beijing for our "gallery".  We're thinking that a little of the Uncle Tom gene leached out in the family gene pool and got sucked up by Pete.  

Charlie has taken to scouting like a duck to water.

I left my heart wrapped around this little pumpkin's tiny pinky finger.

Thanks for the good times, monkeys!
It was all worth it...

in the end.