Two Days in London

Well, leaving France was uneventful, and it is oh, so wonderful to be in the land of English speakers! In our last few days in France, we visited Versailles and Monet's garden in Giverney. Now we are in England! To be able to follow the signs, understand the conversations around you, to be able to ask questions without elaborate gestures! It feels almost surreal...



In Monet's garden

 We have gone from four back packs and three small bags to four back packs and two large duffel bags (with the small bags stuffed inside). Lugging these bags through metro stations and city streets requires a feat of supernatural strength! I actually got STUCK in a turnstile on Saturday! It caused quite a commotion - apparently there is a non-turnstile exit for folks lugging luggage! Good thing too, we have to use the Tube tomorrow to get to the airport!
Okay, so we arrived in London Saturday evening, had a dinner of fish and chips and headed back to the hotel to relax and watch some English game shows on tv. We were all exhausted, so it was a early night!
On Sunday we took a hop-on-hop-off double decker bus tour of the city (a river cruise was included!) We got to see so much more of London and Westminister than we would have just using the Tube, plus there was an audio tour that pointed out all the sights and important facts as we drove along.

Top deck of the double decker

Tower of London

We stopped at the Tower of London and took the Beefeater tour of the castle and heard some great stories about the unfortunate residents. (Bryanna will be sharing some in a later post). Then we saw the crown jewels. We had seen the Bayeux Tapestry in France, and the Tower of London was built by William the Conqueror 900 years ago when he decided he needed a castle to rule from. I love it when things get tied together like that for the kids (me too!).

Today we headed to the Churchill Museum and Cabinet War Rooms. This was the underground WWII headquarters of Churchill's war effort. There are 27 war rooms, including Churchill's room, the map room, and others, just as they were in 1945. An audio guide was included and explained each room in detail and included first-person accounts of what life was like during the war. It was fascinating!

We had to stand in line to take this picture! Lot's of tourist in town today! 

On the Millenium bridge

Pirate ship!

Millenium Bridge, St. Peter's and the Thames, oh, and the kids

The real surprise though, was the Churchill Museum. It followed his life, was very interactive and had many original artifacts. It was probably the best museum we have seen on this entire trip - and we have seen alot in the last 5 weeks! And again, tying in everything we saw and learned while in Normandy was wonderful.
We had lunch, then headed to the Globe theatre. We had to walk over the Millennium Bridge, spotted St. Peter's Cathedral in the skyline and got another view of the river Thames. Bryanna took the tour while Elijah, Day and I wandered along the river front, took some pictures in front of a replica Golden Hinde, Sir Francis Drake's 16th century pirate ship and treated ourselves to ice cream.
Tonight we are all giddy about the thought that this time tomorrow we will be home in the USA! Just the thought brings tears to my eyes! It has been an amazing 5 weeks, but we have all been missing Bryan horribly! And my mom, our house, and our critters and of course, all of our friends! Oh, but keep coming back to the blog! We all have more we want to post and more pictures of some of the oddities we have seen along the way through 6 countries!

NORMANDY 2




A spot where there once was a gun

 The land all around Pointe Du Hoc was covered with craters. The Americans B-17 bombers had laid waste to the German casements. The allies had been bombing this spot before the invasion even began! The American Rangers who scaled these cliffs had been hand-picked from the ranks. When I stood at the top of the cliff, it was hard to imagine scaling the cliff. (not to mention the guns) When the Rangers finally took the cliff (only 17 out of the 300) their objective, the german battery, had been moved. Apparently Romel had expected the attack. However, the attack had not all been in vain. There were still two guns left. One extremely brave Ranger ran towards the bunkers dodging bullets as he ran. When he finally reached the first bunker he killed the gunners and through in a thermite grenade. The second gun the same fate. (yes, he survived.)

 


 



The WWII Museum was amazing. When you first enter the parking lot, you ar greeted by the barrels of an M1 Sheman, Tank destoyer, Churchills Crocodile, and last a Panzer. When you enter the museum you are surrounded by dioramas and maps. There are little televisions at every section showing short film reels. At the end there is a theatre showing a thirty-minute film about D-day. (can't miss) After the film we went to the gift-shop, which was filled with cool but over priced gifts. When we left Daisy made good use of the tanks.

When you get there it not the cemetery first. Its a museum and theatre. when your done there you go on a walk towards the cemetery. The American cemetery was amazing. When I walked through the acres and acres of graves I realized just how many young men died to liberate people they didn't even know. While we were there the flag was lowered, of course there were trumpets and veterans. This was too much for some people. soon half the people there were crying. It was really touching to see all the people paying their respects to the fallen warriors.The monument was really cool too. When we left I got to see the graves of the brothers from "Saving Private Ryan." when we left it started to rain which added to the effect. To see all the graves was one heck of an experience.



Normandy



Normandy is one of the most amazing places in this world. To stand at the begining of Omaha Beach, and picture hundreds of young men charging up the beach-head. to picture bullets wizzing all around you, all to liberate people you don't even know. That, is life changing. The first place we went to was the 360 theatre. It was absolutley amazing. You felt as though you were fighting alongside the marines. The film was about twenty minutes and showed a lot of "before-and-after" shots. The second place we went to was Omaha Beach. It was really incredible. To stand were other marines fought, lived, and died was really cool. There was still debris left on the beach, wich was pretty neat. I went in to this army navy store, where the owner had all sorts of WWII stuff. Like german helmets and ammunition. he also had uniforms, guns, medals, and even some Nazi stick grenades. When we were done we left and went to the germans most heavily fortified position at Longues-sur-Mer Gun Battery, the only original coastal artillery guns remaining in place in the D-Day region. I got climb all through the german casements. It was so cool to think of a german soldier standing at his post here all day.

 And for me to recieve this opportunity was pricless. There was this underground barracks that was more a tunnel system with rooms. It was all dark, and you didn't know were to turn. But Daisy and I made it out just fine.

 Utah beach was more how I imagined the beaches, barbed wire, fences, gun casements, and miles of sand. When you stand at the begining of the beach and stare strait ahead you get this fealing inside you chest that you can't quite explain. Its a mix of sorrow, excitement, happiness, and thankfullness to all the British, Americans, Canadians, and French who died.

 PART 2 (POINTE DU HOC, THE WWII MUSEUM, AND THE AMERICAN CEMETERY)

We are in Barfleur, France!

Well, this is our next to last stop on the trip. We are in a lovely little fishing village on the English Channel, about 30 minutes from the Normandy Beaches and an hour from Bayeux.

That's Elijah waving from the window of our apartment

We had a crazy day on Saturday - leaving Varna as the sun came up to make our plane in Milan. We had to return our rental then make sense of the airport - it was a three hour ordeal of checking bags, passing security and finding seats on the packed flight to Paris. Thank goodness a kind lady took pity on weeping Daisy and let us sit together!
We arrived in Paris and had to get our bags, find the rental car counters and then the car! Phew! Now a four hour drive to Barfleur. It was 10 pm when we rolled in, but miraculously still sort of "twilight" outside to keep me from panicing that we were lost and wandering around in the middle of NOWHERE!

We are in a neat apartment over a bar/cafe with a killer view of the harbor. We spent Sunday exploring our little town and searching the tide pools for critters and shells.

Barfleur, France

Another shot taken of the street our apartment is on - can you see the green shudders?

Monday we headed to Arromanches to see Port Winston artifical harbor, Omaha Beach and  the American Cemetery. Today we are off to Bayeux to see two musuems, Pointe du Hoc and Utah Beach. Stay tuned, Elijah is taking pictures and will be telling you all about it. Good thing too, I blubbered my way through all the exhibits and movies. The vistor's center at the American Cemetery was excellent - so much information, exhibits and movies about the young soldiers - then you walk out into the cemetery - crosses and Stars of David for as far as you can see. And the beach below...

American Cemetery

Thank you everyone for all your prayers! We can feel His presence carrying us through each day. As our time here is winding down, we are so excited to be coming home to you all!

Hanging out in Italy

Greetings from France! We arrived last night and have spent today hanging out in this lovely village. We have internet access here, so count on more regular posts! Plus, we are in Normandy - Elijah's list of places to see is long and involved! Count on hearing from him as well.

Not having internet access in Italy was a bummer! The posts we were able to load were done in the car wherever we could find wifi! This was a post I had written a couple of days ago, so I figured I will put it here before we start writing about our latest adventures!

Our Italian domestic scene
Wanted to share a few shots of the house we stayed in outside of Rome. It has been fun staying in different houses and living like a local (or as much like a local as we can, not speaking the language!) We spend our days sight-seeing, but are home in the evening for a home-cooked dinner, which gives us a few hours of down time before bed.

Our apartment is one one of two on the lower floor of the Bella's home

working on their trip journals



Living area at Canale Monterano

 Even though we packed light, each of us brought a couple of books and is keeping a scrapbook of mementos from the places we visit. We also have a deck of cards to pass the time.

Just like in Germany, alittle TV has kept us entertained regardless of the language barrier. Here we have laughed our way through Italian MTV - they have a strange fascination with really bad 80's rock videos. I mean, REALLY bad. Think Alice Cooper and Poison. The hair and outfits are hilarious, but yeah, it's in English and we can understand what they are saying (is that a good thing?).

For Joe:

XXXXOOOO

The Leonardo Museum

When we went to the Leonardo museum we were greeted by an obnoxius and irritated staff member. He greeted us with a "buonjorno" through a forced smile. after we had purchased our tickets he hastily showed us the entrace to the first exibit and retured to his internet browsing. The first exibit showed his more commercial inventions.


 

WOW IT CRANKS!





The second exibit was on his more....lets say "destructive" inventions.

  

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM

The third was on pulleys and flying contraptions.

                                        
                                      

GERONIMO

When we left we managed to get some pictures of Mona Lisa II and Mona Lisa III.
                   

IF YOU WANT TO SEE THE REST GO THERE!

Monday and Tuesday
Oh, now I know what the fuss is all about! Tuscany is amazingly beautiful! Life is slow and laid-back, people are friendly and the food is soooo good! Even though we cook at home, our meals can't help but be delicious - our ingredients are authentic!

We have an apartment in the pink house

Makes me wonder why we keep heading into the cities....

Pizza at Il Campo

So Monday we went to Siena. Here, we were mostly just checking out the scene. The main square is called Il Campo - home of the famous Palio horse race - and said to be the best town square in all of Italy. We munched on delicious pizza and watched the other tourists and locals, before heading to check out the art in Siena's Duomo. The green and white striped church sits atop Siena's highest point and can be seen for miles around. We are getting our fill of stained glass and in-laid marble floors! This church contains a Michelangleo statue, Pisano's Carrara marble pulpit, Duccio's rose window, the Piccolomini altar, Bernini sculptures and a treat: the Piccolomini Library, decorated with captivating frescos and intricately decorated, illuminated music scores. (we found out that Aeneas Piccolomini, a Siena native, later became Pope Pius II).

Duomo in Siena

Altar

Duomo interior

Detail of The Fountain of Joy at Il Campo in Siena - this was supposedly the inspiration for that famous scene at the Sistine Chapel!

Fountatin of Joy

Oh, and we also got desparetely lost trying to find out car. You did want the whole story, right? Each sightseeing day begins with the search for parking, then ends with trying to retrace our steps to find the car. By the grace of God, we have managed to relocate it each day, but honestly, if it weren't for the kindness of strangers, we would still be wandering aimlessly in some distant Italian city!
We visited Florence on Tuesday. We were blessed to stumble upon the Leonardo Museum. Here about 30 of Leonardo's inventions and experiments have been recreated for visitors to touch and play with! The kids had a great time - but I will stop there - Elijah will tell you more later.
We waited in line for a hour to get into the Accademia Museum to see Michelangelo's David and Prisoners along with a few others. After our daily gelato (Florence was the birthplace of our favorite afternoon snack!) we began searching for the "Paperback Exchange". We were all in need of new literature and were excited to hear about an all English bookstore that gives discounts on used books and sells them too! I think that would be the perfect job - to own an English bookstore in a beautiful Italian city!

Where is a fig leaf when you need one?

Duomo in Florence

New Books!

One of the "Prisioners"

We had an extra challenge this day to get back to the car: we had taken a bus into the city square and were now faced with the task of getting back! People are so kind! We had practically half the bus helping us to get back to the "Stadio" where we had parked! I have my helpless and confused look perfected, I guess!
Today is Wednesday, and we are having what we call a down day. We spent the morning sleeping and at the lavarendia. Then to the market for the day's food and home to relax. It is a beautiful, warm day, and we are enjoying laying in the sun and reading our latest novels! We are thinking of heading to Italian Riveria tomorrow, if we can put together a fun day. There are several small towns nearby that we might visit on Friday, then onto Milan and an afternoon flight to Paris on Saturday! We will be spending our last week in Normandy, France. Stay tuned!

Time to play catch-up

We left our rental outside of Rome on Saturday morning and headed to Assisi, famous for it's hometown boy, St. Francis. What a beautiful town! Like nothing we have ever seen before - picture perfect around every corner with amazing views of the valley below from it's walls. We all said we would love to return with Bryan!

Street in Assisi






On Assisi's wall

After spending a few hours and having lunch, we headed to our destination: Gambassi Terme, about an hour outside of Florence and Siena. Our house sits on a hill surrounded by a vineyard and olive trees. It is a rental property managed by a company, rather than an apartment in the home of our landlord. It looks like there are several houses up here and other renters like us. We have met a young couple from Germany and there is a family from Denmark staying upstairs. We are only a few minutes from a good size town named Castelifiorentino. We can see the remains of a ruined castle on a nearby hill - I hope we have time to explore!

The castle near our house

View from our house

view from our house

Daisy had to warm up to our tandem bike!

Today is Sunday, and just like the other towns we have visited, just about everything is closed. We headed to Lucca, a lovely little town where the first bishop was a disciple of St. Peter. What makes this town appealing is it's 2000 year old Renaissance wall stretching about 2 1/2 miles around the city. It is a lovely public walkway with parks, gardens and benches - the perfect place for a Sunday afternoon bike ride!

The "Field of Miracles" in Pisa

yep, it's leaning...

After our ride and gelato, we headed for Pisa. We headed straight for the "Field of Miracles", and the Leaning Tower itself. There are several architectural marvels among the buildings in this square, so we spent some time admiring the delicate columns, gables and spires. Then we snapped a few shots, the kids bought a few mementos and we were outta there! It was packed with tour bus groups - too crowded for us!
Tomorrow we head to Siena and then on Tuesday we plan to visit Florence.

St. Francis