Exactly seven months ago today, we bid farewell to Rome and to our Traveling Anderzoo European Adventure! With the closing post, I figured this blog would go radio silent until we embarked upon another summer adventure, but then . . . COVID-19 crashed down upon us and with it a new adventure, Schooling From Home (SFH). This past summer each of us traveled from country to country with one suitcase and one backpack, from hotel to house, from train to car, from church to museum, all five of us together. Today, we are all together once again, but the scenery … Continue reading A New Adventure Begins!

We came. We saw. We conquered. Just like the Romans before us. After the incredibly hot, tons of crowds, lots of walking, day at the Vatican, we started our day off on golf carts with RollingRome for a private, off the beaten track, get down all the narrow cobblestone alleys made of lava rock, tour of Rome and all of her historical wonder. RollingRome Giulia and Eugene were our guides, historians, ambassadors of beauty and they were absolutely magnificent. With them, we were able to get away from the throngs of tourists at the main sites and tuck ourselves onto … Continue reading Veni, vidi, vici

It really needs no words, but because I’m me, and I’ve been known to be wordy and even verbose, I’ll lay a few down here. As a Catholic, the Vatican is the center of our world, the seat of our leadership and the place that epitomizes our faith and somehow, at least for me, makes me feel just a smidge closer to God. I reflect more, pray harder and feel everything so much more. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, it has been my Mom’s lifelong dream to see the Vatican, in all it’s gold and magnificence. It’s been 17 … Continue reading The Vatican

As kids at home in San Jose return home from their first day of school, a fresh start, a new year, I am catching up on capturing the final two cities and the winding down of our month+ long European Tour. We still have a few days left but I am way behind . . . A woman once called Firenze, also known as Florence, an open air museum because everywhere you stroll, you find something beautiful, historic and artistic. From a replica of La Pieta on a corner of a building, to a quaint, decorative church nestled in between … Continue reading Firenze, an open air museum

. . . We didn’t want to leave ya. As Boyz II Men once sang, “it’s so hard to say goodbye,” to Casa Maria. It was our home away from home for 8 days and was the perfect respite smack dab in the middle of our trip. The kids could run and swim and play to their hearts delight, and some of my most favorite memories of the trip are the 5 of us playing Uno and Scattergories on our covered patio before dinner, sipping vino bianco, of course! We were privileged enough to have a chef on the estate … Continue reading Casa Maria . . .

Joe and I have been longing to see the Cinque Terre, or 5 villages, on the western coast of Italy for 20 years. It was on my bucket when I traveled through Italy while studying abroad in law school back in 2002 but with only a week, I prioritized Rome, Florence and Venice. Also, I wanted to see it with Joe. Awwww. We’ve watched the PBS Rick Steves segment on the Cinque Terre multiple times and knew that we wanted to make it happen on this trip. We also knew that Beebs and Scott wanted to see it too, so … Continue reading The Cinque Terre

Pisa After picking up our +3 we shouted, “jet lag be damned” and headed directly to Pisa to see the Leaning Tower in all her glory. She’s equally beautiful and scary at the same time but so worth the half day trip! It blew our mind that it actually took two centuries to build her and Gus was fascinated by the fact that at soon as they got the foundation set, she was already doomed. I really enjoyed taking photos of her as well as the nearby Baptistry and Duomo. We had a delicious lunch inside with A/C (are we … Continue reading A Leaning Tower & A Medieval Walled City by Tandem Bike

(V.4 because the first three versions wouldn’t load) I’ve never been good at surprises. I know that because my Mom made the slip of tongue that she was throwing a surprise party for my Dad’s 40th Birthday and my innocent, 4-year old self, excited and eager to please, told him! I’ve literally never lived that day down but what was true at 4 is still true today. I love experiencing the happiness and joy of others, of watching them open a gift that I specially selected for them and seeing the look on their face as they do it, of … Continue reading Surprise – v.4

After a week of not eating anything green, Italy has safely delivered us back to better eating and to what Joe aptly pointed out as a slower, more relaxed pace. This leg of the trip, in Lucca, Italy is our longest stop in one city. Thank goodness for the foresight seven months ago when planning that we would need a backyard and pool to help ground us and give us a little taste of home and the space and time to just relax. Planning ideas and experiences on paper and in your head don’t always materialize as you had imagined … Continue reading Let them eat pasta