Married 10 Years! Celebrating in Venice!

Ryan loves it when I blog our travels. I'm woefully behind, but as a belated anniversary gift I told myself I'd chronicle this trip Ryan planned for our tenth wedding anniversary this past weekend.

Ryan likes ambiance. There's scores of romantic, beautiful places in Europe, but Venice tops many lists and that's where Ryan took me to celebrate, plus a little stowaway, Jake. We had a great time despite Ryan coming down with a high fever and horrible headache he couldn't kick for the last half of our getaway. This is actually our third time in Venice and I have to be honest, I wasn't super thrilled to be going back at first. But a getaway is a getaway, so away we went!

Back in 2009 on our first big European adventure with the kids, we stopped in Venice on a whim at the tail end of a week in Italy with the kids where we crammed in the big sights of Florence, Rome, and Pisa too. Needless to say, all those cute little bridges over scenic canals were not my favorite when tromping over them with a gangly double stroller and tired little kids (ages 5, 3, and 6 months). Our second stop in Venice was at the tail end of a whirlwind trip with my parents and that went better, but it was so quick I really didn't see much except some great blown glass in Murano and exquisite handmade lace linens on Burano with my mom. This time, however, I was determined to give Venice a fair shake even though it would be crowded with tourists. It was the last big weekend of European summer vacation plus Labor Day weekend for all us Americans. Venice is a one hour flight from Stuttgart, or a few hours by train, or just six hours by car I believe.

How do you do, Venice? With the views we enjoyed, I can honestly say I'm glad to see you again!

View from the Rialto Bridge over the Grand Canal.

10 years together! I love my Cute Boy!

If you can see the price tag, it reads 7,50 euros for ONE box of mix! That's about $10!

San Marco Plaza, love the dueling five piece orchestras!!!
I could seriously sit and listen to them with a good book all day long anytime!

Someone is getting tired of being ignored and rolled through museums.
Just after the Correr Museum of Venetian history and art.

Man I love kissing on this sweet little guy!
Thank you Ryan for catching these cute shots! 

One of my favorite faces he makes a lot when watching something interesting or being surprised.
Even cuter when his mouth makes a perfect little O.
I recently discovered he inherited it from his Grandpa Nelson! So fun!

Dad can make him downright silly and it's so fun! Ryan is such a great dad!!!
Jake is quickly starting to prefer Ryan to me sometimes but I still get some moments!

We stayed at a lovely B&B called Campiello Zen. LOVED IT, can't recommend it enough!!! They let us know that the Historical Regatta was happening on Sunday. Although Ryan came down with a very high fever and debilitating headache late Saturday night, he just couldn't miss the pageantry and race before heading back to bed. It was worth it!

We could hear the trumpets on the lead boat long before we got to see the parade of boats before the race. 

The lead boat had a tough time with the current right in front of us.
Boats that strayed too much toward us had a tough time not hitting these docked boats. 

Many boats were dressed in historical garb from Venice's hey day in the 1500s.
But some were just teams there to compete in the regatta races, like these gals decked out in pink!

Don't forget the peasant farmers from the North in their dirndls and lederhosen who brought their harvest bounty! 

Time to head back to where the races will be held.
Great that the sun came out to show how colorful it all was!

I loved the charging horses on this one!

Jake enjoyed the spectacle but was even happier to play peek-a-boo!
Italians, Germans, and Asians we came across on this trip, however, all say "cuckoo" instead!

One of the great things about the B&B we stayed at was it's view into what life is like living in Venice. A short walk from the place is a quiet neighborhood plaza with most of the amenities you need - grocery store, a few restaurants, pharmacies, bank, and so forth. Our first day there we bought stuff for a picnic lunch to enjoy in the plaza to tide us over until dinner - bread, a pecorino cheese chunk, fresh tomato, grapes, some chips, M&Ms, water, and juice. We also set Jake free to wander and chase his very first pigeons! He loved the freedom and it was such a safe, quiet place with locals milling about.

In this same plaza this weekend, the local Communist party here throws a neighborhood celebration each year. It was more like a German fest minus the handful of disjointed political booths. This fun clown had kids rolling with laughter! The signs at the booth behind the clown talk about protesting cruise ships docking in Venice's lagoon.

Ryan had to head back to our place because his head was spinning. Jake and I took our time heading back. I love watching him walk around like he owns the world. And I get such a kick out of seeing people's reactions to him!

Since Ryan still wasn't feeling well today, I set out on my own for a couple hours while he and Jake napped. I got myself to the water bus stand (minus a handful of wrong turns) and hopped on the Grand Canal slow boat #1, plugged into my iPod where I'd downloaded a Rick Steves podcast travel guide, and enjoyed listening to him tell me what to watch out for on my way toward San Marco.

I still have yet to see the inside of San Marco's Bascillica or the Doge's Palace! I couldn't brave the horrendous lines this time and forfeit time to meander, shop and eat gelato. If you ever come across a Grom gelateria (like in NYC), try their dark chocolate fondente! You'll thank me later!

All too soon, it was time to load up and head home. Jake was worn out, Ryan was trying to hold it together with only slight relief from his symptoms, and I bemoaned forgetting our good camera's charger such that all these shots are from the dinky iPhone camera. Oh well, at least it captured some great times celebrating ten great adventurous years with my best friend! I love you, Ryan!

Choose Your Own Adventure

We had the most rejuvenating extended weekend in New Hampshire visiting some of Ryan’s family! After a lazy day on Friday exploring Memay and Grandpa Mark’s yard, the surrounding woods and scarfing down dutch oven chicken & veggies, Ryan and I got to escape for a 5th anniversary get-away! YAHOO! Mark and Nancy most graciously watched the boys Saturday to Sunday and deserve a day or two of spa treatment to recuperate for keeping up with these two little busy-bodies! The best thing about New Hampshire is that we only had one thing planned – the zipline - yet managed to fill the two days overflowing with things we loved and can’t wait to do more next time!

The Offroading and ZipLine Canopy Tour
A dozen of us all harnessed up for the zipline filed off the leather upholstered shuttle and into a Pinzgauer – the ultimate offroading mean-machine! You would not believe how this beast of a vehicle attacked those “roads” without even flinching while carrying all of us! No better way to get acquainted quickly with complete strangers than landing in their lap! Hello! Once our harnesses were checked, we were on our way to the first zipline. Their website says, “There are 7 zip-lines totaling over 2000' of exhilaration. Platforms are 15' to 65' high in the trees and the zip-lines are 100' to 700' long.” Being lowered over the first line’s edge is the scariest, but you never get over the butterflies, nor can you wipe the goofy grin off your face or stifle the nervous giggle that erupts the moment you size up the next line! It was such a rush, I loved it and I’m terrified of heights! A ton of fun!

Feeling quite adventurous still, our plan was to meander up Rt 3 through little towns, stopping when we wanted to peruse an interesting shop or hike into waterfalls on our way to the New England Cattle Company for dinner. Mark and Nancy recommended two restaurants to us and we decided to hit one each day, letting that set our course. And let me tell you, the food was AMAZING! Ryan had a filet mignon w/ garlic butter, Yukon mashed potatoes, and butter rum carrots. I had steak au piouve with a béarnaise sauce, the mashed potatoes and green beans almandine. Add salad and a delicious tiramisu to polish it off and we were fat and happy campers! Ryan assures me the meals were wonderful, but for this mom of toddlers, it was a divine experience to be savored for days, perhaps weeks and months to come! As I wearily schemed to get Easton to eat at least one more bite of his dinner and mopped up McKay’s leftovers from the floor tonight, I thought back to that heavenly experience of a meal being served, eaten, and cleaned up with little to no effort on my part! It’s the type of thing that just keeps on giving in my book!

Simple Pleasures
It takes very little to make me happy I’ve decided. Cool weather, great food, and plenty of outdoor fun. Can you believe I was wearing a fleece most of the trip in mid-August?! It never got over 72 degrees and dipped down to 39 on Saturday night. We caught a late night showing of Bourne Ultimatum in a great old theatre with great sound, high ceiling fans, old wood floors and what appeared to be the original old leather seats.

Loyal Love
We caught the Plymouth branch on Sunday and a recent convert gave a great talk on revelation to which her husband, sitting right in front of us, literally could not contain his anxious pride. At the close of her talk, he turned and exclaimed to us, “That’s My Wife!” and turned back to give his wife an enthusiastic thumbs up and victory sign! It was so adorable and funny I was in tears! You felt like she’d just won an Olympic hurdles event!

Sweet and Savory
We then headed for brunch at the Country Cow overlooking the historic covered Blair Bridge on the Pemigewasset River. Ryan had the French toast amaretto di saronno that had been dipped in toasted almonds and drenched in locally made maple syrup. I had the most delicious omelet with thinly sliced smoked turkey, bacon, swiss cheese, and onion. Not only was the meal out of this world, but washing up in the bathroom was fabulous! Why you ask? It smelled sooooo good I actually wrote down the details of the bottle of fragrance diffuser on a paper towel! Ryan took the more practical approach and asked the owner of the restaurant where she got the fragrance so we could buy our own while there since it too was a local product. Sheer genius, that husband of mine! Chesley’s Glory House of knickknacks was where it’s at! Then we just followed the scenic Kancamagus Highway through the White Mountains and then on down alongside Lake Winnipesaukee.

Once home we ate spaghetti with everyone, McKay had the mother of melt downs for me and we got the boys to bed so we could play some Cities and Knights of Catan with Spencer. We all crashed and had a slow morning before heading to Hampton Beach. Easton was all giggles and loved the waves with Grandpa Mark. McKay preferred to find rocks to throw in the ocean or chase seagulls. It was back to the reality of outings with kids - one overtired and crying, the other whining because he's cold and wanting ice cream. All in a day's work and we still had to fly home. Home Sweet Home! Thank you - Nancy, Mark and Spee!