Sorrento

I wanted to post a few more photos from our most recent trip to Italy (Sorrento).

The view of Mt. Vesuvius from our hotel.



Look how narrow the streets are. It was amazing to watch the cars maneuver down the tiny little roads.



I really love Italy Mom:

Versailles through the eyes of a 4 year old

We went to Paris two weeks ago, and it was nice to be there when it was above 5 degrees.

I have wanted to visit Versailles for a long time, and finally had the opportunity to do so on this visit. Versailles is supposedly the best palace in all of Europe, and while I did not get to take my time and fully enjoy all of the splendor with a 4 year old & 1 year old in tow, it was still amazing.
Versailles is of course where the WWI peace treaty was signed, and the home of Marie Antoinette.

I will have to wait and get some of the better photos off my parent's camera. Kate was very keen to take photos this trip, and since I only had our little point & shoot camera, I let her.


Mom, Dad & Kate outside the palace:


The kiddos in front of the famous Hall of [Dirty] Mirrors:





And here is where the Kate-photos begin.


Enjoy.
Hall of Mirrors, again.

I went to London to visit the Queen

I am a big fan of mail. Who doesn't love opening their mailbox to find a personal note from someone from afar? (We don't have mailboxes here in London, but I'm ignoring that fact). Kate seems to have picked up this trait from yours truly, and loves to make cards to send to far-away friends.

Well, yesterday was a very special mail day at the Saeva house.



Kate received a personal letter from none other than Queen Elizabeth II.
OK, so really it was from her Lady-in-Waiting. Her Majesty was unable to reply personally, but apparently she really enjoyed the picture Kate drew for her to see.

Daingean Uí Chúis

I was a bit surprised to find that Gaelic is still a spoken language in many parts of Ireland. I had always thought it to be like Latin, a dead language.
So when we went to Dingle and heard many of the town people speaking in Gaelic, it was a pleasant surprise.

The Dingle Peninsula, in case you didn't know, is the most western part of Europe. And one of the most picturesque.



my parents and I in front of the At-a-lantic ocean. It smelled *so* salty and delicious.


I don't think you can tell in this photo, but all of the sheep are painted different colors, so that the owners can tell what family the sheep belongs to.


What happens when Big Bird meets Colonel Sanders.


We could not figure out why this guy was dressed this way, but it made us laugh.


Gallarus Observatory, built between the 7th & 8th century and the best preserved early Christian Church in Ireland. And, um it is small. Fits about 5 adults inside.



An example of the Celtic stonework that was evident all over the area.
The Celts would make these stone walls with no mortar or anything to bind the stones.

Lucky Readers

It is said that those who kiss the Blarney Stone are bestowed with the gift of eloquence. So you, dear readers, can count yourselves lucky that I made the effort.

I had always thought the stone was just some random rock on the grounds of Blarney Castle. But in fact, it is at the very top of the castle, over an open grate. You have to lie down on your back, scoot backwards over the grate, and bend your neck back to kiss the rock.




Looking very glamourous, fresh with renewed eloquence.

Water Babies

My poor kids don't have the carefree summer days that we get in the US. City life plus cool summers preclude outdoor water play. I'm very wistful when I see pictures of all my friends and their kids enjoying backyard swimming pools, sprinklers, and slip & slides. To me, that is what childhood summers should be, complete with messy popsicles and watermelon.

So when we went to Italy, the kids were both very keen to just spend the entire day in the pool. Kate reminded me that she needs swimming lessons when we move back to the States, "because she doesn't know how to swim, and that is dangerous". She is so very practical. It got quite cool in the evenings, and I had to literally drag them out of the pool once their lips went blue.




Michael loved being thrown up in the air like this, and would start signing 'more' before he was even down. Poor Danny's arms were about to give out.

How Kate & Michael do messy

We plop them, nekkid, in the bathtub.



While in Italy, we found delicious juicy peaches. I had not had a peach since moving here, so I was most excited. Kate had no recollection of ever eating peaches, and she loved them. But they were very messy, so I stripped her down and threw her in the tub to enjoy them in all their juicy splendor.
Michael was working on his yogurt, and succeeded in actually getting about 70% of it in his mouth.