First Day in Italy

We got on the road to San Francisco at about 5am. Not such a bad thing, except we had stayed up till 3:30am last night. But, it all went smoothly. We got to Sarina's grandparent's house and Linda drove our half awake bodies to the terminal. The airport went fine. We got thru security and payed too much for a couple of bagels.

We made a pit stop at Ohare International, Chicago. We had just enough time to stretch our legs and throw down a quick lunch before we were back in the air for the final 9 hours of our 14 hour trip.

I spent nearly the whole time reading a book. After about 6.5 full hours of reading, I began to feel the repercussions in my muscles.

Upon entering The halfway point down Europe, we were welcomed to a gorgeous sunrise of orange and blue. Regardless of the fact that the sun was rising, my body and my watch wouldn't let me forget that I had been awake for nearly a full 22 hours [with a couple naps in between].

Sarina and I went thru the motions and got to our hotel: Hotel Cherubini. The room is perfect. Close to the train station, close to the metro hub, and just the right size. The room itself is about 4/5 the size of our bedroom in Santa Rosa, so it fit like a glove.

Now, most people when they arrive at a new and fun destination either [a] slug out and catch their body up with a low key day, or [b] they will go out and casually explore the near by stores and restaurants. We did neither.

Our first adventure today was more of a mission; and given the lack of effective directions, it became more of a mission impossible. We were setting things up in our little home away from home, and realized that the power converter we intended to use for our laptop was not even close to being able to provide us with effective power from the Italian sockets.

From Italy Honeymoon

So we ventured out into the city looking for electronics stores. However, this was far easier in concept than it was in execution. To cut the story down, let me just say: it took us 4 sets of bad directions and about 5 metro trips to eventually find a store that could [maybe] help us out. Luckily, they had just what we needed, and we were able to bring our computer back on line. This was a huge relief. We had planned to use the laptop for nearly everything: directions, reservations, paying bills, tracking credit cards, not to mention updating this blog site and uploading the pictures and videos. So, with mission complete, we set out for an adventure that didn't include going to the Roman equivalent of Kmart.

We decided to informally introduce ourselves to the more interesting parts of Rome. Target: Piazza Navona [and all points between]. We started at the Spanish Steps [Spagna], intercepted the Pantheon, and then lost ourselves in the many surrounding buildings and piazza that made up the glue between all the interstitial architecture. our ultimate goal was to Piazza Navona.

From Italy Honeymoon

However, that proved more confusing than expected. Granted, we got to see much of what the area had to offer, but our path was convoluted to say the least.

Finally, after considerable struggle with our maps, we found our way into Piazza Navona. Our astonishment over the fountains there was shadowed only by our starvation. So, we shopped the over 20 restaurants in the Piazza and sat down to our first real meal in Italy.

From Italy Honeymoon

From Italy Honeymoon

Feeling courageous, we tried to get to the Metro hub at Circo Massimo before they locked the terminal gates. Well...we failed. We got there a little too late. Standing there, having walked nearly the entire latitude of the city, we took advantage and completed our loop.

Even tho it was 11pm in Rome, we pressed on and made a path back to our hotel. our road home was very, very long and complicated. however, Sarina and I found excitement and joy bouncing from one night-lit treasure to the next, like a couple of giddy pin balls with flash bulbs beaming. When we hit the Colosseum, Sarina flexed her camera's muscle and had fun photographing as many angles as she could find. Eventually our fun came to it's end and we drug ourselves back up to our room.

Overall, I think our first day here was fun an memorable. I'm looking forward to what mischief tomorrow will bring. Ciao till then.

First Day As Husband and Wife

Nothing so invigorating as a plan coming together like a carefully designed puzzle before your eyes. Months of planning, experimentation and tinkering, followed by two days of preparation and setup. The whole event went perfectly. Nearly every detail falling into place just as planned. Also, seeing the surprised faces and happy tears made every effort worth huge dividends.

From Wedding Day

One by one, our guests arrived. Expecting a family photo, they were instead made aware of the wedding that was not more that an hour away. They were handed their invitations at the door and the veil was pulled, revealing the surprise wedding. Excitement, relief, and in a few cases, tears of joy filled the space of the cozy foyer.

Diane [the sister of Sarina's grandmother, Doreen] blessed us with the use of her home to create a wedding to remember. This house, having seen decades worth of holidays and children, would now see Sarina and myself onward as we became husband and wife. We could not have wished for a more befitting location to celebrate this new path in our lives together.

In a fashion that Sarina and I have developed over the years; the house was decorated with every detail in mind. Tables, displays, music, seating, dinning table, alter, appetizers, candy, photographs...and on, and on, and on. Taking advantage of the occasion, Sarina and I let our creative flux score a huge benchmark above even our greatest party setups from the past.

The ceremony was perfect; Aside from a couple charming hiccups, like our rings being left on a table in the kitchen.

From Wedding Day

At least we realized it before the officiant (Linda) started the ceremony in motion. There were tears all around the audience as the readings and vows were spoken. In the end, the whole thing played out beautifully, and we succeeded in touching the hearts of all that were present.

As we later said our good-byes and reformed Diane's home back to it's natural state, the memories of the day wash over our thoughts. I can honestly say that I have greatly underestimated how powerful and engaging something like a small wedding can be to the people involved. And furthermore, I had nearly neglected to recognize how fast and joyful the rippling out of the news would be. Today, Sarina and I are more happy than we have ever been. And with that, we have given so much happiness to our family and friends. I understand now why people say: "The day I married my wife was the happiest day of my life."

From Wedding Day

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Next to Come: our adventures in Italy. We will be sure to supply daily writings, pictures and video clips. We hope you all can use this blog to enjoy Italy from our perspective.