Sylvie in Italy

I took a LOT of photos in Italy. Nearly 2000, in fact. No lie. I edited those down to just about 400. Italy, unsurprisingly, is an excellent place to take photos. I broke them down into a few categories. This is the first. Since this is Sylvie's Place, this is Sylvie's Category. The most common denominator, of course, is gelato.

Fun on vacation

Apparently Bruschi and Sophie also enjoyed spring break. 

Back in Boston

I will have some photos to post of our last morning in Rome, but for now suffice it to say we are landed safely in Beantown, and Syl is bushed!

PS this is how customs sees us:

And here is our munchkin in the car on the way home...

Roma

When we arrived in Rome we packed into a couple of cabs - and I do mean packed. But our driver was by chance a devotee of Boston sports and a star of the a Roman cab driver softball league (he plays for the Wasps) so the ride passed quickly. 

Unfortunately our room was not ready, so we headed out to get Sylvie a salad. Just kidding. 

My second beer was a big one. Steve had one of these puppies too, which meant a jointly requested pit stop during our golf cart tour of the city roughly 47 minutes later. 

We hit the Trevi a Fountain, the Parthenon, the Spanish steps... With a surprise stop for some awesome food and wine courtesy our tour company.  

Then it was on to a traditional Roman restaurant, where Sylvie had a salad. Just kidding. 

Shock of the trip: Melissa ordered and ate pasta with cheese and pepper. Can meat sauce be far off?

I just realized that my iPhone photos today are very Haley-centric. We were accompanied by the crew the whole way, and my camera shots will reflect that when I finally get through all two thousand of them...

Tomorrow we Haleys peel off to catch a flight back to Boston. 

Leaving Venice

This morning saw the first rain of our trip, and it was actually very pleasant... Though I for one am glad not to have been exposed to Venice's famous Aqua Alta (against which possibility Melissa and Sylvie both lugged massive rubber boots across the Atlantic).

Melissa wanted some fresh produce for today's journey to Rome, so we walked over to the Rialto Market for some pre-train shopping. 

Side note: Strawberries in Italy are a whole different fruit. We have nothing remotely like them insofar as deliciousness goes.

We opted for a non-horse diet today, but had we been of a mind, this horse butcher would have happily served all of our horse meat needs.

Melissa ran into her soul-herb:

Ultimately we went for a safe choice for train lunch: pizza.

A final water taxi ride, and then the train (from which I am presently posting) while Sylvie watches Shrek on her iPad for the third time this trip.

A fond farewell

Sylvie prepared this thank you for her namesake, Silvia, our waitress each day at breakfast and the jewel for the aqua Palace Hotel:

Silvia loved it.

If you are ever in Venice looking for a pasta making teacher...

... go with Isabella.

Yesterday the girls spent the first good chunk of the Fay shopping for ingredients at the Rialto Market (continuous operation for SEVEN CENTURIES!!!) and then preparing a delicious pasta lunch in the apartment of a lovely local woman named Isabella. 

Thanks for all the photos, Grandma and mommy!

Bucket of eels anyone?

While they did that, I spent some time wandering the city and getting lost with my camera. I am excited to get home and look at what I got. Pausing for an espresso felt great.

After we all met back up, Sylvie was rewarded for being the best 8 year old travel companion ever with an Italian BeenieBoo knock-off that she spied in a storefront.

And (what else) another gelato (con Fanta).

Sunsets in Venice don't stink.

Dinner was at a schmancy "new" restaurant in a converted convent.

Steve particularly enjoyed the hiatus between soup and scampi.

After dinner, Sylvie and I split a--wait for it--gelato.

And the Steve, Christian and I stopped in to the Devil's Forest Pub for a night cap. Turns out there are cop bars everywhere, and this is Venice's.