Side Note: When I was in 7th grade he gave me a talking to when I asked to skip a Bruin football game for a birthday party. He pulled me aside and said, "Look Maddi, we are Mobleys, we don't bleed red, we bleed blue and gold, skippin the game isn't an option, it's in your blood." What can I say, Bruin Born, Bruin Bred.
For those that don't know, Lane has been stationed in Vicenza, Italy for about 2 years now. He lives there with his wife, Aarika and their puppy Juno. Vicenza is about 2 hours north of Florence by train so I knew I definitely wanted to make a trip to go see them! Vicenza is also about 30 min to the west of Venice which was super convienient for the visit.
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| This is Aarika, Lane, and my baby niece in the belly! |
Everything happens at the right time for a reason. Sounds super cliche but it is true! LdM (The school I attended in Florence) hosted a weekend in Venice the weekend of a big festival there called the Festival of the Redeemer. Well, instead of going on this trip, I decided to head to Vicenza with two of my friends from the program. The plan was to hang with Lane and Aarika and then head to Venice to see the festival (The festival had fireworks which was my main incentive since I missed the 4th.) It was the perfect timing also because I was at the halfway point of my trip and a little family time always keeps you going.
I also felt the need to display my new cooking skills so I offered to cook dinner for everyone when we got there. I got a little ambitious and wanted to make the Spaghetti with Clams that I learned in class, only problem was transporting clams for 2 hours on a train in a country that doesn't believe in coolers or ice. Well I did all the shopping in the mercato in Florence for this meal and ended up using the friendships I made to have the Fish man make me a cooler out of bags! It was impressive and it worked perfectly, the only downside was that I smelled like clams everywhere I went.
Rae, Chez and I jumped on a train Friday afternoon and headed to Vicenza. I think these two were more excited than me because there were so eager to see how people live outside the city of Florence. The train was super easy and they met us at the train station. It was so nice to be so far away from home but to feel like I was in a home again. It's a weird feeling that I don't know if I will be good at explaining, but just the feeling of safety, comfort and familiarity that lacks in a foreign country. I was very lucky to have these two so close.
We got there, took Juno for a walk and then cooked dinner. To my surprise, it went perfectly and my clams even stayed alive to make the journey! Lane is a picky eater so he didn't eat the deliciousness, but the rest of us were able to enjoy!
Juno ready for her walk!
After dinner we got to explore Vicenza with some of Lane's buddies (makes sense why they all hung out, there were all huge goobers like Lane.) It was fun to be able to hang out with my brother, it had been such a long time where it was just us and friends and I am excited to get him back to the US!
Cheesin' hard.
On Saturday we woke up to the man army downstairs cooking breakfast which was an excellent surprise. Even though they made a mess, the boys know how to cook a great American breakfast (Breakfast to the Italians is a croissant and an espresso and I needed my bacon.) We were able to explore the base and even get a workout in in their gym. The one thing you need to know about any military gym is that EVERYONE is ripped and in shape and they are kicking their own butts during the work out, a little different than 24 hour fitness. After a good morning on base, we headed home and got ready for Venice.
Since it was our first time there, we decided to head in during the early afternoon so we could walk around a little. The fireworks weren't starting until 11:30 so it gave us plenty of time to explore.
On the train, we met some break dancers and Rae even shared a mutual friend with them! (Small World)
They explained how much fun the festival is and they made the train ride go by very quickly.
We explored the beauty of Venice right during sunset and it made for excellent pictures. Since Chez and Rae are both a part of the Art Department at their film school, they were oogling over the doors, windows and buildings that they wanted to recreate. I followed behind and nodded my head and attempted to appreciate they city like they saw it.
The beauty that is Venice at sunset
Due to this festival, everyone was celebrating with big dinners outside along the water (the water is everywhere you turn fyi), the restaurants were expensive and the Island was PACKED. We paid way too much for an average dinner but that is what happens during events. Lane's buddies from the night before were meeting us for the fireworks and thank goodness we had Italian phones and they have good navigation skills because they were able to find us in the sea of people as we waited for the fireworks.
The Firework show was spectacular and reminded me of my junior year of high school when I watched the Macy's 4th of July firework show overthe Hudson River. There is just something about fireworks that makes me happy!
We ended the night with something that everyone must do in Venice, get lost and explore. We walked around for a good hour before we finally found our way to the train station. Everything was closed as we walked around because the entire island was enjoying the festival on their boats.
We slept in the next day and then headed home. I was so happy to get a glimpse into the life that my brother has over here, he is kicking butt in the army and it was amazing to finally meet and cuddle with Juno!
Excuse the sloppy formatting of the blog and pictures, because I procrastinated for so long, I am working with my iPad and it is not the same. I will fix it when I am home and have my computer.
