We’ve been back a little over 2 weeks now and it’s been great.  We finally unpacked the last of our things (except for a few more boxes in our bedroom) and started putting things on the walls.  Our new home is looking pretty good.  We love our new balcony area and have had a few barbeques there already.  I don’t think we can ever go back to not having some sort of an outdoor space.  It’s pretty nice.  Cadence started camp this week and has been doing great.  She didn’t cry at all the entire week and seems to be enjoying it.  She looks forward to going to school and seeing her new friends.  She’s still learning all their names and it’s harder this time since her class is a lot bigger than it was when she was in daycare.

I started working from home this week as well.  Sucheng helped me set up my home office in our bedroom and it’s coming along nicely.  I’m enjoying working from home so far and I’m sure as the weather gets colder, it’ll be great not having to commute.  Things at work are a bit on the quiet side, so this week I’m just playing catch up for the month I was gone.

Sucheng hasn’t started work yet.  He will begin this coming Monday, so he has 2 more days to relax and before he goes back into the real world.  He said that his 2 year vacation is finally coming to an end.  What a great vacation huh?

I’m uploading all our pictures from our trip now, so please be sure to check them out!

Wow, our last night in Rome!  Can you believe it’s been exactly a  month today?  We’ll be saying our goodbyes to Italy tomorrow and then head back to Madrid to take our flight back to the states on Thursday.  What an adventure it’s been.  I just hope Cadence will at least remember a few of the things we saw on this trip.

Let’s see what fun things we’ve exposed her to:

1.  Coca-Cola (we had to cut her off because she was liking it a bit too much)

2. Gelatto (lots of it)

3. MTV music videos (no other stations to watch unfortunately since we don’t understand Italian).  Cadence said to us the other day that she wanted to watch her favorite TV station – MTV.  What have we started?

4. Later bedtimes (should be interesting when we get back home)

5. She can spot a metro station a mile away

6. She now thinks every statue of a naked man is a David (with a poopy in the front)

7. Knows what a nun looks like

8. Can basically last about an hour and a half in a museum…on a good day. Hopefully she’ll grow up appreciating art.

9.  Able to nap anywhere (that girl can usually sleep for about an hour in her stroller whether we’re pushing her around or just hanging out at the park)

10. Knows that there is nothing like home since she’s been asking about going back to New Haven every day.

Photos at Piazza Navona and the Pantheon

Sistine Chapel - what a work of art!

So many historic sites to visit and so little time.  Here are a few of the ones we’ve visted the last few days: the Colosseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, and Vittorio Emanuelle Monument

Ahhh…Vatican City.  The Basilica was amazing inside and we actually took the stairs and made our way all the way up to the top: a total of 551 steps and Miss. Cadence went up byself most of the way.  The views were amazing.  Be prepared for long lines though.  We went late morning on Sunday (probably not a great idea) and it was a mob scene but the crowds were lighter in the afternoon.  The line went pretty fast though.  That was also the only day out of the whole month that we’ve been traveling that it rained this hard.  There was one other day in Barcelona that rained for a bit and then the sun came out.  Cadence loved walking around holding that huge umbrella.  She had a great day – climbed up all those stairs, walked around in the rain, had Indian food and slept great at night (pooped from all the climbing I’m sure).  Oh…she also saw nuns for the first time and really took an interest in them.  She kept asking about them and at one point wanted to follow them around so that she could say hello.  Not so sure that they would appreciate fans treking behind them.

Before I forget, I wanted to retell this funny story.  We went to see Michelangelo’s David when we were in Florence and every time Cadence saw a statue that resembled it, she would say, “Mama, it’s a David” and believe it or not, most of the time, she was right.  That girl has an eye for things.  Anyhow, we were walking up to get a scenic view of the city and had to do a bathroom run.  There happned to be a small statue of David right outside and Cadence said, “Look mama, it’s David.”  Sucheng and I both were surprised she still remembered since it’s been a few days since we saw the sculpture.  As we walked into the ladies room, she blurted out “Mama, David has a poopy in the front.”  Classic huh?

It’s been almost 2 weeks since we’ve had internet connection at our hotel/apartment and boy has it been hard! As much as we wanted this vacation to be relaxing and free of email/internet, it’s been tough not having it around since we’re usually back home by around 9 pm.  From 9 to 11 or so, we need to keep busy at home and most of all be quiet since Cadence is in such close proximity.  For me, I’ve read 2 books and crocheted a few things since we haven’t had any internet and Sucheng has been playing a lot of video games and reading as well.

So only 5 more days until our vacation comes to an end.  It’s been a wonderful trip, but I have to say that I’m glad to be going home.  I’m totally exhausted.  Cadence has been up and down; mostly up, but there are days when she’s down and when those days are upon us, it’s not pretty for both parties.  Surprisingly she’s great on days that we travel (getting from city to city on the train/plane); however, bedtime and sometimes morning routines are a bit tough for her.  I’m sure this trip is getting hard for her as well.  When she has one of her days, she whines and cries and says that she wants to go home to New Haven and that she misses everyone back home and then cries some more.  It breaks my heart to think that we’re not going to be going back to New Haven…I keep telling her that we’ve already moved and she says that she understands, but does she REALLY?

Anyhow, what did we do the past 2 weeks?  Well, after Barcelona, we took a train to Italy – first stop Milan.  We were only in Milan for a day and then we headed to beautiful Venice.  Venice is spectacular.  It’s such a beautiful city and all the pictures you see do not do the city justice.  As much as we loved the architecture, all the gondalas, and the boat rides, the city was way too congested.  If you walked and took the narrow alleyways, you were able to escape the crowds; otherwise, the boats and most of the popular squares were packed.

Milan – mostly pictures of the duomo (one of many that we saw already)

Beautiful Venezia!

After 4 days in Venice we took the train to Florence and was there for a whole week.  We really liked our apartment there because it was nice and spacious and was only on the first floor (without elevator of course).  Since we didn’t stay at an apartment in Venice, we ate out everyday (I also forgot to mention that everything there was double the cost from the rest of Italy) so we missed home cooked meals.  We were really good about making dinner at home and Sucheng loved trying all the different pasta sauces and noodles.  Who doesn’t like pasta right?  Well, after a week of it, I’m a bit pasta-ed out, if that’s possible.  We took a day trip to Pisa, known for the leaning bell tower next to its duomo and Siena.  There wasn’t much to Pisa besides the duomo and the leaning bell tower, but it was just cool to see it.  Siena was a big tourist attraction, but it was a cute city to visit for the day.  The city is very hilly and windy.  The train ride there was also very scenic and beautiful.

Photos in Tuscany – Pisa on top, then Siena and some photos of Florence

So now here we are in Rome.  Our first day in here has been great so far.  We are staying at a hotel…not too shabby for a 3 star hotel.  We have internet connection at least right?  Today’s also my birthday, so it was great celebrating it in such a historic and beautiful city.  Since we didn’t want any Italian food tonight, we opted for good ole Chinese…yummo!  I’ll post more photos when I get a chance..time for some shut eye now.  Good night!

Not a lot of time to write these nights, but here are the highlights from the last few days in Barcelona.

Photos from Sagrada Familia – a must see at Barcelona.  The outside was absolutely breathtaking.  It cost us 11 euros each (Cadence was free) to get in and we didn’t think it was worth it.  The outside of the church was definitely the best part of the attraction.  You can also pay an extra 2.50 euros to take an elevator up to the top, but the wait was also 45 minutes…what a rip off!

Another must see for Barcelona – Mercat de la Bouqueria (Bouqueria Market).  We walked through rows and rows of fruits, seafood and all types of yummy foods.  We’ve already had 2 excellent meals at one of the small seafood stalls there.  Cadence had her first squid and mussels! She loved both which was quite surprising.

Walking around a huge shopping area – Las Ramblas; fun day at the beach; watching the water fountain show by the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya (I think it may beat the Bellagio water show)

Cadence is at the age where she is constantly asking “why.”  It’s been a lot of fun watching her develop a curiosity for the world around her…  although sometimes her “why” can turn into 20 “why’s” in a row.  Here’s a sample conversation the other day when we were heading to the Metro on the escalator:

Cadence: Mama, why is that woman running down the escalator?

Wendy: I think she’s rushing to get somewhere.

Cadence: Why?  Why is she rushing to get somewhere?

Wendy: She probably has something to do and has to get there quickly.

Cadence: What does she have to do?

Wendy: I’m not sure, maybe she has to go to work or school or she’s going shopping.

Cadence: Why is she running?  Why are we just standing on the escalator?

Wendy: Maybe she’s late for something and she has to get there right away.

Cadence:  Why is she late?

Wendy: Maybe she woke up late.

Cadence: Why did she wake up late?  Why is she running?

Wendy: You know what, I’m not really sure…

So goes the conversation…at a certain point, I’m allowed to just cut her off right?  Or is that rude and un-mommy like of me?

I can’t believe we’ve been here for a week already.  Tomorrow we say good-bye to this beautiful city.  We’ve enjoyed it so much – great people, lots of parks, wonderful architecture, laid back lifestyle, and the delicious food of course.  This is going to be hard to beat, but I’m optimistic.  We still have 3 more weeks to our trip, so I think we’ll probably like another city more or at least the same.

Last few days in Madrid…

Leisure day enjoying the parks

Day trip to Segovia.  It was absolutely breathtaking.  The city was so well preserved.  On the left side you’ll see the three of us posing in front of the aqueduct.  Cadence was taking her siesta, but we figured we shouldn’t cheat her of such a great photo op.  Then we visited the Alcazar of Segovia or the Segovia Castle.  It was pretty cool as well.  You can read up on it if you click on the link.

Sucheng’s been dying for me to post something that happened yesterday on the Metro.  I was pushing the stroller onto the train when a huge gust of wind came through the hole between the platform and the train.  You can guess the rest…

In order to stay healthy and of course to cut down on cost, we’ve been trying to eat out only once a day and so far we’ve been able to do it.  It’s helpful that we have a full kitchen of course.  Typically Sucheng makes us a pretty lavish breakfast – eggs, sometimes sausage and some fruits on the side; we tend to eat out for lunch since we’re out and about during the day; after a long day of walking, we head home around 6 pm and then cook dinner.  When we do eat out, it’s hard to get inour veggies, so we’ve been eating a lot of it for dinner.  We live right near a farmer’s market type of shop and also a supermarket, so we have all we need in this one little area.  Here’s to saving money and eating healthy, which are both hard to do!