Italy: Part 1

It's a little hard to gather my thoughts on my trip to Italy. It was a little crazy and I'm still amazed that it all happened. I went to Italy!! 

So, it all started on Sunday when I flew to Georgia with both kids. We got to the airport early and George had a chance to get his wiggles out. Edith slept in the Ergo almost the whole way and George did great. Cleaning the windows and playing with the seat belt buckle were very fun. 

I thought it would be good to stay at my parents for a few days before leaving for Italy so George could get settled. It was sad to see him say bye to Nathan and when I said bye knowing that it would be so long before we saw each other again. I put him to bed Tuesday night before we left for the airport.

Our flight left Atlanta around 10:30 and headed toward Amsterdam. Edith did AMAZING! Seriously, she slept 7 of the 8 hours we were flying. We arrived at the Amsterdam airport and had a short layover before heading to Bologna. 

Nonno (my dad) got a lot of good Edith holding time during our trip. 

We made it to Italy around 4 (Italy time) on Thursday. Our Opel wagon was waiting for us and we hopped in and headed for Castel Del Rio. We lost a little time on the way because Google Maps decided to to take us over the mountain instead of around. Thankfully we caught it soon enough before we spent an extra hour weaving around Italian mountains. We made it to our hotel and because Edith was at her travel limit they brought dinner to my room. 

After a nights sleep, some amazing coffee and breakfast we wandered around town in the rain. This is the castle and for some reason I didn't expect there to actually be a castle in Castle Del Rio.

Framing this one.

My grandfathers pretty much a celebrity when he's in Italy. On the first day we went to Imola for a book signing. 

The square in Imola

Book signing time. The building was pretty amazing!

This was the best book signing because it was followed by champagne.

It was a little difficult taking pictures because I was either holding a baby or she was strapped to me. I had the most amazing pasta that was made at the hotel/restaurant we were staying at. 

Our quiet dinners at the end of our busy days were one of the things I look forward to most...or maybe it was breakfast.

The place we stayed at was amazing at having everything I needed for Edith. A crib for our room and this amazing bassinet for when we were eating and hanging out downstairs. Edith loved it and so did I!

This was our view during breakfast.

My dad has started this neat thing were he gets his hair cut when he travels (Charleston, New Hampshire) so he had to add Italy to his list. I had to make sure we got a picture. 

After haircut time we headed to the castle to look at the WWII museum. It was one of the best museums I've seen .

It's hard being a world traveler. 

The view of Castle Del Rio from the castle.

One afternoon we went for a ride in the mountains.

An old monastery that we happened upon. 

On Friday there was a big dinner at our hotel for all the Americans in town for the celebration and a few Italians.

We had course after course of amazing food. 

Sunday was celebration day. The 70th anniversary of the battle on Battle Mountain. This celebration along with the release of the new book about my grandfathers battalion was the main reason for our trip. 

Like I said...celebrity

The two veterans. My grandfather (89) and a British soldier Stephen (91). 

I've never seen more amazing uniforms or more regal hat plumage. 

After the celebration lunch was served. More amazing, pasta, bread, wine, and dessert. These people really know how to eat. Oh, and the weather was perfect. 

More to come...