Two Wonderful Weeks

Exactly two weeks ago my parents arrived in Sicily.  It was my dad's second time here and my mom's third time.  I was determined to make sure that this trip was unique from the others, and I think I succeeded.  We covered a lot of new ground, even some of which was new for me. My dad even rented a motorcycle for a week of his stay and he took off exploring on his own which he thoroughly enjoyed.

I haven't posted anything since they arrived, being on the go most of the time. I took a TON of pictures, probably at least 1000+ and have spent a lot of time going through them to find the best ones to share here and to print out as cards for my upcoming craft fair this weekend.  Over the next few days I will be catching up and posting about my parents' visit.  They left yesterday evening, I'm bummed that they are gone, but I have great memories of our adventures.  I hope you enjoy my next several posts!

Castello Ursino - Catania

Yesterday afternoon Les and I headed toward Catania.  It was the middle of riposo so we decided to do a bit of sightseeing, senza the crowds.  We "discovered" the Castello Ursino in Catania.  We had heard about it but in two and a half years of living here we still hadn't visited.  Sure, we had driven past it a time or two when we got lost in Catania, but never stopped.

The Castello Ursino was built sometime between 1239-1250 and originally belonged to Emperor Frederick II, King of Sicily.  The castello housed several of King Frederick's successors and eventually changed from a residence into a prison. The Castello Ursino is one of the few structures that survived the great earthquake of 1693. The castello was built on a cliff looking out to the sea but after centuries of Etna's eruptions and earthquakes the castello is now a kilometer inland. The castello's moat was filled by lava from Etna in the 17th century.

Today the castello houses a museum and art gallery, and entrance is free. The museum has a few lovely sculptures and remains of gorgeous mosaics.  Flash photography isn't allowed inside the museum so most of my pictures came out a bit blurry...still trying to get the knack of low-light photography.  Anyhow, here are the few pictures I was able to salvage.

After visiting the castello stores were beginning to open up after riposo.  We went in search of an international food store that I had seen advertised.  We found the store after several wrong turns and the GPS trying to lead us down streets filled with Catania's huge outdoor market.  Oops. Finally we found the store, and then ended up driving around for another 1/2 hour trying to find a place to park.  Eventually we found a spot, paid for the space, and then set off on foot to try and find the store again.  Luckily we were only a few blocks away.  The store was awesome! So many goodies, a variety that I hadn't seen outside of the United States. I made a few purchases and then we set off to our second destintaion, a music store for Les. We were lucky enough to have it be on the same street!  After shopping we just wandered the streets with Sicilians out for their evening passeggiata. We ended our evening with Chinese Food. A BIG treat for me!  It was a lovely afternoon, and so nice to spend some time in Catania.  We don't do it too often.  It is an hour away from home and the traffic and parking situations are often a deterrant, but yesterday it was worth the hassle.

Carnevale in Sciacca

Carnevale, as always, was a blast.  The costumes, the food, the floats...nothing else quite like it.  This year we went to Sciacca.  It is supposed to be one of the biggest carnevale celebrations in Sicily. Our friends who were with us were a bit disappointed, they expected more, but we still had fun. This carnevale, however, was different than the one we experienced two years ago in Acireale. Acireale's carnevale celebration seemed a bit more family friendly.  Not that Sciacca's necessarily wasn't; there were kids everywhere, but I saw a lot more teenagers who were drunk, and many who needed to get a room if you know what I mean.  It wasn't quite the good-clean-fun that I expected based on my previous carnevale experience.

Lots of political commentary on the floats

This picture gives a bit of perspective on how BIG the floats were!

Front Page News!

Les' band, Killer Tomato, made the front page of the local base newspaper for their debut performance at Jox, a pub on base.

My Contribution to World Nutella Day

I know that I'm a day late posting this, but better late than never, right?  I did eat this last night, on World Nutella Day, so that counts for something, right?

Now I know this doesn't look too pretty, but oh my it is delicious!  It has become a staple in my house, a concoction that only my husband could think of...Nutella Banana.  Simply peel a banana, grab a knife, dip the knife into the Nutella jar, and then spread wonderful chocolate hazelnut goodness all over the banana.  Eat with your hands, a fork, whatever works for you.

Thanks to Adventures in Italy, Bleeding Espresso, and World Nutella Day for a wonderful reason to pull out the Nutella jar! (not that I really needed a reason)

Almond Blossoms at Agrigento

Yesterday I finally got to Agrigento to see the almond blossoms!  Les and I went on Sunday but the weather didn't cooperate. We ended up staying indoors in order to stay dry and didn't take our cameras out but for a few minutes on the way home. I was determined to see the almond blossoms again, especially since this is our last year here. My traveling companions for the day were one of my friends that I've known since we first arrived on the island, and her adorable 1yr old daughter.  I really enjoyed their company.  It was the first day trip that she and I had taken together and I don't think it will be the last.

Since I really should be working on my final paper for class right now (as opposed to blogging and editing picutures) I won't go in to a long narrative about the day, but will just share my favorite pictures. Enjoy!

Young Hands, Old Stone

 

Tomorrow is...

How to Participate in World Nutella Day

Make a recipe using Nutella. Eat Nutella with a spoon. A big one. Make art with Nutella. Wax poetic about Nutella. Cuddle with Nutella. Strike a pose with Nutella. Re-live your first experience eating Nutella. Offer Nutella as a sacrifice. Have a Nutella-eating contest or a Nutella party!

1. Do something, anything with Nutella. Make a recipe, take a picture of yourself eating it with a BIG spoon, make art, wax poetic, re-live your first experience eating Nutella. Have a Nutella-eating contest or even a Nutella party!
2. Take pictures and/or upload a video then blog about it ON February 5th, 2009. In your blog post, include links to Ms Adventures in Italy, Bleeding Espresso, and World Nutella Day as well as the World Nutella Day 2009 badge/button (above). Please try to post ON FEBRUARY 5 so that we can create a true chocolaty hazelnut wave across the blogosphere on World Nutella Day!
3. Email nutelladay [at] nutelladay [dot] com with the subject “Nutella Day Entry” and include:

• Your Name
• Your Blog’s Name
• Your Blog’s URL
• Your Post URL/Permalink
• One 100×100 pixel photo

We will post the round-up of all submission on Monday, February 9, 2009, but in the meantime, please feel free to post this announcement on your blog to spread the word!

And if you want to use an organic or other type of Nutella substitute, go for it! It’s all about the chocolate and hazelnut love!

Be sure to also add your photos to the Nutella Day Flickr Pool and your videos to the YouTube Nutella Day Station. You can also join the World Nutella Day Facebook group and follow @NutellaDay on Twitter!

Boiling Mad

So, Les just got back from the dentist. It had been probably about a year and a half since his last visit.  At his last visit the dentist said he had no cavities, and went on to say how great my husband takes care of his teeth since his last visit was two years before that!!

Anyway, fast forwarding to today, my husband went in for a checkup and cleaning and the NEW dentist on base took a look at his old xrays from the last visit.  According to the OLD xray he had THREE cavities!  What kind of incompetent dentist misses THREE CAVITIES and then goes on to gush about how well my husband takes care of his teeth!! Today's xrays show that in addition to the three cavities which need immediate treatment (scheduled for next week) one of those will likely now need a root canal and there are several other small cavities that need to be watched.

I am so mad at the incompetance that I could scream!  Not only will Les have to deal with getting the fillings, he will have to endure a root canal, which wouldn't be the case if the cavity had been noticed at his last visit.  Not fun. The worst part is that likely he has no recourse against the incompetant dentist.

And then, to add insult to injury, while in the dentist chair the doctor looks over his medical records.  Somehow, they came up with mine.  Uh, no, he is not Angela.  On top of that he got his arm stuck for blood not once, but twice.  Apparantly they lost a blood test that they did a few months ago.  Oops.  The first time the phlebotomist stuck him she had to dig around for a vein, bruised him up and pulled out the needle without getting enough blood.  She had to stick him again in the other arm.

So that is my rant about Military Medicine.  Dependants, like me, get decent care (most of the time).  We can sue if they screw up, but service members CAN'T. How messed up is that?  The only recourse is if the service member dies, then the family can sue for wrongful death.  It shouldn't have to go that far!  Ugh. Les' experience isn't unique, either. I've heard so many stories from other service members about similar screw-ups.  It just isn't right.  It shouldn't be acceptable to provide sub-standard care to anyone.

Acireale and Taormina

We finally got a break this past Sunday from the dreary weather that has plagued us since we returned to Sicily.  I had been dying to take my new camera out to play but the constant threat of rain kept me indoors.

Sunday morning we set off north, first to Acireale.  We had been there once, for Carnivale, nearly two years ago.  It looks quite a bit different during the day and not covered with confetti and silly string.  It is a beautiful town, just north of Catania.

Acireale's Duomo, and a huge presepe (nativity scene) set up in the piazza

After wandering for awhile in Acireale, and enjoying a delicious lunch we headed farther north to Taormina. Les hadn't been there since our first few weeks in Sicily!! As always, Taormina was stunning.  It was cool, and it was starting to get dark, but we set out to explore the shops that were just opening up from riposo and to take the in the fabulous views along the way.

The sweeping view, looking south from Taormina

Once it got dark I put my camera away and just enjoyed people watching.  It was getting chilly so Les and I stopped for ciocolato caldo, Italian hot chocolate that is thick like a drinkable pudding.  It is so good! After we finished our snack we decided to make our way back to the car and home.  It was perfect timing.  I started feeling a few sprinkles of rain as we walked out of Taormina.  By the time we reached the car and pulled out of the parking garage it was raining, no longer sprinkling. A good time to head home.  We had a lovely day and vowed to visit Taormina more often.  I really hope we do!

The last year of his 20's

A week ago my hubbie entered the last year of his 20's. His birthday was just two days after we returned to Sicily from our fantastic stateside adventure. We were exhausted and jet lagged, but I wanted to make sure his birthday didn't get pushed aside. We decided that a simple dinner out on his birthday would be fine and that we would have a party with a few close friends the following weekend.

 
Les chose to have his birthday party at the bowling alley on base.  He LOVES to bowl....me, not so much. I'm horrible at it, absolutely horrible, but it was for his birthday so I gladly took him bowling.  A few of our friends joined us and we had a good time just hanging out, eating pizza, and most of us merely attemping to roll the ball down the lane without flinging it into the gutter.  Les was in a whole other league...I think he was the only one who broke 100, and he did it all three games!

Thanks to our friends who were able to make it to the party on such short notice.  We are so lucky to have such good friends here in Sicily!