More Berlin

We enjoyed the rest of our stay in Berlin, spending time at Checkpoint Charlie, The Brandenberg Gate, The Jewish Memorial, and the Kaiser Wilhelm Church. I've posted pictures of each of these in order. I posted 2 of the Brandenberg Gate..one from earlier in the week, and one from 12/28..showing how they are starting to get things set up for a New Years celebration. One of the funny things about the gate is that it is one of the iconic symbols of the division of East and West Berlin, it is so historical, and now, in the present day, what sits next to the gate...both a Starbucks and a Dunkin Donuts! We went to Dunkin Donuts for 1/2 dozen donuts--5 of our favorites, plus one that seemed to be the most popular w/ the locals--a honey covered donut sprinkled with sliced almonds. I still prefer the Boston Creme, but it was fun to try a different flavor. We also both got our regular coffees. Mine, unfortunately was totally burnt, so after a couple sips, I went back up to the cashier to ask for a new one. She was NOT happy with me. She said, while looking at me as if I had 3 heads, "It is just how our coffee tastes". I said, "No, I've had DD coffee before, and it is good, this cup is burnt."...I had also seen her pour my cup from a pot that had just the bottom stuff left, so it was not a fresh pot. When I asked her for some fresh stuff, she acted so peeved with me, and still argumentative, said, "it is coffee, it cannot burn". "ummm..yes it can, and it does", I thought, but didn't say, and just again asked for a fresh cup. She poured me one, while I think sharing her disgust of me, in German, with her co-worker, gave me the new cup without really even looking at me, and I took a big sip, said "mm..much better and not burnt"..to kind of make my point, and then we left. Josh was surprised that I let this incident get under my skin so much, but come on..as a Boston girl, I know my Dunkin's...just like Italians know their wine, so her attitude did bother me, but thankfully, I got my good cup of "regula", and continued on my way:)

The Jewish Memorial was an incredible site to see. The memorial consists of concrete slabs (all of various heights--see picture), representing tombs, and then the museaum exists underground. It was very moving as you walk through the site, and think of all the millions of Jewish people who lost their lives. A very powerful memorial!

The Kaiser Wilhelm church was also a poignant reminder of WWII. The church was nearly completed ruined during a bombing, and what is left is just one part of the church, complete w/ bombed off spire/steeples (see picture). This 'remnant' of the original church is now used mainly as a museum type site, but flanked on either side of it, there is a new belltower and a new worship hall, created primarily with square, blue glass panes. A simple design on the inside, with just rows of chairs, and a statue of Jesus at the front...the simplicity intended to keep attendees focused on God. The blue glass glowing inside is absolutely beautiful, and a bit of a surprise, since the outside of the buildings are not that appealing, looking more like plain, concrete structures.

We used the rest of our time in Berlin just driving around, taking in the scenery, checking out some additional neighborhoods, and admiring the cleanliness and order of such a historic city.

One neat thing we saw and read about was the 'pedestrian walk light' on the traffic signals. The 'guy' is wearing a hat! I read as the lights get changed out, they replace these old pedestrian 'mascots' with newer, Western ones, to the chagrin of some of the locals who like the older, pedestrian 'symbol'. Just another example of how the new ways of Berlin are taking over some of the old.

Frohe Weihnachten

Merry Christmas to everybody from Berlin, Germany:) We decided to take advantage of our close proximity to so many other European countries by spending our Christmas in Berlin. There are two discount airlines out of Italy (Ryan Air and Easy Jet) so we just hopped on a flight that was the most reasonable for Christmas time travel, and here we are in Germany. It was a short flight, about 2 hours, and Evan did great on the plane, kicking off a great start to our vacation..ummm..I mean, 'holiday', since I've learned the Europeans go on 'holiday', not on 'vacation'.

We arrived in Berlin the afternoon of Christmas Eve, and were greeted by a snow covered airport---yeah...Evan's first Christmas will be a white one:) We hopped in our rental car (a brand new Audi hatchback..all the cars here seem to be hatchbacks), and cruised off to our hotel. Our hotel is in the Mitte district of Berlin, a major historical area in former "East Berlin", within walking distance to "Checkpoint Charlie", Brandenburg Gate, remaining standing sections of the Berlin wall, and several other museams, memorials, cathedrals etc. We are also within walking distance to both Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts (this point of interest isn't listed out in the hotel brochure, but it is definitely worth mentioning in my mind:).

We've been keeping busy since we got here--a necessary thing to keep our legs moving to stay warm! Naples has such mild winters, that we've become wimps, so we've had to be sure to layer up, and drink plenty of the hot rum cider offered at each of the 27 Christmas villages/festivals taking place throughout Berlin. The first night we got here, Christmas Eve, we ventured just 4 blocks from our hotel to check out the xmas village, "Gendarmenmarkt". It was so pretty and festive. It consisted of hundreds of booths, selling everything from winter-wear such as scarves, furry hats, and gloves, jewelry, puppets, ornaments and lots of food-goulash, bratwursts, waffle desserts, spiced wines and ciders, beers, and various other german foods which looked and smelled delicious, but I'm not sure what they were. Lots of folks were walking around w/ some sort of flatbread that had cheese and bacon poured on it...maybe a German style grilled cheese, and there were also lots of fried potato pancake type things smothered in toppings that looked like sour cream...maybe I'll have to try one tonight. We've been having at least one Bratwurst each day, great goulash, and last night for dessert we splurged for the hot waffle smothered in chocolate and whipped cream that we ate as we walked around the festival.

On Christmas Day we decided to hop on a city tour bus to see all the major sites. It was a hop on/hop off bus, so we hopped off to spend some time at Brandenburg Gate, one of the checkpoints between East and West Berlin. It is huge and very impressive. In fact, all the architecture here is pretty amazing...from the monuments, to individual statues, to massive buildings decorated w/ huge amounts of detail. We also attended a Christmas Mass at the "Berliner Dom", a beautiful cathedral down the street from our hotel. Since the songs and everything were all in German, we couldn't understand much, but surprisingly, we could follow somewhat in our programs, since German is an AngloSaxon language. As a 'cousin' language to English, there are enough similarities between the languages to figure out some words. For example, I bet you can guess what this was from our church mass "ehr sei dem Vater und dem Sohn und dem Heiligen Geist" (just email me for the answer:) ha!)

Today is the '2nd day of Christmas' in Germany, so most stores are closed again in recognition of the holiday. We decided to take a 40 minute drive out to the town of Potsdam, considered "Prussia's Wonderland". Potsdam is listed as a World Heritage Site by the UN because of it's fascinating history, but also because of it's incredibly picturesque setting..sprawling with palaces, lakes, manicured gardens, statues and huge parks. It's so picturesque that I forgot to take pictures...ooops!. We did really enjoy our exploration of that town though, mainly checking out Sancoussi Palace==which was the palace of Frederick the Great.

Once back in Berlin, we stopped off at the hotel to feed Evan, grabbed some Brats (again) for ourselves, and walked down to Check-point Charlie-- another one of the key gates splitting East and West Berlin. They have a whole wall outlining the history of the Berlin Wall and this check point...Check-point Charlie being one of the more well-known border crossings after ther Berlin Wall went up. The history is so interesting, and it's hard to believe that the Berlin Wall existed in such recent history, and that the wall finally came down when I was 16 years old. There is now a path made out of bricks from the Berlin Wall that outlines where the wall once stood throughout the city. Kind of like the red freedom trail in Boston.

Berlin has been a pleasant surprise to us...surpassing our expectations of this city. I pictured it to feel cold, stark and Stalin-esque, but instead it is a great mix of the old and new. The old buildings are impressive in size and embellishment, the city is clean and orderly, with lots of pretty parks and green space, and the food is great:)

Some of the things we are enjoying in Berlin, especially in contrast to Naples:
-Berlin is so quiet compared to Naples
-Very clean and orderly city.
-Lots of parks and green space
-Light traffic (although it is the holidays, so hard to say what a normal week is like, but compared to Naples, the streets seem deserted).
-A lot more protein in the German diet. Brats, sausages, pork etc,
-I've seen and heard more Americans in my 2 days in Berlin, than in my 3 weeks in Naples.
-A lot of Western stores, restaurants and brands: Starbucks (I've seen 3 just in the area around my hotel and haven't seen one in Naples..not even at the airport), Dunkin Donuts (have seen 2 so far), TJ Maxx (I had not expected them to be international), McDonalds & Burger King (both hard to find in Naples), H&M--over 25 of this clothing chain in Berlin alone, Firestone tires, etc.
-Hardly any mopeds..although still a lot of small cars, hatchbacks, and deisel powered cars.

I'll be sure to post pictures once we get back to Naples...I forgot the adapter for my camera.

I'm 2 months old today

Evan turned 2 months today (12/22/09) and I can hardly believe how fast time is flying! I guess the move to Italy, and all the chaos leading up to it, kept us so busy that it seems like its almost impossible that Evan was born a full 2 months ago. He is getting so big, about 12.5 pounds if we did the conversion from Kg to Lbs right after our Italian doctors visit, and his personality is really starting to develop. He smiles a ton, loves his pet cow and his 'silky'..a little blanket with silk edging, and he falls asleep to the sound of his acquarium. We have yet to really settle into a routine (I guess at the 2 month stage things are pretty much 'on demand' as far as eating, changing and sleeping), but we are starting to understand which cries me what, which helps a lot. He tends to be up more during the day than sleeping, and typically 4:30/5ish until about 7:30/8ish is his 'witching hour'..meaning, he uses his whiney cry to tell me he's tired, however, he uses all his strength to resist the sandman! I guess he is hoping to stay awake until his daddy gets home from work, and just doesn't want to miss him coming through the door:) Just yesterday, I realized that if I put him in the stroller and sing to him while I do about 15 minutes worth of laps around the 4th floor of our hotel, where our room is, then he'll fall asleep. Not sure if it is the movement in the stroller, or the perfectly sung tunes I sing which I learned off of our '100 best baby lullabys' CD that I bought the week before we left The States. I'm sure it is my heavenly voice..yeah right:) I'm still tone deaf, evan in Italy:)ha So, at this very moment, Mr. 2 month Birthday Man is zonked out after my 20 minutes of hallway laps, and about 5 serenades of "The Ants go marching 1 x 1" and "Bluebird, Bluebird".
You might be wondering how Evan and I celebrated his 2 month birthday. Well, we met up with Janine and her daughter, Jordan, for lunch at a favorite restaurant a few blocks from the hotel called Gusto & Gusto. We were escorted to our table by about 4 waiters (funny, I have yet to have a female waitress since I've been in Naples, and I eat out for just about every meal). As I've mentioned before, the Neopolitans LOVE babies, so for about 5 minutes the waiters encircled Evan, stroking his cheek, staring at him, and doing that 'oh so Italian' gesture where they bring all their fingertips to their mouth, kiss it, and then open their fingers back up with a "Bellissimo" type of comment. In between taking other orders, they return to Evan's stroller and just stand there and stare. Even while we are eating our meals, they just can't help themselves to come over and just watch him and touch him. It is so cute! So anyways, now settled into our seats at our tableWe just love how it is typical to sit down and automatically be given glasses of champagne to kick off the meal. Janine had sat in traffic for an hour to go only about 5 km, so that champagne was just what she needed. So, we toasted our champagne ("Saluti"), and ordered up some food, a couple great salads topped w/ beans, cherry tomatos and cheese, some bruschetta, and an appetizer of eggplant parmigiana. The Neopolatans love their eggplant and it is the main veggie served as a side dish with most meat entrees. To wash down all that food, we got some red wine and more champagne, and took our time dining while baby boy slept our visit away in the stroller. So we finished our main meal, and although my belly was pretty content, I felt compelled to get some dessert to go w/ my cappuccino. I mean, it is his 2 month birthday,right?! So, I ordered a piece of Tirimisu and Jordan got a chocolate souffle..one of the gooey center ones, and we dug into those. Actually, I did most of the digging in, finally feeling like I was satisfying my sweet tooth:)
Tonight Josh, Evan and I will try out a new restaurant kitty corner to the hotel. The menu looks great, and since it's so close by, it will be a short/quick walk. Josh is on his way home now, having just left the office at 7pm, so hopefully he'll be home by 8pm...a typical long day for poor Daddy-O.
With the baby sleeping, I guess I'll go back to watching my Sky Satellite t.v show--figure skating with live music by Reo Speedwagon, Rick Springfield and the Backstreet Boys...there just aren't that many English channel options here:)

Making some friends:)

So, we had our Beef Stew at Janine's house, and it was fabulous! That turned into a really fun way to spend our Sunday. Josh and I went to Janine and Mike's in the early afternoon, and we filled the day helping them decorate their Christmas tree, checking out their community beach, and strolling through a great park near their apartment. The walk down to their beach is just about 5 minutes from their apartment, and on a nice day like we had on Sunday, in the 50s and sunny, it was just the perfect spot. From the beach, we had a great view of Capri and Vesuvious---and a view of a guy swimming in the bay! Wow..he must have been training for a polar bear swim or something. The sun was out, but that water is cold!!
The park they took us too is the nicest one I've seen so far. It was about the size of Green lake in Seattle, was clean, and offered 180 degree views of Capri, Ischia, Sorrento and Vesuvious. It was so quiet and serene, and it is really kept up well. They have security at the gate around the clock, so I think I would feel very safe running or strolling with Evan through there. They have a playground too which looks new and is well maintained, unlike so many of the other parks and playgrounds I've seen which are covered in graffiti and litter. We walked around the whole park until we all got too cold--the wind was whipping off the bay in pretty strong gusts--so we headed back to the cars and down the hill for some beef stew. Josh and I had brought over some champagne, so we all had champagne and munched on a great cheese and salami spread Janine had put together, and then we warmed up with stew and rolls. It was a great day/night, and it felt so good just to be social! We miss all our friends at home, so it's great to finally have some other people to hang out with!
On Monday, Josh worked his typical long day, and I got in touch with his boss's wife to introduce myself. She had an open afternoon, so I packed up Evan and we walked just about 20 minutes to their apartment. Her daughter was also there, with their friend visiting from Austrailia, so the 4 of us girls and Evan, decided to go for a walk around town..on some of the more pedestrian friendly shopping streets. We had a great time getting to know each other, and then we stopped at Gambrinis (?? I may have the name wrong, but its a famous cafe in Naples), and I had a cappuccino, while they indulged in other espresso drinks and hot chocolate. The hot chocolate here is heavenly...basically like a chocolate bar melted in your glass. Topped with whipped cream, you can't go wrong, and I think I'll be getting one of those next time:) After a great visit with the girls, Evan and I walked home, picked up my 3 sacks of laundry from the Lavandaria, and came back to relax at the hotel until Josh got home. I unpacked our 'clean' clothes from the lavandaria, and was bummed that they all smell like smoke. The woman and her coworker must smoke in between washes, and unfortunately, all of our clothes now stink. Oh well, I guess I'll be on a mission to find a new place to wash our clothes. Live and learn out here!!
When Josh got home we decided on take out, so I ran down to a pizzeria (of course) and got our wood fired pizzas (so thin they only take 4 minutes in the brick oven), and came home for a nice night with my boys:)
Today has started off great. Evan slept through breakfast, so I took advantage of the time and finally finished a book that I started 2 months ago when he was first born. It was a book that would normally be read in 1-2 days, but having a baby, definitely has consumed all of my reading time. I'll be headed out to lunch with Janine and her daughter, Jordan, in about an hour, so I've got to get ready.
Arriverderci for now:)

Woo hoo, I have plans!!

This has been a good week and weekend so far, a big reason is, I've had plans, and actually some social interaction going on! YES! The first week was a bit challenging for me since I didn't really know anyone, and since Josh works such long hours, usually leaves around 7am and gets home after 8pm. I was getting a bit stir crazy. But, thankfully, I've met some girls through Josh's work, and have got some good girl-bonding time this week. Janine, one of Josh's coworker's wife, and I have hung out several times now, and it's been an easy friendship to form. We click personality-wise, plus, since we are both in the same situation, we can really relate. She only got to Italy a week ahead of us, but she already has proven to be a great resource to me on life in Napoli, just from her extra week spent in this city. Yesterday we synced up spontaneously, did lunch (salad and pizza as normal), plus the free champagne they greet you with and the canteloupe flavored 'limoncello' type liquor they give you for 'dessert', and then Evan and I spent the day at her house. She, her husband and daughter, are in a great temporary living apartment in the Posillipo neighborhood of Naples, with amazing views of the bay and Vesuvius. They love the location and the views, and she said the only thing is, once in a while, you get the sulfer smell. I thought it was from the beach that is at the end of their street, but it's actually from the volcano. I hung out there all day, and then, once the guys got out of work, we all went out to dinner at a great restaurant in their neighborhood. We met up with a couple other people too, so it was a fun night. We started dinner around 8:45, with the restaurant nearly empty. By the time we left around 11pm, it had filled up. A lot of families, complete with their young kids, don't show up for dinner at a restaurant until about 10pm. As an early bird myself, I'm still adjusting to these late meal times. It's after 8pm as I write this, and we haven't even gotten ready for dinner yet....maybe we'll just stay in and eat our left over pizza from lunch...sounds like a plan to me.
Today, I had more plans:) Well, it is the weekend after all, so it's great having Josh home so he, Evan and I can do family stuff. We started out the day meeting up with our Real Estate agent to check out more places in Cava..the town by the Amalfi Coast. We saw 3 units, 2 with potential, but none that I really got the "this is the one" feeling about, so I'm going to continue to ask to see more places. After touring the apartments, we stopped by another one of Josh's coworkers apartments in Cava, and hung out with them for a while. Then, Janine and her husband, who were in Cava to do some Christmas stuff with their daughter, called and they stopped by too. So, it was a nice, impromptu afternoon of hanging out for a couple hours. After that, Josh and I stopped in Pompei on our way home to do some shopping at Auchan (the Fred Meyer, WalMart equivalent). The shopping carts here all go sideways. Pushign them is like pushing a shopping cart on an ice rink---and they are all like that. It's not like one just has a screwy wheel, no, they are made to roll that way. Definitely somthing to get used to, because when I 'drive' them, I typically crash into the endcaps in the market, not to mention, other shoppers. Ooopsy!
Tomorrow we are heading to Janine and Mikes for some American comfort food--Beef stew and biscuits! Yum, I can hardly wait!
Ok...Evan is waking up and I can hear him snorting, so I think he's trying to tell me he's hungry:) I'm loving hearing from everyone, and Skyping, so thanks for keeping me company:) Ciao~

Immigration: Act One, Take One

Josh, Evan and I are officially on the path of becoming legal immigrants in Italy--woo hoo. I'd describe the process as organized chaos, but I think that using 'organized' is a bit too generous of a description. Chaos, however, fits the experience just fine:) Thank God we had a company-provided relocation expert escorting us through the process, or we may have ended up deported:)

The immigration process here is a multi-stepped process, involving various trips to the Polizia, Immigration building and the post office. (The post office is a place used to conduct a lot more business than just buying stamps and mailing letters). The process for Evan and I will be a lot less involved than Josh's, since he is the one working here, and then Evan and I are more of less just along for the ride as far as Italy is concerned.

For part one of the process, I was told to meet our relocation representative, with Evan, at the police station at 8:30 in the morning. Although the station is only a few miles from the hotel, we left ourselves plenty of time to get there, since you never know what Napoli traffic will be like. We used our GPS to find the correct location, and arrived about 30 minutes early, and scored a 'too good to be true' type of parking spot right across the street from the station. We hung out there, looking at the huge line of immigrant hopefuls congregated outside of the station,and waited for our escort to arrive. At just about 8:29, a guy pulled up to us and told us we were in his spot. There was not a 'no parking' or 'reserved parking' sign, but he was clearly directing us to get out of his space, so I hopped out, and Josh drove away, just as Evan started to cry....great! I had no clue what this escort/representative looked like, and had no idea where I was supposed to go or what I was supposed to do (nor did I have a phone), so I just joined the huge crowd of folks gathered by the entrance. I had no clue if Josh would be looping around or not, so I just stood there, clueless, clutching a packet of paperwork which included copies of my passport and a letter from my hotel saying I was staying there, and hoped to be rescued soon by someone who could tell me what the heck to do. As I was starting to feel more and more insecure about being in the right place, Josh pulled up, and told me the rep was running late and she would come meet me in a few minutes. Thankfully, I synced up w/ her (Josh had given her my description), and rather than going right into the station to get started (since we were already behind schedule for the 8:30 appt), we went to the bar (again, Bar is what the Italians call the stand up coffee places) and she bought me a cappucino while she had a macchiatto to start the day. In an Italian Bar, you go to the register first, pay for your food/drink, are given a receipt, and then you go to the counter to get what you ordered. Our rep paid for my cappucino, and then when we got to the counter and I specified decaf, she had to go back to the cashier, because, come to find out, most Bars charge more if you want decaf instead of regular. Hmmm. I learn something new everyday.
So, we took our time getting acquainted, and enjoying our morning espressos. Josh, in the meantime, had found parking, and figured he would wait for us in the bar. He was surprised, that as he entered the bar, he saw us leaving through the other door, to just start heading towards our appointment. We hadn't even went in the police station yet, and here he was, thinking we would be out any minute. Anyways, he hung out in the bar, got his shot of espresso, and let everyone dote on Evan. I swear, they absolutely love babies here! It is worth it to buy a 'bambino on board' sign for your car, because people will actually treat you better on the road w/ those posted on your back windshield....I ned to buy one of those.
So, once in the police station, I sat in a room while our Rep ran back and forth between my waiting area, and the secret back room that she kept going into w/ various documents of mine, and after about 30 minutes, I was done. At least with part one. I'll have to meet with them again in January for fingerprinting and some additional paperwork, but for now, and ok.
Josh's process started at the immigration office, only a mile from the police station, but that translated into a 40 minute drive--Napoli rush hour and maybe early holiday traffic. Our rep pretty much handled everything, again, going in the back room with all the documents, and eventually, returning w/ everything approved and ready for step two. We've heard the next steps, with the multiple trips to various offices and post office is where the real chaos begins. One of the girls we know, went to do the required post office stop, and the post office was on strike that day. The strikes here are so random, and I still don't understand what is acheived during these strikes..i.e..if there are negotiations going on, or if places just randomly close, since whether its a bus driver strike or post office strike, they saem to start as randomly as they end, with everything just going back to normal as if nothing, but a bit of an inconvenience, occurred.
So, until step 2....

Off to the pediatrician we go...

Today will be Evan's first visit to his new, Italian, pediatrician. The doctor we chose came highly recommended by some other expats, and because she had lived in the U.S for 12 years, she speaks wicked good English(ha)!

We got Evan loaded in the car this morning, and Josh and I took him to see the doctor whose office is about 25 minutes North of Naples in the Puzzuoli area. The pediatrician's office is in a non-descript building, where she runs her own practice. There was no parking so we had to loop around, dodging rush hour traffic, and we eventually found a spot on the next street over. Of course, it was raining , which I should be used to being from Seattle, but this was the type of rain where you actually need an umbrella. Oh well, if we catch a cold, at least we are headed to the doctors office:)

We got to the gate and the Doctor buzzed us in and greeted us at the door. There was not a receptionist or anyone to check in with, we just went right into her office. Her phone lines were down so she and her assistant were trying to figure out her days appointments and what to do about the phones, but that only took her a few minutes, and then she got down to business with us. As we sat in her office, I noticed that her office is also the exam room. There was her simple desk, a bookcase with some medical books and medicines on it, a table to measure babies on, a scale, a changing table type thing to examine babies on, and a mini stretcher that she must use to examine toddlers and young kids. There were pictures of her patients all over the walls, and she said she has about 1000 patients, ranging in age from newborn to 20. As a pediatrician, she said she would normally see patients up to 16 yrs old, but once they hit that age, they continue to come back to her. She's been practicing about 20 years.

As the exam began, she sat at her computer while we answered her questions about Evan's birth statistics (weight, length, apgar score etc). We were never asked what kind of insurance we had, and we didn't have to fill out one piece of new patient paperwork or sign any waiver forms--very different from the stack of forms we had to fill out for Evan's first doctor's visit in Seattle. She then patiently answered all of our questions, sometimes referring to a reference book on her desk to find the answers to our questions--that concerned me at first, but as the exam went on, I got more and more comfortable with her abilities and knowledge. She gave us a prescription to give him vitamin D & K drops until he is 3 months old, and to give him flouride drops on a daily basis every other month. I haven't heard about giving vitamin K, so I want to learn more about that one. I asked her about vaccines, and was happy to learn that she will administer them in her office according to the US vaccination schedule (which we have to provide to her), and that we won't have to go to the Italian equivalent of the Dept of Health for them..which, to me, just seems a lot easier. I had told her that I do have a concern about a repetitive arm movement he makes usually with his right arm and a weird facial twitch I saw him do yesterday. She observed him and thought everything looked totally normal. Another pediatrician had come into her office to get a flu vaccine, so our Dr. asked for that doctor's opinion too. That doctor also thought what they observed together looked normal, but that they could call a Neurologist to get a specialist's opinion, since what I was describing, Evan was not doing for them to see. Our doctor really wanted to witness Evan doing what I described, so she did not rush us out of the office at all. In fact, when another patient showed up, the doctor asked me to feed Evan in the other room, and then to get her if he does the arm twitch thing. She went to turn the heat on in the other room, and since she couldn't get it working, she told me to just breastfeed Evan in her office while she sees her next patient...also in her office. So, there I am feeding Evan, and the next patient comes in and everyone just says "Ciao" to each other, as if its totally normal to have me sitting their breastfeeding while their child gets examined. Then, the doctor was telling me about this person's baby, while at the same time she's explaining to them about Evan. I guess everyone just wants to help each other out and care for each other...no rules about patient/doctor confidentiality here. So, after that patient left, a Pharmaceutical Rep came in to meet with our doctor. Our doctor also filled that person in on the fact that I was concerned about this arm twitching and that they were waiting to see if he did it. So, the Rep comes over and starts checking out Evan too. The doctor said again that she didn't want to rush us out, and said that since it's a rainy day, a lot of patients just don't show up. She also said, since her phones are down, it's making for a slower day at the office. Then, "because it's the Christmas season" she took out a tray of pastries/cookies and offered them to us and the Pharma rep. They were delicious..but I definitely didn't expect for our doctor to bring out some cookies for us. Next came the espresso..again, didn't expect to be sipping espresso in the exam room. So, anyways, after about 2 hours with the doctor, everything Evan did was totally normal (maybe a case of new mommy paranoia on my end), so we were ready to go. We paid our doctor 50 Euro cash, were given a written receipt stating "I received 50 euro for pediatric consultation" that I guess/I hope we can submit to the company's insurance plan, and we got Evan dressed to go. As Josh and I left her office, we were both totally surprised to see about 4 families waiting with their children in the small waiting area. Wow..I guess that experience was just another taste of the laid back lifestyle here in Napoli where people take the time to talk and listen, and in the case with our doctor, really do some due dilligence, vs. just rushing you out to get to their overbooked calendar and to their next patient. This was definitely a different experience than in The States!

Daily breakfast

Today is starting off pretty routine, with my daily breakfast at the hotel. I have gotten to know a few of the waitresses/waiters, and every day, they just love staring at Evan, and stroking his cheek. Today, Francesca, my regular waitress, called some of the kitchen staff out of the back room to come and look at Evan. Evan is usually very sleepy at breakfast time, and typically is super calm, but one look at that big chef, with the huge chefs hat on, was all it took to scare little Evan to death. In seeing the chef, Evan's bottom lip immedicately stuck out over his top lip, his chin started quivering, and the rest of his face scrunched up. All the staff laughed, and the poor chef made his way back to the kitchen with his tail between his legs. It was definitely cute.
Francesca knows that I am trying to learn Italian, so each day I try to become more and more conversational with her as I practice new phrases. Her English is very limited, but so far, we have been able to understand eachother, typically in conversation about Evan. Today she taught me that singhiozzo means hiccups (Evan had a case of them this morning), and that calmo describes a calm baby.I wish all words were that easy to remember..i.e, the English word with just an 'o' on the end:)
My breakfast today was eggs, toast, fruit and "due cappuccinos decaffeinato". I usually just have one cappuccino, but today I brought my computer to breakfast, and so I strolled Evan around the hotel lobby, got him to fall asleep looking at the huge xmas tree in the lobby, and went back to the breakfast room for my second coffee, and to update this blog. So far, it's been a great morning.
I don't have much on the agenda today, so I'll likely just take a long walk, and then it will be the eat/change/play routine with Evan until Josh gets home. Evan doesn't sleep much during the day, except for usually the 2 hours I walk for. I can't believe he sleeps through the noise of these streets of Napoli, but I'm glad he does:)
The rest of my week should be a bit busier and I'm looking forward to some social interaction, besides the interaction I get with shopkeepers, waitresses etc. Josh and I are taking Evan to meet his new pediatrician in the morning. She is an Italian doctor, but she has lived in the U.S for several years in the past while doing research for Bethesda Hospital in Maryland. She can recommended by several other expat families, so we look forward to meeting her. After that, Janine, another expat wife over here, will be picking me up to take me to an open air market that is supposed to have a bit of everything at great prices. I've happened upon several other outside markets selling everything from clothes and shoes, to squash and pineapples, all seemingly at very low prices. After the market, we'll be stopping off at her apartment and then headed back to my neighborhood (St. Lucia) for lunch, before she has to pick up her 2nd grader from school at the NATO base.
On Friday, Josh and I are off to the immigration office to submit required paperwork and to register ourselves as living in Italy. I've heard that it will only take about 30 minutes for them to process me through, but Josh could take about 4 hours since he's the one working here.
On Saturday, we'll be meeting up with our real estate agent in Cava to check out some apartmennts there. I hope we find one we like:)

Today's observances

1-Even the police cars don't slow down for you when you are in the crosswalk. Definitely walk, and cross, at your own risk!
2-For all the pizza, gelato, pastries etc that are sold on practically every block, it seems the majority of Italians are in good shape. I wonder if it is from all the walking they do, or from the lack of preservatives and other chemicals in most of their food?
3-During my walks, I often see waiters briskly walking down the streets with covered trays of food and cappuccinos, out to deliver these take out orders. I guess delivery 'drivers' are actually walkers here. Parking is an issue, so it makes sense for sure!
4-Could the cars and mopeds park any closer together? I often get stuck on a sidewalk or unable to get on a sidewalk because cars and mopeds are parked so close together, there is no room to squeeze my stroller between them to get on or off the sidewalk. During my walk today I had to turn around 3 different times, to retrace my steps on street blocks that I couldn't get off the sidewalk at the end of due to cars blocking me in.
5-I know I've mentioned this before, but everyone just dresses so nicely here! Even w/ the cobblestones, women, no matter young, middle aged, or elderly, are wearing fashionable boots or high heels to walk around in. I wonder how far they are going? Maybe they live on the block I see them shopping on, and that is why they can survive in those super cute, but likely uncomfortable, pumps on these streets? I haven't been fitting in very well on that front, as no matter what cute outfit I might have on, my Nike sneakers practically always complete the outfit. If any of the Italians are making fun of my sneaks, it's ok, because I can't understand them yet anyways. Hopefully, by the time I can understand them, I'll be wearing my boots!
6-Italians do seem to love babies, and usually at least 3 people per walk stick their finger in my stroller and stroke Evan's cheek. Belissimo!
7-I hoofed it up to the Lavandaria (Laundry-Mat) with our laundry piled on top of the stroller, and found out it was 50 Euro for 2 loads of wash...just to wash and dry. It's cheaper than the hotel, but that is still pretty pricey! I was proud of myself though since I was able to communicate my needs to the laundry lady, and I understood her telling me that it would be ready for pick up on Thursday. Yeah..I'm surviving some basic conversation exchanges.
8-Everyone walks arm in arm (men/women, woman/woman, man/man, old/young etc. Italians don't seem to have the 'personal space' issues so many of us have.
9-I bought the wrong size pampers again..I still haven't got the conversion from Kg to Lbs down yet, and end up w/ huge pampies for Evan. Well, at the rate he is growing, they'll fit him soon enough! We have a pediatric visit on Thursday, to meet his new doctor, so we'll get to find out then how much he weighs now.
10-I've seen 3 McDonalds and 1 Burger King since I got here (and that includes plenty of road trips within 1 hr radius of the city. "Fast" food just isn't as much of a way of life in this laid back culture. I've never been a big fast food fan, but I was tempted to stop at McDonalds this weekend, just for a taste of home.
11-Shopkeepers often want you to make smaller change for them. For example,at the Supermarcati yesterday, my items came to about 12,50 Euro, I gave them a 20 Euro bill and they wanted smaller, so they wouldn't have to give so much change. I didn't have smaller, so they had me wait until the next customer came to get change from him. This happens a lot.
12-I spent about 20 minutes in the milk section at the Supermarcati with my dictionary. Thank God I had it, or I would have ended up with full fat goat's milk for my cereal! Finally, I saw a bottle w/a cartoon picture of a cow on it, and so I bought that one for my honey nut cheerios (Nestle brand, vs. General Mills ones at home).
13-Strikes randomly happen. I was out for a walk yesterday and there was a busdriver strike. 2 busses were vacant in the middle of a main road, clogging traffic, for at least the 2 hours my walk took.
14-Being a new mom, regardless of what country , is the toughest job that you'll ever love. I'm still amazed by how little 'me' time I have. I'm still on page 70 of a simple James Patterson book that I started over a month ago. I bought a bottle of wine yesterday to enjoy a glass in the afternoon, and never found a second to uncork it. I shower with Evan in the bathroom in a bouncy, dry my hair while entertaining him, and do more singing and dancing each day to a truly appreciative audience...despite my tone deafness:)

Tough decisions...

Here are a few of the tough decisions I've been facing my first week in Italy:
1-Do I live in the heart of the city in the apartment w/ the great roofdeck and awesome views or in Cava..a much quieter town, by the Amalfi coast? Well, to try to figure this one out, I went for a 2 hour walk yesterday to check out more of the Mergellina neighborhood where the cool apartment is. It didn't take me 2hours to walk there, instead, I meandered down lots of cobblestone streets, eventually finding my way to Piazza Amedeo (near the apt), and Via Filanieri, a street considering one of the quaintest streets in Italy. Both of these spots were recommended by our real estate agent, and both are a quick walk from the apartment. My walk yesterday was quite enjoyable, unlike the stressful walk I had a few days earlier, when I couldn't get away from honking horns, car exhaust, and my stroller seemed to bounce and jolt poor Evan all over the place. No, yesterday's walk was so much better. I think because I found a few more pedestrian friendly, quieter streets which were really pretty and which had the perfect blend of clothing stores, markets, and restaurants (actually of all types: Bars--the casual places you grab a cappucino at, Cafeterias--offering sandwiches, paninis etc, Pizzerias-obvious, Trattorias--a step below a ristorante, and a Ristorante-more formal sit down type place. Now that I found some quiet walking areas, and was able to get away from the constant traffic noise, now I can see us living in the heart of Naples. There is just so much color to this culture, and every street offers something new to see and cool to check out. I could get used to the city life...I think....but then again, ...I did really like Cava...ugh..such a decision!
....ok..I had started writing this in the morning before Evan woke up, and am now resuming writing. I just got back from another 2 hour walk w/ Evan in the stroller, and now I'm leaning more towards Cava. It was another stressful walk---hard to go 1/2 a block w/o hearing multiple car honks, super loud moped motors, and having at least 2-3 cars blow by you even though you are in the crosswalk w/ a stroller. So, the quiet, more pedestrian friendly town of Cava, may be a better bet, given that we have Evan. I have also had a mild sore throat for about a week,and am starting to wonder if it is from the smog/fumes that I'm inhaling on my walks? If that is the case, it makes me a bit worried about Evan, and therefore, another good reason to check out Cava.

2-To push or to pull?
Josh and I went to dinner last night at a little Ristorante a few blocks from the hotel. I had checked out its menu earlier in the day, and since it had lasagna on the menu, I wanted to try it. Surprisingly, in Naples, I hardly ever see lasagna on the menu..that must be more of a Northern Italian specialty. Anyways, so we went to this place around 8:30 pm. We were the only ones in the restaurant. What the heck..its not like it was 6pm, and we were the obvious Americans, going to eat dinner so early. No, it was 8:30pm, and we were the only ones in the place. Anyhow, we ordered our dinner, both getting the same thing--Bruschetta, Insalada Mista, Lasagna Napolitana, and Prosecco..actually, Josh ordered a Bierra, but as often happens, that part of the order was forgotten about, so Josh just enjoyed his Prosecco instead. Sometimes you might think they totally forgot your drink, or your entree, or to bring you the check you requested, but they didn't, they just aren't in a rush, so they just bring you things at their own pace, which is kind of nice once you get used to it. I'm still getting used to it, but the relaxed pace is good for me I think:) Anyways, so we enjoyed our dinner..and BTW..Lasagna Napolitana, is more like ziti...we are learning the Naples has its own way of doing a lot of things. (i.e I got what I thought was like a gyro the other day, but it had frenchfries and ketchup stuffed in it (kind of like Primanti sandwiches in Pittsburgh, and Josh got a panini the other day that he thought just has prosciutto and cheese in it, but some bacon and egg was thrown in there too..interesting). Ok, I digress, so we finished our dinner, pleasantly satisfied, but not 'roll me out the door, I can't believe I ate all that' stuffed, and I decided that I wanted to get some gelato for the walk home. We decided to stop at the same gelateria that I had gone to the night before, where I had found my combo of chocolate, chocolate chip (stracciatella) and tirimisu flavors delicious:) So, we got to the door, and despite the lights being on inside, as hard as I yanked on the door, it wasn't budging. So, we tried the side door, same story! We assumed they were closed, until I looked in and saw the shopkeeper laughing at me, and demonstrating how to "push" a door...ahh...push(spingere) vs. pull(tirare). Those were my italian words to learn for the day. I've since noticed those words written on most publicly used doors..i.e at the market, hotel etc..so I have constant reminders of those new vocab words:) The good news is, evenutally, we got into the Gelateria, and I got the gelato that I had worked so hard for:)
3-Carbs or no carbs?
ha--that ones easy. In Italy, no or low carb is just not an option. I have been craving non-bread type menu items, but they are hard to find around here. Am also trying to find things I can eat w/ one hand while pushing the stroller, and so far, a cone filled w/ gelato seems to be the best option. I mean, I truly am trying to find other, healthier things to eat on the go, but in the meantime, gelatos will have to do.

Housing Search

We spent one day touring apartments to try to find some permanent housing for our time here. Right now we are living in a hotel across from Castel dell Ovo, in the Santa Lucia neighborhood of Naples. The hotel is right across from the Bay of Naples, and there is a nice, wide sidewalk along the bay that I can walk Evan in the stroller on each morning. The legend about Castel dell Ovo (translates to The Egg Castle), is as long as the egg that was housed in the castle stayed in tact then Naples would be protected from devastation. I assume the egg hasn't broken yet, but don't really know anymore of the story. The area over there around Castel Dell Ovo is now full of restaurants and a marina, and you can buy a ticket to tour the inside of the Castel.

Our housing hunt went pretty good, touring apartments in Posillipo, Chiaia, and Mergellina neighborhoods. Our favorite was a bright place in Mergellina, within walking distance of tons of restaurants and shops, yet since it was on the top floor of the building, the unit itself was quite quiet, away from the nonstop noise caused by honking cars and revving motorcycle and moped engines. It had a decent floor plan and also had a roof deck which, to me, was the best attribute of the apartment. The terrace was almost like an inner city oasis, offering quiet, 180 degree views of the bay and Vesuvius. Bellissimo!

Josh and I also drove down to check out Cava de Terreni, as a potential town to live in. Cava is a suburb about 35 minutes south of Naples, and literally 5 minutes to Vietri sul Mare--a small town on the amalfi coast, offering meditteranean beaches and lots of ceramic shops to browse through. I liked it a lot, especially the wide sidewalks (a lot better to navigate a stroller on), and the reduced traffic and noise level. We told our Real Estate agent that we are not ready to make a decision on the Mergellina apt until we see some options in Cava too. Since Cava is a much smaller town, options are more limited, but I definitely want to be patient to find a place that will ultimately be the best for our family. If we didn't have Evan, we would likely definitely look for something directly in Naples, but with him being so young, I don't want to rule out Cava.

We are doing well in the hotel but will definitely look forward to getting settled into our own place, and at that point, hopefully having some visitors:)

Prima Settimana

It's been exactly one week since we arrived in Italy, and I thought I'd share some of my observations on life in Italy so far. Here's my take on Letterman's top 10 list....

You know your in Italy when:

1-No matter where you are-a supermarket, strolling down the street, in the hotel lobby, or at the mall, you see at least 3 couples making out. This truly is a country where Amore is alive and well!

2-The best way to transport a mattress is by asking your friend to carry it with his arms outstretched while riding on the back of your moped, so that you can hold the 2 pillows and the handlebars while weaving in and out of traffic

3-Pizzeria's and gelaterias instead of Starbucks are on every street corner.

4-You have to call the front desk of your hotel in a panic at 6am on a Sunday as your knees are knocking because you are certain bombs are going off or gas line is continuously exploding towards your hotel, only to find out from the Receptionist "ahhh..Madam, is no problem, today is Santa Lucia celebration"...me--so I don't have to be scared? .."No Madam, festivities last about 10 minutes, no problem"..as he laughs at me. (This happened to me this morning. I woke up to sounds as loud as dynamite explosions, flashes, smoke..but from my viewpoint, couldn't see any fireworks. I was SO scared, and thought Italy was under attack and that I'd have to evacuate Evan. I thought our whole hotel was shaking, but it was literally my knees knocking!! Our hotel is in Santa Lucia, so they really went all out w/the dynamite to celebrate their Saint's day. I wish someone had warned me that was going to happen!! I'm sure the hotel staff had fun laughing about the panicked Americana!

5-If you go to dinner at 6pm and you are the only ones in the restaurant.

6-When "in a minute" translates to at least an hour later...or in some cases, such as our lost luggage was on the way and would be delivered to our hotel in a few minutes, really meant 6 hours later.

7-A 3 laned road, quickly turns into 6 or 7 lanes , with every nook and cranny of road space used up...cars packed in like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

8-Everyone is dressed to the nines regardless of time of day or what they are doing. If jeans are to be worn, you can bet that they are designer jeans, well tailored and paired with the perfect shoes, shirt and coat. My Seattle fleece might just not cut it here!

9-A bottle of wine cost less than a bottle of water here or in the US

10-My baby's first word is Ciao~ :)


Some other interesting observations or ways of doing things here:
-You pay 1 Euro to free a shopping cart from the stack for your use in the store. Then, after you check out, you return it to the stack and get your Euro back. Seems pretty smart to me!
-Self scanning guns (like when you are doing a baby/wedding registry) are available as you go into a large supermarket so that you can scan your purchases as you go, and have a speedy self check out. All groceries are bagged by you, and the cost of reusable bags range from about .18 Euro to .99 Euro each.
-Most cars are Deisel
-When there hasn't been much rain, the city will call for a traffic ban, banning all cars older than a certain year from the road. Only newer cars w/ good emmissions or 3 person carpoolers are allowed to drive. The ban usually lasts for a few hours.
-Most people seem to airdry their laundry outside their balconies
-Breakfast is usually an espresso and maybe a pastry done standing up in a "Bar"--a casual walk up restaurant.
-I still need to become better about telling time w/ military time, temperature w/ Celcius, and speeds with Km/hr vs. Miles/hr.
-Restaurant tabs include Coperto--a 'cover charge' which basically is for your bread and linens. Service charges are also often added, plus usually a little extra tip is desired/expected.

Arriverderci Seattle, Buon Giorno Napoli!

After much anticipation, we finally boarded a plane on Saturday, 12/5, to head to our new home 'town', Naples! Saturday morning started off at 5am, as we finished packing and tried to consolidate as much as we could into the least amount of suitcases. As most of you know, we packed up our house the mon/tues/wed before Thanksgiving to get it ready for our new tenants and moved into a hotel in Seattle until our departure on 12/5. We packed on Saturday for about 6 hours...amazing how much time it took considering we knew everything in our hotel room had to go, so it wasn't like we had to decide what to take/not to take, but still, it took us that long! Once all packed, we ended up w/ 10 checked bags, a stroller, carseat, and 5 carry ons. As my parents said, we must have looked like the beverly hillbillies, and I think we did:) Thankfully, we made our way to the airport in Seattle w/ our rented Kia (basically a tin can which reminded me of my post college Geo Tracker) and our friend Dave's SUV instead of the old jalopy the Clampetts had to cruise around in:)

Once at the airport, things went way smoother than we had imagined. There were essentially no lines, so we could check all our bags w/ ease, and security wasn't so bad either. Evan was a trooper, very cooperative, and didn't cry at all, I guess he was happy about moving to Italy too.

The flight to London is about 9 hours, and since we had a seat for Evan, the flight was also pretty easy. I'm thankful that Josh's company flies us business class..it makes all the difference in the world, and takes all the 'pain' out of flying.

We arrived in London on Sunday, and had an interesting experience going through security. We all know liquids aren't allowed, but an exception is made for breast milk. In the US, when we went through security in Seattle, they tested the breastmilk w/ a machine or chemical to verify what it was. In London, different story! Evan was asleep, so instead of him, they wanted ME to drink it to prove that it was breastmilk. "Come on...are you serious" was the look I gave them! They just looked back at me.."yup, totally serious". So, with that I had to ask Evan to help a sista out, and got him, despite his sleepiness, to take a swig for me. Ok...breastmilk hurdle was overcome, and we were on our way.

Since we flew business class we got to relax in the club lounge until our flight to Rome. Evan was so relaxed that he couldn't help but let out several huge, adult-size farts. These bombs were let go in the quiet section of the lounge that we had picked out. The setting reminded me of a library, so Evan's gas, as it escaped, seemed to echo throughout the seating area we were in. Josh and I could do nothing but laugh, and congratulate Evan, for one, because we knew he'd be feeling better, so were were truly happy he had passed some gas, but two, and more importantly, to make it knows to all the other travelers around us that it was the baby who farted and not us..since based on the volume, it wasn't totally obvious:)

Ok, loud farts behind us, we got prepared to board the flight to Rome. We got on board w/o any issues, and Evan basically slept the whole way which was great! We got to Rome and steadily made our way to the baggage claim area. To our surprise, when we got there, our bags started coming almost immediately, one right after the other. Awesome...that is until our streak ended, and after quickly collecting seven of our bags, we soon realized no more were coming for us. The conveyor belt kept escorting more and more bags around, but none of them were ours. As other passengers gathered their suitcases and left, we soon became the sole family standing around as the conveyor belt continued to run, moving one lonely bag in and out of the bends and turns of its route. That lonely bag wasn't ours, and 2 of our large checked bags, plus our essential stroller were nowhere to be seen.

Welcome to our Italian adventure:)

Today starts my blog that I promised to create to chronicle our Italian adventure:) I'm sure this blog is going to become an international sensation, so be sure to check it out regularly to keep up w/ our crazy adventures and observations of Italian life!