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After spending 24 hours in Paris and doing the whirlwind tour we flew to Nice, France where we stayed for 3 nights. There is a great professional tennis tournament in Monte Carlo just 30 minutes away and I’ve always dreamed of going to watch and take in Monte Carlo. So in March I bought tickets online and booked the few days in Nice at the Hotel Gounod at the recommendation of a friend who’s been to the tournament. The 4 of us took the train and found the tournament which was an undertaking in itself but we enjoyed some great matches and the kids endured their less than favorite activity.

From Nice we went by train to Marseille, then by bus to Marseille airport and flew to Madrid. In Madrid we met up with Juan Salas who, 5 years earlier, stayed with us as a summer exchange student from Spain. Now 20, Juan is studying in Barcelona and it was great to see him. After a brief lunch we got our rental car and made the 5 hour drive north to San Sebastian. That was a full travel day starting at 6:00 AM and ending at 8:00 pm. We got lucky and found the most incredible pension in San Sebastian (Pension Bella Artes) where a mother and daughter run the place with such loving attention to their guests that you instantly feel like family. We were all overwhelmed with their caring and thoughtfulness. San Sebastian is on the Atlantic and very near the French border. There is a strong Basque influence and most the street signs are in both Spanish and Basque (which looks like Latvian or something). This is THE home of Tapas. There’s a wonderful surf beach and incredible harbor that is the cleanest I’ve ever seen. Even the commercial fishing area was immaculate and there was not even the slightest smell of fish. We wandered the narrow ancient streets as the evening dwellers began to come to enjoy a plethora of drink and food Tapas style and the sound of the waves was ever present in the background. It was a wonderful experience and a wonderful place.

The next day we met Matthieu our contact in Biarritz where we were staying the next 7 days. Matthieu is 28 and just retiring as a professional surfer. He runs a surf school and surf shop, has vacation rental homes and is a former Biarritz Surf Champion. Most importantly, he is a wonderfully energetic guy with a great attitude and the boys took to him immediately. His English is pretty good but with a strong French accent which made for some interesting conversations and a lot of non-verbal communication. Biarritz started as a vacation spots for the likes of Napoleon and his cronies and grew from there. Consequently the town has some of the most beautiful buildings and homes, wonderful French restaurants and boulangeries and a vibrant surf/tourist economy. Our house was actually too small and we rented an extra studio on the property where Matthieu himself lives. An amazing Boulangerie was just around the corner and every morning we’d awaken to the smell of the most incredible baked goods. It was like living next to a Cinabon only with greater selection and way better quality. Just the other direction an incredible rotisserie where the sold the best chickens we’ve ever tasted. The surf was great although the water was closer in temperature to San Luis Obispo – around 60 Farenheit. There was a very big swell when we arrived so we had to do some searching to find waves that we could handle. The area gets a lot of rain and is so naturally beautiful we were really taken by it. Again, we had wonderful hospitality, got lost while driving almost every time we went out and slept like we were in basic training.

Our next stop would be Barcelona to catch a plane to Mallorca for another week. The drive through the Pyrenees Basque country from San Sebastian to Pamplona (running of the bulls) was like driving through the wilderness. This area is blessed with so much diversity we were simply awed by it. This is another place we will definitely want to return to.

After all the traveling, sightseeing, train hopping, bus hopping, taxi travel, rent a cars, walking, navigating, getting lost, getting directions, going to laundramats, eating out it was fortunate that we had set up to stay at a Marriott Villa in Mallorca. We took advantage of the spa and gym, sand volleyball courts, huge grassy areas and pools to get in some shape and relax a bit. Mallorca is a beautiful and historic place. Surrounded by the crystal blue Mediterranean it’s chocked full of natural rock harbors, massive cathedrals and open planes with and windmill on every farm. Germans are quite common visitors to Spain due to the cheap and varied flights and the warm weather. Americans are a bit more rare. This was a great place to relax, regroup and plan for our reentry into our lives back home in SLO.

The Town of Conil

We’ve been planning this journey for over 4 years. We’d made most the arrangements from Mid Nov in Australia all the way till April 5th in Lucca. But from the 5th of April till our return to SLO on May 15 was open. So about a month ago I started snooping around for places to see. Well, we went to Southern Spain in the Andalucia region. We left Rome airport Friday night and flew to Malaga (home of Antonio Banderas). The next day we rented a car and drove to Conil about 2.5 hours West along the coast. I found a surf school online to get the info on the best spots and the guy was great. Mattias, from Germany, is a kite surf instructor and local guide so he set us up in a house about 60 meters from the beach. We got in some great surfing and wonderful sightseeing. In fact, Mattias invited us to join him for dinner with his friends and we had a great time. There is so much to love about this very minimally developed coastline. Rolling hills with farms, towers on the beach to identify pirates from years past, hilltop cities that are the oldest in Europe and dinner at 10-12 pm with the locals. This is also a very windy place which makes it a Mecca for windsurfing and kite surfing. Take a look at our photos at

http://picasaweb.google.com/hsweasey

We became quite attached to Lucca. This beautiful and charming walled city was a perfect place to immerse ourselves in Italy. Before arriving on the 9th of March we had spent our final week skiing in Claviere. Sitting virtually on the French border (about 50 meters walk from our Hotel), Claviere was one of the sights used for the 2006 Torino Winter Olympics. Unfortunately, we booked our stay through a British company online and let’s simply say they overstated the “amenities”, under delivered on their commitments and grossly overcharged. The snow conditions had deteriorated since it didn’t snow in all of February and the mountain was really not that great for skiing. The boys had no problem snowboarding the same run hour after hour and day after day. Other than that we had a great time. So rather than ski the last week we planned we headed to Lucca a week early. Not really having excercised much, I was able to connect with the local tennis pro and play some tennis on indoor red clay courts. The pro, Michaelangelo, was very nice and not having played for over 3 months I was sore in places I never knew existed after one hour of play. Tennis became a healthy part of my social life and my Italian language education. The house we stayed in was virtually across the street from the train station. So between guests coming to stay, day trips to beautiful places and schlepping bags around it was the perfect location.
Kyle got to practice with Dan Crozier,s club soccer team and that was a dream come true. Four bikes came with our villa and we used the bikes to get everywhere. It’s been great going the last several months with no car. Our friend Alex Crozier went home to SLO after 3 months here and immediately bought 2 new bikes to use. I’m sure we’ll be biking a lot more when we get home as well. We were able to make side trips to the Italian Mediterranean area of Cinque Terre – incredible, as well as San Gimignano, Florence and Sienna. These are all places that are amazingly stunning and historic at the same time. I would recommend anyone going to Italy to visit these places at least for 1-2 days each. Rather than go into detail just take a look at the photos we’ve taken as they come marginally close to reflecting the true beauty and charm of these magical places.

In front of Coliseum with Theresa

Going to Rome was like being a farm boy in New York city for the first time. It was fast, busy and bustling with activity. We were lucky enough to be pitched for a tour outside the coliseum by the many high pressure salesman. I was skeptical that we would even get a tour after handing this guy 90 Euro but he brought us right through the long line into the coliseum and joined us up with our guide. So rather than looking unwittingly at an ancient ruin we were given the context of the rise and fall of the Roman empire and the significance of the building, usage and history of the coliseum. This was followed by an incredible historic description and tour of Palantine Hill where the Romans got their start. Of course the most educational, and these were all VERY educational tours, was of the Vatican. Now imagine two boys ages 12 & 14 preparing to go into an art museum. There was no outward resistance for which we were grateful but in their heads Nate and Kyle were dreading this 3-4 hours of sheer boredom. Once again the guide was incredibly knowledgeable, enthusiastic and funny. Knowing the context of t he artist, the type of person he was and the circumstances under which he would do his work brought everything to life and the boys loved it. I can’t imagine a more interactive way to get the history lesson of a lifetime. Yet, after 3 days of sightseeing we were all ready for a little change so we took the train through Naples to Sorrento on the beautiful Amalfi Coast of the Mediterranean. The beauty and juxtaposition of this place overtook us. Perched on 300’ high sheer cliffs sits a town of about 13,000 that dates back to Roman times. The VERY narrow streets designed for horses and pedestrians give Sorrento the feel of an ancient City. We were lucky enough to find one of the cutest little casa’s to stay in the center of town. We made a day trip to the island of Capri which is home to the Blue Grotto and many Roman ruins. It’s surrounded, like Sorrento, by the crystal blue Mediterranean. We took a small boat to the Grotto and since it was high tide it made the entry that much smaller.

Once inside we could see how this natural wonder had earned it’s name with it’s rich blue water. It’s a must for anyone going to that area. The other highlight were the very cool towns of Capri and Anacapri (where we took a chairlift to the highest part of the island and saw the 180 degree view and the sheer cliffs upon which people were thrown to their deaths in the distant past), and the small harbor front. Yes, this was an area we had not planned on visiting yet we were very glad we did.

Who needs a station wagon to get the kids around!

February had almost no snow in Italy and after 3 great weeks in Livigno we headed to Claviere, Italy which is about an hour West or Torino (home of 2006 Winter Olympics) and where some of the Olympic downhill events were held. Unfortunately our hotel was grossly overpriced, our "room" was like a dorm room and the conditions on the mountain were horrible. We muddled through a week and headed to South to Lucca a week earlier than planned. We originally going to be in Lucca for 3 weeks but it's going to turn into 4. A beautiful walled city with loads of charm, Lucca is in the heart of Tuscany and about 20 Km from Pisa. We have a very nice home just outside the wall. The incredible wall of Lucca was constructed in various time periods starting in the 1300's to keep out intruders. There's also a mote surrounding so now the wall serves more to keep out cars and keep in cafe dwellers and fashion conscious Italians. We have 4 old fashion single speed bikes and a we use them to get everywhere. We shop at the local butcher, fresh fruit and vegetable markets, baker and the "superstore" grocery as well. We're learning Italian with Maria and Kyle in a class a few hours a week and Nate & I join in with our tutor Stefania for a couple more hours. It's been relaxing and I've had a chance to play some tennis at the indoor clay courts with the likes of Michaelangelo, Leonardo and Marco. There's also a skatepark for the boys which they love. The only challenge is that it's been raining more than normal so we're working around that which makes it interesting when you're only biking.

A wonderful Easter day with friends

We made an incredible side trip with the Crozier family to Sienna, Greve and San Gimignano. The towns had so much charm and history with San Gimignano taking the cake as the coolest. Even the local Italians rave about the beauty of this 12th Century walled city on a hill with 13 towers of the original 60 some still standing. Perfectly maintained it's like honey for a beehive of tourists. The Duomo in Sienna is truly inspirational, massive and ornate. The huge piazza in Sienna is home to an annual horse race where people from different neighborhoods have their representative horse and rider preparing for months in hopes of winning bragging rights in Sienna for the entire year. They even bring the horses into Church to bless them before the race and it's considered good luck if the horse poops in the church. Only in Italy.

The walled City of San Gimignano

Nate & Kyle love snowboarding now, this is Nate getting some air

Kyle fullfilling his need for speed

Maria & Judy in Front of Giglio's in Lucca, Italy(Maria's mom's Maiden name).
Okay, Okay, Okay Lucca is very cool. We stayed with our good friends the Croziers and had an amazing time and hopefully they're still friends after we invaded their home. They are spending 6 months in Lucca with kids enrolled in school and the whole bit...really an exciting and challenging thing to immerse yourself completely in a different country and culture like that. We'll be back in Lucca with our own place from15 March till 5 April. But since we just got out of the “taxi” from Tirano I’ve got to share this. So we’re trying to figure out how to get from Lucca which is in the Tuscan region (central W. Coast) of Italy up North through Milan (all trains seem to go thru Milan) and then past Lake Como into Italian Alps to our final destination of Livigno. Of course trains don’t go all the way to Livigno (and as I’ll explain later cars shouldn’t either) so I thought I’d just rent a car at the nearest train stop to Livigno which happened to be the last stop - Tirano. Well, it seems that most of those towns are too small for the major car rental agencies and after hours checking the options online of bus to train to car, train to car to bus, train to donkey, scooter to train to mule… no luck. Then I find an online car rental service that books me an Audi A4 for 6 days – I don’t even know if we’ll need a car in Livigno – and I figure I’m set. Well, the rental company emails me back a couple times asking where we’re going to stay which I don’t know cuz I don’t know where we’ll be yet so I haven’t made accommodations for that one night we need prior to the start of our 3 week booking in Livigno. Of course the car company says at the last minute “Oh, sorry, we don’t have a car available” which I can deal with even though they charged me $25. So I call a taxi in Livigno and ask if they’ll make the 1 hour 50 mile drive from Tirano, the last train stop, to Livigno. No problema says Armando the driver over the phone. Well we are in the middle of the Italian Alps, the roads wind so tightly it’s unbelievable. In fact, I can’t even believe they cut roads into the sides of these mountains. The trip starts out fine, fairly flat, lots of loooonnnggg tunnels under huge peaks. Well Armando must have somewhere to be that evening cuz we are SCREAMING down the road (granted, to this point in Italy we’ve been on trains, buses and cruiser bikes so I’m sure some of the speed shock was due to that fact). I mean this guy is passing people on these tiny Italian roads which in my opinion look like they are only made for one car not two. Then, as we gain altitude the road gets some moisture, some snow and we’re still going so #@$*in fast I can’t believe it. Well Maria and Nate are getting a little car sick cuz we’re going around corners that seem like corkscrews and climbing so fast it's making our heads spin. Then we reach the top of the pass and head down. I was laughing so hard only because when I’m scared @#*$less I tend to laugh but I keep holding on to the thought that this guy is 43 years old and has lived in Livigno his whole life (so far) and I’m sure he wants to live so we should be fine. But then it happened. He’s driving us in a VW van that’s a 5 speed and this thing can really go. But as we are passing another 2 cars and a semi truck down a steep alpine road he grabs his cell phone to call someone. That’s right, one hand shifting, one hand on the cell phone, knee on the steering wheel and looking down at his phone with his 43 year old eyes trying to make sure he’s got the right number as the slush from the tires of the semi truck we’re passing is smothering the front windshield…who is this guy. Well, obviously we made it to the little two street Alpine Valley town of Livigno and as people are pleasantly strolling down the side of the narrow street we come screaming through like a teenage grease monkey in a hopped up ’72 Pontiac Thunderbird. We parked in front of our quaint little hotel as we unloaded with Armando (very nice, expressive guy by the way) talking on the cell in one hand and throwing our bags out of the back with the other.

Nate & Kyle overlooking Livigno Valley from one of the runs.

Skiing has been great and this really is a quaint little town with a wonderfully diverse and well kept ski mountain (actually there are 2). We finally let the boys try snowboarding and they love it and we've probably lost them as skiiers for life.
Ciao