A couple of shots taken from our apartment window in Siena. We were right on the main square in a building that had been there for 1000 years. The shower worked like it was that old too. Because I am a pitiful blogger, these pictures are in opposite order of our trip to Italy.




These guys got a few francs from us for the effort.
The Duomo in Siena is made of alternating bands of dark and light stone. Very ornate and reminds of a time when this city rivaled Florence. Too bad the Plague pretty well wiped it out in the 1300's.

On our second day in Rome at the Forum
An artful shot by Rikki at the Forum
Abby always making friends with strays at, where else, the Forum.

Sam looking relaxed in the amazingly clean and efficient Roman metro.



We picked up Rikki from the airport after it took her 48 hours to finally get here from Utah. Quite a trip for her first time solo traveling. We jammed her in our little volvo wagon and drove 6.5 hours to Rome. The GPS is my most trusted friend. We spent several days there before heading back home with a stop for 2 days in Siena.

Strolling through the streets of Rome on a festive but wet night.
The view from the top of the St. Peters Basilica dome. The scale of that cathedral is breathtaking.
One of my favorite paintings in the Vatican Museum. I think of Cindy Phillips when I see it as she first told me to look for it a decade ago when I first visited the museum.
Can you imagine Sammy getting cultured? Naw.

Here are some shots of Bern. It was a gray day and quite cold, but we found the town to be very walkable with an amazing variety of small shops. The town is famous for their Bear park where I took a picture of this little guy. Having taught about Einstein for so many years, it was moving to be in the town where he did his amazing work in 1905. One shot is of the river Aare that weaves its way around the town and has running paths all along it. In the summer people just float down this tame river as they encircle the town.

A few weeks ago Peggy and I were able to visit Lucerne and Bern without the kids. Always a treat. We hit Lucerne on a brisk sunny Saturday morning and the market vendors were in full force. Peggy was in her element. It was Europe in all its charm and splendor.

I took the kids 90 minutes north to Andermatt for a day of skiing. The skiing here is mostly above treeline. This was a cold day, with flat light, and I must say I was missing the Wasatch Front. Fortunately there a many more days ahead in which to convert me over to Euro snow.

Here are some shots of our soccer trip to Portugal. We swam in the Atlantic in November. Africa was about 100 miles away. One of the teams was from Morocco, and another from Egypt. The soccer was mediocre, but culturally fantastic.