Carnevale in Varese

February 25, 2007

Carnevale in Italy reminds me of a cross between Halloween and New Year's. It reminds me of Halloween because all the kids (and a few of the adults) dress up in costumes. It reminds me of New Year's because everyone throws confetti and blows horns. The big Carnevale festivities happen in our area of Italy on the Saturday before the first Sunday of Lent. This is different from everywhere else where Carnevale is normally celebrated on the Tuesday before the first Sunday of Lent (Fat or Shrove Tuesday). This is because the Archdiocese of Milan follows the Ambrosian Rite whereas everywhere else follows the Roman Rite.

The Carnevale parade in Varese was yesterday in the Varese centro (downtown). We took Wren dressed up as what else - a bunny! I hope you enjoy our pictures.


Wren as a pink bunny


The crowd at Piazza Grappa


A pirate float


duh na nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh Batman!


Whale float - he spouted confetti out of his blow hole!


Indians are not politically incorrect here


Bunny close up

Carnevale in Ivrea

Sunday, February 18, 2007

Today we visited Ivrea, a small town about an hour from Varese and near Torino (you know - where the 2006 Winter Olympics were held), to see their Carnevale (Mardi Gras) celebrations. Unlike in the U.S. where Mardi Gras is only held in a few cities, every town in Italy celebrates Carnevale. I know the whole thing about the big blow out party before the 40 days of Lent starts, but it really reminds me a lot of Halloween. The kids dress up, people throw candy...okay, so I guess the smilarities end there. But it STILL reminds me of Halloween. Anyway, the Ivrea Carnevale celebration is a bit different in that they throw oranges. Yes, I said oranges. Why go to the more famous Carnevale of Venice when you can go to the Orange Battles in Ivrea?! I hope you enjoy our pictures. Click here if you want to read more about the Storico Carnevale di Ivrea (Historic Carnival of Ivrea). Also, check the videos on the right to see some clips of the festivites.


Entrance to the Carnevale. Notice all the red hats. They are worn not only so the wearer won't become a target during the Orange Battles, but also to show that the wearer is part of the celebrations.


Jason in front of just a few of the oranges.


Flag guys


Some of the team members. I think the green and yellow guys are from the Scorpion team.and the red guys are the Ace of Spades team.


The Battle!


The ground covered in oranges after one of the battles.

Sicliy

February 9-13, 2007

We had a whirlwind tour of Sicily this last weekend. We arrived in the morning on Friday 2/9 and left on the evening of Tuesday 2/13. We went to Palermo, Cefalu, Syracuse, Noto, Piazza Armerina, Agrigento, Selinunte, Erice, and Segesta.


Family shot (we are very small) in front of Temple E in Selinunte


Jason & Wren sitting inside Temple E.


Another family picture in front of a temple in Agrigento.


This is a picture of the town of Cefalu.


Wren and LA in Cefalu. You can see the cathedral in the background.

Lago d'Orta

We took a day trip on Sunday to Lago d'Orta (Lake Orta). It's a lake just about an hour west of Varese. My favorite place was the town of Orta San Giulio with the little island of L'Isola di San Giulio right off the banks of the town and connected by a small ferry.


Piazza Motta, the main square of Orta San Giuolio


detail of the Palazzo della Comunità della Riviera in the piazza. It dates from 1582.


from the piazza looking towards the island


Jason and Wren


Jason on a street in Orta San Giulio


view of the lago


Jason buying bread in a local shop


pasta shapes sold in the shop - notice the first one!


neat tree (this was actually in

Miscellaneous pictures

Wren in her outfit from Ms. Linda


Wren in the heirloom Bryant highchair


Bath time!


Just call me Alfalfa


One more bath photo because I'm just so darn cute!


Wren the Raccoon

Malaga, Spain

We took an EasyJet flight to Malaga, Spain on Friday, Jan. 26th. It was a quick trip but we had a nice time and the weather wasn't too terribly cold even though they had a cold front come through right before we got there. My favorite thing was the Alcazaba, a Moorish fortress/palace. I would like to go back and see more of the Moorish sites. In the picture above we are standing in one of the gardens of the Alcazaba.


view of Malaga from the Alcazaba


Wren and Jason at the Alcazaba


Lee Anne and Wren in the Alcazaba


Lee Anne can carry the backpack too!


Looking over Mijas

First professional photos

Wren has her first professional photos last week so I wanted to share a few here .

Just a couple of more pictures from home

I just wanted to post these two miscellaneous pictures from our time in Huntsville.

Wren wearing her bunny slippers from Lizzy

Ryan hosting a tea party for Lee Anne, Wren, and her doll friends.

We love dogs!

Wren wasn't so sure about those doggies to begin with. Nomo was okay, "but that big one was scarey," she said! In the end, she thought they were both just great and they didn't bother her one bit. And she shouldn't have been scared of big Sammy because Sam just thinks she is a momma dog and wants to take care of babies like Wren. So I've posted here just a few highlights from our moments with the dogs. :-)

At first, Wren wasn't sure about dogs...










These doggies aren't so bad (L to R: Sam, Wren, Nomo)












Look how big Sammy is compared to Wren!
















Nomo likes to ride everywhere though he's not used to having to share the seat!