SAD TIMES

On March 6th our family was hit with an unexpected death in our family. My Aunt Kimberly's husband... My Uncle Brian died suddenly from a heart attack. Brian was very involved in the entertainment industry, he was the voice for Extra and many many more radio stations.Brian was the person who was responsible for getting me my job at the radio station, where I had an on-air shift for over a year and he was the person who introduced me to the Comedy School, where I spent 3years doing what I love best... making people laugh. My aunt and uncle took me in under their wings and gave me a place to live, brought me to places I never would have been able to see, and always gave me so much love. My uncle was one of the people who made an extra effort to contact me everyday while I am away from home. I am going to miss him for than words can express. I know that the on-air light is now on in heaven and he is ready to get to work. I will miss you... R.I.P Uncle Brian

" The Lover's Castles"

Our view from where we had lunch at Juliet's Castle on Valentine's Day!

This is Montague's Castle, home to Romeo, with the snow capped mountains in the back.

The Capulet's Castle, Home to Juliet.

Two Lovers brought together by fate.

Here you see the Montague's Castle in the distance and the tiny church that was supposed to bring the Capulet's and Montague's together and end their feud.

Another Shot of the Montague's Castle from the Capulet's Castle

We had the opportunity to have lunch at Juliet's Castle where we were served 5 courses. (This is very common for an Italian meal.) We started out with our vegetables which it was like a quiche, then we had a pasta dish (this was my favorite), then we had a stuffed pasta dish, followed by our meat and potatoes, finally all topped off with a chocolate dessert. It was all delicious!!!!

"Oh Romeo"

This is the original gate to enter Verona... It still stands today but I think they added the street lights.

Every single alley had these hearts hanging... After all this is the city of love

My husband touching Juliet's boob.... This was the thing to do, everyone was touching her, except me of course I had to take the pictures

Aww the famous balcony...."Oh Romeo, Oh Romeo!, Wherefore art thou Romeo"

This is the Arena. It is the 3rd largest Colosseum in Italy and it is still standing and every July and August they hold operas here. It was amazing that it still stands and it is gorgeous!


So if you haven't guessed yet Rich and I spent our first Valentine's day in Verona, Italy. We first started our day at a winery where we had a tasting tour. (Yes we bought a bottle) Then we had an amazing romantic lunch in Juliet's Castle. After that we went to Verona where we spent timing window shopping, looking at Juliet's Balcony and of course topping off the night with some mint gelato... Verona is one of those place that has a special atmosphere about you cant describe. but you know that love is in the air. All I know is I was glad I spent the day with my Romeo minus the poisons and stabbings.

"A Domani"

I am writing to give everyone an update. We currently do not have Internet. So we can't upload any new pictures since the Internet we are using goes at snail speed. Trust me, I have called the Internet company and nothing is being done. My favorite story is when I called last week. I first started my conversation with "Do you speak English" in Italian of course and the man's response was "A Domani" which means tomorrow. So I so kindly said "You'll speak English tomorrow" and he said yes then hung up the phone... Ahhh customer service at its finest...

So once we have Internet you'll all be the first to see our wonderful journeys to Verona for Valentine's Day and our trip to Venice for Carnevale.

We miss you all!!!!!!!!

Ciao

The view from our new Casa.

Our home away from home. This is the view from our balcony. Rain, Rain go away come back some other day.
Our Bathroom... Yep we have a bidet. Classy

This is the Dome. It the main monument when giving directions to houses in Sacile. We live right of the Dome if you were wondering.

Wait for it.... another rainy day. Here you can see Sacile, Vigonovo, and some of Aviano

This is in the center of Sacile. During the summer people ride their kayaks down the river..

We officially move into our apartment on the 22nd. Of course none of Rich's things are here yet from Korea or Phoenix so we have to borrow base furniture. Its great for company. In Italy there are no closets because everything that has a door or an extra room is taxed, so we have they wonderful wardrobes that the base provides...YUCK is all I can say. We live in Sacile which is 15mins to 20mins from base. When the sky is clear you can see for miles and the beauty of Italy is truly revealed. We haven't ventured out much but we plan on taking many trips and using our time wisely here to see Europe.

Ciao

Mama Mia Venice is FANTASTICO!!!!!

We went to Venice on Jan.3rd.
It was so amazing but so cold. We actually had to cut our visit because it was so cold. We saw a sign that said Chinatown and thought "hmmm Chinese food" well we searched and searched and could not find it. So we went with the back up plan...PIZZA. I tend to go with the back up plan more than Rich does. He is so much more willing to try new things...NOT ME. Thank goodness for pizza is all I have to say. We got off the train which we now found out is more complicated than it seems. You have to validate your ticket after you buy it. It's very confusing. Apparently we bought an one way ticket but used it as a round trip. Thankfully we didn't get caught but I don't recommend doing that if your in a foreign country. So we got off the train and headed towards St. Mark's Square which is really far from the train station. We crossed bridges and went thru these alleys, zigged and zagged, got lost a couple of times, did a couple of u-turns, and then finally found it. Wow is was beautiful and very packed full of people. At this point we can't feel our hands and we are both shivering, so we decided to take the water taxi back. Which we should have taken in the first place, except now we just want to get back and warm up and this taxi which is more like a water bus has to stop like every 5meters. We finally get to the train station and we found out you have to pay to use the restroom, so we held it until we got back to Sacile. During our train ride back the train came to a complete stop for no reason and they said something in Italian and of course we have no idea what they said but everyone else was upset... So need less to say we had a great time with a few speed bumps but for our first time I think it was very successful....we made it back in one piece, but we will go back for sure when its warmer and hopefully take a gondola ride. I would recommend Venice to everyone.

Arrivederci from the Owens

Call off the search dogs...

Yesterday our sponsor's wife received my bag that the airlines had misplaced for over two weeks now. Yep that's right we got to Italy on Dec.19th and we finally got my bag on Jan.4th. I want to thank everyone who sent me clothes. Now we'll need to keep our eyes open for a new suitcase. Mine is no longer usable since they broke a wheel, ripped the bag, and broken the framing of the bag... But I can not complain any more everything was in there and I now have my clothes back....

HIP HIP HOORAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!