Squirty Cream

Back in June, our church had it's annual barbecue at a local farm. It was organized by my friend Debbie, who is an American. She is fabulous at organizing our church's events, and tells how it has taken her years to "train" the Brits how to do church functions American-style!

This year for our church barbecue, Debbie decided that she would show our English friends what an ice-cream sundae bar was for dessert. She had people bring ice-cream and all different kinds of toppings. On the day of the barbecue, she asked me and a couple of other ladies to "man" the cans of Reddi-Whip (which the Brits call "squirty cream") so that the kids wouldn't use too much. (We all know what kids do with Reddi-whip --- they either squirt it wrong and waste all the gas inside, or they pour it down their throats without limit!)

So, there I was at my station at the toppings table, with the can of squirty cream in hand. I asked each kid who came up if they would like some. It didn't take me long to figure out that the American kids would ask for it, but the British children did not. In fact, I noticed that I was getting some strange looks for even suggesting it. One girl responded to me by saying, "Squirty cream on my ice-cream?...... NO!" (How preposterous of me for asking!)

I finally asked a British mother about it, and she told me that it is not customary for squirty cream to be put on ice-cream. Squirty cream was reserved for a few choice desserts like pie, but that was about it.

The kids seemed to have no problem with sprinkles (which by the way, they sometimes call "hundreds and thousands").... they heaped those one by the spoonful. And they also had no problem putting fruit on their ice-cream. My friend Debbie had a big bowl of cherries at her station, and the British people were trying to scoop them into their sundaes by the spoonful. Debbie had to politely teach them that they just get one cherry... on top, of course!

The ice-cream sundae bar was a hit! The kids and adults all enjoyed it. I even noticed a few British mothers who stood gaping at the sundaes saying things like, "I didn't know you could do this with ice-cream!" Leave it to us Americans to teach other cultures how to make something bigger and better.

Knaresborough Bed Race

I've heard of some unusual races back in the States, but never before have I heard of a BED RACE!!

The local town of Knaresborough has held a Bed Race for the past 45 years! This year, the weather wasn't just nice for the race,... it was actually beautiful! And we were determined not to miss it.

For the bed race, teams decorate a wheeled metal frame (not really resembling a bed too much), which they first display and then parade through town. Then for the race, the teams drop the decor, and then run the race through the village pushing their beds. The race eventually ends up in the River Nidd. The teams have to push their beds upstream for a little bit, and then heave their beds out of the river towards the finish line. Prizes are awarded to the team that is best decorated and the team that completes the race in the quickest time.

When we arrived in Knaresborough, we found a spot on the sidewalk to watch the parade (and found some friends to watch it with us!) It was so much fun! The town crier led it all off, and the beds came one after the other. Each year, the Bed Race Committee chooses a theme for the decorations, and this year's theme was: occupations. The floats were very clever- there was one that looked like a restaurant table, one made to look like a house with chimneys for the chimney sweepers, a boat with fishermen, a surgeon's table, etc., etc.The parade finished up near the starting line for the race. At that point all of the teams dropped their decorations and got into line for the race. Because there were so many teams (90 in all!), the teams began the race in 10 second intervals and were timed.

The teams pushed their "beds" through the town and wound up in the river. We were sitting on the edge of the river, near the finish line, so we were able to see the teams push the beds up and out of the river. It was not an easy task!! And the more teams that went by, the slippier the slope got!

As I mentioned before, the Bed Race has been a tradition in Knaresborough for 45 years! According to the Bed Race brochure, the first bed race was held in 1966, and had only 4 beds competing. Regarding the first-ever bed race, the brochure reads:

Things have changed these days as the occupants of the beds were described as 'each graced by a gorgeous girl in an eye catching frilly negligee.' Three of the four were actually beauty queens including Miss Yorkshire and Miss Italy.

I can only imagine those beauty queens' surprise when they were raced right into that cold river!

All in all, the Knaresborough Bed race was a lot of fun! It's one of those small town traditions that I would love to bring back to the States with me.

Day 7- Pisa

On our last day in Italy, I have to admit, we were feeling a little burnt-out. We had planned on visiting a walled-town like Lucca in the morning and then Pisa in the afternoon. But the thought of driving anywhere in the car for more than a half-hour with the kids was enough to make me start getting tics. Thankfully, Pisa was less than a half-hour away, so we decided to go there in the morning.

What fun it was approaching the city and spotting the Leaning Tower! When we entered the city center, the Leaning Tower was there to greet us, and we were ready to have some fun with it! For those of you who don't know the history about why the Leaning Tower leans, well....

The Leaning Tower was built to be a free-standing bell tower for the nearby cathedral. Construction began in 1173, but before the year was out, the tower was already showing a slight tilt. This was due to a poorly laid foundation and a very loose substrate (aka- a mucky soil underneath). At one point, architects tried to compensate for the lean by making the rooms on one side of the tower taller than the other side. This obviously didn't solve the problem, but it did result in a visible curve to the tower. In any case, the tower was finally completed in the 1300s. Towards the end of the 20th century, a lot of effort (and $) was put into making the tower more structurally sound. They ended up pumping tons and tons of soil out from under the tower, which has stabilized it sufficiently...for now.

Anyway, moving on. Pisa's Cathedral Square, also known as the Piazza dei Miracoli (Square of Miracles), houses three important buildings: the cathedral (Duomo), the baptistry, and the afore-mentioned bell tower.

We headed to the Baptistry next. Construction of the Baptistry began in 1152 and it was completed in 1363. The exterior of the Baptistry was lovely and ornate, compared to the rather bleak interior. Inside, we saw the carved pulpit, and the font, which was designed for performing baptisms. The most notable thing about the Baptistry is it's amazing acoustics. The ceiling is shaped like a dome, and sounds just seem to hang in the air (or bouce around, I suppose). Every half-hour, an employee of the Baptistry sings to demonstrate the acoustics. We were fortunately able to witness this. She would sing a note and it would remain for several seconds. Then she would sing another note, and then another, so that you could hear a perfect chord! Sung by just one person!! It was very cool!

We left the Baptistry, and then headed over to the Duomo (the cathedral). We were stunned by how ornately decorated the interior of the Duomo was... just beautiful!By the time we left the Duomo, the sky had turned a scary gray color, and it looked like a thunderstorm was threatening. We decided to make a run for it back to the car. It turned out to be a good decision. As Maddie likes to say, "It was chucking it down!"

We left Pisa, and drove to a nearby US Base called Camp Darby. It was delightful to go to their Commissary and load up on some American snacks. But, it was even more delightful to make our way to the Post Office on the base. We were able to mail a box of dirty laundry to our post box back in the UK for free! That way, we wouldn't have to worry about the weight limit that we barely passed when we flew to Italy. Phew!

We spent or last afternoon in Italy back at the hotel. Collin took a nap while the kids enjoyed the pool and water slide. Although, I must admit, it was a little stressful as the pool had no shallow end for Maddie and we didn't have floaties. And, get this.... they don't allow you to swim in public pools in Italy without swim caps. We hadn't thought to bring swim caps (of which we must have 20 at home). So, we had to shell out 4 euro per cap to let them swim (I actually only bought one, and told them to take turns. I know, I'm such a cheap meanie, but it was a matter of principal at that point).

Our last meal in Italy was at a delightful restaurant not far from the hotel. Pizza, risotto, pasta... and of course, we finished it all off with gelato.

Ciao Italy! Thank you for so many incredible and delicious memories!

Day 6- Florence

Our sixth day in Italy was dedicated to all things Renaissance- the city of Florence! We took the train into the city, and headed straight to the Uffizi Gallery when we got there. (Actually, first we stopped for some breakfast at an Italian bakery and bought some bomboloni, which is basically the Italian version of a doughnut! Yum!)

The Uffizi Gallery is the premier museum of Renaissance art in the entire world! Not unlike the Louvre in Paris, the collection is so big that it is difficult to take it all in in just a few hours.... especially with three young children in tow. The U-shaped building itself was an amazing masterpiece of architecture, and the ceilings inside were so ornately decorated. As far as the art is concerned, Ethan and I struggled with appreciating it as much as, perhaps, someone with an art history background, might. But, it was still a worthwhile time. I think my favorite pieces that I saw there were two Botticelli paintings: The Birth of Venus, and Primavera (both painted in the 1480s). They were both larger than life... just amazing!When we left the Uffizi, we headed over to see the Ponte Vecchio Bridge. As you can see, this bridge is lined with shops. It was originally built in Medieval times when the shops were occupied by butchers. But today, most of the shops sell jewelry.

We also walked to the Pitti Palace. Originally built in Renaissance times, it has been occupied mostly by weathly Florentines, but was once used as a power base for Napolean himself.

After some lunch near Dante's home (as in Dante's Inferno), we headed over to the Accademia Gallery, where we had an appointment to see David.... that's Michelangelo's David, of course. I have to admit, David was impressive. At over 17 feet tall, he was certainly a sight to behold. David was carved by Michelangelo between 1501-1504. In 1504, the statue was unveiled to the Florentine Republic and, because of what it represented (David standing victorious over a larger opponent) it boosted the Florentine's confidence as they faced their own larger opponents of rival city-states.

At the Accademia, we were able to see other statues of Michelangelo including a series of his called Prisoners. It was amazing to see how the figures emerged from the stone. We were also able to see a incredible exhibit about musical instruments that the kids especially appreciated.

When we left the Accademia, we headed to see the Duomo. But, not without stopping for some gelato first. (And by the way, if you haven't seen how they display gelato in the window, this is what it looks like.) I know... tempting.

The Duomo is a magnificent centerpiece to the city of Florence. Also known as the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, this cathedral was constructed from 1296-1436. The cathedral complex also includes the Bapistry which is one of the oldest buildings in all of Florence (constructed between 1059-1128). One highlight of the Baptistry is the set of bronze relief doors created by Lorenzo Ghiberti.Ethan and Tim decided to walk up to the top of the Cathedral Tower to get a better look at the city. Here are a few of their photographs.We finished up our time in Florence with pizza for dinner. And no, we were still not tired of eating pizza!Over all, we enjoyed Florence, but I think we would have appreciated it more if we had a better understanding of the historical significance of this Renaissance city. The city itself was pretty neat, but I think we were spoiled by the charm of seeing Venice first.

My next post will be my last Italy post (sniff, sniff). Get ready to LEAN!!

Day 5- Cinque Terre

Our next day in Italy was a travel day. We had to drive from our agriturismo near Lake Garda to the west coast of Italy, since our next hotel was located outside of Pisa (about a 4 hour drive). We decided that we would travel a round-about way and go a little north on the west coast to see the Cinque Terre before heading south to Pisa.

We hadn't heard much about the Cinque Terre, except that a few friends had told us it was beautiful. We learned from our travel guide book that Cinque Terre (prounounced "CHINK-wah TAY-reh") means "five lands" in Italian. These five villages are located on the north-west coast of Italy along the Ligurian Sea.

Our drive to the western part of Italy was a lot more pleasant than we expected. The kids drove us crazy of course (we are clearly in the "are-we-there-yet????" stage of life), but the views were spectacular. We didn't expect to see so many mountains! And then there were MOUNTAINS! It was all I could do not to hang out the window to get better pictures.

Anyway, in our travel book, we learned that only one of the five villages of the Cinque Terre had public parking, so we set the GPS for the village of Vernazza. The other option was to drive to a city south of there and travel by train into the villages. But why do that when we already had a car to get us there????

We found out VERY quickly why people travel by train to get the the Cinque Terre. The roads were unbelieveably windy and steep. We learned the topography of the area VERY quickly. The villages are set on the coast at sea level, and you have to travel down the mountains to get to them. Windy, steep, and to top it all off- foggy! It was not a pleasant combination, and it made for a very stressful descent. The hairpin turns made the purple line on the GPS look like a big knot! I have to admit, I was scared, and I don't scare that easily. But, we had gone this far.....

We finally made it to the village of Vernazza only to find that the parking lot (yes, there was only one) was full. Thankfully, there was one spot left on the road. Ethan had to climb out of the passenger seat after parking it to make sure that we were over far enough, but we did it. We then had to walk about a mile down to the village (all the while thinking, we're going to have to climb back up this hill when it's time to leave!!)

This is what the road looked like behind me when we were walking (yes, that's what we drove down). You can even see the haze that was just starting to burn off as we got there. I was so intrigued by the Italians passion for growing grapes here, and amazed at how they would grow their vines even up the side of steep hills. Amazing! This is our "HOORAY, WE MADE IT HERE ALIVE" shot.As we walked into the village, we noticed how many people there were! There were tourists (particularly Americans) everywhere! I couldn't help but wonder how they all got here. It was at this point that we also noticed the train station. A train arrived, and even more tourists started spilling out. We would have spent more time kicking ourselves for not taking the train, but truthfully we were too hungry. Our first priority was food. We found a local pizza place and ordered a pizza margarita for the kids (cheese pizza), and a pesto pizza for the adults (this region is the birthplace of pesto, after all).

As I am sitting here typing this blog, my mouth is salivating at the sheer thought of this pizza. It was by far, the best pizza I ate during our time in Italy, and perhaps the best I have ever had in my life. The crust was a little crunchy and oily, the sauce sweet, the cheese all melty and smooth. But the best part was the pesto that they spread on top. OMG. I can feel a little bit of that warm basil-oil dripping down to my chin even now, wishing I was back there. It was THAT good.

After lunch, we walked further down the main street, which was lined with shops and restaurants. We eventually came to a little cove which gave us our first glimpse of the sea. Just beautiful. And then, a few steps further, the street opened up into a little harbor. There was a small beach where people were swimming, a breakfront protecting the harbor, and a church sitting right on the shore.Naturally, the kids wanted to play in the water. I told them that was fine as long as they didn't get too wet (I didn't have any change of clothes with me).
They stayed dry for all of one minute, I think. I couldn't be mad though... they were having too much fun!

After that, we walked up to the castle which overlooks the whole village. Back in the 1300-1400s, the Cinque Terre was terrorized by North African pirates quite often. So this castle served as the look-out for pirate raids.

As anticipated, the views were stunning. This is the view of the coast to the north, over-looking the harbor,and the village of Vernazza. Tim climbed the tower to get a better view. And just when I thought I had seen it all, I looked at the view of the coast to the south. It was so gorgeous. I decided then and there that this was one of the most beautiful places I had ever been to on earth. It made that crazy drive worth it.

After the castle, we topped up with some gelato of course, and headed back to the car. We decided to try a different route out of Vernazza to get back to the main highway to see if it would be any easier. It took a little longer, but the views from the road overlooking the sea were incredible.
The Cinque Terre was amazing! If you ever get to that area, I highly suggest you visit there. Just remember to take the train. Oooh, and have the pesto pizza!