Present Heart

Mr. Darcy and Mrs. Bennet.
He has 10,000 a year!

My sister's visit is over. She landed safely in Tucson early this morning and just sent me a text to tell me that she is staying on England time and is ready for wine.

Jane Austen Museum Regency Tea Room

It's 8 o'clock in the morning there.

Bath Abbey

I was sad all day yesterday after dropping her off at Gatwick, and enjoyed indulging my tears.

As it was Father's Day and Mike was out of town, I was free to wallow. He's on a trip to South Africa and hopefully he gets to visit a game park.

Interior Bath Abbey

I am keeping my fingers crossed for rhinos and hippos.

I loved spending time with my sister. She loved Bath, which made me happy.

Bath Abbey

I have been there handful of times since moving here. Wells was recommended to me as similar to Bath, but maybe even better...I want to check it out.

We also went to JANE AUSTEN'S HOUSE (!!) in Chawton, Hampshire...

Bakehouse.

I thought I might sob with excitement. I surprised myself and cried after visiting her tomb in Winchester Cathedral in March with my mom. I felt incredibly sad about her early death, her sister Cassandra's loss of a most beloved companion.

Similar to Shannon's serenity prayer, "Gimme what I want!"

We managed not to cry at her house in Chawton. The town is extremely charming, with a population of less than 400 in the year 2000, and many of the homes from the 16th and 17th centuries.

Kate Winslet's dress from Sense and Sensibility is TEENY!

She lived in the cottage with her mother and sister Cassandra for the last 8 years of her life.



Jane's writing table.

There she revised Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice, and wrote Mansfield Park, Emma, and Persuasion. 

These smell even better than they look.

Jane's father died while the family were living in Bath and his wife and two daughters were left with very little income.

Jane and Cassandra's bedroom

Jane's older brother Edward was adopted by his father's wealthy cousin when he was 16 years old and became Edward Austen Knight, eventually inheriting a large fortune and estate in Chawton.

die Toilette.

Four years after Reverend Austen died in Bath, Edward Austen Knight refurbished the cottage in Chawton and allowed his mother and sisters to live rent free for the rest of their lives.



A prayer by Jane Austen.

 Jane's brother had an income of £15,000 a year, £5,000 greater than Mr. Darcy's.

Jane, Cassandra and Mum sewed this patchwork bedcover.

It was thrilling to see her writing table, covered with old scritches and scratches.

And the garden is lovely.

It was easy to imagine her enjoying her cozy life. She shared a small room with her sister, despite there being rooms to spare.

That is true sisterly affection.

I am grateful for sharing space with my sister for a week, but mostly bummed that it passed so quickly, and that our adventure has taken us so far away from the ones we love most.

Jane's next door neighbor

I know that we have wonderful adventures remaining in the coming year, and I'm excited for more travel and more discovery. William comes tonight, and he and I are going to Athens for baby Isabella's baptism this weekend. More dreams coming true.

More neighbors

But this minute I just want to crawl in bed with my sister and laugh and laugh and laugh. I have missed her so much that I had trouble relaxing and enjoying her visit. I was too aware of how little time we had, I failed my Buddha 101 exam, Staying Present...

Nin, I love you so much!! Thank you for leaving your busy life and sharing yourself with us for 7 days of heaven. Thank you life for bringing us together for a moment in beautiful England.

God help me to have a present heart and to notice all of the gifts and magic that whirl around me everyday.

And a housekeeper wouldn't hurt.

Happiness

This morning somewhere in the neighborhood of 4 am, Michael woke us up due to nightmare. As I tried to control my mind to wake up and interact as minimally as necessary, aiming to GO BACK TO SLEEP, I noticed how bright it was outside. It is the opposite of our winter which brought us total darkness from 5 pm to 8 am. These days we put the boys to bed in complete daylight. It feels a little strange, but they have stopped complaining about how bright it is. Michael asks for the blinds to be closed while we read books, even though there is enough light to read by. He needs to pretend there is dark. Life at latitude 51.376612 is very exciting.

I am feeling much happier, finally feeling adjusted to our life in Crowthorne. The brightness helps, sunshine on my shoulders does indeed make me happy. Even if a sweater is involved. I met an American woman who has recently moved to the area, and she said that this business of calling 60 degrees warm just wasn't working for her. I loved it so much. I LOVE listening to the complaints and struggles of my non-native friends. It is life affirming and fills me with mirth.

Jesus, by Dominic

Another happiness helper is all the visitors we have had. Since March we have had visitors all but a few weeks. My mother, Mike's parents, Anna,

and currently my sister. The day after she leaves William arrives! Also, our friends the Sterlings came by and played for a day and we ate up their Tucson tales.

Shannon, Mike and I met our Tucson friends Tim and Robin in Winchester to see an al fresco play of Sense and Sensibilty. By al fresco I mean al pouring rain-o. It turned into a wet robe à l'anglaise contest. I spied an areola or two. It hasn't rained very much since March, even causing a rare forest fire which prompted the evacuation of parts of Crowthorne. But the day and night of Sense and Sensibilty, the heavens opened. The audience covered ourselves with umbrellas, trash bags for legs and feet, and blankets for warmth. We could see the actors breath. Pretending not to be cold or soaking wet for their craft.

Oh how we love Jane Austen!

But not enough to stay for the second act. Needing to relieve our babysitter, we picked up our dinner things and the seven dining room chairs we brought because we that is all we have to sit on, and high tailed it back to a warm bath.

The play was at Lainston House Hotel. Beautiful. If you are well to do, stay there. If not, check out their special events or go for afternoon tea. Lovely.

My sister and I have been having los and los of fun. We visited Netherfield Park, the country home of Mr. Charles Bingley. It is also known as Basildon Park. It was a great outing. The guided tour of the house is in depth.

Yesterday we walked from Henley-on-Thames to Marlow, an 8 - 9 mile walk that is fabbydoo!!!

Shannon-on-Thames

Today we are going to Bath...but first I have to help Michael do his homework, due today! I have neglected my real job of late. His assignment is to cook something with a parent, write the recipe and include a photo. We made corn tortillas with the masa Barb sent, and added some English cheddar to make quesadillas with a British accent.

Venezia

Seafood risotto!

The name Venice comes from the Veneti, the people who lived here as of the 10th century BC. Can that be true? So long ago...

Bidet is a French word for pony.

The city stretches across 117 small islands in the marshy Venetian Lagoon along the Adriatic Sea in northeast Italy. The saltwater lagoon stretches along the shoreline between the mouths of the Po (south) and the Piave (north) Rivers.

Eva and Anne.

Mike and I went out for a walk our first night in the city and met this adorable woman as we were crossing a bridge and asked her to take our photograph.

Gift.

Thirty minutes later she had recounted her life story in Italian (which we don't speak and barely understand),  and apologized for not inviting us over to her house for dinner because her house was a disastro. Then as we were leaving she insisted on giving me this fuzzy frog key chain. It is one of my favorite things now.



Photo she took.



We understood enough to learn that she has been married for 63 years, her husband eats a lot and is very skinny, they have children, something about her daughter, Americani were involved somehow in her life. Meeting and chatting with Eva is another highlight of this adventure. The contrast between friendly Italian and friendly Brit is discussion worthy.

Mary, receiving the glorious news that
she is conceiving a child out of wedlock.
Museo dell'Accademia

The Republic of Venice was a major maritime power during the Middle Ages and Renaissance, and a staging area for the Crusades and the Battle of Lepanto, as well as a very important center of commerce (especially silk, grain and spice trade) and art in the 13th century up to the end of the 17th century. This made Venice a wealthy city throughout most of its history. It is also known for its several important artistic movements, especially the Renaissance period. Venice has played an important role in the history of symphonic and operatic music, and it is the birthplace of Antonio Vivaldi. (Wikiwhat?)

We traveled to Venice in early April to celebrate our 10th anniversary! And Lowell's birthday, and Karlin and Jesse's 10 year.

Ponte dell'Accademia

Mike organized everything. Babette provided the much needed childcare for our five night trip.

Oh no you di'int!

Oh yes I did!

He booked a room at a place that looked charming online, but not nearly so charming in person. The list was long. It was the dirty, stained blanket on the bed that bothered me the most. Not super conducive to epic romance. We ran away from our sad room and booked ourselves into the lovely Hotel Palazzo Stern.

Basilica Cattedrale Patriarcale di San Marco

In the treasury of St. Mark's there are over 100 relics including various arm bones, shin bones, hands, skulls, breast milk from the Virgin Mary, blood of Christ, nail from the crucifixion, a chip of the true cross and more. There is a small fee to get in, it is a very small room with very little signage explaining the items. We used an audio guide which I didn't think was informative, but all in all, entertaining. There is also a fee to see the tomb of St. Mark.


Gondola, gondola!

Eat pizza at Ai Sportivi, Campo Santa Margherita 3052, Dorsoduro. I thought it was scrumptious.

Pizza Formaggio e Fungi
Gnocchi Bolognese

And a big thank you to Melina, for making me buy those jeans!

Dinner at Ai Sportivi.

According to our guide book, Venetian must try foods are sardines al saor and baccala mantecato.  The baccala tastes like it is loaded with lard which sounds disgusting, but was actually super tasty, creamy delicious. I was sure it was lard, because manteca is lard in Spanish. But according to online recipes, it is just boiled cod beaten with olive oil.

Sardine al saor, Baccalà mantecato, spaghetti pomodoro, and two spritzs

Venetian Spritz
Ingredients
1.5 oz Aperol or Campari
3 oz Prosecco (dry sparkling wine)
Dash or two of Club Soda or Seltz
Orange Slice and Olives for garnish
Ice cubes

Method
Place ice cubes in a glass, then pour in Prosecco, dash of Club Soda or Seltz and lastly Aperol or Campari. Garnish with orange slice and olives. Enjoy!

The Spritzs were bright orange heaven! We grabbed a bottle of Aperol in the airport on our way home and mixed up a batch at home...but we don't have it down yet. Something is missing and I suspect it might be a charming square filled with wild children accompanied by cig smoking mamas, all watched by crowds of very old ladies enjoying a chat in the late afternoon.

Happy Birthday Lowell!

So on the day of, Mike chartered a gondola from our hotel to St. Mark's Square, where we jumped on a private water shuttle to Giudecca Island. But first we had a good brush with fame because who should get off the shuttle we were waiting to board but David Letterman! I was briefly terrified that Mike might embarrass me and say ANYTHING to him, but he didn't.

I would love to conquer whatever it is that makes me so easily embarrassed, but in the meantime, thank you God for my understanding husband.



Happy Anniversary Jesse and Karlin!

 Anyway, our anniversary date was lovely. After walking around the grounds of the hotel, we crashed a private party and sipped bellinis at the pool side bar. Sometimes when traveling it can be difficult to read social cues, because later, after finishing our drinks I realized that the bartenders really wanted us to leave. The bar was closed, but they were too polite. Next we went to the Fortuny Bar, on the same property.

Scala dei Giganti, overexposed Neptune and Mars,
Doge's Palace.

I had a perfectly perfect green tea martini at the Fortuny Bar and it was herbal heaven. As I write this my mouth is watering it was so good! And each drink is served with a selection of adorable bite size goodies. There was a guitar player and he played two of our songs, The Girl from Ipanema and Romanza. We also had another sighting of David Letterman, returning to his hotel for the night. Our dinner at Fortuny Restaurant was delicious, but the service was over the top. Later we debriefed and agreed that we prefer a more casual atmosphere. My recommendation would be to go to the hotel, have a drink at the bar and leave. Enjoy dinner elsewhere.

The very best of the best of our trip was kayaking for seven hours in the canals of Venice.

Venice is covered with barnacles!

Mike arranged for Giorgio Sartori, from Bibione Kayaks to take us out. Giorgio brought along Adriano and we spent an amazing, unforgettable day. I liked having a guide, at the very least to be charming and speak Italian to the somewhat annoyed but friendly gondolieros. Giorgio was a delightful, relaxed and knowledgeable guide.

I cannot express the enchantment we felt, going wherever we wanted. Mike paddled and I took hundreds of photos.

Mike and Anne in front of Hotel Palazzo Stern,
photo by Giorgio Sartori.

 It was one of the most exciting things I have ever done in my life. Up there with The BGTs, hiking Grand Canyon, sharing a meal with hindu priests in Batu Cave in Kuala Lumpur and giving birth to my four precious perfect babies.

Another fun thing to do in Venice,
photo by Giorgio Sartori.

 I wish that all of my loved ones may experience kayaking in Venice some day. Please add it to your list.


Ponte Rialto,
photo by Giorgio Sartori.

Giorgio recommends going on a weekend because there is less commercial traffic.

Photo by Giorgio Sartori.

He also suggests spring or fall for best weather and fresher smelling canal water...

Adriano with lion,
photo by Giorgio Sartori.

It was thrilling, fun, exciting and beautiful.



Graffiti on ruined house reminds us of William.



This also looks like fun!

Bridge near Arsenale, when the tide comes in it becomes unpassable.

Stopped for lunch, Adriano and I had the fresh asparagus with eggs.

Looking at photos of Venice before our visit, I was amazed at how the buildings could come straight out of the water. It boggled my mind, and I imagined that seeing it in person might make me feel uneasy, waterlogged.

I imagined that it would be bewildering to see it in person. But it wasn't. It felt so natural, a city that was meant to be just as it is. Nothing strange or out of place.

Bridge of Sighs

I don't know if others have had the same experience, but I felt nervous about reaching the 10 year mark. I felt a little awkward and shy around our anniversary. I don't know how to be married for 10 years.

Whenever we go on a vacation alone we always call a few people to share our excitement. Usually we drink a bottle of wine first. One person we always call is my best friend Kara, she had the idea for Mike and I to get together. In Venice I actually said to her, "Kara, it looks like he's in!" Even with a rock solid marriage, I don't think I will ever feel completely secure.

The next years of marriage seem like the uglier ones. Some couples lose respect for each other. They stop trying to be charming, quit caring about the happiness of their partner and start to show the disgust they feel. I am afraid of that. For a couple weeks after our anniversary we counted every day. "Day 13, going strong!" I never want to be complacent, I hope I will always have a sense of the tremendous gift I have been given.

We went ahead and arranged our childcare for our 20 year. William agreed to babysit his teenage brothers when he's 32, as long as Mike agrees to help him move furniture whenever he feels the need to rearrange the living room.

Here's to the next 10 years! Here's to trusses and straps!


St. Mark's Square,
photo by Giorgio Sartori.



For more info on kayaking in Venice, check out the following links.
http://www.bibionekayak.com/bibionekayak.asp?lingua=eng
http://www.vogalonga.com/