italy 2009

---

Ciao! We are safe and sound in Sicily...away from the over 430 aftershocks being felt throughout L'Aquila and Rome. Many of them have been almost as intense as the original quake, rendering thousands more homeless and making it very difficult for rescue crews. Al's cousin Pasqualino just hooked up wi-fi for us...since we were having computer withdrawals. The family has been wonderful...we are communicating well and enjoying scrumptious food (MUCH better than the food in Rome!). al's cousins are 36, 38 and 39, so we are all basically the same ages and the husbands speak fairly well in English. We toured Palermo and Mount Monreale for 10 hours today!! We saw some of the most beautiful sites you could imagine, including cathedrals built in the 1600's, panoramic views of Sicily, etc. etc. i will try to post some tonight...but I recommend you all come see it in person! It has been wonderful having family here to take us all over...from the beautiful countryside to the City of Palermo (equivalent to NYC). We are staying on the coast of Cefalu....we are up in the mountains, and the balcony here overlooks the beautiful Mediterranean...just breathtaking! Tomorrow we will likely be visiting Gratteri...the small town where al's mom grew up...we will meet relatives we have only heard about until now, and visit the home where she was born. Sounds like the sites will be very different from those we saw today...this has been so interesting! The drivers here are absolutely crazy...most streets have no lanes, and you can drive wherever and however you want....yet we have not seen one accident! People walk in the streets and cross without even looking...and noone gets angry (or killed!). the streets are SO narrow. everyone has mini-cars or smart cars or they would never be able to make the turns or park...people park their cars however they fit, whether it is sideways, etc! well goodnight for now! (PS--we did see adam's awesome performance on american idol!) thanks, ray for sending us the earthquake updates...it is difficult to understand the continuous coverage here. we know when there are new quakes, and watch the rescue dogs and crews, but cannot understand most of what they are reporting! good night all!

---