Midway, Utah

There are few things that make me feel as alive as when I'm soaking up the beauty of nature. It's even better when I have my camera with me so I can immortalize it.  While on a little get away with my cute hubby, I took a drive up a canyon in Midway and shot to my little heart's content.  I wish I had more days like this.  Sigh. 

Lake Mary

Every summer I think I'll hike every week with the boys.  Just like in the winter I tell them we'll go sledding ALOT.  Guess how many times we went sledding in the winter?  ZERO.  Well, summer is almost over, but at least we went on one hike so far.  Tuesday we went to Brighton and hiked to Lake Mary (all uphill I might add.)  We did this hike a couple of years ago in the fall, and it was not nearly as beautiful (but I was not nearly so out of breath then.)  Talk about a rejuvenation for my mood.  I adore the outdoors.  In small doses that is.  Enjoy!

I had to take a picture of Ethan going pee because he went a total of 3 times on the hike.  Either he was drinking a lot of water, or loved the novelty of it.  This last picture is my favorite of the whole hike.  Hey sat down together like that, and I was thrilled to catch the moment.  

Burano, Italy

The second morning in Venice we caught a boat out to the islands of Burano and Murano. Burano is famous for it's lace and colorful buildings, and Murano is renowned for it's glass. It was fun hanging out on these islands, although my photographic creativity was running low. Having spent so many days with a 12+ pound camera constantly pulling on your neck can wear a person out. (or maybe I am just a wimp.) These images are from Burano only, because I was too busy shopping for glass jewelry to be bothered to take too many photos on Murano. :)

Ahhh, Venice

Thanks to romantic movies, and Indian Jones' famous "ahhh, Venice" phrase, I had some seriously high expectations for this city. We entered on private speed boat, and it was awesome seeing the buildings rise from the water. Tired, (and admittedly a little cranky) we arrived to our hotel. It was an amazing location, right on the waterfront. After changing, I wandered the streets and tried to feel the charm of the place. It wasn't working. It seemed dirty, crowded, and much more touristy than any other place we'd been. I missed the quaint, impeccably clean villages of the country. After some food and drink, things started looking up, and I fell in love with the reflections and colors of the water...

Day 6 and 7

On day 6 we left the castle and drove to San Gimignano to a nice hotel with more modern conveniences (and wifi). The city was beautiful, and that evening it rained, creating beautiful reflections. The next day we drove into Monteriggioni which was a cool small comune surrounded by some of the strongest walls in Italy. We also visited Volterra before going back to San Gimignano.

Monteriggioni and its overlook

San Gimignano

Volterra

San Gimignano

Next up: Venice

Days 4 and 5

The town we visited after the poppy fields was Montepulciano. Another photographer and I wandered down a street where we met this man just sitting with his dog. He realized we were photographers, and even though he didn't speak any English, he got all excited and started explaining where to find good overlooks and shots. Then opened up a few doors, and showed us the some very cool old furniture dating back 900+ years. He also pointed out the original facade of the buildings, which was amazing to see that the bricks were still holding strong.

(the image on the left is the framework of a drawer in a dresser.)

(this is where I ate a wonderful lunch.)

After lunch we drove to the Sant'Antimo Abbey and looked around. In the evening we had a delicious tuscan dinner at the castle and sat around this awesome fire, sipping wine and chatting. There may or may not be pictures of me zonked out in a chair. Put me by a warm fire, and I fall asleep like a baby. :)

The next day we went to Montalchino. This was probably my least favorite town. Steep, steep streets, and it was much less quaint than the other villages we visited. I did finally find wireless though, which was a first, and enjoyed catching up with my husband. The picture below was taken in a restaurant I ate lunch in.

After lunch we went to a winery where I had my first ever wine tasting. Although I don't know a lot about wines, I did enjoy learning a little bit and tasting the difference between certain varieties. AND I got this cool picture.

Buonconvento

This was a very cool medieval village that we ate breakfast at on two different mornings. I always felt a little awkward barging in on these little pastry/coffee shops with 12 hungry, demanding Americans overtaking the locals. Their eyes would widen, and by the time we left the plates of pastries were pretty much empty, and endless cups and saucers littered the counter. At least they brought in a lot of money that morning I guess.

My favorite pastry was a flaky one filled with this rice mixture, kind of like rice pudding. Sounds weird, but it was so good, without being too sweet. I also fell in love with cappuccinos on this trip.