Italy Through Leah's Eyes

Italy Through Leah's eyes and her crazy "Roma" hat

Because of my addiction to Italy, I have had several chances to visit this beautiful country, but this trip would be extra special because I was taking Leah with me. Would it likely be a culinary and superb wine experience? No. But I was so anxious to see if Leah would fall in love with this country as I have. And so we set off on a 10-day trip that took us through Italy and Germany with my church choir. Leah was the only "kid" that went, but she was a blessing to all of us as she has been to me for close to 12 years now.

Colosseum in Roma

We took literally hundreds of photos, so I've chosen those things that Leah told me at the end of the trip were her "favorites". She had studied the Colosseum in Rome in Social Studies earlier in the year and was anxious to see it for real. I think the size of it amazed her.

Dead Popes?

OK, there was one thing I had to include that she DIDN'T like - dead Popes really creeped her out! This is inside St. Peter's in Rome.

Fanta Fanatic

Now we move on to the food category. My favorite meal was an evening where I "ditched" the group meal in Florence and had a lovely plate of pasta with lobster and skipped dessert for my favorite liquid refreshment - limon cello. This however followed a group dinner the night before where we had meatballs and french fries. I'll just let you guess what meal was Leah's favorite.

The Fanta phenomenon was interesting though. As you can see in the picture, it was more yellow than our orange version in the states, and more fizzy and light. Imagine an orange-flavored Pellegrino and that's what it tasted like. She couldn't get enough of it and it followed us everywhere we went (and was often more expensive than my glass of local house wine!).

Gelato!

And of course, no trip to Italy would be complete without gelato. I told her we'd try to have some everyday, but we didn't quite pull it off. This was perhaps the most elaborate and the same night I enjoyed my lobster.

Fruit Bowl?

So, when you are dining for lunch in Greve in Chianti and order a fruit bowl, this is what comes out (and we'd already eaten some of it when I took this picture). Leah and I quickly discovered we needed to split food, so I grew very fond of fruit, pizza and spaghetti.

Leah's Friend Tom

Our tour guide Tom was great with Leah and even offered to swap hats in St. Mark's square. Leah really enjoyed all of our impromptu parties and hung with the adults like a trooper.

But the all-time favorite?

So, on the plane home when I was asking Leah about her favorite things, I asked her who her favorite "person" was. Allyson wins by a landslide, and I'm guessing the fact that she has little ones was something Leah recognized right away. Everyone in my choir was so gracious to Leah and I really love them all for how they welcomed her on the trip.

Now, let's talk water

Out of all of the things Leah mentioned as her favorite, there was one common theme - water. My little fish loved it everywhere we went. Here we are on our gondola ride in Venice.

Brrrrr!

Leah insisted on trying out the pool at our Lake Garda hotel despite the fact that it wasn't heated. How can a 12-year-old pass up a pool after all? Let's just say it was a short swim followed by a long and very hot shower!

Time to relax and kick back

Before we left Italy and headed to Germany, we had a wonderful day on Lake Garda. A leisurely lunch, a little shopping, gelato and we finished it with a boat ride. I told Leah this is how I like to experience Italy - at a slow pace, away from the crowds, and in the small communities where you really learn more about the Italian culture. I think she's convinced and ready to come back! It is definitely a trip we will both remember for a long time.