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It’s here!!!

11 Jul

Our sea shipment of household goods arrived Monday. It was very emotionally rewarding to see our stuff after almost 10 weeks! We had no idea how comforting it would be to see our furniture, rugs, etc. But of course we are once again in chaos as we decide where to put everything. Good thing we “downsized” as much as we did.

It may not look like much, but we already know we brought too much stuff. This is the bedroom with a dresser, nightstands, boxes, and a crappy wardrobe we had removed.

The kitties were so glad to see the furniture! Libby lounged on the couch, they rolled on the carpets, and took turns, reluctantly, in the cat tower. It was clear they felt more at home — as did we — by having familiar things arrive.

Janie in the cat tower.

Tuesday we had IKEA deliver 3 new wardrobes and 3 kitchen base cabinets, all requiring assembly. Today, Wednesday, we had the wardrobes assembled by a crew and we worked on the kitchen. Almost done!

Before and after photos to follow when complete. Don’t hold your breath.

What do I miss and Independence Day, Italian-style

4 Jul

A friend recently asked “Is there anything you really miss here?” (“Here” being the U.S., Portland, or my former office depending on context.) He got me to pondering…. After almost 7 weeks in Rome what do I “miss?” The adventure is still new: so much to explore, to learn, to see. But I do miss

  1. People, of course. I used to see my son every day, now niente, although we did “Skype” recently. Dinners with Voyageur Femmes. The great people at my place-of-work in Portland: devoted, smart, fun, challenging (in a good way). V & B, our best pals, dining out together, exploring Portland, big holidays. “Dates” with Jonnie seeing oddball plays and artsy movies. While our family is spread about the country, certainly picking up the phone to chat is not as likely to happen, if only because the 6 to 9 hour time difference makes it tougher.
  2. Cool Portland June. Sometimes called “June-uary,” this Roman heat makes me long for the days I had to use the fireplace in June in Portland. (July is promising more of the same.)
  3. Familiarity. We get lost in Rome. I never got lost in Portland (at least not after the first year or two). Sometimes we head out and never get to our intended destination. All part of the adventure, but tiring when it is 90 degrees.
  4. A large cup of American coffee once-in-awhile so I can sit with my husband for half-an-hour and chit-chat to start the day. But we’ve replaced that with aperitivi. Not a bad substitute.
  5. My furniture. Should come any day now….
  6. The Oregon Zoo, a big part of our lives or so many years. We will miss ZooLaLa this month for the first time in 10 years!

That’s about it. I love my job, love the people I work with, and the location is amazing. Food to die for, markets to dream about, and don’t get me started on the pork salumi! Good thing we walk several miles a day. I do not miss Starbucks as much as some would conjecture. The coffee here is damn fine, and we have our amazing Nespresso machine at home.

As to Independence Day, we were fêted at the Ambassador’s last night, along with 3000 or so others, including Premier Mario Monti.

The crowd gathers in the garden at Villa Taverna

It was definitely a unique 4th-of-July party in an Italy-meets-America sort of way.

La Porchetta, artfully done and oh-so-delizioso!

The menu ranged from hotdogs and hamburgers to porchetta and parmigiano reggiano.I especially enjoyed the Virginia baked ham, which many Italians eyed with suspicion as if thinking “why would you do that to a prosciutto?” There was watermelon, ice cream, and corn-on-the-cob, but also pizza, pasta, and the most impressive cheese table I have ever eaten my way through laid eyes on. Italian wine flowed along with Miller beer. (If you can lay your hands on a bottle of Brachetto d’Acqui, do it. A fine summer red for aperitivi!)  The National Anthem was sung by one of our Marines, and the musical entertainment was 100% American jazz/swing/pop. The party is a hot ticket for Italians: Efforts to secure an invitation endured until the last moment. Italian guests out-numbered Americans by a huge majority. In fact, Ambassador Thorne gave his speech entirely in Italian. Lest you think the U.S. Government spent taxpayer dollars on this largesse, be assured corporate America and L’Italia delle imprese (Italian business) made the evening possible through sponsorships. Crowning the evening, an impressive fireworks display. Happy #236 America!

Fireworks above the carefully trimmed trees of Villa Taverna.  Bravissimo!

Quite a show in the middle of Rome.

Siamo Arrivati!

20 May
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Libby & Janie enjoy morning coffee at AMS after a restful night outside the carriers at the Hilton.

20 May 2012. We have arrived! The long journey from Portland ended Friday when Ric, JaneGray, Libbyjean, and I landed in Rome. Wednesday’s departure from Portland was on a non-stop to Amsterdam, where we had a layover allowing everyone – especially the kitties – a chance to rest. It was 10 hour flight with cats under the seats in front of us. “Under” is relative. Thanks to a metal box under the seat in front of me (I suspect it was equipment for the in-seat video entertainment system), Libby was not really “under” and I had to straddle her carrier the whole way. Luckily my short legs made it less of a problem. There were a few “Exorcist” moments when the carrier twitched and pitched as Libby stretched and objected to her confinement. Janie was quite vocal, but the engine noise drowned her out. Amazingly, both cats did very well. 13 hours in their Sherpa carriers and no messes; however, there was a line at the catbox when we set it up at the Schipol Hilton.The Hilton had a you-can’t-refuse-it offer for us. No standard Hilton rooms were ready for occupancy (of course it was only 09:30) but for an extra €50 we could have an “executive” level room with free drinks and snacks all day. We didn’t really care about that perk: we needed a room to free the cats and let them go potty! They did have tasty antipasti e aperitivi for us, though.

Thought we’d need two bags checked, two carry-on, plus 2 cats. Not a chance! Checked 8. Funny how a cat under the seat in front of you costs $200, but my laptop in the same location would be free.

The animal transport/export paperwork was a challenge we left to a professional, AirAnimal. They did a great job of making sure our documents were in order and in our hands on time. The EU has reasonable requirements, but things have to be done in a certain order, a specified time in advance of travel, documented, and signed off by the USDA no more than ten days prior to flight. AirAnimal gave us 3 sets of documents, and ironically the only place the documents were inspected was by Delta in Portland. When we arrived in The Netherlands, we passed through Passport Control with not a glance at the kitties. Delta also checked our entire luggage through to Rome, so we did not have to claim it at AMS, thus we had nothing to declare at Customs. We simply walked out of the terminal and over to the Hilton with cats in tow, a backpack with our laptops and a backpack full of cat supplies. Arriving in Rome the next day, no passport control, no customs as we were already in the EU. No one in Europe ever looked at the cat paperwork. Considering 3 vet visits and AirAnimal’s fee together amounted to almost as much as one airline ticket for a human, it seemed extraordinary no one wanted to make sure our kids were properly documented!Delta having checked our luggage through to Rome thwarted our plans to have a change of clothes in Amsterdam. We spruced up as best we could with minimal toiletries and headed into town to buy shirts and underthings. We thought Portland was a bicycle-centric town, but Portland has nothing on Amsterdam. There are even traffic signals for cyclists, and the cyclists obey them.

Portland, your bicycling lifestyle pales by comparison to Amsterdam. Of course, it’s flat in The Netherlands….

On the Friday flight to FCO, Libby managed to score an upgrade to Business Class. It seems there is a restriction on the number of pets per cabin: only one allowed in Coach and one in Business Class. In fact, KLM gave Ric and I a row of three seats, leaving the center seat unassigned “for the cats” according to the agent. When the flight attendant moved Libby and me, I asked her why. Seems KLM is concerned about the safety of the pet in the event oxygen masks are needed and for “security.” She was vague on “security” but adamant that the cats would have a mask available should that be necessary. The move didn’t change Libby’s flight much, but I got a nice breakfast out of it. And Libby actually fit under the seat on this flight.So we are here! We are having “pinch me” moments when we turn to one another and say “Hey, we live in Rome!” then laugh! More later on starting our life in Rome.

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