Vita in Vicenza

Susan and Steve visit in 2013!! Italy & France!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Thu, 20 Feb 2014 19:52:00 +0000

After Taylor came back from Afghanistan in March he had block leave in April. Taylor's parents, Steve and Susan, flew in to visit for a week and a half. We had a good ole time running around Italy and France.

Our town of Vicenza.

Venice

Our first stop was Venice.

Bridge of Sighs

Saint Mark's Basilica

Burano

We visited the island of Burano which is known for their lace and brightly colored buildings.

Gnocchi Festival

One afternoon we ventured to a nearby town for a Sagra del Gnocco, or gnocchi festival.

It starts back here…baskets of potatoes waiting to be boiled. A few trusty Italian men are watching over the boiling pots.

The potatoes are then pealed and mashed.

Flour, egg yolks, salt, and olive oil are added and then they roll it out into long rolls.

They cut it into big chunks and then throw them down the line.

Then they roll those pieces into long gnocchi logs like you used to do with playdough when you were a kid.

Then they cut them into little gnocchi pieces.

They toss them into boiling water and it only takes about 30 seconds for them to float to the top.

Bowls of fresh gnocchi. Yum!

Asiago

We spent the day in the mountains in the little town of Asiago.

Steven found his vin brule that he had when they were here 2 Christmases ago!

The cherry blossom trees were in full bloom while they were here so we stopped by to take some photos.

The French Riviera

Eze Village

After a few days in Italy, we headed to the French Riviera. Our first stop was a small town called Eze Village. It is a medieval village built up on a peak overlooking the Meditteranean Sea.

Typical...

We found some interesting post cards of the town with a cat in a hammock?? Not quite sure what this means??

Villefranche-sur-Mer

We spent our second day in what use to be on old fishing village, Villefranche-sur-Mer.

They had a fortress overlooking the town that had some interesting art exhibits.

This is how Taylor and I keep ourselves entertained at many art exhibits…act like children.

We even got Steve and Susan in on our shenanigans.

Mougins

We stayed in this little town called Mougins. It was the cutest little French village!!

A man bringing boxes of produce down the street.

Cap-Ferrat Peninsula

St. Jean-Cap-Ferrat Village

We went for a walk around the peninsula...

There were lots of mansions along the way.

Antibes

Oh look, Taylor found a giant green onion!! HA!

A few weeks before Taylor had come back from the grocery store so excited about how he made a great find in the produce section. I hated to break the news that what he had thought was a giant green onion...was really a leek.

A hike around Cap d'Antibes.

Dipping our feeties into the cold water.

Nice

Pondering art at the Marc Chagall Museum.

French markets

Oh look…a rug with Taylor's name on it!! :)

Monaco

Monaco is a principality governed by Prince Albert. It is bordered by France and the Mediterranean Sea. We made a short stop here on our way back to Italy.

The Prince's Palace

World famous casino: the Monte Carlo

Pictures of the French Riviera Coastline.

We had a great time running around Italy and France with Steve and Susan! Next stop…Israel!

Taylor's Homecoming

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Sun, 24 Nov 2013 17:57:00 +0000

Homecoming…oh how the meaning of this word has changed for me. Five years ago homecoming was a football game once a school year where the girls wore giant mums and the boys wore ridiculous garters. Now when I hear the word 'homecoming' I think of soldiers returning home from war to their families. I love love love Homecomings!! In March Taylor came back from a nine month deployment in Afghanistan.

I had 2 great friends capturing the excitement with a camera and video camera.

A big thanks to Lynnsi and Renu!

My friend Tara and I.

Heidi! Her husband, Colin, just came home a few days before.

My friend Katie and her son Carson getting ready to see Alex!

Me, Anna, Katlin, Katie, and Heidi

These ladies helped me make it through this deployment!

This is the little American flag that I waved during Taylor's Homecoming from Iraq in 2009.

Kaitlin and Anna patiently waiting!!

They are getting ready to enter the gym...

Here they come!!!

Where's Taylor?

There he is!!

Wohoo!!

Trying to get his attention...

"Taylor, where are you!!!"

He found me!!

Finally!!!!

Who knows what I am telling him here...

Katie, Alex, and Carson reunited!

James and Anna

Kaitlin and Mason

It was so great to have everyone back home!! Although, I will always remember and honor those that did not get to come back home that day.

PFC Adam Ross

July 24, 2012

Army Pfc. Adam C. Ross, 19, of Lyman, S.C., died July 24, in Jaghato, Wardak province, Afghanistan, of wounds caused by small-arms fire. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy.

SPC James Justice

August 17, 2012

Army Spc. James A. Justice, 21, of Grover, N.C.; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy; died Aug. 17 at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany, from injuries suffered Aug. 14 that were caused by small-arms fire in Wardak province, Afghanistan.

SFC Daniel Metcalfe

September 29, 2012

Army Sgt. 1st Class Daniel T. Metcalfe, 29, of Liverpool, N.Y.; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy; died Sep. 29 in Sayyid Abad, Afghanistan, of injuries caused by small-arms fire.

Mr. Kevin O'Rourke

September 29, 2012

Retired New York City police sergeant Mr. Kevin O'Rourke, 52, while working as a civilian contractor in Afghanistan, was killed during an apparent insider attack by members of the Afghan military, Sept. 29, 2012. O'Rourke was an officer for 20 years and missed being in the World Trade Center by 20 minutes on September 11, 2001.

Emily and Joseph Visit Italia! March 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Sun, 24 Nov 2013 17:35:00 +0000

Taylor's sister Emily and her husband Joseph came to visit at the beginning of March. We had a great time! They were so much fun to travel with! We went to Verona, Venice, Burano, Murano, Soave, and Milan together. They also went off and saw Rome and Florence. Lots of traveling!!

Venice

We spent 2 days in Venice!!! I've gotta give credit to Emily for taking all of these pictures!

Bridge of Sighs

There were lots of gondoliers that day.

Saint Mark's Square

Around town…

Venice at night.

Saint Mark's Basilica

Rialto Bridge

We spent another day touring the islands of Venice.

Burano

Burano…the island of brightly colored buildings and lace.

Fur coats set out to dry.

Watching a girl work on stitching lace.

Joseph using his glasses as a magnifying glass to see the tiny little stitches.

Murano

Murano…the little island known for their glass making.

San Michele

San Michele- the little cemetery island.

The famous Igor Stravinsky's grave.

Le Pignole Winery

Dinner and wine tasting at a local winery called Le Pignole.

Joseph ordering some vino.

Bonamini Olive Oil Mill

An olive oil mill tour and tasting at Bonamini.

Joseph and Emily amongst all the olive trees.

Warming the olive oil in our hands.

Taking shots of olive oil…only in Italy!

Soave

A short stop at Suave castle for some funny pictures.

Verona

Day trip to Verona.

The third largest Roman Arena is here in Verona dating back from the first century A.D.

Gelato stop!

Milan

Milan in a nutshell...the international fashion capital with a cool church and the famous Last Supper.

Milan's Duomo, or Cathedral, is the 4th largest church in Europe. It was built from 1386-1810 to hold 40,000 worshipers…which at the time happened to be the entire population of Milan.

Joseph ventured up to the top of the Duomo and got some great pictures.

Piazza del Duomo

Galleria Vittorio Emanuele

Inside the galleria there is a patriotic mosaic in the floor. One of the pictures is of a torino, or little bull, which is the city's symbol. For good luck, you can spin on the bull's testicles.

The mosaic has to be replaced every few years because of this tradition.

Emily and Joseph in Piazza della Scala.

We went to see Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper, but of course could not take pictures of it. I always envisioned it as a painting, but it is a fresco on the wall of an old church. It was pretty cool.

I don't even remember why we were taking these, but they make me laugh.

I remember now!! We were both wearing argyle patterned sweaters!!

My Tour guide website

While traveling together, Joseph and Emily decided that I should start my own tour guide business. Emily took some pictures of me around Venice to use on my website.

Welcome to Lindsey's Tour guide website, Driver's Way.

You should choose her because...

She always know where the water fountains are so you can refill your water bottles and stay hydrated for free.

She always has a stick of gum for anyone who needs one.

She will protect you from the rose sellers and other peddlers that harass you in high tourist areas.

She is willing to get to any heights so that the group can see and hear her.

She is very charismatic about the information she shares.

She knows where all of the best gelato stops are.

We had such a fun time traveling together and hope they can make another trip here before we leave!

Christmas 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Wed, 13 Nov 2013 17:17:00 +0000

After leaving New Zealand I went back to Texas to spend Christmas with the family.

Good times Christmas caroling on Christmas Eve with our crazy hats.

Parker and his soon to be wife, Stacee.

Christmas morning...

Luckily, I got back to Vicenza before they took down the Christmas lights down town.

Trip to Wellington

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Wed, 13 Nov 2013 17:07:00 +0000

About half way through our internship we had the opportunity to travel to Wellington to visit another church. Road trip!!!

We rented some awesome child molester vans.

On the way there, we stopped in Taupo and went bungy jumping!!! In 1988 AJ Hackett Bungy pioneered this crazy thing in Queenstown, New Zealand. I had no plans to bungy jump before going to NZ. In fact, my dad asked me if I was planning to since NZ is known for it bungy jumping, and I was like, "Nah…I've been sky diving before, it can't be much different."

And about 2 and a half months later, there I was on the top of a 47 meter platform overlooking the Waikato River.

There were 6 of us that jumped that day.

David was really excited.

Gabe looks fearless.

Allee and Liz are just trying to stay warm.

It was freezing and we couldn't wear any big jackets.

Here are the witnesses/picture takers/videographers freezing their butts off for us!

There goes Allee...

Liz

There goes Tim…

He got dunked in the water on his jump.

Gabe

David

I was the last one!

Scenery on the way.

Wellington is the capital of New Zealand is on the bottom tip of the north island. It definitely has a big city feel.

Liz, Judith and I spent several hours in the Te Papa museum. It was one of the best museums I have been to and it was free!

3-D movie

Liz freaking out at the largest complete Colossal squid in the world!

Can you tell who's music video we were imitating?

Aotearoa is the Maori name for New Zealand. This quote makes me laugh for some reason.

We saw the coolest rainbow on the way home. It's colors were so bright!

Coromandel and Hot Water Beach

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Wed, 13 Nov 2013 17:00:00 +0000

One weekend we all took a trip to the Hot Water Beach and Coromandel. It was a great day!!

The Hot Water Beach has hot springs underneath and the water comes up through the sand. When the tide is low, you can dig holes, the water will come up through the sand, and you have made yourself a hot tub!

We put David and Tim in charge of digging our hole/hot tub.

Here is Gabe crashing someone else's hole.

They actually invited us to sit in their hole.

Julia, Tim, David, and Wendy

You could feel the hot water by just sticking your feet under the sand a few inches. It hurt.

Watching the water boil on the sand.

The waves were pretty nice here as well...

Coromandel Beach is where Cathedral Cove is located. I have to say it is the most beautiful sandy beach I have ever been to. It was in the movie 'The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.'

Here is the beach from a distance. We had to hike to get there.

Rotorua, New Zealand

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Tue, 12 Nov 2013 19:55:00 +0000

One weekend several of us decided to take a day trip to Rotorua. Rotorua is known for its geothermal energy and you can smell it from miles away!

Here is one of the hot thermal springs.

They had a little pool that we could soak our feet in. The minerals in the water are supposed to be good for your skin.

That is Judith in the middle. She is a missionary at THOP and is from Germany.

Jenny and I visited this Maori Village. The Maori are the indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand. This village is unique because its sits on hot thermal pools and boiling mud pits. They use the energy to cook, heat, and bathe.

This house had to be evacuated because the steam was causing the floors and walls to rot.

There are other houses in the community that are not directly on top of thermal pools.

The entire community cooks their food in these steam ovens. One of the ladies that works in the little restaurant is putting the meat in now.

The corn on the cob is being boiled in one of the thermal springs inside a fabric web.

This is where the entire community takes their baths before 8 AM and after 5 PM.

The Marae

We got to watch the Poi dances and got our picture taken with two of the dancers.

The Haka is a war dance. It involves the stomping of feet, shouting, facial contortions and sticking out their tongue.

Afterwards we drove to Kerosene Creek which is a river that has natural hot springs underneath it. So basically it is like being in a river hot tub!

Afterwards we visited a Redwood forest. I have never seen a Redwood before so it was kind of exciting!

The most humongous pig I've ever seen on the side of the road, and I grew up on a pig farm so I've seen a lot of piggies!!

McLaren Falls, New Zealand

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Tue, 12 Nov 2013 19:02:00 +0000

I was lucky enough to visit McClaren falls three times! Once was at night to see the glow worms. This place was only about a 20 minute drive from our house.

Elise was Jenny's friend who came to stay with us for a few days.

Weekends in Tauranga

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Mon, 19 Aug 2013 19:34:00 +0000

Our schedule during the week was pretty busy, but we had the weekends free. There was so much to do around Tauranga. Here are some of our weekend adventures!

The beach and Mount Monganui were about 20 minutes away from the house and we spent a lot of time there.

Not too bad of a beach ehh?

These are pictures from the top of Mount Monganui which overlooks the beach. There were several trails that you could take up to the top. It was definitely a good work out!

One weekend a friend brought wet suits and surf boards so that we could surf…or attempt it anyway.

Practicing our moves in the sand because that is what good surfers do.

Wendy got some great action shots of the boys doing their "tricks." Surprisingly, there were no broken bones.

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The first weekend we were there, Nathan, one of the staff members took us out to Gideon's Waterfall. YWAM has a base out here. It was really nice.

Gabe was brave enough to get in the cold water.

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Emmanuel and Mary Joy live in New Zealand permanently and took us to this river where we could do some cliff jumping.

Emmanuel

Tim

David

Nathan

Mary Joy

Hannah

Julia

David doing a back flip…craziness!

Tim, Emmanuel, Hannah, Mary Joy, David, Me, Julia

The boys being ridiculous.

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One weekend several of us went hiking in the Papamoa Hills.

There were lots of sheep along the way.

That is Mount Monganui in the background.

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Kaikate Falls was my favorite place to cliff jump. It was a beautiful hike and an amazing waterfall.

Tim

Julia

Tim jumping through the middle of the waterfall.

Nathan

Mount Monganui in the background.

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Kiwis (people from New Zealand) do not celebrate Thanksgiving, but we had enough Americans and a few others who wanted to celebrate with us to get together and have a big Thanksgiving dinner.

Thanksgiving in NZ looks a lot like it does in the states…

Lots of food...

Naps...

and friends and family...

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There were 4 students that came from International House of Prayer University that were on the intern staff. They left about a week or so before we did, so they had a big going away BBQ for them. The community here is made up of people involved in YWAM (Youth with a Mission), THOP, and Hope Centre which is a local church. It is a small, close knit, amazing community.

Of course we had some great games of volleyball going on.

The boys played some tackle football and I got some good action shots.

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Thomas and Lizzy met here in NZ through YWAM and we all had the privilege of getting to know them and attend their wedding ceremony. It was beautiful!

Thomas is from Houston, Texas. What are the odds that I would attend a fellow Texan's wedding in New Zealand??

My roomies!

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While we were there Tim celebrated his 21st birthday. We had lots of ice cream, pumpkin pie, and tons of hilarious pictures.

Tauranga House of Prayer Internship

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Mon, 19 Aug 2013 19:26:00 +0000

I began a 3 month Internship with THOP (Tauranga House of Prayer) on October 1st, 2012. How in the world did I end up here in New Zealand for 3 months you might ask?? Great question. Well, it began when we lived in Fort Benning, Georgia and I was volunteering at the Cafe in the church we were attending. The manager of the Cafe was Keri and she had been a missionary in New Zealand and had worked with YWAM and the House of Prayer. I overheard her talking to one of the ladies that I volunteered with about an Internship that her son was thinking about doing with the House of Prayer. For some reason it resonated with me. Anyway, we left Georgia and headed to Vicenza, Italy where teaching jobs are few and far between. We found out that Taylor would be deploying in the summer of 2012 for 9 months and I got to thinking... what the heck am I going to do for 9 months with no husband and no full time job!!?? For some reason, this internship came to mind and I did a little research. They had one that started in October and ended towards the end of December. Perfect!! After talking to Taylor about it and doing some praying, I decided that I was going to do it. Little did I know how life changing it would be.

Let me back up a little bit. I grew up in a Christian home with great parents. I officially made the decision to ask Jesus into my heart at church camp one year in 5th or 6th grade. Fast forward lots of years and I am in Vicenza, Italy at a Bible Study called Crazy Love by Francis Chan. So began my realization that my life was in fact fake and empty. The chapter titled "Luke Warm Christian" could have been written about me. There was no hiding the ugly truth…I was honoring God with my lips, but my heart was far from Him. Now I'm a little bit of a perfectionist and if something is wrong I want to quickly fix it. So, I immediately started doing the only thing I knew to do to fix my relationship with Jesus…seek God. I started reading my Bible and praying more regularly. I was bound and determined to cultivate a real life relationship with God. Although I was spending more time with God, I still felt like something was missing. Hence one of the reasons I wanted to do this Internship. Never before and probably never again in my life will I be able to set aside 3 months away from family and 'things that have to be done' and just focus on seeking the Lord.

So, this is the town of Tauranga where I spent 3 months of my life. Not too shabby.

There were 9 interns in all, 8 girls and 1 boy. There were 9 people that were on intern staff. We lived in a large house with a total of 14 people in all. 4 rooms, 2 bathrooms, 14 people, 3 months. Whew! I went from living by myself for 3 months to having 13 other house mates. It was definitely an adjustment, but I had great room mates! This picture is from graduation.

These were my room mates: Hannah from Georgia & Julia from Minnesota. Love them!

During the 3 months I was here God turned my world upside down. He took my heart of stone and gave me a heart of flesh. He showed me who He was (and not who I made Him up to be) and showed me who I was in Christ (and not who I thought I was). I knew in my head that God loved me, but for the first time I realized it in my heart. He opened the eyes of my heart to where I felt like I was hearing scripture and Biblical principals for the first time. Even now I am so overwhelmed by his mercy and love during that period in my life that sometimes all I can do is weep in humble gratitude when I think of it.

I do not think that you have to travel across the world and do some internship to hear God and have your life changed. All you have to do is seek His face. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. For me at this particular time in my life, drawing near involved leaving my life in Italy and giving 3 months to focus on my relationship with God and surround myself with people who were doing the same thing. And now, even back in the "normalcy" of my daily life I am committed to drawing nearer. Now that I have tasted and seen that the Lord is good, there is no turning back.

Northern NZ : Auckland

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Mon, 12 Aug 2013 16:56:00 +0000

After my adventures in the South island I flew from Queenstown to Auckland to visit Taylor's Aunt Lara and niece, Bella.

These are some pics from the plane ride.

Taylor's mom, Susan, had a brother named Jim and he was married to Lara. They have a daughter named Bella. I never got to meet Jim because he died of colon cancer before I became part of the family. Lara is from New Zealand and returned back to her country a year or two after Jim passed away. She was so gracious to let me stay in her home and show me around the area. I very much enjoyed my time with her and Bella just outside of Auckland.

"Pictured" below from left to right: Bella, me, Lara, Doug (her boyfriend), and Ursi (his daughter).

They took me to Piha beach which is on the Tasman Sea. It is known for its black sand, which is due to high iron content.

Bella

Ursi and Bella with black sandy feet!!

I was amazed at all of the plants and flowers in Lara's yard. Her backyard is literally a rain forest!!

Yes, those are Calla Lilies.

Bella and a picture of her Dad when he was around the same age as her. They look so much alike!

This is a video of Bella giving a speech she wrote in school. Sorry it is side ways...

That night Lara made an amazing fish. It was soooo good!!

From Auckland I headed to Tauranga for the next 3 months...

New Zealand, Sept. 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Mon, 05 Aug 2013 18:50:00 +0000

I flew to New Zealand a week before my Internship began (I'll tell you more about this later) to travel around a bit. I decided to see what the southern island was all about since I would be staying in the northern island for the duration of the Internship. I travelled with a company called Magic Bus which has different set itineraries with buses coming through the towns every day or 2 and you can can hop off and on as you like. We started in Nelson and made our way south to Queenstown.

Before I came to New Zealand I would say that Switzerland was the most beautiful country I had been to. I was wrong. New Zealand is THE MOST. BEAUTIFUL. COUNTY. EVER! No other country (that I have been to) compares. The people are friendly, the weather is warm, the beaches are beautiful and there is even snow skiing in the south. The only down side is that it very expensive!

Here are several pics of the country.

I took this out of the bus window. There was not a lick of wind this day.

It was very rainy and overcast many of the days I was there.

All those white dots in the distance are sheep.

New Zealand has 2800 deer farms with about 1.1 million deer. That is a lot of Bambi's running around! The deer were brought in from England for sport, but they rapidly multiplied and then became pests. Eventually they started capturing and exporting them.

People say that sheep outnumber people in New Zealand 20 to 1.

There were tons of waterfalls along the road.

Wild seals!!!

One day I did a half day hike on Fox Glacier. Fox is a 13 km glacier on the west coast of NZ that terminates in a rain forest. This was the view of the valley we drove up to get to the glacier.

They outfitted us in a rain suit, toboggans, gloves, hiking boots, and clamp-ons for the bottom of our boots.

Our guide was from Australia. He is chiseling out some steps for us here.

Hiking through the crevices.

This was a pretty cool experience. I had never hiked on ice before!

This is Wanaka, NZ. Unfortunately I didn't get to spend but about a hour here because I decided to head on down to Queenstown so I had time to see the Milford Sound.

The bus ride from Wanaka to Queenstown had some amazing views!! And these were out the window of the bus!

The Kea is one of the 10 endemic parrot species in New Zealand.

We couldn't stop along the way to Milford Sound because of Avalanche danger…yikes!!

You can see through the bus window where the snow had "avalanched" down and across the road.

Milford Sound is a fjord in the southern island of New Zealand and has been deemed one of the world's top travel destinations.

Mitre Peak

Seals sunning on the rock.

The most amazing waterfalls ever...

I finished the trip off with an Afghan biscuit which is a chocolate cookie topped with chocolate icing and a walnut.

One of my favorite towns, Queenstown.

This was my first time to travel alone. It was a pretty good experience overall. I met some girls from Germany that I roomed with in the hostels and usually ate with a girl from Wales, a guy from Great Britain, and another from Spain. Everyone on our bus was around my age or older which was nice. I would have preferred to have my favorite traveling buddy with me, my husband, but I guess I will have to return to this country with him some day!!

Budapest, Hungary Sept 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Sun, 21 Jul 2013 18:49:00 +0000

When the boys are away the girls will…go to Budapest!!! Anna, Kaitlin, Katie, Baby Carson, and I headed to Budapest, Hungary for a girl's trip!

Carson was such a trooper! We pushed him all around Budapest and he did great!

Matthias Church was originally built in 1015.

Walking through the streets of Budapest.

We visited the House of Terror which had exhibits about the nation's relationship with Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union in regards to Communism and Fascism. It was very interesting.

The Szechenyi Baths is one of the largest public baths in Europe. This may gross some of you out…but it was pretty clean…and we didn't dunk our heads under.

The Medicinal baths were built in 1913.

Carson had a blast!

I am proud to say that I taught him how to high five on this trip.

Heroe's Square

Budapest has a great market where you will find things like…

Paprika

Nesting dolls

Hand etched eggs

Lace

Langos is Hungarian fast food and is a kind of fry bread with our cream and shredded cheese on top. Yum.

This sign was outside of an ice cream shop. No cows, no brooms, and no ice cubes???? Hmmmm….. Actually it was lactose free…hence the cow, gluten free…hence the wheat, and sugar free…hence the sugar cubes!! Duh.

They say that Budapest is the best at night and I would have to agree.

Getting on and off the subway with a stroller was always fun and eventful…

So... it took us a few times to master getting the stroller on the high speed, mile long, intimidating Budapest escalators. Our first experience we were very unorganized, not communicating and it was a disaster. Kaitlin, Anna, and I all seemed to get on the escalator without Katie and Carson. We rode it aaaaaaaall the way to the top and while we were heading back down on the other side to come to Katie's rescue (since we had just abandoned her) we find her on the escalator with some stranger!!! Actually, he was a really nice guy from Texas (of course) who helped her out.

By this time we had it down.

We thought this would go well with the Bootyfest theme of our trip. Don't worry…it is all a joke!

We stayed in this apartment near down town and it was requested that we wear house shoes on the carpet. We felt like we were at a Spa…with no service though.

One night the hot water went out. 4 girls and a baby without hot water…you know that ain't good!! Of course the switch was in the tallest cabinet in the skinniest hallway that was stacked full of old shoes. Luckily Katie is not afraid of heights, or old used stinky shoes.

Down time in the evenings were fun!

Good times in Budapest!

Marostica Partita a Scacchi

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Fri, 19 Jul 2013 16:47:00 +0000

Every other year in September in a small town near here, called Marostica, they have a musical and dancing production played out in a game of chess. It started in WWI when members of the local chess club played a game of chess with real people as the game pieces. After WWII, the comedy writer, Vucetich Mirko wrote a play incorportating this live chess game. The play today involves lots of music, dancing, fire works and fun! A big group of us girls went out to see what this chess game was all about…

Campmeeting 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Thu, 18 Jul 2013 05:57:00 +0000

I flew home with my mother at the end of July so that I could go to Bloys Campmeeting. It was started in 1890 by Rev. W.B. Bloys. He had "church" out in a field for all of the surrounding ranchers and farmers in the area. Out of those that attend today many are the 4th and 5th generations of those that first attended Bloys. My Great Grandmother began attending as a nurse to one of the preacher's wives. She continued attending and took my Papa and his siblings. My Papa took my mom and her siblings, and now every year our cabin is full of my aunts and uncles and me and my siblings and cousins. I have been every year of my life…seriously…I have not missed one year since I was born. It is such a special place and time of the year for our family. We have friends here that we only see once a year, but have seen most every year of our life. It is a time to get away from the "real" world, spend time growing in the Lord, hang out with family and friends, hike, and eat lots of good camp food!

Here are some highlight pics from the week...

Hanging around the cabin and cook shed...

Hiking Devil's Bathtubs

Hiking up to the the Cross and then on to the top

They had this scroll of handprints in the museum and Whitney and Brandon found their little bitty hand prints when they were in the Mabel Bloys class.

Fun times at Balmorhea!

Our made-up competition of diving for rocks.

Taylor was in Afghanistan while all this was happening and his birthday was coming up and I wanted to get a video of my family singing Happy Birthday to send to him. Most of you know my family is a little crazy, especially when you get us all together. I can't help but laugh out loud at these videos.

This first video was filmed on accident and is the preparation of the singing. Can you tell we have spent an entire week together in one cabin!??

Birthday Song #1

Birthday Song #2

Salzburg, Austria

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Sat, 29 Jun 2013 19:53:00 +0000

After Vienna and Mauthausen, we headed for Salzburg.

I love Salzburg! It is one of my favorite European towns! In 1965 the film The Sound of Music, about Maria von Trapp and her singing family became a hit! It was filmed here in Salzburg! Also, Mozart was born and spent part of his life here. It has so many good things going for it!!

Mary Kathryn and Anna with Salzburg and the Salzach River in the background.

The name of the river is derived from the word Salz, which means salt. The transport of salt down this river was an important part of the local economy.

Mozart's Birthplace

Salzburg Cathedral

That morning we toured the town and went for a climb up to the castle.

Austrian ice cream does not equal the goodness of Italian gelato!!!

Hike around the Castle

Views from the top.

Fraulein Maria's view from the top.

A stop for pretzels!

That afternoon we went for a Fraulein Maria bicycle tour. It was so much fun and we got to see so many Sound of Music sites!!

Here we are with our bikes!!

Anna had Friedrich...

I had Marta...

Mary Kathryn had not been on a bike for awhile and was a little shaky.

Mirabell Palace and Gardens

This is where Maria and the children sing Do-Re-Mi.

The Pegasus Fountain that they sang and danced around.

Singing under the arch.

We did a little of our own singing…
(sorry it is sideways)

The Dwarf Gnome Park

Fraulein Maria twirling in the fields...

Us twirling in the field...

This isn't the same cemetery the movie was filmed in, but it was the inspiration for the set built in the movie.

The Horse Pond in Herbert von Karajan Square is where Maria and the children ran by while singing My Favorite Things.

This was an old riding school, now open air theatre, where the Von Trapp sang before they fled the Nazis.

This was the building in the movie that had the huge Nazis flag hanging from it…needless to say the people in Salzburg were not happy about it.

Maria skips through this square singing I have Confidence and playfully splashes the water in the fountain.

Here is our reenactment…

The Nonnberg Abbey, which is where Maria stayed was built in 714 by St. Rupert and is the oldest abbey in the world!

Here is our best nun-like pose.

The front of Frohnberg Palace which was the front of the house in the film.

This was the back of the house, which is an entirely different mansion.

This is where Maria and the children fell off of the canoe.

The Gazebo is not in it's original location…it had to be moved after crazy movie fans illegally trespassed onto private property to get pictures of the gazebo.

And yes, we would have been those crazy trespassing moving fans…

The bike ride back...

We ended our day with a Sound of Music Musical…of course!!

On a serious note...

When I think of Salzburg, I will always think of Adam Ross. Anna and I learned of his death while we were in Salzburg. PFC Adam Ross was killed in the Wardak Providence of Afghanistan on July 24, 2012. He was in 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team of Vicenza, Italy.

Mauthausen Concentration Camp

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 18:12:00 +0000

On our way form Vienna to Salzburg, we stopped at the Mauthausen Concentration Camp. It was built in 1938 to supply slave labor for the Wiener Graben stone quarry.

Some slaves hacked into the stone and others hauled the 110 pound pieces up the 186 steps.

The hospital where many awful medical experiments took place.

Wailing Wall with commemorative plaques.

The camp was taken over by the 41st Reconnaissance Squadron from the U.S. 11th Armored Division, but by that time it had been evacuated.

Over 200,000 prisoner were incarcerated in the Mauthausen complex. Only about 80,000 survivors.

We must never forget what happened here and in Concentration Camps all over Europe. I pray that there will never be another time in history like this again. God have mercy on us.

Vienna, Austria

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 17:00:00 +0000

After my dad left, my mom and I recovered for a few days and then headed out on a road trip to Austria with my friend Anna Simpson and her sister, Mary Kathryn. We had a blast!!

Our first stop was Vienna, which is the capital city of Austria.

This was a cool market that has been around since the 16th century. There were tons of produce, spices, clothing, and little restaurants.

Some Art Noveau buildings nearby...

Karlskirche or St. Charles' Church

One year after the plague, the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles VI, pledged to build a church in honor of Saint Charles who was revered as a healer of people who suffered from the plague.

Belvedere Palace

Built by Prince Eugene of Savoy in the early 1700s. It now houses an art museum.

The gardens were definitely the best part.

Lunch at Schubel-auer Heuriger. A heuriger is an old wine tavern.

It was a fun stop, but the wine was way more expensive than the wine here in Italy!!

Our second day in Vienna it rained like crazy. So of course, I sported the giant red poncho!!

Vienna's famous Opera House.

Even though it was raining, we still had to get good pictures!

Turtle Shell rain jacket

Providentia Fountain

Karntner Stase was once an important trading route and now is a famous shopping street.

Sachertorte is a special type of chocolate cake created by Franz Sacher. It is 2 layers of chocolate cake with apricot jam in the middle and coated with dark chocolate icing. I have had a lot of chocolate cake in my life time and this was not very good. Too dry.

Hofburg Palace

The Hofburg palace was the home of the Hapsburg dynasty and now the residence of the current President of Austria. We were able to see the apartments of Franz Joseph and Eliabeth aka Sisi, a museum all about Sisi's life, and an impressive silver collection.

Mozart spent the final 10 years of his life in Vienna. He was married in St. Stephen's Cathedral and most of his children were baptized there as well.

St. Peter's Chruch

St. Peter's church which is on the the spot of the oldest church in Vienna, dating back to the Middle Ages.

We took a nice break for some beer and rattlers.

St. Stephen's Cathedral

St. Stephen's Cathedral stands in the ruins of 2 earlier churches, the first built in 1147. There was severe fire damage done to this church during WWII.

Tomb of the Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick III.

Ostmark was Austria's name when it was part of Nazi Germany. The sign of the Austrian resistance to Nazi rule was O5. The 5 stand for the fifth letter in the alphabet- E and OE is the abbreviation for Osterreich, therefore not "Ostmark" anymore. This is still on the side of the church today.

Unique tile roof.

This night we ate at a Beer Garden and laughed so hard we almost peed our pants.

First, the waiter, who clearly knows we are Americans, brings us a menu in all German. We were completely lost!!

We do get a kick out of the Kid's Menu which has dishes called Teletubbies, Darth Wader, and Pokemon.

After being teased by the waiter, Anna killing a fly with her bare hand, and odd looks from other guests we finished the meal with apple strudel. Mmmmmmmm.

Rathausplatz

During the summer time in Vienna they host a festival and show Operas on a big screen in front of the Rathausplatz, which is the town hall. They have all sorts of food stands set up and bleachers to watch the show... and it is entirely free!!

Dinner at Esterhazy Keller

The Driver's Visit Italy: The Cinque Terre

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Sat, 01 Jun 2013 17:44:00 +0000

We ended our week long adventures in the laid back Cinque Terre…although we were anything but laid back! We saw every town and did a long hike and did a boat road in the 2 days we were there. Cinque Terre is my favorite place in Italy and it was so much fun to show my parents.

We stayed in Vernazza, which is my favorite town in the Cinque Terre. They got hit by a massive mudslide about a year ago and have done an amazing job rebuilding their town.

Vernazza

The apartment we stayed at had tons of stairs! It was not fun hauling all of our luggage up these!

Manarola

Riomaggiore

Corniglia

Monterosso

We spent a few hours laying on the beach and snorkeling.

And of course enjoying some gelato!

Views from our Hike

Filling up our water bottles

A house that had literally been cut in half by the landslide.

We took a boat ride between the towns and it was so cool to see the towns from the sea.

A massive landslide

VICENZA

The last night my dad was here, we went to the top of Monte Berico to see Vicenza. The clouds looked amazing this evening.

The Driver's visit Italy: Rome (Day 2)

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 08:57:00 +0000

July 2012

Oh man, I'm exhausted and it is only day 2 in Rome!!! Here were go again… :)

St. Peter In Chains Church contains the chains that held Peter when he was imprisoned in Jerusalem and Michelangelo's statue of Moses that was part of the tomb of Pope Julius II.

The chains.

THE COLOSSEUM

The Colosseum was built in A.D. 80. It can accommodate 50,000 fans and only 1/3 of the original Colosseum remains. Some of it was destroyed by earthquakes, but most was taken for other buildings during the Middle Ages and Renaissance.

View from the inside.

Can you see the blocks of marble at the top? They put all of the marble that was left after pillaging up there so people did not have easy access to it.

This is an example of what the floor of the oval shaped arena would have been like back then. You can see the underground passages where the animals and prisoners were held. They had a system of pulleys and ropes where they would send props or animals up through a hidden door in the floor. The actual floor was made of wood and then there was sand covering it. The Latin word for sand is arena…which is why it was know as the arena.

Below is some really really old graffiti. I guess some people got bored during the games and felt the need to scratch their messages into the stone.

And here is the current graffiti. Way to be classy A&M. Of all the places you are going to make your mark…the Colosseum?? Really?

The gladiator contests were eventually banned in A.D. 435 but the animal hunts lasted for a few decades longer. When the Roman Empire began to crumble they shut the doors. For the next 1,000 years homeless people lived there, it was used as shops, a church, a cemetery, and a refuge during invasions. Most of the Colosseum was dismantled by the Romans citizens who hauled off stones to be used to build palaces and churches. Marble was taken and the iron brackets were taken out and melted down.

Arch of Constantine

This arch commemorates a military coup and the acceptance of Christianity by the Roman Empire. It is in honor of the Emperor Constantine who legalized Christianity.

THE ROMAN FORUM

The Roman Forum is an area near the Colosseum that used to be the center of town back in the day. This is a picture overlooking the forum. The arch that you see in the middle right side is the Arch of Titus which commemorate the Roman victory over Judea. It makes me sick to think that Jewish slaves were forced to build this arch whose purpose was to celebrate the defeat of Israel and the destruction of the temple.

The columns on the right are part of the Temple of Saturn which is the Forum's oldest temple built in 497 B.C.

The big arches are what is left of the Basilica of Constantine. It was started by Maxentius and finished by Constantine. It was originally ginormous as you can probably imagine.

On the road that Julius Caesar and many Romans used to walk upon.

They are still excavating areas of the Forum today.

Temple of Julius Caesar

J Caesar's body was burned on this spot after his assassination. He was responsible for clearing out the forum and building grander buildings.

Column of Phocas

This is the Forum's last monument. It was given to Rome from the Byzantine Empire commemorating the pagan Pantheon becoming a Christian Church.

PALATINE HILL

Palatine Hill overlooks the Forum and is the cite where Emperor Domitian's palace once stood. Now it is just good ole Roman ruins.

My favorite tree in Italy- the Umbrella Pine.

Original marble tile.

View of the Colloseum

CAPITAL HILL

This hill was once the religious and political center of ancient Rome and today it is still where the city's government is.

THE PANTHEON

The Pantheon was a Roman temple dedicated to all of the gods. The original temple was built in 27 B.C. Then after a few fires it was rebuilt in A.D. 120 and that is what you see today. The dome was the model for just a few important buildings today…like St. Peter's and the U.S. capitol building.

The roof.

Doing what we did best…eating great Italian food!

Pictures of St. Peter's at dusk.

Ponte Sant'Angelo

Mom and Dad on the Spanish Steps…right before we sprinted to the Metro because we didn't realize it was so late and it only runs till 11:00!!

We found a really close look alike to our cousin Parker.

Playing Catch Up!

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 08:55:00 +0000

Dear family, friends, and random blog followers,

I apologize for getting extremely behind on my blog. I'm going to work hard these next few days on getting it current!!

The Driver's visit Italy: Rome (Day 1)

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 08:27:00 +0000

We made it to Rome and spent 2 full crazy busy days there. We basically went non-stop from morning till night. I split our Roman adventures into 2 blog posts because there is so much to see there!

BATHS OF DIOCLETIAN

What is now the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli used to be part of the Bath of Diocletian which spread over 10 acres.

This Meridian is inside the church and acts as a sundial. As the sun shines through a tiny hole in the wall and it crosses the meridian rod at noon. This was actually Rome's official city timekeeper until 1846.

This is one of the original marble pillars. Hugeness.

The biggest organ ever!

Bronze artwork in the courtyard.

Piazza della Repubblica

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF ROME

Some old famous Roman guys…

The tiniest mosaic ever.

THE VATICAN

We did the Rick Steve's tour of the Vatican and had a great time.

The entrance to the Vatican.

The famous stair case.

Thank you Texas for helping out the Vatican! :)

Apollo Belvedere- sculpted by Leochares. There was a big tour group there, so unfortunately my Apollo pic includes the back of some heads.

This is Laocoon, the high priest of Troy, who tried to warn the Trojans of the Trojan horse filled with Greek citizens. The Greek gods would have none of this and they sent snakes to kill him and his two sons.

Belvedere Torso- This is one of the famous sculptures in the Vatican. Yes, I know what you are thinking. Really? This used to be Hercules sculpted by Michelangelo.

Back in the day many of the sculptures were painted and have eye balls. Kind of weird if you ask me.

The wall of Tapestries. They hang from the ceiling to the ground and cover an entire hall way. This is one of Jesus coming out of the tomb and as you walk by it his eyes follow you and the stone moves.

This was the ceiling of the Tapestry Hall which is cool because it appears to be 3D. It is in fact painted on a flat surface.

Some tourists in front of us that had some amazing sock tan lines.

Paintings of Constantine, the Christian Emperor.

This is St. Peter's Square, but over 2,000 years ago used to be the area that Nero (a very bad ruler) held his chariot racing. During the intermission they killed Christians for entertainment.

This tall obelisk was once in Egypt and after they fell to the Romans it was moved in the middle of Nero's chariot racing course. It has been moved since then to the middle of the square. This a really really really old piece of granite.

If you stand in a particular point in the Piazza all of the columns line up perfectly and it appears to be one row of pillars.

In reality they run 3 rows deep. This has something to do with mathematics and architecture.

Peter was one of the Christians that was killed in Nero's courtyard. Later, Constantine built a church on the site that he was killed. The Old Saint Peter's lasted about 1,200 years and then they came and built St. Peter's basilica which is what we see today. This is the best of them all.

From the back to the front of the church is as long as 2 foot ball fields! The church covers 6 acres! It is humongous!!

The canopy which was designed by Bernini and reaches 7 stories high.

This is one of the pieces of art that came from the original church. It is Peter and it is customary to kiss or rub his feet. Over time his toes on both feet have been worn smooth by all of our grimy little hands.

One of my favorite sculptures… It is called Pieta, which means pity, and was carved by Michelangelo when he was only 24 years old! You can't get very close to it because it is behind bullet proof glass. In 1972 some crazy man went at the sculpture with a hammer.

The Swiss guards guard the entrance from the square into the Vatican. I'm not exactly sure why they are from Switzerland?? They do have great uniforms though!

St. Peter's by night.

Piazza Navona

Pantheon by night.

I know I say this a lot, but this time I really mean it. This is the best gelato in all of Italy. Giolitti. The most creamiest. The most flavorful. And with a big slab of whip cream on top. Yum. It was so good, we ate it 2 nights in a row.

So many good flavors...

A quick stop at Trevi Fountain

Mom and Dad throwing coins into the fountain over their shoulder to ensure their return to Rome. :)

Roman style parking.

Stay tuned for Rome Part II...

The Driver's Visit Italy: Parma

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 20:49:00 +0000

The next day we woke up early and headed to Parma to visit a Parmiggiano Reggiano cheese dairy.

These are the cows whose milk is brought in every morning and evening.

This is where the milk that comes in goes before it drains into the cauldrons.

The milk is then pumped into these copper cauldrons. It takes 550 liters or about 145 gallons of milk to make one wheel of cheese.

They then add whey and an enzyme that cause the milk to coagulate. This process of knowing when it is ready is all done by hand.

They start the "mixer"which breaks down all the granules. After the milk reaches 55 degrees C the cheesy granules start to sink to the bottom and form one large cheesy mass.

After resting for 30 minutes, the men work together to get the hunk of cheese into the cheese cloth. One wheel of cheese weighs almost 86 pounds!

Here the guy is cutting in half.

The cheese in this form tastes like milk and is a little rubbery.

The cheese is placed in these molds which give it its final shape. These plastic cylinders can be tightened. This helps extract the excess whey from the cheese.

This special marking band is put around the cheese which labels it with the month and year of production, the dairy registration number, and inscription of Parmigiano Reggiano.

After a few days of sitting, the cheese is immersed in a water and salt solution. The whey is extracted out and the salt moves in.

And then finally it is placed in long rows in the maturation room. It is on these wooden shelves that the cheese forms a natural crust or what we call the rind.

The wheels of cheese must be brushed and turned over continually during this maturation period. They have these machines which do the job for them.

They are cleaned because they accumulate dust and they also grow this hair-like mold on the outside that has to be brushed off.

Dad found his birthday!

Now on to the cheese tasting. Yum!

So much cheese!

After our cheese tour we had to deal with some mechanical issues with the Saab. Luckily my dad was there and he was able to put the belt back on! Then we were off to Rome!!

The Driver's come to Italy: Venice

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 21:03:00 +0000

This past July my parents made the long trip across the big pond for a visit! My dad was here for 1 week and my mom stayed 2 weeks. We had such a great time and saw a lot! We started inVenice, the next day stopped in Parma on the way to Rome for a few days, then stopped in Pisa on the the way to the Cinque Terre for a few days! I picked them up at the airport and we headed straight for Venice. I loved showing them around one of my favorite cities!

We took a ferry over to the island of Murano which is famous for it's glass. We were able to catch a short glass demonstration.

He made this horse, called a Ferrari, right in front of us! It was amazing!

Their first experience with having to pay for a European restroom. It was especially expensive this summer!

A gondola traffic jam.

Pictures in front of the Bridge of Sighs.

In front of St. Mark's Basilica.

There were so many boats out today.

The famous Rialto Bridge.

One of the many many gelatos we had in Italy!

Croatia- girls trip

noreply@blogger.com (Lindsey Merritt) — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 20:49:00 +0000

How do you survive a 9 month deployment while living in Italy?? Girl's trip to Croatia!!!!! Seriously though, it is important to keep yourself busy and plan things to look forward to, which isn't really hard when you live in Europe! If you follow my blog you might remember the post about the nude beach?? Well this is the same country, just a different town!

The participants on this girl's trip were me, Mary Kathryn, Anna, and Kaitlin. Kaitlin and Anna are both fellow army wives and their husbands are also deployed. Mary Kathryn is Anna's sister who is here to visit during summer break before her Senior year in college. We had such a great time together!

1 small Jetta + 4 girls = 1 packed trunk!

We stayed in a small town called Medulin which is right outside of Pula. We rented an apartment/condo and thought they would have bowls right? Nope. Thus Mary Kathryn eating her cereal out of a large pot.

And me eating mine out of a small glass.

The first full day we were there we hung out at the pool.

Later that afternoon we walked to one of the few sandy beaches in Croatia. Almost all of the beaches in Croatia are rocky, but they brought a lot of sand in for this one!

Once you walked out in the water about 10 feet your feeties hit rocks. Water shoes in Croatia are definitely a good idea!

We were treated like royalty at dinner! It was hilarious! Guys were fighting over our table and they were bringing us endless shots of this pear flavored liquor native to Croatia.

Crepes filled with nutella and dusted with powder sugar? Yes, please!

The next day we drove about 15 minutes to a state park type place. We found ourselves some semi-flat rocks and enjoyed the day!

The water here is b-e-a-utiful!

We enjoyed our picnic lunch and pre-made strawberry margaritas!

That night we walked around the small town before going to dinner. They were having a carnival and there were lots of people out.

I got a kick out of this sign for a Dance show spectacular they were having. Notice below Hotel Medulin it advertises that is is half-airconditioned! After living in Europe during the summer, this is definitely something to advertise!! :)

We had a great time in Croatia and enjoyed getting away for a few days. I'm looking forward to many girl's trips in the future!