We started the summer off with a bang this year and it all still feels a bit like a dream.

In a bizarre turn of events, we were invited to TWO weddings in Europe this summer that happened to be one week apart and relatively close to each other physically. The first was in the south of France, not far from Toulouse. The other was in Umbria in central Italy. As part of our policy of doing things that seem impossible (like the road trip to Minnesota with a one-year-old last summer), Sarah and I committed to going and have been working hard all year to make it happen. On June 11 (the day after my duties at school ended) we boarded a plane for Rome!

Our trip divided neatly into three sections:

1. We spent our first four nights in Vernazza, part of the Cinque Terre in northwest Italy.  We were on our own here, getting over jetlag and getting used to the rhythm of travel with a toddler.
2. Then we flew to Cordes sur Ciel in southern France for James and Eliza’s wedding where we stayed in an ultra-cool pigeon coop.
3. Finally we spent a week in Macerino, Umbria, for Tyler and Mieka’s wedding.

So as not to overwhelm everybody we’ve divided our photos into three sets to fit with these divisions.  This blog entry highlights the first part of the trip, including a few of our favorite photos.  Click on any of the photos to see the complete photo album with many more fabulous pictures.

Aside from the pictures, some favorite memories included:

• After 22 hours of travel we arrived in Vernazza with little to no sleep. Even with our exhaustion, we were amazed by the town: steep terraced hills, buildings piled on top of each other, vivid colors, staircase “streets”, and a cool breeze blowing in from the Ligurian Sea.  We tossed our luggage into our tiny one-room apartment and walked to the waterfront for some pizza and a view of the sunset.  Afterwards we all slept for twelve solid hours. (Griffin was great with sleep; we haven’t shared a room with him since co-sleeping as an infant so we were worried.)
• On our first day, Griffin awoke from his nap to say, loudly, “Go to the beach?  Ok!” (He’s got this thing right now where he poses his favorite ideas as questions and then immediately says “Ok!” as if granting himself permission.) He loved the beach, laughing at the waves, covering himself with sand, and splashing in the water. His tiny little body would get SO cold, though, that we often had to take breaks so that he could return to a normal color.
• Vernazza is a town of amazing views. As mentioned above, the streets are all super-narrow, and usually steep. (No cars allowed, since they can’t fit.) Suddenly you will pop around a corner and find a breathtaking vista where you could see much of the town arrayed beneath you (and the terraced vineyards continuing to climb into the sky). We loved the pace of life where we could just wander around, enjoying the views, sampling the food, and splashing at the beach.
• We were all mesmerized by the trains. There are two tracks passing through town, but for the most part they are in tunnels in the mountains.  The town’s platform is tiny with buildings all around it.  Only two or three train cars actually fit on the outdoor platform, so most of the train is in the tunnel on either side when it stops. It’s a bit spooky having to walk through the dark to get on or off the front or rear cars.  Many trains on these tracks don’t stop at the small town either, and so they come roaring through at full speed. Before you can hear or see them, a cold wind starts blowing from the tunnel. Everyone grabs their hats, and then the thing comes blazing past, vanishing into the next tunnel.  Over the beach there is an expanse of track where the trains are visible again, high up on a masonry wall.  Something about the combination of medieval architecture and the constant trains whipping by reminded me of Miyazaki films with their eclectic mix of technology and magic.