Back in the SA

just to give you a taste of what we've been up to since returning home...

this is what a real steak looks like

barn dance and cowboy parents who took best dressed couple prize!

ben and matt who won an emergency first aid course! yay

christmas puppies nogal

and czechy had puppies while we were at the farm

wait... this was... oh yes now i see her, Alex!

the chickens gave my little cousin leah poxes for christmas

swimming at the dam with my bestie and co.

and when we were at the farm... we play dangerously

uncle andy 

swimming at the waterfall on the farm

what boys do the day before a wedding

what boys do the morning before a wedding

what girls do. the beautiful bride Jen the co-star of the most awesome wedding

me, alex and victoria

we really missed you clare

the bridal party

the bridesmaids were kitted out from head to toe. this was a VERY well thought out wedding! and it turned out perfectly

whats that? the bride stealing lindt balls from the desserts table before it opened! just because she could!

the beautiful decor

sweety table!

one crazy redhead bride!

gotta love her

Marc comes to visit and the expedition to L'Aquila

Uncle Marc came to visit us in rome for the weekend. first guest to see our new flat (and have their own room!) so now you can all come visit us! we did the tourist sights again...

just chilling.. and it really was chilly

where they filmed the movie, jumper

he asked these guys if everything was made in china...

church decor never ceases to amaze. this wall is painted, ONLY.

we happened to be shopping in the city when Berlusconi (corrupt president) officially resigned and  drove out of the parlimentary buildings and his house. it was mayhem

i didnt know they had so many police on their force

outside the presidential suite, the entire population of rome which took to the streets that night. crowds were chanting: "Resign, Resign!!"

marc was shopping for a few things in particular and we found nearly all of them! we camped out at Castroni's, the specialty food store and had handcrafted italian beer. 

marc and Alessandro (colleague) invited us on their fieldtrip on sunday to visit the town of L'Aquila. which had an earthquake 2 years ago and about 300 people died in this small town.

strapping their historical buildings together

incase you were wondering which side of the family Marc is from :)

its beautiful there

view of the town

earthquake damage

we are serious geologists surveying the land

plastic cretatius lava force climate strata tectonic plates magma scar

we are very knowledgable

we are serious and efficient

we are seriously cold

we are looking for somewhere to relieve ourselves 

we have maps the size of us

our days are numbered

we have 6 very expensive cabbages that we must protect at all costs

we will soon be in the dargle..

ben

marc

such ferocious and gorgeous shepherd dogs

apparently they fight with the wolves who come down from the mountains around L'Aquila

they look very cute but if their owner wasnt there, Alessandro says they would have attacked us!

i need to make a gate...

such a cute dog and was really excited to see us. he was locked up, very sad

beautiful italian countryside

winter sunlight

this huge castle that the spainish built when this town was under their occupation

we went to evaluate the damage the earthquake has caused, only the top walls had been affected

it was soo big

looks like a willow tree, smells like a willow tree then it must must be a... but why are the leaves like that??

another sad thing about this now quiet town is the stray dogs, there are many and this one was very sad.

this beautiful 13th century church

the central dome caved in with the earthquake

now theres lots of light inside, and tons of building reinforcements

heads will roll

pasta marble.