One of the more interesting bikes I saw at the Museum. The chain is shifted by reaching down and using those levers by the rear brake.

One of the more interesting museums I've visited in Italy. Of course having a passion for cycling helps.

Ian by this really cool bike made out of wood with clear disc wheels. I think I want to run the clear disc wheels on my time trial bike.

After the museum we went to the factory stores. Ian likes the Ferrari store the best. I wanted to pick one up to take home.

I made dinner for the kids before going out to dinner with Brecken and Kindra. I love making and eating Caprese Salad.

Brecken and Kindra as we went to dinner. Brecken didn't care much for the flying beatles though.
7-2-10 Friday
Did the same ride as Monday to Tortona, but pushed it harder and finished 10 minutes faster. It’s a great ride with some hard climbing. Today I went with the older kids to the Museo di Campionissimi, which was the title given to Fausto Coppi, but it was really just an overall cycling museum. It had probably at least 100+ bikes. Everything from a bike designed by Leonardo di Vinci, to Allesandro Ballan’s world champion bike. There was the bike that Fancesco Moser rode to a world 1 hour record and many more. There were tons of jerseys, some from a long time ago, to recent signed jerseys. There were also lots of full wall movies playing of old time bike races, as well as a bunch of video monitors that you could select what you wanted to watch. Everything from some of the earliest pictures taken of bikes, to footage of Lance Armstrong. It was quite a museum for a cycling addict like myself. After the museum we went to the big outlet stores that are near where we are staying. They are very name brand stores, and although they are discounted a little for being in the “outlet” stores, they still weren’t cheap. Brecken bought a pretty dress that she can were to “proms”, and I bought a leather jacket. Ian loved the Ferrari store that is at the outlet stores. After we got back, Kindra and I took Brecken to the wonderful little restaurant on the edge of Vargo. We were walking over just as the sun was setting. As we were walking there, these huge flying beatles scared Brecken half to death. They literally are the size of bats. Once again, the dinner at this restaurant was fabulous. It’s what you think of when you think of homemade authentic Italian food.

The Via dell'Amore is the best part of the Cinque Terre that we saw, especially all the locks. We'll have to bring a lock and visit by ourselves next time.

The iper near where we were staying.

It has the best gelato. Probably 50 or more of the most fantastic gelato. Yummy!

On the train heading to the Cinque Terre.

Mitzi playing in the sand/rocks.

It was quite pretty, but overall I was a little disappointed in the Cinque Terre. I liked Portofino more.

It would have been a little more romantic with just the 2 of us.

Brad, typically trying to put a scowl on things.

This is where I'd really like to go explore.

7-1-10 Thursday
Even though we had a pretty full day yesterday going to Portofino, we went back past Portofino today to go to the Cinque Terre. We didn’t get a chance to go to the Cinque Terre last time we were in Italy, but I had heard a lot about it and was very eager to see if it lived up to its reputation. The Cinque Terre translated means the Five Lands. It’s a remote area on the Italian coast that was left untouched for years due to it’s remoteness. Only in the last 30-50 years has it even been very easy to get to since they’ve now run a railroad track to it. It consists of 5 primary villages with a number of hiking trails and the whole thing has been declared a national park and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We found a place to park in Monterossa al Mare and took the train to Riomaggiore. We got a gelato and hiked down to a very pebbly beach. The kids though had fun exploring in the water. We then hiked the “Via dell’ Amore” or “Walk of Love”. It’s only about a 15-20 minute hike from Romaggiore to Manarolo. The whole thing would have a very different feel if it had just been me and Kindra. As it was, it wasn’t quite so romantic sweating and trying to carry Mitzi, keep Brad from pestering Ian, etc. I think my view of the Cinque Terre would have been significantly different with just the 2 of us. I was pretty let down and disappointed as it was. I liked Portofino significantly more. Maybe if we had actually stayed a night it might have been different. One thing that was very cool though was on the Via dell’Amore was people bring locks, write their names on them, then attach them to the fences and poles along the Via dell’Amore to “lock in their love” together. Some of them were obviously very old, some were extremely large, and at one point there is a seat that looks like a couple kissing, and there are hundreds of locks around it. There are probably thousands of locks on the Via dell’Amore and the views were pretty spectacular at times. As we were driving away from the Cinque Terre you could see several of these little groupings of probably 10-30 houses with a little church. I thought that’s what I’d really like to go explore. Maybe next time.

Swallows in the morning racing around the home we were staying at. Notice the wonderful view out the bedroom window.

Today we went to Portofino which is a pretty fantastic place.

They had a pirate replica by the public bathrooms. I'm not sure of the moves Kindra's making on the pirate.

The kids loved playing in the water.

Ian overlooking Portofino.

The tranquil setting by the castle overlooking Portofino Bay.

My beautiful girls.

This is our special hidden gem in Portofino, our "private beach".

The kids playing in the cove.

Brecken sure looks beautiful.

Playgrounds of the rich and famous, or at least rich.

Portofino is beautiful with it's brightly colored buildings and shops.

Adam, Brad, and Megan playing on a float toy near Portofino.

How pretty is that?

No wonder rich people want to visit here, it's so beautiful.

Ian and Mitzi playing in the sand.
6-30-10 Wednesday
What a day! There is so much to see and do in Italy! Every morning we wake up to the sound of swallows flying around and around, “buzzing” our tower. I look out my window and it looks like they are racing! Adam says it looks like a Criterium (bike race). They make a chirping sound that is quite loud. I tell Mitzi that we are going to reach out the window and when they pass by I am going to grab one, she started to mimic me and together we almost caught a swallow! Today we went to one of mine and Adam’s favorite places, Portofino. It looks like the enchanted coast in Peter Pan! I almost expected Pirate ships to come around into the bay! We are not the only ones who are in love with this place, there are some very nice yachts that are docked here for some sight- seeing. We decided to take the kids to a hidden little niche with its own beach. We had to hike to get there and it was soo humid that it felt like a steam room at the gym! I am glad we decided to go to a private beach because in Italy (and the rest of Europe) it is not a big deal to take off your bikini top and lay out. I didn’t want the kids to see that (and I didn’t want to see that) so anyway we went to this beautiful spot. It is very interesting because there are cameras filming you on this path. The wealthy landowners want to keep people off their property. We stayed on the public path and as we got down to the area I heard men talking in the bushes, as I looked closer there were 3 guards that were armed walking the perimeter of someone’s property. Scary! The house on the property was beautiful and had a winding stairway carved into the craggy rock cliff which went down to “our” beach. There was also a boat garage there. The kids loved it. Megan, Brecken, Ashley and Mitzi went into the water which was very clear and clean. Megan saw a starfish and we got to hold it and then a little hermit crab. It was very fun! I sat and watched, I should have worn a swimsuit but didn’t think about it. Adam, Brad and Ian went exploring. They climbed the ragged rocks and had a good time. Megan said that she wants to live there! Sometimes I wonder if Brad is having a good time and then he tells me that when he is older he is “going to live in a house like that” or “drive a car like that” or “live in Europe”! So I guess he likes it. He is always the one who wants to go and see more even when we have had a busy day. After the kids played in the water we had some Italian Pastries which were very good. We looked at the huge and beautiful yachts and were amazed. I think some of the people in Italy are amazed to see a family with six kids! They stare and stare, unless you are in a cathedral, then I guess they just assume we are a devoted catholic family! After Portofino we went to a public beach and the kids swam and I hung out with Mitzi and Ian. They love the sand! It was a great day and we were definitely glad had made the trip.

I went on a nice walk with Ian next to the prett river and tought him how to skip rocks.

Ian loved the water cannon at the water park.

Ashley and Megan had a great time at the water park.

Mitzi thought by climbing up the stairs and going down the slide by her self was the greatest.

Caution, only order seafood in Italy if you are adventerous.
6-29-10 Tuesday
Again, we couldn’t get the kids moving until well into the day. Earlier I had taken Ian trying to find an internet café or get an internet connection. We couldn’t find any, but we stopped at the pretty little river at went for a walk. I ended up teaching Ian how to skip rocks and he thought that was pretty cool. They had seen flyers for a big water park and wanted to go there. Kindra was feeling tired and decided to stay at the house, so I took all the kids with me while she rested. We drove all the way there, passing by several nice looking beaches on the way. It was pretty large with lots of different slides, pools, water toys, etc. Mitzi loved going down the slide in the kiddy pool and Brad would catch her. We only got there about 2-3 hours before it closed, so it wasn’t an all day affair, but the kids still had a blast. I wonder though if they wouldn’t have had just as much fun at one of the beaches and saved an hours worth of driving. It took us almost 1 ½ hours each way to go to the water park. When we got back I took Kindra out to dinner. The only place we found without taking too much time was a seafood restaurant. Tip – In Italy you need to be ready to be adventurous if you are going to go for the seafood. Kindra played it fairly save and ordered the lobster linguini, but I ordered the prawns and lobster. Of course it looked a little scary coming out, but tasted pretty good.

Mitzi playing "clean-up" although alot of times she makes a mess.

The kids actually getting along playing Uno.

The Duomo in Milan is pretty spectacular.

Everyone trying to stay cool in the little bit of shade under the statue by the Duomo. I was kind of amazed we didn't get hit by one of the pigeons.

One of the neat things about the Duomo in Milan is that you can expore up on the roof and get a totally different perspective and see the statues and gargoyles up close.

I've heard the Victor Emmanuelle indoor shopping area was one of the earliest large indoor shopping centers in the world. It's pretty large.

The kids have enjoyed seeing some of the differnt things that we don't have in our grocery stores.
6-28-10 Monday
I started off the day with a great bike ride up over some of the hills, through some of the nearby villages and down to the city of Tortona and back. On the way back there was a really steep climb back up. For 1.7 miles I only averaged 7.2 mph, that’s a full 1 mph slower than I typically average up Little Cottonwood Canyon. It was a fantastic ride thought through great scenery, perfect weather, and virtually no cars. After the kids got all ready to go, they had fun playing Uno together. This trip has been good so far helping our kids learn to live together a little better. We still have our problems here, but they are learning that they have to live with each other, and that by causing all sorts of problems it doesn’t make things easier for anyone. Today we decided to go to Milan, hoping to see the Duomo and the science/Leonardo museum. We couldn’t find the address for the museum though on the GPS, so we ended up just seeing the Duomo and the Victor Emmanuele shopping center. It was blazing hot, so we of course all got gelatos when we got to the main square before we saw the Duomo. The Duomo is pretty spectacular with great stained glass windows. One neat thing is that you can climb up onto the roof and walk all over the roof area and look at the statues and gargoyles. After exploring the Duomo we ate in the shopping center then did a little shopping. I bought a shirt and sweatshirt at a soccer shop. The girls typically did some clothes shopping. On the way home we stopped and bought some groceries at the Iper. It’s a big store (one of the biggest we’ve seen in Europe so far), kind of like a SuperWalmart. The kids kind of liked seeing some of the things that are different than what we have in our stores, like the hanging ham legs, the fresh weird looking fish, and the giant bottles of wine.

The Fausto Coppi museum.

Just a couple of the massive banner/pictures in the small town of Castellania where Fausto Coppi lived. Look how small Ian is in the picture. There were probably 20-30 of these massive pictures in a tiny town.

Ian at the museum.

Had a great dinner date with Ashley.

Here's the tiny church just below the house where we were staying. The bell rang out each hour. I love the church bells here.

We stayed in the house at the very top of the little village, just below the small village church.
6-27-10 Sunday
Today was our typical “after travel down-time day”. Usually after our travel day we are pretty burned out and take and easy day to get situated, relax a little and recharge our batteries. But I can only handle so much of that. When we got in last night and met Graziella and she found out that I was a cyclist, she told me I’d have to go see the Fausto Coppi house and museum. For any non cyclist out there, Fausto Coppi was one of the greatest cyclists of all time. He’s certainly in the top 5 all time. He was pretty dominant in cycling both just before and after WWII. He was very photogenic and was kind of like a sports star, movie star, and rock star all rolled into one in Italy. In the afternoon, everyone else still wanted to just hang out, and after most of a day of relaxing I wanted to see something or do something, so I took Ian to go find the Fausto Coppi home with me. From several miles away you start seeing direction arrows and then you take the Fausto Coppi road. As you start entering the village there are these gigantic posters the size of homes all over the place of him racing. They all have lights in front of them that I assume illuminate them at night. There was a museum, as well has his house had been turned into a museum. I wish I could have read all the Italian, but it was still very interesting and cool. Even Ian thought it was pretty cool. As we were leaving the town, we found a Fausto Coppi memorial and it looked like some type of a race/memorial ride had just completed. There were several people with numbers still on their backs, a team car, and a lot of people eating snacks. When I got back I decided to take Ashley for a walk and we ended up going to the restaurant at the end of the little town where we are staying. It amazes me that they even have a restaurant, as the town is only about 20-40 homes, but it’s a small family run affair and Graziella recommended it to us, so we decided to try it. I was just thinking of trying something small like an appetizer and dessert, but as we didn’t speak very good Italian, and the waiter didn’t speak any English we ended up eating a pretty big full dinner. He asked us if we wanted antipasti (appetizer/s) and I said “si” so he brought it out, but it was more like a full meal for several people. There was this great cream cheese with jam on bread, ham, salami, small fried fish balls, potato salad, these pickled onions and pickled peppers, and a couple of other things. Then we had this homemade ravioli that was fantastic. I was stuffed by the time we walked home, but it was nice spending an evening with Ashley. Kindra and I have tried to spend some one-on-one time with each child and it’s been great.

Civita di Bagnoragio was really neat. You had to hike up this bridge/path to get to the village.

Everywhere I turned in Civita seemed like a picture just waiting to be taken.

Kindra, Megan, Mitzi, Brad and I had a fabulous lunch in Civita.

More flowers and neat ancient architecture.

And more!

Ian doing the obligiatory tourist shot of holding up the leaning tower.

Mitzi is turning into a little acrobat.

Me, Brad, Megan, and Ashley on top of the leaning tower.
6-26-10 Saturday
Although today was a very hectic and somewhat stressful day as it’s “travel day”, it was also a great day of seeing some great sites as a family. The day started very hectic as we had to get all packed up, clean up the place we were staying, and get on the road as soon as possible. We were all a little sad to leave here as we’ve loved this place and had some great times. Brecken has been tasked with taking pictures of the places we stay just before we leave each time so we can remember them. Today we are heading to Vargo, which is a small little town about 3-5 miles from the main highway half way from Genoa to Milan. Up to this point we’ve just been staying at places that we’ve rented for a week that I’ve found on http://www.vrbo.com/ or http://www.homeaway.com/. I’ve learned that traveling with a family, it’s so much nicer to stay at a vacation home rental than at hotels when possible. The next 2 places we are staying at are home exchanges that we worked out from www. Homeexchange.com. The next one in Vargo is a “non-simumlateous” exchange. Meaning that this isn’t their primary home and they are going to let us stay at their vacation home now and then come stay at our home or vacation home sometime in the future. They wanted to come stay at our vacation rental we bought with a few others as an investment in Midway, Utah this next winter to come skiing, but the husband had something like an aneurism and has been in the hospital, so we aren’t quite sure if they’ll be able to come this next winter or some other time. Anyway, back to the travel log. Our first stop today was at Civita di Bagnoragio. I think I spelled it right. A tip for someone coming to Italy. Spend a day visiting Orvieto and then Civita di Bagnoragio, they are both well worth it. Orvieto is a fairly large “hill town” with quite a few tourists and a magnificent cathedral. Civita is probably about the smallest hill town there is. I read that there are only I think 12 permanent residents. You park in a tiny parking area that holds about 10 cars, then walk up this very steep bridge that goes up to the town. For being so small, it’s amazing. Every where you turn you find a picture you want to take. It’s extremely old and well preserved. The residents keep it very well maintained and they have beautiful flowers. Some of the kids weren’t feeling too well, so they stayed in the hot car while Kindra, Brad, Megan, Mitzi, and I went up to the town. We had lunch in a tiny café and it was wonderful. Then we walked around, took lots of pictures, and marveled at the place we were in. We finally hurried back to the other kids. There was a shop and ice-cream place right by the parking area, and I had given Brecken 20 euros to get ice cream while we were gone, but they were still pretty hot and ready for us to get back. Then we hit the road heading to Pisa. I haven’t really explored much of Pisa except what they call the “Field of Miracles”. That’s where the leaning tower is. There is a large grassy area and besides the tower, there’s a pretty impressive cathedral and baptistery as well. Brad, Megan, Ashley, Brecken and I all climbed up the leaning tower. It’s fairly expensive to climb up the tower, but an experience you have to do. Brecken didn’t want to go up to the very top level as she was scared. She get’s scared of heights and has been a little freaked out several times on our trip as we’ve gone up cable cars in the mountains, up on cliffs, or up high on cathedrals or such. The views are pretty impressive, but wants neater is climbing up and then looking straight down when you get on top. When you climb, at sections it feels like you are climbing up stairs, but not even going up but feels like you are almost going down as the tower is tilted, then it feels extremely steep. The stairs are worn from centuries of use, and the worn areas go from in by the center then out to the outsides based on where in the “lean” you are. It’s kind of crazy. Then at the top you can look not just straight down, but actually under you with nothing below you as you are hanging off the end of the tower. After Pisa we headed to Vargo. Graziella is the name of the lady who’s house we are staying at, and she was going to try and meet us there. They live in Genoa, but this is like a family vacation home for them. We finally found it as it was getting dark and nearly 10pm. She was such a sweet lady. She showed us around and explained everything the best she could in her very limited English. I’d ask a question or make a comment and she kept saying, “si, si, si.”. She had gone and bought some food for us and made sure we were settled before she left. She was so kind. I hope they get to Utah so we can repay their kindness.