From the email I sent my family

Hello all.  I figured I'd write an email since we are moving into our house tomorrow and I don't know when our internet will be hooked up.  So, we are finally leaving this place.  It's like a little comfort zone where everyone speaks English and now we have to go out into actual Italy.  I'm excited.  We went through our house yesterday for an inspection and I love it still.  This is probably a repeat, but just in case. . . it's brand new, light tile on the middle floor, dark hardwood floors and the stairs and upstairs, and a tannish color tile for the basement.  And the floors are heated!!!  I love it.  Charlotte likes it too.  She kept lying on the floor and crawling around all over the place.  I think Ginger will like it too.  The kitchen cabinets are white and all modern looking.  Dad is really excited about our 2 bidets in the bathrooms and the towel warmers.  We have a 2 car garage, which if Kyle's office moves we talked about buying one of those new Fiat 500's.  Super small, but great for his commute and gas mileage.  Our Mercedes is super fun to drive, but I think we'd have to sell it before coming back since it has European specs on it.  

We've found a couple of great restaurants here with fantastic pasta dishes.  It's amazing how much better it is.  So fresh.  Dad even says that the Burger King on base has better produce on their hamburgers.  The hot chocolate is super thick and great.  You have to put your own sugar in it because it's not as sweet and the croissants are flaky like they were in Denmark.  It's pretty expensive over here we've learned as well.  

Well we made it to Venice today.  Holy crapola.  You come out of the train station and your smack in the middle with a canal in front of you.  It's in the middle of Carnivale right now so there are a lot of people dressed up with masks on.  I bought Evy a fancy pink and gold one.  Let me know if any kids would want one.  We just got a taste today and walked down all these narrow streets with water on the other side with gondolas running down them.  We'll go back with Kyle this weekend and go to St Mark's square.  I'm in love already.  It makes me really excited for you all to come.  I'm excited just to show you Vicenza.  It's so charming.  We were on the bus today and you could have stuck your arm out either side and touched the buildings.  

I'm still waiting to get the girls' immunization records before I can enroll them in anything.  So it's a good thing Evy is only in preschool.  I'm planning on sending her to an Italian school right away, which is going to be a lot of work, but I think so worth it.  Hopefully we can find one with 1 or 2 other American's.  I'm afraid she'll get beaten up.  Apparently that can be a problem over here.  The teachers are all about letting kids work it out themselves.  Then I'm planning on signing her up for ballet or gymnastics and swimming on base with Americans.  The ballet teacher is Italian, but she is a member of the church and goes to the Italian branch.

Oh, we also went to Nove which is famous for ceramics.  In case any of you want ceramics, let me know.  Marostica is just beyond Nove and has a castle on top of a mountain with a brick wall coming down on both sides.  It's really cool and every even year they hold a live chess tournament in the square.  It'll be this September.

Okay, I think that's all for now.  I'll let you know if I think of anything else.  I miss you all terribly and hope to see you soon.  I love you.

Ciao, 

Linzi

Random update

Well, I have learned that everything takes a lot longer in Italy.  I feel like I have signed and had my picture taken for about 12 ID's.  We were unable to leave our hotel until they were given to us.  Then I had to get an Italian driver's license but passing a written test.  It was pretty easy if you studied the road signs.  Those are a bit confusing and I am still getting used to them.  I always think I am driving on a one-way or on the wrong side of the road or something.  So far, so good though.  The process of getting the car was an ordeal.  Luckily, Kyle handled all of that.  We picked out our car, put a down payment on it, had to get insurance, get it registered, go back to the insurance company to show temporary registration, got it officially insured, went back to get it officially registered then take all of this to the dealership, then we got to take our car home.  It's been the same with getting our house.  Meeting after meeting, signing after signing.  It's a process, but oh well.  We're learning.
I've continued to drive around a lot, getting lost.  I am very grateful for our GPS.  We went through Nove, which is famous for its ceramics, then into Marostica.  There is an old castle situated on a mountain with a stone wall on both sides on the mountain.  Every even year a live chess tournament is held in the square.  It's a really pretty town.  I am just finishing a Cioccolata, hot chocolate, as I write, which happens to be more like drinking chocolate.  You have to add your own sugar because it is not very sweet.
Some things I find interesting here are:  towel warmers. . . great, our TV does not turn down below 15. . .  not so great, no one has carpet which I don't mind, especially because our house will have heated floors.  I'll keep thinking of more things.  The food really is great here.  The pasta is so fresh which everyone kept telling me, but I had no idea how fresh pasta tasted.  Now I do.  So much better.  Everything is fresher, even the Burger King on post has a fresher taste to their hamburgers.  Well, I will post more when we get our house, with pictures if I can figure out how.

Italian Healthcare

Well, we didn't get through 1 week before hitting the ED in Italy.  Charlotte had a high fever for a few days then wouldn't eat and was very lethargic so we brought her in.  I was there for 14 hours just waiting for her to give a urine sample, but she had nothing in her to give.  She's fine now, but it's definitely not like America's health system.  I'm used to trying something and if it doesn't work, try something else.  Here, it's try this and try it again, and again, and again, etc.  One way and that's all.  They would not let me leave until they had a sample from a bag they placed on her which failed multiple times.  No IV and fluids like I was hoping for.
I did find out though that Italians are very nice and social people.  Everyone in the waiting room talk with one another including 12 year old boys.  This family had purchased a bottle of water and went and found a cup and made me drink a cup of water.  In what tiny Italian I can understand I could tell that they kept asking the nurse about what was going on with my baby and making sure someone was taking care of us.  Then everyone who left, I was the last one in the waiting room, had to say "Ciao" to everyone in the room including a friendly wave to me.  I have also been really impressed with the army base doctor that I've met who happened to see Charlotte's name at the hospital and got us discharged and set up with a new appt on base so I could take her home.  Well done!

Well, we will be out and about soon looking for houses and I will get a chance to take pictures.  This is a beautiful city and I am happy to be here and share it with everyone.

Moving process for overseas

Well, this is the first time I've had to deal with movers and packers.  The whole process is nice, but quite stressful.  We had either a mover or packer every day of the week.  First to move stuff we were putting in storage, next the packer for 2 days for the stuff going with our household goods, then they moved that stuff, then we had packing and moving of the stuff that will arrive a few days after we do(unaccompanied).  I recommend moving the unaccompanied stuff before household goods as to you are limited to 1000 lbs and it becomes a guessing game.  They did a great job and were very patient with my disorganization.  I was always wondering though whether or not I tip them.  I did not and may be the worst person ever.  I don't know.  Maybe also wait to have your new tenants move in so their stuff doesn't confuse the movers.