Eva’s Friends

[Evadig]

Just a quick update to let you know I haven’t died yet…

Sunday I was in Los Angeles all day, and too tired to write, and tonight I am in a hotel in Las Vegas because we are flying home tomorrow. I will continue the Rome trip on Sunday .

When will you know the results of the dispatcher trainee test?

I’m not sure. They had me do an observation at the dispatch center (very interesting and informative) but I haven’t heard back from them since.

My trip to England is coming up fast. I doubt I will have as many adventures as you. But, I have convinced my sister that during free time in London we HAVE to tour Westminster Abbey. Since both her husband and father-in-law are also going on the trip, they can wander off elsewhere if they're not interested in accompanying us.

I hope you will get to see Westminster and it’s not closed or something!


A few pictures:

LA Zoo: Meerkat

At the rental house: hummingbird in her nest

Flower at LA Zoo

Mom and baby

Some type of antelope

Zebra

Caiman

Downtown Los Angeles

 

[Callender Girl]

Always enjoy your photos! For a split second, before I read the caption, I was wondering if there were meerkats in LA

 

[Evadig]

Ok, where did I leave off? The memory is quickly becoming blurred and details are being forgotten. Good thing I'm writing this down.

Day Six. We're staying at the monastery in Assisi. We got up early in the morning and had mass in a tiny crypt under the Franciscan monastery founded by St Francis. Our priest told me to lector; I tried to plead shyness, but the deacon sided with him, so I had to read. Everyone said I did well, and curiously enough, I enjoyed it. I am glad he made me read because it reminded me that things are often not as difficult as they appear to be.

Afterwards we visited the tomb of St Francis, which is in the lower basilica. The walls of the upper basilica are covered by paintings of Giotto, but many of them were damaged in an earthquake.

We then went to see the place where Blessed Carlo Acutis is buried. As you know, we had been scheduled to attend his canonization, which was postponed because of the Pope's funeral. We saw his mother as well, but we did not know it was her until later.

Afterwards, we split up and as usual I went to explore the city. Assisi is built on a hill and you will either walk up or down anywhere you go. I walked all the way to the fortifications at the very top. It was a steep hike and my legs were very tired when I finally reached the summit! To visit the tower cost eight euros (around fifteen dollars) so I didn't go in.

We had a traditional Assisi dinner in the basement of a restaurant. There was a window in the door, and I was wondering how it could be so light out at 9 pm. When I mentioned this to Jenny, she pointed out that the "light" was in fact coming from the kitchen! As we finished eating, a terrible booming sound began floating down to us. Investigation proved it to be a drummer corps. The noise was deafening, but captivating. While watching the drummers some of us got gelato. It was a nice way to spend the evening.

Before I went to bed, I wandered into the chapel that was connected to the monastery. Only the dim red light of the sanctuary candle broke the blackness. It was so peaceful and quiet. I knelt on the stone floor and prayed, and hoped Jenny would take a long shower so I wouldn't have to leave. It was a bit of heaven... When I finally came up to the room, she asked if I hadn't been scared of the dark! No, indeed. I will always treasure that time with God in the dark, quiet chapel.

Now to present matters: I am back home, and somewhat bummed to discover that Tilly has been brooding on at least eight fertilized chicken eggs, and at least four are nicely developing. I am trying to rehome chickens, not hatch more. Oh, well. I am somewhat vainly hoping that if they do hatch, they will at least be hens...

Finnegan seems to be developing a distaste for coop life. He got out yesterday, and though we tempted him with choice canned food, he would not come back. My sister managed to catch him today, but I can't keep him locked up forever. He will need to go to a new home, where he can wander in and out to his heart's content.

Basilica of St Francis in the morning fog

Upper Basilica

Looking out over Assisi

A flower

Detail of the ceiling of the second picture

Mediaeval fortifications

From the top of the hill, looking out over Assisi

A church

Pictures sent from home: Annie and Eva

Inside a church

Modern part of Assisi (at the bottom of the hill) by night

The sanctuary lamp in the little chapel

 

[Evadig]

I just got back from a three day trip to New York City, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, so I will continue the Rome trip on Sunday.

Here are a couple pictures:

USS Torsk, Baltimore

Independence Hall, Philadelphia

USS New Jersey, Camden

St Patrick’s Cathedral, NYC

USS Intrepid, NYC

 

[Callender Girl]

You see -- and photograph -- so many interesting sites on your travels. Thanks for sharing your amazing experiences.

I had guests Tuesday and Wednesday who were helping me get a laundry list of projects done before I leave Monday for the homesteading and gardening tour in England. Now that everyone's gone, I need to get ready for the trip. Right now, I'm more apprehensive than excited because I often suffer from motion sickness and haven't been on a plane in years.

How's Tilly doing with her chicken eggs? I rehomed both roosters, so I don't have concerns about more chickens. But, I've been dealing with four broody hens. Alice, thankfully, finally gave up yesterday and is her lively self again. But, Lavinia, Daphne and Isabel refuse to quit, even through they are sitting on nothing, absolutely nothing.

 

[Evadig]

I decided I'd write tonight because there's a good chance I won't be able to access my computer tomorrow.

Let's see...Day Seven. In the morning we went to mass in the little chapel, then walked down to the town square to wait for our bus. The guide said we could go shopping if we stayed within hearing distance, but the zeal of some members for coffee overruled their better judgement. As a result, there were a few moments of panic as we prepared to leave and realized certain people were missing. However, we all got onto the bus safely and started up the road toward Sienna.

Owing to the delay in Assisi, we arrived to Sienna later than expected. We were all very hungry and in no mood to enjoy the big mediaeval churches, which weren't even that beautiful compared to those in Rome. We ended up only visiting one church and then splitting up for lunch. Here I got my first and only taste of real Italian pizza. It had red sauce and meat (sausage, maybe?) and was piping hot but also quite soggy. It was pretty good, though. After lunch we hurried back to the bus and headed toward San Gimignano (jimmy-yan-no).

San Gimignano was quite the fortress back in the day; it boasted seventy-two towers, but only fourteen now remain. It is well known now for its beautiful architecture, the world's Most Famous Gelato, and the World's Best Gelato. The two shops are right next to each other, but the World's Best Gelato had a much longer line of patrons. Our priest tried gelato from both shops and said that the famous gelato was in fact better than the best gelato. So I guess you will have to try both if you ever visit .

We arrived in Florence quite late, and had to rush to dinner. I don't recall the atmosphere, only that afterwards a few of us and I went to get more gelato! This was probably a stupid move on my part, because I was developing a sore throat, but the satisfaction of enjoying gelato on a pleasant evening with my friends overruled any common sense.

Regarding the Muddy Run: I was finally able to rehome three of my four roosters to a lady who has a large bachelor pad. Godspeed and good riddance Winston Churchill, Honor, and Liberty!

The three eggs are still kicking, and a couple others are developing nicely. Hopefully they're hens...

I had guests Tuesday and Wednesday who were helping me get a laundry list of projects done before I leave Monday for the homesteading and gardening tour in England. Now that everyone's gone, I need to get ready for the trip. Right now, I'm more apprehensive than excited because I often suffer from motion sickness and haven't been on a plane in years.

I am excited for you . I'll pray your flight goes well and you don't get too motion-sick!

But, Lavinia, Daphne and Isabel refuse to quit, even through they are sitting on nothing, absolutely nothing.

Ugh. Will you try to break them or just let them ride it out? I love their names!

The little chapel in daylight

Full view of the Basilica of St Francis

Narrow town street

Street shrine of Madonna and Child

Basilica of the Angels...I think?

Little chapel restored by St Francis, housed within the basilica

As you drive along Italian highways, random mediaeval towns greet your eye.

Church in Sienna

Italian Countryside at San Gimignano

Old car

Street of San Gimignano

Square - see the line of people waiting for the World's Best Gelato?

River

Church in Florence

The Duomo (Basilica) in Florence

Some tower in Florence; the statue of a man in front of the building (casting a shadow) is a copy of Michaelangelo's David, which is in the Art Gallery of the city.

The Duomo and the city of Florence by night

 

[Callender Girl]

Today is the day; I leave for England this afternoon. I hope my trip has as many highlights as yours. I LOVE the photo with the sunlight streaming through the round church window.

I also hope your prayer does the trick for keeping my airsickness at bay. At my sister's suggestion, I got some prescription anti-nausea patches, but after I read all the potential side effects, I'm not sure I want to use them. She says she's used them for years, and none of the bad stuff has ever happened. We'll see, I guess.

It's good that you found a suitable home for your roosters. I thought I would miss mine more than I do. Life is much more calm without them -- although I did like to hear them crow. One of my Iowa Blue hens has started trying to crow since the boys are gone. Although she stretches out and does her best, her cock-a-doodle-do isn't very good.

How are the three eggs doing? Hope they all hatch out as hens.

I am letting my hens get over their broodiness on their own. I was hoping they would get over it before I left. I lift them out of the nest boxes at least twice a day so they will eat and drink with the others. I'm not sure my pet sitter is going to be willing to do that. Isabel is a big fluffy, older Cochin who doesn't protest at all. Lavinia and Daphne are pullets who are a bit testy but don't offer too much resistance. BTW, many of my chickens are have vintage English names. Thanks for enjoying them!

I will be off to England in a few hours. Hope I have some great adventures to share when I get back.

 

[lightm]

Today is the day; I leave for England this afternoon. I hope my trip has as many highlights as yours. I LOVE the photo with the sunlight streaming through the round church window.

I also hope your prayer does the trick for keeping my airsickness at bay. At my sister's suggestion, I got some prescription anti-nausea patches, but after I read all the potential side effects, I'm not sure I want to use them. She says she's used them for years, and none of the bad stuff has ever happened. We'll see, I guess.

It's good that you found a suitable home for your roosters. I thought I would miss mine more than I do. Life is much more calm without them -- although I did like to hear them crow. One of my Iowa Blue hens has started trying to crow since the boys are gone. Although she stretches out and does her best, her cock-a-doodle-do isn't very good.

How are the three eggs doing? Hope they all hatch out as hens.

I am letting my hens get over their broodiness on their own. I was hoping they would get over it before I left. I lift them out of the nest boxes at least twice a day so they will eat and drink with the others. I'm not sure my pet sitter is going to be willing to do that. Isabel is a big fluffy, older Cochin who doesn't protest at all. Lavinia and Daphne are pullets who are a bit testy but don't offer too much resistance. BTW, many of my chickens are have vintage English names. Thanks for enjoying them!

I will be off to England in a few hours. Hope I have some great adventures to share when I get back.

A homestead tour in England sounds really wonderful. I do hope you will have a fun time and no sickness during the flight.

@Evadig i enjoy your thread and i will contribute to some photos this time.

I have been in China for about 3 weeks by now, visiting family. I'm flying back to the US tomorrow.

My beautiful hometown. It has lots of rivers and canals.

How eggs are sold here. It says 3.59 yuan per half kg. If one egg is about 60g, then it converts to about 1 dollar for 10 eggs.

Two hens in my patents neighborhood... unfortunately I think they are cooped up in doors most of the time, and only let out for a limited time in the morning.

Visiting a historical house.

A newly established outdoor mall.

 

[Evadig]

I didn't get around to writing on Wednesday...it's been busy here as we try to clean this place up to maybe rent out this fall. Anyhow, this is Day Eight of the Rome trip (it's actually Day Nine, but when I started writing this series I forgot to account for the day we left the USA).

We woke up early and went to church, then started off to tour the city. By now many of the older people in our group were visibly wearing out from the long, fast-paced walks. I stationed myself at the end of the line and tried to keep the stragglers together, but no sooner would I think that they were all ahead of me, one would appear ambling leisurely out of the crowd!

Florence was a boring city. It's been modernized, at least compared to Rome and certainly to Assisi and Orvieto. The downtown by the duomo has been given over to clothing merchants; every major fashion designer has a shop there. Outside that area, there's just more shops and apartments. There aren't even that many churches. Nonetheless, we walked around for a few hours, and then it was time for lunch.

We got on the bus which took us to an overlook where we got nice pictures of most of the group, with Florence as a background. Then we headed toward the vineyard restaurant about half-hour outside the city. I fell asleep on the way, but at one point subconsciously heard the tour guide say that we were passing an American WWII cemetery. You never saw someone sit up so fast!

At the vineyard there was winetasting in addition to lunch, and then they gave us a tour of the winery. It was interesting, but at this point I was definitely suffering from a runny nose and a worsening sore throat, and all I wanted to do was sleep. Instead, when we got back to Florence I went looking for souvenirs with Jenny.

As we were returning to the hotel, a loud drumming noise attracted our attention. It turned out to be a medieval parade led by two policemen on horseback. The parade was marching down the street we needed to cross to get to our hotel. Choosing a break in the rows of knights, Jenny and I bolted across the street, so for one brief moment we were part of a Renaissance parade.

Our restaurant that night was at the top of a narrow road that wound up a steep hill. There was a very narrow gate halfway up this road. On one side was a cliff; on the other, a brick wall. The bus driver started up this narrow road. We were praying in unison when half of us looked down and saw the bus teetering on the edge of the cliff, with the front nearly touching the wall. The bus went nearly dead silent, though our priest continued praying without a worry in the world and a few of us joined in. Finally the bus driver made it up the hill, through the narrow gate and parked us in front of the restaurant. There was an audible sigh of relief from the passengers and then a hearty round of applause for his amazing abilities.

That night, the five members of the self-styled "Gelato Club" met for the last time...

@Callender Girl hope your trip to England is going well and you did not get motion-sick!

@Evadig i enjoy your thread and i will contribute to some photos this time.

I have been in China for about 3 weeks by now, visiting family. I'm flying back to the US tomorrow.

@lightm I'm glad you got the chance to visit your family in China! Thank you for sharing pictures !

One dollar for ten eggs! Here I saw a six-pack for nearly eight.
Your hometown looks lovely by the water. Do the rivers/canals act as streets?

Church, can't remember the name of

Touring Florence

Ponte Vecchio - the oldest bridge in Florence, lined with jewelry shops

The river Arno

Basilica of Santa Cruce

Outside Florence

Looking over Florence

The Vineyard Restaurant

The winery

The vats

The Arno at night

Basilica of Santa Maria Novella

A couple screenshots of a video I took of the parade

 

[Evadig]

I have news...but first let me wrap up the Rome trip. This is Day Ten. I woke up that morning with a bad sore throat. It was hard to talk, but I took some peppermints that I'd brought along. Why, I can't remember, but they helped ease the pain. Most of us went to church, and then we collected our luggage, hopped on the bus, and headed toward the airport.

Security was nothing like America. You did not have to take your shoes off, only put everything onto the trays and then pass through a metal detector. It was a much better experience.

After a short ride we arrived on the tarmac and boarded the plane in the open air, like in the old days. That was very interesting, and I wish we could do that here. The flight to Frankfurt, Germany was awful. My ears would not pop and the pressure was so great I wanted to cry. To make matters worse (or so it seemed) Jenny happened to be sitting right beside me and did not notice my distress.

We finally landed, and immediately we had to rush across the airport to catch our next flight. I forgot to keep an eye open for the rest of the group, and finally arrived at the gate only to spend the next few minutes wondering if they had all managed to arrive. They must have, because we boarded without a hitch. Jenny gave me a prescription decongestant which helped tremendously when we took off.

The flight back to America was fairly uneventful. We did fly right over England and Ireland. That was fun. You know the old WWI song It's a long way to Tipperary? Well, we flew right over Tipperary...and Dublin, and County Cork, and all the other places I've read about so much. We flew over Newfoundland; there was a lot of ice and snow.

And then I looked down and saw the Navy base at Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and I knew we were back in the states. It was good to be back in America. There was a lady from our group sitting behind me; it was funny pointing out to her from the air all the places I knew so well: Concord, Manchester, Springfield (MA), West Point, Harrisburg. A businessman in front of me got quite interested and started peering out the window as well.

As we began to descend, my ears began to hurt again, and the pain this time was worse than anything I have ever experienced. There was nothing I could do to alleviate it. The pressure buildup was so bad I just sat staring out the window, trying not to cry again, trying to concentrate on the land, and praying for help. By the time we'd landed, the pain had finally lessened, but I had gone nearly deaf. The people talking around me were just faint sounds.

A parishioner from our church came to pick us up in a van, and when we had reached the church where our families would pick us up, the deafness had subsided and I could at least hear words. The next morning I convinced my mom to get me some cheap decongestant and soon I was able to hear again. But I was sick for a while. That concludes our Rome trip! I hope to go again sometime to meet the new Pope, but for now, the news...

I think I told you that Tilly was sitting on eight eggs, and that seven died. Not having the heart to throw away the remaining half-developed egg, I let her have it, thinking it would die soon and then I could rehome her to a friend. Well, it hatched sometime last night. It was running around Tilly. I took it away, because Tilly is a devoted incubator but an awful mother. I took Tilly down to my friend, who gave me two chicks. They're Ameracaunas (did I spell that right?), two weeks old. But they seem to get along well with the young'un. Last I checked, they were all snuggled up together. So I ended up having more chicks this year, whether I willed it or no.

First plane from Florence to Frankfurt

Germany

Dinner over the Atlantic (can you believe it...more pasta! On a German airline!)

Newfoundland, I think.

Either Manchester or Concord, NH

Our plane - a double decker!

Farewell, Matilda. We do miss you, but it was for the best.

Baby on top of its older sisters