Italian Riviera: Round 2

Out of everywhere we've visited, I think the Italian Riviera is my favorite. We've gone twice now, and if we were staying around another year we would likely go again. It's not just the beaches and the scenery which I love, but the entire cultural experience. I could watch Italians interact forever, and the food! Don't even get me started on the food. It's been weeks and I'm still craving fresh focaccia and pesto. This year we stayed in Lavento, which was extremely family oriented, absolutely gorgeous and a stone's throw away from the other Riviera villages. We went biking, boating, hiking, shopping and of course lounged on the beach. Andrew and I even managed to go out on a date (family was with us and watched the kids). I don't think we've ever had a more relaxing vacation.

As I just mentioned, we took this trip part of my family which included my parents, two sisters, and Jacob... who came as my sister's boyfriend and left as her fiance (more of that later!). In a nutshell the trip was perfection. Maybe someday we'll pick up Italian and retire there. I wish.

Boat ride from Levanto to Riomaggiore, and then hike from Riomaggiore to Manarola.





Bike ride along the coast and beach at Monterosso

Mom/sisters night out. See the couple in the background in the picture below? When my sister turned around the man blew her a kiss (the girlfriend was turned the other way). How can you not love Italians?!

Grandma and Grandpa Willis

We're fresh off of a 5 week stint of hosting Andrew's parents and then part of my family (both for 2 weeks, with a week break between). It was the second visit for both parties, which made it easy since everyone knew the drill and had an idea of what they wanted to see the second time around. We were also able to see some new sights, but also revisit some of our "favorites". It was a little sad seeing some places knowing that it would likely be our last time visiting while living here.

Andrew's parents took advantage of a train deal which gave them unlimited access for 8 days. With that golden ticket, they were able to really dig in and see Switzerland at it's best. We joined them for two of the days- once for a trip to Montreux and Lausanne, and the other to see Rhinefalls.

Rhinefalls