The Badger's Wedding

My good poker buddy, Patrick "the badger" Osburn, has always been a confirmed bachelor, so when he said that was engaged to his lovely, italian girlfriend, Silvia, I found it a little hard to believe. But the heart has mysterious and unknowable secrets and on a perfect spring day, Patrick and Silvia wed in the Vicenza City Hall in a small, understated affair. :)

The Commune di Vicenza is in a 500 year old palace in the middle of the city with a large, airy inner courtyard.





We waited here until the main matrimonial hall was available. It is quite popular to get married here (you can see why!) so the bookings were very closely scheduled.





After the ceremony we went for a stroll and some photos on the Piazza dei Signori, the main square at the heart of Vicenza.



The reception was at wonderful restaurant called il Castello nestled in the foothills west of the city. The food was delicious; the views were spectacular.

All our best to Patrick and Silvia.

Tanti Auguri!
Mike & Cyn

More Pics!

April Cooking Class at M&B's

We'd been enjoying going to other peoples cooking classes so much, that we decided to organize our own. The irrepressible chef Mauro and his always classy wife Bari organized a wonderful spring menu for us and even helped celebrate Cyn's birthday.

Al pays close attention as Chef Mauro strains the sauce

Assembling the little rabbit legs




We really enjoyed the results!

Good Times!

More Pics.

Ciao, Mike

Mauro & Bari's - The Fish Menu

You'll all know how much we love Mauro & Bari; the spunky chef and sommelier proprietors of our favorite restaurant in all of Italy, Trattoria all'Angelo. In January we were invited to a class organized by our good friends Ann and Roland. The menu theme was focused around fish, specifically dover sole and sea bass.

Mauro is a hands-on kind of guy, so we were definitely going to get a little dirty on this one!

Mauro demonstrates how to filet the sole

Ann tries to emulate his technique without gagging!

...Fish heads, fish heads, eat them up! YUM!

Cleaning the fish... I try to emulate Mauro's technique without gagging! Cynthia was a total pro at gutting the fish. It must be the nurse in her. If you ever need your lungs ripped out and a knife to cut you from anus to chin, y'know who to call.

Want to improve your cooking? Add Booze!

The food tasted a LOT better than it looked! So good I forgot to take pictures of it. Oops!

:)
M

That's Amore!

In Napoli, where love is king,
When boy meets girl,
Here's what they say!

Our great friends Sandy and Reggie moved from Vicenza to Naples it was a truly sad day for us. But it gave us an unequaled opportunity to visit them down in old Napoli! Reggie and Sandy live in a quaint little town about 30 minutes north of Naples called Castelvolturno. We had heard a lot of stories about the crime and decay that plagues the areas south of Rome, and I'm sad to report that a lot of the stories are true. However this area of Italy has such a unique and vibrant flavor we found ourselves swept away by the whole thing... well not so swept away that we left our valuables unattended, but you get my point.





On one of our excursions we stopped at Sorbillo for the real deal Napolitano Pizza!


But by far the highlight of the trip was the day we spent cruising down the Amalfi Coast. It was a gorgeous day with great weather. Too bad everyone had the same idea as us, and a traffic jam of beach-goers, sight-seers, and impatient locals quickly formed!


The Amalfi Coast line has several little small towns perched precariously on steep, ocean-facing cliffs. Our first stop was the little town of Vietri Sul Mare which is renowned for their intricately painted ceramics.




For lunch we enjoyed the Sea King's Feast at Ristorante d' Nettuno in the town of Maiori!




And then there was Amalfi!
Renato Fucini said of Amalfi
On the day of Judgement,
for the people of Amalfi
that go to heaven,
It will be a day
like all the others...






After Amalfi came Positano bathed in luxurious evening light.




By the time we made it to Sorrento, all the good light was gone, and we were exhausted. We can't wait to go back to see our friends!

Check out more Pics!

Ciao!
M & C

Merry Xmas and Happy New Year - 2010-2011

Landstuhl, Germany and Heidelburg Castle

Another great catch-up Post!

In November 2010, I had to go to what Cyn ironically calls 'the mothership', Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany. I was there for two great weeks for a training class on our new phone system.

It was November when we were there, and Germany hadn't had their first snows yet. All of the incredibly, fiery autmn leaves were still on the bough. We stayed at a little hotel called the Ohlmuhle (the Oil Mill), that had a long rich history, but it was at the end of the narrowest little street!

As it turns out Landstuhl, Germany is a pretty humdrum little town, although we did enjoy some REALLY good beer!



Just a 90 minute drive away from Landstuhl is Heidelburg, Germany and its beautiful castle ruins. We enjoyed the breathtaking views of the city and river, and I had never seen such brilliantly colored foliage.

Wanna check out more pics?
Go here!

Auf Wedersehn!
M

Celebrating the New Health Center

The large crowd of over 100 Italian and U.S. military and civilian community members applauded as the yellow ribbon was snipped to mark the grand opening of the new US Army Health Center, Vicenza. The sunny October 7th morning was appreciated as the event was held outdoors in front of the new facility that consolidated both the medical and dental services that were previously housed on opposite sides of the army base in 1960’s era buildings. Several senior military officers were in attendance including General Carter Ham, US Army Europe commanding general. The health center is beautiful decorated in an Italian motif and is vastly larger and more modern than the previous clinics.

The building was completed after three years of construction from Italian and German companies. We were able to watch it evolve as we arrived May 2008.

What that day marked for me was that I would finally get my husband back after an exhausting 6 months of intense 12-14 hour days and working most weekends. One of his key duties in the Information Technology Department was to support the technology initiatives for the new clinic. He and his team did an outstanding job and Michael was acknowledged by his commander, COL Armstrong and other officers. The Commander called him her “rock star.” He made quite an impression with his leadership and effective delivery of all the complex and detailed projects involved with the implementation of the $52 million (your tax dollars) new clinic.

In honor of the grand opening I produced a 14 minute video on the history and the development of the new health center. It was a huge success and was played during the celebration. Commander Armstrong was thrilled and cries every time she watches it as she is filled with pride and with satisfaction as it will become her legacy. The video is also played during orientation for new employees at the clinic. Mr. Ornellas ain’t the only one that gots some game.

-Cynthia

Enjoy the video!