Our Easter holidays

The Easter holidays gave us all a very well needed break. I had been working a lot and enjoyed the fact that I didn't have to wake up to take Carlotta to school early in the morning. Unfortunately, however, there isn't a school holiday here in Italy without homework. Well, trying not to stress about that too much, we relaxed quite a bit anyway. The holidays started with lovely spring weather and we spent some nice time with the horses.

On Thursday we had an Easter show jumping competition at the riding school. All three of us girls partecipated and got an Easter egg each. Sofia and her friends painted the horses for the competition.

On Friday the lovely weather continued and me and my friend organized a last minute picnic on the riding school fields after our riding lesson. Sofia and her friend rode two small riding school ponies on the field.

On Saturday the whole family drove towards the Adriatic coast to a small village called Russi near Ravenna where Armando was going to run a marathon. The weather got grayer and more rainy, but fortunately it didn't rain all the time. On our way there we stopped in a little town called Faenza. Armando wanted to see the place where he had arrived when he ran the 100 km Passatore run.

We visited Ravenna with its Byzantine churches and beautiful mosaics. There's really a lot to see there. The city belongs to the World Heritage List of UNESCO. After having walked around Ravenna we went to see the church Sant'Apollinare in Classe outside Ravenna. In the evening we had a good dinner at the hotel. Armando went to church and I sat at the hotel restaurant chatting with my children quite a long time before going to bed. That's something we seldome do at home when everyone is busy and tired.

Piazza del Popolo in Ravenna

Dante Alighieri lived his last years in Ravenna and was buried there

Mosaic in Basilica Sant'Apollinare in Classe

We spent Easter Sunday in the amusement park Mirabilandia which was the main attraction here for the younger part of our family. It was too cold for any water attractions and lots of them were still closed, but we spent quite a few hours there anyway. After Mirabilandia there still was some time to go to Ravenna where some of the museums had free entrance for Easter.

Easter Monday was the marathon day. Armando started early in the morning. Carlotta ran the children's run in Russi. She was fast and was among the first 10 of her age class. Then me and the girls went for the 3 km walk-run outside Russi. Daniele stayed in the hotel, because he had to do some homework. On our way back home we stopped in the beautiful medieval village, Brisighella where we had lunch in the piazza before starting our long way back to Rome. We had to wait quite a long time, but it actually said in the menu that it wasn't a place for busy people. We talked with a nice couple at the neighboring table, got some colours to draw on the paper tablecloth and listened to the music that was played on the piazza. There was a pleasant atmosphere and it was nice to sit there in the sun. Even nicer when our food finally arrived. It was worth the wait. Fresh and warm piadina-bread, tasty Parma ham, soft and creamy squacquerone cheese and lasagna.
While Ravenna and its surroundings is very flat and the scenery is quite boring, this part has beautiful hills and there was a stunning view from the tower of Brisighella.

Collage from Tokyo

Here's a collage of some of my photo memories from Tokyo where we went in February.

Turning the clocks to summer time

Turning the clocks to summer time definitely suits me. It has a positive effect on me and I feel I'm waking up a little bit from the winter hibernation I seem to have been in. Yesterday I put on my running shoes after a long long time and decided to start with the running program again. It's so much easier when it doesn't get dark as quickly in the evening. I have gone jogging twice now and Sofia has done it with me. It feels impossible now that I was able to jog for half an hour without interrupting, but maybe I will get there again!

And I also went to the hairdresser's this week with Sofia and it wasn't a day too early. The fact that many people noticed that I had done something to my hair, that I looked different, is a sign of how horrible I looked before going there. I had been working so much in March that I didn't have time even to think about what I put on in the morning and how I looked. Very tired eyes has been my normal look lately.

Last spring I managed to loose some weight following the diet my nutritionist gave to me and jogging three times a week in addition to the horse riding I do all year long. I don't like jogging, but it really works and doesn't take so much time, so I will rally try to start again. During the winter I have gained all the kilos I lost and haven't wanted to go to the nutritionist anymore, but maybe I will start going there again, as well. So, welcome spring!

First flowers on the apricot tree

I haven't had much time for anything else than work and horses lately and have hardly noticed our garden or anything else, but all of a sudden my eyes fell on the apricot tree and I noticed it had started to bloom. Spring is coming! Hooray!

Instagram photos from our trip to Tokyo

We have been to Japan on a marathon trip. Armando won a place in the Tokyo marathon through the lottery, so we booked a trip for the whole family. We left on the 17th of February and arrived there the next day in the evening. Our trip home started on the 22nd in the evening and after a stop in Dubai we finally arrived to Rome on the 23rd. The flights took a long time, but were very comfortable with Emirates Airlines.
Here's a first glimpse of our trip with my instagram photos.

We stopped in Dubai and had a meal at Burger King at the airport

Finally arrived to Japan after two long flights and a stop in Dubai

At Narita airport in Tokyo.

Going to the hotel in Asakusa. We arrived in the evening and it was raining.

View over Tokyo from the Metropolitan Government building

The Shibuya crossing

A street in Shinjuku

Kabuchiko enterteinment district in Shinjuku

Shibuya shopping area

Shinjuku Gyoen Park, a beautiful park in the centre of Tokyo where we had a "bento" lunch (picnic)

The Sensoji temple in Asakusa

Entrance to the Sensoji temple

Japanese restaurant in Odaiba. The orders where made on the tablet screen and the food was sent with a "train". There was sushi, ramen soups and also french fries, so there was something for everyone

Street signs

The Ueno park with many temples and sanctuaries

 

Tokyo skytree evening lights

The marathon expo in Tokyo Big Sight

Odaiba entertainment district

The Yurikamome line going to Odaiba

Chocolate with green tea flavour

Ramen soup dinner in the hotel

The Sensoji temple in the evening

Our last dinner in Tokyo

A day at the hot springs

After a very rainy week it was wonderful to get out to have a bath in the hot springs near Viterbo! I went with the girls and my good friend who is, like me, always ready to have a relaxing get-away, when possible. The hot springs are called Terme di Bagnaccio and they are out in the countryside. You pay a little entrance fee because there is an association who keeps them clean and there are toilets, changing rooms and a coin operated coffee machine. There are 6 pools of different temperatures. The air was very cool, especially when the sun started to go down, so we wouldn't have wanted to come out from the pools at all. Afterwards we had our picknick lunch and a warm coffee before driving back home.