Cannons, keyholes and medals

It was pouring rain when we woke up this morning, but we were optimistic it would clear up -- if yesterday was any indication, we'd have another four seasons of weather today. As such, I went to the store to purchase picnic provisions for today's outing.

We planned to hit a few fun spots for the kids on today's giro. We arrived at our first stop just in time. We made it to Garibaldi Square at the top of the Gianicolo just before noon. The kids had no idea why we were rushing; for them it was a surprise. But when they peered over the wall and looked down a level, they saw the howitzer cannon. And, a few minutes later, the ceremony commenced, the military personnel counted down, and the cannon was fired. The cannon is wheeled out every day and (a blank is) fired to mark mezzogiorno. The kids loved it.

Then, we got back in the car and drove across the Tevere to Aventino. In fact, we passed the Stadium and the Terme di Caracalla where we'd spent part of yesterday. We drove up to the Chiesa di Santa Sabina and parked. Just next door is the Parco Savello, where we enjoyed our picnic lunch in an orange tree grove. We probably would have enjoyed it even more without the pigeons. But I'm not speaking for Olivia and Avery -- they loved the pigeons, wanted to feed them, and then chase them around! We also watched as two sets of brides and grooms had their wedding photos taken.

After lunch, we walked down the road to the Piazza dei Cavalieri di Malta to show the kids the secret keyhole. Anytime Avery spies St. Peter's, he is happy, and this view of the cupola was no exception.

The outing was a success, but it was time to return home and get ready for swimming. Charlotte had practice and Olivia had a meet. The swim meet was held specifically for all the kids who do not compete at the team level, but who take lessons twice a week at AquAniene. Today, only kids born in 2002, 2003 and 2004 would be competing; and they all would be swimming 25 meters back stroke. It really gives you an idea of how large the swim program is when the entire set of on-deck bleachers are filled with just this sub-set of swimmers.

They really did a nice job with this meet. Each heat was escorted behind the blocks. Each kid's name was announced. Each athlete received a medal at the conclusion of their race. The kids were professionally photographed behind the blocks and then again after their race. They were then paraded back to the starting end, while smiling and waving to all their fans (their parents). By making such a production out of it, the kids really felt very happy about their swimming achievement. And at this age, that was really cute!

Tonight, we hosted a dinner party at our villa. We'd been waiting all year to start having friends over to eat dinners out in our lovely, private garden, and now the weather is not cooperating. While it dried up from the morning shower, it was too cool to eat out after the sun set. So, we had our apertivo and antipasti outside, and then moved inside for the main course.

I made a cocktail concoction of absolute vodka, tonic, and fresh, blood orange juice, garnished with a slice of orange. Josh was skeptical, but it was a big hit. The six of us quietly went through three pitchers! Morris was in the kitchen cooking his famous chicken curry for dinner, but with the apertivo we had some Italian antipasti including prosciutto melone and fiore di zucca. The girls sat outside with us and joined in (the eating) while we had our appetizers. Later, Charlotte would put Avery to bed. But Olivia stayed up late and even served us our dessert: fresh strawberries with lemon gelato. It was almost midnight by the time our guests departed but it had been a great evening.