Wedding Day is coming!

The day of our wedding is close! Very close!
After that we are going to take some pictures and then have some food and fun with our family and a few friends. We will post pictures of the big day, as many of you have already requested.

The following day we are planning to file immigration papers. It's the way everyone should start their honeymoon! Then we will and leave for a short honeymoon at Donner Lake.

We are planning a bigger reception on Februrary 5th, 2011 at the Annex in Menlo Park so we will be able to have more people and hopefully less stress. That being said, save the date now and we will be sending announcements/invites out after the honeymoon.

For those that have been asking...we are registered. You can follow the link below to see our gift registry for William-Sonoma and Amazon. All the items have been moved to Amazon. Yes! Amazon sells a lot more than books!

You can shop online on Amazon.

Or if you are more inclined to go in a real shop, you can go to a William-Sonoma store close to you.

This link gives you links to all the places where we are registered.

In lieu of or in conjunction with a traditional gift we also appreciate Green Card Fund donations. You can do it by simply clicking the Donate button on the left. This is actually our largest wedding expense believe it or not.

Firenze

Chris Finally arrived in Italy 24 hours after me. Even though his parents had been very welcoming and we were communicating ok with what very little Italian I knew, it was a great relief to have him there. He soon took me up to a local spot close to where he grew up to see Firenze (Florence) at sunset. He told me that he thought I liked him even better in Italy. I mean come on! You are separated from your love and have to travel to his native country alone, where you barely speak any of the language, and then he arrives and takes you to a quaint spot that overlooks Florence! It was romantic and I do like him;-)Can you make out the duomo? It was pretty smoky so the picture aren't the clearest.
Bellisimo! Can you believe I was here? Sometimes my life sounds fake.


Overlooking Florence.

Outside the Uffizi where we had a personal tour from one of Chris' friends who works as a guide. We saw amazing works of art like Botticelli's The Birth of Venus and La Primevera, Michelangelo's The Holy Family, Parmigianino's Madonna of the Long Neck...and tons of others. It was unreal to see them in person. By the way, once again if you go in off season there are no lines.
Chris and I take a stroll over the Arno and to Ponte Vecchio, the only bridge not destroyed in World War II that spans the famous river in Florence.

I'm really here!

My first gellato in Italia. It was delish!

Firenze by night.

Roma

 A year ago today I was in Italy.  Mmmm good memories.  My first day in the country was an adventure to be sure.  I couldn't let Roma go unexplored just because I ended being there by myself!  No, it was my only opportunity to spend some real time in the city and I took advantage of it.  Here are just a few shots of a slice of the amazing sites I had an privilege to see that day.
This picture was actually not taken in Rome, but it is one of my favorites because it just makes us Americans say, "Are you kidding me?"  I mean, doesn't this look like a movie set?  It was just a little shop I passed as we strolled through a town.

 Il Colloseo.  This was the first site I stopped at and it was surreal to be there!

 When my sister Michelle saw this picture she exclaimed, "This looks so different from my picture taken in the summertime.  It is like Where's Waldo to find me in mine."  These are the advantages to going in off season.  To get this shot I actually spoke in Italian to a local family of three sisters and mom visiting the fountain.  I told them I had three sisters at home in America.
I must say the Trevi Fountain was a surprise favorite for me in Rome.  I exited the bus and walked down a quaint street following the sound of water.  Suddenly the narrow road opens up to this sight of sparkling, flowing water.  It was simply beautiful.  Pictures really don't do it justice and I was surprised how much I loved this little spot of Roma.

 San Pietro.  It was such a HUGE church.  This is a place I must go back and spend some time in.  There were absolutely no lines, which was awesome, but I was so pressed for time I didn't get to see the Sistine Chapel.  Next time.  I had to at least see the Pieta, which I did.  Michaelangelo was amazing.

So, this was the double decker tour bus I took around the city.  Yes, I was the only passenger on the bus.  The bottom floor was also empty but for the tour guides.  It had been raining when I arrived in the city, but the sun came out and I enjoyed a dry sightseeing trip.