stranded in italy

on our way back to amsterdam before we start our walk, we were scheduled to leave Rome yesterday but the vociferous volcano, Eyjafjallayokull, has made that very difficult for us. airlines are overloaded, trains are fully booked until next week, no rental cars available, a driver to Amsterdam? 2000 Euros! Now that they're flying again, i'm thinking of heading down to Rome airport at 6 am and taking whatever we can get. but that's exactly what they're telling us not to do.
so we have to find another way, in other words: be patient. luckily, we have friends here - a dear friend of mine of about 20 years, John Bird, who lives in part of an old castle in Val d'Orcia in Southern Tuscany. I'll write more about John in my next blog - he is the most wonderful guide and expert on local food, culture and history in this arcadian valley. And you won't believe that two other St Catherine's girls - Ruby and Eva Lowenstein - happen to be nearby in Umbria so we drove over to see them yesterday while we were waiting for the skies to clear. Luna and Rosa loved sharing spontaneous times with their friends and especially having a break from - ?

being stranded is frustrating and there are tens of thousands of us around the world - we can't wait to get back to Amsterdam to see Felipe again and tell him more about our walk and supporters. We'll finalise our gear and prepare to leave for St Jean Pied de Port on the May 1...That is, we won't be missing Queen's Day in Amsterdam on April 30. Luna is going to blog about that.

for your interest, a message written on many Stone Tablets in this area : Val D'Orcia - UNESCO world heritage : The Val d'Orcia is an exceptional reflection of the way the landscape was re-written in pre-renaissance times to reflect the ideals of good governance and to create an aesthetically pleasing picture. Celebrated by painters from the Siennese school, the Val d'Orcia has come to be seen as icon of the landscape which has profoundly influenced the development of landscape thinking.