Thoroughly Modern Baby

Joaquin is a thoroughly modern baby. He called me on my cell phone when he woke up from a nap last Sunday. I was in Amy's backyard and he was in the second floor guest bedroom sleeping.

Okay, he didn't call me. But the iPhone called me when he started to make noise. The iPhone has an amazing app (that's application for those not in with know) called Baby Monitor. Since the iPhone has a speaker, the app senses any new sounds above the background noise level and then calls another designated phone number when the baby makes noise. So we leave Daniel's iPhone near Joaquin with Baby Monitor app on and then when he starts to coo or sqwak, I get a call on my cell phone.

So Joaquin calls me when he needs me. It was pretty funny to get a call from him.

I have one wonderful grandmother. My abuelita, Maruja, has her first great grandchild. It is her first boy offspring in almost 35 years. Here she is with my youngest sister Maita, the baby and I.

Il Giro Del Bambino- Stage Four "The Dash"

Daniel and I awake our third morning at Hotel Cecio at 8 a.m. The baby is sleeping contently but we all rouse ourselves so we can catch a 10 a.m. train from La Spezia to Rome. The night before we forgot to check the train schedule for Corniglia to La Spezia. So we hope for the best.

By the time we hit the stairs for our third (fourth?) descent, it is nine a.m. This time I have the baby on my back and Daniel has the heavy backpack with all our things. We hurry down the steps knowing we are cutting it close. We finish the stairs and start the 300 meter long straightaway to the train station. I swear I hear the chime that indicates trains a-coming in stations in Europe. I start to walk rapidly. Then we definitely hear the rattle of an approaching train. The station is still 200 hundred meters away. We begin to run in earnest. Me with the baby on my back and Daniel with a 50+ pound backpack. A light drizzle has started. We run as fast as possible. Amazing, we arrive at the platform as the train is opening its doors. Out of breath I grab a metal handrail and pull myself aboard. My chest is heaving as we pick a seat. It was like a scene out of a movie, running for a moving train. What Joaquin thinks, I dont know.
It is definitely the sprint at the end of the Giro.
We sprinted the length of the pavement sidewalk on the left. Full length not pictured.

Two trains and a few hours later we are back in Rome.

Il Giro Del Bambino- Stage Three

Stage 3:Corneglia to RioMaggiore, Pisa for sunshine

The next morning thunder rolled over the coastal mountains. My new perspective as Mama decided we would not take the baby on another long hike in the rain. Perhaps the I was just too tired as well. So after some indecision, we make a plan to do the short 20 minute flat hikes to the villages south and then take the train to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

The morning hike was quite lovely. Daniel descends the 382 stairs with Joaquin on sore legs. After the stairs the hike was a smooth path low along the cliffs to Manarola. The sounds of the ocean waves put Joaquin to sleep in his backpack.

Cable bridge over a stream bed.

An easy hour passed to the next village. Daniel and I bought a square of potato-rosemary focaccia.


At Manarola, the trail turned into a paved walking path. The foot traffic on the trail increased and it began to feel a bit more like Disney Land. We saw several toddlers but no little babes like ours. He did get some smiles from the fluttering Italians hikers. We easily walked the remaining twenty minutes to RioMaggiore. RioMaggiore lacked the charm of the previous towns. Perhaps it was overshadowed by the large welcome center for Cinque Terre. I nursed the baby on a quiet bench and we were off to the train station for La Spezia.

From La Spezia, we took an hour train to Pisa. As we traveled south, the sky cleared and sun appeared. In Pisa, it was a warm, sunny day. Pisa is a small walled city with a river in the center. The major sites of the duomo and tower were a short walk away. I saw so many bicycles along the way. Even better the main street lined with covered archways- loggias, was for foot and bicycle traffic only.

The Tower of Pisa leans quiet impressively. It was every thing I expected from all the cartoons that featured the tower in my childhood. The facade is blindingly white. The original ivory marble has been replaced over the years with a snow white marble. From the train I had seen quarries in the mountains and large yards adjacent the train tracks with granite boulders.

Daniel, Joaquin and I enjoyed the sunshine and the grass surrounding the Duomo. We didnt do much besides gaze at the tower and duomo before we turned back to the train station.

We arrived to Corniglia after dark. Joaquin was exhausted so we put him to bed in our hotel room before supper. As I was soothing the baby to sleep, Daniel ordered a meal at the restaurant downstairs. Just when I was sure Joaquin was truly asleep with white noise playing louding from the iphone at his side, the friendly waiter appeared at my door with a tray. Daniel had ordered us swordfish, french fries, a salad, and walnut torte. All to washed down with delicious house white wine. Half a flight of stairs took us to the rooftop terrace of the hotel. Daniel and I picnicked on the roof with a delicious meal, the fresh ocean air and a contently sleeping baby just a few steps away. I felt very lucky.

Il Giro Del Bambino- Stages One and Two

Daniel, Joaquin and I took a four day journey to Cinque Terre. Cinque Terre is a Unesco World Heritage site consisting of 5 rugged coastal villages that until the last century we reachable only through cliff clinging footpaths. Today a train also takes siteseers to villages in the province of Liguria on the north eastern side of the Italian peninsula. The hikes between villages is a main attraction.

I figured hiking with our 5 month old baby would be a good traveler adventure. Better than trying to do museums and restaurants. So boarded a train for the 4 hour ride to La Spezia.

Joaquin waking from a nap on the train. Ah European train travel.

STAGE 1: ROME to CORNIGLIA

Rome was hot and sunny but the forecast for Cinque Terre predicted rainstorms. Hiking in a foreign country, with a baby, in the rain. This was no ordinary trip. This was IL GIRO DEL BAMBINO (the Tour of the Baby). A few minutes on a regionale train from La Spezia took us to Corniglia, the middle of the five villages.
Corniglia is perched high on the cliffs. With a baby backpack and a backpack of all our things, we climbed into town. Fortunately, we had reservations at the lovely hotel and restaurant Cecio. We smartly ordered the fresh lobster tagliatelle. Daniel pulled out the cosmopolitian skill of neatly extracting the meat from my lobster. It was beyond delicious. Fresh caught from the sea. Matteo from the hotel even held the baby so I could dig into my food. The house wine was fantastic too.



View from the hotel window. Note Joaquin picked up a few Italian hand gestures.

STAGE 2: CORNIGLIA to VERNASSA

The next day we awoke ready to hike. Except that we awoke to rain. Happily to the sound of rain after a week of the diesel motors sputtering in Rome. But rain none-the-less. And being good parents we knew we could not hike without an umbrella. Corniglia is a very small village and after checking the two small stores (of which one was chiuso), we determined their are no umbrellas for sale. Foiled. The morning's challenge was how to get an umbrella. Noon arrives and we were about to take the train back to La Spezia to buy an umbrella. Just then I spot a coven of umbrellas in the corner of the pizzeria. I realize I must ask the owner if we can borrow an umbrella to protect the bambino. I do not like making unusual requests. But stage two must be completed and it has started to drizzle. So I ask in halting Italian to borrow the l'ombrello for il bambino. And the owner says OK. Now with umbrella in hand we take off for the footpath to Vernazza. The path is steep and the stepping stones are slick from the morning rain.

By the time we start Joaquin is ready for a nap. He doesn't settle easily into his carrier, so we stop to nurse and change him on the path.

When the rain begins in earnest, Daniel carries the umbrello to keep sleeping Joaquin dry. I am amazed by how sure-footed Daniel is as he carries our precious cargo.

A few hours later we see Vernazza. I had read Vernazza was the most picturesque of the towns. I am not disappointed. Vernazza appears to grow on a low promontory that jets into the sea. The houses remind me of beautiful sea barnacles and limpets. Even more impressive, the promontory has been carved into a bridge by the sea.

We have lunch in Vernazza. Buy a few souvenirs.






Then walk to the train station to take the train back to Corniglia. At the train station, Joaquin begins to fuss and can not be consoled. By the time we reach Corniglia just minutes away on the train, he is full blown crying. He will not ride in the backpack. Daniel ties on the Moby wrap carrier and puts Joaquin into it under his fleece jacket.
Joaquin falls asleep as Daniel climbs 382 steps up the mountain to the village.

Back at the hotel, Joaquin does sleep but snuggles and plays lovely under the warm blankets with his mama. We are all happy to be warm and dry. Stage 2 completed.

382 steps with baby in the rain.

Joaquin thinks snuggling with mama is great, hiking in the rain- he's not sure.

Favorite things

I often write about my adventures with Joaquin but less about what he is doing day to day. Part of the purpose of this blog is to record the wonder of the first days of Joaquin's life. So this entry is about his favorite things.

Probably my favorite thing about Joaquin, second only to how unbelieveable cute he is, is his laugh. It's a giggle with a few belly coughs. These days I can usually get him to laugh with one his favorite songs like Two Little Kitty Cats, when we get to the part at the end where I touch is nose. He also cracks up when you kiss his neck. I think he is ticklish there. We have been trying to record his laugh and here is our best attempt in video.




I would guess that Joaquin's favorite thing is kicking. He loves to kick anything he can get his feet on. Almost every waking moment, he probes the air with his feet testing if there is any solid object in his reach. When he finds a arm rest or counter, he contently kicks and pushes against it with all his little might.

Joaquin is also crazy about music. Really. Lots of parents say their kid likes music. But for Joaquin, the ultimate soother is a song. His favorite music seems to be reggae and latin rhythms. An observer peaking in on his naps will find him snoozed to One Drop playing on loop. In fact driving through New York City, we discovered he loves Romantica. It keep him from grousing in his carseat. Joaquin is more soothed by music and songs than by nursing. That's unusual.

For the last two months Joaquin has been fascinated by his hands. This is separate from chewing on them. He is often seen pondering his hand. First it was their basic existance. Then it was touching all the fingers together and staring intently. In Italy he mastered the "Ma che fai" (But what are you doing?) hand gesture. Now he is onto pressing his thumb and forefinger together in the OK sign.

His fourth month of life was probably my favorite so far, along with the first dreamy month. Joaquin became a cheery family member. Always greeting me and Daniel with a big smile.

The food in Italy is delicious. We dined at a roadside restaurant en route to a small hill town outside rome. Really the town of Ceri would make no guidebook compared to the province of Lazio's multitude of sights. But it was a good choice for a baby hike.



Joaquin loves this new baby carrier. Daniel carried it up from the basement the day before we left. The Sherpani carrier was a gift from our friends Roger and Lucy. They found in it a unnamed dumpster in Berkeley, perfectly new minus a small cosmetic tear in the fabric. I didnt think I would really use it. But it is baby transport mode of choice at the moment.


Here is Joaquin in happy baby pose with his Auntie Jaya.


Another few pictures because I think my boys are really cute.