An amazing week in the Valley of Aosta

August is a major holiday month in Italy so Matt had a full week off of work.  It was a difficult decision on where to go since...well....we live in Italy!  Everything here is beautiful so it can be a little overwhelming.  Yeah, I know, you feel so bad for us. :-)  We talked with a new friend, Luca, who owns a home in Aosta Valley in a tiny town called Villaresson and an apartment in La Thuile. Luca had an opening for us to rent it again so that made our decision easy.  We met Luca when our friends Jimmy and Erica and my sister in law, Gabrielle, were here and we rented his house through AirB&B.  We fell in love with the house and I think Matt had a serious man crush on Luca (Nuclear Engineer, rescue helicopter pilot, certified mountain guide, how can you not have a man crush on him?! He is really nice and yes he does exist).  Luca and his wife Sabrina are really sweet and welcoming and their 400 year old home is beautiful and has a waterfall directly under it.

So we loaded up the car, Sasha, and our gear for 1 week and took off West!  The first day we settled in, had a nice dinner, and prepared for our 15 mile hike the next day with Luca.  He offered to be our guide for the day just because he wanted to show off his beautiful countryside.  We enjoyed practicing our Italian and taking in the scenery.

The next morning we woke up and headed out for our 15 mile hike and rock climbing adventure with Luca in La Thuile.  He spent the entire day with us and would not take a penny for this adventure.  During our hike we learned he was moving to Hawaii 2 days after this hike to teach helicopter courses!  Also, he built most of the trail we were heading on and it took him 1 year!

Luca and I taking a break

White Water Rafting in Morgex with Totem Adventures
The next day we went on a white water adventure in the town of Morgex.  It was a blast!

Terme and panaromic hike in Pre-Saint Didier
In case you are ever in the area, I highly recommend checking out the QC thermal spa!

Right outside the spa you can hop onto a trail to hike up and get a panoramic view of the area.  You can see the platform you hike to in the upper right hand corner of this picture:

 Here is the view of the platform:

Once in a while I can get a picture of my beautiful girl....

 View from the platform:

Chamonix/Mt Bianco
Our friends Cindy, David, Kathy, and Darlene joined us in Aosta for a few days.  One of my bucket list items is to go up to Mt. Bianco, but it was rainy and foggy so instead we checked out the town! It didn't disappoint! 

Hike in Planaval
The group decided to go on a nice, day long hike (and yes we can say they climbed a mountain in the alps!).

Cindy, David, Sasha, Me, Matt, and Darlene

David, Sasha, Me, Matt, Darlene, and Kathy

Val Ferret Hike

Please don't read this next part if you can't handle sad stories.  Or just skip the writing and go on to the pictures.  Normally I try to write about the "sunshine" parts of our overseas adventure and leave out the tough parts, but there are some realities of life and this is part of our adventure so I need to write about it.

2600 meters in La Thuille/Thovex
It has taken me almost a month and a half to post these pictures.  This hike is probably the most special to me, because it is probably Sasha's last hike so it has quite a special place in my heart.  As you know, Sasha is my hiking buddy, my best friend, and really she is my kid.  I really used to laugh when people said their dogs were their kids, until Sasha showed up at my door as a lost puppy.  Those sweet, brown eyes pulled me in and didn't let go.  The week after we got back from Aosta, Sasha and I were out for a walk and she just laid down in the middle of the sidewalk and I couldn't get her back up.  I was terrified to say the least.  I got her to the emergency vet and they ran blood tests and they said she had a bulging disc and she needed lots of rest.  I left two days later for the USA for a week long trip to see my parents and I thought it was good timing so Sasha could just rest all day and Matt would take care of her before and after work.  When I got back to Italy, things took a turn and she could barely walk.  The vet thought the disc was bulging more so they did a CT scan to get more details and were planning to operate that day while she was still under.  I remember when the vet walked out and said "Sasha is awake" and in that moment I knew something was terribly wrong.  I don't really remember walking to the Vet's office from the waiting room, my heart was pounding and it seemed like that is all I could hear.  The CT showed a large tumor on her spine that is inoperable.....she is only 7.5 years old with the energy of a puppy.

So here we go, maybe Sasha's last hike.....

We made it to the top

 And then we had a little time for a nap (well it was 8,500 feet after all...).

As of the today, Sasha is looking better.  She is walking on her own right now, eating well, and taking her medicine (with a little peanut butter, of course).

Che questo viaggio sia con buona fortuna!