The Krofts Abroad

Budapest, Hungary

2010-12-02T01:44:00.000-08:00

Turkish baths, Pálinka & Goulash
November 16th - 18th, 2010
Hotel: Opera Garden Hotel & Apartments

Arrive in Budapest, Hungary around 3:30pm where the sky is already beginning to darken
Check into hotel and upgraded to a 2-bedroom suite that we cannot complain about
Since we are staying on the "pest" side of Budapest, we decide to venture over to the "buda" side of the city
Cross the Danube river via the Castle Bridge and cannot believe how wide the river is

Parliament and Castle Bridge we cross over

Expect the weather to be quite cold during our November visit but surprisingly, it is much warmer than anticipated and don't even need a jacket
Once we arrive on the "buda" side, we must climb multiple hills & stairs to arrive to the Castle District where we visit the Faust Wine Cellar
Once at the cellar, we must then climb down 56 stairs to reach our destination - what a journey but the reward is worth it
Greeted to a small cellar that holds up to about 10 people and are given a scroll with our selections for a wine tasting
We select the "Recommendations of our sommelier" that includes 5 wine tastings, pogača, (hungarian scones with cheese on top) and a choice of our last tasting (18 euro/pp)

Faust Wine Cellar

Each wine presented to us is given its background and the host shows us on the map where each wine comes from. He also seems to know at least one member in his family that favors each wine we are tasting
For our last tasting, Jonathan decides to try another red (his favorite) and I opt for the infamous pálinka, fruit flavored brandy
I select the raspberry version and am told to pour a drop on the backside of my hand as it will leave a fresh raspberry scent because it is 100% pure pálinka
While not a fan of brandy, I am glad I tried the drink this area is known for

Our last tasting for the night

Seeing that it is now 8:00pm, we climb up the stairs, down the hills and stairs we climbed up a few hours prior, cross the bridge and make our way back to the "pest" side for a late dinner
On our way we stop to look at the Budapest Castle which is beautifully lit up in the night and gorgeously glowing across the river (see the picture at the beginning of this entry)

Budapest Castle

Stop at this lovely italian restaurant we saw earlier, Trattoria Pomo D'oro where we realize they do not have smoking zones in restaurants as people around us are easily smoking their cigarettes throughout their meals and after
So glad we live in an area that has smoking zones as the smoke filled air makes it difficult for us to enjoy our delicious meal
Throughout dinner, we both realize Budapest has the most amazing fresh mozzarella; even better than Italy!

DAY 2

Enjoy a cozy breakfast at our hotel with these amazing mini cinnamon croissants - I was a fan!
Also noticed a couple we saw at the Faust Wine Cellar the night before (they will make yet another appearance throughout this entry)
After breakfast we head to the Synagogue where we took a tour with a lady who refused to make eye contact with us
The Synagogue is the largest in Europe, 2nd largest in the world after the one in New York City

Largest synagogue in Europe

The tour guide told us that in World War 2, the synagogue was bombed 27 times and used by the Nazis as a horse stable!
In the rear courtyard holds the "Memorial of the Hungarian Jewish Martyrs". Each leaf on the weeping willow represents one of the 400,000 Hungarian Jews that were murdered by the Nazis during World War 2

Memorial of the Hungarian Jewish Martyrs

Stop for a cup of hot chocolate & coffee at a cozy cafe in the Fashion District of Budapest
Noticed that these were not just normal hot drinks you order in a cafe; the barista created pieces of artwork on top of the drinks out of the whipped cream! He said he did it all by hand

Our artistic drinks

Head back to the hotel, to grab our suits & towels to go to the famous Széchenyi Baths that take us about 30 minutes to walk to
After trying about 3 different entrances to get to the place we needed to go, we are given a plastic watch that scans us into the baths and unlocks our cabin so we can change and lock our stuff away - very high tech
The baths area is quite large but once in them, it feels like a warm pool
The one we decided to go in, supposedly the warmest, had old men in their speedos playing chess

Széchenyi Baths

Headed inside to test out the inside baths but they felt even dirtier than the outdoor ones - I know these are the thing to do in Budapest but unfortunately all Jonathan & I could do was think about how germ-y these baths must be...I know, we are getting too old to travel and be adventurous
So, we last about 30 minutes and decide to wash off in our hotel and get ready for dinner

Walk back to the hotel

Once we clean up, we grab a cup of some hot mulled wine, courtesy of our hotel and sit up on our rooftop terrace to unwind a bit before dinner
Hotel recommends Cafe Bouchon, a traditional hungarian cuisine restaurant and we are very pleased with our experience - the food in Budapest was really great!
Jonathan ordered the goulash (hungarian stew) that he really enjoyed and we stop at a couple of bars on the way back to our hotel to enjoy the wine/beer Budapest has to offer
We yet again run into the same couple we saw that wine cellar & at our hotel! We seem to be on the same schedule...

DAY 3

With only a few hours before our flight back to Geneva, we explore more of Budapest during the day.....

Great Market Hall

Old school public transport

Setting up the christmas markets in Budapest

While we were pleasantly surprised by how good the food was in Budapest, we did not find a whole lot to do and not sure I would recommend Budapest to others as a place to travel. To be fair to the city, Jonathan and I are finding it more difficult to enjoy our travels when we found out we will be moving back to Connecticut in January. We had a lot on our mind as far as preparing for the move and we never did get to see Angelina and Brad during their time filming her Bosnian love story she is directing...

Edinburgh, Scotland

2010-11-30T01:11:00.000-08:00

Friendliest town in all of Scotland!

November 6th - November 8th 2010

Hotel: Fraser Suites

We knew that this was going to be a good trip as soon as the very friendly bus driver got out of his bus post to come out and show us the best route to get to our hotel. We did not receive the usual "damn tourist" scowl
Walk up a steep hill where our hotel sat against the clear blue sky we were definitely not expecting in November while in the UK (see Dublin 2009 entry)

Walking up the hill to our hotel

Very pleased with our accommodations; modern and provide us with the infamous Walker shortbread cookies I so pleasantly accepted
Drop off luggage and go to a pub around the corner where tables are filled with groups of friends enjoying a pint and watching the rugby match on the "telly"
Jonathan orders us each a beer and the popular Scottish dish, Haggis, which reminds us both a lot of meatloaf with a bit more spice.

The Haggis Experience

Walk through the streets of Edinburgh , which is a pretty small town. The Royal Mile, the main street is lined with pubs, cafes, christmas shops and cashmere stores

the bagpipe man outside of our hotel

Stop for another drink once the rain starts to come down. It was only a matter of time...
Since the rain does not appear to be letting up anytime soon, we decide to go on the Scotch Whiskey tour, near the Edinburgh Castle
Seated in a whiskey barrel, we are taken through an interactive tour of the whiskey making process

Our guide during the whiskey tour

After the tour, we are able to choose which region we want our tasting of whiskey to come from; Speyside (banana flavor), Highland (vanilla flavor and my choice) , Lowland (more citrus taste) or Islay (very smoky flavor and Jon's choice)
We were then told the proper way of tasting whiskey and taken to the largest collection of scotch whiskey, with over 3,000 bottles

largest whiskey collection in the world

Rain continues to pour through the afternoon and evening when we stop in another pub to watch South Africa vs Ireland in the rugby finals
Neither of us had watched a rugby match and were blown away at how fierce it was! I believe South Africa won by the way
After the Rugby match, we stop at "The Filling Station" which is quite similar to an Applebee's
We are seated across the way from a group of intoxicated 16 year olds who thought it would be funny to throw food around the restaurant, which ends up hitting Jonathan in the head (haha - no brawls occurred, thank goodness!)
The manager eventually kicked out the kids and we enjoyed the rest of the meal, even though at that point we were pretty tired from the day

DAY 2

Eat breakfast at one of the cozy cafe's we passed the day before called "always Sunday"
Meet in front of the corner Starbuck's to start our free walking tour of Edinburgh
Our guide looks like he just came home from a night of drinking whisky but maybe that is how the majority of people who live here look...
However, he proved to be a wonderful guide who was a fascinating story teller
Here are some highlights we saw during the 3 hour tour...

• Edinburgh Castle

• St Giles’ Cathedral

• Mercat Cross
• Greyfriars Kirkyard (cemetery) and Greyfriars Bobby

Since late 1998, Greyfriar's has been the site of unexplained events linked in the popular imagination to the ghost of George Mackenzie, two days after a "vagrant" had broken into his tomb to find shelter. More than 500 attacks had been reported in 2006. Visitors reported being cut, bruised, bitten, scratched and most commonly blacking out. Some complained later of bruises, scratches and gouge-marks on their bodies. Most attacks and feelings of unease occurred in MacKenzie's Black Mausoleum (shown above) and the Covenantors Prison. An exorcist was brought in to perform an exorcism ceremony, but soon claimed that the forces were too overpowering, and feared that they could kill him. A few weeks later, he died of a heart attack

Supposedly, Bobby was a dog who was so devoted to his owner, that when his owner died he laid atop his grave for 14 years until he, himself died. This is his grave where people from all over come to see Bobby and leave him sticks, flowers, dog toys and in some cases tickets to Oktoberfest!

Where J.K Rowling ordered a cup of tea and stayed all day writing the infamous Harry Potter series

After the tour, we had about an hour until the castle closed so we headed over the castle and did a quick 45 minute walk through
The best part of the castle was the views of Edinburgh and seeing the infamous "Stone of Destiny" everyone talks about

us on top of the Edinburgh castle

walking out of the castle

We are cold and hungry, so stop at this cozy little pub called "The Last Drop" that has beer bottles with lit candles dripping wax down the sides of the glass
Enjoy my new favorite drink, Magner's Irish Cider - it tastes like sparking apple cider with alcohol - everyone was drinking it in Edinburgh so I thought I would try. Thumbs up!
After we are warmed up and got a little food and drink, we head to our 7pm Ghost & Ghouls tour that takes us around the streets of Edinburgh and under the streets into the haunted vaults...

Our tour guide, Fiona showing us how thieves were treated back in the day

the most haunted room underground

We were very much surprised by how much we liked Edinburgh! It was small enough for us to easily explore everything in a weekend and had enough to keep us entertained. The people were very friendly and the stories were wildly entertaining. All in all, a wonderful weekend in Edinburgh!

Russin, Switzerland

2010-09-23T02:06:00.000-07:00

Russin Wine Festival
September 18th, 2010

Annual 2-day event when up to 15,000 visitors flock to this tiny winemaking community (pop. 400) to wine taste, buy local food specialties and crafts, and enjoy entertainment that includes live music.

Took a 15 minute train from Geneva, climbed a steep hill in the vineyards to spend 4 hours sampling wine and suisse foods at the Russin Harvest Festival. Came home with a lovely sampling of our own 6 new bottles to add to our collection in the wine cave

Marching Band having some fun

Gymnasts/Dancers performing in the streets

Enjoying the views

Famous Suisse dish: Raclette (potatoes, cheese & onions)

The Vineyards

Venice, Italy

2010-09-19T12:45:00.000-07:00

The end of our Italian Summer...
September 8th - 10th, 2010
Hotel: Alla Vite Dorata

After hearing wonderful reviews on Venice, we decide to take a quick 55 minute flight to the Italian island for a couple of days
When we arrive from Geneva, we walk 10 minutes to the docks to take a boat across the ocean to arrive at the City of Venice
Check into our hotel and get the only room with a canal side view

The canal outside of our hotel

Set out to walk around the city as we had no plan for the 2 day visit
Walk through a maze of different alleyways lined with stores filled with beautiful Murano glass, jewelry and beautiful venetian masks
Make our way to St Mark's Square and see the infamous pigeons flocking around, tourists offering them food in exchange to hold them

Pigeons in St. Mark's Square

Jonathan and I had no desire to touch or hold any of the pigeons but it was interesting to watch how people were so excited to see the 'famous venetian pigeons'

St. Mark's Square

Stop for a drink before dinner that is served with potato chips; this seems to be the norm when you order drinks in Italy - they always bring you a basket of chips
Continue our walk around the city, contemplating if we should fork over the 100 euro to take a gondola ride but decide against it as the few we see, the people look bored and the gondola drivers are on their cell phones. I was hoping for a romantic serenade

Gondolas

Decide to stop for dinner on a canal where we see plenty of gondola's passing by which gives us the feel that we were on one
During dinner a lovely Italian man comes over and plays the most beautiful Italian music throughout the meal; nothing compares to eating pasta, drinking wine and listening to romantic Italian music at a canal side restaurant covered in mini, twinkling gold lights
Jonathan and I stop to get me some Oreo gelato and Jonathan sees a sign for 1 euro cheeseburgers at McDonald's. Embarrassingly, we go into McDonald's with all the other American tourists and he is happier than ever to have his cheeseburgers
On our way home, stop by a wine and tapas bar and sit outside to take in the day and enjoy the romantic evening
Finish the night up by watching a little US Open and crash listening to the streaming canal outside our window
The next morning we have breakfast out on the patio with warm, fresh croissants and steaming hot coffee and hot chocolate

Breakfast at our hotel

Attempt to find our way back to St Mark's Basilica as we have a reservation at 10:45am to enter
It is free to enter the basilica but we paid extra so we did not have to wait in line, which is a good thing as the square began to flood as so did the Basilica which they closed down about an hour after we went through

Flooding at St. Mark's

Took us about 10 minutes to go through the Basilica which was quite ornate and tells the story of Adam and Eve and Noah's Arc on the ceilings
The waiter's at the restaurants in St Mark's Square were wearing rain boots because during high tide the square becomes flooded which we witnessed shortly after our visit to the basilica
Each restaurant also had dueling orchestra's across from each other that played beautifully. My brother and Grandpa Selness would have loved the music that they played
Spend the rest of the day walking around a lot as Venice is so much bigger than we imagined

View from Rialto Bridge

Stopped in just about every Murano glass shop, attempting to find the perfect table centerpiece
Finally find it in our 20th shop and celebrate with a glass of wine and bruschetta
Continue our walk on the pier; sit and watch the lightning cloud forming over the water and order champagne and chips

Lightning cloud on the pier

Calmness of the water and sky, craziness of the people loading and unloading off the dock and the sense of being completely far away from everything is the best way to describe the moment
As the lightning clouds moves over us and the night sky takes over, we stroll back towards the restaurant our lovely hostess recommended
Delicious food, wine and full stomachs help us end the night and head to bed early as we have an early morning boat to take back to the airport and fly back to Geneva in time for the weekend

Cinque Terre, Italy

2010-08-25T07:30:00.000-07:00

Happy 2nd Anniversary!
July 24th - July 26th, 2010
Villa Sofia in Vernazza, Italy

Take an 1.5 hour flight from Geneva to Florence, Italy on FlyBaboo, a Swiss based airline
Treated to OJ, muffins, Fly Baboo's signature piece of chocolate and perfume scented hand towels before we land (the Swiss know how to fly!)
Drop off our luggage at the train station for the day in Florence and venture out into the hot Italian summer
Walk down the river with a clear, blue sky on our backs and enjoy the views of the Italian morning

Continue our walk around the Piazza della Signoria, seeing a replica of Micheangelo's infamous David statue, Fountain of Neptune, and Ufizi Art gallery
Stop at a recommended winery, Cantinetta dei Verrazzano where we enjoy a few wines, bruschetta, mozzarella and focaccia!

Lunchtime in Florence, Italy

The food in Florence

After some extravagant window shopping and walking around the Duomo, we don't have much time as our train leaves at 2:00 towards Cinque Terre
Italy is no Switzerland, so our train is late and we miss our connecting train. Not quite sure what we are doing, we somehow make it to Vernazza (the town we are staying in) only an hour later than planned

On the train arriving in Vernazza, Cinque Terre Italy

Giuliano, the host of the place we are staying in greets us and guides us up many a stairs to finally reach our Villa Sofia!
Cozy room with our own private balcony overlooking the sea is just the reason I booked the place

Cheers to Vernazza, on our private balcony

Make our way down to the shores of Vernazza so we can catch the beautiful sunset
Find a table overlooking the crashing waves and orange and pink skies and enjoy a real Italian meal
11pm, feels like 8, I can ever so clearly see the North Star from our terrace
When I look over a bit more I see the Big Dipper and then a shooting star flies through the air right above us. I have never seen a shooting star and what better place and moment to see one then right then with my husband and a bottle of wine at midnight in Italy, celebrating our 2 years of married life!

Day 2

Wake up bright and early as we have a goal to hike between all 5 lands today!
Stop at a local cafe for eggs and toast and begin our journey through the hills of Cinque Terre
Our first hike is from Vernazza (where we are staying) to Monterosso (Vernazza - Monterosso: 3,8 km. Completion time: h 2,00.)
This hike is one of the hardest of the hikes but starting at 9am, it is still fairly cool and we are quite motivated...well, Jonathan is and I really have no choice unless I want to be left behind

View of Vernazza climbing up to Monterosso

In Monterosso, we walk (well, I barely can walk at this point) along the beach, stop for a Pina Colada at this cute lil beach bar blasting Toby Keith (because what else would you drink and listen to on a beach in Italy?!)

Monterosso Beach

Pina Colada Time

Decide to take the train to Riomaggiore, the beginning of the hike and make our way back through the other 3 trails until we reach Vernazza
Stop for lunch at Bar & Vini right over the ocean and get the perfect spot in the shade and order some sardines (Jonathan), bruschetta (me) and a glass of wine to get us going for the long hike ahead of us
An older couple next to us must have been thinking the same thing because they were downing tequila shots

At Bar & Vini for lunch

Off on our second hike of the day, Riomaggiore - Manarola: 1,0 km. Completion time: 25 min., which is considered "Lover's Lane" and my favorite hike of the whole trail because it is flat, romantic, and short!

Lover's lane, love locks

Stop in Manarola for a quick swim and sunbathe on the cliffs
I spy my first jelly fish in the water from the cliffs above and I decide to stay on dry land

Manarola

Dry off and continue another difficult stretch from Manarola - Corniglia: 2,8 km. Completion time: h 1,00 and then Corniglia - Vernazza: 3,4 km. Completion time: h 1,45.
The hardest part of this stretch was the 382 stairs we had to climb to get to Corniglia but once we were there we treated ourselves to gelato, so all's good

The 382 stairs we were so fortunate to climb! ugh!

Views from our hike

Finally, arrive back in Vernazza around 4pm, grab a hot, gooey fresh out of the brick oven pizza at one of the Italian pizzeria's and go back to our place to freshen up for dinner
On our way, Jonathan buys me a dress he thought was pretty for our anniversary (year 2 is cotton)
Enjoy a glass of wine on our terrace (we love that thing) and walk around town figuring out where to eat for dinner - they all kind of seem the same really
Decide on a less crowded restaurant near our place that ended up being an excellent choice as I had the most amazing walnut sauce ravioli (they would not give me the recipe, bummer) and Jonathan ordered the seafood spaghetti that was supposed to be for two people but he ate it all on his own!
Walk down to the beach and watch the sunset

Happy 2 Year Anniversary!

Last night in Vernazza

Berlin, Germany

2010-07-28T13:30:00.000-07:00

Bratwursts, Beer and Bros

July 15th - 18th, 2010

Hotel: Michelberger

by Jonathan Kroft

This is not going to be as good as Natalie's, but I will try.....I took EasyJet to Berlin. The plan was to get into the city at about 8, but the flights were late, so I began sampling fine German brewing while I waited and chatted to Natalie on the telephone. Finally, I arrived, but the adventure to our alternative hotel, the Michelberger, had just began. With most German words having a minimum of 17 letters, directions were not easy, and I stayed on the train from the airport to the city far too long. Eventually the train stopped, and the lights went out, and an old man looked at me and, probably, told me I was at the end of the line. So I stopped at the station McDonalds, and, after hitting the Euro Value Menu, got directions to my hotel, which was on the opposite side of the city. I successfully navigated 3 tram transfers to get to the hotel. Waiting for Camden, I went next door to the Chinese restaraunt and fell in love with 0.5L of German beer for 1 euro. Camden arrived about 4 Euros later, and below is a sample of Berlin.

This is Potsdamer Platz, the old cross roads of the city. Once a bustling hot stop, it is now a newly built up part of the city. You can see the beautiful architecture in Berlin here. But you will also notice that....the city appears EMPTY! We couldn't find a crowd anywhere in this city, it was as if there was far too much city for the people who lived here. And what more? In the above picture, all the buildings are completely empty. Yes, that is right, there are still stickers on the windows. The city re-constructed this area to try to revive the old hot spot, it was only partially successful. And this just added even more to the city's 60 billion Euro debt.

We took the Fat Tire bike tour, riding around the city on big bicycles. One stop was the Brandenburg Gate, seen above, and featured on the back of the Euro coin.

This is the Holocaust memorial. It takes up an entire city block. It is over 2,000 concrete blocks or varying heights. The architect did not reveal what the meaning was, only saying it was not intended to be tomb stones. One can walk through the blocks. As one enters, he feels as if he is walking into a swimming pool. The pillars are only knee high. As you walk they get higher. And then, all of a sudden, as if you walk off into the deep end too quickly, you are engulfed by the pillars. It is silent, you see no one around you (even though there are thousands of people in the memorial all around you). You can not see beyond the next corner, which is just a few feet ahead of you. The meaning is opening to your own interpretation.

Berlin has become a growing art scene, particularly for young artists. The art community ranges from beautiful galleries, to the above shanty town.

Berlin is indeed the home of the pilsner. And they are very proud of their beers. There are few alcohol laws it seems, and every corner store is at least half beer, and has at least 30 to 40 beers to chose from, with each 0.5 liter bottle costing about 1 euro. Above is a picture of one of the finer beer stores in the world.

Segments of the Berlin wall still remain. This is the longest stretch left, which is several kilometers, and has been completely painted. Where the wall does not remain, it is marked out in the street. While the wall is not as intimidating as one imagines (it is maybe 2 feet thick, and 15 feet high), it was only part of the physical divide. 'No man's land' was on either side of the wall, which was a wide gravel swath, making it easy to spot and shoot those who escaped. The wall suddenly went up over night, and families were separated for years. Many escape attempts (tunneling, hot air ballooning, etc) were attempted, and some successful.

Its a gravel parking lot in a residential area. There are no signs, commemorations, museums, anything. Below the parking lot is Hitler's bunker, where he lived his final days and killed himself. Berlin is very ashamed of its past, and this can be clearly seen in a number of ways, including the above.

This is Check Point Charlie, one of the several guarded gates between the East and the West sides of the city, and the first place to collapse in 1989 which the melt down of the divide.

Above is another example of the wall. To the right (out of sight), are the old Third Reich Government buildings, still standing.

You can see a tower in the distances (and front and center below). This is the TV Tower, built by the Communists to impress the West as an engineering feat. Construction started, but it was soon realized that not enough talented labor remained in the East, and Swedish workers were smuggled in to complete the building. The East built this tower, and denounced the West and, among many other things, the Catholic Church. However, a problem emerged. When the sun hit the top of the tower, which was a large brass dome, a large cross was reflected (you can vaguely see this in the lower photo, though it is very apparent in person). This was a problem for the Communists. Many treatments were attempted on the brass, but the cross would not go away. So after much thought, the Communist party announced that it was not a cross, but instead a PLUS sign, symbolizing that the Communists would keep ADDING to their success. Clever.

And then, sadly, it was time for Camden and I to part. Camden was going to Scotland, and I was headed to work (!). We both look forward to running back 1 Euro beer nights again soon.

Lyon, France

2010-07-18T02:25:00.000-07:00

Day Trip under 100 euro
(including round trip train ticket)
July 16th, 2010

Lyon, France

Easily make my way to the France sector (no security checks) of the Geneva train station and board the 10:58 air conditioned train to Lyon, France (the only thing air conditioned in europe)
Arrive to Lyon around 1pm and stop at Subway (the restaurant) just outside the train station. Subway lady comments how good my french is and I feel that Lyon is going to be a good day

Lunchtime in Lyon

After getting directions and map from a nearby hotel, I make my way down Cours Layfeyette (main street in Lyon) to the center of town
On the way, big bold "Soldes!" ('sale' in french) call out to me and I am forced to stop in some of the shops to check out the deals
After a few purchases, I am on my way to find..something. Not really sure. This is the one trip I did not do any research. I just wanted to travel on my own and explore
As I am walking down the street, a french guy tells me I am ''C'est elegante et charmante'. Ooh, well 'Merci!'. Do these people get paid to give tourists compliments?
So strutting down the streets of Lyon looking as 'elegante et charmante' as I can with my Zara plastic bag and ripped Longchamp purse, I stop at the Cathédrale Saint-Jean

Cathedral Saint-Jean

Colorful inside for a cathedral

My view from the Cathedral, I can see a rather large basilica. However, I am not unsure of how to reach the top

View of Basilica from Cathedral

I decide to stop in and say hello to the Lyon Tourist Center and while I am there ask for the best way to get to the basilica
Ends up I need to take a cable car to the top of the hill, which I do.
Spend 15 minutes walking around the Basilica of St-Martin-d'Ainay, one of the rare surviving Romanesque basilica-style churches in Lyon, which is covered in gold and royal looking artwork and head back down to catch my train

View from Basilica

I have to say I am quite impressed in myself for being able to find my way around Lyon all on my own
A year ago, I was scared of the New York City subway system and now I am hopping on cable cars, buses, trams and trains throughout Europe
Enjoy a peaceful train ride back into Geneva where I arrive just in time for dinner

I have to say I was quite impressed with Lyon. The people, sites, shopping and food was quite surprising! I would definitely go back at some point to do some more exploring of the Old Town and to test out the cafe's and shops that I did not have the time to visit.

Milan, Italy

2010-07-07T08:05:00.000-07:00

Buon Giorno, Italy!

June 26th - 27th

Hotel Berna Milan

Depart Geneva train station at 7:42am, seated across from a guy who is passed out holding a garbage bag for when he needs to get sick, which he decides to do a couple of times (ugh!)
About to switch seats because we are repulsed but he gets off and all is well
Arrive to Milan at 11:35am after a beautiful train journey of lakes, mountains, cliffs, cows and marble rock. I have never actually seen marble in nature before - just on countertops
Check into our hotel which is 5 minutes from train station and walk a good 30 minutes into the city center, which would have taken shorter if we did not take a wrong turn (not my fault!)
Cannot find a quick restaurant anywhere around Milan so we stop at McDonald's. This McDonald's has an automatic order machine to place your order and pick up your food with the number ticket. How brilliant! I got my usual happy meal order but not only did I get a burger, fries, drink and special prize but an option for fruit as well - I chose pineapple
Arrive to our guided tour of Milan at 2:30pm
It is very hard to get Last Supper tickets unless you order 3 months in advance or you take a tour so we had to do the tour because the direct tickets were sold out
Tour was supposed to be in English but they also added German to the mix. We could not tell when the lady was speaking German or English so Jonathan and I just kind of made up our own tour

Jonathan and his tour gear (he felt cool!)

Since we could not understand our tour guide, we don't know half of what we saw but our first stop was La Scala Opera House, where Jonathan is pictured above
Continuing on the tour we see Leonardo da Vinci's statue hovering over the city on our way to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II: A stunning 19th century covered shopping area consisting of two glass-vaulted arcades at right angles intersecting in an octagon. An important step in the evolution of the modern shopping mall. Prada, Louis Vuitton, Gucci are just some of the names that we pass on our way through this this infamous Milan "mall"

Ceiling of the Galleria

As we exit the Galleria, we are greeted by a large, beautiful marble covered Duomo that screams "Yes, Natalie, you are in Italy!"
To enter the Duomo (the fourth largest church in the world), you must have your shoulders and knees covered as respect to the church - thank goodness I read this prior to our visit so we were well prepared - maybe too prepared as we were sweating through the whole tour

Duomo in Milan

Skinned St. Bartholomew Statue

As interesting, hot and hard to understand the tour was, we finally make it to the Last Supper - the main reason we booked this tour in the first place
We go in groups of 25 as that is the maximum amount of people that can go at a time in 15 minute increments. Supposedly the heat started to effect the painting, so they had to limit the number of people
Jonathan and I are in the first group and I am not sure what I expected but the Last Supper is this huge wall mural. I think I was thinking it was going to be in framed in a similar format to Mona Lisa. Sorry art experts - I am learning here
Either way, what made it even more special to see was that supposedly during World War 2, everything around the "cave" where the Last Supper is held, was bombed and destroyed. Unfortunately, all I could think about during the Last Supper was trying to find the 'secrets' that were held in the painting from the Da Vinci Code book

The Last Supper

After all the walking, my feet were in a much needed change, so we head to the vendors where I buy these 'fashionable' grecian looking sandals (it is what everyone else was wearing) for 10 euro. They looked black when I bought them but somehow in the sun, faded to a respectable navy blue - what did I expect for 10 euro in Milan?! Either way, my feet could breathe and we felt refreshed after a nice cold bottle of Gatorade
Did some shopping but as great as that sounds to do in Milan, it almost makes you feel worse - like you don't belong in these stores. Being surrounded by the most beautiful, fashionable people in the world can make you feel just blah! Either way, I got a new top and decided I need to get a subscription to Vogue
Freshen up a bit back at the hotel and get some amazing pizza (what else?) and red wine at a cute little Italian restaurant
Then, of course, stop for some gelato and walk around Milan to enjoy the cool summer night

Best pizza in Italy (and my new Milan top)!

Next Day - Lake Como

Jump on a 9:00am train to Lake Como for the day. Only about a 30 minute train ride where we meet a nice father, daughter traveling Europe together
Once we arrive to Como, we walk down to the docks to get on a ferry that will take us to Bellagio
Buy our tickets and have 1 minute until the ferry leaves. Unfortunately, we are in such a hurry, we realize we get on the slow speed ferry, not the high speed one. So we end up stopping at every stop on the lake. Good thing it was beautiful and we had a good view

Slow ferry ride from Como to Bellagio

Finally arrive to Bellagio, where we stop for lunch at a small local bistro we had to climb a million, okay maybe 50 stairs to get to
Order a bottle of Prosecco (italian champagne) for lunch because why not, we are Italy? and have a really great lunch - I have yet to be disappointed by our meals so far

Prosecco at lunch in Bellagio

Walk around the charming lake town (reminds us a lot of Mykonos, Greece) searching for my birthday purse Jonathan told me I could pick out
Wander into a small shop where I fall in love with this black, leather purse that is guarded by a sign saying, "Do Not Touch"
Knowing this must be an expensive bag, the owner comes over and asks me if I know Salvatore Ferragamo (the designer of the bag) I look blankly at him while Jonathan and the owner look back at me like I am crazy for not knowing who this guy is. Anyway, bag was over my price limit but I learned something new

Jennifer Aniston in "The Bounty Hunter" w/ Ferragamo Bag

Turns out Jonathan's grandmother was quite the fashionable lady and would buy herself some Ferragamo shoes at the annual Nordstrom sale in Seattle (he was mostly known for his shoe designs) Jonathan said he remembers her taking very good care of those shoes and was so proud of them
Walking away with no purse, we stop at Enoteca Cava Turacciolo, a winery that is recommended to us by Trip Advisor
For 16 euro, we each get to sample a delicious white wine with some prosciutto and bread, and two amazing reds before we head back to catch the high speed ferry back to Como (sigh, I never saw George Clooney!)

The Wine Cave in Bellagio

With new bottle of red wine in hand, we board the ferry back to Como to catch our train back to Milan
Once we arrive in Milan, grab some snacks and get back on the train to Geneva
Get back home around 10pm and fall asleep dreaming of pizza, wine, gelato and Ferragamos

Lake Como, Italy

Interlaken, Switzerland

2010-06-18T07:07:00.000-07:00

The Swiss-German side of Switzerland
June 12th - June 13th
Hotel Rossli

Take 8:10am train from Geneva to Bern (capital of Switzerland) and transfer from Bern to Interlaken. Total train ride is about 2h50min

Breakfast time on the train to Interlaken

Arrive to glooming fog over the lake and mountains, which makes us wonder if we picked the right weekend to go. Interlaken is not really a place you can enjoy indoors

Not able to check into our hotel until 2pm, we check our bags and walk to the main train station to go up to waterfalls
On our way, we notice quite a few punk kids, dressed in black with multiple piercings and wonder if this is the normal crowd to frequent this charming Swiss town - seem a bit out of place
Apparently, the sold out Greenfield Music festival was going on that night with the likes of hard core rock music: Rammstein and The Prodigy...scary!
Either way, we take the train to Lauterbrunnen and jump on a bus to the Trummelbach Falls, a series of ten glacier-waterfalls inside a mountain. These are the the only glacier-waterfalls in Europe inside a mountain and still accessible

Trummelbach Falls

The weather starts to clear up as the day goes on and we notice the water in Interlaken is a beautiful, crystal turquoise. Jonathan says the water is this color from the glaciers it melts from. For those of you that have been to the Riverwalk in San Antonio, TX - it is similar to its water color, but real, natural water

Grab a bratwurst and take the train back to Interlaken
Take a long hike up to a tower of some old ruins and turn back around which takes us about 3 hours to complete

View from the top of the tower

Worn out after our waterfall and hiking adventures, we stop at a charming little Swiss restaurant to unwind until the big match between the USA vs England in the World Cup
Watch the World Cup in the middle of town where a big screen is set up for all to watch with brat, beer and ice cream stands surrounding us

World Cup Viewing: USA vs England

Final Score: 1-1

The majority of the fans are for England but there is one group of guys who show up in t-shirts covered in the american flag and grab the table front and center
Randomly meet a guy from Wellesley, Boston (where Jonathan is from) who is traveling on his own for 3 weeks. He graduated from Wesllesly High in 1992 and started asking Jonathan about people in their town they might know because he thought Jonathan to look around his age (not quite - about 10 years off)
Don't stay for the whole game because we are exhausted. Meander on home through a beautiful sunsetting scene at 9:30pm in Interlaken

9:30pm in Interlaken

Next morning we take off at 10:30am and decide to stop in Bern, the capital of Switzerland for a few hours
Appears to be some sort of race going on in the middle of town, so stop to watch these woman come speeding towards the finish line. A definite motivator for me to start running a bit harder
Last time I was in Bern, I never got to see the bears the town is so infamously known for, so we walk through town to have a meet and greet with the Bern bears
They are so cute and quite friendly - posing for pictures and remaining calm

The Bern Bears

The mom just gave birth to two cubs not too long ago so we got to see them sleeping all cuddled up in the corner
Grab a quick sandwich and salad for the train ride home and get back to Geneva mid afternoon, just in time for a spring rainstorm...that still has not stopped

Bern, capital of Switzerland

The French Riviera

2010-06-08T03:13:00.000-07:00

Birthday Weekend in Côte d'Azur
May 22nd - 26th
Juliette Apartment in Old Town Nice

DAY 1 - NICE

After twisting and turning our way around Old Town in Nice, France we finally arrive at our apartment we rented for the week, romantically named Juliette. Supposedly, two marriage proposals took place here
Venture back into Old Town, towards the beach. Walk up a long flight of stairs to get to the top of Castle Hill, with a view where you can see all of Nice (the picture at the top of this blog is our view from the top)

We made it to the top!

Climb all the way back down and buy a few bottles of wine and champagne at a local shop to indulge in over the next few days of our trip
After our pizza dinner, we walk along the beach and stop to relax and enjoy a bottle of rose wine while watching the sunset

Wine and Sunset with view of Castle Hill

DAY 2 - CANNES

After grabbing some delicious chocolate chip like muffins (the best we ever had) at the award winning Esipuno’s Bakery, we took a train to Cannes to check out the star studded red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival
No celebrity sightings during our time at Cannes, but in all honesty, I don't think we would be able to pick one out unless they were surrounded by paparazzi. We did see quite a few reporters doing live reports over the festival though

63rd Cannes Film Festival

Outside the Cannes Film Festival Hall is a sidewalk that has hand imprints of celebrities that have attended the festival. It just so happens my hands fit perfectly into Sharon Stone's imprint
After getting our red carpet fix, we jump on a boat that takes us over to the Ile Ste-Marguerite, an island 15 minutes off of Cannes
Stop for pizza and wine on a beautiful beach side restaurant and walk all the way up to Fort de l'Ile, where the unlucky man immortalized in The Man in the Iron Mask was imprisoned

View of the Fort we walked up to

The Island

DAY 3 - TOUR OF FRENCH RIVIERA (my birthday)

For my birthday morning breakfast, Jonathan treated me to crepes and coffee at a local cafe. As most who know me, understand my dislike for the taste of coffee, I soon realized this dislike continues...but, hey I tried
Jonathan then surprised me with birthday mimosas and chocolate covered biscuits when we got back to our apartment to prepare for our tour that afternoon

Jump in the van for a tour of the Riviera - including towns: Grasse, Gourdon, Tourettes sur Loup and St Paul de Vence
It is just us, our tour guide and a lady who is a doctor in Saudi Arabia. She was so nice and thought it was funny that people come to Nice to enjoy the sun while she leaves her country to get away from the sun. At the time we were there, it was 50 degrees celsius in Saudi Arabia which translates to 122 degrees fahrenheit. She also has to wear a head dress which I can only imagine how much hotter that makes it!
Start our tour in Grasse, where we stop at a perfume factory to go over how perfume is made and even play a game at the end where we have to guess which scent is what. I got all mine right and Jonathan got 2. He blames his allergies...
Jonathan ends up buying me this beautiful scented perfume (not eau de toilette), Belle de Nuit that they make in the factory and can only purchase in Grasse
Next stop is the village of Gourdon, where we stop for a sandwich and ice cream cone
From this village you can see the towns of Antibes, Cannes and Nice. Supposedly, the German troops set up camp here because they could bomb all the towns from up where Gourdon sat. Awful

Open air restaurant on a cliff in Gourdon

After a rather curvy drive even higher up into the cliffs, we arrive in the quiet town, Tourettes sur Loup, the Violet Village. This is the town that is know for growing the purple flower and even have an annual festival dedicated to the violet. Not much to really see but cute to walk around. We were in these towns on a holiday, so a lot of places were closed

Peek A Boo in Tourettes sur Loup

Onward to the 'Diamond of the Riviera', St Paul de Vence. This small village is known for its art galleries. Each week the galleries change their displays so it is ever changing. Jonathan and I unfortunately do not appreciate artwork as much as we should but could not help but be swept up in all the talented paintings and sculptures peeking at us through the windows
Picasso, Matisse and Mick Jagger have all lived and have been inspired at one point or another in St Paul de Vence

Cemetery in St Paul de Vence

View of St Paul de Vence

Once we arrive back in Nice, Jonathan took me out to the most amazing dinner at a restaurant in Old Town
We then celebrated with a bottle of wine down on the beach and watched the sunset..it was a very wonderful 28th birthday!

Happy 28th Birthday, Natalie

DAY 4 - MONACO

Stop at Emilie's Cookies in Nice for breakfast on our way to the bus station. Overwhelmed by the delicious looking treats we are faced with deciding between, we indulge in two freshly baked chocolate chip cookies and two pear and chocolate chip muffins. As good as it sounds, it was quite the sugar overload and all we wanted to do was take a nice long run after eating it all
However, we had a bus to Eze to catch...
Unfortunately, the bus crashed on its way to the station to pick us up, so it was late and we still had planned to go to Monaco
Skip Eze and jump on a train to Monaco instead. Gorgeous train ride - beautiful beach homes sat on cliffs overlooking the ocean

Monaco - yacht city!

Overwhelmed by the abundance of wealth this city oozes from the gigantic yachts docked while owners spend all day in the casino to the people passing by dressed head to toe in Gucci, we are pleasantly surprised by Monaco
Walking around, you can see leftover pieces from the famous Grand Prix race that took place a week before we arrive. The whole town shuts down and becomes a race track

Monaco Grand Prix

For lunch, we anxiously awaited our visit to the American style restaurant Stars N Bars! The menu consists of chips and salsa, hamburgers, Root Beer floats...which we order all of! However, we are disappointed at the quality of the food. Not sure if we are not used to American food or because the quality was just that bad. Either way, not what we hoped
Take a long stroll to check out the infamous Monte Carlo Casino, which was the inspiration for the James Bond movie, Casino Royale. I have to say, you do feel a bit James Bond in Monaco

Monte Carlo Casino

After a wonderful, sunny day in Monaco we jump on a train back to Nice (about 30 minute ride) and have a quiet dinner, sunburnt and dehydrated
On our last night, we walk around reflecting on our trip and what we hope for ourselves this next year
Take one last walk on the beach where the waves are the most fierce we have seen since we arrive (they did not want us to leave) and say goodnight to Nice and the lovely trip we had

Last sunset in Nice

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

2010-05-21T02:12:00.000-07:00

May Days in Amsterdam

May 1st - May 3rd, 2010

Hotel: Citizen M- Amsterdam City

DAY 1

Check into our trendy hotel, considered the "Trendiest Hotel in the World" by Trip Advisor, which is so out of style but decide when in Amsterdam you gotta go all out, yeah?
Ben is in love with the hotel and I think would have been quite content to spend his whole weekend watching movies and lounging in his fluffy king sized bed

I requested the purple lighting for our hotel - Go K-State!

Regardless, we venture out into the streets of Amsterdam that are filled with garbage and smelling of urine from the night before where over 2 million people celebrated Queen's Day, a major holiday in Amsterdam

So, not a wonderful first impression of the city but by 1pm the city starts to clean up and the sun starts to peek through the clouds so we start feeling more at ease wandering the streets
Meet up with our free Sandemann's Walking Tour that eventually bores us so we leave to attempt to find the Tulip fields. However, during this tour we did spend 2 minutes in the Red Light District and man oh man did Jonathan and Ben suddenly start paying attention! It is quite entertaining to be walking down the street at 1pm in the afternoon, turn the corner and see a big black lady dressed in lingerie, trying to seduce you through a window she rented on the corner. I thought it was hilarious - Jonathan and Ben wanted to go back to discover more "culture" - no way!
Our tour guide said if you try to take pictures of the ladies, they will come after you with bottles filled with yellow liquid that I think you can guess what that is. So, sorry, no pictures for those that are interested. I am sure you can imagine
On our way to find the tulip fields, we stumble upon the flower market that trouble Ben's allergies so we step into the "World's Best Pancake" cafe. We order a plain pancake but with the powdered sugar and syrup (almost like molasses), they were mighty sweet and tasty

Discover the tulip fields are about an hour away and decide it is not worth the money and travel since it is already late afternoon at that point
Even though we were told the canal cruises were not the greatest Amsterdam experience, we decide to take one since the sun is out and thought it would be an interesting new way to see the city
After the ticket guy tries to scam Jonathan out of 10 euro, (don't they know he is finance guy and he will catch them every time?!) we get on board the canal and listen to an outdated audio commentary of the sites we visit. I cannot hear half of the guide so I honestly cannot tell you what we saw but I am glad we did it

Spend on an hour on the "100 Highlights Cruise" and decide to stop for a drink and reflect on our day so far. We find a pub that offers 100's of beers and Jonathan makes friends with an Irish man who has been experiencing the 100's of beers since the place first opened that morning
Get lost on our way back to our hotel but stop at a charming little Italian restaurant where we enjoy some authentic Italian
Ben is tired so heads back to the hotel, while Jonathan and I head to Burger King (no matter how long we live in Europe, we will always be Americans) and get a little late night snack
We grab a Heineken at the hotel bar and watch a futbol match on the big screen while we unwind a bit from our day

DAY 2

Wake up to an even rainier and windier day than yesterday, which is perfect for our 4 hour countryside bike tour we have planned that morning! Kidding!

Rainy streets of Amsterdam

Stop at a cute little breakfast cafe for a traditional english breakfast and splash our way to Mike's Bike Tours
There were about 20 other people brave enough to venture out into the cold and rainy Dutch countryside with us so that makes us feel better about our decision
Within the first 10 minutes, 2 people get flat tires and we lose a couple who end up getting "saved" by another tour guide and get their very own private tour. Why didn't we think of that? I definitely prefer to bike slower if I can but Ben and Jon were speed demons!
Our English tour guide was quite entertaining however and taught us a lot of about the city - for example: the city of Amsterdam finds over 40,000 bikes in the canals each year! Where do they all come from?! We also found out cannabis is not actually legal in Amsterdam - just tolerated. A "coffeehouse" is one that sells cannabis which you have to use in the shop but cannot advertise that they do because it is illegal. Our guide said they are no longer issuing new licenses for "coffeehouses" so in about 5-10 years there will no longer be tolerated cannabis use in Amsterdam. It is funny that it will be outlawed in Amsterdam but now they are thinking of legalizing it in California - so I guess there is always some place.

A bike found in the canal

During our tour we stopped at a Windmill named "Bonita" which was right behind Rembrandt's statue. I remember the name of the windmill because several 'outside' people asked our tour guide for the name and he jokingly said, "What is going on? Are they on a scavenger hunt or something?" And, as it turns out, yes they were! As soon as he told them the name of the windmill, they darted for their cars to get to the next destination. How funny! Not sure what they would have done, if we would not have been there...

Jon and I in front of Bonita

After a brutal, rainy and cold journey up a hill, we arrive to a Dutch cheese farm where we learn how they make the cheese and see a demonstration on how they make the infamous wooden shoes
We were able to taste quite a few of the cheeses, which Ben loved as one was a gouda cheese!

The machine used to shape the wooden show

After warming up and drying off, we were ready to face the rainy countryside once again. That is, until we stepped out and discovered it was raining harder than before! One of our fellow touree's put his bike in a small puddle and when he came back, it was surrounded by water and he could not get it out without getting wet! Oh the things we do for a good tour
Throughout the rest of our journey in the countryside, we see two horses kissing (so cute!), a german shepard devouring a rat he found in the weeds (that was gross - the tail was just hanging out from his mouth), me almost getting hit by a crazy Dutch driver (not my fault he could not hear my Winnie the Pooh bike bell!), and the man made rowing course that was built specifically for the 1928 Summer Olympics. I am sure there was much more I missed - I just could not see it with the rain blowing in my eyes!

Tulip field on our bike tour

Once we got back to the city and put our bikes away, we were cold, wet and hungry! So, we stopped by another Italian place that had a good lunch special and spent a couple of hours hanging out with some wine and food
Anne Frank House was next on our agenda. I purchased tickets online ahead of time because I was told the lines are outrageous. I have never read the 'Diary of Anne Frank' but I was all too familiar with the story
It was quite busy throughout the tour, so it was hard to get a sense of life living there and it was not furnished (Otto Frank's request - he wanted it to be as it was when the left). There were still some posters up on the wall's in Anne's room and a map Otto Frank tracked the war on in one room
Finally read the book when I got home from Amsterdam and I just could not imagine what they had to go through - well, anyone during that time for that matter. It is an awful event that we want to forget but at the same time, is important to remember
We were a little down after going to the house, so we decided what else than to cheer us up than some pannekoeken?!
Stopped at the Pancake Bakery that had over 150 varieties of pannekoeken! Ben and I both ordered sweet and syrupy pancakes while Jonathan got some Thai pancake. Ours were better, but I am glad he tried something different

Our yummy pancakes!

We were all pretty tired after those huge pancakes, so we walked around the city, trying to find souvenirs and taking in our last Netherlands night before turning into our hotel rooms, where I finally watched "Gladiator" for the first time

Bye Bye Amsterdam

Jonathan and I left pretty early in the morning the next day while Ben's flight did not leave until later that evening. He tried to walk around and explore the city some more, but it was even worse weather than it was when we went on our bike tour!

Amsterdam is a great city with lots of history, great food and a beautiful countryside - minus the rain of course! To experience the open minded culture was a bit overwhelming at first, but then you begin to appreciate that this is their culture and it works for them.

Gruyeres, Switzlerand

2010-05-05T01:17:00.000-07:00

The land of cheese, cows and chateaus!
Day trip April 26th, 2010

Take a 2 hour train trip from Geneva to Gruyeres to experience the Swiss countryside!
Walk up a very steep hill to get to the top of the town - Ben had to push me up bc I got tired
Spend a few moments taking in the gorgeous view we have of the mountains and swiss towns

Ben looking over the countryside

Decide to stop for lunch but as soon as Ben sees that lunch plates are over 20 CHF (about $20) each (lunch is not cheaper than dinner here as it is in the states), we head to a the Giger Museum cafe (Giger is the Oscar-winning Swiss surrealist who designed life forms and environments for the 1980 film Alien) for a small snack
Explore the Chateau Gruyeres. Discover a piano made for the infamous Franz Liszt (a famous composer, known for 'Tristan and Isolde', and he had the tendons in his hands separated so he could play sonatas no other pianist could play. He was also one of the earlier performers who started to memorize their music for their concerts) I know all this information because I have my music major brother a long. I guess Missouri doesn't have as bad as an education system as I thought.

View from the castle

Walk around town for a little bit and Ben buys us some Fraise ice cream (strawberry) and we head back down the large hill to the Gruyeres cheese factory where we learn how Gruyere cheese is made and taste the cheese at 6, 8 and 10 months to see how the taste varies from month to month. Ben and I both preferred the 6 month version
On our way down to the factory, we run into pastures of cows wearing their clangity clang cowbells
At first I was scared, they may come at us if we got too close but then I remembered, these are cows - they just eat grass and sleep. What a boring...or maybe wonderful?life!

the 'vicious' Gruyeres cows

Hop aboard our little Swiss country train, back home to Geneva. Ben, of course, never to disappoint, falls asleep on the train. What a traveler!

Ben asleep on the train home

Ben's Swiss Travels

2010-04-29T09:37:00.000-07:00

A Gervais Abroad...
first impressions of Switzerland by Ben Gervais, my brother

To preface this, I would like to inform everyone of the type of traveler I am; I prefer to blend in with the locals. I want to completely observe the culture before I emerge myself in it. I do not want to look like a typical tourist though sometimes not speaking French and very little German makes it difficult to blend in.

These are in no particular order...

12) The Swiss Country - When you travel by train you see the country. It is amazing to me that you see a castle or stone wall in most of the small villages along the way. I would have to take my friend David Struves stand on this one to conclude that it is probably because the French would always surrender or retreat, leaving their castles intact
11) Swiss Pass - This thing is pretty neat. I paid 195 CHF for 4 days of train travel anywhere in Switzerland. I visited Bern, Lucerne, Geneva and Gruyere. If I purchased each ticket on its own, I could have totaled well over 500 CHF. Also, it may get you into some museums and such for free!
10) Fields - There are of course some farms, which could resemble the eastern part of Colorado, but there are plenty of wine fields and hills as well. Also, there is quite of bit of open fields, where there is nothing happening. Just open fields of grass and dandelions...quite peaceful.
9) Smoking - Everyone smokes in Switzerland! Well, not quite everyone, but it seems to be the thing to do. They say America has an obesity problem, I say they have a smoking problem. Of course, you are considered an adult at 16 over here, so you will see many high schoolers get off the train and light a cigarette. Also, during intermission of my sisters performance I had no problem using the restroom because everyone went outside to smoke.
8) Schools/Youth - There youth is not much different from ours (aside from the public smoking aspect). Most males seems to dress in DC/skateboard type attire. They drink energy drinks and can be quite obnoxious in public. Their schools let out every day for a 2 hour lunch, except for Wednesdays when thy have the whole afternoon off. They go from 8-4 and seem to always use public transit or walk.
7) Public Transit - Very interesting to see a city bus, tram, cars/trucks and bicycles all on the same road. They will check your credentials (Swiss pass or individual ticket) on the train everywhere you go. The trams...you may not be searched at all. I did not pay for any city transport in Bern and was able to ride a few blocks. Also, the crosswalks for pedestrians have a person and bike sign that light up...nifty!
6) Language - I will admit, I was worried about the language barrier. No fear though, almost everyone (especially on the trains) can speak; French, German, Italian, and English. I witnessed some Italian tourist on the train engage in conversation with the German train worker - in Italian! I though of Megan Francomb when trying to listen in on the conversation.
5) Mustard (dijon) - Apparently it goes on everything...Those of you that know me know very well I do not eat Ketchup or mustard. I find it uncanny that you must pay for ketchup at McDonalds, yet all sandwiches with cheese include Dijon...crap!
4) City Decor - They love their floral designs! If you walk along the lake, you will be surrounded by beautiful arrangements of flowers and trees.
3) Clothing - not much different, though I noticed a few things that made me the odd man out. You rarely see shorts and or sandals. Even the runners and bikers still wear pants. Now that is not to say that nobody wears shorts, I did see a few, but it certainly is the minority - same with sandals. Backpacks- almost everyone near the cities has a backpack on when they walk around. This was lucky for me so that I did not stick out much!
2) Wall Plugs - they are different than other European nations...frustrating when I brought a nice converter that I had in London...does not work.
1) Money - the money is different...they do NOT use the Euro. They use the "Swiss Franc" or CHF (CH is the country abbreviation for Switzerland. Any website with .ch is swiss) Though, they do take Euros, and whatever of the two currencies you pay in, they will pay you back with that currency. This is also a plus because the CHF is very comparable to the USD (US Dollar). Something that is 72 CHF is approx. $69. It is very easy to keep track of my money when taking out CHF.

Sound of Music Production

2010-04-28T02:16:00.000-07:00

The hills are alive...
April 23rd - April 25th

Me as Sister Mary Catherine, backstage

Yes, I played a nun in the Sound of Music this past weekend. My nun's name was Sister Mary Catherine because it just seems fitting and I have always liked the name Catherine. There were about a total of 20 nuns in our cast, along with two sets of Von Trapp kids that were alternated between shows, so it was quite a large cast! We have been rehearsing the play 2-4 times a week since January and finally performed the show to packed houses Friday evening, Saturday afternoon and evening and finished out the weekend with a Sunday matinee. My brother even flew in from Kansas City to see the show on opening night. Beside a few tech issues, he was impressed and with him being a music major, that can be difficult. Jonathan said he, himself even sang along to Edelweiss...haha, yeah right! Most of the songs we sang were in Latin, I am sure my grandpa's would be proud! However, we started the show off and ended the show the "Climb Every Mountain" which the crowd loved. Now, anytime I watch the Sound of Music, I will always remember this wonderful experience I had performing in a timeless musical in Geneva, Switzerland in front of almost 1,300 people at each show!

Flowers from the Krofts for opening weekend

Flowers that Ben and Jonathan got me for Saturday's show

Me and some of the nun ladies

Backstage warmup for the cast

Nuns getting ready backstage

Rome/Pompeii Italy

2010-03-22T13:12:00.000-07:00

The Kroft Siblings travel Rome
March 13th - 16th, 2010
Hotel: Hotel Domus Praetoria
by Jonathan Kroft

The first night we walked through Rome and saw a number of sites, including the Trevi Fountain seen here. The Fountain was beautiful, and one is supposed to threw 2 coins over his left shoulder, the first to return to Rome and the second to find true love. With every big site in Rome comes big commotion and hustlers/crooks/pick pockets, etc. The big scheme here was getting some kind man to take your picture while his buddy subtly takes your wallet.

One of the great things about Rome is that it is full of history, there is some ancient building on nearly every corner, integrated seamlessly into the hustle and bustle of daily life for Romans.

We took a hour and a half train ride from Rome to Pompeii our second day in Rome. Pompeii was a ancient sea side Roman city that was buried by the volcano Vesuvius about 2000 years ago. The ash covered the middle class city and preserved it until about 200 years ago someone literally stumbled into the Temple of Venus. Since then the city, which is maybe about 4 square miles, has been carefully uncovered and opened for visitors to wander through the city streets. The above picture shows the old forum and the volcano looming in the back ground.

One of the remarkable things about Pompeii is just how well certain aspects of the daily life were preserved. It is as if a snap shot of the daily life in Pompeii were taken. Food could could be found on the tables still (of course it decayed by now but traces could be identified). Above is a cast of a person who was covered by the ash flow. The remains of citizens decayed and left hallows in the ash. Plaster was poured into the cavity and the above are formed.

Above is a bakery. Grind mills and ovens can still easily be made out.

McDonald's of Pompeii...almost. This is the first fast food restaurant where citizens could come get a fast bite to eat. Eating out was very common in Pompeii, and meals were rarely prepared at home. Soups and such would be served from the counter to those wanting a quick meal.

Pompeii was a middle class town, not rich, not poor. The rich lived next door to the poor. Above in the front atrium of a rich household. You can still see the paintings on the walls, as windows were uncommon and replaced with paintings on the walls of the rooms.

Here is a Roman bath that is still very well preserved.

Walking down the streets of Pompeii sometimes makes you feel like you have time traveled 2000 years.

Children close your eyes. Above we can see a room from a house of ill repute, complete with the stone bed and pillow. Above the threshold of the door was painted what could amount to a 'menu of services.' To keep the website PG rated, I will leave the topic here.

Here is the ancient Colosseum. Only about a third still remains, and a good deal of the stone was used to build St. Peters in the Vatican. The keen eye can spot a wooden cross in the lower section of the Colosseum. This is where the Emperor of Rome sat.

Here, on the Ides of March, Julius Caesar was killed by Brutus. This is in the old Rome Forum, and is still adorned with a laurel.

This is an old street in a neighborhood of Rome.

This was stolen from Egypt, and is now in Rome.

The map room in the Vatican.

This is inside the old chambers of the Pope in the Vatican.

This is a door on St. Peters, and is only open once every 25 years, and can only be open by the Pope himself. The backside of the door has literally been cemented shut until 2025.

Interestingly, many of the paintings in St. Peters were moved to the Vatican museum. There was a problem with the paintings and humidity. What remains is an exact replica, but instead as a mosaic. In person it can hardly be sensed that it is a mosaic and not a oil/canvas painting.

Regarded by many as the most famous sculpture ever. The Pieta is by Michelangelo, and was finished when he was only 25 years old. It depicts Jesus right after his crucifixion in Mary's lap. The night before it was to be released to the public's eye, Michelangelo signed the piece as no one would ever believe such a magnificent piece of work could be created by a 25 year old. It is the only work he ever signed. It now sits behind glass after a mad man jumped over and ruined a finger and the face of Mary several years back.

Moscow, Russia

2010-03-07T08:51:00.000-08:00

Jonathan goes to Moscow for a week
March 1 - March 5, 2010
Hotel: Golden Apple
Jonathan's first entry to our blog!

There are multiple (7 if I remember correctly) buildings in Moscow that all look like this. This particular building is the Ministry of Trade. This building was built in the 1970s to try to keep peace with the USA and all the skyscrapers that were going up in the major cities.

This is the oldest grocery store in Moscow. The Russians still look upon their childhoods (the 1960s and 1970s) with great admiration. They miss Russia 'as it was' and try to hold on to the old tradition. Many chain stores (McDonalds, Burger King, Zara, Subway, KFC, Tiffany's, etc) as well as high end stores (Gucci, Armani, etc) have found their way into Russia today. Life is bleak for most Russians, and memories of the past are important.

Here are interesting images. The one on the top is the KGB building. It is said to be the 'tallest building in Russia' as it goes down many more floors than it goes up. The bottom image of the teleophone - guess what year it was made......the answer? 1986! Once Russia opened up in the 1990s it was found that many innovations were a little behind those that we had in the USA.

Here is one of the original restaurants in Moscow which serves traditional food and is about a floor underground. This place probably hasn't changed since the 60s and represents what a lot of the old-guard Russian restaurants looked like. And let me tell you, it is no myth about Russians and vodka! At a reception I was looking for a glass of water and picked one up at the drink table, but this full glass was not water, but vodka, I looked around and saw a number of people drinking it straight, wow!!

Here of course is the Red Square. To the right you can see a low lying grey building that is Lenin's tomb. Here visitors can see the body of Lenin. Interestingly, the display has to be occasionally closed to reattach / refurbish the display (i.e. reattached fingers that have fallen off Lenin, etc.). To the grandparents, you may remember seeing tanks roll down the Red Square on the news

This is Cafe Pushkin, another example of Russians holding on to the 'old days.' This is a traditional Russian restaurant which of course only the rich (and those on company expense accounts) can afford. The service is second to none and the food can be described as 'meaty' and 'bready'.

Here is the glorious 'worker'. Again, many statues of the past instill great pride in the Russian people.

Conducting business is still a formal affair in Russia.

The subway stations in Russia were beautiful. Unlike the European economy approach to the public transit, the Russians made their stations beautiful. You can see coffered ceilings, statues, chandeliers, paintings, etc in the subway stations. During the war, government meetings were held under ground to avoid bombings which may have contributed to the motivation to make the stations gorgeous. The tunnels were very very deep. The one above is about a 12 minute escalator ride down!

Above you can see a Russian police car....doesn't look too fast! While the past 10 years have modernized Russia greatly, there are still many 'icons of the past'.

Here is a typical apartment block. The apartment blocks are huge, and spread far apart. Most people in Moscow commute 90 minutes to 2 hours each way into the city. Traffic is terrible, the worst that I have ever seen. Multiple times daily streets are shut down so that officials can drive at 200 km/hr through the city, the rest of us wait. Additionally, any accident (and given how these guys drive ill bet there are a LOT) has to be left alone. In other words, an accident, if it is a fender bender or worse, needs to be left in the street as is. As such the rest of the city waits until a police car gets there, and this often takes hours.

One of the best hotels in Moscow is above. Now remember, this is the Executive Floor!! The cost? 9,000 rubles a night!

While there is a good deal of hardship in Moscow, there is also a lot of beauty. Above are several pictures of beautiful buildings around Red Square. Interestingly, what is Red Square now? The bottom right image shows the high end shopping mall (yes, all western brands) that now exists in Red Square. An interesting observation: It was nearly 0 degrees, and I noticed a number of girls eating ice cream cones outside! I was shocked and pointed it out to my colleague. He told me to look closer. The ice cream cones were steaming as they were so much warmer that the outside temperature was, the ice cream cone actually tasted warm to the girls!!!

Barcelona, Spain

2010-03-07T02:57:00.000-08:00

Tapas, Sangria and Beaches!
February 26th - 28th 2010
Hotel: U232

Clear, blue, sunny skies greeted us with open arms as we arrived into Barcelona Friday morning. Coming from cold, rainy Geneva was a breath of fresh air. Not only did we enjoy the weather that day but we were meeting our friends from Kansas City who were on a 10-day journey of Europe. Their first stop was Geneva (to see us), Amsterdam and Paris, where the airports were on strike so they had to take an 8 hour train ride to Barcelona! Yikes - talk about a true European experience!
Met up with the Riscoe's (Whitney and Michael) at our hotel and begin our walk into Las Ramblas, a long street filled with vendors of birds, art, souvenirs and lots of tourists! People were dressed up in extravagant costumes with cups reaching out for people to pay them to see what would happen after they put some money in the cup. Jonathan would not let me try - not even to the two very innocent looking fairies

The Las Ramblas fairies

Stop at the Mercado (market) to check out the hustle and bustle of people buying all sorts of fresh foods and flowers taking over the market. Push our way through the hordes of people to the sweets aisle and purchase a bag of gummies. They tasted so delicious -much more fresh than the gummy worms you buy at the supermarket. Yum! The boys loved them

After our lil sugar rush, we are ready to head to the beach but not sure which direction to head. Upon our exploration, we run into none other than Mr. Christopher Columbus (his statue) pointing us in the right direction
Decide we need to grab some food before we venture any further and stop at the World Trade Center at a place called EAT. All the wine you can drink and 3 course lunch for 9 euro. It was worth what we paid - not the greatest and everything is in Catalonia language so we have NO idea what it says and the servers do not speak english. Needless to say our dining experiences were quite interesting in Barcelona!

Christopher Columbus monument

Finally make it to the beach where locals are building immaculate sand-sculptures, hoping passerbyers will give them a euro or two for their hard work
Stop for some Sangria on the beach, and some more sangria....
Continue with sangria and add in some tapas and pizza to the mix til 1am

Sangria on the Mediterranean

Tapas all around!

Sundown in Barcelona

Next morning, wake up to a continental breakfast and head to join the Fat Tire Bike tour with a bunch of study abroad students. This is the weekend I begin to feel old!

Fat Tire Bike Tour

Below are the tour highlights according to the Fat Tire website:

Plaza del Rei

This wholly preserved medieval courtyard of the Palau Reial (Royal Palace) is where Ferdinand and Isabella are supposed to have received Columbus on his return from the New World.

Steps where Columbus proclaims

his findings of the New World

La Catedral

This impressive Catalan Gothic church, begun in 1298 is built on the site of a Roman temple and houses the tomb of Saint Eulàlia, the first patron saint of Barcelona.

Palau de la Mùsica Catalana

One of the world's most extraordinary concert halls, the Palace of Catalan Music was designed in the Catalan modernisme style by the architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner.

La Sagrada Familia

The most famous site of Barcelona; this shell of a church was begun in 1882 and designed mainly by Antoni Gaudí, who worked on the church until his death in 1926. We actually learned he was killed by a tram in the streets of Barcelona. People just let him there to die, thinking he was a bum on the street. Finally someone took him to a rundown hospital where someone recognized him. When they tried to take him to a better hospital, he proclaimed, "I belong here among the poor" and died 3 days later and is now buried in the Sagrada.

Sagrada Familia

Parc de la Ciutadella

After the War of the Spanish Succession ended in 1714, a large fort was constructed on this site to keep the city in line. The fortress was demolished in 1869 and redesigned as a park containing a zoo, a boating lake, gardens and a large fountain worked on by the young Gaudí.

Fountain by Gaudi

During the tour, we also stopped at the Bull Fighting Stadium where the guide told us 6 bulls are killed during each fight and the meat sold to the people
Round out the tour with a bike ride on the beach and a stop for lunch and Sangria

Reconnect with Whitney and Michael who opted for the bus tour of Barcelona
Went out to try our hand at some more tapas and after ordering a variety of 4-5 different kinds of tapas (a small spanish appetizer), we decided we were tapa'ed out. We seriously had no idea what we were eating and it was a little scary
Take a cab (pretty cheap and much easier form of transportation) to the Magic Fountain of Montjuic. It took over 3,000 workers to complete this "magical" water fountain in under a year!
Around 7:30pm, the fountain slowly begins to rise and spout out a water show choreographed with music and lights for about 20 minutes

Magic Fountain of Montjuic

After the magical show, we are famished since we did not eat very much during our tapas experience
We have no idea which way to turn, so after about 30 minutes of wandering the streets of Barcelona, hoping we were headed towards a proper restaurant, (all we could find were tapas! No way!) we finally find a nice little wine bar that had the most amazing wine and appetizers
We spent 2 hours hanging out, enjoying our last night together in Barcelona devouring the fresh baked pizza from the restaurants pizza oven - yum!
Hail a cab down and have a final farewell glass of champagne in the hotel bar
Whitney and Michael had to catch a 10am plane to Newark the next morning so we say our goodbyes (that was hard) and had a good nights sleep

Barcelona is a lively city, which I can only imagine is crazy lively in the summers. It was a little scary walking the streets at night at some points but we had great service at every place we went to (well, except our hotel bar) and being able to enjoy the beach was definitely a highlight. It was so great to experience this city with Whitney and Michael too. They have so much fun and are so easy to be around. It was really great to have these memories with them!

Lucerne, Switzerland

2010-02-13T04:13:00.000-08:00

Day trip in Switzerland
January 26th - 27th, 2010

Infamous covered bridge in Lucerne

Kristine and I decided to take a last minute overnight trip to Lucerne, Switzerland - #13 of Top 100 best places to travel to according to Trip Advisor
Board the train around 1:30 and catch up on some much needed chat as it has been 3 years since we have seen each other
Decide to stop in Bern, Switzerland for some dinner as we are hungry and need to stretch a bit from the train

Cute lil Bern, Switzerland

We had not researched a thing on this lil Swiss, German town - all I knew was they were famous for the bear caves
After spending 20 minutes trying to find a decently priced or let alone open restaurant (it was 3pm by that point, many restaurants are closed at that time) we settle on a pizzeria for some pizza and beer
Stop by Albert Einstein's old apartment in the city but the museum is closed
Venture on to try to find these bears everyone is talking about and although it is freezing, walk about 15 minutes to the caves and discover they are duh, hibernating and don't normally come out until the summer

The empty bear caves in Bern

So after feeling like silly American tourists wanting to see the bears we decide to venture into some of the cute lil shops we passed on our walk to the caves
Head back onto the train for another hour or so onto Lucerne
The whole train ride probably only takes us 3 hours but it was nice to break it up and see two different parts of Switzerland
Reach FREEZING Lucerne and head right to a pub for dinner after checking into our hotel
After our late dinner, we decide to check out this hip bar down the street from our hotel
Ends up not being so hip as the patrons look like 16 year old kids who are on holiday from school but we still enjoy the ICE COLD Heineken, as it served in mugs frozen prior to serving - yum, that was good!

Cheers to Lucerne!

After a few drinks, we hear some Lady Gaga blasting from the basement below and cannot help but be lured down by the addicting beats of "Poker Face"
Discover not just more 16 year old kids but this time they are all smoking and I feel that I have entered Euro trash heaven - with a really great soundtrack however
We attempt a dance off but no one really seems to be feeling our moves, so we decide to call it a night at 2am and head back to hotel, reeking of smoke!

Night out in Lucerne with Kristine

The next morning, after a small headache and too much cheese at breakfast we walk around Lucerne to take in what we could not see last night
Take some photos of the infamous covered bridge, Kapellbrücke--"Chapel Bridge" in English
There is also some story that a man (American man as they like to highlight) flicked his cigarette onto this german shepherd by accident and the dog ran onto the bridge where the cigarette fell off and started a fire. So now when you are at the bridge, there is not only a sign for no smoking but for no german shepherd as well

Faded No German Shepherd sign on the bridge

Walked through some of the shops on the way to see the lion monument, another famous Lucerne landmark
When we arrived at Löwendenkmal, the Lion of Lucerne we were the only people there and with the cold grey sky, dried up pond that was lying in front of the monument, and stiff silence that surrounded the monument it was such a sad piece to see. It was built to commemorate the Swiss guards that were massacred in the French Revolution
Mark Twain said it is "the most mournful and moving piece of stone in the world." and he is right. I am not sure if his words I read prior made me feel the way I did or it was just in that moment

The sad lion in Lucerne

Time to head home as our cold tootsies cannot bear the bitter air anymore. In true Swiss style, grab a croissant and chocolate for the train ride and head back home to Geneva
Kristine and I had a lovely time together and even though the weather was much colder than anticipated, we still made the most of our time together. All I can think after writing this is Lions, and (no) Tigers and Bears oh my! seems to sum up our trip to Bern (bears) and Lucerne (lions). I need to head back in the summer to really appreciate the beauty of Lucerne!

Burgundy, France

2010-01-28T08:38:00.000-08:00

Day Trip to Beaune, France
* capital of Burgundy
January 24th, 2010

Two of my friends , Kristine and Erin (we have been friends since 4th grade) came to visit Jon and I in Geneva for a few days
Rented a car and drove 2 hours through the mountains to Beaune - a famous wine town in Burgundy, France
Stopped for lunch at a local pub and moved onward to a wine tasting in town at Patriarche Winery
Not quite knowing what to expect as none of us had been here before, we were most surprised when we went down to the wine cave and experienced 5 rooms lit by only candle light filled with wine for us to try as much as we wanted. The cave held over 4 million bottles of wine. We were the only ones there and had a wonderful time in the wine cave!

Kristine, Erin and I dining french style

Wine Caves at Patriarche Winery

10 euro for unlimited wine tasting was awesome!

Waffles, Beer and Chocolate!

2010-01-19T05:17:00.000-08:00

Brussels, Beligium

* the unofficial capitol of the EU

Hotel: NH Stephanie

Started out the trip with a late train and late flight, so we did not arrive to our hotel in Brussels until 8pm, Friday evening
Purchased the "weekend extender" deal from our hotel which includes free breakfast each morning, late checkout on Sunday and free minibar for the weekend, so we were happy with our hotel!
Walked down the street to La Fringale - a little French/Italian bistrot that served us olives, mini pizza baguettes, garlic sticks and freshly baked rolls from the pizza oven with a spicy olive oil just to start (all complimentary). We split a plate of mussels (my first time trying them and not bad) and pizza! Delicioso!

Mussels in Brussels

Enjoyed a nice, quiet dinner and walk back to our hotel for an early night so we could get up in time for our day trip to Bruges
Woke up Saturday morning to a impressive breakfast spread of breads, meats, cereal, eggs, fruit and juices
Jump on a 9:30am train to Bruges from Brussels and arrive to the charming little town around 10:30am
First stop is a tour at the De Halve Maan Brewery, the only working brewery left in Bruges. We make it just in time for the first tour of the day and are impressed by the tour; fun, personable and informative! Our tour guide had some funny stories to share with us and knew her stuff about beers. We learned that to cure a hangover it is best to drink sparkling water and eat ketchup, which has vinegar in it. Supposedly it helps the stomach. Also, the longer they roast the beer, the darker it becomes and the less alcohol the beer has. So forget the thought that dark beers are stronger!
Climbed over 200+ stairs to get to the top of the brewery and get a pretty decent but oh-so-cold and windy view of all of Bruges

View of Bruges from the top of brewery

After sampling one of the beers from the brewery, we make our way to the main square to see the bell tower but are stopped by the warm and delicious aroma of freshly baked waffles and chocolate. Stop to try one of the infamous Belgian waffles and fall in love! You can choose to top them with bananas, strawberries, whipped cream, chocolate, ice cream, etc. I chose to try it by itself and I could not imagine ruining the delicious flavor and warm, chewy texture with a topping!
Continue to walk through town and peep through the windows of lace and chocolate shops. I never knew chocolate could be so beautiful!

Canals in Bruges

The smell of chocolate round the corner lures us into Dumon Chocolate to purchase some truffles and a tiny treasure box of their best chocolates. We still believe Swiss chocolate is the best, but really, all chocolate is lovely!
Rain starts to come down and I swear the temperature drops 10 degrees so decide to stop in a nearby pub for some lasagna and beers
Still raining and still trying to get the Bell Tower, that was said to have the best fries in all of Belgium outside their doors. We make it, get some fries and are not impressed. No salt, just plain potatoes fried in lots of oil. Make our trek back to the train station in the cold and rain and get back to Brussels at 4:00pm

Bruges Market Square

Splash our way to the main site of Brussels, Grand Place to take some pictures and take it all in. Continue a few blocks to the infamous Mannekin-Pis statue (the boy who pees). It is said to be Brussels mascot and represents the "joie de vivre" of living in Brussels - where happy people eat, drink..and drink...and then pee.
On our way to find dinner, we stop at a brass statue of the Mayor Serclare, who in 1356 refused to give the keys of the city to invaders and was tortured and killed. It is said if you touch him, his misfortune becomes the person's luck.

Mannekin Pis, the lil peeing boy

Walk down Restaurant Row and are bombarded by 10 different vendors shouting for us to eat at their restaurant. They are pretty much all the same but we are eventually persuaded into one because they said we could have our own private fireplace. We get a 3-course meal with a drink of our choice (beer or champagne) for 12 euro which was a decent deal.

Our own private fireside chat at dinner

Jonathan decides he wants to try a waffle now so we stop by to grab one and he is in love like I am - my second one of the day now! Our adventure back to our hotel took 30 minutes because it was dark, cold and confusing! But, we make it back and watch some "So You Think You Can Dance" and finish off our minibar. It felt good to be warm and dry.
Next day is a beautiful clear, sunny day and our last day in Belgium. Head back to Grand Place to enjoy the scenery during they day and dry.
Jonathan is not a happy traveler about having to carry the suitcase all around Brussels since the rocky cobblestone is hard on the plastic tires. Poor guy! But, we are impressed we were able to get all of our stuff for the trip into one carry-on suitcase. We got this traveling down by now!
Listen to an old drunkard belt out Johnny Cash and Rolling Stones in the streets and grab one more waffle on our way out. They are SO good!

Grand Place on our last day

Goodbye Belgium! A bientot!

Belgium has so many wonderful things to offer. Some of the life's most wonderful pleasures can be found in Brussels - chocolate, beer, waffles, lace, mussels... Overall the food, people, drink and site seeing was wonderful! I have to admit, you probably only need a day to visit Brussels but that does not mean it should be forgotten. It was a lot of fun and if it would not have been so cold and rainy, probably one of our favorite places we have traveled to.

An American Holiday 2009

2010-01-11T10:55:00.000-08:00

Visiting our family in the United States for the holidays!

Salem, OR

The Krofts
Dec 14 - Dec 19

Begin our journey after a 26 hour day of traveling! Layover in Frankfurt, Germany to San Francisco, CA and then onto Portland, OR. Note to all travelers going abroad: Please do not EVER fly United! Maybe I am spoiled from Qatar and British Air but they had no individual TVS in the seats, seats were small and the airline staff not only thought they were still living in the 70's but they were not the most cordial of people. When we landed into San Fran, one of the stewardesses exclaimed,"Oh thank God we are here!", like she could not wait to get off the plane and proceeded to climb on our seats to get a carry on down
Jonathan's father, Jeff and his wife, Mary greet us with Jeff wearing a singing and dancing christmas elf hat to get us in the holiday spirit. This sets the tone for the fun we have while visiting the Krofts!
Spend our first day hitting the outlet malls, Costco and boosting the economic well being of the state of Oregon
Jonathan's grandfather, David comes over to enjoy one of the best steak dinners we have ever had. Jeff sure knows how to prepare a good meal
On our third night in Salem, we went to Capitol Manor (grandpa's retirement community) for a cornish game hen and wine dinner followed by a lovely holiday concert sung by the Manor's choir. In between the holiday concert, individual member's would showcase their musical talents and one guy played White Christmas on an actual saw!

Me with the Kroft men at Capitol Manor

Thursday (our fourth day) Jeff drove us to Portland to experience Powell's, the infamous book store that is the largest in the country! We also ate at this amazing brewery; Deschutes Brewery that had a great selection of ales they brew on their own w/ the water they use coming from Oregon's own Deschutes River
Our last night in Salem, we had the Kroft Christmas celebration. We had a wonderful time finishing off two bottles of wine, exchanging presents and playing with the bears! Dinner consisted of an amazing turkey dinner and pumpkin pie (from Costco - the best!). Jonathan received his grandfather's Captain's star as a gift which was very special to him. We also got a new digital camera that is supposed to be one of the best on the market so look for better pictures on this blog, coming soon!

The Kroft men at the Christmas party!

It was a great time in Oregon, not only just being home but spending more time with the Krofts - getting to know them better and vice versa. While it was rainy and cold most of the time we were there, Oregon is still beautiful! It was just nice to be with family and feel at home. We got in the christmas spirit with the Krofts!

Napa Valley, CA
Best Western Elm House Inn
Dec 20 - 21

* We decided to stay a night in Napa while we were visiting my parents in Sacramento since it was only an hour away and neither of us had been before. Plus, since it is December rates were reasonable and the crowds were bearable
* Stayed at the cutest lil' bed and breakfast that served us homemade Belgian waffles in the morning and the most amazing freshly baked chocolate chip cookies in the afternoon!

Lobby in our hotel

Most of our trip consisted of wine tastings so to make it easier, below is a breakdown of where we went:
Ate an early breakfast at Gilwood's Cafe that was recommended by our hotel. Located in downtown Napa, we enjoyed pancakes larger than our plates and hot chocolate with homemade whipped cream
First wine tasting at Castello di Amorosa (1) in Calistoga about 30 minutes outside of Napa. Jonathan wanted to take the tour as he does love his medieval castles. So after forking over $30 a person which included 5 wine tastings each at the end we toured the castle which was used to film the movie, "Bedtime Stories" with Adam Sandler

Castello di Amorosa in Calistoga

Stopped in downtown St. Helena to do some tastings from St. Helena Olive Oil Company and Woodhouse Chocolate. Supposedly, Woodhouse is the "Tiffany of chocolates" but unfortunately (or fortunately) for us, coming from Switzerland the chocolate could not compare to Swiss chocolate
Started getting hungry so took a lunch break at V.Sattui (2), enjoyed a wine tasting and had a picnic, selecting foods from their European style deli. I savored a delicious turkey and cheese panini. It was one of the best sandwiches I have had - even better than Subway!

Cheese display at V. Sattui

After lunch, we started getting the hang of the wine tastings and decided to venture out a bit more and made our way to Rutherford Ranch (3) that had some great wines with chocolate tasting and wonderful service. We ended up buying a bottle for my family for Christmas Eve dinner

Our view from Route 29 in Napa

Continuing our drive, we stopped at Silverado Vineyards (4) (Great Sangiovese!), Artesa Winery (5) (had a beautiful view from the patio), Folio (6) (we loved that we were the only ones there and great service!), and then Domaine Carneros (7) for a champagne tasting (beautiful setting and lovely champagne - yum, bubbly!)

Champagne tasting at Domaine Carneros

Fountains outside of Artesa Winery

Clouds come rolling in and the rain begins to pour but we continue on to eat dinner at Pizzeria Tra Vigne and order a 1/2 Vespa, 1/2 Ducati pizza, which we devour along with several glasses of water after all the wine
Drive 20 minutes back to downtown Napa in the pouring rain and stop at Bounty Hunter for a white and red wine sampler of wines that are "hard pressed" to find anywhere else
Second day in Napa, we are truly tired of wine tastings and decide to do one more at Sequoia Grove (8) (rustic wine lodge) before we head back to Sacramento
Stop at the Jelly Belly factory in Fairfield, CA and took a free tour to find out how they make Jelly Belly's along with 50 other kids who just wanted to eat jelly belly's (same reason we went, too)

We love Jelly Belly's!

Sacramento, CA

The Gervais family

Dec 21 - 27th

With my parents living in a condo meant for 2 people, not 6, my parents put us up in a hotel not far from their house for the week. Works out great because Jonathan gets to use the hot tub and I get the elliptical to help me burn off a few of those many cookies I eat during the days
Most of our time at home is spent preparing for the holidays, playing board games, Wii, and X-box (Jonathan was in heaven playing Madden 10!)
Dad took us to Old Sacramento to see the infamous train museum and enjoy lunch at River City Old West Saloon, where we were given peanuts and just threw the shells on the floor. Also enjoyed our first sarsaparilla (root beer) and the boys tested their strength on a boxing game. Ben hit the punching bag the hardest by just a few points...

The kids at the train museum in Old Sac

Christmas Eve we enjoyed our traditional "humble" meal of chicken rice soup, a jello wreath and sandwiches with lots of cookies! My parents found a sing a long christmas song program through their cable, so instead of Mom attempting to play piano, we were able to sing carols off the TV. What a great concept and so much easier!

The Gervais family on Christmas Eve

As per the Gervais family tradition, we get over to the house early as we always start at 6am Christmas morning when it is dark out to open presents (it took us 2 hours!!) and have a big breakfast. For dinner we enjoy a big turkey dinner and finish off the rest of the cookies/candy with a bottle of chardonnay from Napa

It was a wonderful memory having my family altogether. We had a relaxing time at my parents house and discovered a love for the Wii. I thought I would be sad to not have cold weather over christmas but California was beautiful and it was nice to be able to walk around on Christmas day. It was sad to leave but we will never forget and my parents will travel to Geneva in September!

Wilmington, DE

The Katz family

Dec. 27 - 30th

Laura and Len (Jon's grandparents) picked us up at the Philadelphia airport, an airport I must say I did not enjoy. However, we were greeted with such love from his grandparents as soon as we got there, all was forgotten! Jonathan's sister, Liz came in to visit us while on break from John Hopkins
Each night we enjoyed an amazing home cooked meal with a freshly baked pie or cake from Grandma - ooh yum, the German Chocolate Cake was to die for!
Our second day, we slept in late as we were still on the west coast time (10:30am east coast time is 7:30am west coast time) and grandma took us bowling to the place she bowls with her group each week. We had a lot of fun and ended up playing 3 games with Grandma winning once and Jonathan winning two!

Grandma and Liz at the bowling alley

Most of our time in Wilmington was spent catching up, eating delicious home cooked meals and relaxing (our favorite thing to do on this holiday)
We attempted a trip to Philadelphia our last full day but it was so cold, we ended up grabbing a delicious philly cheesesteak at Joe Biden's favorite place in Delaware, Claymont Steak Shop and decided to break out the Wii (it was a Wii holiday!). Liz and Jonathan played Fifa and squared off in "Are you Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" (they both were) It was intense game playing! Grandma even attempted it!

Liz and Jon playing Wii

It is always hard to say goodbye, especially when you are not sure the next time you will see someone but I am so thankful we had this time to spend with Jonathan's grandparents and his sister. We always feel at home and welcome at the Katz household. Liz will be visiting us in March - her and Jon will take a trip to Rome, so you will hear more about that in the upcoming months!

Thanksgiving in Geneva

2009-11-30T01:07:00.000-08:00

Our first Thanksgiving in Europe
November 28th, 2009

Our turkey

Since Jonathan did not get Thursday off we celebrated on Saturday instead so we could prepare the meal and enjoy it together
Just the two of us for Thanksgiving! Courses included mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, stuffing, brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes w/ marshmallows, buttered rolls, gravy and chardonnay with Tollhouse pie a la mode for dessert
Although we missed our families and friends terribly, we made the most of the day by playing Christmas music throughout the day, enjoying our favorite Thanksgiving day foods and finishing the day off with PJ's and the movie, Elf

Jonathan carving the turkey

Table Setting

Our Christmas Tree

(from our first Christmas together in KC)

Sun set outside our window, after dinner

London, England

2009-11-25T06:35:00.000-08:00

Rainy days in England

November 19th - 22nd, 2009
Comfort Inn at Buckingham Palace

London Eye and Big Ben

Day 1

Wake up bright and early with some toast and hot chocolate/coffee before our big day of walking the London city streets. Jonathan planned the whole day without letting me know what we were doing
After passing about 5 Starbucks, I realize I am in New York City with british accents and big red buses driving on the wrong side of the street
Walk through Westminster Abbey which is beautiful! 15 pounds to enter which is quite costly but I guess there are lots of important people inside so it is a must to visit

Outside the exit of Westminster Abbey

Start with the audio tour, led by Jeremy Irons but soon start to lose my focus as the dialogue is much slower than the pace I walk through the museum so I am quite behind..or actually ahead
Lose my husband for about 45 minutes until we meet up at the end. He asks if I saw Shakespeare's, Darwin's, or Newton's graves OR the page where Michael Jackson is recorded as being knighted. Of course, I miss all of this do we turn back to go through it again. Before I leave, I light a candle (with a donation of course) and make the same wish I always make. If it doesn't come true after lighting it in the Westminster Abbey, there is no hope!
Continue our walk towards Parliament, Big Ben and the London Eye. It was a gray, drizzly morning in London so I am sure I would have been much more impressed had I been dry

In front of Parliament and Big Ben

Walk down the River Thames and make our way to Traflagar Square where there is a tree root display going on. Decide Jonathan's father would quite like this display so stop to take some pics while Jonathan checks the route he put together to make sure we are on track

Traflagar Square

Continue on through Picadilly Circus which is considered the 'Times Square of London'. I know it is not fair to compare to New York..
On our way we stop to eat lunch at none other than Pizza Hut for their infamous lunch buffet Jonathan and I so frequently attended during our college days. Cannot compare to the western Kansas Pizza Hut's as those really are the best but it will do. No marinara sauce for the breadsticks which is my favorite but this is not that states and I have to remember that
After regretting eating at Pizza Hut for lunch, we shrug our shoulders and venture on to the British Museum, something that is free and Jonathan insists is a must see!

Outside the British Museum

same booth Jonathan took a pic in years prior

Not a must see for me at all but I suppose I can now say I have seen the Rosetta Stone. Not much else interested me there but it could have been because I was tired and the wine we had at lunch was starting to get to my head. I needed something a bit more upbeat than a museum of history!
Started walking towards the Globe and on our way came across just what I needed...

Tiffany Christmas at Somerset House

Tiffany had a big christmas tree with skating rink at Somerset House
Stopped at the infamous, Top Shop which is similar to H&M and Forever 21 and I think just opened up a store in New York City. I did not buy anything but started to think I need to add some more glitter to my wardrobe as it was everywhere in this store
Made it to the Globe but did not think it was worth to pay to walk around it. I feel bad for not being interested in touring it but it was a long day

View from the Globe

Sit a moment a take in the view as London is beautiful once the rain clears and the sun begins to set
Walk about 15 minutes to get the Tower Bridge and stop to get a coffee and chai tea latte at the Starbucks around the corner. After our little stop, we start walking (yes, we are still walking, can you believe it?) towards the Leadenhall Market for a christmas lighting by mayor of London

Tower Bridge of London

After an hour of waiting with carols and cider beer, the mayor finally flicks the switch and the hall is lit! After our christmas cheer for the night, we head to Brick Lane to meet up with Laura (a friend Jonathan went to school with) and her boyfriend for drinks and dinner at an Indian restaurant. It was all very delicious and we had a great time!
Decided to take the tube back home as our feet cannot take the London pavement anymore

Day Two

Spend all morning at Harrod's. What a wonderful adventure that department store is! We walk into a Wizard of Oz themed entrance and Andy Wiliams belting out "It's the Most Wonderful Time of Year". We were supposed to go to Notting Hill but we didn't make it due to the fact Harrod's is the greatest place on earth- maybe next time!

Harrods at night, our second stop

Attempt to take the tube to visit some friends over by Bethnel Green for a traditional Thanksgiving meal. It was absolute chaos and I never want to take that thing again if I do not have to! But, good news is we make it to the thanksgiving celebration, have a yummy meal, meet some hilarious London locals, watch Ohio State play Michigan, and have a great ol' fashioned Thanksgiving!
Wander over to Hyde Park for their big Winter Wonderland that takes over during the holidays. Decided to take Oxford Street to the park and am bombarded by the most amazing window displays I have ever seen. They were inspiring, magnificent and story tellers all on their own! It was art! But, Oxford street was festive and lively even with the rain coming down

Oxford Street at night

Get a cup of German Mulled Cider at the Winter Wonderland and walk around exploring the christmas markets, which are basically vendors selling cute little knick knacks for the holidays. It really was a winter wonderland with a skating rink, rides and holiday music playing throughout the venue
Slosh through the puddles back towards our hotel, made another stop at Harrod's and stopped at Ebury Restaurant and Winery for an amazing 3-course and champagne dinner. The dessert was the best thing I have ever eaten, well beside's TGI Friday's Oreo Madness but that does not count because it is discontinued. It was a chocolate molten cake with melted caramel and toffee in the middle, sprinkled with cocoa powder. It just melted in your mouth
Went to bed early as we had to catch an 8:00am train the next morning...

London was the perfect place to get into the holiday spirit! We had a lot of fun visiting friends, shopping, seeing the sites and appreciated the fact everyone spoke English. A weekend was really not enough to take everything in so we plan to head back in the summer to visit and take in some more of this big bad city as I know it has so much more discover!

Dublin, Ireland

2009-11-11T02:12:00.000-08:00

Luck of the Irish

November 5th - 8th, 2009

Premiere Academy Plaza Hotel

Day 1

Arrive to Dublin and immediately feel a Boston vibe - which makes sense since Boston is heavily influence by the Irish
We are just excited to finally be able to speak English, not sure we quite understood most the English that was muttered back to us but at least it wasn't french
Stop to eat a bowl of Guinness Stew and enjoy? our first pint of Guinness. Foods are hearty and rich in Ireland which is fine once in awhile but I could not imagine having it every day!

Getting into the Irish spirit a bit too much our first night!

Enticed into a bar by some upbeat Irish music that fill the streets of Temple Bar. For such a cold evening, the energy is sure upbeat and we start to enjoy ourselves a bit too much. So much in fact, we end up falling asleep at 2am and waking up with a throbbing headache that does not help the fact we have a full day planned. One thing we learned was not only to not mix alcohols but do not mix beers! Lesson learned!

Day 2

Walk along Grafton Street (famous for its shopping) on our way to Trinity College, the oldest university in Ireland. Take the tour lead by a law student currently attending the school

On the campus of Trinity College

Interesting facts about Trinity College -

Students are served as many 1/2 pints of Guinness as they want over the course of their dinner each night. Current record held for most 1/2 pints drunk over dinner is 13
Only the headmaster's are allowed to walk on the grass that surrounds the campus
Students are not allowed to walk under the main tower (pictured) until they graduate; very traditional campus which we both value in a university
The library holds some of the oldest manuscripts in Ireland. However, these are not alphabetized but organized by size; largest on the bottom and smallest on the top
Students who speak Gaelic (the Irish language) are given their own wing, separate from the other students
The Book of Kells is also showcased on campus, which is the oldest manuscript containing the four gospels from the New Testament - it was quite exquisite!

As we walk towards the Guinness Storehouse, the clouds start to roll in and it begins to rain. Our umbrella continues to blow away from us so it doesn't prove effective in keeping us dry. We stumble upon The Brazen Head (a place I wanted to visit anyway), Ireland's oldest pub and decide to get a pint and some grub (I am so IRISH!). Not impressed with food but ambience is cozy and you can tell this bar has been visited near and far because it is posted all over the wall with $1 bills, claiming where visitors ventured from. I never found one from Kansas...

Outside the oldest pub in Dublin

Finally make it to the Guinness Storehouse, cold and wet nonetheless. Breeze through the tour - both Jonathan and I have short attention spans - to taste our 'free' pint of Guinness
Make it up to the 7th floor Gravity Bar, where you can see all of Dublin which bizarrely is covered in a clear blue sky now. Hmmm, I guess that is Ireland for you
Decide it is too busy to enjoy our perfectly crafted pint so decided to stand in line where we can become certified to pour the perfect pint of Guinness ourselves! I am always a fan of anything where I can get a certificate!
I am by far the worst pourer of the group but I prove myself in the end and I earn my certificate as does Jonathan (his was poured perfectly, of course). One more thing to add to my resume on top of being founder of the Felicity fan club (K-State chapter) on Facebook!

You are looking at certified Guinness pourers

After walking miles and miles (well, what felt like it) to the Kilmainham Gaol, a famous prison in Dublin, we barely make it to our tour
On the tour we learn that they held up to 7 people per cell in the prison at times, which held anyone from men, women and children
The rebel leaders of the 1916 uprising in Dublin were held here and executed outside the walls by gun shot (creepy!)
Besides the history that was flooded throughout the walls of the prison, lots of movies and music videos have been filmed here because of the acoustics and architecture

Inside the Kilmainham Gaol

Grabbed some Subway on the way home to eat a quick dinner before heading to the MUSE concert at the new O2 stadium
MUSE always puts on a good show and the energy (which is consistent throughout Dublin) is contagious throughout the stadium. We had a blast at the concert! Jonathan even got his dance on during some of the songs!
Show ends around 11pm and we are hungry again so do a quick stop at McDonald's and fall asleep to the X-Factor, Britain's version of American Idol. I do miss Simon at times

MUSE performing at the O2 Stadium in Dublin

Day 3

Take off at 9:30am for our all day tour of the Wicklow Mountains (known as the "Garden of Ireland") and Glendalough for a walk around a monastery
Make several stops throughout the tour; hike up to view a lake in the countryside, walk alongside a waterfall, see the bridge that the 'PS: I Love You' movie was filmed, drive past the bogs where 'Braveheart' was filmed and see lots of beautiful countryside
Have the best Guinness stew of my life at this cute little lodge restaurant we take lunch at

Jonathan and I in the Irish Countryside

After lunch, the weather does not disappoint and gets continuously colder and wetter. Perfect timing seeing as we have a 2 1/2 hour walk throughout Glenadough, a monastery that does not really interest Jonathan or myself
So, we journey straight to the bus and get some hot chocolate and coffee and wait til we head home. We are soaked and cold and don't much want to see anymore of the Irish countryside
I wish I could say our last night in Dublin we went all out; sang an Irish jig from the bar top or partook in a crazy Dublin pub crawl. But truth be told, we were exhausted and decided to do a night of Chinese and call it a night

We thoroughly enjoyed Dublin for its charm, character and sense of humor. I am not sure I can drink Guinness again after the trip but we had a fun time and it was great to spend time together as always!

Italy Travels

2009-11-02T08:34:00.000-08:00

Audra and I visit Italy for our first time

October 25th - 29th, 2009

Day 1 - ROME

Arrive via taxi to our hotel in Flaminio, about 15 minutes walk into center. Check into a room that is just large enough to hold our two double beds and tiny night stands. What did we expect though?
Walk to the Spanish Steps for a 7pm 'Rome at Twilight' tour that lasts for 3 hours. Guide is super hyper New Yorker who seems to forget that we did not study art history as she did, so we do not understand who or what she is talking about 1/2 the time. But, Rome is gorgeous and alive at night
Spanish steps are supposedly the place people went to 'be seen' - the most expensive shopping is done around this area also

In front of the Spanish Steps

Next stop was the Trevi fountain which was much larger and grander than the replica in Vegas. Audra and I threw a penny in the fountain with our right hand over our left shoulder in hopes that one day we will return to Rome. Audra threw one more over her shoulder in hopes she will find love, as legend states

Audra and I throwing our lucky pennies in the Trevi Fountain

We continue our walk through the streets of Rome and approach The Pantheon buidling, built as a Temple for the gods of Ancient Rome. It was beautiful at night and you can feel the importance of the structure just standing in front of it

The Pantheon in Rome

Onward through our tour we stop at the Fountain of the Four Rivers in Piazza Navona (Nile, Danube, Gangus and Rio Della Plata rivers). The statue that represents the Nile River head is covered since at the time, no one knew who discovered the Nile. We decide this represents the unknown and undiscovered man Audra will fall in love with after throwing her penny in the fountain
After our tour, I grab some gelato and Audra and I head back to Piazza Navona for a late night drink. Rome is peaceful at 11pm on a Sunday evening so we enjoy our potato chips, wine and warmth generated by the heater the waiter so kindly lit up for us

Our first drink in Rome at Piazza Navona

Not realizing how far we were from our hotel, we decide to hike it back on our own. We get home at 1am and easily fall to sleep in our stiff beds, listening to Italian sports highlights on TV

Day 2 - ROME

Enjoy a small european style breakfast before heading out to find the Vatican from our hotel
Somehow manage to figure out which stop we get out from the tram and walk past the forever line long to our 'reservations only' line (Thank you Audra for bringing Rick Steve with us!)
Pass through the museum right to the Sistine Chapel (time is limited for us in Rome)

The Maps Room in the Vatican leading up to the Sistine Chapel

Wow! How do you describe what you are looking at when you are in the Sistine Chapel? It tells an amazing story of the time up to Jesus' birth all done by the amazing and talented Micheangelo. The most striking effect of the artwork is when you look at it long enough the artwork begins to look like actual 3 dimensional sculptures just glued to the ceiling, not flat artwork
It is also interesting that you have guards 'shhing' you the whole time and an automated voice comes on every 5 minutes (in 3 different languages) reminding the crowd to be silent - I find this somewhat counterproductive of what they are trying to accomplish but it is a temple and should be treated as such
We go through a back door (courtesy of Rick Steve's advice) and land right in St. Peter's Basilica (the largest interior of any Christian church) without having to wait in line
During our time in the church, there is an actual mass going on in Latin with a huge crowd of tourists taking pictures (us included). But, what a strange, service to attend with tourists and cameras gawking at you during your worship. Rome, I guess can get away with this

Mass on Monday morning at St. Peters Basilica

Walk outside to St. Peter's Square to take some pictures before we head to lunch, where we proceed to have one of the worst meals of our trip. Everyone said food was so amazing in Rome - well, we did not have that experience but we were only there for two days and did not do the proper research

St. Peter's Square

After our lunch experience, we attempt to visit the Coliseum as this is the last thing we truly want to see in Rome. Decide to walk but then realize we are much much further than the map makes us believe. A lady told us to get a ticket at a cafe for the bus so we stop in and they tell us they are 'finished'. We take this to mean the buses are finished and think maybe they are on 'siesta' so opt for a taxi. Cannot find a taxi, so come to realize that they actually meant they were sold out of bus tickets so we find another vendor and take a bus to the Coliseum. Met some nice Irish/English? boys who told us our stop
Coliseum is quite beautiful on this clear, blue day in Rome. It looks exactly as one would imagine but surreal because here you are standing in front of one of most beautiful pieces of Roman architecture!

Coliseum in Rome

Unfortunately, all I can imagine is Russel Crowe from that movie Gladiator

Sun setting over the Coliseum

We decide to go inside and missed the crowds significantly because we get there an hour before it closes that day. I try to imagine the sounds and craziness that must have ensued the days when battles actually took place here . Crazy to think men fought lions, tigers and alligators here. Crowds determined if the gladiator was to live or die during some of these fights - his life was in their hands!

Me, inside the Coliseum

Over in one corner sat a small white cross that represents where the emperor was to sit during this epic battles

White Cross in Coliseum

Head back to our hotel via Metro (at this point, I think we have done all means of transportation) and get ready for our last night in Rome
Wander the streets hoping to come upon a decent restaurant, when we take a turn into a back road and find a wine tasting of all these amazing Italian wines. The street is lined with different merchants offering tastings of their wine with cheese. Fantastic start to our night!
In good spirits, we settle on an italian restaurant we passed on our tour the night before. The waiter gives us napkins to create art for this little girl sitting next to us. I attempt a rose but fail miserably and I know this because all the tables around us are laughing at my 'art'.
To make up for this, our waiter brings us a real rose and we enjoy the food and the atmosphere. The waiter told me I was 'kissed by an angel' just as he was, referring to my dimples. He told Audra she was too tall, where she then rebutted that he was too short and after that he seemed to leave us alone. Ah, Italian men!

Our last dinner in Rome

Day 3 - Florence

Wake up early to catch our 9am train to Firenze
Head directly to the train that reads Firenze as it would make sense to us this would be the correct train. However, something told us this was not right and 5 minutes before our train was to depart, we discovered we were on the wrong train! So, we hustle to the right one and barely make the journey!
Sit next to a couple from Chicago who are on a delayed honeymoon from their March wedding. The girl was actually from Lawrence, KS so it was nice to sit with other midwesterners on our 1.5 hour journey
Our hotel is actually 5 minutes from train station so we check in and walk down the river to town to see what Florence has to offer

The view of Florence walking down the river

After we do some shopping and grab some lunch, we head to the Academia Museum to visit the infamous 'David' by none other than Micheangelo. Pretty much all we look at while we are there. The statue is much larger than you would think.

Replica of David at Piazza Micheangelo

After our stop at the museum, Audra decided to attempt some gelato finally. Somehow, we manage to find the gelato that is textured like mousse - what I imagine gelato to taste like if not cold. A bit disappointing but there is more gelato to try later on...
On our way back we stop at the Duomo in Florence and light a candle with a prayer. The Duomo is quite simple which someone said is either because they ran out of money and time or because they wanted the focus to be at the front

Duomo in Florence

Prayer tree in the Duomo

Audra is not feeling well, so we decide to have dinner near our place. At the restaurant, I enjoy the most amazing strawberry cheesecake and we meet a couple from California who quit their jobs to travel Europe for 40 days!

Audra and I at dinner in Florence

Since we both exhausted from our travels, Audra and I grab a bottle of wine and have a drink on our patio while watching the streets of Florence below

Day 4 - Siena, Chianti Countryside, San Gimignano, Pisa

Woke up early again to meet our tour 'Best of Tuscany' at 8:30am. This was rated quite well on Trip Advisor and we were able to see many of the places we wanted to see all in one day!
It so happens the couple we met from California the night before were on our tour as well!

First stop: Siena

Took us about an hour or so to get into the town of Siena that is known for the infamous Palio horse race. The race takes place in July and over 30,000 people crowd this square to watch the 1 min and 15 sec race. No rules are set during the race either so it is best horse wins - even if the jockey falls off, which happens a lot

View of Siena

Pizza Del Campo where the Palio horse race takes place

We then visit the the Duomo of Siena which is exquisite! The floors are all marble and only open to the public one month a year. We so happened to be there that one month so we were able to see the floors! The Duomo was quite detailed and held so much art, it was hard to find a place to look - everywhere was something to look at!

Duomo in Siena

Second Stop: Lunch at a wine farm in the Chianti Countryside

We take a scenic and curvy drive from Siena to our next destination - a wine farm for lunch and wine
Audra gets a little motion sickness so sits out the tour of the farm. During the tour we meet the friendly white cows that are unique to this region and visit the place where the wine is made

Chianti Countryside with one of the white cows

We then sit down to a four course wine lunch:

Starter

Extra-virgin oil Bruschetta.
Vernaccia Docg, a crisp and dry white wine, with its typical bouquet of fresh fruit and white flowers.

First course

Handmade Tagliatelle with Chianina meat ragout.
Chianti DOCG red wine, intense perfume of cherry, blackcurrant, raspberry and violets.

Second course

Tuscan bread, local Pecorino sheep cheese, Salami, ham and a green salad with fresh tomatoes.
San Gimignano D.O.C. red "Convivio", warm and full-bodied with a spicy taste of liquorice and cinnamon.

Dessert

Cantuccini almond biscuits to be dipped into Vinsanto, a typical liquor wine, made from dried local grapes, slightly sweet with flavours of honey and caramel.

Audra and I after our wine lunch

Afterwards, Audra decides to buy a bottle of wine from the farm when we soon realize that we cannot bring it back with us because we have carry-ons. Too late, though. We save it for our last night in Italy instead!
Everyone at this point is a little tipsy from their wine lunch and in great spirits on our way to San Gimignano

Third Stop: San Gimignano

The streets of San Gimignano

Known as the 'Manhattan of the Middle Ages' due to its skyline, San Gimignano is one of our favorite stops. Not only is it gorgeous but they had the cutest shops and so much to explore! We even were able to try out gelato once more at the 'World's Famous Gelato Shop" which did not disappoint this time!

Yummy, Gelato!

Last stop: Pisa

I wish I had more exciting things to report on our trip to Pisa but really the only thing we did here was see the Leaning Tower of Pisa. I am glad we saw it but it would not have been worth a separate trip on our own as many people have told us

The Leaning Tower of Pisa

Visiting the family

2009-10-02T04:58:00.000-07:00

Monterey Bay, California

September 23rd, 2009

* Flew from Kansas City to visit my parents and brother, Steven in sunny and HOT Sacramento, CA

* 100 degrees each day I was there - 100 degrees! Yikes!

* During my time there we went golfing, got my haircut, shopped at Target (I miss Target), ate at a nice restaurant on the river, made a nice salmon dinner for the family, introduced Steven and Dad to Jamba Juice, and went to the pool (we needed it).

Dad and I golfing in Sacramento

* Mom took my last full day off from work and we decided to head to the beach; Steven has never been before

* Drove 3 hours to Monterey Bay; Dad decided to follow the GPS instead of his instincts so we took a bit of a detour but found our way

* Stop at the beach where some surfers decided to wade the waves instead of surf; how disappointing

Steven's first time at the beach

The parents posing in the sand

* After our stop to the beach we tried to race up this sand hill to the top. Steven won and mom came in DEAD last, not even close but she tried.

* Stopped and had lunch on Cannery Row and decided to go to the Monterey Bay Aquarium after a complimentary Ghiradelli Chocolate from their store in town

* The aquarium is quite popular and had beautiful exhibits. The big showcase when we were there was the seahorse exhibit; the only species in which the male actually carries its young. Gosh, are the ugly when you actually look at them

* My favorite was the sea otters, they are silly and so cute! Steven loved the penguins

* After a couple of hours at the museum (that was all Dad could handle) we stopped by the Nestle Tollhouse cafe and got the most amazing cookie sundaes! I could have done without but it was vacation after all and it is not everyday you find a Nestle Tollhouse cafe

* We ended up getting stuck in traffic on the way home but we had fun listening to the Beatles (our family pastime) and attempting to sing along! It was a nice family day trip!

The Krofts Abroad

Budapest, Hungary

Edinburgh, Scotland

Russin, Switzerland

Venice, Italy

Cinque Terre, Italy

Berlin, Germany

Lyon, France

Milan, Italy

Interlaken, Switzerland

The French Riviera

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Gruyeres, Switzlerand

Ben's Swiss Travels

Sound of Music Production

Rome/Pompeii Italy

Moscow, Russia

Barcelona, Spain

Lucerne, Switzerland

Burgundy, France

Waffles, Beer and Chocolate!

An *American* Holiday 2009

Thanksgiving in Geneva

London, England

Dublin, Ireland

Italy Travels

Visiting the family

An American Holiday 2009