Rhode Island

During my CT weekend, we drove to Rhode Island just to say I've been to that state. It was dark, I don't remember much; but I am counting it!

Pennsylvania

Back to reality (home and work - not Europe).... and back to documenting where I've already been.

"Book" sights that I've been to:

Gettysburg National Military Park and Cemetery
Pennsylvania Dutch Country
Independence National Historical Park

I've visited this state many times. Hershey is a particular favorite of mine.

Europe 2009

These are the places from "1,000 places to see before you die" that we visited on this trip.

London
The Connaught Hotel
Tea at the Ritz
Paris
Hotel de Crillon
Cathedrale Notre Dame de Chartres
Biarritz
The Dordogne
St Emillion
Madrid
Guggenheim Museum Bilbao
San Sebastian
La Cathedral de Toledo
Catalan National Art Museum
La Sagrada Familia
Figueres

Restroom bathroom loo WC toilette aseo

Sometimes.....when traveling.....you need to urinate - especially if you drink enough water to stay hydrated. Some of the places we visited were quite hot.

Paris is the worst city to be in when you need to pee. There is not a bathroom at the top of Notre Dame cathedral.

I may have mentioned this before, but I rarely (really!) eat at McDonald's at home. I sometimes eat at McDonald's while out of the country because I need to use their toilette. McDonald's in Paris requires a purchase before you can use their WC. I love Paris, but I hate this aspect of Paris.

There are lots of pubs in London and they all have loos, so it was pretty easy to find facilities there.

I haven't had any trouble finding aseos in Spain when I needed them.

When in Europe, don't ask to use the restroom or bathroom - people here won't know what you mean.....unless they have traveled to the US.

Barcelona Spain

4 places from "the book" to check off:

La Sagrada Familia - Gaudi's unfinished cathedral (might be our last cathedral of the trip).
Museu Picasso
Figueres - not in Barcelona. We drove through this part of Spain on our way to elBulli. I wish we had spent the whole day here.

Catalan National Art Museum

We didn't see as much in Barcelona as expected because nearly everything was closed on June 24th for some holiday.

We did spend some time in Guell Park - a park by Gaudi. It was cool. Jill did some swinging. The girl on the swing next to her lost her smile every time the swing slowed down, and smiled big again when mom gave her another push.

elBulli

I've been to some of the best restaurants - Charlie Trotter's and Alinea in Chicago; the Inn at Little Washington in Virginia; and Taillevent in Paris.

Last night we went to what some believe is the best restaurant in the world - elBulli in Roses, Spain. The picture is not egg yolk - it is mango in the form of a "bag of goo" (Jill's term).

I took pictures of every one of the 34 courses; and I will post them on Facebook and perhaps Webshots. Dinner took 5 hours.

It was a unique experience. The restaurant itself is small and lovely - set on a hill overlooking the Mediterranean. We also had the bonus of seeing fireworks - locals were celebrating the Equinox.

The course that surprised me the most because I never ate this before and was uncertain about it was sea cucumber. The course I hated the most was something with bleu cheese. I really liked the tomatoes and the last part of the meal -- the chocolate.

Valencia Spain

We went to the Valencia Cathedral - which is beautiful. The main reason for the trip was to see the Holy Grail. Yes, the cup believed to have been used by Jesus is in this cathedral.

We walked around the science museum and art museum. Both have very unique architecture.

We then went to a beach north of Valencia and played in the sea and napped on the beach. I am very red right now.

We drove to Barcelona - the last stop on this trip. Finding our hotel was a bit stressful, but we are here now. I need to find some ice to cool off my sangria!

Father's Day 2009

We spent the morning trying to find.....then trying to find a parking spot.... La Rastro market. Lots of people, lots of stuff. I bought earrings for me and Jill.

We then drove to Valencia. Not much to report yet. We did find a great hotel near the sea.

Shoes

I brought 5 pairs of shoes on this trip.

1. high-heeled black shoes for work - haven't touched them since London

2. Sketchers - look comfortable, but they really aren't

3. low-heeled white Born sandles - cute, but not comfortable

4. medium-heeled black Sofft sandles - cute and comfortable, but not good for cobblestone roads

5. Clark Privo sandles - purchased right before trip and love, love them

I keep going back to the Clark sandles when my feet get sore in other shoes. I am so glad I bought these-- against DH's recommendation of buying new shoes before a trip.

Madrid art

We went to the Prado museum on Friday and the Museo National Centro de Arte Reine Sofia today. The Prado has lots of darkish, Dutch masters paintings. Reine Sofia has lots of Dali and Picasso. I like the Reine Sofia much better than the Prado.

The rooms in Reine Sofia are white, clean, and open. Some of the rooms in the Prado have dark paint on the walls, which I think can be distracting to the art.

Toledo Spain

Toledo is a significant town for several reasons, some of which are:

Roman Catholic Cathedral
El Greco
Old city with unusual combinations of architecture

This cathedral is featured in "the book." We started by wandering around the town for two hours before reaching the cathedral. It is not an easy town to walk. Small-stone, narrow streets; and lots of little hills. I picked the wrong day to wear sandles with a little heel. I was in serious pain before we arrived at the cathedral.

I perked up when we went in the cathedral. It is amazing. The detail and craftsmanship is unbelievable. Each stall in the choir area is hand carved in wood and features a different scene. The altar has lots of gold, and is very detailed and intricate.

They have an amazing art collection including works by Caravaggio, Ruebens, Titian, Rafael, and lots of El Greco. It was worth the trip!

Bonus of the day -- no parking ticket despite arriving almost 90 minutes late. Perhaps the local police were having their siesta.

Downside - DH was pick-pocketed. Luckily the only thing they got was the key card for our hotel. My bag was opened twice in five minutes when I was looking at jewelery in a local store. It was probably the same two people DH caught in his pocket. They didn't get anything from my bag.

Spongebob en francais

This happened a few days ago, but we are still laughing about it.....so I think it deserves a post.

Our last morning in France was low key.

DH did laundry, went shopping, and browsed through a local hardware store. He came back cursing 3M's France marketing team because the store he visited had no 3M tape.

I uploaded pictures to Facebook.

Andy and Jill watched Spongebob Square Pants in French. They both laughed and laughed - partly at themselves for watching Bob.....they are, after all, teenagers. Both agreed that they did not need to understand French to understand the action in the cartoon.

Madrid Spain

Madrid is a hot and vibrant city. We had a slow start - none of us had been here before.

I'm really tired, but determined to do a post tonight, so it is bullet points:

Old Madrid - Plaza Mayor, Palacio Real (pic is of palace)
Prado Museum - Andy actually requested we visit an art museum because he thought it would be cooler inside than outside.
Basilica de San Miguel and Mercado de San Miguel
Museo de Jamon
McDonald's - finally ice with our soda (France doesn't do ice)

We walked lots and lots, but I didn't wear my pedometer.

We had a great evening - stopped at two different restaurants/cafes for tapas, cerveza, sangria, cava and paella. The city really comes alive at night, but I was too tired to stay up late.

Getting lost

Rudy Maxa has several general travel recommendations, and one of them is to get lost. We've gotten lost -- and trapped -- twice now.

The first time was in Sarlat, France. We found our way into town just fine, and wandered around without any navigational issues. Our problem came when we tried to leave. Our desired route was under construction and no detour was posted. We drove around, and around, and around -- three times. Then we spotted an auto ecole (student driver) and followed him. That worked! We finally found our way out of town.

Our next time was leaving San Sebastian, Spain. We drove up the hill to get a better view of the beach and bay. Must have missed a turn because we ended up on a high, winding road. I got so excited when I spotted - in the middle of nowhere - a Pepsi vending machine. I still smile when I think about it. My first Mountain Dew in a long, long time!

We finally wound our way off of the hill. It was scenic - lots of horses, sheep and cows. We found our way to a small village - Kukuarri. It was cute and quaint, and we could see the highway running over the village; but could not find an entrance. We drove around this town four times. Each time we saw a man walking his french bulldog. We worked him into our story because we used him as a landmark to know where we had already been. (Turn left when you see the bulldog.)

We finally found our way to Orio - where they do have an entrance to the highway.

Bilbao Spain

The people of Bilbao are very friendly. However, the town itself is not tourist friendly. We stopped in Bilbao to see the Guggenheim museum (in the book). It must be the biggest attraction in this area.....yet, we never saw a single street sign to help us find the museum. (First tirade of the day.)

(Second tirade of the day) -- We also never saw a McDonald's. I don't go to Europe to eat at a restaurant I never eat at when home; however, I do not like the 1-3 meals that seem to be the norm here. I am trying to see as much as possible. I don't have time for a 90-minute lunch. I only allot enough time for a 10-minute lunch. I really don't want traditional American fast food when in Europe - I just need good food with fast service. Restaurant service has been mostly bad everywhere, except Biarritz.

The Guggenheim building is impressive. I don't like modern art.....there, I said it. I enjoyed the building but not its contents.

Yesterday at the beach was better than today in Bilbao.

France / Spain

Vineyards everywhere you look! We visited St. Emilion in the Bordeaux region. Another quaint little French town where every other store is a wine store. I think we bought about 10 bottles of wine.

Biarritz, France was our next stop. This is a great seaside resort town. I am in love with this town, and really hope to return someday. We played in the surf, watched the surfers and then ate our fill of mussels.

Au revoir France. Hola Espana.

Spain, so far, is much more mountainous than France.

We stopped in the Spanish seaside resort town of San Sebastian. Another great beach, and we saw lots of cute perros (dogs). French dogs were quite snooty. Spanish dogs are friendlier.

All three places are in "the book."

Dordogne

We drove very fast from Tours to Les Eyzies because we had a reservation to see a cave (Grotto - Fond du Gaume) with incredible and very old paintings. The paintings are estimated to be between 15,000 and 17,000 years old. They were amazing.

We then went to Sarlat and walked through its medieval section. We visited La Roque-Gegeac, believed by some to be the most picturesque part of France. It is lovely. We also drove through Domme and near Castlenaud.

Tonight was the first night we didn't have a hotel reservation, which turned out to be a good thing since we did not make it to Bordeaux as planned. Third time's the charm because the first two places were booked. Then...we had a very difficult time finding a place to eat at 9 pm. The local McDonald's was closed. We finally found a pizza kiosk in the parking lot of a Home Depot-style store.

Dordogne is in "the book." It is a river with lots of cute and quaint towns on its shores. Andy would have loved some time to fish, but we didn't build that into the schedule.

Castles and Cathedrals

Europe has lots of both. The US doesn't. I was in college when I first toured England. I saw several castles and cathedrals and did not really appreciate them. My teenagers have grown very tired of visiting castles and cathedrals. I am slightly amused by their reaction, because I remember my own first visit. I hope they will appreciate their grandeur and beauty later in their life.

Snails

Jill had a nice plate of escargot in Paris a couple of days ago - but I'm not sure if she'll eat them again. She really enjoyed it.....the primary flavor being butter.

I think yesterday's highlight for Jill and Andy (yes, the 19-year-old boy) was finding and playing with snails they found in Da Vinci's park. Jill bonded with some of them and decided her next pet will be a snail. Therefore.... they are now off of the menu.

Andy set up a snail race while he was waiting for his dad to examine mock-ups of Da Vinci's inventions. Herman the snail won the race handily.

This is one of my favorite parts of vacation. The part where the kids are NOT listening to iPods and playing on game systems, but instead are entertaining themselves and interacting with the world around them - and each other.

Way to go Herman! (No, we are not smuggling a French snail back to the US with us. Jill will need to get one after she gets home.)

Chartres and the Loire Valley

We started this rainy day by driving out of Paris to Chartres. Driving in, near or around Paris is stressful - add in some rain, and a lack of experience driving a manual transmission and you have a recipe for a bad Monday morning.

The rain had mostly stopped by the time we arrived in Chartres. We visited the cathedral and ate lunch at a local sandwich place. Both were very nice.

We then drove to Amboise to visit Chateau Du Clos Luce - Parc Leonardo Da Vinci. This is the house where Da Vinci died after living here for the last few years of his life. I really like the house, and the grounds and garden are beautiful.

Next stop - Château de Chenonceau. This beautiful Loire Valley castle is built over a river.

We drove back to Amboise to walk around the castle here.

Checking off my list from "the book:"
Loire Valley

Jill's amazing ability

Jill has what I consider to be a great skill for her age - she is a great navigator and very proficient at reading maps. She very quickly learned how to read subway maps and find her away around London and Paris.

From the time she was a little girl Jill has liked having a map when we took road trips so she can follow along. Andy, from the time he was a little boy, never looked at a map nor did he even look out of the car window. Andy's navigation skills are not as good because he plays video games in the car.

Jill's navigational skills are better than her father's too. Now...hopefully she can help us find the maps that seem to be lost in this hotel room.

Paris - 14 June 2009

*sigh* Our last day in Paris. I've only been to Paris three times, but I feel very comfortable here. However...it is time to move on and see parts of France that I've never been to before.

The boys started the day by touring Catacombes de Paris. Jill and I wandered through a neighborhood street market. We then took the subway to Pigalle, wandered through Montmartre and up to Sacre Coeur. We stopped at Moulin Rouge on our way back down.

We then did something I hadn't done yet on this trip -- take a nap. I was torn between wanting to see more of Paris or resting my poor, tired body. I did not wear the pedometer today because I wanted a more relaxing day.

Jill and I went shopping on the Champs Elysees after we woke up. We started at Louis Vuitton and ended at Sephora.

Paris - 13 June 2009

First, let me document the places from "the book" that I saw today or on previous trips:
Paris (my third trip)
Hotel de Crillon (today)
Taillevent (12 March 2001) - nicest restaurant I have ever ate at
Cathedrale Notre Dame de Chartres (today)

Started our day at the bakery and took the subway to the Eiffel Tower. We then walked along the Seine and around Place de la Concorde. We went to the Orangerie - tried to go here in 2001 but it was closed. This is a great museum that features huge Monet paintings.


We walked through the Hotel de Crillon. It is beautiful. We then did some window shopping at the exclusive Rue du Faubourg-St-Honoré shopping area. (Hermes, Chanel, Dior, Gucci, D&G, and more)

We then had a leisurely lunch at a Parisian cafe. Took the subway to Notre Dame, waited for a long time, and then walked to the top. The weather was beautiful and we had great views of Paris. I then got to experience this great ice cream place DH and the kids had been to twice already.

We finished with dinner at Alain Ducaisse's Aux Lyonnais restaurant. Jill had her first glass of wine at a restaurant. She did not let me take a picture though. We were not exactly fresh looking after that long walk to the top of Notre Dame.

8,440 steps walked today.

London / Paris - 12 June 2009

My last day in London. I am sitting at London City Airport (I love free wi-fi) waiting for my flight to Paris. I had one work meeting earlier today, one last pub meal with my UK colleague, and now I am trying to catch up on work before I sign off for two weeks.

I am so unbelievably frustrated right now. There were two - yes two - earlier flights to Paris; but they don't do stand-by here. They are happy to let seats go empty and make me wait for my later flight. I don't understand the insanity of this. They tried to get another 300 British pounds from me to take one of those earlier flights. I am really, really hating Air France.

Tomorrow will be better. Today was not good for me, but my family had a good day.

What my family did in Paris:
Found a great bakery near the hotel, went to the Louvre, walked through the Jardin de Tuileries and Place de la Concorde, walked by the US Embassy, and ate at a local McDonald's. Walked up the Champs Elysees to Arc de Triomphe. Went back to the ice cream place, and ate dinner at an Indian restaurant. Andy was awake for this dinner.

London / Paris - 11 June 2009

DH and the kids took a very early train to Paris. I stayed behind in London. I met with an existing client and conducted a training session for a new client.

My day got very exciting after work. First, I had a private tour around Parliament. Then, I went to Beating Retreat and was treated to a most unexpected surprise.....I saw the Queen and Prince Philip. Dave Worsell has pictures so I can prove it! How cool is it that I saw the Queen (from a distance of about 50 yards) today, and I saw President Obama two weeks ago? Who will be next?

And....I walked 10,687 steps today.

What my family did in Paris while I was working in London:
Walked by Hotel de Invalides, went to the Eiffel Tower (lots of beggars and people selling crap) and St. Germain-de-Pres and St. Sulpice (featured in Da Vinci Code). Saw the inside of Notre Dame and found a great sorbet/ice cream place nearby.

Andy missed a great Indian dinner because his dad was unable to wake him.

London day 4 - June 2009

Otherwise known as first full day of no tube (subway) access due to a strike. 11,810 steps.

The family took a ride on a double-decker red bus. They went to the British Museum and to Covent Garden.

I worked today, but Jill and I just walked across Hyde Park to Harrods and walked around the store.

London day 3 - June 2009

My family covered this today, mostly without me:

St. Paul's Cathedral (me too)
Tate Modern
Millennium Bridge
Fish & chips at British pub
Shopping at Harrod's
Trafalgar Square (me too)

More places from "the book" that I can tick (British version of check) off of my list:
Tea at the Ritz
Connaught Hotel

Tea at the Ritz was an awesome experience. Jill and I went to the Ritz tonight while the boys had beer at the pub. I think Andy is really enjoying the fact that he can legally drink beer in London at 19.

The Connaught Hotel has a very impressive staircase.

The day ended on a bit of a downer because the tube (subway) workers started a 48-hour strike at 7 pm local time.

I worked again today - met with a prospect, met with a long-time client (UK Parliament) and met with a new client. It was a good day.

London day 2 - June 2009

I left the hotel at 8:15 am for work and got back at 6:45 pm. It was a long day, but a great trip to Exeter and meeting with Met Office.

The family did all of this while I was working:
Natural History Museum
Science Museum
London Eye
Westminster Abbey
10 Downing Street
Parliament / Big Ben
Whitehall Hall

London day 1 - June 2009

16,549. That is how many steps I walked today according to my Wells Fargo freebie pedometer.

First day in London was really a 1/2 of a day. We took an overnight flight and arrived at noon local time. After immigration, two bathrooms breaks, collecting luggage, customs, buying train tickets, taking the train, transferring to the underground/subway, and arriving at our hotel - it was 2 pm. I think the kids thought we were done for the day, but no......

First destination after finally leaving the hotel was a local McDonald's. (Not my choice.)

We walked through Hyde Park, to Buckingham Palace, took the underground to the Tower of London, walked over the Tower Bridge, walked along the Thames River, took the underground to Picadilly Circus, ate dinner at a pub, and have finally collapsed at the Edward Lear hotel. 16,549.

A traveler's friend

Tide to Go pens. They are awesome and very portable. But.....where does the stain go?

Interruption

I am interrupting our regularly scheduled program - going down memory lane to document where I've already been - to blog a real trip. I am not calling it a vacation, because I'm not sure if there will be much relaxation....but it should be an awesome trip. This will be the last major trip with the kids when I can still call them kids. *sniff, sniff*

Our flight to London is scheduled to leave at 9:50 tonight. Tomorrow will be play time. I'll be working Monday - Friday while the rest of my family plays.

Oregon

I love Oregon! I can't wait to go back there and visit the fabulous Sharon Benson.

Places listed in "the book" that I've been to:

The Oregon Coast
Willamette Valley - I still can't pronounce this correctly, but I got some great wine from a local vineyard.

Oklahoma

We drove through this state in 1976. It was the first time in my life that I ever saw an oil rig.

OK is about 1/2 way between Minnesota and Arizona. This was probably the time when I started asking my dad....are we there yet?

Ohio

This is not in "the book" but it is quite a sight to see.....I've been to the 7-story basket-shaped office building that houses the headquarters for the Longaberger Company. It is located in Newark, OH.

DH works for 3M company. Can you picture a giant office building shaped like Scotch tape? Yep, me neither.

North Dakota

Drove through North Dakota as a child on our way to visit my great-grandma in Montana. I went to Fargo when I was in high school and visited an old neighbor. Sadly, I don't even remember her name now.

North Carolina

A long time ago in a galaxy* far, far away... I went camping on Cape Hatteras. I drove from VA to NC (and ultimately to SC - just wait for that blog post).

I remember thinking I was really in "the south" as soon as I crossed the border. It was the first time I saw cotton fields.

The Outer Banks are listed in "the book" and I have been there. The best part of NC and SC was running the beach with my dogs.

*galaxy = a former life that I don't particulary wish to recall or talk about.

New York

Another big state that I've visited many times. Let's start with "the book" - 10 entries and I've been to 4.

The Adirondacks
NYC
Historic Downtown New York
Museum Mile

My most recent trip was April 2007. It was Andy and Jill's first trip to NYC. Highlights from that trip:

American Museum of Natural History
Central Park (it snowed a bit)
Empire State Building
Rockefeller Center
Times Square
Seeing Rent on Broadway

New Mexico

I was 10-years-old when we drove through New Mexico on our way to AZ. This is another state that I need to return to and do some touristy stuff.

New Jersey

I've been to Atlantic City once. Just once, and I probably won't go back. I've driven through New Jersey many times. It is really difficult to get from DC to NYC without going through NJ. It always struck me as odd in NJ that all of the gas stations are "full" serve. Why can't I pump my own gas? Sure, I like people to do stuff for me. Can't they take my garbage out instead?