Vieux Nice

Vieux Nice = Old Nice

In "the book."

This is the type of neighborhood where you want to get lost. Don't use a map. Just wander around and see where the winding streets take you. You can't really get lost because of the geography, so just go with the flow!

We walked through a market on the edge of Vieux Nice.



I stopped in a chuch that was built in 1640. I lit a candle there for the baby of a colleague. (This one's for you Kaylee Hope!)

I saw maybe a dozen art studio/stores. I love to buy from local, struggling artists. I didn't buy anything though because I saw too many beautiful things and couldn't decide.

I saw pretty fountains and was mooned by a pigeon who was bathing in one of them.


I ate passion fruit gelato.

I ate in a Dutch restaurant. (Yep, this was a bit strange in this part of France, but it was tasty.)


We climbed up to Castle Hill and saw beautiful panoramic views of the Mediterranean. We also stopped and played in a playground.

We saw a Shiba Inu as we were walking down the hill. He was just as stuck-up as my Shiba. I always miss my pup when I am traveling. (My prayer to all of the missing Shibas and humans in Japan.)

Mediterranean

I love the Mediterranean!

Yes, this is the entire post.

Monte Carlo

I've been to Monte Carlo, Monaco once before; but this was the first trip with the kids. My previous trip to Monte Carlo was about 4 hours long - it was a port on a cruise.

It was raining so this was a good day for fun, family, indoor activity - an aquarium. Great aquarium! And it is built on a cliff overlooking the Mediterranean, so it has awesome views.

I like turtles. Big, sea turtles. Their main tank had one, lonely turtle. We hit it off right away!

I spent a very long time watching a little fish pick rocks up in his mouth, move them to a new location, and deposit them in a mound. He was creating a hiding spot, I think. He was constantly looking around for predators. I assume there weren't any in his tank, so I assume it was an instinct thing.

Andy had a good time scaring the clown fish. They would all scramble into their protective sea creature when he would wave his umbrella in front of the tank.

Yes, we are both easily amused.

We also drove around Monte Carlo....sort of lost, but it isn't really possible to get lost. The sea is on one side - so don't drive that way; and the mountains are the other geographical feature.

I picked out a lovely yacht in their port, for after I win the lottery.

We also poked around in some of the expensive stores, like Louis Vuitton. Jill tried on a lovely, 3100 euro leather jacket. It was the softest leather I've ever felt, but not really in our budget.

I purchased a bottle of my favorite French champagne. It is chilling in the mini fridge in our room.

Eze

Eze is a medieval town in France between Nice and Monaco. And, it is in "the book."

I applaud the courage and determination it must have taken all of those years ago to build this town on a cliff. What a huge challenge, but worth the view and location! It was cloudy when we arrived so we couldn't see the Mediterranean, but I can image what it should look like.

Eze reminded me of Mont Saint Michel - narrow, winding streets that were not built for high heels. I wasn't wearing high heels because I know better!

Eza had a really cool garden.


There are many cute, quaint little shops on/in Eze. I have mixed feelings about that part of tourism, on a site that is so important it was included in "the book." I suppose selling stuff to us tourists helps everyone here financially, but I didn't go to Eze to buy stuff.

My little rant - I was reminded in Eze of something about France that drives me crazy -- the lack of public restrooms. Very frustrating! But a very nice man who runs the Eze gas station (yep, there is only one) let me use his bathroom. We "rewarded" his generosity by buying a bottle of water from him that we didn't really need.

Salt Lake City

It has been 8 years since I've been here. I had forgotten how beautiful this part of the country is. I had a window seat and took it all in.

The lake
The snow-covered mountains
And...the reflection of the mountains in the lake.

I love water and I really enjoy the beauty and wonder of mountains. This city has the perfect combination of both.

I won't be leaving the airport, but felt compelled to comment on the beauty of my surroundings.

John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum

The setting for the library is beautiful - right on Boston Harbor. The museum isn't huge; after all, he wasn't President for very long. There is a nice re-creation of the Oval Office - which seems to be a standard feature of presidential museums.

My favorite pieces in presidential museums are the gifts that the President and First Lady receive from kings, prime ministers, and other world leaders. They get some really nice stuff....that they don't get to keep. My favorite piece was a diamond and emerald encrusted purse.

Cape Cod

Cape Cod is in "the book." It is lovely here. More great seafood at very low prices....low compared to Minnesota. I am not tired of lobster yet.

The water is chilly, but I still love the beaches. The houses are adorable. This is the kind of place where I'd love to rent a house for a week or more. I can spend many hours sitting on a beach doing nothing....or reading...or people watching...or doing nothing.

Some kids were surfing off one of the beaches today. The waves weren't really big, but I guess they were big enough.

Maine

Two days - and two states I hadn't been to before.

I really liked Maine. It reminds me of Minnesota, but with an ocean and cheaper seafood.

I hit one place from "the book" - White Barn Inn. Very lovely and elegant hotel and restaurant. The first car I saw in the parking lot was a Bentley. We had dinner reservations - until I found out a jacket was required. We didn't really bring the right clothes for a place with a dress code.

We drove out to Walker's Point in Kennebunkport. This is where President Bush's Maine get-away is located.

Kennebunkport is a cute little town - exactly as I had pictured it. Nice shops and easy to get around.

We had lunch at Federal Jack's. The food was good, and we had an excellent view of the harbor.

Cancun - December 2004

This was the first (and only, so far) time in my life that I did not spend Christmas with my parents. Weird, huh? We left for Cancun on Christmas morning and returned on January 1st.

I'll start by putting it out there - it was not our best family vacation. Andrew got sick and DH is not really a beach person. We will probably never go back.

But we did make it to a place featured in "the book" - Chichen Itza. And, thankfully this was still when you could climb to the top. I didn't make it all the way up though because I was very afraid of falling on my way back down.

The other highlight of the trip for me was scuba diving off of Cozumel. I am a water person and love diving. I don't get enough opportunities to indulge this hobby especially given the climate I live in. I really need to live near an ocean.

Mediterranean Cruise - October 2006

My first cruise ever! And I loved it. I vow every year to go on another cruise, but so far haven't been able to work it into the schedule.

I won't be going into tons of detail, but wanted to document places I visited during this trip that are featured on "the book."

Athens
This was where we embarked on the cruise, but we arrived a day early to see some of the sights. We should have spent more time here.

The Acropolis - it was a beautiful, clear morning and I could see for miles all around Athens.

Turkey
First port.

The Roman Ruins of Ephesus

Malta
We went scuba diving.

Rome
I loved Rome and can't wait to go back.

Forum
Trevi Fountain
Vatican City
Coliseum
Sistine Chapel - we were the last group of the day and had it to ourselves
Mount Etna - we saw lava!

Monte Carlo
Fantasy day spent where the truly rich live, work and play.

The Grand Casino - I left them 20 euros.
Hotel de Paris - beautiful lobby, very expensive

We also went to the Jacques Cousteau museum, but it isn't in the book.

Barcelona
Museu Picasso - we nearly got kicked out because DH was taking unauthorized pictures.

Lisbon
This was the port where we disembarked. It was a national holiday and many things were closed.

Paris for my 35th birthday

Before getting to Paris, we (DH now, but this was before we were married) went to London first. And....before London, we changed planes in Iceland. I am counting it as a country I've visited even though I never left the airport.

We spent a few days in London, doing the typical touristy stuff. And actually... we didn't see anything that I haven't already blogged about, so now to Paris.

There were three highlights from this trip, all in the "book":

1. Mont-Saint-Michel - we drove to Normandy and spent the night on this little island in a building that was like 400 years old. We first spent the day wandering around the town, and visiting the abbey.

I love the ocean, so this was a huge treat. The views were amazing and I spent a little time in the water checking out the local mussel populations. It was very peaceful - especially at night when the island "closes" and the day tourists leave.

2. Taillevent - this is a restaurant in Paris and it was amazing. It was the best restaurant I had ever been to, and I have to admit I felt a little out of place. I probably wasn't as dressed up as I could be, and my French is not very good. The waiters were nice though - not snotty. It did help tremendously that DH's French is quite good.

3. Chateau de Versailles - don't all girls love an amazing castle? It is incredibly beautiful. The gardens were awesome. Sometimes I am very easily impressed, and this is one example of that.

We also visited the Louvre, Eiffel Tower and some of the other places I have already mentioned in other blog posts.

I did not go to Paris for my 40th birthday - as planned - but I went on a cruise and it was awesome. That will be a future blog post.

South Carolina

I love to travel, but - sadly - not every trip is a good one. Here is an example of a good trip gone bad.

I spent a horrible weekend in Charleston and Isle of Palm over Thanksgiving 1993. It was with an ex and his friend's family.

His friend invited us and our two large dogs to spend the weekend with them in their townhouse. The friend's (now ex-) wife told us upon our arrival (after driving down from VA) that we could not stay with them. She expected us, if we decided to stay, to sleep in our vehicle and use the gas station down the street for potty breaks. It was horrible, and we should have turned around and went home.

We did stay in the townhouse, but were subjected to an entire weekend of fighting between that couple. Thank goodness they were right on the beach so I spent lots of time there with my dogs.

I managed to get in a little sightseeing and can check this place from "the book" off of my list."
The Heart of Charleston

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!

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."

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

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.

California 2004 - LA

We went to LA with my brother, Bruce, and his wife, Jodi. It was Jodi's first trip to CA, and Bruce's first trip since he was 8-years-old.

Highlights:
Santa Monica Pier - saw dolphins
Universal Studios
Sitting in traffic
Pacific Coast Highway
Chinatown
Tar pits (remember seeing a guy with an NRA cap sitting on a bench "reading" Playboy)
Beverly Hills
Hollywood
Mulholland Drive

Ronald Reagan Presidential Library

San Simeon - Hearst castle

We went to Mr. Chow's again. I remember the food this time, and it was fabulous. Jason Bateman was leaving as we arrived. The best part of the night was when Stevie Wonder and his family was seated next to us. It was everything I could do to keep my SIL from jumping over the table and accosting this poor man. We also saw Robert DeNiro and Denis Leary.

California 2004 - San Fran

Andy and Jill's first trip to California. Spring break.

We stayed in San Francisco for a week and visited their uncle. (Uncle does not want to be named. He tries really hard to have a small footprint on the web.)

We did the typical touristy stuff on this trip, including CA's Wine Country; which is in "the book." My favorite was Domain Chandon.

I can't do cartwheels, at least I haven't been able to do a decent one since I was a teenager. I definitately can't do cartwheels after a day of wine tasting. I learned this the hard way. Two bloodied knees.....and hopefully I will always remember - no matter how much wine I drink - that I can't do cartwheels.

Other highlights:
Dipping toes in the ocean
Alcatraz
Japanese garden
Chinatown
Fisherman's Wharf
Golden Gate Bridge
Haight-Ashbury
Crooked street
Presidio
Winchester House (in San Jose)

California 1990

My third trip to CA was, sadly, also in a car. I was doing a good deed though and helped a girlfriend move from MN to CA.

I hit 3 places from "the book" during this trip.
1. Monterey Peninsula
2. The Pacific Coast Highway
3. Tour on San Francisco's cable cars

My first trip to California as an adult. And, now that I know better, it was the last time I made my way to California in a car.

I also visited Carmel, CA and ate at a restaurant that was then owned by Clint Eastwood. I dipped my toes in the Pacific Ocean. I went kayaking.

It was probably this trip when I realized that I love being near the ocean.