Spending New Years in Rome
An Italian Holiday
Classically, New Year is not a favorite holiday of mine for several reasons. Perhaps it’s the expectation of expensive party dresses and heels during a time of year that I would rather be wearing flannel and snow boots, or maybe it’s the complications of transportation, drunk drivers, or what to do with your coat when you arrive at some overpriced booze fest?
A couple of years ago, my husband and I spent New Year in Austria (you can see more about that trip HERE) and we had an amazing experience without any of the aforementioned complications. For Christmas 2023 and New Year 23/24, we needed to distance ourselves from our normal lives (but that’s for a different kind of blog) and we decided to lean on our past experience by spending New Year once again in Europe.
What You Need To Know About Spending New Year in Rome
I don’t care what anyone else has said, if Rome isn’t the most tourist dense city in the world, it certainly felt that way. What I mean by that, is while other cities may actually receive more tourists per year, if the infrastructure of the city is prepared for those people, it may actually feel like less people, does that make sense? Not so with Rome. We were here from December 28th to January 3rd and were repeatedly told by various locals and tour guides that we had come at the right time of year because the crowds were so much smaller. If what I experienced during our time there was truly “low season,” I’m horrified to think what it must be like at any other time of year.
Most of these tips should be applicable for any time of year that you decide to visit Rome, but two are specific to New Year:
Book Everything in Advance
Any skip the line, “pre-opening” or “after hours” tour you can get your hands on is a must. You will spend SO MUCH TIME standing in lines if you don’t take the time to make these arrangements beforehand.
If you want to visit St. Peter’s Basilica, go mid-day on New Years Eve (be sure to check the schedule online first) and attend a Vespers service officiated by the Pope himself (you can see more about our experience at this service and our tour of the Vatican HERE).
The fireworks show at Midnight in Rome is the most spectacular display I’ve seen anywhere in the world. Do yourself a favor, book an AirBnB or Hotel that has a rooftop from which you can watch the display, because being at street level is to rob yourself of something truly magical.
There’s a parade on New Years Day which starts mid/late afternoon. We went because we knew someone in the parade, but it’s not the kind of parade that has floats or showy displays, it’s was almost exclusively made of American high-school marching bands.
If you want to see a video about our New Year experience, you can see it HERE.
Other questions or Concerns? Feel free to leave a comment or shoot me an email!
Six Days in Rome - Vlog
How We Spent a Week in Rome
To read more details about how we spent our time in Rome, you can find my whole post HERE.
Spend A Week in Rome
Touring A Bucket List City
There are typically two kinds of kinds of people; those that travel and those that do not. Regardless of which travel camp you fall into, certain destinations will pass through the lips and land on some cosmic list of places worth seeing. It’s not that these places are necessarily better or more significant than other places it’s just simply that some places adopt an aura of importance in the minds of those who aren’t from those places, but I digress.
Rome is a “bucket list” city that (like many others) made its way onto my list. Serving as a pivotal place in human history, Rome (and Roman cultural history) is still commonly referenced in our modern society by way of sports teams, pizza restaurants, and feature films. It stands to reason that visiting Rome is akin to a right of passage for those who consider themselves as “travelers.”
St Peter’s Basilica
How Many Days Should Be Spent in Rome?
If you’ve been here long, you’ll probably know that I’m the queen of cramming places into our trips, repacking our bags every 2-3 days to move on to another location. I would like to say that the pace of travel is linked to your energy level (in some respects, it is), but the more I travel, the more I realize that to see anything, you must SLOW DOWN. What I mean by that is not do less, but move less. As I travel more, I am beginning to embrace the merits of doing day trips or a single organized activity per day. After all, it’s not the quantity of plans that makes for a good trip; it’s the quality of the experience that makes for a great trip.
Spending six days in any city may sound like enough, but days and cities are not all created equal. Having just returned from spending New Year in Rome, I almost have to laugh when I try to conceptualize “seeing Rome in 3 days,” which is a roughly average allotment of time for us in the past. Do yourself a favor and follow a general rule of thumb, I recommend that you make a list of what you want to see and if the number of places matches the number of days (assuming one per day) you plan to be there, you’ll be on the right track, if not, good luck.
When in Rome…
To say that Rome is a “big city” is an understatement, it may be nicknamed the Eternal City for more lofty reasons, but it also feels appropriate for its sheer size. Like a bowl of spaghetti, the streets twist and tangle in a seemingly endless maze that eventually runs you into a church, historical monument, or piazza. I can’t stress enough the importance of wearing supportive shoes.
During of six-day stay in Rome, we toured the following sites which I’m ranking from Most Enjoyable to Least. My score is a combination of my enjoyment of the site itself and the experience of the tour itself (getting tickets, the crowds, etc.):
Castel Sant'Angelo (Also known as the Mausoleum of Hadrian)
Inexpensive “skip the line” tickets, low crowds, fascinating architecture, rewarding views of Rome from the top.
The Pantheon
Inexpensive timed entry tickets, impressive architecture, and the quick nature of which it can be visited and seen in the entirety.
The Vatican Museums
Regardless of how you might feel about religion or the Pope, the Vatican museums are a breathtaking 'Must-see.' However, do yourself a favor and book a skip-the-line tour (make sure it includes access to St. Peter’s Basilica) either first thing when they open or late at night, when the crowds will take your breath away for a different reason.
Palatine Hill, Circus Maximus, & The Roman Forum
All three of these sites are close together and are outside, so you’ll enjoy the park-like setting where you can reach out and touch history. The crowds are also minimal, so it’s someplace where you can take your time and enjoy some personal space.
The Colosseum
Probably the most iconic ruin in the world, no trip to Rome would be complete without seeing the Colosseum. However, seeing it and touring it are very different beats. We purchased Skip the Line tickets for touring both the basement and upper decks. One would like to believe that skip-the-line tickets mean that you skip the line, but the sheer number of tourists at this time meant that our skip-the-line tour was twenty minutes late by the time we navigated the line for such groups. The trouble with our delay is that groups entering the basement of the Colosseum have set times and are only sent down one group at a time. Fortunately, we were still allowed in, but we were rushed through every stage of our tour to get back on track, a reality which my husband can attest that I was NOT a fan of. Not to put too fine a point on it, but our tour guide told us that 80 million tourists visited the Colosseum that year (2023). As a reminder, we were there during the low season.
Other Activities and Places
As with any big city, there is much more than just museums and tours. While not exhaustive, here are a few things I enjoyed (in no particular order):
Visit the Jewish Quarter
The history here is heartbreaking but the resilience of the community that lives here is beautiful. There are charming shops, bakeries, and restaurants that serve Jewish Style Artichoke Hearts (trying one these should be on your “Not To Miss” list.
Take a break from the city and visit one of the many outlying vineyards, neighboring cities, or historical sites. Thanks to the speedy trains, there’s no shortage of reachable destinations within a day. We took a day trip to a family owned winery located just outside of Rome.
Pompeii
Florence
In Summary
Rome belongs on the bucket lists, but it’s a place to see thoroughly once and then not again. I feel privileged to have seen the sites, but in the way that certain places touch a places in your heart or capture your imagination, Rome did not yield this result for me. Glad I went but equally glad to cross it off the list.
To see some video footage of our time in Rome, please click HERE.
French Christmas Vlog
Watch how we spent the week of Christmas in the Alsace region of France!
Watch How We Spent Christmas in Colmar
More Information
If you would like more details about our week in the Alsace, consider reading my other posts “Seven Days in The Alsace,” and “Spend Christmas in France.”
Seven Days in The Alsace Region of France
A Week In The Alsace-Lorraine
We love having travel experiences that deviate from the traditional, so it was only a matter of time before we went ‘all-in’ on visiting the Christmas Markets by spending Christmas in Europe.
For our first visit to the Alsace-Lorraine region of France, we decided to hit three cities, two of which had major holiday markets and one having an entirely different reason for visiting. For visiting the Christmas Markets, we made our plans based on the time frame for our visit (you can read more about the “Christmas” portion of our trip HERE).
Where to Stay and Go
For our purposes, we stayed in Colmar, located just 40 minutes south of Strasbourg and just 45 minutes north of Basel Switzerland (the nearest international Airport). Colmar is very conveniently situated for quick access to many towns along the rail line as well as by bus. If you want to stay put, Colmar is also a charming place with plenty of ways to spend several days soaking up the charm of the area.
Day Trips
Taking the train, we spent one full day in Strasbourg, though in hindsight, I would recommend spending at least three days investigating the many attractions the city has to offer, if not more. We went to the Christmas Markets, catching the last full day before they shut down for the season, but we also paid a visit to the Galleries Lafayette (which are shopping destinations that are not to be missed).
In addition to Strasbourg, we also took a 30-minute bus ride (departing from a stop right next to the Colmar tourist office) to the town of Kaysersberg-Vignoble. If you’ve been following our past travels you’ve probably seen me refer to Anthony Bourdain on more than one occasion but Kaysersberg also has a connection to Mr. Bourdain (although very macabre).
Kaysersberg is a charming town, much smaller than neighboring Colmar, tucked away in the Alsatian hills and surrounded by vineyards. A combination of the slightly more remote location, the smaller size of the town, and the marginal increase in elevation from that of its larger neighbors leave you feeling much further away from the hustle and bustle of daily life than just 30 minutes.
Perched above the town, but only a short, easy walk, is a partially restored ruin of a 13th-century castle. If you walk up, you’ll be charmed by the beautiful views of the town below, the vineyards that seem to stretch on forever, and the only sounds being the chatter of your fellow walkers and the sound of the raging waters of the Weiss River that cuts through the town. You may choose to climb the steps of the restored castle tower for a further elevated view of the surroundings.
Back in town, you’ll find a long main corridor of shops, boutique hotels, and restaurants. Cars are relegated to the outskirts of old-town, so feel free to absentmindedly meander your way from charming shop window to shop window. We were visiting just after Christmas (December 27th), the vestige of their small holiday market still on site but now shuttered. I can only imagine how romantic it must be to stay in this town when the market is open.
We visited many shops, most still selling holiday decorations, but one being decidedly different. Verrerie d’Art de Kaysersberg was a local artist studio featuring a glassblower workshop and attached gallery. We stood and watched as a man spun the hot glass in the oven, working quickly but patiently in front of a small crowd gathered to watch his work from behind the barriers set up for this purpose. We visited the gallery of beautiful glass baubles and unique holiday ornaments, one of which we purchased and then invoked the favor of the gods to get home without breaking.
Our final stop in Kaysersberg was to peak through the windows of Le Chambard Restaurant and adjoining hotel, the location of which was the last dining location and accommodation of the aforementioned Anthony Bourdain. Why we felt compelled to see this place, I couldn’t tell you, but as travelers and ardent admirers of his sage travel advice, it felt like an oddly necessary pilgrimage.
Where we Stayed
As previously mentioned, we selected Colmar as our home base from which we explored the surrounding areas. Visiting the holidays also drastically narrowed the scope of what we saw, but I would venture to say that it would also serve as an excellent base during the warmer months of the year.
Colmar offers a wide array of shops, restaurants, hotels, and activities, but being that we were there primarily for the Christmas markets, endeavored to stay in a classic example of the half-timbered architecture for which the area is famous, in addition to being near the Christmas markets. We ultimately booked an Airbnb in the Tanneurs district of the old town, a fifth-floor walk-up apartment that, fortunately, was worth the huffing and puffing (bags in tow) involved with each trek up and down the stairs.
Old Town feels more like the set of a movie than that of a real place. Winding streets lined with half-timbered houses, buildings with ornamented slate and tile roofs, each window bordered with shutters and flower boxes, overlook the cobblestone (car-free) streets below. Small canals wind through the town, though mostly disused, some are still in partial use for shuttling tourists around on small wooden boat tours (which I highly recommend).
As with most cities in Europe, a church (or two) typically anchors the center of the city, and given that we were there over Christmas, we decided to take the opportunity to attend a service instead of just passing through and taking pictures. No one in our party spoke enough French to understand what was being said during the service, however, the experience was still very special.
Our Seven Day Itinerary
Day One -
Arrived in Zurich and then boarded an SBB train from the Flughafen rail station (below the airport) bound for Basel Switzerland. Change trains in Basel and continue to Colmar (total train travel time was roughly two hours). After arriving in the Colmar, get checked into our Airbnb and then take a preliminary look at the neighborhood where we were staying.
Day Two -
Took the train from Colmar up to Strasbourg (roughly 40 minutes), went shopping at Galleries Lafayette, explored the Christmas Markets, then took the train back to Colmar.
Day Three (Christmas Eve) -
Did a photo shoot with a local photographer that I found on Instagram (we try to do this at least once on each European vacation), followed by grocery shopping, visiting the Christmas markets, ridding the Ferris Wheel (set up at one of the Christmas markets), and finally, attended a midnight service at the nearby cathedral.
Day Four (Christmas Day) -
Slept late, made breakfast at home, followed by shopping at the Christmas Markets (they were the only things open). Made dinner at home.
Day Five -
Final day of shopping at the Christmas Markets, took a boat tour of Little Venice (in old town), ate dinner at Bord'eau, a Michelin star restaurant along the canal.
Day Six -
Boarded a local bus and went to Kaysersberg-Vignoble for the day.
Day Seven -
Take the early train to the Saint-Louis train station (a town just outside of Basel), and catch the airport shuttle that runs to this station (you’ll need to run to catch it but comes every 30 minutes if you miss it as it’s timed to the train arrival schedule). Board flight at Basel International Airport and depart.
Summary
Here are a few of my thoughts about the places we went, based on my recent experience:
The Food - Do not expect that since you are in France, you will be eating French food in the Alsace. We were lucky to find a couple of bakeries that offered a small number of croissants each day, but the cuisine here leans more heavily German than French. That said, this is Alsace first and French/German second and third, so the food reflects that tradition.
The Shopping - We were here during the holiday market frenzy and made them our priority but Colmar and Strasbourg have tons of shops worth visiting, whether you’re a fashion-minded person (like my husband and me), a home-goods motivated person, or even antiques, there are tons of shops across a wide spectrum of tastes and price points.
What would I do again? I would 100% do the boat tour in Colmar again, but (a word to the wise) there are at least three different boat operators in Colmar with all three leaving from different launch points. Save yourself from waiting in lines by booking in advance, but know exactly which one you’re heading to before you waste a bunch of time at the wrong place and then panic running to the correct one.
Would I recommend going during the holidays? This is a tough question because I had an amazing time, but the crowds were overwhelming. Gone are the days of social distancing, and being crammed against wall-to-wall people is a drag. If you don’t need a lot of personal space, or if you only plan to visit a few holiday markets, I say go for it!
Would I go back to the Alsace? Absolutely! I would love to see more of the area, visit a few of the vineyards, and spend more time in Strasbourg.
Checkout our videos on YouTube or see the video about this particular tip HERE.
Questions or Comments? Leave me a message.
Spend Christmas in France
Why we skipped Christmas at home in favor of the Christmas markets in Colmar and the Alsace region of France.
Skipping Christmas
When planning this trip, I found very little information about the logistics of being in another country over the actual Christmas holiday. Burning questions like “Will the trains be running,” or “How will we feed ourselves?” These are some of the important details that many bloggers seem to fail at answering because they traveled near the time of Christmas but not actually over the holiday itself. For those of you seeking answers, look no further, I have information for you!
To begin, Christmas is my favorite holiday; the food, the colors, the smells, and the sounds fill me with joy each year when I get to untangle my tree garland and cut out cookies that I’ll lose enthusiasm to decorate after the first two. That said, it often gets co-opted by obligations, reciprocal gift-giving, and spending money that hurts for months afterward. None of these later things are in keeping with what I enjoy most about the holiday season. For Christmas 2023, we decided to say “F*** it," and we left town.
With my mother-in-law in tow (It would NOT be Christmas if she were not with us), we packed our bags and boarded a plane on December 21st, bound for Zurich Switzerland.
Our First European Christmas Vacation
If you saw my posts about spending New Year 2022 in Salzburg Austria you might know that I’ve been obsessing over the opportunity to see more Christmas markets in Europe. I’ve been compiling a mental list of the length of my arm of the various trinkets and holiday bobbles I wanted to acquire, so when the time came to pounce, I was ready.
It’s important to know that when planning a visit to the holiday markets in Europe, many of them occur during Advent and conclude before Christmas Day.
However, after much research into the various markets, the cities hosting them, proximity to airports, and a variety of other factors, we determined that of the markets staying open the longest, the Alsace region of France, and most specifically, Colmar, was the place for us. Offering six markets that stayed open until December 28th, which offered us the flexibility to take our time and not have to rush through the markets right before closing for the season.
Another bonus to this location was the classic holiday ambiance baked into staying in a medieval city. Half-timbered houses line the narrow, car-free streets, leaving you feeling as though you are a character in a Charles Dickens novel. Adding to the overall holiday “vibe,” the Alsace region has been under the control of both Germany and France several different times, which has left a distinct impression on the area. People speak both languages, the food is mainly cheese and pretzel-based, and Walt Disney used Colmar as the inspiration for the tiny village that Belle (from Beauty and the Beast) was from.
Holiday Travel Logistics -
Unlike being at home in your own house over a major holiday, there are many logistical factors that need to be considered when traveling abroad. Things like getting your morning coffee, what will be open, how will you actually spend the day. I’m not an expert, but here’s what I can tell you about what Christmas Day was like in Colmar, France.
*An important detail to note, is the transit system has reduced operation on Christmas Eve, no service on Christmas Day, and again, limited service the day after. Make sure that you don’t have to get anywhere that requires more than your own two feet unless you want to deal with a rental car.
What was open on Christmas:
The Christmas market! That’s right, they all opened, including the food vendors within the markets. That said, the regular shops and most restaurants were closed on Christmas Day and the day after. On Christmas Eve, we made a grocery run and got everything we might need for a couple of days, not knowing that we would have options available to us. However, being that most food at the markets was savory or novelty, it was good to be able to make our own breakfast at our Airbnb.
What was there to do on Christmas:
For several years we have made it a point to book a photographer to take nice photos of us on vacation, this trip was no different. I found a photographer on Instagram (her profile can be found here) and reserved her services probably six months in advance of our trip (we reserved a time slot for on Christmas Eve morning). Later that day things started shutting down earlier than normal, with the exception being the holiday markets. We ate dinner at one of the main food tents and then rode the Ferris wheel that was setup nearby and then later that night, (a special activity worth considering) we attended a holiday service at the main church in town, which was a midnight Christmas service., As was expected, the service was totally in French (no one in my party speaks fluently), but they also sang the same classic Christmas songs that we know in our native English, which was very comforting. We’re not frequent church goers, but we greatly enjoyed opportunity to experience a service in one of the many beautiful old churches of Europe.
On Christmas Day, we slept in, made coffee and ate day-old pastries that we had picked up the day before. Back home, we would have opened gifts and then had the television on a continuous loop of holiday movies, but we didn’t find that this was an available option to us on French television, not that we would have been able to understand them any way. Given the time difference, we waited until early afternoon to start making calls back to our loved ones in the US, and then we got dressed and spent the rest of the day roaming around the markets and people watching.
What I bought at the Colmar Christmas Markets
This information may not be of any interest to you, but I was super eager to know what might be available to me before experiencing the markets for myself.
Every market is slightly different (Colmar had six or seven), each with a slightly different emphasis, some had more wine vendors, others offered more children-focused items, while still, others had more hand-crafted decorations. The thing we noticed is that while the overall “theme” of each market was slightly different, the mix of vendors was largely the same at each, so don’t feel that if you missed purchasing something at one market that you’ll not have another opportunity to purchase something similar from a different vendor, there are lots of very similar products and vendors.
With that in mind, hand-painted crockery is the signature item for the Alsace region, you’ll see it everywhere. Beautifully glazed and brightly colored, you’ll find platters, bowls, tureens, teapots, and various other baking dishes covered in patterns consisting largely of hearts and storks (both are heavily used symbols in this area). For our part, we purchased a beautiful blue platter and a small matching crock, but the platter broke into a million pieces on our way home.
Some of the other items that I crammed into my luggage included two springle cookie presses, an embossed rolling pin, one cookie cutter (for the springle presses), a nutcracker, several tree ornaments, two ceramic tabletop village houses, a wooden candle pyramid, and two embroidered table runners. Unfortunately, I failed to take pictures of any of these items during purchase, and are already packed away for the year.
Reflections And Things to Know:
Opting out of gift-giving and much of the other "normal" responsibilities of the Holidays allowed me to just relax and enjoy the season. That said, having skipped Christmas and gone to France, here are a few key takeaways:
Did I spend less money by going on the trip rather than buying gifts?
No. I probably spent more money. The cost of flights so near any major holiday is significantly more expensive than normal and the same is true for accommodations, our Airbnb was triple the nightly rate of what it charges the majority of the year.
Did I feel like I “missed out” by not being at home and seeing more of my family for the holiday?
Also No. This might have been different if we had gone somewhere tropical or someplace that wasn’t so Christmas-oriented, even our Airbnb host had thoughtfully decorated the apartment for us. Stripping back so much of what has become “normal” Christmas stuff made me feel some of the magic I felt as a kid before I had responsibilities.
Did I enjoy the Christmas Markets as much as I thought I would?
This one is tough, but I have to say yes, but with a caveat. I loved the markets, but as someone who struggles with crowds, staying so near to the markets, thereby engaging with the crowds every day for a week, was too much for me. I liked being able to go more than once because it removed the stress of needing to see and find everything in just one day, but I will need to limit my crowd exposure in the future… 2 to 3 days max.
Will I travel over Christmas again in the future?
Probably. I think many of the elements I enjoyed about this trip could probably be just as easily obtained by visiting earlier during Advent (aka earlier in December) and at a lower travel cost than over the holiday itself. However, the stigma of being “home for Christmas” feels much less important now, but maybe I’ll try to talk more of my family into skipping town with us ;)
If you would like to watch a short video about our trip, you can see it HERE.
Have questions or need advice? Leave me a comment or shoot me an email.
Five Days On The French Riviera
My First Trip to The Cote d’Azur
On the heels of a very leisurely week of cruising down the Canal du Midi (details found HERE), we proceeded to make our new home of Nice, our base for five days of exploring the famous French Riviera.
Our Itinerary:
Day 1 - Arrive by train from Aix-en-Provence, check into our Airbnb, and a very rushed visit to the brocante market at the Cours Saleya Market before it closed at 3 PM (phew!).
Day 2 - Explore the Old Town with a local photographer for some couple's photos (we try to do this at least once on every trip), and do some shopping.
Day 3 - Relax! We chose to spend the majority of this day at the beach.
Day 4 - Spend a half-day in the village of Eze and then visited Monte-Carlo, Monaco, followed by a sunset dinner at Le Plongeoir back in Nice.
Day 5 - A Full-day visit to the town of Grasse, where we did a little exploration, took a Fragonard factory tour, and then a perfume workshop.
Day 6 - We had a morning departure flight from the Nice Airport.
Day 1 - Arrival
Travel days are usually stressful, from the dozen checks to make sure you didn’t leave a charger or your favorite face cream in the bathroom at the hotel you’re leaving, the anxiety of getting settled on to whatever form of transport you’re taking, and finally, getting checked-in and settled at your new and unfamiliar home, there are a lot of things that can go wrong on travel days.
With that in mind, even when everything runs smoothly, the potential of things going wrong can often distract you from the fact that you’re on vacation and should be having fun, but maybe that’s just me?
We had made a pit stop of one night in Aix-en-Provence after completing our barge cruise in Beziers and before arriving in Nice. I’ll write a post about that experience later on but since it was just a single night that happened to also be a Sunday, there’s not a ton of information to add, so I’m skipping ahead to our time on the Riviera).
Having taken a morning train from Aix-en-Provence, we arrived at the Nice Ville train station at around 11:30 am, followed by a brisk 15-20 minute walk (luggage in tow) to our Airbnb. After arriving and getting checked in, we once again hit the pavement in search of the Cours Saleya Market at around a little after 1 pm (much to the chagrin of my now hangry husband). Unfortunately, (despite having readily available and accurate information from Google Maps) the distance and time it took for us to traverse this distance were more than expected (30-40 minutes). So, after a nearly sprinting speed walk, we arrived sweaty, nearly out of breath, and with short fuses. To ensure that my husband didn’t combust on me, I elected that he should go get a nice lunch at one of the cafes that encircle the market and that I would dash around the market and check back in with him at the cafe, frequently (I don’t pay for phone service when we travel) to see if he was finished and ready to join me, but that I would try to make the most of the market before it closed (many vendors had already begun to close by the time we arrived).
Day 2 - Exploring Nice
Feeling more ourselves after a night of rest, we rose early to get coffee before our morning photo shoot. I believe that of the reasons to travel to Europe, morning coffee at the many cafes is among the biggest. Fully caffeinated, we met our photographer, who skillfully guided us through Old Town to all the best places, while giving us great ideas for places to return to after we were finished.
Following the conclusion of our self-imposed paparazzi session, we visited several boutiques in search of items on my wish list, which I was ultimately delighted to have found.
Later in the afternoon, after returning to our Airbnb for a little refresher, we made our way to the iconic (and nearby), hotel Negresco, where a couple of our friends were staying. Once there, a member of the hotel staff graciously guided our small group on a tour of the hotel and the extraordinary pieces of art and history that it contains. When the tour concluded in one of the two beautifully appointed bars, we treated ourselves to espresso martinis (the unintentional cocktail of the trip), and then we collectively made our way back to Old Town for an intimate but likely dinner at a Northern Indian restaurant.
Day 3 - Taking A Day Off
It may sound silly to want to take a day off from vacation, but there is real value in not making any plans for at least one day to allow yourself the unnecessary permission to be spontaneous. I have talked at length about this phenomenon in other posts, but being the planner that I am, I need to be reminded of it regularly.
To that end, we slept late on our third day, and after a quick Google search (using our Airbnb wi-fi) of the best brunch spots in Nice still serving food between 11am-noon, we found the jackpot! It so happened to be that one of the top 10 brunch recommendations for Nice, was located between our Airbnb and a private beach where we could rent loungers, so we had solved the question of how we would be spending the rest of our day. This brunch recommendation was named La Femme du Boulanger.
We arrived a short time later at the restaurant and sat down at a charming, but not overly elaborate, patio table at La Femme du Boulanger. We were greeted immediately by our server who gave us water, menus and asked us if we wanted to get started with anything before consulting the menu. We eagerly requested coffee and I (out of habit at this point in the trip) also asked for a pain au chocolate (a chocolate croissant). The waiter, seeming slightly perplexed and perhaps lacking the English vocabulary to respond to my request, assured us that he would be right back and then quickly left our table. Not a minute later, a young woman came to the table (followed closely by a young man in an apron who bolted out onto the street and then down the block), and explained that the restaurant did not have any pain au chocolates but that they sent a boy to the bakery to get one for me, and that our coffee would be ready momentarily. She then exited stage right and was replaced with our primarily French-speaking waiter, coffee in hand.
The story of this pseudo-comical brunch does not end with just ordering a pain au chocolate, however. Shortly after placing our food orders, an elderly gentleman, looking like what one would imagine as an old French country baker (I will refer to him as "bread man"), brought us a basket containing a variety of thick, freshly toasted bread slices, along with a selection of jars filled with different jams and spreads. I want to point out that I am not talking about Wonder Bread slices or store-bought bread rolls from large trays, but rather, honest-to-goodness, country-style loaves of bread. Now, you might be thinking that the significance of this bready detail is not the style of the bread or the variety of the spreads, rather, it is the man who brought it to our table.
After dropping off this perfectly toasted basket of grain goodness, the bread man proceeded to go and visit with other patrons (I assume them to be regulars given his familiarity). Meanwhile, we leisurely sipped our coffees and commented on how appetizing our newly acquired bread basket and spread assortment was, while we patiently waited for the food that we had ordered to arrive which was the wrong thing to do.
After completing his conversations at other tables, the bread man returned to our table and (to his dismay) discovered that we had not yet eaten all of the bread in our basket (he spoke no English, so I wasn’t sure of just how upset he was). He grabbed our basket and hurried inside the restaurant, leaving both my husband and I thoroughly confused by what had just happened. We had no sooner exchanged looks of confusion when we were rejoined by this perplexing Frenchman with a new basket of hot, toasted bread.
“Chaude,” he stated emphatically while placing pieces of the hot bread on each of our plates, making eye contact with each of us as he went, before setting down the new basket and once again leaving the table.
What finally sunk in after reflection and piecing together what french words we knew, were able to understand that he was the owner of the restaurant as well as the bread baker and that he wanted his bread eaten while it was at its best, a.k.a, warm. The bread man returned much later in our meal to make sure that we had eaten more of the bread in the basket, saw that we had, and gave us a big smile and a nod of approval. By the conclusion of this unusual dining experience, we were stuffed full of delicious food (including my pain au chocolate), had smiles on our faces, and even purchased two jars of one of the spreads they had served with the bread.
The rest of our day was spent stretched out on sun-loungers at Ruhl Plage (one of the many private beaches on the promenade des anglais a long the , where we marveled at not just the beautiful azure-colored water, but at how amazingly lucky we were to be there, together, and at that moment, we were full of carbs and truly at peace.
Day 4 - Village Visits & Sunset Dinners
Eze
Rising early, we booked an Uber Van (Uber+ does not exist in France, but they do use vans, which is better for bigger groups anyway) and made our way to the village of Eze. Reachable by car or train, but the train option requires a hike or a cab ride from the train station at the bottom of the hill on which Eze sits, however, we opted for a van so we could be dropped off directly at the village entrance, and therefore save time.
We arrived around 9:30 am before the shops had started to open (which occurs around 11 am), but neither had most of the tourists, providing us (largely) with the place to ourselves.
Contained within this stunningly beautiful medieval village, are two Chateau. Both of these chateaus are beautiful but serve slightly different purposes. The first of these is the Chateau de Eze (popular as a wedding venue), and the second is Chateau de Chevre d'Or (The Golden Goat). The Chateau de Chevre d'Or is a jaw-droppingly beautiful network of hotel rooms within the village walls and has multiple terrace restaurants and cafes (connected to the hotel). Despite being somewhat pricey, it is my opinion, that the cost of grabbing a drink or a meal at one of these cafes justifies the experience. We opted to get coffee and croissants at the cafe which shares the same terrace as the restaurant that serves the hotel guests breakfast.
After the most epic morning coffee ever, it was now after 11 am and the shops had begun to open, as did our wallets. With a wide variety of shops and art galleries, it isn't difficult to find a memorable souvenir at a price point that fits any size budget.
Monte Carlo - Monaco
After a somewhat frustrating series of driver-canceled Uber rides, we eventually made our way from Eze down to Monaco, but unfortunately, I made a major logistical flaw. I had wrongfully assumed that due to the relatively small geographic area of this famously small city-state, everything would be located near each other (which is true), but when our Uber driver asked if we wanted to go to the city center or the upper town, I defaulted to the “city center.” The result of my uninformed decision was us getting dropped off in front of the Monte-Carlo Casino, which is amidst the big brand shops, but not at all close to the cultural center (which is in the upper city).
At the end of the day, if we had more time to explore the area, I might feel differently, but in general, I was "underwhelmed" by Monaco and found it to feel like an expensive shopping mall near the water. The moral of the story (if there is one), is to research exactly where you want to be dropped off in Monaco before you go.
Le Plongeoir
Easily one of the most memorable dining experiences I've ever had occurred at a little restaurant famously perched out over the water, at Le Plongeoir. Unable to make a group reservation for eight adults, we opted to make reservations in groups of two, which worked out perfectly. Afterward, we all agreed that everything from the food and service to the weather and colors of the sunset, was filled with joy, and collectively created an experience that we will all treasure.
Day 5 - Exploring French Perfume in Grasse, France
I’ll write a post with more specifics of this experience, but suffice it to say that this was a highlight of our time on the Riviera. Referencing back to my earlier mention of transportation challenges to some of the inland villages of this region, we again opted to take an Uber van directly to the Fragonard museum (which also happens to be located in the heart of Grasse). Similar to Eze, there is a train that runs from Nice, however, the train station is (as was the case in Eze) located at the bottom of a big hill, which is much easier to walk down, than it is to walk up.
If you choose to visit Grasse and opt to visit a perfumer other than Fragonard, be sure to note the proximity of where they conduct their workshop to that of the old town in Grasse because some of them are closer than others.
In hindsight, I wish we had given ourselves more time just to explore Grasse, which was a warm and charming place with many little shops and cafes I would have loved to have visited, but the length of time it took for us to complete our factory tour and workshop, was longer (by more than an hour) than we had expected. Fortunately, we had enough time to pop into a few of these shops as well as to share the final dinner of the trip, followed by the winding walk down the hill to the train station, where we briefly boarded the wrong train back to Nice. Thankfully, we were corrected by a kindly local we had spoken with on the platform, who, on discovering our error, located us on the train and ushered us back off before the train left the station.
My Top Highlights of The French Riviera
Exploring the various markets held at the Cours Saleya Market in Nice
Breakfast at La Femme du Boulanger in Nice
Our half-day in the village of Eze
Dinner at Le Plongeoir
Our group perfume workshop at Fragonard in Grasse
Did I miss something that you feel should have been added to my “to-do” list during my trip? Add it as a comment below!
Canal Du Midi Cruise Vlog
Follow our experience of cruising on the Canal Du Midi by watching how we spent our time, or you can read more about it Here.
A week cruising from Carcassonne to Beziers.
Two Weeks in Southern France
If you had asked me when I was in my early 20’s what my life would look like at 40, I probably would have painted a very different picture than that of how my life actually looks. Fortunately, I can very honestly say that this newly minted 40 year old has a life that far exceeds the expectations of my younger self.
How We Spent Two Weeks in Southern France
My husband and I are blessed to have multiple friends that, like ourselves, enjoy international travel almost as much as they enjoy celebrating even the smallest of milestones with other members of our circle. It goes without saying, that when I announced my desire to spend my 40th birthday in southern France, everyone was on board.
The 15+ Day Itinerary
*Of the group of eight adults going on this trip, there were a total of 5 different travel itineraries as well as varying departure days, but for the purpose of this post, I will be focusing on my personal travel itinerary.
+MAY 18th - Depart Kansas City, MO USA > Change Planes in Atlanta, Georgia USA > Depart for London, UK
+MAY 19th - Arrive London, UK
+MAY 20th - (Yay, birthday!)
MAY 21st - Depart London, UK > Arrive Toulouse, France > Train from Toulouse to Carcassonne, France
MAY 22nd - Explore Carcassonne
MAY 23rd - Depart Carcassonne for Trebes > Board moored barge in Trebes, France
MAY 24th - Depart Trebes for Marseilette
MAY 25th - Depart Marseilette for Homps
MAY 26th - Depart Homps for Le Somail
MAY 27th - Depart Le Somail for Capestang
MAY 28th - Depart Capestang for Beziers
MAY 29th - Depart Beziers for Colombiers > Depart Barge and take train to Aix-en-Provence, France
MAY 30th - Depart Aix-en-Provence by train for Nice, France
MAY 31st - Photoshoot in Nice
JUNE 1st - Beach Day
JUNE 2nd - Day trip to Eze, Day trip to Monte-Carlo
JUNE 3rd - Day trip to Grasse
JUNE 4th - Depart Nice for London, UK
Highlights of Carcassonne
By far the most exciting fortress I’ve toured in Europe, what really sets this place a part, is the combination of preserved medieval design, and incorporation of modern life within its walls. Anyone can enter this walled fortress and visit the shops, eat at the many restaurants, or stay at the hotels housed in original structures protected by these ancient stone walls. That said, there is a palace contained within this massive complex, which does require a small fee to enter, but it’s absolutely worth paying.
Carcassonne Advice:
Prior to our arrival, I didn’t really know what to expect in terms of food options within the citadel, but there’s a very generous supply of them and a range from sandwich counter, all the way up to Michelin star. If you plant to stay in or near the Narbonne gate entrance of the citadel, you’ll be fine to plan for eating all of your meals inside, so long as you abide the very French business hours.
If you’re arriving by train (as we did), don’t count on easily being able to get a cab or uber, you may need to call a cab company or your hotel to have them send one for you. We chose to walk the mile from the station to our hotel, but it was uphill on poor sidewalks.
With regard to how long you should stay, the absolute minimum should be two nights. I would have really enjoyed staying at least three, but as compared to the rest of our friends who only stayed one night, our experience was MUCH better for having stayed two.
If you want to see a little more of Carcassonne from a personal perspective, you can watch a short video from my recent trip with friends, HERE.
Highlights of Our 7 Day Barge Cruise
Spending a week on a converted barge was never on my bucket list, but it is now the best week of any vacation that I’ve ever had.
Canal Du Midi Cruise Advice:
We traveled from Carcassonne to Beziers (which is a North’ish to South’ish path) for seven days and six nights but after two days on the barge, we wished that we had chosen the 12-day option and continued down through the Camargue region, which our crew said was their favorite stretch of water/landscape.
In general, I don’t have many regrets or things I would do differently, but after having experienced the many water locks on the canal, I'm happy that we chose to book passage on a piloted boat, rather than the much more abundant “self-drive” options.
If you want to see more about the boat we rented, I’ve created a series of videos that document our experiences during our week, as well as our first day on the boat we chartered, HERE, and for a full description of our cruise, you can read more HERE.
Highlights of 5 Days on the French Riviera:
Unlike our barge cruise on the canal, where we visited small rural villages and didn’t encounter many (if any) non-french people when we reached Nice, we found them all. Not to say that anywhere we went was “overrun” with tourists, but it had a distinct tourism-oriented feel to it. The highlights for me were the various markets that operated on different days in Nice, the dining options were out of this world (I particularly enjoyed breakfast at La Femme du Boulangerie and dinner at Le Plongeoir), and the many easy day trips reached from Nice.
Riviera Advice:
Transportation to coastal towns is super simple with the train, however, if you want to venture inland at all, things get a little more complicated, a little more sparse, and a little more expensive. We primarily used Uber for anything inland, but took the train for all coastal destinations.
The village of Eze was an absolute highlight of our time on the Riviera, and despite it being a little pricey, I would suggest trying to spend one night there.
In terms of disappointments, Monaco was a real letdown for me…I don’t know exactly what I expected, and perhaps if I had more than just a few hours, I may have seen something to change my mind, but in general, it felt very much like an expensive shopping mall and was devoid of any real character. If you’re at all limited on time, skip visiting Monaco.
My favorite organized activity was our day trip to Grasse, where we did a workshop at the Fragonard perfumery. I agonized over which Perfumery to reserve a workshop through, but am SO glad I booked the one at Fragonard. I’ll write a separate post about that experience.
If you want to watch some of what we experienced in each of the places mentioned here, you can view a video I put together HERE.
Questions about something you saw here or just want to chat all things “Nice?” Leave me a comment below!
Carcassonne France Vlog
Follow a long as we visit Carcassonne, France!
3 Days in Carcassone.
Birthday Cruise on The Canal-Du-Midi
If the past few years have taught me anything, it’s to treasure the value of reaching milestones. Far too many milestones missed their moments in the sun due to the pandemic, and despite being a bit of an introvert, the significance did not escape my notice. To that end, there’s no occasion quite like turning 40, to take a trip and to share that experience with friends, so it is with this in mind that I planned our recent trip to southern France.
The Canal Du Midi
If you’re never heard of it, I (nor any French person) am totally not surprised, but this gem of a UNESCO site should go on your exploration list. Built during later half of the 17th century, this marvel of a man-made ingenuity, links the Atlantic ocean to that of the Mediterranean, through a series of locks and water bridges that is not only beautiful, but also caught the attention of one Thomas Jefferson, while he was serving as the newly minted United States envoy to France.
River Vs. Canal Cruise
I’ll be the first person to admit that the idea of a “cruise” elicits very different feelings and mental images for people. I, for one, have no desire to spend my precious vacation time trapped on a floating city at sea, with a bunch of people that consider a three hour excursion to a port town, a cultural experience. However, I’m NOTORIOUSLY judgy, so ignore me, and lean into the concept that getting out of the house is better than nothing at all.
That said, outside of ocean-liners, there are those amazing river cruises that we advertised on television, which seem like the perfect opposite of the aforementioned travel nightmares, at least until you go to book one. Most cruises, ocean or otherwise, are basically all inclusive style resorts, but on the water. You can expect to pay upwards of $2000 or more (much, much more), per person, for a week. If the money isn’t a deal-breaker, you can expect a romantic vacation on the water and you have my envy. However, if you don’t have thousands of dollars to spend, or you feel like this option might still be a little too “manufactured,” a canal cruise might be just the ticket for you!
Canals are man-made waterways for the purpose of transporting goods from city to city within a country (think of them as a water highway). Largely out of service for their original purpose, canals are now a lovely way for people to leisurely travel at a much slower pace. In fact, many of the barges which are now retired from service as cargo boats, have gotten a new lease on life as small cruise ships, and when I say “small,” I mean small. For reference, a river cruise may have anywhere from 50 to 200 passengers, but a canal cruise would be a maximum of roughly 20.
So, if you’re looking to unplug and relax, but still want to spend the majority of your time off of the boat, a canal cruise is the perfect balance, and comes in a wide array of options from “self-drive,” all the way up to luxury excursion.
Before it retired and became a cruise ship, this is what the boat we took looked like while it still hauled grain.
A Seven Day Barge Cruise on The Canal Du Midi
If you’re still reading this lengthy post, good job, you finally made it to the reason why you probably clicked on this post, to begin with.
My experience while researching this trip, was that helpful reviews of french canal travel were in short supply, and even fewer were available from English speakers or fellow Americans. Adding fuel to my research frustration (where advice was concerned), where the sheer number of people I encountered that attempted to assist me with second-hand accounts of the "canal" trips that their friends had taken, not realizing that they didn't understand the difference between a river and a canal.
First and foremost, the experiences and bodies of water are different... full stop.
Another worry I had before this trip was my concern about the looming threat of water-induced nausea. I (like many) suffer from the dreaded travel curse of motion sickness. Motion sickness in the car, sickness on the water, and sickness in the air, which I’ve largely learned how to mitigate for the short duration of time in which conditions may aggravate my symptoms, but a multi-day water excursion made me nervous. The possibility of feeling nauseated for a week, or sleeping away the majority of a week (due to side effects of motion sickness medication), was a HUGE deterrent, for me, toward any water-borne adventure that had been proposed in the past, but this trip felt different. Ultimately, I chose to gamble that the proximity to land afforded by being in a small canal on a very large boat would help me find my sea legs, and fortunately, the bet paid off. Not a single moment was spent nauseated, and absolutely nothing on the barge had to be secured for movement.
I can’t speak for every kind of boat on the canal, but those converted barges are wide, heavy, and going nowhere fast, so in the words of our captain (who spoke very little English) regarding the movement of our boat, “she is big, but she is heavy,” and I'm inclined to agree.
Day 1 of 7 - Boarding in Trebes, France
After spending a few days in Carcassonne, we took cabs the short distance to the nearby canal port town of Trebes. Charming, with a small entertainment district facing the water, Trebes is also a hub for the very popular boat rental company, LocaBoat. Equipped with modest amenities such as a decently sized grocery store, Trebes also served as our meetup point to board Le Haricot Noir. Family-owned, this boat is not part of a fleet and is not managed by any large rental company, it’s lovingly cared for and maintained by the daughter of the couple that converted it from a grain barge in the 1970s, into what it is today (take a video tour HERE.
The cruise option we had selected for our week-long journey on the canal was that of self-catering. We would have a captain and a deckhand for navigation, but we were on our own for meals. I (being a bit of a cook) was very much up in arms about not knowing what the kitchen would be like or what our options at the grocery store would be before boarding, so I hope this helps you.
The market was great and we found everything we would need there, so don’t worry about that. We purchased all of our basic supplies, plus salmon and wine, and brought everything on board with us. The kitchen was chef ready with everything necessary. The fridge is large, a more than adequate freezer, dishwasher, coffee maker, oven, and stove, not to mention pots, pans, and even a mixer!
We were a party of eight adults (four couples), so we only needed four of the six bedrooms and had plenty of space to spread out in the 90-footlong barge but it still didn’t take us long to get unpacked and settled in after our initial orientation upon boarding the ship during the late afternoon. After boarding, we did just a very short stint of navigation on the canal, to get through the three locks (known as an “eccluse” in French) before they shut down for the day, after which we moored at the edge of Trebes and then got back off of the boat to walk into the village for dinner that evening.
Day 2 of 7 - Trebes to Marseilette, France
Our first full day on the boat was cool and rainy, but the excitement of being at the start of our journey prevented our spirits from being dampened by the weather. The crew began navigating us shortly after breakfast, and we made our way to the tiny village of Marseilette, which while being cute, is very small. It appears to have had other shops at some point that were now vacant, but it still had a scenic cemetery, a village church with excellent views over the countryside, a little tiny little convenience shop, and one cafe/tavern/restaurant. We did a quick walk around, ate lunch at the cafe, and then spent the rest of the day on our warm and cozy boat as we chugged toward our end destination for the day. Meanwhile, below deck, we cooked a family-style dinner and toasted my birthday in our pajama pants on a boat in France… I’ll treasure that memory forever.
Day 3 of 7 - Marseilette to Homps, France
The navigation pace of the previous day had been rigorous to ensure our arrival in Homps by 2 pm (not easy to do on a boat as it turns out), because I had made reservations for a cab, and a photography team, to meet us at the marina and then to travel to a nearby town for a wine tasting. Fortunately, the sun was out and everything ran like clockwork.
(I’ll discuss the winery experience in a separate post.)
Sadly, our time in the actual town of Homps was super limited, which was unfortunate because, by all observable evidence, Homps is a charming town with multiple restaurants and other amenities.
Day 4 of 7 - Homps to Le Somail, France
With the most highly planned scheduled day of our trip now behind us, we determined to soak up every last ounce of relaxation that the canal had to offer us. Despite my insistence on being the first of our group to rise each morning, sipping hot coffee and eating a croissant on the top deck of the boat as the crew started the motor and once again resumed navigating us down the canal, was a truly zen-like experience for me. On our fourth day, however, we arrived in the postcard-perfect village of Le Somail. This village has art galleries, boutiques, an AMAZING used book store, and charm coming out of every nook and cranny. We decided to take the recommendation of our crew, however and did a tour of a nearby olive cooperative (which we enjoyed much more than we expected to) and we’re so glad that they suggested it to us. Also in this town, is a small, floating, market barge, on which we placed an order for croissants to be collected the next morning (as is the case with many of the markets in the small towns, bread must be ordered a day in advance). That evening, we had a very lively dinner at a restaurant in town, followed by more late-night shenanigans on the boat.
Day 5 of 7 - Le Somail to Capestang
After collecting our croissant order from the grocery barge, we once again fired up the engines and continued on our journey down the canal. We passed through the final lock that we would encounter during our cruise (a bittersweet reality), which also afforded us the chance to try our hand at the captain's wheel. I was the only soul brave enough to give it a go, but the result was a newly found appreciation for the job that our captain performs. Our deckhand, Estelle, when not working on other barges, lives on a converted barge that she owns with her husband and their two children, which was moored right outside of Capestang (her husband was on their top deck as we passed and greeted us and his wife as we passed). Capestang is a town much larger than any of the other villages we had encountered in days past and was also much less focused on the canal as a revenue source. We enjoyed the more lively “city” feel, however, we were there over a holiday in which most shops were closed. Again on the recommendation of our crew, we visited a restaurant that did not disappoint, although we did get lost in the dark while attempting to make our way back to the boat later that evening. A challenge of mooring in a different place every day is that you never get the opportunity to familiarize yourself with where your home base can be found.
Day 6 of 7 - Capestang to Beziers through the Malpas Tunnel
Today, we passed through the Malpas tunnel, which is a marvelous feat of engineering, but was more than a little nerve-wracking. The tunnel was blasted through solid rock and allows only a single ship at a time to pass. Fortunately for us, all smaller boats must give way to allow larger boats the priority, but it can be difficult to see who might already be in the tunnel when you approach it. After a brief sojourn off of the boat on the other side of the canal, we continued to Beziers. By far the biggest city we encountered, Beziers was both exciting and a little overwhelming given the size and with a much more ethnically diverse population than any other place we had encountered on the canal to that point. After the boat was moored, we marveled at the Fonseranes locks, which are a series of 9 locks that our poor crew would have had to traverse if we had opted for the longer 12-day cruise option. While some of our party utilized the e-bikes available to us on the boat, half of us opted to trek to the highest point of the city, where we toured the cathedral and then mused over our regret at having not rented the bikes as we sipped cold beers at a small cafe. Eventually, we arrived back at the boat and then made our way to a nearby restaurant for the final dinner of our week-long cruise.
Day 7 of 7 - Beziers to Colombiers, France
The final morning was a rush of packing as we traveled back a short distance to a small port town that we had passed the previous day. Let me tell you, the experience of this barge needing to turn around was no small task and one which many passersby also chose to stop and watch. Eventually, however, we covered the short distance and then were whisked off the boat as the dock would not allow us to stay but for just a very short time. We were deeply saddened at our choice to have booked the seven-day cruise because none of us was ready to leave. The experience of having spent a week on this boat, with this crew, with these friends, was truly the most fun travel experience I’ve ever had the privilege of experiencing.
Questions about something I didn’t cover, or questions about something you want more details about? Leave me a comment below!
Three Days in Vienna Austria
How we spent three days in Vienna.
Relax and enjoy!
Congratulations on your choice to visit Vienna, it’s truly one of the brightest stars in the jewel box of European cities. Rich in culture, it also has clean streets, robust public transit, museums, and parks, saying nothing of the shopping and culinary scene.
For better or for worse, Vienna was the last stop of our Austria trip, which also fell during an Austrian post-new year holiday (like our labor-day), in which all but just dining and medical services were closed. Our short stay, being further constrained by the holiday observation, we consolidated our activities into just a day and a half (due to our first day also being a travel day). That said, not being able to fill every moment of your time with activities doesn’t have to be a bad thing.
Three Days in Vienna
We arrived in Vienna after dark and while the train station was not very far from our hotel, our google maps directions had us walk through a park that was not lit, making the walk feel much longer and more treacherous. It wasn’t until the next day when we realized how unnecessary this route had been, and the walking distance that the route had “saved” us, was shockingly minimal.
Day Two -
For our first full day, our options for activity were limited but also a welcome opportunity for alternative options. The hotel at which we were staying, for example, offered a day spa with all the premium options one would expect. My husband is never one to turn down a massage and opted to spend a few hours enjoying their treatments and amenities, while I, on the other hand, chose a different route. After making some inquiries, I discovered a bookstore at the train station we had arrived in the night before, was open despite the holiday, so I decided to make my way there in search of children’s books to add to my collection.
In addition to my book hunt, I also made it a point to stop at a restaurant to try one of the many desserts that Austria is famous for. That evening, we ventured out of our hotel and walked around the elaborately lit and still festively decorated central 1st District (Innere Stadt). The shops were all closed, but we were delighted to get sausages from one of the many semi-permanent würstel stands, which we enjoyed immensely. We were also thrilled to discover, that a holiday market that was operational next to St. Stephan’s Cathedral, where I was able to purchase a locally made beanie from one of the purveyors, which I happily donned, due to it being much colder in Vienna than it had been during the rest of our trip.
Day Three -
Being our final full day and our only day on which to visit any museums or shops, we decided to prioritize just three things. The first was a visit to the Sacher Hotel Cafe, to try the famous torte bearing their name, which I had been anticipating for the entirety of our trip. The second priority was a visit to the private apartments of the Hapsburg royal family at the Hofburg Palace (otherwise known as the Sisi museum). Lastly, it was a priority for Sam to find a pair of shoes not available in the United States, but also in his larger-than-average size, which eventually caused us to visit multiple shoe stores. Ultimately, completing each of these items filled our day to the brim, but fortunately, culminated in a lovely dinner at one of the excellent restaurants back at our hotel, followed by cocktails at a pop-up bar on the rooftop.
In Summary
Vienna was very cosmopolitan, elegant, and full of things we didn’t get the chance to see or do. Fortunately, Vienna is well located in terms of serving as a jumping-off point for visiting that region of Europe, so we can envision many reasons to visit again in the future. In general, this city is a MUST SEE!
Relax in Hallstatt Austria
A Romantic Mountain Escape
When you’re short on time, it can be challenging to know in advance, where you will want to spend more time at places you’ve never been previously. Sometimes, the places that you think will be fun, aren’t, and sometimes the places you think you’ll get bored, surprise you. There was never a doubt in my mind that we wouldn’t enjoy the scenery of Hallstatt, but with it being so small and our overall trip to Austria so short, I gambled on the conservative side of spending just two days and a single night. Sadly, Hallstatt won the bet and we had to leave before we were ready, but for those reading this, feel free to make a better choice and stay a little longer.
Two Days in Hallstatt
Day One - We arrived in Hallstatt at around mid-day, got checked into our hotel, had a late lunch on the balcony of our room, and then did a preliminary walk around the main shopping area before everything closed for the evening, and then it was dinner and bed.
Day Two - Showers, breakfast, photo shoot, checkout, and then it was off to Vienna.
As a general rule of thumb, anytime you’re extremely limited on time in a place that you want to see as much out of as possible, take a tour from a local, it has been my experience that it doesn’t even really matter what kind of tour it is because the guides will be able to provide you with valuable information that you wouldn’t otherwise have as a tourist just breezing through. My husband and I love to have photos taken in the more picturesque places that we visit, and for us, our photo session was also a walking tour and historical education from the point of view of someone who had grown up there. In just an hour and a half, we were ushered around the town to the most iconic places it had to offer, all while learning the historical and cultural highlights of the place. At the end of our tour, we were armed not just with amazing photographic souvenirs, but also tips on shops and stops we should make, the information and navigation of which saved us valuable time due to the shortness of our stay.
Getting There
There are a couple of ways to get to the remote lake town of Hallstatt, but only one of these options will add to your overall experience. The first of these options is by bus or car, which will take you directly into Hallstatt, but if you’re willing to take on a little bit more of a hike, the other way with usher you into Hallstatt in an unforgettable manner.
Take the train to Hallstatt
From Salzburg, we boarded a morning train bound for Lake Hallstatt with only a general understanding of what might happen when we arrived at the end of our journey. The Hallstatt station is an unmanned platform across the lake from the actual town, where you then must board a ferry (at an additional cost) to reach Hallstatt. The ferry is called the Stephanie boat, and the schedule is synced with the train, so there's no need to swim for it. Be sure to have euros as the tickets must be purchased at the boat and the cost can fluctuate depending on the season, but two roundtrip tickets (for my husband and me) cost us about 21 euros.
Where to Stay
Hallstatt is very small and terraced (meaning that it expands up a hill with no roads), so while the distance from the city center is not a concern you should have, you need to keep in mind your uphill climb for possibly more cost-effective accommodations.
We lucked out HARD with our little hotel because the photos online didn’t do it justice. Located lakefront (the easiest walking level), there was a rustic charm on a scale that American boutique hotels can only aspire to (due to the relatively “new” nature of even the most historical of our structures in the US). Having a “higgledy-piggledy” floor plan, resulting from the connection of rooms and hallways of no fewer than three former salt processing homes, gave this hotel a unique character that would be nearly impossible to replicate.
What was this charming architectural wonder you ask? The Bräugasthof Hallstatt Hotel was also where we ate most of our meals due to most local restaurants in town (most of which are also attached to small hotels) were only offering service to their guests (I’ll come back to this detail). Fortunately, the vibe at the restaurant at our hotel was wonderful, the food was great, and the location couldn’t have been better.
Don’t expect a five-star luxury hotel, but I’ll make a case for places like this being even better. Very comfortable, this is a charming experience that you’ll never get at a more polished establishment. The guest's “front desk” was merely a chalkboard with guest's surnames and room numbers alongside skeleton keys hanging on hooks. Emphasizing the “story-worthy” nature of our stay, was an exchange I had while sitting in the lobby waiting for my husband. An elderly woman came near to where I was sitting and was watering the plants (given the seemingly small staff at the hotel, I made some assumptions about it being a family-run place and then extended that assumption to her) and I asked her if she was the owner of the hotel, she replied (in very broken English) that she was, “the grandmother of all,” made a sweeping motion with her hand, smiled, and then went about her business, I asked no further questions.
Why Visit
As I mentioned earlier in this post, restaurant service was limited to guests staying at the adjoining hotels, and it’s important to note the time at which we visited. Due to the ever-evolving travel restrictions resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, Austria had just lifted a total ban on tourism just days prior t our arrival. For that reason, the number of tourism-based services was very low in an already very small town. That said, our guide informed us that in “normal times,” it’s not uncommon for this town of just 800 residents, to see thousands of visitors per day and that those visitors would often have to wait for hours in a queue to take pictures in the most iconic locations. Fortunately for us, while much was closed, we had no competition for views or service.
Everything about Hallstatt is charming; the swans on the lake, snow-capped mountain peaks, historic landmarks, and romantic vistas make for a dreamy escape from all the trappings of modern life. Take a visit to the Salt-Mine, or ice cave, or perhaps meander your way through the winding paths through town to visit the unique cemetery (with an even more interesting burial practice), or tour one of the two beautiful churches. No matter your plan, Hallstatt is a transporting place to spend time as a restful escape or romantic interlude.
Visiting Biel Bienne Switzerland
The Tale of A Speedmaster Wristwatch
In 1972, a man from rural Kansas traveled to Geneva Switzerland, and purchased an unusual timepiece. The Speedmaster Mark 3 wristwatch was worn nearly daily for 40+ years and was a prized possession for many-many years. Sadly, the day came when the watch no longer worked due to the many years of heavy use, and the owner himself passed away. However, that was not the end of the story for this particular watch.
Visiting Biel /Bienne Switzerland
As mentioned in a previous post, we planned our time in Switzerland very conservatively and kept the delivery of the watch as our primary purpose for our limited time there. To that end, on our first morning waking up in Europe, we ate a quick breakfast in our hotel (and grabbed a couple of ham croissants in a ziplock that I keep in my purse) and then raced off to the train station to make our way to Biel Bienne.
A fun fact about Biel/Bienne is that due to the heavy influence of both German and French in the country, this town adopted both the German and French names for the town.
Omega Watch Headquarters
My husband was very close with his grandfather and loved him dearly, so when his grandfather's broken watch made its way into his possession, it was once again a treasured item for the man that possessed it, which served as the primary inspiration behind the planning of a trip to where the story began.
The watch had previously been taken to a luxury jeweler and watch seller for an estimate of what may be required to refurbish the timepiece, which is when it was discovered that the watch would have to be sent (by any jeweler/dealer) back to the manufacturer in Switzerland. Knowing that the watch would have to travel to Switzerland no matter what, I took it upon myself to contact the manufacturer myself and inquire as to the process of hand delivering the watch for repair. Fortunately, the Omega watch organization responded quickly and provided me with the appropriate route to take in which this handoff could occur.
The Omega Watch Museum
The museum which is also located at the headquarters is free to tour and interesting even to those that don’t necessarily consider themselves “watch people.”
Two Days in Zurich Switzerland
How We Maximized 50 Hours
There’s a delicate line to be found between “over-scheduled” and “maximized opportunity,” and I’m the queen of erring on the less desirable side of the two. It never fails that when I start planning a trip, I find far too many “once in a life-time” or “not to be missed” opportunities in one too many destinations to squeeze into a single trip, but how do you decide what to skip?!
Planning with Purpose
Whether you intentionally plan trips with a “purpose” or not, everyone does. For some, the purpose is simply to fulfill a vision of sleeping in, discovering what’s in a city as you walk past it, or to simply get a tan. There’s nothing wrong with simple plans like the above, and in fact, it makes it easier to demonstrate the following construct of purpose driven trip planning.
Example. If your goal for a trip is to simply wear sandals and get a tan on the beach, then some things to consider with this goal in mind, might be the following:
What’s the weather like at the time of year that you’re considering a visit to this destination?
How much time do you need to take to accomplish your tan?
If you’re traveling with a partner or friend, are your goals for the trip perfectly in sync, or does one of you desire to take a day to go shopping or take a tour, or both?
The moral of the story, is that trip activities can quickly runaway with you and at the end of it, you might leave without having felt like you got the tan that you wanted.
Our Purpose for Switzerland
Like many, my husband was unable to celebrate a milestone during the COVID-19 Pandemic in the way he would have wished. In this case, his 40th birthday had always been a birthday that we intended to celebrate abroad, but international travel in January of 2021, was not in the cards. However, things had improved by December of 2021 and we decided to take our chances and brave a trip to Europe.
What I’ve seen of Europe has all been amazing which can make it difficult to choose a single destination out of the many diverse locations available. However, I thought that this trip might be better spent focusing on things relevant to my husband, and in this vein, I thought it the perfect opportunity for a mini pilgrimage. A few years prior, he had inherited a wristwatch from his grandfather after his passing. The watch no longer worked, but was a luxury timepiece which his grandfather had himself purchased in Switzerland in the early 1970’s. Ding, ding, ding… light-bulb moment!
I contacted the manufacturing headquarters of the watch brand (located in Switzerland) and asked if we would be allowed to physically deliver the watch back to them for repair, rather than simply taking it to a local jeweler/dealer and having them ship it to Switzerland on our behalf. Fortunately, they said yes, and that they would ship it back to us when the work was completed.
With the central activity of our trip established, the rest of our adventure could unfold much more easily now knowing what we needed to work around. Ultimately, we decided to limit our time in Switzerland, and to focus solely on the delivery of the watch to the factory, then we would border hop to Austria in time for New Years Eve in Salzburg. The way this worked out was thus:
Depart USA December 28th
Arrive in Zurich Switzerland (approximately 9 AM) December 29th
Take a 2 hour - Old Town Zurich, cultural walking tour, starting at 2 PM December 29th
Depart via train to Biel/Bien Switzerland, 10 AM December 30th (location of the manufacture)
Deliver the watch to the factory
Return via train to Zurich, 3 PM December 30th
Depart via train to Salzburg Austria 11 AM, December 31st
If you do the math, we spent VERY little time in Zurich, but it was long enough to make the following observations:
Zurich is beautiful - Super clean, beautiful buildings, lots of greenery despite being very urban and cosmopolitan… hell, even the people are pretty!
Zurich is extremely expensive! I expected it to be high, but my expectation of high cost was wrong by about half. Our first evening there, we ate dinner at a vegetarian salad-bar and drank hot tea with our self-served meals, and it cost roughly $75 for the two of us. You’ve been warned.
It’s hard for me to know what the impact of COVID-19 may have had on the operational hours of the retail industry at the time we were there, but everything that wasn’t a restaurant or bar, would close by 6 pm, which made for an extremely harrowing experience trying to purchase a box of Swiss chocolates for my mother in-law before we left. Had I known that the hours would have been so limited, I would have arranged my shopping time differently in our schedule.
In summary, I probably wouldn’t go back to Zurich outside of just using the airport, it was just too expensive for me to enjoy. However, knowing what the prices in areas outside of the city are like, and knowing how beautiful the country is, I would 100% go see more of Switzerland.
My experience traveling to Europe during a pandemic
International travel during a pandemic
A return to travel
The last couple of years have been stressful and for us, travel bugs, being stuck at home was a special kind of hell. Fortunately, with cases declining and countries starting to encourage tourism, travel planning can now resume, but with more than a few hiccups to be expected.
Travel Requirements - December 2021
We decided to follow through with our first international trip since the start of the pandemic, in late December of 2021, by traveling first to Switzerland and then to Austria to celebrate the New Year.
With travel regulations changing almost daily, please be aware that these requirements will likely have changed by the writing of this post.
Documentation Requirements for our journey:
Full-Vaccination (meaning at least two doses of an EU recognized vaccine)
VeriFly App (various similar apps exist, be sure to check with our airline for their preferred app) - Travel guidelines as required by the airlines and must be completed before arrival at the airport
GreenPass App - Entry requirements for Switzerland must be completed before exiting the country of origin (in our case, the USA)
Covid Cert App - Very similar to the GreenPass app but is the application of choice to apply for clearance via the EU government.
The Process
The trickiest part of this entire application process is paying attention to the time requirements associated with the submissions. Foundational to the entry into Switzerland or the EU is having a negative COVID test taken within the time frame assigned by their entry requirements (I can't stress this enough). With this in mind, elapsed the time between taking either a PCR or a rapid antigen test and the time you receive the results does impact your ability to request permission via the above applications.
Our experience
We were scheduled to depart from Kansas City on December 28th at 7:30 AM, assuming that getting our negative COVID test results would be a non-issue even after Christmas. We had not anticipated the surge of testing that would be done and result in significant testing backlogs across the whole country.
Like everyone else (apparently), we went out first thing on the morning after Christmas and underwent PCR tests that would meet the 72-hour qualification window for our Swiss entry applications (whereas rapid antigen tests could only be 24 hours old at the time of arrival at our destination). We followed up our morning tests with another set of PCR tests at a different pharmacy chain later on that same day (both chains suggested an average 24-hour turnaround time for results).
By the following day, December 27th, we still had not received results from either of our tests the previous day, and we were beginning to sweat. We had to provide negative test results within a narrow window of time to finish our applications for entry into Switzerland, and we were rapidly running out of it.
We decided to take yet another set of PCR tests but in another city, thinking that they would maybe be using a different testing lab to process results. However, by the late afternoon of December 27th, we still had zero results back from any of our tests, which forced us to take our least ideal test option and get rapid antigen tests.
The reason this was not ideal, is that rapid antigen results taken on the 27th would only be good enough to get us from our home airport to that of our connecting airport before their 24-hour viability would be reached, meaning that they would not qualify as valid results for our Swiss entrance applications.
With this new plan looking like our best option, we decided to use rapid test results to get us onto our first flight from Kansas City, and then get another rapid test inside our connecting airport, thereby giving us a fresh 24-hour window of result validity time to complete our Swiss entry applications. We would then cross our fingers that they would be received and approval issued during the remaining portion of our layover so that we would know before takeoff if we would be allowed to enter Switzerland when we landed.
Fortunately, my husband received his results from the very first PCR test (taken on the morning of December 26th), at around 11 pm on December 27th. This result allowed him to both submit, and receive, his Swiss entry approval as designed (before departure). I, however, was still very much stuck with the previously mentioned "less than ideal" scenario, but at least we would now only have to pay for one rapid test at the clinic inside our connecting airport ($160 per test!).
With the mission of getting my second test and entry application completed, we hit the ground running as soon as we arrived at our connecting airport the next day. We ran (luggage in tow) to the testing center, got me tested, and began my entry application with my new test results 30 minutes later.
For the next two hours, I worked to stave off a panic attack while waiting to receive the results of my entry application while we waited at our gate, which fortunately came with time to spare, but with the addition of a few new gray hairs.
Travel between countries
Since Switzerland is not part of the EU, this means that we had to jump through another entry hoop for traveling from Switzerland to our next destination, Austria. Fortunately, most of Europe all uses a digital vaccination passport system which made the barrier of entry MUCH easier since we could use the digitally issued approval from Switzerland to apply for our digital application to the EU. It only took a few minutes to complete this process.
Showing proof of vaccination
At the time of our trip, you were required to be double-masked and show proof of vaccination to do just about anything other than standing outside, and in some cases, you still had to show proof to be at some outdoor venues. Fortunately, the EU and Swiss apps both issue you a QR code that is accepted for this purpose and utilizes the vaccination information you provided during your initial application for entry. Alternatively, in most instances in which we had to provide proof, our paper vaccination cards issued by the CDC, also worked without any problem. To be clear, we were using double-sided copies of our original cards that we had laminated.
The journey home
In our final COVID-related hoop, we needed to receive negative tests no more than 24 hours before returning to the US. Considering how difficult it had been to accomplish this task on our outbound journey, we were very stressed about navigating it from a foreign country. Fortunately, this task was made much easier for our return due to the test results being timed to our departure, rather than when we would arrive at the border.
Additionally, Austria had a much more robust testing network in place and our hotel concierge simply directed us to one of the MANY walk-in testing centers located around Vienna. We needed only to show our passports and received free, rapid tests, followed by results within fifteen minutes.
Lessons learned
Have a supply of rapid antigen tests at home which are recognized by governing bodies, so that we don’t run into issues like this again.
Per the above, be sure to regularly check the expiration dates for these tests to ensure that the results will be accepted at the time you need to use them. The “use by” date will be printed on the box.
In Summary
I’m sure the burning question in your mind, is “was it worth it?” I can honestly say without a moment's hesitation that it was! As with anything else in life, fear of the unknown and situations you have never experienced before can be very stressful, but we both grew from this experience and earned some “travel cred” in the process.
An unexpected bonus of traveling during a pandemic is that there were significantly fewer tourists that we had to compete with at all of our destinations, which made our time extra special while there. Five stars would repeat this trip.
Experience New Year’s Eve In Austria
Visit Europe This Winter!
Traveling with winter coats, bulky sweaters, and practical footwear for wet weather can be a chore, or it can be an opportunity. Having recently returned from my first trip abroad since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as my first time traveling to a cold climate during the winter season, I’ve compiled some of the helpful tips and tricks I learned along the way.
Before you go…
With regulations changing nearly daily, staying on top of the known unknowns can be a challenge, however, being as prepared as possible is of the utmost importance. A few high-level items to be aware of that we encountered while preparing for our travel in late December of 2021 are shown here:
Covid-19 Entry requirements differ by country even within the EU, don’t assume that you can just figure it out when you get there, this needs to be researched well in advance of your departure.
Covid-19 Testing requirements are also changing from one day to the next, I suggest that you stock up with at least two self-administered rapid antigen tests that are recognized by both your country of departure and of arrival, to ensure that you can get a test result that meets with your travel departure and arrival requirements.
Research the weather. I so badly wanted specific “looks” for our romantic, snow-filled, European vacation. As it would turn out, we were about a month too early for snow, but just in time for cold rain. Ditch the cute stuff and opt for what’s practical.
Holidays abroad can be a fun change of pace from what we’re used to at home, but be aware that other countries might observe them (or the days around them) differently. Do your research and ensure that you aren’t planning activities that conflict with holiday observances.
Celebrate the New Year in Salzburg, Austria.
“New Year’s Eve,” or “New Year,” is known as “Silvester” in Austria. We arrived in Salzburg on the afternoon of December 31st, not knowing what to expect in terms of celebration, due to Austria having lifted a countrywide lockdown only days before our arrival. Much to our delight, cannons were being fired, period re-enactors were gathering, and holiday decorations were plentiful, as we made our way from the Salzburg train station to our Airbnb in the Old Town.
We were thrilled with the location of the apartment we had rented for our stay, as it was just a few steps away from everything that Salzburg had to offer, so we quickly checked in, ditched our luggage inside, and then plunged ourselves into the festivities we hoped to find.
Not more than fifty feet from our door, we stumbled upon a delightful outdoor square, hosting a holiday bar and nightclub. Not wanting to take unnecessary risks in terms of potential Covid-19 exposure, we opted for the much quieter, outdoor bar, where we enjoyed hot mugs of gluhwein (hot, spiced wine).
*The mugs required a 2 euro deposit, refundable upon return, or you may keep them when finished as an inexpensive souvenir (we opted to keep ours)!
After a couple of warm drinks, we re-masked and made our way further towards the center square of the Old Town. To my utter amazement (and super-planner shock), we discovered that due to the December Covid19 lock-down, the Christmas Market was still open (normally closed before Christmas)!
Visiting the Christmas markets of Europe has long been a bucket-list item for me, particularly in the Germanic countries due to my heritage.
As we inched nearer to midnight, we decided that shopping was not our top priority, and opted to make a single lap through the market to scope out what we might find the following day. However, in the course of our explorations, we came across a fellow American and his English-speaking partner and quickly struck up a conversation. Turns out that our new friend was a tour guide and gave what I’m going to call “super-premium” Sound of Music tours.
I’m going to admit that at the time of our arrival in Salzburg, I had long been a fan of the Rodger and Hammerstein adaptation of The Sound of Music, but I had zero idea that it was a mostly true story about a real family from Salzburg.
Anyway, we were full of hot wine, and excitement for the holiday, and were equipped with new friends full of local knowledge and looking to kill time until midnight. We proceeded to walk around Salzburg and learn about the history of the city as it related to the Trapp family and see many of the icon spots captured in the film.
Just before midnight, we all four made our way back to the main square below the imposing fortress (which overlooks Salzburg) where many people had gathered, however, it was easy to remain socially distanced.
At midnight, the massive church bells began to ring and a wonderful fireworks display was shot off over the city from the hilltop above. Call it a traveler high or the reaction of someone stuck indoors for too many years, but those fireworks were the most beautiful I had ever seen.
*Worth knowing in advance, if you should ever want to visit Salzburg for New Year’s Eve, is that there are several “galas” held around the city, which the locals kind of make fun of as just being for rich tourists. However, there is a coursed dinner and musical performance held in the fortress, as well as at a restaurant called St. Peters. In hindsight, I might consider the gala at St. Peters, but in general, I was very happy about our outdoor and nearly free experience.
Three Days in Washington D.C.
What to do with three days in Washington D.C.
A pandemic travel guide
It has been so long since the last time that I wrote a travel post, that i had difficulty even remembering the password to login and get started! That said, my hiatus from posting hasn’t been a true hiatus from travel per se, but has been an exercise in frustration with international travel planning. However, having taken a few little domestic trips during this time of upheaval, I’m finding that it’s time to resume a semi-regular posting schedule.
Know Before You Go
Normally when planning a trip I do extensive research into potential activities so that we don’t face the cringe of “I wish we would have known that sooner” reality while we’re visiting a far-off local. However, crazy times call flexibility and in this case, we found ourselves canceling a long planned trip (because of Covid concerns) in favor of a last minute mini-trip to a more domestic location.
To that end, there’s a TON to do in Washington D.C., but with ever changing policy where public health is concerned, don’t assume that you can simply drop-in and visit the free museums or attractions. We planned our trip less than a week in advance and we were not able to obtain timed entry tickets to any of the museums that we wanted to visit despite it being free entry.
Also, get familiar with the weather. Despite checking the weather before we went, we still found ourselves caught off guard by the daily rain we received like clockwork between 4 and 4:30 pm each day. According to a local we spoke with, D.C. rain is just a part of life that you count on being there. I wish we had known this or we would have packed differently and not found ourselves soaking wet on more than one occasion.
What we did with three days in D.C.
First of all, that’s not enough time to do hardly anything by the time you factor in the somewhat limited operating hours of the government buildings, so watch your time very closely!
On day 1 - We arrived and took the metro into town, we stayed in a hotel just a couple of blocks from the white house and walking to/from the metro was quick and easy. After we got checked-in, we immediately set out on foot to scope out the sites and familiarize ourselves with the area.
*D.C. is somewhat odd in terms of walking distance to things, everything is close and walkable, but also can be far on foot but too close for a car or train, so try not to be in a rush when going somewhere specific.
Our hotel was located on the Black Lives Matter Plaza, which at the time was undergoing road construction, but as we walked down it, we realized that they were pouring individual letters to spell it out in concrete. Compared to the painted versions of this in my own town, we were impressed by the investment.
Drawing nearer to the White House, we saw St. John's Episcopal Church, the site of the infamous photo taken by Donald Trump. We had no idea how close it actually was to the White House (again, the small/far complex). Just across the street from the church is the beautiful Lafayette Park, you might walk through it and not ever stop to appreciate it because you’ll be so distracted by the White House sitting at the end of of it, but look around and appreciate the beautifully preserved homes.
The White House, arguably the most famous of all buildings in the United States, was a very special stop. Due to barricades which are up during the day, you can’t walk-up to the fence, but even at a distance, you’re closer to it than you would think that you could get. My heart did a little flip when I saw it for the first time, it’s also much smaller than I expected. Stop and take a few minutes to appreciate it both in the daytime and at night.
Continuing our exploration, we walked all the way around the White House, which is a rather large loop. In the process you’ll also see the Willard Hotel, and walk along a portion of the National Mall. As you reach the rear of the White House, you’ll again note just how small it is and how confined the inhabitants must feel. Walk a little further and you’ll turn again to continue your loop, and walk past the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, which is where the office of the Vice President is located. Turn the corner again and you’re back at the White house.
By now it was late in the afternoon and we were sweaty and tired, so we returned to the hotel to shower, grab dinner, and that rounded out our first day.
Day 2 - Jumping into our second day, we went and visited the National Archive. The main reason for visiting is to see the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill Rights, but there’s also other exhibits there. We spent around 3 hours here.
After leaving the archives, we decided to walk the National Mall.
*Keep in mind that it was super hot, and there’s very little in the way of places to pop into and grab a drink, so be sure to bring water with you. That said, central D.C. is flush with ice cream trucks, if it’s just something cold that you’re wanting.
The mall is lovely and you’ll see all kinds of people there, we were there the day before an anniversary event of the MLK “I have a dream” speech, so there was extra activity happening. Eventually, we made our way to one of the ends of the park, where the Lincoln Memorial caps off an incredible linear view over the rest of the mall. You’ll want to spend some time here, it’s not only an impressive structure, but take the time to read everything that is inside. It’s an emotional experience for many.
Doubling back from the Lincoln Memorial, we walked along the reflecting pool and made our way towards the Washington monument. We stopped to view the World War 2 memorial and enjoyed the fountains for a time, but then we noticed the dark clouds of the mid afternoon rain storm start to approach so we quickly made our way to the Washington memorial, from there you have a good mid-point view of the rest of the mall in both directions. In all, we spent a couple of hours just viewing these three monuments and due to the rain, now needed to end our day of sightseeing (it was nearing the 4pm hour).
Day 3 - We visited the White House Visitor Center. Before you get too excited, it’s not actually part of the White House complex, but it’s located nearby and is what I’m going to call “An overlooked gem.” This museum focuses on the “people” that have lived, worked, and built the white house into what it is today. There are lots of artifacts, an educational video, and plenty of information to easily fill a couple of hours. Totally free of charge and no ticket required.
After we finished at the center, we decided to partially finish walking the National Mall. While we didn’t resume from where we left off, we set out from the visitors center and made our way to the Capital and the Supreme Court buildings. Mind you, it was oppressively hot that day and by the time we had walked there, we were tired, hungry and thirsty, so we ducked inside a little deli on the far side of the capital. Unfortunately for us, by the time we finished our little rest, it was time for the daily rain. We had just enough time to snap a few pictures before it started raining so hard that we had to huddle under an oak tree on the capital lawn..it really put a “damper” on the afternoon, but at least we saw it and could mark it off our list.
On our final morning before heading to the airport (Day Four), we took an Uber ride out to visit a bookstore called “Politics & Prose.” It was a bit of a hike, but well worth the trouble if you have a book lover in your life. Many of the Washington Elite do their book signings at this store and the autographed copies are still sold at regular price! Another unexpected perk of this visit, was when we discovered that the bookstore was just a couple of doors down from Comet Ping Pong, known to locals as a family-friendly pizza and ping pong restaurant, but to the rest of us as the unfortunate recipient of unfounded conspiracy theory and the resulting “pizza gate” scandal.
In summary, I loved D.C. and will go back again sooner rather than later.
Questions? Leave a comment or ask a question!
The Sound of Salzburg Austria
The hills are alive in Salzburg Austria.
The hills are indeed alive in Salzburg and even if you’ve never seen the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical, you’ll still benefit from the musical education.
Sound of Music Tours
When planning our recent trip to Salzburg, booking a theme tour was not a “to-do” item on our list, let alone a theme tour for a film that was released in 1965. I also must admit that I was unaware that the musical tale of the Trapp family was a true story, not that knowing this detail would have changed my mind about booking one of the many film tours available. However, one of the things I dearly love about travel is finding myself in the state of mind to “go with the flow,” which opens me up to more spontaneous experiences, and this is where our trip to Austria took a musical turn.
Much to my surprise and delight, the COVID-19 pandemic forced a delay in both the starting and ending dates for the annual Christmas markets throughout Austria, which means that many of them were still operational during our visit in late December and early January. It was while investigating a glass tree ornament stall that I happened to meet a fellow American killing time while waiting for new years eve festivities to begin, he revealed himself to be an ex-pat who had been living there for several years and made his living giving Sound of Music tours. It was still a couple of hours before midnight, and he graciously offered to help us pass the time by giving us the portion of his multi-hour tour which covered the area of town we were currently in.
To make a very long story somewhat shorter, we took him up on his offer and then decided to take the remaining portion of his tour a couple of days later. He had generously offered not to charge us, but we decided to pay him anyway given the extensively detailed nature and level of effort he invested into his program. We learned more information about this film/family than I may ever know about anything else on earth.
Comparing Trapp Family Tours
As mentioned above, I didn’t bother to research the differences in the many Sound of Music tours offered in Salzburg, but if you decide to go, you’ll find no shortage of these themed tours available to book. However, once you’re there, you'll probably notice that most of these tour groups all look the same, and they all occur by the busload, generally go to the same places, and all seem to focus exclusively on film facts and less on the real Trapp family story as it related to the film.
The tour we took was not one that you’ll probably find on the major tourism planning sites but is absolutely the one you should consider if you’re seeking a tour for either film fan or pop-culture reasons. My husband couldn’t remember if he had seen the film or not, but was fascinated by the factual elements of the family experience as it related to the war. You also see portions of the city that you probably would never notice or even take the trouble to go see, but that ultimately added to that coveted “off the beaten path” experience that all travelers crave but few achieve.
If you’re willing to invest in an education that doesn't require a student loan and that you wont regret in ten years, you should take a look at TrappFamilyBikeTours.com.
Hollywood Magic Meets Reality
I would be doing both you and John (the tour operator… he’s a hoot) a disservice by going into the nuts and bolts of what you’ll see on the tour, but suffice it to say that Hollywood magic and artistic license took HUGE liberties with the Trapp family story. One example I’ll give is that the Trapp family home (in the film) is a combination of multiple homes located in Salzburg as well as a set built on a sound stage in Hollywood. John, however, showed us not only the filming locations for pivotal parts of the film but also actual locations pertinent to the family. He went into great detail to separate fact from film fiction, which made for a very enriching experience.
If you’ve visited Salzburg and taken one of these theme tours, or have any specific questions, feel free to place them in the comments.