Travel

...now browsing by category

 

Europe 2011- End of Journey

Friday, May 27th, 2011

So the journey comes to an end and my last week in London has been great catching up with family and friends.

As you can see, there was no daily blog or daily posting, taking a rest from writing, and really not wanting to bore you with family visits.

But the week has been entertaining, spending time seeing some sights that I had never seen when I lived here and with my friends from Australia – Greenwich, Westminster Abbey, London Eye and getting some shopping in on Oxford Street and Piccadilly Circus. Also, a visit to London wouldn’t be complete without seeing a show or two in London’s West End (“In a Forest Dark and Deep” starring Matthew Fox, and “The Wizard of Oz” Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Production starring Michael Crawford.

My friend from San Francisco, now lives in London, just told me he is getting married in 3 weeks. It was a good opportunity to celebrate with him and his partner.

And now, I am home. 31 days later, from an amazing journey. Happy to have my bed, my shower, and my house. Now I just have to wait for Stephen to come home.

The end !

20110529-060352.jpg

20110529-060934.jpg

Follow Me on Twitter

Posted in Travel | No Responses »
Tags: , ,

Monaco – Camera

Thursday, May 19th, 2011

If you are concerned about taking a DSLR camera with you because you want to go into the casino, take it along. There is a place to check bags and cameras inside the Casino. There is much to explore in the area and some great photo opportunities.

Follow Me on Twitter

Posted in Travel, Travel Tips | No Responses »
Tags: ,

Day 20 – Monaco (Monte Carlo)

Thursday, May 19th, 2011

Yesterday was like a dream. From the moment we arrived in Monaco, I was anxious to go and explore. The town is getting ready for the Gran Prix at the end of the month and the city was in preparation.

The race circuit was ready, the media stands were built and the bleachers all set ready for the crowds. While, I was excited just to be in Monte Carlo, it added an extra buzz to be in town with all the exciting of this racing car event.

During our exploration of the city, we got to walk across the race track, still being one of the major roads in town, walker under the main seating area and grandstands, and finally into the Auto Club store where I got to purchase the 2011 Gran Prix Polo.

Click to continue »

Follow Me on Twitter

Posted in Travel | No Responses »
Tags: , , ,

Day 19 – Grasse & Saint Paul

Thursday, May 19th, 2011

Today’s outing was a trip to Grasse, the perfumery region of the world. While we didn’t get to see much of the hilltop town, we did get a tour of the museum – Musée International de la Parfumerie. At first, I wasn’t sure that I could handle the many scents and smells, especially that allergy season has been very heavy here in the southern France. Fortunately, it wasn’t such an overexposure that I had expected. I liked the garden area of the museum, the plants that made up the many scents and fragrances – such as – vetiver, vanilla orchid, cinnamon.

After the museum we left town for a lunch reservation on the terrace of a hotel that is well know for the region, Moulin de Mougins. An outdoor room on the terrace underneath the trees made it a beautiful setting for this lunchtime treat. My recommendation, the foie gras and the porc. While I did not order the pork dish myself, the tasting of this outer this crisp meat that was tender and full of flavor of the meat itself rather than the surrounding sauce, it was a surprise.

Click to continue »

Follow Me on Twitter

Posted in Travel | No Responses »
Tags: , , , ,

Day 18 – Saint-Paul-de-Vence

Tuesday, May 17th, 2011

Seeing that I have been posting a day late for the last few days, I will continue with these post in the past tense instead of the present. 

So, yesterday, was a trip into St Paul to the Meaght Gallery.  This was interesting, with some great works.  My favorites being a large Calder piece out front in the Gardens, the fountains of shaped faces, and the bronze statues. We did not stay long here.

Click to continue »

Follow Me on Twitter

Posted in Travel | No Responses »
Tags: , , ,

Day 17 – Village of Vence

Monday, May 16th, 2011

Our first day in Vence we spent the morning at the house waiting for our new guests to arrive. We explored the local shops and markets, with visits to the local butcher, bakeries and grocery stores. We stocked up on provisions for lunch and dinner for the day and into the week.

After lunch of freshly baked baguettes, with smoked salmon, ham or salami, with brie, vine ripe tomato, lettuce and mustard or mayonnaise, we headed out for a walk into the old city. Being Sunday afternoon, the town was quiet and mostly closed down for the day. A few of the restaurants and cafes were open and one or two shops. We explored the streets and narrow walkways and at the edge of the walled city we could overlook the mountain side to the house.

Click to continue »

Follow Me on Twitter

Posted in Travel | No Responses »
Tags: , , ,

Europe 2011 – Quick Post – House in Vence

Monday, May 16th, 2011

While the house in St Remy was an elegant, classic style Provencal home, this house in Vence is a modern Mediterranean villa with unobstructed views from every room. The main living areas have glass sliding walls which open up onto the patio and swimming pool below, overlooking the Old City.

20110516-032903.jpg

20110516-032909.jpg

20110516-032915.jpg

20110516-032921.jpg

20110516-032926.jpg

20110516-051728.jpg

Follow Me on Twitter

Posted in Travel | 1 Response »
Tags: , , ,

Europe 2011 – Provence (Week 2)

Sunday, May 15th, 2011

Week two has come to a close and we have seen many things and been to many places.   This group of photographs are all from Provence starting is l’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue to Les Baux-de-Provence.

Follow Me on Twitter

Posted in Travel | No Responses »
Tags: , ,

Day 15 – Les Baux-de-Provence

Saturday, May 14th, 2011

Our last full day in St-Remy started out with our preparations for leaving Provence the following morning. We walked into the village of St Remy to go to the post office and purchase a box to ship stuff home, banking and an internet place to print up some documents. After we got all this completed, we went for a drive to the village of Baux. This mountain top village is spectacular and we spent a couple of hours walking around the streets, climbing through the castle ruins and looking out over Provence.

20110514-050625.jpg

20110514-050632.jpg

20110514-050638.jpg

20110514-050647.jpg

20110514-050653.jpg

20110514-050700.jpg

20110514-050705.jpg

20110514-050711.jpg

20110514-050719.jpg

20110514-050830.jpg

20110514-050729.jpg

Follow Me on Twitter

Posted in Travel | No Responses »
Tags: , , , ,

Day 14 – The Luberon, Provence

Friday, May 13th, 2011

Today we embarked on a long drive into the Luberon, an area of Provence known for it’s hill top villages. We visit a few of them.

Although we didn’t spend much time in each one, we were on a dealing to be at one place for lunch reservation, it was a great way to get a “taste” of the region and something certainly to explore again.

Our journey today was first to Gordes:

20110513-043617.jpg

20110513-043730.jpg

From Gordes to Roussilion (known for it’s red rock/earth):

20110513-043936.jpg

20110513-043943.jpg

From Roussillion to Bonnieux (we drove though Bonnieux to our lunch reservation about 10 minutes outside of the city at Auberge de l’Aiguebrun. A hotel/restaurant secluded in the valley.)

20110513-044709.jpg

Bonnieux to Lacoste (again this was only a quick visit, enough to take a photo of thet infamous town know for the castle of the Marquis De Sade)

20110513-045126.jpg

20110513-045133.jpg

It was a long day out, lots of driving, and 8 hours later we arrived home. Walter, Stephen and I headed into town for a beer at the local brasserie and discussed the evenings dinner menu. This evening, we had celeriac with arugula (a surprising taste which we all thoroughly enjoyed), fresh pasta tossed with garlic and oil, and a mix of cheeses, breads and olives.

Follow Me on Twitter

Posted in Travel | No Responses »
Tags: , , ,

« Older Entries