Provence, Part 3 - Arles to Cassis

Just when we thought we couldn't see any more amazing villages, enter St. Remy and Arles. Two jewels of Provence, these are two great cities to combine together for a day trip from Avingnon. We began the day in St. Remy, which has a much smaller Saturday market than I was expecting. Regardless, it was nice to wander around the town where Van Gogh lived for a summer and got a morning espresso (or as the french say, cafe).

Following St. Remy, we took about 20 minutes of beautiful, windy roads past Les Baux (not recommended as it isn't really a village but more of a tourist trap) and to Arles. We caught the tail end of one of the largest Saturday markets in all of France, even buying a few goodies to go along with the photos.

After the market, we had lunch at A Cote, the little sister to the famous Michelin-starred L'Atelier that shares the same chef's and kitchen. I splurged for the grilled lobster, which was of course amazing.

Following lunch we did the tours of Roman Arles, checking out the amazing colliseum and Roman Ampitheatre. The colliseum is surreal and really relaxing to get lost in. And for €6 for the two sites, not a bad value either. It is really well preserved and worth a separate visit to the city just to see this site.

Following our tour of Roman Arles, including checking out Cafe La Nuit, which was immortalized by Van Gogh in one of his famous paintings, we wandered around the tiny streets of the town before heading back towards Avignon.

Once back to Avignon, Erin and I took the opportunity to see the sunset over Avignon across the Rhone from the city itself. It is really peaceful with lots of benches and grass to enjoy the views from.

We then made it back to our Domaine for one last night of home cooked Provencial food ala Erin. Below is the Domaine, a 16th century manor house converted B&B.

The following morning, our last in France, we made it back to the coast to Cassis, another amazing village that I had visited when studying abroad. Aimlessly strolling along the boats and promanade of the village is a great way to begin a relaxing day.

The weather was also amazing this time and we were able to take a Calanques tour. The tour itself was €20 for two and takes about 90 minutes to do all the Calanques. We would've liked to stop at the beach below but time didn't really permit, and the water was still on the chilly side.

Following the tour and a marginal dinner, we decided it was time to head home and get back to reality in London. It was a great return to where my passion for traveling began and was equally great to share all of it with Erin.

Provence, Part 2 - Chateauneuf to Avignon

After a nice lunch in Orange, it was back to try Beaucastel a second time. We made sure we arrived 15 minutes early so we didn't miss the second consecutive tour. We had several friends recommend Beaucastel as a great place to take a tour and do a tasting, and not just because they are perhaps the most well regarded estate in Chateauneuf de Pape. Also, with their top (currently for sale) wines selling at $550 a bottle, the fact that you aren't obligated to buy such a bottle as part of the tour is nice too. The tour itself was very comprehensive, and was (potentially) made more personal given the vineyard owner who took the tour with us has indirect business relationships with Beaucastels JV in the US.  

The estate itself was incredibly beautiful and as one of the most historic vineyards in the world, definitely lived up to its promise. We tried several wines in the old cellar, including the 2008, 2007 and 2001, all very good. It was interesting to try the three of those as well as some other wines in the region, and be able to tell just how much more complex and flavorful the aged Beaucastle was then all the others.

One of the other things they do is always keep a decent (but perpetually dwindling) stock of older vinetages on hand if some of their more important customers are looking to replenish their stock. And surprisingly, being such a historic vineyard, they haven't rested in place and have established stat of the art wine making  techniques.

Following Beaucastel, we did some more of the region wine experience in Gigondas, stopping first at the village just north of Gigondas called Siguret, which is only a few minutes out of the way but worth stopping for the view of the nearby vineyards if the Plus Beaux Village title doesn't convince you.

We then stopped at Gigondas on the way home. We didn't eat here, but there is a great restaurant in the village that is owned by the Perrin family, who own and operate the Beaucastel estate.

From Gigondas (after a tasting at the local wine "coop" and picking up a couple bottles, we made it to Isle sur La Sourge, which is home to some canals and argubaly the best antique stores and markets in Provence. The real reason we went there was for dinner at Le Vivier an affordable but amazing one star michelin restaurant.

The four course menu is only €40 or so and provides amazing value for the quality of food served here. I had perhaps the best steak I have ever eaten and Erin had a lamb trio that was amazing.

The following day we had a morning tour at Domaine de Giraud. While not quite as intimidating as the Beaucastel empire, the brother and sister run vineyard in creates some amazing wine. Marie was a great host, letting us try some 2010 directly from the barrels. It was interesting to try the Mouverde from the same year, but grown in different soil. Amazing how the type of soil (rock v. clay in our case) can completely dictate the taste of the wine.

That afternoon we walked around Avignon and took a tour into the Palais des Papes, which was as amazing as I remember it longggg ago. It was a great day and all necessary for a complete holiday in Provence.

Cinque Terre, Italy

After years of trying to make our way to the Cinque Terre, we finally made it during the most recent bank holiday. We had initially booked flights to the Cinque Terre in July 2007, from our DC apartment right when we found out we were moving to Ireland. Due to a work trip we had to rearrange the trip and ended up going to Riga for a quick night versus a long weekend in the Cinque Terre. Alas, we made it. The pics we had previously seen and those you’ll see below do not begin to the villages justice. You’ll have to go yourself!

The area, Cinque Terre represents the five villages that are all connected only by footpaths and a railroad. As you'll see below, the villages are all perched on the side of the mountains amidst vineyards, lemon and olive trees and lots of woodlands.

To get to the Cinque Terre, its not too easy, but much easier than it used to be. You can fly to either Pisa or Genova and then get trains to the villages. From Pisa, you get the train to Pisa central and switch to a train that takes you to La Spezia. From there you have to get on the Cinque Terre regional train, which stops at all the villages. trenitalia.com allows you to plan your journey and even will give the trains you need and transfer times at all the stops. From the airport, it was about a 2 hour journey to Manarola.

We choose to stay in Manarola to stay in as it has the best recommended restaurant, it’s away from the more touristy Monterosso del Mare and Vernazza, and its beautiful! Manarola is the second city from the south (with only Riomaggiore more south).

We found a great place to stay called Vandiris (info@vandiris.com), which just opened (€120 per night, discounted based on number of nights). We were literally the first ones to stay in the hotel. There is currently only 2 rooms I believe, but they were working on the top floor units when we stayed. The view is spectacular and is perched right on the cliffs, overlooking the trainstation on the back side of Manarola. The view from the bed looking out over the terrace was incredible, definitely the nicest place we stayed on the trip. See the sea from our balacony, the first taken from the bed! There is a terrace below our room that the owner was working on when we were there and is expected to open in the next year. It will be amazing once it gets finished (the rooms need no more work as they are great). The shower in particular is great and is exactly what you need after a long hike. If you are looking for a place in Cinque Terre, book here and book early as there are only a couple rooms. I envision this place being sold out nightly once word spreads.

We stayed two nights in Manarola, doing the hike between Riomaggiore the first afternoon then the other hikes the second day. All of the villages were beautiful, but in particular we thought Vernazza was the prettiest, followed by Manarola. However, Riomaggiore is pretty close as you can see below.

Cappun Magru is the restaurant I mentioned before. It is in the little hamlet of Groppo, about a 20 minute gruelling walk up the mountain. We got the local bus up the hill to the town before dinner. The restaurant is an old house that has about 8 tables over two floors. The food itself was cooked great and the wife of the chef is the server and sommelier. What a great meal. After dinner I got a couple nice night shots of Manarola, the villages are equally pretty in the twilight. I suggest enlarging this one!

We got to Vernazza at about 10:30 the second day and tinkered around the town for a couple hours, having a picnic lunch on the pier before embarking on the hike to Cornigila. Vernazza is really amazing.

Once you get to Corniglia, you can see Manarola from afar. This pic is using a 200mm lens at dusk to scope out our base from afar. You can actually see our hotel, the very last building on the right, perched out on the cliffs, in redish colour (you may need to enlarge as well)!

The second day we had a great dinner at a restaurant in Corniglia - Cantina de Mananan. You need to make a reservation at this all-Italian speaking place that has it menu scribbled on a chalkboard (in Italian of course); you should probably bring your English-Italian dictionary as well, however, if the people next to you (generally Italians) speak English, they may be able to help! It makes an interesting meal when you are trying to figure out. We were seated at a table for four next to a nice Italian couple which added to the experience.

All in all, the beauty of the cinque terre and the accompanying amazing landscape exceeded all expectations and was worth the 3 year and 5 month wait!!

Visitors abound

Its been pretty quiet on the England front in February and March, with perpetually dreary weather, dark days and only thoughts of a warm and sunny summer getting us through the English winter. This explains the lack of blog posts lately. However, as the dark days have started to brighten, so has our desire to get out and explore. Along with the market we went to a couple weeks ago with Pramit, we've had some visitors, which has been good for the mind and soul (just not the wallet). 

Recently, Betchkov and Adrienne visited our place for a little over a week, enjoying two weekends with us and taking in Paris during the week, while we worked (its not fun to imagine your friends frolicking around Paris while stuck in a cube). 

During the weekends they were here we took them to Notting Hill market and showed them our local(s) (The Prince of Wales and the Windsor Castle), and even made it to Aladdin for a meal on Brick Lane. 

We also had a really nice night out in Shepherd's Bush at Alounak followed by pints at Defectors. Another night we took on Soho, eating at a very popular Venetian small plates restaurant called Polpo, which I highly recommend. 

We also went to El Camino and then to Sketch during one of our nights after a meal in China town. Sketch is an interesting club, but given the most interesting part about it is the bathrooms, don't hold your breath.

About a month earlier, Ross was in town en route from Minneapolis to Italy to Shanghai (weird - but you cannot question Ross' travel plans, you just have to go with the flow). We showed him a good night out in Soho as well, following a dinner at Rocket in Mayfair. Rocket is another affordable but stylish Italian spot that has killer pizza and calzones and a good wine list. We also checked out the Borough market for a famous Chorizo sandwich and hit a couple pubs up (of course). 

Having friends come out was a terrific distraction from the long winter/early spring. It was good to talk about the crazy college days and plan for the times to come! Also helped us pass the time until our next trip, which is only a few weeks away!!

Broadway Market and L'Entrecote

When walking to work, I always admire the various points around of Big Ben, Parliament and if you are back far enough, add the towers of Westminster Abbey...as you can see its quite a beautiful sight, particularly against sunset.

Two weekends ago we fulfilled an 18 month desire to go to Relais de Venise or L'Entrecote. No menu aside of desert and drinks, which adds to the ambiance, making it a unique experience. The only thing on the menu for starters and mains is salad and steaks. When you order the only question is 'how would you like your steaks done monsieur?' The don't even have butter for the baquettes! They are famous for their special sauce, which we identified the secret ingredient as curry (but we could be wrong). Kate, Stuart, Erin and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It is pretty affordable and they don't take reservations, which adds to the experience a bit more (queuing outside). If you arrive early enough, check out the old pub next door for a pre-dinner beer (which they don't serve at L'Entrecote - just make sure the women hold your place in line:-). The experience is definitely worth the effort/wait.

This weekend we made our way to Angel tube stop and had a nice 30 minute walk along the canal with Pramit to the Broadway Market. The market itself is as unique as the others in London, adding a much more local vibe than the likes of Borough and Notting Hill.

 It is lined with coffee shops, cafes, antique stores, even an eel monger. While not the biggest nor most highly regarded, its a great spot to spend a Saturday morning/afternoon.

Happy marketeering!!!

Numero tres

We recently celebrated our 3rd anniversary with dinner on the canal in Maida Vale - a little victorian neighborhood in west London.  Its little known that there's a canal system in London.  This one - known as little Venice - wraps around various parts of the city and is used for leisure cruising and scenic walks.

There are a hundred or so houseboats that border the canal.  A trendy, commute-free way to live in the middle of London or in our case, a peaceful place for dinner.

I'd heard of a pop-up store, but a pop-up restaurant? The Summerhouse is up now and will be open until mid-October.  I loved the Nantucket vibe with white-washed walls.  When the weather is goods, its open air vibe makes a perfect setting for a romantic, yet casual meal.