Sunday, April 27, 2008
Been Der
On our walk home from the Porterhouse microbrewry Friday night, Brett poetically used the Gaelic name for Howth (Binn Eadair) an Irish village we had hiked around earlier, for the founding of an epic northern minnesota classic. Its not so much the video, but the audio, so make sure your volume is on.
Krak-oo-wow That's Good Wodka
It took us 19 days in April before we made our first escape for the month, but it was a good wait as Erin and I choose Krakow, Poland for the second saturday-sunday excursions during our European stint. Krakow is a vibrant student city with a population of about 700k, in the south-east corner of Poland, not far from Ukraine and the Solvak Republic. We choose to come here as it is an up-and-coming destination with all the history and screnity of Prague and Budapest, but less tour buses and segways. We arrived and went directly to the main square, lined with churches, towers, and buildings dating back to the 1200s.
Our first stop was St. Mary's Cathedral, where John Paul II presided prior to becoming Pope. The church is absolutely beautiful with carved and colorful details that we've never seen. It is very different from your York Minster's and St. Peter's as there is not many priceless stone carvings, but they did a fabulous job with what they had.
We saw this group of breakdancers along the square on Sunday, regular looking lads with amazing atheletic abilities.
That night we had an amazing dinner after wandering around the jewish quarter (very nice but nothing spectular, we had a local beer in an old pub called Alchemist). The dinner was about 1/3 the price as those in Dublin, which was nice to have a top-tier meal without killing the wallet. After dinner we did a good job experiencing the night life of Krakow, known as some of the best in Europe, with cavernous clubs, bars, and more vodka than one can handle! We had a great night, going to 5 different places, capped off by a delicious kabab.
The following day we walked around, enjoyed the square, and visited the Wawel castle, which was formerly home to Austrian and Polish kings. We also went to a little mom and pop shop that distills and flavors its own vodka, which we had a sample of! It was a perfect escape from the work grind and another unforgettable weekend.
Our first stop was St. Mary's Cathedral, where John Paul II presided prior to becoming Pope. The church is absolutely beautiful with carved and colorful details that we've never seen. It is very different from your York Minster's and St. Peter's as there is not many priceless stone carvings, but they did a fabulous job with what they had.
We saw this group of breakdancers along the square on Sunday, regular looking lads with amazing atheletic abilities.
That night we had an amazing dinner after wandering around the jewish quarter (very nice but nothing spectular, we had a local beer in an old pub called Alchemist). The dinner was about 1/3 the price as those in Dublin, which was nice to have a top-tier meal without killing the wallet. After dinner we did a good job experiencing the night life of Krakow, known as some of the best in Europe, with cavernous clubs, bars, and more vodka than one can handle! We had a great night, going to 5 different places, capped off by a delicious kabab.
The following day we walked around, enjoyed the square, and visited the Wawel castle, which was formerly home to Austrian and Polish kings. We also went to a little mom and pop shop that distills and flavors its own vodka, which we had a sample of! It was a perfect escape from the work grind and another unforgettable weekend.
Sunday, April 06, 2008
6 Hours in Bangkok
On the way home from our relaxing honeymoon, we decided to forego spending an 8 hour layover in the Bangkok airport and instead ventured into the abyss of the city. And what a bizarre, crazy place cluttered with rickshaws, stray dogs, beautiful temples, orange-clad barefooted monks, amazing shopping, street vendors and scary street food. Luckily, we had two excellent navigators....my high school friend Pat and his wife Tara, who are temporarily living and working in the city who helped us explore the chaotic city on a little bit of time. 
The size of the city is unbelievable and it took us about 40 minutes to get to the old side of the city with all of the temples. Thus, the six hours in Bangkok. As it was already 4pm we unfortunately were unable to tour any of the historic sites so we hopped on a local water bus. Public transportation safety is not a consideration as you literally hop on the back of the moving boat as it passes. Note Lou is preparing to jump in the photo below.
The size of the city is unbelievable and it took us about 40 minutes to get to the old side of the city with all of the temples. Thus, the six hours in Bangkok. As it was already 4pm we unfortunately were unable to tour any of the historic sites so we hopped on a local water bus. Public transportation safety is not a consideration as you literally hop on the back of the moving boat as it passes. Note Lou is preparing to jump in the photo below. 
We had dinner sitting on the deck of a nice (clean) restaurant that overlooked the famous Arun Wat temple. 
Friday, March 28, 2008
Thai photos
To see more photos from our Thailand trip, please visit http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=391640&l=03a86&id=525733463.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
So Long Koh Hong
We are back to reality after our honeymoon to Koh Yao Noi, an island in Phang Nga Bay off the coast of Phuket, Thailand. It went by fast, but was the trip of a lifetime. The resort was amazing. We will do additonal posts later, but wanted to give the high-level summary sooner rather than later. Hope everyone is well!
Arrival at the resort, http://www.theparadise.biz/. Our room is on the hill on the left.
View of the surrounding hongs from the resort beach.
Infinity pool at resort, always was there when the 90 degree heat was unbearable.
Palm trees lining the resort beach.
The outdoor portion of our bungalow including a view. Not shown, the outdoor shower from which this photo was taken.
Our mosquito net over the bed. They decorated the bed and had a bottle of sparkling wine and fruit basket awaiting us in the room.
Sunrise from our bungalow bed (no photoshop used, it was like this every morning)
The resort spa, you arrive, go into their grotto steam room that has Thai aromatic roots mixed into the steam, then cool off in the garden pool with a waterfall. They then give you a cup of homemade tea before heading off to the treament room, a little bungalow with mosquito net walls where Erin and I had our massages together.
Elephant trekking near Krabi, Erin was an expert. 
Longtail boat arrival to Koh Hong island during our island hopping tour. 
The beach at Koh Hong, without a doubt the most beautiful place we have ever set foot on...crystal clear waters, 100 foot limestone cliffs, tropical fish we snorkeled with, and sands whiter than our Norwegian skin!
Swimming at Koh Hong.
Lagoon inside Koh Hong, your eyes deceive you, the boat isn't suspended in mid air, that is water it is on.
Arrival at the resort, http://www.theparadise.biz/. Our room is on the hill on the left.
View of the surrounding hongs from the resort beach.Infinity pool at resort, always was there when the 90 degree heat was unbearable. Palm trees lining the resort beach.
Our mosquito net over the bed. They decorated the bed and had a bottle of sparkling wine and fruit basket awaiting us in the room.
Sunrise from our bungalow bed (no photoshop used, it was like this every morning)
The resort spa, you arrive, go into their grotto steam room that has Thai aromatic roots mixed into the steam, then cool off in the garden pool with a waterfall. They then give you a cup of homemade tea before heading off to the treament room, a little bungalow with mosquito net walls where Erin and I had our massages together.Elephant trekking near Krabi, Erin was an expert. Longtail boat arrival to Koh Hong island during our island hopping tour. The beach at Koh Hong, without a doubt the most beautiful place we have ever set foot on...crystal clear waters, 100 foot limestone cliffs, tropical fish we snorkeled with, and sands whiter than our Norwegian skin!Swimming at Koh Hong.
Lagoon inside Koh Hong, your eyes deceive you, the boat isn't suspended in mid air, that is water it is on.Sunday, March 02, 2008
Bruxelles
Mussels and Brussels, alive-alive-O!!
Erin, myself, Strauss, and Joe (Phone Boy) spent the weekend in Brussels. We got flights for €50; well worth it for the cullinary and beer mecca experience we indulged in. We got a 6am flight and were into Brussels at 10am following the 45 minute bus ride from the typical RyanAir in the middle of nowhere airport. We immediately hit the scene, picking up our first belgian waffles washed down with a Hoegaarden (rose for Erin and En Saison for me, two types of Hoegaarden only available in Brussels for the most part). We checked into our hotel, bought some chocolate (the third of the four Brussels sins (waffles, beer, mussels, and chocolate)). Most excellent indeed, from a world renowned chocolatier, Pierre Marcolini. We tried a bizarre combination ranging from thyme and orange to earl grey. We grabbed lunch at a ny times recommended restaurant on a cute little pedestrian restaurant street (similar to the Latin Quarter for those who have been to Paris, but the food in these restaurants has better quality). We then completed the quad-fecta within 3 hours of arriving by having some really nice mussels for lunch. After lunch, we arrived at the Mecca of beer, the Delirum Cafe, owned and operated by the makers of Delirum Tremens for those familar with their Belgians. THIS BAR HAS 2004 DIFFERENT BEERS ON THEIR MENU!!!! The menu has over 600 beers from Belgium alone. Although this bar, similar to the Brickskeller in DC which some of you have ventured into with Erin and I, didn't have a couple of our choices, the beers were unbelievable and half the price of those in Dublin (and at least twice the alcohol content). Got to try a couple Abbey and Trappist (those brewed by Benedictine Monks using traditional methods) beers that are not available outside the country that were very very good. These pics tell the story. 
Erin, myself, Strauss, and Joe (Phone Boy) spent the weekend in Brussels. We got flights for €50; well worth it for the cullinary and beer mecca experience we indulged in. We got a 6am flight and were into Brussels at 10am following the 45 minute bus ride from the typical RyanAir in the middle of nowhere airport. We immediately hit the scene, picking up our first belgian waffles washed down with a Hoegaarden (rose for Erin and En Saison for me, two types of Hoegaarden only available in Brussels for the most part). We checked into our hotel, bought some chocolate (the third of the four Brussels sins (waffles, beer, mussels, and chocolate)). Most excellent indeed, from a world renowned chocolatier, Pierre Marcolini. We tried a bizarre combination ranging from thyme and orange to earl grey. We grabbed lunch at a ny times recommended restaurant on a cute little pedestrian restaurant street (similar to the Latin Quarter for those who have been to Paris, but the food in these restaurants has better quality). We then completed the quad-fecta within 3 hours of arriving by having some really nice mussels for lunch. After lunch, we arrived at the Mecca of beer, the Delirum Cafe, owned and operated by the makers of Delirum Tremens for those familar with their Belgians. THIS BAR HAS 2004 DIFFERENT BEERS ON THEIR MENU!!!! The menu has over 600 beers from Belgium alone. Although this bar, similar to the Brickskeller in DC which some of you have ventured into with Erin and I, didn't have a couple of our choices, the beers were unbelievable and half the price of those in Dublin (and at least twice the alcohol content). Got to try a couple Abbey and Trappist (those brewed by Benedictine Monks using traditional methods) beers that are not available outside the country that were very very good. These pics tell the story. Afterwards we went to another amazing bar where they serve a house beer in stone jugs; then we wandered into a less touristy neighborhood and ate at the most amazing restaurant. We made a couple friends from Vienna in the Delirium Cafe who joined us for dinner, and the woman was fluent in French, which helped when we realized we had made a reservation at another similarly named restaurant. We had to wait 30 minutes, just enough time to have a Chimay in very cool nearby restaurant. The dinner was very very very good, one of the best bistro meals I have had. Escargots and Rabbit were my dishes, and they were the best of both I have ever had! It was an amazing ambiance as well and we all enjoyed ourselves. 
After dinner we slowly made our way home, capping of the night at 3am with a salute to the Mannakin Pis (those who have gardens might have a statue of the little boy peeing in their yard), a glass of Leffe, and a fresh doner kebab, making it back to the hotel at 3:30am.....we definitely packed a days worth of fun in as you can see!
After dinner we slowly made our way home, capping of the night at 3am with a salute to the Mannakin Pis (those who have gardens might have a statue of the little boy peeing in their yard), a glass of Leffe, and a fresh doner kebab, making it back to the hotel at 3:30am.....we definitely packed a days worth of fun in as you can see!The following day, Erin and I walked around the neighborhoods, had breakfast in a furniture store (yummmy), walked through gardens, checked out shops, and just walked and walked, working off the calories consumed the day before. It was a terrific weekend and we loved every minute of Brussels.....this city should not be overlooked, everything was terrific!
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