The Ligurian Coast:Cinque Terre-Day 2

Another beautiful, fall day greeted us this morning at Villa Margherita. The Jones' and we met for a hearty Italian breakfast in the small dining room. "Hearty" would be defined as several yummy cappuccino's with a side of pastry, a bit of yogurt and maybe a slice of ham or cheese. The seven of us gathered our things and set off on our day long adventure to hike all five towns of the Cinque Terre. This happy hiker is ready to go!

After a mad scramble at the train station, where there was only one ticket window open for a throng of anxious fellow hikers, day trippers and locals, we got on the train and rode it all the way to the eastern most Cinque Terre town of Rio Maggiore. The whole ride took only about 10-15 minutes. We didn't spend any time in this village, preferring instead to get going. The first leg of the trail is along the Via del'Amore (Lover's Lane) a 20 minute, cliff side walk.

It was only about a 30 minute walk to the next town, Manarola.

With everyone still feeling fit, we breezed through this one as well and climbed up to the hilltown of Corniglia. Here, we met with some resistence to pushing on as the clock was about to strike 12 and certain members of the group wanted to find a quick spot to eat...

but the majority ruled and we pushed on to Vernazza with the promise of a sit down, savory pasta feast! This last leg took about 1 1/2 hours and while it was strenuous, the vistas were incredible...

We all felt lunch was well deserved when we arrived at 1:30!

The Jones' had heard so much about our meal in Vernazza the day before that we went back to the same restaurant for another go 'round. Nick spent much of the meal asking our waiters to tell him the secret to cooking the perfect pasta. He also managed to eat two plates of it in the process!

After lunch, dad's and kids stayed in Vernazza to linger over lunch, have a gelato and take the train back to Levanto. Julie and I decided we wanted to finish the entire trail. We got to Monterosso by late afternoon, wandered around that little town, sat down and had a wonderful coffee and then headed back to Levanto by train.





After our tough day of hiking, we all felt what we really needed was some more pasta! We returned to the same restaurant we'd gone to the night before, La Palme, for another delicious meal. Here, Darrin is showing off a dish of a local specialty called Pansotti; a ricotta and vegetable filled ravioli with a creamy walnut sauce. It was mouth wateringly delicious!

This region also claims to have invented pesto and we made sure we ate plenty of that as well!


Tomorrow, on our way back to Aix, we'll be visiting a few towns along the coast.

More photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/susiebates/CinqueTerreDay2?authkey=Zvn8h7eXYn4

Surprise Snowstorm!

We've had an unusually cold fall this year. Nothing like the warm one we experienced last year. This past week, the weather got even more peculiar when it SNOWED!!! Imagine our surprise when we realized that the unidentified particles flying around in the air outside our home weren't small bits of leaves, but snow flakes! We had never seen snow here before! We're not talking about the little flake here and there, this was an all out blizzard!! Palm trees look really strange with snow on them, don't they?!?

In all, we got about 2" of snow at our home and even today, 4 days later, there is still snow lingering in the shady areas and north side of the house.











The whole area did look beautiful and magical but we hope this is not a prelude to a New England winter in Provence!

The Ligurian Coast: Portofino

This fall, during Sarah's school break, we had less energy to plan or go on a big trip like we did last year to Italy. We still decided to go to Italy, just for less time and a bit closer to home. We chose to visit several villages along the picturesque Ligurian coast, including Portofino and the Cinque Terre. Here's a brief description of our first day.

We left Aix on a Wednesday morning and headed east making it to the Italian border in 2 1/2 hours, passing by San Remo and Genoa on the autostrada. Our first detour was a visit to Portofino. The drive out to this peninsula port town is not for the weak stomached! From Rapallo we drove through Santa Margherita and then hit lots of twisty, windy roads as we approached Portofino.

We arrived in Portofino and found... lots of WIND!!! We parked the car and bundled up to brave the elements! Here, as Sarah and I are walking down to the harbor, we are leaning into, and being held up by, the wind!

The town was adorable and the buildings lovely and colorful against the blue autumn sky...

It was not a day to be out sailing on the Mediterranean!

While Nick preferred to examine the boats in detail, Sarah and I wandered around town a bit...





They use a lot of black and white stones to make these lovely mosaics in the walkways...

We climbed up a long pathway a ridge above the harbor where we could look out at the stormy sea.

When we came down, a couple nearby made a rare offer, which we gladly accepted, to take a picture of the three of us....

Once back in the car, we were off to the next coastal town of Levanto, just next to the Cinque Terre, where we would stay for the next three days.

Girl's Trip to Madrid

In October, a group of us went to Madrid for the weekend. Our dear friend, Danci, invited 6 of us to her suburban, Madrid home for a few days of sightseeing, shopping and fine dining. Our small International group, representing Spain, Holland, Sweden, Norway and America departed on a Thursday night from Marseille. It was only a 1 ½ hour flight and we flew Ryan Air, a seriously no frills, discount airline, so the trip wasn’t taxing on our time or our pocketbooks. Added bonus: at the airport all our husbands sent us off with their blessings!

Jill, Annika, Danci, Margriet, Tove and Hannika

As none of us had ever been to Spain's capital city before and none of us spoke Spanish, she was truly taking on the job of a tour guide extraordinaire! With her as our 'director' it was a fabulous experience as she handled everything, basically took care of all of us for the whole weekend.
Unfortunately, the beginning of our adventure got off to a sour start when our evening flight was delayed in Marseille and then there was a horrible accident on the freeway with all traffic at a standstill for nearly an hour while they cleared the wreckage. But we were together and off on a girl's weekend so none of these events really dampened our spirits. When we finally arrived at Danci’s house, we were thankful to be safely out of the sky and off the road! A little snack, some wine, a few giggles and we all went happily to bed... It was well after 1am; the perfect way to get onto "Spanish time" where everything happens very late!

Friday we woke up to a beautiful day and we left from Danci's house for our day of sightseeing...

This was no ordinary Friday... it also happened to be a major national holiday honoring Christopher Columbus. All schools, government buildings, most shops and several modes of transportation were closed for the day. We took a bus into Madrid and then the metro into the center of the city. Right as we came up onto the street from the underground the King of Spain’s motorcade drove right by us! We had a split second to snap this quick photo!


All of the streets were blocked off and there were mounted police on horses at every corner.

There were also LOTS of people out to see the spectacle! I'm told that large building in the background is the Post Office!



Danci led us on a walking tour of the city...

Here we are in front of Madrid's City Hall...

When hunger set in, Danci quickly escorted us to the Museo del Jamon(Museum of Ham!). The Spanish REALLY know their hams and have SO many kinds! This place was really amazing.

yes, those are ALL hams!

We sampled several types of special hams and cheeses here.... and drank a refreshing glass of sangria, chock full of lemon and orange, to wash it all down!

Our next stop was the Plaza Major where there was a huge fair called "Viva America"! The title was lost on us...we thought Spain was in Europe. Plaza Major reminded us a lot of St. Mark's Square in Venice-minus the cathedral, of course.

There were many mimes performing…


This "Superman" was really pathetic!

A group of guitarists, a la Segovia, were entertaining the crowd. These girls especially enjoyed the music...

and these darlings enjoyed the sweets!

There was a huge tent in the middle of the plaza where many wine and food vendors offered free samples…

We stopped at a small restaurant/tapas bar on the edge of the Plaza for some more of Madrid’s delicacies. This time Danci ordered fried calamari (the rings) and little tiny whole fried calamari called chipirones, some other little lightly fried fish (maybe anchovies) and a plate of fried chunks of potatoes with a red spicy sauce. Everything was delicious and went well with the pitcher of sangria and fresh bread. Danci also ordered a drink that was beer mixed with a lemon/lime type of soda which was light and refreshing.

From here we wandered some more and went into a bakery for a special kind of pastry Danci insisted we try…. They had all kinds of things here to tantalize us, but we were so full from our lunches we were able to just look and take photos!

Little pumpkins for Halloween....

From here we walked to the Royal Palace, which due to a big luncheon the King was hosting was so heavily guarded that this was as close as the police would allow us.



This cathedral, right 'next door' to the palace, was open to the public that day.

We walked quite a bit more, strolling by this lovely area where we stopped at a small outdoor cafe for coffee before catching the train back to Tres Cantos.

It was the perfect way to rest our feet at the end of the day…

Once home, we had a quick rest and change of clothes before our taxis arrived to take us back into the city for dinner. Our ‘early’ reservation at Goizeko-Kabi, a very nice, traditional restaurant, was for 9:30pm and sure enough, we were the first people to arrive. This restaurant serves some of the best Basque dishes in Madrid in an intimate, understated interior.

We were all given menus, all in Spanish and no prices anywhere-that always makes you a little nervous! Just as we were beginning to try to figure it all out, Danci took charge and ordered our entire meal which was fantastic! To start off the evening, a small little glass flute arrived with a rich but light foie gras mousse and a wonderful white wine to go with it. What followed next was a series of incredible plates. Here are a few of the dishes…





Saturday we went back to Madrid-this time it was to shop till we dropped. Most of the day was spent in El Cortes Ingles, Spain’s nicest and largest department store. Everyone spread out on their own and we reconnected for lunch…at 3pm.




After lunch, we dragged our weary bodies onto the train back to Danci’s house for a short rest before it was time to head back into the city for another feast. This time, Danci had chosen the hip, contemporary restaurant, Europa Deco, in the chic Urban Hotel located in Madrid city center. This is one of the famed, Spanish chef Joaquin de Felipe's restaurants and they specialize in creative Mediterranean dishes. We had the tasting menu which had too many courses to count, each seemingly better than the one before with Spanish wines matched to each one. Needless to say, it was a special evening and we all really had a great time…


Sunday found us a bit short on energy so we had a leisurely morning lounging in our pj’s and enjoying a light, late breakfast. It was another lovely day so we went for a little walk around Tres Cantos. After we all packed up, we walked back into the town to a little tapas restaurant, Bodegon Frangagheila, for a final meal before going to the airport. We enjoyed more delicious hams, cheeses, breads and, for the first time, a paella. Needless to say, we'll all be on diets in the upcoming week(s!)

Our flight home was thankfully a non-event and all our husbands and children met us at the airport with open arms. Wonder where we'll go on our next girls' adventure.......?!?!

If you are interested in seeing more photos, here's the web album link: http://picasaweb.google.com/susiebates/Madrid?authkey=P8mE07o-83g

Goizeko-Kabi: http://www.goizekogaztelupe.com/

Europa Deco:http://www.agoda.com/europe/spain/madrid/urban_hotel.html