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Misha’s closed plant in a bottle, created jan, 2015.
Liesl von noodles, the labradoodle t-shirt, best christmas present ever
Christmas markets in Bernkastel-Kues & Trier, Germany
I am a total freak fan of Christmas markets. It’s a perfect Christmas time activity. You get in the spirit, eat lots of great food and hot beverages AND get your Christmas shopping done in one fell swoop. It’s a beautiful thing when you can have a great time taking care of your Christmas chores, and not be in a shopping mall.
This trip was to Bernkastel-Kues, just a couple hours drive.
This is not the worlds largest advent calendar, but it’s pretty freakin close. Unfortunately, we missed the opening of door #1 by one day. Erghhhh
I thought the panes of glass I saw on several places were interesting. I’d never seen this kind of bubble panes before.
Can you see the lean on this house????
Apparently, the German and Dutch folklore is somewhat similar as St. Nicks helpers are stuffing (I assume) bad kids in a sack. See the blue rain boots hanging out of the sack?
Gary finally gets his first gluhwein of the season. Since this part of the world is Riesling territory, he had to try the white. Good, but definitely a proponent of the red. Still, this is a happy boy!!!
Can you tell how wavy the walls are on these houses? I tried to get a good representation. Some things are hard to tell in photos.
The flood lines commemorated. Note the one at the very top.
Totally want to translate this. Little help, please?
Craziest house I’ve ever seen. Decorated with the witch and kids from hansel and gretel. ???? Happy Christmas
I gotta tell ya, I'd be a tad worried hanging out upstairs with some energetic wrestlers.
Always nice to find a warm dry spot to get out of the rain.
So cute at night, all lit up. Very cute little town. Totally recommend a visit if you can swing it.
The following morning, we drove a somewhat meandering route back home and stopped in Trier. Again, the goal of the day is to have some tasty snacks, some hot tasty beverages and do some Christmas shopping. I am sorry to report that I will not be posting pics of my awesome gifts for the family. We wouldn't want to spoil the surprise now, would we?
So, I wanted to share this vendor had quite the roof top decoration, yeah? We had something similar when I was a kid. Although, ours was a hundred times smaller, made of brass and used candles to propel the blades to turn the carousel.
Lovely, beautiful Reibekuchen or potato pancakes served with applesauce. Ermahgawd! I cannot get enough of these. Super yummy. So yummy, we had them twice in 24 hours. Yeah. I'm like that. ;)
Ah, and then we shared some flammekuchen. Kinda like a pizza, maybe. This one has paper thin slices of potato, cheese and bacon. Holy smokes, I wanted to just order a dozen and keep them in a small portable oven on my back.
Here's a close-up of this tastiness.
So, both Bernkastel-Kues & Trier do not have a gigantic markets. They are good markets, but you probably could see all of it, have some good food in 3 - 4 hours. Totally easy day trip. Maybe even do both in one day. Regardless, good fun. Totally recommend.
Happy Christmas!
Take care, be good & XXOO, -- Misha
Ardennes region, Belgium
The boy and I went to explore the Ardennes region in Belgium last weekend. I tell you something, this area is a triple threat, for sure. It has beautiful scenery, yummy food & and great beer (if you're into to it, that is). Even better, it took us just a hour to get there! Ya can't beat that.
First, we went to the smallest city in the world - Durbuy, Belgium. I'm not sure how they classify that, but it was super cute. I could not get over the strata here. Craaaazy!
Cruising on down the road just a bit, we stopped at the caves of Han sur Lesse. This was my first time checking out the caves, and I could not get over the various mineral formations.
These flatter stalactites were odd, never seen anything like that before.
This pic was taken from underneath the flatter (meaning not round) yet curly stalactites so that you can see how really thin they are.
Afterwards, we headed over to the Leffe brewery in Dinant where Gary had the far superior of the lunches (wild boar stew with poached pears). My was fine, but his was a memorable lunch that made me super jealous.
I saw this car and immediately thought of Kathy. Haha
Very narrow pass through driving into the town of Bouillon! We were a little nervous and we drive a very small car. I would be super paranoid driving an SUV here.
We went to explore the medieval fortress at the top of the hill. I thought Gary looked really funny in this pic cause of the angle, like his head it waaaay to big for his body. hahaha
This is the gorgeous view from the top. Beautiful fall colors, yeah? No color adjustments done on any pics!
This description was for the torture device pictured next.
How'd ya like to be being rolled over those spikes!
This is the city side of the view from the fortress. Super pretty.
While we were checking out the fortress, they did a falcon exhibition. What a wingspan!
After leaving the castle we went down the hill to the "Fete de la Chasse." A culinary festival mainly comprised of locally produced food.
This golden nectar in the cup is hot apple wine. Holy cannoli batman, I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. Perfect beverage for a cold day outside.
You could get the basic ingredients at the various stands or buy food made fresh with those ingredients. No shortage of mushrooms!
This guy was making the ultimate cold weather comfort food. Potatoes, cheese and bits of ham will soon become all gooey and lovely, similar to au gratin potatoes. mmmm mmmm
And of course, there always seems to be some local bigwigs dressed in velvet and swanky hat.
Turned out to be a fine, but cold, weekend and a good time was had by all. Oh yeah, except for the peeping tom in the bathroom at the hotel. Aside from that.
Take care, be good, and XXOO -- Misha
Scotland driving tour, part 2
Sorry for the delay, but here it is. If you haven't seen the previous post, you should, just to truly get how gorgeous Scotland really is.
So, this day started out with a small detour to this stone circle - Croftmoraig in Perthshire. Not a huge one or anything, one of many for sure, but still cool to check out. Makes you wonder what kind of ceremonies / rituals were held here back in the day. By back in the day, I mean several thousand years BC! How's that for seriously old!
Here I am, waiting to be sacrificed. Ha!
These fences are awesome! Nice deterrent without resorting to broken bottles laid in concrete. So much prettier. Sorry if its a bit blurry, this was taken through the car window while driving by.
A little lochside village we were passing. So pretty!
Beautiful driving through luscious greenery.
This was another small detour we took to Finlarig Castle. Obviously worse for the wear but, absolutely beautiful, right? Apparently, there were many executions that took place here. Yikes!
Yet another pit stop at the Falls of Dochart. This is the way the whole trip was - driving along in disbelief at the non-stop gorgeousness and so stopping repeatedly to take it all in.
Starting to get into the highlands, we stopped here at the valley of GlenCoe. This was the site of the famous Glencoe Massacre. Eerie and sad when you know the story. Look it up.
This part of the drive was much more orange than green. Beautiful though.
Yay! We made it to the isle of Mull. This is Duart castle, home of the Macleans clan. The cool thing about this place is that they still, to this day have the meeting of the Macleans here, after centuries and centuries. Its lovely, right on the water.
Tobermory. Biggest town on the island and yet still the population is under 3,000! I thought Gary was going to die of happiness for his very fresh dish dinner gluttony.
Old ship graveyard.
Highland cows! Freakishly excited to get this close. Although, Hamish (I call all of them Hamish) did not appear to be so friendly despite all his furry stuffed animal appearance.
I can't tell you how many sheep we drove passed on this trip and yet we never got tired of it.
Taking the scenic view drive back to Tobermory. Sucky pic, cause I took this through the windshield, but it gives you an idea of the winding one lane road (cars go both directions!) and how sketchy it felt at times.
This is how fences should be. All over the country we saw these and I kept wondering "how long has this one been here"?
Nicest end to a long brisk day, by the fire hanging with my boy.
Back in Edinburgh, we walked past this monument. Huge, isn't it? All for one statue.
Here it is, Sir Walter Scott. Local boy makes good.
Holyrood Palace.
Of course, I had to include some bagpipers and a kilt in this posting.
David Hume and his really shiny toe that students rub for good luck before exams.
So, there it is. Beautiful, amazing, glorious Scotland. At least a part of it. I'd love to go back some day. 3 days is NOT enough. And yeah, I need some more of the culling skink!
Take care, be good, & XXOO -- Misha
Scotland - driving tour
I think this trip rates in the top of our trips. Scotland was consistently, insanely gorgeous. Freakishly, amazingly, jaw-dropping beautiful. And the people! OMG - such friendly, kind, easy-going people. My friend Sue had told me they were nice and I thought "sure, ok, they're nice". No. It was so much more than that. We continually mentioned it over and over how cool it was talking with so many friendly people as we drove from Edinburgh to the west coast of Scotland, specifically the Isle of Mull.
Note: All pics are natural. No filters, no instagrams, nothing fake about these colors. All taken with my cell phone.
So, this is Edinburgh. The heart of the city. We were crossing a walking bridge here and this is just to give ya an idea, before we get to the pics outside the city, of how even the city is beautiful.
Of course we had to go and check out Edinburgh castle. I like this pic cause the boy is looking pretty darn good in that hat! Those eyes - swoon. :0
This is just one wall in a huge room with the largest collection of whiskey in the world. We'd taken a tour here (overpriced and not especially great so i won't promote the place).
The main drag from Edinburgh castle to Holyrood Palace is called the royal mile and it has all these narrow alleys, called a close, that provide a little shortcut to the next street over. Most were named for the type of business being done and you don't have to guess hard what was going on here back in the day.
So, I became obsessed with this soup. Really, I had it four times I think. The name is not terribly appealing, Cullen Skink, but the taste makes up for it.
Here is a pic of my beloved soup. I MUST locate smoked haddock and make this at home. Every day.
I am not joking when I say I was obsessed with it. At one of the B&B's we stayed at I was chatting with the owner and when she found out how much I liked it she ran into here apartment and came out with a can for me to take home. She said this brand was better than the rest and as good as homemade. How sweet was that? For her to do that. I'm telling ya, they were so so so nice there.
While we are on the subject of food ... Gary (not me) did try the haggis. I am not quite that adventurous and do not appreciate organ meat, so I just watched him with that "I can't believe you're going to put that in your mouth" running through my head. Aside from the turnips, he liked it. How's that for a surprise!
I do have to say, I got off lucky not having to drive. Driving on the left side of the road, with the steering wheel on the left, the shifters on the left and the stick shift on the left when you are used to all of that being on the right takes you out of your comfort zone. Thankfully, this adjustment period (can't you just see it on his face?) didn't last and he found his groove and now feels that he can race cars over there. ;)
Falkland was a little village we stopped at to explore, but unfortunately, the whole place was shut down for the making of some movie or TV show. It was cool seeing all the old cars there, but we didn't stay.
When i got home, I googled it and just imagine the way my stomach dropped when I read that they were filming for "Outlander". Having read the books and having fallen for the main character ... omg, I was this close to seeing 'Jamie' in action. And I missed it. :(
Continuing on down the road we stopped at this church in Dunkeld, built in the 1300's. Unfortunately, during the Reformation in the 1500's, a major portion was destroyed. But they do still have services in the other part that withstood the damage.
One of the reasons we really enjoyed this whole driving tour was that we would just pull off a side road and get to stop and see places like this. Its a viewpoint called Queens View. Crazy beautiful in person.
Seriously, just look at this place. Its like a wonderland.
This was Blair Castle.
The MOST extensive collection of family heirlooms of any castle / chateau we have been to. Crazy extensive. We were amazed they were able to hold only to so much after so many hundreds of years. For example; snuff boxes, they didn't have just a couple they had several dozen. This is a interesting example of one.
The antlers line the whole hallway for a long time and then cover the walls in an entire ballroom. And they all had plaques noting who bagged the deer and when, going back centuries!!!! Crazy!
Ok, so this little guy was in the parking lot. Dude, he did NOT want to move. Really, it was his parking lot and we were intruders and he was not having it. Even approaching slowly by car, he wouldn't move, we had to back up and go the other way. Stubborn little guy.
We took a whiskey tour at Edradour in Pitlochry. Smallest distillery in Scotland. Still doing things the old school way. The amount they make a year is equal to what a Glenfidditch makes in a week.
They divert the water from this little stream to cool the tanks down.
Two things: What a beautiful place to work AND seriously, when I said it was freakishly beautiful here, was I exaggerating? I think not.
Lets just say that the whiskey cream was so good that a bottle found its way in my suitcase.
Actual barber in Pitlochry! Love love love this, considering it is one of the few musicals I actually like (the Angela Lansbury production is waaaay better than the Johnny Depp version, IMO).
For those who don't know, John Muir was a great Naturalist that lived in Martinez, CA near where I grew up. And we used to go to the birthday celebration at his old house, complete with bagpipers and dancers. Good to see how far-reaching his foundation is, still going strong.
So, there it is. The first two days. Stay tuned for the rest.
Take care, be good and XXOO -- Misha
Oktoberfest in Munich!
Oktoberfest. Largest carnival in the world. Spanning just over two weeks, has over six million visitors. Crazy! I really wasn't sure what the deal would be, you know. I did not know the extent of this carnival. It all started with a royal wedding two hundred years ago that was apparently such a big hit (40,000 people attended) they decided to do it every year. How cool is that!
So, after settling in the apartment we rented (holy crap the prices are through the roof at this time of year, no joke) we made our way downtown. We came across the Het Nieuwe Stadhuis or the new statehouse. Leaping lizards look at the size of this thing.
Along the way to the festival site, we passed a ton of shops and I'm telling you EVERY single one had trachten or traditional clothing and accessories for sale. For a steep price of course. But, damnnn, there was some beautiful gear.
And because Bavaria is home to wild boar there was this little guy that I just had to take a pic cause my Chinese zodiac sign is the boar.
Oktoberfest. Let the games begin!
First beer of the day. Noon-ish. Surprisingly enough, it is packed by this point. THOSE are really really heavy beers.
A full liter. I do not know how the waitresses do it. Honestly.
Since we did not have reservations at a table, we just took our chances. We'd go to a tent, have a drink, hang out, maybe eat a meal or a pretzel, then meander around and do it all over again. We went to five tents in one day! So, yeah, that making 5 liters of beer. In one day. YIKES.
I did come across these amazing horses when we were cruising around. I swear they are huge. Their hooves must be ten inches in diameter. Pretty though, aren't they.
Me and the boy. I loved loved loved Gary's leiderhosen. Beautifully soft leather. Jealous! But I liked my dirndl as well. It looks very dark in this pic though.
The true color is somewhere in the middle between these two pics.
The HB tent. I'm telling ya, these tents are massive, temporary structures with crazy sound systems, massive bar, kitchen & bathrooms. They can hold anywhere from 5 - 10 thousand people.
Good times.
Except for this lady. She was not having a good time. The whole time we were there.
A bunch of the tents have these elaborate mechanisms at the front. They move and make noise. There was one that made this strange long groaning sound, startled me every time we passed it.
Ok, so everything is Munich was great. The food was tasty and well suited to have large quantities of beer and the people were nice and friendly. With this one exception. This was the only bad thing that happened and I won't get into all of the details. So, we were originally seated at this table. Everyone was nice and friendly with the exception of the woman in blue. She did not, like the others, smile and greet us. In fact, within two minutes of us sitting down she starts crying, and over the next ten minutes accelerates to the point that there are tears streaming down her face in abundance. She was fine when we walked up, so due to the looks, gestures and overall extreme tension in the air we could only surmise that we were somehow responsible for this women's meltdown. Suffice it to say, we moved to a different table.
Happy days. We made friends with these fellows (irish army guys) who were much more fun.
Later on that evening I challenged the boys to ride one of the big rides since they had a massive amount of liquid in the belly. And they prevailed! No throwing up. I chalk it up to male bravado, cause I honestly do not know how they did it.
Let me just reiterate how incredibly huge this carnival is. This is just one incredibly wide street packed with people. There are side streets that go on and on as well.
I think one of our favorite tents was the hippodrom. Fantastic pretzels!
And by this time in the evening the crowd was lively. Standing on the benches, dancing, grooving, what have you. We had a really good time here and shut the place down.
So, I took a video to share with y'all. And I didn't really notice till I looked at it again, but check out the interplay between the couple. So sweet.
http://youtu.be/0KzbVQQJC8E
And there it is, Oktoberfest. Now I get it.
Take care, be good & XXOO -- Misha
Rome, Italy - cooking class and various pics
One of my favorite italian dishes is Pasta all Norma. I loooove it. So, imagine my excitement when we arrived at our cooking class the next day and were told that we would be making the dish I suggested. Yay! The chance to learn from an actual italian how to make this dish was like an early Christmas for me. We had a 5 hour long class learning to make 5 courses and then the opportunity to eat our results (wine pairing for the boy, of course). Highly recommend this class if your ever in Rome. Its called "cooking classes in Rome".
The class is limited to twelve, which is nice. The Instructor, Andrea, was great. He made it fun, easygoing, and I think we all learned a lot.
Here is my baby - Pasta alla norma. Pasta with eggplant and ricotta salata. So Yummy!
And these are stuffed pumpkin blossoms two ways. One stuffed with eggplant and mozzarella and the other stuffed with mozzarella and prosciutto. We made a red tomato pesto to dip them in that was absolutely heavenly!!!!
The fruits of our labor enjoyed with good conversation from the friends we'd met.
Desert was Torta della nonna or otherwise known as grandmothers cake which was a custard with pine nuts on top. I'd never had that before and I love trying new things. :)
After nearly bursting at the seems from this class, we decided a wee nap was in order. You cannot eat that much food and not feel sleepy!
We loved seeing some of the major sights and reservations were a good idea to avoid the lines but we also wanted some unstructured time. So, for the first time of several, we set out to walk off our HUGE lunch and just wander the streets of Rome.
I thought Gary would never be able to make a choice with this many options to choose from. I'd never in my life seen such a selection. It just went on and on and on.
Best pizza in Rome! We unanimously agreed the pizza at Dar Poeta, was the tops. Absolutely unbelievable good. Down a small little side street with good atmosphere. This find was a total goldmine and we thank Chef Andrea for the recommendation. Gary will be forever in your gratitude!!!
After walking miles and miles across the city and up the hill to the Borghese Gallery (thanks for the rec Clarissa!) to view the outstanding Bernini sculptures, we decided to take a little break before starting the long walk back. This was my view from the park bench where we rested under the trees and watching the world go by. Highly relaxing! I could've totally taken a nap.
All in all, a fabulous little trip. We saw some amazing stuff, ate great food, did some fun activities and just wandered endlessly. A truly nice balance that made us completely adore Rome in all its beauty.
Life is good.
Take care, Be good, & XXOO -- Misha
Rome, Italy - Coliseum & Vatican city
Let me just say that Rome is amazing. Beautiful - in its architecture, food and people. Oh my god so many attractive people! Why are italians just so darn easy on the eyes. Its just so freaking beautiful. We could've spent a whole week there and still not see everything. Crazy georgous. That's not to say there wasn't graffiti and trash and cheesy touristy crap, there was, but I like a little grit. Besides, with so much that was beautiful, I wasn't about to fixate on the small stuff.
So we stayed in the Trastevere neighborhood on the other side of the river from the old city, but on the same side as vatican city. Awesome place to stay! Short ten minute walk to the Tiber river to the other side that was absolutely thronged with tourists. So so so glad we escaped that. Our neighborhood was awesome. More for locals. Very friendly with good food and much more reasonable prices (not being in tourist central). At the end of our street was a little square with half dozen restaurants, a playground, an open area for the farmers market. An incredibly fantastic italian cured meat and cheese shop. Everything a girl could ask for really. And yeah, that was were I bought my personal souvenirs.
Check out this pick of the wall in our room. The ladder is so you can see out the very high window but, even better notice the three foot thick walls!
On our first day, we prebooked tickets to the Vatican and the Coliseum. Yeah, we lost some spontaneity, but the idea of standing in line for a couple hours makes me want to gouge me eyes out.
Unfortunately, the Vatican is particular about taking pics, especially of the Sistine Chapel, which is a bummer. But not really, you can see pics of it anywhere and it still doesn't do it justice.
Here's some pics I could take.
Just to give you an idea of the excessive opulence back in the day, check the ceiling. Yeah, that goes on for daaaaays!
Not being Catholic, not to sure whats these were for. Gary says 'duh, its the Pope's pie server and rock hammer". ;) What waaaas I thinking.
I cannot resist a pic with me having pinecone head!
Not so sure what to say about this.
So, after we left the Vatican museums we went to St Peters Basilica. Here's the thing, so far we have seen a LOT of amazing churches okay. A LOT!!!! And I gotta say, we both agreed, that this was so far the most amazing in terms of this style. The Sagrada Familia is tied but only because you cannot compare the two and its just as mind-blowing.
Ok, so check out the latin words on the gold stripe. This winds around the whole interior, ok. The thing is each of those actual letters are HUGE and the crazy part is the gold background is comprised of teensy little 1/2 inch tiles. Hard to see in a pic, but it gives you the idea of the millions if must've taken to complete this banner.
So, did you notice those statues set in the walls above. They are so high up, but they look small. In actually they are huge! See below. This statue below had to be 12 feet tall. Just to put the above pic into perspective.
Ahhh, finally. Pieta. One of my personal favorites. I stood there, looking at the real thing and all I could think about was being back in college and taking art history and loving this statue and never thinking in a million years I would ever get to see it. I cried in gratitutde. It was a tad embarrassing.
So we left, and I just thought the boys were so darn cute in their little uniforms.
After some pizza and a nice nap we went off to see the Coliseum. We took the underground tour which was guided and gave us special access to the upper level and this bottom level, where the servants and animals lived. Gotta say, it was the way to go. We learned so much. Absolutely fascinating.
This is a good shot of what remains. I could totally imagine what is looked like before it was stripped of the white stone seating, people in togas and such, enjoying the bloodshed.
The 'hallways' where the servants & animals were kept. Back in the day there was a roof on these 'hallways', very little ventilation. dark, smoky from the fires, and its fair share of stink from the inhabitants. Sounds not so good yeah?
Despite that, ya gotta remember this was all built 80 years after Christ, so things were very different then. And when you understand the genius behind the engineering of this place its pretty intense.
All in all, a super good day. Being in Rome is pretty freaking cool.
Take care, be good & XXOO
-- Misha
Aubel, Belgium
There is the cutest little market near here in Aubel, Belgium. A friend (Angela this means you!) turned me onto to it and so we decided to make a day of it. We drove over, checked out the market then pulled the Bromptons out of the trunk and had a lovely ride to to Val Dieu Abbey.
Seriously, selling potatoes out of the back of a truck. Too many potatoes for someone with a kitchen as small as mine, for sure.
Ahhh, but the cured meats! So many varieties and samples available. I thought I was in heaven!
And the cheese. I thought the dutch markets were good, they don't have anything on the Belgium markets.
I just thought the ridiculous dog in the stroller deserved a pic.
This one is for my girl - a super lover of a great macaroon.
Same bakery. But really, these deserts look too good to eat.
On the ride to the abbey. So many scenic views.
Yay! We made it.
I kept thinking this is waaaaay nice for monks and such.
Unfortunately you cannot tour the brewery on Sunday. But, that is when you can go to the super fab farmers market, so you have to choose. :( You can, however, have a pretty good lunch at the abbey and buy some abbey products (of course we had to bring back beer and cheese).
All in all, it was an easy little trek from Maastricht on a sunday afternoon.
So, after we get home, turns out there was yet another festival in the neighborhood. A living statue contest. Not sure what the winner got, but it was pretty cool.
This chick was the real deal for me. She even had simulated bird poop on her dress. Nice detail.
Just another day in what I continually think of as wonderland. I am pinching myself now, as we are very fortunate to live here. I know it. I appreciate it. I do not take it for granted.
Take care, be good & XXOO -- Misha
Geneva, Switzerland
Helloooooo! Hope everyone is having a super fabulicious summer. Its going pretty good here, despite the irregular weather we've been having. WAAAAY hotter than normal. Blech!
Fortunately, we've been able to enjoy the summer regardless and get some traveling in. On the way home from the Tour de France adventure, we decided to do an overnighter in Geneva. Neither of us had been there yet and were curious. I'd only heard how insanely expensive it was. And yeah, it was. :( Good thing it was just for one night.
A great big ol' shoutout to Ms. Andrea for hooking us up with her friend in Geneva who was a valuable source of information. We had a great visit and I'm sure it was due to a lot of her recommendations.
We took a very nice walk from our room in a shared apartment (so so so much cheaper than a hotel!!!! and yet still pricy) in the Paquis neighborhood across this bridge - the Pont du Mont-Blanc. Very nice, very scenic. Nice sunny day with just enough breeze to be pleasant. No idea what this flag represents, but the next one is for the city of Geneva. So, there ya go. Learn something new every day!
The water. Oh my god, the water. Yes, all the vegetation on the rocks would feel super slimy between your toes, I'm sure. Not arguing that at all! But, it sure was pretty how clear the water was and that you could actually see the rocks.
And the city itself was pretty. This was along the lake in the neighborhood we stayed in.
The bummer part of Geneva is that it is pretty freakin pricy. The boy and I sat down to get a cold refreshment under some shady trees (is there a more relaxing thing to do?) and he had a beer and I had a rum and coke. Do you know they charged us equivalent of 24 freakin euros for those two drinks. The beer was the pricier drink and it wasn't THAAAAT good of a beer. Still, my boy was looking awful cute with his freshly shaven head. I love a shaved head!
But, I'm not going to dwell on that. There are some great things about Geneva. I totally appreciate the vast number of fountains available across the city for a quick sip or for the refilling of a water bottle. Very people and dog friendly.
And this is really nice if you are a lost and confused tourist in a foreign city looking for something specific. They have these students (angels, I think) who make themselves available, around tourist attractions, for advise or directions. I think that's a pretty friendly program for lost visitors and helps provide jobs for students during the summer months. Its a win win.
Maybe, with programs like that, that's why their taxes are so high and a couple of drinks cost a fortune, eh?
Andrea's friend suggested we check out the movie in the park. The have a cool thing in the city where during the months of July and August they show movies for free, in the park. If you want to, you can pay the equivalent of 5 euro and rent a chair. So, we got there early, 2 - 2 1/2 hours, and just enjoyed the evening. The movie for the evening was being projected on this inflatable screen.
We had a picnic of wine, good baguette, brie and beautifully cured meat sausage with truffles. I cannot begin to tell you how good this amazingly simple bread and cheese was. Like heaven, I tell ya. And the sausage - I just wanted to carry it around in my pocket all day and suck on it like it was a pacifier. Yes, it was THAT good.
So, the movie that night was 'Shawn of the Dead". Love this movie! Anyway, because it was a zombie movie a bunch of people dressed up, which made for fun people watching.
And it was cool, cause they actually had a backdrop for people who had dressed up to stand in front of and have a friend take their picture. Now, here's the thing. They had this table next to this backdrop and it was piled up with all these tools. Chainsaws, scyths, sledgehammers etc. for people to use while taking a picture. I'm just going out on a limb here, but that would never, in four million years happen in the states. Some dumbass would do something stupid, get hurt and sue the city, therefore, the city would never let something like that be at a city event.
The weather ended up being perfect. Absolutely perfect for a night movie in the park. No need for even a sweater, all night.
So, yeah, we had a great time in Geneva. Pricy enough that I probably won't be back, but a great time nonetheless. Even if it was just for the 24 hours. Thanks again to Andrea for the hookup to the geneva connection! ;)
Take care, be good, & XXOO -- Misha
Bourg d'Oisans - Tour de France
Ahhh, Bourg d' Oisans. Reminded me of Lake Tahoe a bit, except French, and completely obsessed with bikes! This is where we stayed during our Tour de France trip. Its in the valley surrounded by the French Alps and therefore it is a great place to stay for a biking vacation. There are tons of paths in several different directions in which to go out on day rides and such.
The two main entrances to the town both have these bike sculptures in the traffic circles.
This was our amazing view outside our window from our little B&B.
The hotel next door knows how to decorate! Actual bike jerseys!
Some random shop supporting the tour.
These bikes were bolted onto the wall of this bakery. 100 refers to the 100th anniversary of the Tour de France.
I loved this. The poor mans version of decorating for the big event, but with t-shirts!
Before the race come the advertisers. There are floats and they throw goodies. No beads or anything, this ain't Mardi Gras! Although, people are just as excited to catch anything they can.
Something for the kids.
Dude, all the people of the floats were SERIOUSLY strapped in!!!
This was how it was different. A float with a display of cheeses? Only in France, yeah?
Ahhhh, there's my required accordion player that must be everywhere I am. :) Check out her harness!!!!!
Yay! The float for the fruit drink. The threw out the little powered things you add to water to make a drink, like Crystal Light in the states.
Very different floats and prizes, but smiling faces all over, just the same.
I loved the jerseys through the village.
And they had a chainsaw carving contest. Looks crude, but hey, you could do better with a chainsaw? Probably not!
So, yeah we got to watch all the excitement and buildup for the take-off of stage 19 of the Tour de France. It was very cool. The village was filled with people - spandex EVERYWHERE, young, old, fit, not so fit. Thousands of people. Most importantly, my boy, who got to see it in person and be a part of the energy and enthusiasm.
And yeah, I had a great time as well!
Take care, be good & XXOO -- Misha
Alpe d' Huez - Tour de France
This is it! The Tour de France! I thought the boy would explode in his excitement, being a avid enthusiast of all things bicycle related. Especially road biking.
So, we had 3 full days in the Oisans region of France.
This day we went up the Alpe d' Huez via a shuttle and 3 ski lifts from Bourg d' Oisans, where we were staying. We took a picnic of a bit of cloth, a couple baguettes, sausage and brie and we were in it to win it. And look, I'm sporting the freebie toss away hats. It's like Mardi Gras!
A ton of people did not stay in hotels, but did the caravan thing. Amongst other caravaners. I'm willing to bet there was good socializing going on in the evening!
And tons of people were representing their country. Didn't quite realize. Wish I'd brought a flag. This is for the Flanders region of Belgium.
British, obviousely.
This was a blow up kangaroo on the shuttle to the ski lifts. Australia represents!
Oh, but then it started to rain. :( Trudge on little soldier!
After we're finally got to the top of the Alpe d'Huez, we just HAAAAD to wander around all the hubbub in the village. The greatest population of spandex per capita anywhere!
Lots of bike related booths selling stuff, setting up support vans for repairs and such like this.
And the fans, ochhh, the fans. So so so excited! All over the mountain and along the route were people treking long distances to set up a little camps / picnics and wait for HOURS, all to watch a fragment (of seconds) of a race. And yes, some get silly in their attire.
The support vehicles! Omg, so so so many back-up bikes! its crazy.
And whole families - watching, cheering, anticipating, all just caught up in the moment of the same passion. I thoroughly enjoyed the drama this family experienced.
The peloton.
Just a small segment of the route. This route spanned miles and miles with people waiting, for just a few seconds.
Again, some like to dress up. Love the guy in front. :)
So, yeah, we got to see to Tour de France on the Alpe d' Huez. Pretty freaking cool. Moreover, I got to have a nice picnic with my boy and some entertaining people-watching as he had probably one of his top five life experiences. That's good stuff, to see someone experience such excitement when they are not a kid anymore. Good times.
Take care, be good, and XXOO -- Misha
Rovinj, Croatia
This was a blind trip. What's that you ask? It was Sully's suggestion so she gets all the credit. Anyway, one of the budget airlines (I do sooo love a budget airline) offers this thing. A blind trip. You pick some dates and the type of trip (sun, sport, shopping etc) and you don't find out where you're going till you book it. So, four days before flying out we find out where we're going ... Croatia! After some fast research we decide to stay in Rovijn. Oh, but wait, before we even get to Rovijn we took a wrong turn somewhere and ended up crossing the border of Slovenia! Dorks!!!!
This is Rovijn our first evening there. We sat at a seaside restaurant and watched the sunset. Water gently lapping in the background. Beautiful scenic loveliness. The guy that owns this restaurant, Maestral, was super sweet and friendly and after being asked for a recommendation, he gave us the hookup. He says "I bring you good food till you say stop". Hell yeah, I'll take that! We sat for hours, ate beautiful food, had good conversation with grownup beverages :) all for the equivalent of 66 Euros!!!! This was, by far, a superior dining experience.
Totally have to bring Gary here. Gary cannot stand crazy crowds and that was another great thing about Rovijn. It was beautiful, charming and NOT crowded. I mean, look at this pic below. Its the middle of July!
The beaches were not soft sandy beaches and while that might be an issue with some people, I didn't really care. I prefer to sit under a shady tree with a good book rather that play on the beach or go swimming. Regardless, the 'beaches' were in no way over crowded.
We stayed in the old town with its narrow winding streets that completely confuse you the first couple of days. Reminded me of Venice. Ah, but check out the cobblestones. Deathtraps they are, deathtraps! The gaps are more pronounced than the cobbles here in the Netherlands but the real issue is they are SUPER slick. These cobbles are NOT wet. I actually slipped once, as though they were wet, on these dry cobbles. Thankfully, none of us were stupid enough to wear some crazy heals. We did see a couple of young women in stilettos trying to navigate the cobbles, VERY slowly. I do not recommend this.
All my good intentions of curling up with a good book, while Sully swam, went out the window after a nice little hour long nap under a shady tree.
So, the ladies and I decided to try the fish tank pedicure thing. I wasn't thinking it was going to be especially effective, but I was curious and it wasn't too much money, around 20 bucks or so. This feels so so so weird! It feels like a million little bubbles popping on your skin. The expression on my face and the blurriness of my hands flapping about as I cringe and trip out should give you a sense of where I was at. And no, it wasn't really effective. I think its more hype than anything. But, it was interesting and I had a good laugh. And, I love this picture. :)
So, yeah. This is a fun little city. Great food, great views, very budget friendly. Can you ask for more? Oh yeah, and the people were so friendly. Very laid back. They just want to stop and chat forever. Nobody is going anywhere fast, so you just gotta slow down and roll with it. Which actually makes for a very peaceful vacation.
Definitely going back!
Take care, be good & XXOO
-- Misha
Auschwitz & Birkenau, Poland
Daaaaamn, today was a heavy day. I’m glad I went, but it wasn’t a happy day. BUT, I kinda figured if millions of people could suffer through it, the least I could do was bear witness. So, I went. It’s not a happy place, you can feel the somber mood in the air when you arrive, you don’t have to even say anything, you just feel it. A respect for those who suffered and most likely died. Heavy stuff.
So, from Krakow, you take a bus. When you reach the town where Auschwitz was located, I could’nt help notice the train tracks along the way. I kept thinking about those millions of innocent people who traveled along those same tracks. Not knowing what terrible atrocities await.
I took a guided tour. I had to. At this time of year there are too many visitors. But, it was good. My guide was informed, compassionate, and respectful to the ninth degree. I toured Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II / Birkenau. I did take some pics, but honestly, I was so caught up in the tour, at times, I forgot. Other times, no pics were allowed out of respect for those that suffered. And, I gotta say, for those parts of the tour, I completely agreed.
I have to say, for those few screwballs that believe the holocaust didn’t happen - go there, see for yourself and tell me you can still think that. Impossible.
The first camp was Auschwitz I, the original camp. This camp had a museum, like nothing I’ve ever seen before. The infamous entrance, Arbeit macht frei translated to "labor makes you free".
Right inside this entrance was a platform, upon which a band played marching tunes as the 'workers' left the camp each day to work. Apparently, it kept everyone in step and was easier to do a head count. That had to be absurd, to the workers, can you imagine?
I saw the barb wire that was everywhere, sometimes three rows deep, to keep the inmates (cause really, they were not voluntary, so why not just call them inmates) inside. And if that wasn’t enough of a threat, then then realization that they would round up your relatives and bring them to this hell on earth, if you escaped, would make anyone think twice.
If I took a pic of all the suitcases, in order to get all of them in the shot, I would have had to be so far back that you couldn't tell what they were. That is the case with the other pics, there was so so so much of it all. So, this is just a close-up of a few. Suitcases of people that thought they would leave one day, who had hope, who had no idea the vast majority of them would be murdered.
Thousands upon thousand of shoes of children. Little tiny children.
Insane amounts of glasses.
Again, mass quantities of prosthetics and braces. Apparently, these people were gas immediately upon being sorted at the train. Only the fit and able to work were saved, for the time being.
Toiletries - from people who believed they would be treated as humans and allowed to maintain some personal dignity, personal grooming.
I saw hundreds of pounds of hair. Hair that belong to men and women and children who had done nothing wrong. Hair that was taken from them as a way to dehumanize them, and then put to use. Woven into rugs and fabric. No pics for this. They did not allow that.
I walked through the ‘hospitals’ where no one was made better. Rather, experimented on like animals, like non-humans. I saw pictures that made my skin crawl of these ‘patients’. So horrific, I couldn’t bring myself to take pictures.
The wall where people were lined up and shot. Next to the prison, where people were given a minute long trial, then convicted, tortured, and made to stand for twelve hours after doing a day of hard labor and then either died or were shot at the wall.
I walked through the gas chambers, where people were rounded up like cattle and murdered. Men, women, and children.
The ovens were also inside, again no pics allowed. But, it was horrible.
At Birkenau. I was shocked at the size of it. If I took a long range view of it, it is so huge, then you would not be able to tell what the chimneys were. This camp was massive. Many of the wood frame structures had long ago been destroyed or deteriorated, with only the chimneys left behind. Unfortunately, those chimneys provided little comfort and warmth, with resources during the war being so scarce, and the inmates being at the bottom of the priority ladder.
One of the railway cars used to transport people here. It was covered with stones, a jewish tradition.
I saw the beds, that would sleep 5 - 8 inmates each platform, three rows high. Cramped quarters in horrific conditions. People starving, commonly having chronic diarrhea from such ill treatment and unsanitary conditions, unable to use the bathroom at will or control their bowels and leaking on their fellow inmates. The horror of this indignity, adding to the despair of dying and fear of brutal killings for no reason, and being worked to death on very little food, its a wonder how anyone managed to survive at all. Which explains why the majority did not survive.
In each group, a inmate was assigned as the boss or 'kapo', these kapos received special treatment and extra food. Some times these kapos were just as harsh and brutal as the german guards. I just couldn't wrap my head around it, how could people treat other humans this way. How did they lose their humanity? Civility? Kindness? What happens to people to make them do such cruel things? My head had been swirling with these thoughts the entire time, and this took a long time, visiting both camps took about 4 1/2 hours.
THEN, I go along with the others back to the bus to take us back to Krakow. There was already a large crowd, so I was unable to get on and had to wait till the next bus. Since there were so many of us waiting for the next bus, I stood along with a dozen other people in line where the bus would pull up. The rest wandered off, went to lay down in the grass, went and got food etc. Standing on the pavement for 1 1/2, not moving, is not so enjoyable, by the way. Anyway, when the bus arrived all these other people squished in and cut the line, they did NOT go to the back of the line. So, people started yelling at each other. All nationalities, calling each other swear words, using very hostile tones, accusing each other. IT GOT UGLY! I was shocked at the things people were saying to each other, especially at what we had all just witnessed that day, you'd think people would have things in perspective. Yeah, it sucks to wait for a bus for that long and not get on, but is that a reason to lose our civility to one another? It just kept accelerating as the crowded squeezed in tighter and tighter, and then someone came after me. The woman behind me accused me of cutting the line. Of which I had done no such thing, and was actually allowing other people to go in front of people if they were families in order that they should be assured to get on the same bus together and not be separated. Still, she loudly accused me of an action I had not done, and the hostility in me sparked immediately. I too resorted to some ugly language to a total stranger. I told her to "F*$% off, I've been standing at the front for an hour and a half, you're full of shit!" Do not accuse of something I haven't done!!!! Sure way to piss me off! Still, I was surprised at how quickly I acted in that way.
Then, it immediately hits me. Wow, we were turning on each other after an HOUR of mild discomfort! And while I think the treatment of the inmates is a severe stretch of this, I could imagine that when faced with extremely harsh living conditions of the people, I could see (not condone) that some people would also resort to unsavory conduct.
So, maybe that is the lesson for the trip. That is why everyone should go and see these camps, as a harsh reminder of what happens when people blindly follow a crazy man out of fear or delusion and completely lose their humanity, civility, and kindness to each other. This is a path that no one should follow, ever again.
Take care, be good, & XXOO
-- Misha
Krakow, Poland
Krakow is awesome! You should go. A great place to visit!!!
I went to see a band I like, Portishead, that was playing there and I've been wanting to check out the city anyway, sooo... This was my first time staying with a local on one of my trips. I tried to couchsurf, but she cancelled on me at the last minute, so I did AirBNB, same thing, but you pay for it.
So, the deal is you either rent somebody's apartment or just a room in their apartment. I wanted just a room. Not only is this VERY budget friendly compared to a hotel, but is really is a very different traveling experience. It was such a good time, that it is the only way I want to travel now.
My host, Anna, was absolutely fabulous. Nice, funny, regular girl, easy to get along with. The apartment was her home; clean, with personality, not some sterile hotel lacking in any kind of personality. I felt very comfortable with her, and it was kinda cool staying in old communist built housing in a regular neighborhood.
This is her cutie-pie cat, Scamp.
So, some nights I hung out with her and just talked and laughed for hours with a few drinks. On the other two nights, we couldn't get together as she had a thing one night and I had Portishead the other. One night I wandered downtown to the main square and had kickass sour rye soup and then horribly bland tasteless pierogies. :( Kind of a bummer, as I had been looking forward to them for a week. But, the view was fantastic.
I had two full days in Krakow, one day was spent at the camps, the other day in Krakow. On this day I took a couple of walking tours, met some nice people on the tour, and saw some interesting stuff.
This is the other side of the building from last night. This was where the walking tour started. Inside the building is a bunch of stalls selling stuff for tourists.
A very old sculpture from one of Poland's most famous sculpture artists. Apparently, kids LOOOOVE to climb all over it. Yeah, I can imagine that.
This is the inner courtyard of Jagiellonian University, established sometime in the 1300's. Apparently, the professors lived on the top floor, classes on the second and students on the bottom. So, you lived and studied together.
Here's the thing. They were serious about their studies. Really intense. This is the street side of the university. That window protruding out is where a professor would stand in the lunchroom and read from the bible whilst the students were eating. You couldn't seem to get away from it, even while eating!
These super helpful, cool maps were all over the old city to help you find your way. Nice, huh? This one is just for the Wawel Castle grounds up on the hill.
The darkest church I've ever been in. Really, I could barely see the person next to me until we went closer to the windows.
Ok, so, you might think it weird that i'm taking a picture of my lunch. But, holy smokes, that was the best damn sausage I've had in Europe. Seriously. It had herbs in it, all kinds of flavor, juicy on the inside, crispy on the outside. Just perfect. Served with carmelized onions and horseradish on the side. Amazing combination!!!
The thing is, while i love living in the Netherlands, they don't do their meat so great. Either it is overcooked making it dry and tough, or the protein / fat ratio is very lean, which removes some of the essential components to flavor / juicy-ness. Having moved here from New Orleans and having had beautifully cooked meat, its kind of disappointing how hard it is to have great tasting meat. There are other good things to eat, but the meat, not so much.
So, anyway, this lunch was a joy. In my enthusiasm, I told the waitress I loved her, forgetting this is not a customary thing to say to a stranger. She did look at me like I was a little nuts.
The show was happening at a ArcelorMittel, a steelworks in Nowa Huta.
"Nowa Huta was started in 1949 as a separate town near Kraków on terrain taken by the Communist government from former villages of Mogiła, Pleszów and Krzesławice. It was planned as a huge centre of heavy industry. The town was to become an ideal town for the Communist propaganda and populated mostly by industrial workers. In 1951 it was joined with Kraków as its new district and in the following year tramway communication was started.[2]" see wikipedia for more information.
I guess there are three such communities in the world. Anyway, its outside of Krakow and you take a long tram to get to the gates of the industrial park, which is so big that you then take another bus to the specific factory - ArcelorMittal.
The line for the buses to take you to the venue. The lines continue for a long time on both ends.
Here's the thing - this was such a cool venue for this particular band. And yeah, they added their own touches. A wire cage for people to hang in.
Nice lighting that moved slowly and created and interested ambiance.
And hell, the actual factory! No need to install fake stuff. It was so so so cool.
Unfortunately, I couldn't take anymore pics, cause I got a talking to about it. oops! No biggie, the show started and I got all sucked into the show instead. Great show, Beth was in all her anguished, tragic, despairing glory. Everything, from the music to the imagery on screen was spot on and created a nice unified experience. Only, possible negative and I can only blame myself, is that i'm too short to see anything, and I really like to watch the band. But, this is something i've gotten used to long ago.
Imagine my jealousy when I saw this chic get on the bus with me!
Although, that might get sketchy. She could've been knocked off of it or popped someone in the head when she had it on her shoulder. So, maybe nice for her in one respect, but with potential problems.
All in all, a great time in Krakow. Cool city, good food, nice people, cool stuff to see AND I was lost and confused very few times! Bonus!!!!
Take care, be good & XXOO
-- Misha
Doel, Belgium
Remember when Gary and I went to London and we took that graffiti tour? So, that guy told us about Doel in Belgium and my girlfriend Andrea and I have been trying to get over there forever and finally worked out a date.
Here's the deal, and I'm totally abbreviating this so if you wanna know more google it, the city is VERY small and next to Antwerp. Well, they dramatically increased the size of the port for shipping and squeezed out the residents, the vast majority of residents. Now, its like a ghost town. We saw two houses that were occupied (some die-hard residents that refuse to move I guess) and the rest were boarded up.
This place is completely spooky. I'm not normally freaked out about stuff and when I arrived I was a bit early and I gotta tell ya, I really did not want to get out of the car until Andrea got there. There was no one else there. Dead quiet. I didn't know what the deal was. I had not yet seen the two occupied houses. For all I knew, there could be squatters in the houses and they may or may not be harmless. Who knows. Regardless, it didn't look like anyone would hear my screaming if they were not harmless.
We did find it interesting to note the posted warning. After you see the pics, you'll know why this seems like a weak warning.
And yeah, the nuclear reactor things in the background only helped to add to the creepiness of this place.
Doel moet blijven means "Doel should remain". I would also post the translated poem, but its killed in translation.
I will not presume to interpret the art. Make of it what you will.
Gericht means oriented, Doelgericht means targeted. Very curious if the space is meant or not.
Old power and new power.
Yeah, it was not just me that felt like it was spooky.
Interesting use of the fire damage to the image.
We (against the rules I know) went into as many houses as possible. It was sooo freaky being in these abandoned buildings. You never knew what you were going to find.
Ok, this was unusual. We turned the corner and this couple were having their wedding photos taking down one of the alleys. Not your typical pics by the waterfall / bridge / arbor, for sure.
My friend Andrea, as we explored yet another house. Spooky, exciting, curiosity getting the better of us. All of the above.
Here's the sad part. What happens to the forgotten dead? Will anyone claim them?
Whoever this guy is, somebody thinks he's a jerk!
A couple of planters set out by a die hard resident.
So yeah, interesting day. Glad we finally got our schedules together and got over there. Totally cool day.
Take care, be good, & XXOO