Sunday, April 19, 2009
Friday, April 10, 2009
Spring Break 2K9
We are back and still recovering from the craziness that was Spring Break in Europe! To save you all from reading a long and boring chronology of everything we were able to pack into only 10 days here are just the highlights:
First stop: Bruges and Brussels, Belgium!
Belgium is home to thousands of locally brewed beers, chocolate stores on every corner, famous for originating fries (no, it was not the French) and, of course, waffles. We spent our first night in Bruges in the Safari Room at Andre's B&B a short walk from the center of town. Bruges was a fairytale city.. think Beauty and the Beast - little town, it's a quiet village. Anyway, loved our time there, ate our fair share of chocolate and fries, tried some strawberry beer and had a waffle (it was a packaged waffle in the airport but it still counts). Second night: Brussels. Brussels, the capital of Belgium and the European Union, is proud of a two-foot-tall bronze statue of a little boy peeing. Enough said.
Next: Berlin, Germany!
Moving onto more historic sites we were overwhelmed by the amount of history presented to us on our free four-hour walking tour of the city by Colin (Frizzle) where we hit every important site in Berlin's history starting at the Brandenburg Gate and wrapping up on Museum Island (need I explain?) for the story of the fall of the Berlin Wall. We enjoyed traditional food - currywurst, kebabs, and California-style burritos (ok, so not so traditional but it definitely filled a void on our trip).
Our Favorite Place: Edinburgh, Scotland!
Where to even begin?!
Top Five Reasons Why We Loved Scotland:
1. Our hostel was across the street from the castle!
2. They love plaid and men wear kilts. Oddly enough they have the most amazing style... and some great shopping!
3. Amazing food...baked potatoes, scones and tea for breakfast, haggis, ok well maybe not haggis... (it is always a strong selling point, maybe it is an American thing, as the woman at The Baked Potato Shop so kindly pointed out to us)
4. Edinburgh is filled with the most bizarre and interesting history we have heard on this trip. The city has a long literary tradition and is a mecca for intellectuals (perfect for husband shopping.. did I mention the kilts?)
5. The story of Greyfriar's Bobby - the inspiration for our future dog. Ask if you are interested.
Edinburgh will stay with us forever!
Final Destination: London, England
The perfect end to our trip we were able to sleep in and relax with our good friend Andy and his roommate Ben, only managing to fall into a few "tourist traps" (the British Museum and Wimbledon). We accomplished our goal of visiting our favorite nightlife spot in Europe: The Roadhouse with Tara's Little Sis Sophie. Our new sense of adventure inspired Andy and Ben to make some change of their own-they are now donning euro mullets. But the highlight of the trip was the night we were introduced to Spring Awakening. Our lives have been changed. All we can say is get out and go see it right now!
Now we are back home in Cannes; back to "reality," but smiling and laughing at how ridiculous our spring break was. We are convinced we had the best spring break of those here. Hands down.
Peace and Love,
MoffTar
First stop: Bruges and Brussels, Belgium!
Belgium is home to thousands of locally brewed beers, chocolate stores on every corner, famous for originating fries (no, it was not the French) and, of course, waffles. We spent our first night in Bruges in the Safari Room at Andre's B&B a short walk from the center of town. Bruges was a fairytale city.. think Beauty and the Beast - little town, it's a quiet village. Anyway, loved our time there, ate our fair share of chocolate and fries, tried some strawberry beer and had a waffle (it was a packaged waffle in the airport but it still counts). Second night: Brussels. Brussels, the capital of Belgium and the European Union, is proud of a two-foot-tall bronze statue of a little boy peeing. Enough said.
Next: Berlin, Germany!
Moving onto more historic sites we were overwhelmed by the amount of history presented to us on our free four-hour walking tour of the city by Colin (Frizzle) where we hit every important site in Berlin's history starting at the Brandenburg Gate and wrapping up on Museum Island (need I explain?) for the story of the fall of the Berlin Wall. We enjoyed traditional food - currywurst, kebabs, and California-style burritos (ok, so not so traditional but it definitely filled a void on our trip).
Our Favorite Place: Edinburgh, Scotland!Where to even begin?!
Top Five Reasons Why We Loved Scotland:
1. Our hostel was across the street from the castle!
2. They love plaid and men wear kilts. Oddly enough they have the most amazing style... and some great shopping!
3. Amazing food...baked potatoes, scones and tea for breakfast, haggis, ok well maybe not haggis... (it is always a strong selling point, maybe it is an American thing, as the woman at The Baked Potato Shop so kindly pointed out to us)
4. Edinburgh is filled with the most bizarre and interesting history we have heard on this trip. The city has a long literary tradition and is a mecca for intellectuals (perfect for husband shopping.. did I mention the kilts?)
5. The story of Greyfriar's Bobby - the inspiration for our future dog. Ask if you are interested.
Edinburgh will stay with us forever!
Final Destination: London, England
The perfect end to our trip we were able to sleep in and relax with our good friend Andy and his roommate Ben, only managing to fall into a few "tourist traps" (the British Museum and Wimbledon). We accomplished our goal of visiting our favorite nightlife spot in Europe: The Roadhouse with Tara's Little Sis Sophie. Our new sense of adventure inspired Andy and Ben to make some change of their own-they are now donning euro mullets. But the highlight of the trip was the night we were introduced to Spring Awakening. Our lives have been changed. All we can say is get out and go see it right now!
Now we are back home in Cannes; back to "reality," but smiling and laughing at how ridiculous our spring break was. We are convinced we had the best spring break of those here. Hands down.
Peace and Love,
MoffTar
Friday, March 27, 2009
Where in the World Are Two Girls, One Cannes?
Tomorrow begins our Spring Break adventure! Over the next ten days we will be visiting Belgium, Germany, Scotland & England. Wish us luck and be sure to check back in a week for loads of amazing posts and videos.
Ciao!
-MoffTar
Monday, March 23, 2009
Paris: City of Unbelievable Food... oh and Lights, Monuments, Art, etc
We started our weekend in Paris like every planned trip through AIFS with a bus tour so that we could get acquainted with the city and catch a glimpse of all the famous landmarks, making stops at Hotel Invalides, the Eiffel Tower, and Notre Dame. Having had enough of traveling in groups, we split off to climb the Arc de Triomphe and stroll down the famous Champs-Elysses. It was the perfect time of night to go. The sky was getting dark and the “City of Lights” had started to illuminate. Like everyone who has enjoyed the Paris skyline at night, we marveled at the sparkling Tower attempting to capture the magical ambiance with our point-and-shoots; with flash, sans-flash, night vision yet nothing was doing the trick—you have to witness it for yourselves.
For dinner we went from city lights to complete darkness at a restaurant from Tara’s trusty guidebook called Dans le Noir. We enjoyed a wonderful meal with a small group of friends. The catch: we ate in complete darkness. If you are thinking, as we thought, that our eyes would adjust after being in the dark for a bit you are entirely wrong, as we were. As we tried to decipher what exactly we were eating and attempted to pour our own drinking water we were truly able to appreciate our sense of sight, something that the servers at Dans le Noir were living their day-to-day lives without.
This trip was filled with reminders to be grateful as we began the next day amongst the dead at Père Lachaise, one of the most visited cemeteries in the world covering 120 acres of Paris. Among those privileged enough to be buried there (you must have either been born or have died in Paris): Honoré de Balzac, Frédéric Chopin (although his heart is entombed in Warsaw), Edith Piaf, Oscar Wilde and Jim Morrison; however, he may not be there much longer as Parisians are working hard to remove him and his enthusiasts from Paris.
Needing more time in the shadows of Paris’ most famous landmark we spent an hour or so getting the perfect jumping photo in front of the Eiffel Tower before meeting up with the group at Musée d’Orsay. Having had enough of Impressionist art we traveled back to Renaissance Italy an the Ancient Roman Empire when we crowded around the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and the winged Victory in a Reader’s Digest version tour of the Musée du Louvre. After “Vogue-ing” in front of the glass pyramids we enjoyed a truly French meal along the Champs Elysses before watching the barely costumed (and barely talented) dancers of the Lido Cabaret.
Sunday we were surrounded by luxury as we went from a tour of the famous Opera Garnier (think Phantom of the Opera.. there was actually a lake below the stage) to the famous Palace of Versailles. But you can only take so many opulently decorated rooms in one day so we took a break and strolled through the gardens; however, Spring has just begun so the gardens were pretty barren. To top off our third day in Paris we ate the best and only Mexican food since leaving California (besides the curry chicken that the cafeteria put in burritos for the Mexican Soiree).
Our trip to Paris came to a close with a riverboat tour on the Seine on Sunday morning. In need of food (what’s new?) we searched for the Laduree, a specialty sweet shop that we were told makes macaroons that make people faint. We tested the theory. It is true. (Fortunately for us, although unfortunately for our beach figures, they also have a store in Monaco, just an hour from Cannes.) We both agree that we have eaten the best meals of our lives while abroad, and Paris was no different.
With love from the city of love,
MoffTar
For dinner we went from city lights to complete darkness at a restaurant from Tara’s trusty guidebook called Dans le Noir. We enjoyed a wonderful meal with a small group of friends. The catch: we ate in complete darkness. If you are thinking, as we thought, that our eyes would adjust after being in the dark for a bit you are entirely wrong, as we were. As we tried to decipher what exactly we were eating and attempted to pour our own drinking water we were truly able to appreciate our sense of sight, something that the servers at Dans le Noir were living their day-to-day lives without.
This trip was filled with reminders to be grateful as we began the next day amongst the dead at Père Lachaise, one of the most visited cemeteries in the world covering 120 acres of Paris. Among those privileged enough to be buried there (you must have either been born or have died in Paris): Honoré de Balzac, Frédéric Chopin (although his heart is entombed in Warsaw), Edith Piaf, Oscar Wilde and Jim Morrison; however, he may not be there much longer as Parisians are working hard to remove him and his enthusiasts from Paris.
Needing more time in the shadows of Paris’ most famous landmark we spent an hour or so getting the perfect jumping photo in front of the Eiffel Tower before meeting up with the group at Musée d’Orsay. Having had enough of Impressionist art we traveled back to Renaissance Italy an the Ancient Roman Empire when we crowded around the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and the winged Victory in a Reader’s Digest version tour of the Musée du Louvre. After “Vogue-ing” in front of the glass pyramids we enjoyed a truly French meal along the Champs Elysses before watching the barely costumed (and barely talented) dancers of the Lido Cabaret.
Sunday we were surrounded by luxury as we went from a tour of the famous Opera Garnier (think Phantom of the Opera.. there was actually a lake below the stage) to the famous Palace of Versailles. But you can only take so many opulently decorated rooms in one day so we took a break and strolled through the gardens; however, Spring has just begun so the gardens were pretty barren. To top off our third day in Paris we ate the best and only Mexican food since leaving California (besides the curry chicken that the cafeteria put in burritos for the Mexican Soiree).
Our trip to Paris came to a close with a riverboat tour on the Seine on Sunday morning. In need of food (what’s new?) we searched for the Laduree, a specialty sweet shop that we were told makes macaroons that make people faint. We tested the theory. It is true. (Fortunately for us, although unfortunately for our beach figures, they also have a store in Monaco, just an hour from Cannes.) We both agree that we have eaten the best meals of our lives while abroad, and Paris was no different.
With love from the city of love,
MoffTar
Renaissance Men in Milan
Saturday March 7th - Monday March 9th 2009
The five hour train ride from Cannes to Milan afforded us the opportunity to watch the view out our window change from the sparkling French sea to the northern countryside of Italy. We were also able swap musical preferences with the group of young Italians sharing our compartment & learned that the Jonas Brothers are, in fact, taking over the world. Once in Milan we witnessed the violent capabilities of angry Italian women and the stubborn nature of ancient Milanese fixtures. (See TGOC - Episode 6) The rest of the night was spent with two AIFS comrades, Craig and Sarah, exploring the city.
Day Two began at Da Vinci's "The Last Supper." Even though we had accidentally made reservations for the day before, the staff took pity on us and allowed us 12 minutes to glimpse the Renaissance Man's great fresco. How could we possibly follow up standing at the base of one of the most recognized artistic works of all time? By watching cats run around a castle for the next forty-five minutes. As lovers of free stuff we took advantage of it being Women's Day in Europe and went to all of the museums housed in the castle - FOR FREE! We saw rooms designed by Da Vinci himself and Michelangelo's last work, the Rondanini Pieta. We enjoyed a nice tea and chocolate croissant at a quaint, Salon de The.
Returning to the Duomo in the center of the city, we were fortunate enough to run into Craig and Sarah. The four of us enjoyed the Ambrosiana Gallery which contains Raphael's cartoon for "School of Athens." The cartoon was extremely impressive and definitely worth a visit to the gallery, which did not offer us free admission. We then bid Craig and Sarah adieu and booked it back to the hostel to get ready for the game. Wearing our new #32 jerseys, we took the concierge up on his offer to drive us to the game. We no longer need to imagine what it is like to travel at the speed of light. Our concierge (name still unclear) may have managed to get us there earlier than when we left the hostel.
Once our heads stopped spinning from the car ride, we were overtaken by the shadow of the almighty San Siro stadium. Blending into the sea of black and red (the team colors of AC Milan) we joined the throngs of eager fans making their way into the stadium. Our seats were high above field level but afforded us the perfect view of the shenanigans that were taking place in the hard-core fan section. And these fans were hard-core; think impossibly large flags and homemade explosives hard-core! It was everything one would expect from Italian soccer and we had a blast. The presence of #32 was just icing on the cake (trillion-dollar, gold-covered, melt in your mouth, make you weak in the knees icing, but icing nonetheless!)
That afternoon we treated ourselves to fancy spritzers on the top terrace of Milan's fashionable, Rinascente (Italian equivalent of Bloomingdale's.) The extraordinary view of the illuminated Duomo was well worth the 12 euro we paid for drinks. After a few hours of decompressing from the game we helped ourselves to some comfort food - sushi. Topping off the evening with chocolate gelato we reminisced about our perfect weekend!
Although our time was short we quickly fell in love with everything Milan had to offer. The people were great, the food was scrumptious and seeing #32 in his element wasn't so bad either....
Until next time. Much love.
-MoffTar
The five hour train ride from Cannes to Milan afforded us the opportunity to watch the view out our window change from the sparkling French sea to the northern countryside of Italy. We were also able swap musical preferences with the group of young Italians sharing our compartment & learned that the Jonas Brothers are, in fact, taking over the world. Once in Milan we witnessed the violent capabilities of angry Italian women and the stubborn nature of ancient Milanese fixtures. (See TGOC - Episode 6) The rest of the night was spent with two AIFS comrades, Craig and Sarah, exploring the city.
Day Two began at Da Vinci's "The Last Supper." Even though we had accidentally made reservations for the day before, the staff took pity on us and allowed us 12 minutes to glimpse the Renaissance Man's great fresco. How could we possibly follow up standing at the base of one of the most recognized artistic works of all time? By watching cats run around a castle for the next forty-five minutes. As lovers of free stuff we took advantage of it being Women's Day in Europe and went to all of the museums housed in the castle - FOR FREE! We saw rooms designed by Da Vinci himself and Michelangelo's last work, the Rondanini Pieta. We enjoyed a nice tea and chocolate croissant at a quaint, Salon de The.
Returning to the Duomo in the center of the city, we were fortunate enough to run into Craig and Sarah. The four of us enjoyed the Ambrosiana Gallery which contains Raphael's cartoon for "School of Athens." The cartoon was extremely impressive and definitely worth a visit to the gallery, which did not offer us free admission. We then bid Craig and Sarah adieu and booked it back to the hostel to get ready for the game. Wearing our new #32 jerseys, we took the concierge up on his offer to drive us to the game. We no longer need to imagine what it is like to travel at the speed of light. Our concierge (name still unclear) may have managed to get us there earlier than when we left the hostel.
Once our heads stopped spinning from the car ride, we were overtaken by the shadow of the almighty San Siro stadium. Blending into the sea of black and red (the team colors of AC Milan) we joined the throngs of eager fans making their way into the stadium. Our seats were high above field level but afforded us the perfect view of the shenanigans that were taking place in the hard-core fan section. And these fans were hard-core; think impossibly large flags and homemade explosives hard-core! It was everything one would expect from Italian soccer and we had a blast. The presence of #32 was just icing on the cake (trillion-dollar, gold-covered, melt in your mouth, make you weak in the knees icing, but icing nonetheless!)
That afternoon we treated ourselves to fancy spritzers on the top terrace of Milan's fashionable, Rinascente (Italian equivalent of Bloomingdale's.) The extraordinary view of the illuminated Duomo was well worth the 12 euro we paid for drinks. After a few hours of decompressing from the game we helped ourselves to some comfort food - sushi. Topping off the evening with chocolate gelato we reminisced about our perfect weekend!
Although our time was short we quickly fell in love with everything Milan had to offer. The people were great, the food was scrumptious and seeing #32 in his element wasn't so bad either....
Until next time. Much love.
-MoffTar
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Just Another Saturday...
Yesterday, our group spent the day in the beautiful French ville of Aix en Provence. Two hours north of Cannes, this beautiful city contains one of the most brilliant artisan markets we have ever seen and was once home & inspiration to post-impressionist artist Paul Cezanne.
That night we enjoyed a show at the Palais in Cannes. Expecting a traditional ballet we were pleasantly surprised by the spectacular show put on by the Ballet de Rua - a group of male dancers from Brazil.
Blending hip hop, salsa, capoeira and traditional dances, the company aims to highlight the good and bad times of Brazil’s history. ‘Our show is a celebration of life, joy and love, a celebration of our culture – we want to show the power of the Brazilian people.’
That night we enjoyed a show at the Palais in Cannes. Expecting a traditional ballet we were pleasantly surprised by the spectacular show put on by the Ballet de Rua - a group of male dancers from Brazil.
Blending hip hop, salsa, capoeira and traditional dances, the company aims to highlight the good and bad times of Brazil’s history. ‘Our show is a celebration of life, joy and love, a celebration of our culture – we want to show the power of the Brazilian people.’
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