Destination Idea - New Orleans, LA

Well this post is a bit late, considering Mardi Gras was well... 3 days ago.

Knowing now I like history/culture I will start off with some concerning Mardi Gras.
Based on their French roots, New Orleans is mainly Catholics, who celebrate Lent, 40 days to reflect on Jesus life while he was on this Earth. I think 40 days is in reference to Jesus being tempted in the desert (victorious of course). During this time, Catholics refrain from some item or thing they do which triggers them to reflect and find their strength on God and not themselves and resist temptation as Jesus did. 40 days before Easter is Mardi Gras which means "Fat Tuesday" in French. This is the day before Ash Wednesday when Lent begins. So, back in the day (when ever that day was), the people would cook up all the fat they had and made sweets and had a party to eat up all the goodies that they had in preparation for Lent.

To what began as a religious holiday, now is what we all know as one of the biggest, craziest parties in the world. Cajuns definitely know their food and how to have some fun even if most have forgotten what the true meaning of Mardi Gras is unfortunately (after you see pictures or experience the festivites you will understand what I mean when I say forgotten its relgious roots). However, I absolutely love the intense and unique culture in New Orleans almost as muchas I enjoy their food. There is no place on the planet in either of these categories (and I have been to alot of places!). The first time I took my Yankee-bred husband there he said, " All we do here is eat, drink, sleep and repeat - I like it though." I had to explain to him that is life in New Orleans. The French truly believe only they live life the way it should be lived, and thier cousin Cajuns max it out for sure.

One of my favorite foods during this time is the King Cake. It is a breaded dessert sometimes filled with cinnamon, jellies, or pudding topped with sugar icing in the Madi Gras colors of purple, gold and green. These colors stand for the three gifts that the Kings gave King Jesus at his birth (Frank incense - signifying holy , gold - to give royalty, and myrrh - which is a burial spice foretelling Jesus death for us all). There is a little plastic baby, Jesus, that is put in the cake. Tradition is that if you end up getting the baby in your slice, you ahve to bring the king cake next year! I could go on and on about the food in New Orleans, but really you cant go wrong. I love gumbo (Cajun style not Creole style), crawfish etuffee, poorboy, bananas foster, catfish, bengiets, cherries jubilee, hurricanes and especially bread pudding! Some of my favorite restaurants are Bon Ton Cafe, 3 Sisters, Hotel Montelone rotating carousel bar, Cafe Du Monde, Mammas, I could go on and on...

Aside the awesome food, during Mardi Gras beautiful parades line the streets. Certain distinguished families have their own "crews" that have balls and then ride the parades. Upstairs in a great restaurant called Arnuad's, there is a free museum where a former owner kept all of her beautiful Mardi Gras gowns and invitations.

Other than food and floats, there are some great things to see for families as well. Check out the Autobahn zoo -(don't skip the swamp section where you will see some white alligators!), the garden district, Jackson square live performances and side walk artists, a ride on the trolley (very famous - almost as old as the San Fran I think), and the awesome aquarium.

Go for a weekend and check it out!

Laissez les bon temps rouler!

France Day 7 of 18 - The Pyrenees

On our 7th day, we had a big drive a head of us.
Uncle Map likes beautiful landscapes and was determined to drive through the Pyrenees.
I think it took us about an hour and a half to dive "into" the Pyrenees after driving a while to get to them since you have to drive in and out and around the mountains. We passed cute little streams and some waterfalls as the greenery got thicker. I remembered it seeming so clean and not overgrown. We found a small parking lot where we were able to take a ski lift to a stopping point. At this level we walked around and took some fantastic pictures of the mountains around us and a waterfall. We then got brave and decided to take another ski lift and then hike a bit to a beautiful lake surrounded by mountain peaks. I was not sure if I wanted to go, but then I saw not only a two year old go up, but then a full sized dog get up on the ski lift! Little did I know that a heard of cows had been through the same walking path to lake, so we had to be careful where we stepped! Some French teenagers got brave or dumb depending on how you look at it, and decided to jump into the lake that was well... freezing...we heard some of them yell.
We then decided to head back to the car, to make sure that we had enough daylight to get out of the mountains and to our next hotel. Pretty big day for some non-outdoorsy folk!

France Day 6 of 18 - Biarritz and Bayonne

Biarritz sits on the west coast of France and the views are nothing short of majestic. Seafood is very popular, and we decided to have dinner close enough to shore to hear the massive tide bring in the strong waves. Afterwards, we drove around the rocky shoreline and just watched the lighthouse reveal the beautiful ocean as we listened to the waves.

Biarritz is a beach town where the prominent, well off French go to vacation. We looked around the massive and rich Hotel du Palais which use to be where Empress Eugenie (the wife of Napoleon III) built a palace on the beach. The beach is littered with families and and people sun tanning, surfing, and having a good time. Beware... the water is still cold!
Biarritz's casino was well.. pretty much a let down after seeing Monte Carlo and Vegas. Granted we went in during the day, but it was very unimpressive. We were, however able to go get some southwest authentic French food that was quite delicious. We ate some type of chicken and fried cheese dish in a restaurant that seemed to be run out of a home which was extremely popular. We were almost completely depending on my French at this time since we were practically the only Americans in the area. At places like these, most people (waitresses excetra don't speak English, and English menus are very rare).

Next we were off to Bayonne which is know for their chocolate. Well, I consider myself a bit of a chocolate connoisseur, so we found the oldest chocolate shop and found a table. I decided to order a chocolate and cinnamon drink, and Uncle Map ordered the basic chocolate drink. A few minutes later, our drinks arrived, mine in a little espresso looking glass with a full glass of water that came with it. I was somewhat disappointed as Uncle Map's drink was a full cup. Then I sipped mine....good grief!!! this was the most intense chocolate experience I have ever had! One sip and then I had to gulp down some water. Whoa!I was determined to try to finish my little espresso cup, but after about an hour, I finally gave up. Yes, this was the only chocolate that beat Aunt Venture.

The we decided to check out Saint Jean de Luz. This quaint fishing village was where Louis XIV, (the sun king which was very important to France and which you will hear about later in my blog) was married to the young girl at the time Maria-Teresa, of Spain in 1660 which tried to unite the countries. We visited the church where they were married and saw the wall that was built up over the door they left out of so that on one else could leave through those doors again. Most notable about this town was the extraordinary macaroons that I could not get enough of!

Destination Idea - Nazareth, Israel

When I was trying to decide what to post this special Christmas week, I knew it had to be our trip to Nazareth, Israel. Of all of the places we have been around this remarkable world, this by far touched me the most. Most people think that back in biblical times people lived in homes built above the ground, but most of them that lived in small remote communities really lived in cave like dwellings. We were able to see the old biblical town of Nazareth where just a few families lived over 2000 years ago.

It was then I understood what the Romans and Jews really meant when they referred to Jesus as “Jesus of Nazareth”. They were basically saying, “Jesus of not even a one stop light town – and this guy from the middle of nowhere is going to save the world?” What a humble and patient God. He knew the power that would be revealed; he knew the plan that would save even those that mocked him.

Words nor pictures can describe the peaceful but overwhelming experience of walking into this place where it is believed that Mary lived when the angel came to tell her she would birth God’s Son, Emanuel – which means “God is with us”. What a small quaint rocky place, but this place is where it all began. This place is where an angel came. This place is where Mary was shown a piece of the plan. Wow. Can you try to imagine? Even more exhilarating, this place is where the spirit of God came down to become flesh to save me. To save you. What a holy place. My spirit knew that. I wanted to stay there all day and night. So peaceful. So calm. So secure to know that God finally gave man a peek of his plan and to know it would come to fruition. Some groups were singing hymns in another language I did not know, but I think my soul was singing as well.

I will try to remember during this special season this place and that God has a plan. I may not know every detail of it, but I know his plans are great and good and will happen and most of all more perfect than I could ever imagine.

Destination Idea - AZ

Cold during Christmas? Warm up in AZ!

Start your long weekend in Phoenix. Go shopping and eat in the old quaint western part part of town. Enjoy the beautiful views around you. Baseball junkies know it is the place to be for spring training, and if you go after, you can get great deals on resorts. We highly recommend the Hyatt. They have tons of interlinking pools with waterfalls and desert cliff views for those who want to relax. And for the active sports enthusiasts, there are plenty of hiking and biking trails.

Not too far away is beautiful Sedona. Sedona has tons of activities for all levels. Hiking, jeep excursions, shopping, or just driving around to take in the views. I bought a beautiful western jacket in a boutique there that I love to wear.

Just about an hour away, down a beautiful drive full of camp sites and scenic views is Flagstaff. There a a great pita place we ate.We then took a little nice drive on the famous route 66. While we were eating I asked how far we were from the Grand Canyon. Since it was just an hour and a 20 min away I said we had to go! Our leisurely vacation then went out the door!

After taking in the grand canyon sites, I was not as impressed as I thought I would be. Was it because I had made it bigger in my mind? Was it because the weather wasn't too clear? I could help but think the Kauai Wayamea Canyon was much prettier, not as big, but it has vibrant colors. As we were taking pictures of the sunset over the canyon, Uncle Map was staring at his phone. "What is going on?" I asked. He then informed me that he did not see a gas station the whole way from Flagstaff, and he was worried about our gas level. His GPS said that there was one 40 miles away,and our car showed we had about 30 miles to empty. It was then I realized how desolate and dark the desert is and started thinking about what wildlife was out and about. Uncle Map did all he could to coast down any hills and we turned off the a/c. Panic rose when the car showed 0 miles to empty and the trusty GPS said we were still a few miles away from the closest gas station even though we didn't see any evidence of human existence anywhere. Then I saw a soft glow in the distance.... we held our breath as we rolled into the gas station. I never fully appreciated how truly dependent we are on civilization! Our grand canyon trip got really close to a true desert wilderness experience!
So in short, go visit AZ, but always keep a full gas tank!

France Day 5 of 18 - Bordeaux Vineyards

As mentioned in my previous post, I took French a very very very long temp ago...
After talking with a friend who is sommelier, and browsing through a French vineyard catalog, I personally wrote to about 20 grand cru vineyards (majority in French) asking to set up a tour for the day that we would be in the region. Granted it was harvest season, very busy time for a vineyard to give tours, but only one responded yes.

A little history for those of you who like historical random facts:
Back in 1855, Napoleon II demanded that the French vineyards be classified (since all seemed great). This classification differentiated the premier grand cru (great first growth wines) which there are only 6 today (majority from the Medoc region in Margeaux in Bordeaux, the duexieme crus ect ect. There are only 66 classified as grand cru wines (great growths). After these classifications, the vineyard that got a classification of grand cru and especially premier or duexieme status were set for life. Since that classification, I do not think a wine had jumped up a level (maybe one - some may argue that it was a huge political reason act). In short, premier wines are tres tres expensive due to their status, duexiem are tres expensive and so on and so on. The good thing is even some of the ones that did not have a superb classification are excellent wines that you can get for practically nothing. Now you see why it was hard to get a private tour.

Now back to the blog - so we felt extremely lucky that one vineyard -Chateau Ducru Beaucaillou which is in the Sait - Julien region (which has 11 of the 66 1855 classifications) along the Girone estuary (which keeps the perfect atmosphere for the wines dry but access to water). It is 25 miles northwest of Bordeaux in Haut Medoc between Margaux and Pauillac. The vineyard is named after the stones in the ground that contribute to its flavor. It is also still owned by a family and not a well well known company like Channel.

We were able to get a private tour of the vineyard, cellars and a wine tasting. We even ended up buying a bottle of their cru in our wedding year. What a fascinating experience. Thanks to our friends at Ducru Beaucaillou for being such great hosts! We also bought about two cases of wine to get shipped back to the states to drink at their "premium" time. Shipping from Margaux saved us at least 3 levels of mark ups.
We even had time to do a quick tour of Saint Emellion, after taking a lovely leisurely boat trip, which was more of a touristy wine town.

France Day 4 of 18 - Ribeauville and Bordeaux

That morning we woke up early in Colmar and drove to Ribeauville which is on the "Route de Vin." One day a year they have a wine harvesting festival where they turn their small village fountain into a wine fountain!! The streets were crowed with lively medieval characters from monks who cut their hair to girls that were dressed as vines! Cheery bands played and wine vendors lined the streets. What a unique place to be! Floats were lined up just outside the village, preparing for their debut at the end of the day. The floats and characters almost put Mardi Gras experiences to shame. Empty wine bottles surrounded the floats and it wasn't even 10 am yet(secretly I was glad that we were leaving before the parade)! After enjoying the people watching and the sweet white wine, we headed out just after 10 am to the airport for Bordeaux (another wine region, but completely different ambiance.
When we landed in Bordeaux, we decided to check out the city right away and have dinner. The building that surround Bordeaux are magnificent white places built to hide the less visual builings on the interior.

Bordeaux is a bustling big city with nice walkways full of shops and businesses. I had planned to eat some traditional French cuisine from the region and even had a spot picked out, but after the celebration that morning, the overpriced exotic food on the menu did not seem appetizing. In fact, the pizza place down the street did! So, that is where we ended up - just to save cultural face, I did try a pasta dish that included some local French mushrooms that were delicious!