Avignon, France

On the way to Avignon, we decided to take the scenic way. Our wine guru Shannon had told us the day before that we should check out M. Chapoutier which is one of the wines we tried. They do tastings in English and since it was on the way to Avignon we thought we should head over.

On the way, we took some of the side roads to avoid the highway tolls and to enjoy the scenery.

For lunch we stopped in Tournon sur Rhone, just across the river from M. Chapoutier.

I had food envy from Matt's delicious pizza:

A very cute town. Matt had me go into a bakery for a post-lunch chocolate croissant snack, too.

Anyway, we made it over to the wine shop and got down to tasting.

We also spotted the Valrhona Chocolate City, which is a museum and huge shop. We opted for the shop and were incredibly happy to find a ton of free chocolate samples, including hot chocolate and assorted treats. We didn't leave empty-handed.

Soon we made it to Avignon and checked into our hotel. I had made dinner reservations at Fou de Fafa, which was rated #1 on Tripadvisor. It was so. so. good. Matt started with a chicken cake (which resembled a light and fluffy savory muffin) and I had the cauliflower and poppy seed soup drizzled with truffle oil. For the main course, Matt had this duck....

And I had the pork in creamy mustard sauce. Both excellent and went well with the carafe of wine we split.

The next day, we grabbed a quick breakfast before walking over to the Pope's Palace. Matt not only had a small set of pancakes for breakfast, but he also eyed this creme-brulee topped cheesecake and sent me back up to the counter to retrieve it. And yes, it was as good as it looks.

Anyway, to the Pope's Palace! Did you know that seven popes lived in Avignon rather than Rome in the 1300s? And they built a crazy large palace?

It's really neat.

 This is the chimney in the extra-huge kitchen!

 Here's me taking a break, also in the kitchen.

 We also got up and outside to get some more pictures.

 Matt wanted to get the perfect shots...

 One last shot from the inside.... so pretty!

Our entry tickets also included access to this bridge which extended out onto the river. It was actually the passage point from France to Rome at one time.

I couldn't help but get a picture of this little guy in his mom's sunglasses. He's totally pulling them off.

...And for some reason, some crazy guy waving the American flag and having people flip him off on the road below as they drove by. Whatever.

For a late lunch, we found a cafe and ate outside. We both got some delicious sandwiches but Matt spotted someone else eating a hot dog and so we ordered one.

The day will go down as the day that Matt ate the most amazing hot dog in his entire life. Why? Because the French just shoved a delicately large hot dog with ketchup and Dijon mustard, onto a big 'ol baguette.

Lyon, France

Lyon is about a 6 hour drive from home, making it the longest stretch of driving we did at the very start of our trip. We left town in the aftermath of Fasching, and Matt drove us out of town. Carefully.

I say carefully because the streets were littered with everything you can think of - candy, streamers, confetti, and tons of shards of glass. I'm glad we got out with no issues (and arrived back to see everything neat and tidy once again!)

Anyway, back to Lyon. The city sits along the Rhône river. The river is one of the biggest and well-known in Europe, and it starts in Switzerland and travels through southeastern France before snaking along and making its way towards the Mediterranean. Lyon is the largest city on the river.

Our hotel was removed from the main area of the city but was right next to the river, making for great views from our room and the executive lounge at the Hilton where we stayed. (I'm going to do a hotel round-up in a later post, so stay tuned for some nifty pictures!)

Our first evening we were there, we had grand plans to find a SIM card for our phone. For those who aren't with "it," a SIM card is a little device you put into your phone to change the number and do all sorts of things, and we wanted a French one so we could get cheaper service in France (rather than pay for out-of-network stuff from Germany).

On our journey, we decided to walk around Parc de la Tête, or Park of the Golden Head, which was situated next to our hotel. 

Wow. This was a park!

According to Wikipedia, it is 290 acres large and some form of it has been around since the 1800s.

There were these gorgeous large trees....

And there's even a zoo in the middle!

We saw about a billion joggers and runners doing their thing and a super pretty lake where they have boats for rent during the summer. Definitely one of the prettiest parks we saw.

Anyway, we got totally lost and couldn't get out of the park for awhile, so we eventually had to abandon our SIM card plans for the day and headed back to the hotel where we found a restaurant close by. I was still in my transition-mode as far as speaking French, so it was a good warmup for me.

The next day, victory! I walked into a tabac (which is a country-licensed store that sells tobacco products, but is basically a small 7-11) and got one. And they were free! Neat.

We spent the morning learning all about French wine in our private tasting with Shannon who runs From Vine to Wine. I'll cover all the dizzying things we learned in another post, but suffice it to say, Matt and I are much snobbier and knowledgeable about French wines now.

The afternoon was spent in the old area of Lyon. This included a visit to the Basilique Notre Dame de Fourviere (which required a funicular ride, yay!), and checking out the Theatres Romains de Fourviere.

They still use the ruins area for shows!

 Here's me rocking my new teal and white polka dot pocket scarf...

Here's the Basilica. There was a huge crypt inside which was really cool, it was essentially the entire basement.

 It was super windy, so we didn't hang out for long. My hair was all over the place.

After a long day we headed back to the hotel for Thai food. I would have loved to spend more time here and try a few more restaurants, but we had to continue our journey.

Next week I'll post about driving to Avignon, Montpellier, and all the fun stuff we saw along the way!

Road Trip Through France: An Overview

Matt and I just returned from France where we spent eight days of adventures! This was definitely one of my favorite trips so far, and it was way more relaxing than I thought it would be. Driving in France is fairly straightforward and we simply had a wonderful time.

Oh- and the weather was pretty amazing, too.

Here's a breakdown of what we did and where we went:

Lyon (overlooking the Rhone river)
-Private wine tasting & French wine overview

-Visited Roman ruins

Avignon (more history than we thought)

-Toured the Pope's Palace

-Drove through vineyards

-Ate tons of chocolate croissants

-Wine tasting at a French winery
-Stopped in to sample Valrhona chocolates
-Toured Pont du Gard

-Was wowed at Carrières de Lumières

Montpellier (close to the Mediterranean coast)
-Saw the Millau Aqueduct up close

-Visited the Roquefort Cheese Caves in Roquefort

Beaune (the capital of Burgundy, a short distance from Dijon)
-Sampled all the mustards

-Stayed overnight in an old abbey

-Stopped at a huge Carrefour (French grocery store) to stock up on tons of goodies

I'll provide more detail on all the fun (and lots more pictures!) in subsequent posts. Needless to say, we came, we saw, we ate, we drank.

On a trip. Be back tomorrow...

... and a full re-cap on Wednesday!

Ten ways Europe is preparing me for work.

I'm not just sitting around planning trips, you know. I'm learning valuable lessons that I can apply to the next job I have when I get back to the U.S.

10. I already have my company Halloween costume ready.

And an alternate:

9. I instinctively know what time it is in several time zones.

8. I'm experimenting with recipes so when that company potluck or contest comes around, watch out. I can also taste the difference between mediocre and amazing olive oil. (How do you do it, Italy?!)

(I'm also planning to experiment with a cinnamon chipotle chicken chili. Watch out future co-workers.)

7. My office is going to be the coolest. With pictures of castles, cities, mini Eiffel Towers and candies. Heck, there might be a mini fridge where I keep my work beer... I really hope that's cool in my next job.

6. Focusing on my M.S. degree means I will retain the information much better (than trying to do it while working at the same time). I'm not the fastest reader in the world, so having the time to actually sit down and retain information is pretty awesome.

5. I'm learning to be more flexible. Some things are just out of your control. Sometimes you have to get creative when you don't know the language or quirky cultural things. So yeah, not gonna get upset when something wacky happens at work.

4. Greater cultural awareness. Not just for Germans, but people from all over. My German language class only had two people from the U.S., and one of them was me! And you know what? Everyone is really smart in their own way, so it's pointless to be judgey if someone doesn't fit into the box of "correct" human being that you have in your head. I'm going to give people the benefit of the doubt more often.

3. I don't take things as personally. It used to make me feel like slime when a German corrected my German, but they just want to help. Even if they didn't, I'm trying not to react like they're out to get me - they have issues of their own to deal with.

2. Nothing scares me. Except driving in small cities or anywhere in Italy. I also still don't like pulling out of our parking spot, but I'll do it if I need to.

1. I know that work isn't the most important thing. People aren't crazy workaholics here. They do plenty of work, don't get me wrong, and they are efficient and polite as they complete their tasks. But they know how to enjoy life - they sit outside, they relax, they do outdoorsy things. If I asked anyone here to tell me something about them, I don't think they would immediately state their profession because it doesn't define them. I definitely want to take that mentality back to the U.S. where everything seems to be about getting ahead of the next guy, and always looking toward the future good instead of taking time to look at the current good.

Instead, you've got to stop and enjoy your surroundings. Like Matt.

Cafe Review: dicke lilli, gutes kind

The ladies and I decided to check out this adorable cafe, called dicke lilli, gutes kind last week for some coffee and cake, something Germans love to pair together in the afternoon. We got there around 3pm on a Friday and the place was packed so we had to wait a little while before a few people left.

Yes, that's what happens - even during normal business hours, people are out enjoying things - we still haven't figured out how everyone can do this and afford things, but I digress.

The place was so cute. We had a window seat and there was something to look at wherever you turned your head.

Even the lights had patterns!

Each of us opted for a cappuccino but we diverged in our cake selection. Susan got the raspberry cheesecake, Joyce went for the carrot cake, and I diverged so much I went for pie! Apple pie! Something I haven't really seen over here. Definitely a little different tasting, but still very good. I think they don't know cinnamon is a main ingredient, because I think I missed the spicy-ness a bit. But what a flaky crust- almost like a marriage between apple strudel and pie.

Quite tasty all around. We ended up having a pleasant afternoon for something like three hours before we headed out. Hopefully we can sample some more places soon - I'd love to share my cake and coffee knowledge with my readers, :-)

What a strange yet hilarious thing: Fasching

What is Fasching? 
Think of Halloween and Mardi Gras rolled into one extended weekend. Carnival German-style!

When is Fasching?
This year it's February 28 - March 5.

What happens during Fasching?
Anything and everything, we've been told. The Thursday (so last Thursday) kicked off with an election of the carnival prince and/or princess, and women stormed town hall. Women are also allowed to cut off the ties of any guy they see. And kiss whatever guy they want.

Throughout the weekend, there are parties setup in restaurants, bars, and even in tents they break out and setup. It's one big dance party, plus all the festival food stands and drinks come out!

The big event though, is Monday (Rosenmontag) with a huge parade. Some of the floats have a political bent to them, too.

Is this everywhere in Germany?
Nope, we're in a special city. It's only really big in Kolin (Cologne for you newbies) and in Mainz.

Oh, I almost forgot the best part! Everyone dresses up.

Dresses up!? In what?
All kinds of costumes, especially polar fleece animal costumes.

That sounds weird. Do many people participate?
Just about everyone. Looking at pictures from last year, I thought to myself "there's no way I'm doing THAT" but it's totally not weird.

So... what are you wearing?
I'm a bright lime green dragon/dinosaur. Rrraww!

Matt WAS a penguin on Saturday, but with our cheapo costumes, the zipper broke before we got to wear it again. So for Monday, thanks to our friends who had a spare, he was a giraffe.

It's hard to see the penguin awesomeness here, but trust me, it was going on.

 Emo giraffe pose.

 Cutie.

What happened during the parade?
So the parade is still going on as I type this. We just came back for a quick rest before heading back out in the evening and getting our dance and dinner on! Here are some photos!

This is the calm before the storm. We got invited to a pre-game party for someone who had a super sweet apartment right over this square:

They even somehow fit this deadly ride into the square.

Here's everyone getting ready for the parade!

And then it begins!

 As I said, lots of political floats. Like this, one of at least two NSA/Anti-American floats. Here is Angela Merkel with her cell phone, and behind her is the Statue of Liberty.

 Sweet car.

Lotsa fun. There were lots of bands playing too, so Matt was happy to see that. A lot of the floats also threw candy and other random stuff, so we got some goodies.

Okay - time for a quick nap, then we'll be meeting back up with our friends for dinner!