Lima

March 15, 2016

Our first stop on our South America trip was Lima, Peru. One of the main reasons we wanted to visit Lima is because our friends Rachel and Ignacio live there (and they own the best baby-products business in the world there: babycuy.com!). They graciously hosted us at their family's house over several days, and at their beach house about an hour south of Lima over a weekend. Ignacio -- whose great great grandfather is General Jose San Martin, who, no big deal, liberated Peru, Chile and Argentina! -- gave us great lessons about Peruvian history, politics, food and culture (e.g. Peruvian pisco is far superior to Chile's pisco!).

The food scene in Lima is really awesome. There's so much variety, quality and deliciousness. Ceviches are fantastic, and we were blown away by the tiraditos, pollo a la brasa, and anticuchos. On hot days, the cool fresh seafood paired with a pisco sour or local beer definitely hit the spot!

We had a great time with Rachel and Ignacio, as well as our friends Matt and Bailey, who joined us for some time in Lima and at the beach house. We ate, drank, laughed, danced, and ate and drank some more. We are so appreciative of Rachel, Ignacio and his parents for their hospitality, and helping us create so many great memories in the first chapter of our South America trip!

Dublin

February 29, 2016

It was very rainy in Dublin. We tried to make the most of it, but we were definitely a bit tired by then from our earlier travels.

The hospitality of the people in Dublin is second to none. We got a lot of good advice from different people on where to go and eat and have fun. Everyone was very friendly. Well, except the short, drugged-up guy who tried to pickpocket Alexandra's purse on our last day. The purse was hanging on her chair... customers in the restaurant alerted everyone to what was happening, at which point the waitstaff promptly kicked the guy out with some choice not-so-hospitable words.

The highlight was the Guinness tour. It was absolutely amazing. I've done several brewery tours; Guinness's is by far the most fun, comprehensive and interactive. Plus, the cherry on top, they let you enjoy a pint on the top floor of the brewery, which has amazing panoramic views of the city. Fun fact: the color of Guinness is (dark) red!

Rain outside, so we had to stay inside... The pubs with live music were a lot of fun, and the food, although on the heavier side at times, was delicious. We had several great meals, a lot of really good seafood and braised meats in particular.

After several weeks of staying at airbnbs, we were pretty jazzed about the hotel we were able to book by using a gift certificate from our wedding hotel. We took full advantage of the delicious breakfast buffets (i.e. unlimited Irish bacon and sausages!), as well as the pool and spa facilities.

We had a great time in Dublin winding down from our trip before heading home for the Holidays, and we look forward to going back someday to explore more of the city and Ireland.

Amsterdam

February 29, 2016

I had the fortune of visiting Amsterdam in the spring last year for my buddy Stevo's bachelor party. Yeah, a bachelor party... It was pretty epic. Alexandra had never been, so she insisted that we make it one of our stops on our trip. There was plenty that I hadn't seen and wanted to, particularly the Anne Frank House, so I was all for it.

Visiting the Anne Frank House would bring our trip full circle in a way, in terms of the WWII and Nazi history that we sought to see and experience on our trip. Having had some time away from the heaviness of Auschwitz and other war-torn sites on our Central Europe tour several weeks earlier, we were in a good place to appreciate the experience when we arrived in Amsterdam.

On our first day, the lines for the museum were pretty short, so we decided to make it happen. Having had a busy travel day from Eindhoven with no plans to visit the museum that day, we didn't really have any time to prepare for the experience -- not there's anything in particular we could have done -- but maybe that was a good thing. We entered the museum with pure anticipation and curiosity.

It was quite an experience. There are so many unbelievable facts about what happened in that House. So many people. No noise. Rationed food. One toilet.

Walking up the stairway behind the original bookcase that hid the stairway and the living quarters gave me goosebumps. And her journals... It is baffling to me that such a young girl had such powerful and meaningful thoughts, and that she was able to articulate them as well as she did.

For the first time on our trip, I felt ready to go home when we exited the Anne Frank House. For me, we had completed all of the substantial experiences we wanted to have on the trip, and I was ready to go home.

Over the next couple days, as we tried our best to stay warm and dry, highlights included eating good Asian food for the first time in awhile, a drizzly boat tour of the canals, a great craft beer bar, the Van Gogh Museum, Stroopwafels!, and of course, grabbing brunch, riding bikes and checking out a local brewery with my high school friend Natalie (who had, appropriately, dyed her hair hot pink) and her boyfriend Alex. Thanks again for showing us around guys!

Cinque Terre

February 29, 2016

Cinque Terre... What can I say? It's one of the most beautiful places I've ever visited. Somehow I was lucky enough to visit such an amazing place with an amazing woman who I was lucky enough to marry. I am very grateful.

Most of our time there was spent simply soaking up as much of the natural beauty around us as possible. We went on a lot of great hikes and ate a lot of great meals. First, the food... There was so much good food to choose from, though our favorites were definitely the local seafood and pasta specialties of the region. As I posted on Instagram, one of my favorite memories (and prouder -- or, more embarrassing -- moments of gluttony) was our meal on our first night: When I couldn't bear to accept that dinner was coming to an end, I convinced myself that spaghetti for dessert was a great idea. Alexandra couldn't believe it, but I insisted. "Who knows when we'll ever be back in Italy? Spaghetti Bolognese in my mouf!" She reluctantly agreed. In her best Italian, she apologetically explained to the waitress that I have a big appetite and ordered the spaghetti. The waitress looked at me, dumbfounded, then granted us an unforgettable expression of "AIYA MAMA MIA!" before heading to the kitchen.

Some pictures from that memorable meal (there isn't much outside of Alexandra's eating repertoire, but apparently raw prawn heads are not one of her favorites):

Our hike on our first day from Monterrosso al Mare to Corniglia was a lot of fun. Though about an hour in, I stupidly slammed my knee on a rocky ledge that I had jumped on to snap some pictures. I think I was feeling extra courageous or something as a result of being so happy about where I was and what I was doing... Life has a funny (and sometimes painful) way of bringing everything back into balance.

Later on that hike, we met a really nice couple from Napa. We briefly chatted for a few minutes, working through the protocol of taking each other's pictures (they took the one below of us and our shiny faces). It turned out we had some things in common in terms of career changes and hitting the 'reset' button, but it was such a quick exchange that we went on with our day not thinking much of it. Coincidentally, that evening at dinner, we were seated right next to them. I wasn't sure how to feel about it, not wanting to impose on their time together and make them feel obligated to chat with us, but almost immediately, they bought us a bottle of wine! They said that we reminded them of themselves when they were younger, and were really happy to do so... I was blown away by their generosity, and will definitely pay it forward someday... We all shared a lot of laughs, and Alexandra and I will always value their advice on raising kids. It was a great night that we'll always remember.

Another great hike was the one we did on our last full day in Manarola (pictured at the very top), which cuts right through the town's hilly vineyards. From the hillsides, the views of the water and town are amazing. It was so nice, we hiked it twice!

We stayed a total of four nights, three in Monterosso al Mare and one in Manarola (it was supposed to be two and two, but the trains stopped running for several hours on our transition day, and we were getting more and more hangry as the sun was going down). Delicious wines (from some of the steepest vineyards I've ever seen)... Fresh and perfectly-prepared seafood and pasta... Breathtaking scenery and gorgeous sunsets over the bluest of blue seas... Cinque Terre is one of the most unforgettable places I'll ever visit in my life.

Florence

February 21, 2016

"La vita e troppo breve per mangiare e bere male" (Life is too short not to eat and drink well).

I first came to Florence back in 2000 on a high school summer trip. Our group toured around all of the major cities in Italy for two weeks, and although we only spent a couple of days in Florence, there was something about it that resonated with me, though I couldn't articulate why at the time. I returned in 2007 on a week-long trip with my parents following a pretty significant break-up. Although I was pretty emo, the city energized me. It had a liveliness that was exciting and intriguing, yet not overwhelming, and also an intimacy that I found calming and comforting. It represented to me the intersection of all things classic, stylish, historic, and of course, delicious, without all of the pretension. Since then, Florence has remained one of my favorite cities I've ever visited, and I suspect it will maintain its place in the rankings despite all the future traveling I will hopefully get to do. I couldn't wait to return to the city that had always left an indelible impression on me, and to bring my hubby and create new memories there with him. It made my heart happy that he fell in love with the city just as much as I did. We talked half-jokingly about one day returning to Florence after all of our kids and grandkids are all grown up and we are retired, renting an apartment in the city center, taking Italian classes together, and eating gelato and pizza and drinking wine as we turn old and gray together. #lifegoals

Here are some of our favorite pictures in *our* favorite city :)

No big deal, just the door that inspired the Renaissance.

We climbed all the way to the top of the Duomo! Gotta work off all of that gelato somehow ;-)

This is the first time where I seriously contemplated licking a wall. Don't judge me.

One of the best pastas we had in Italy. Michael still talks about it.

Two of my favorite things: gelato and...more gelato.