Thank goodness for my shoulder bag!

>> Friday, August 20, 2010

Most girls might be able to sympathize with me when I say trying to pack "light" for trips, sucks. I spent the summer abroad and I just knew that I would somehow come home with twice as much stuff as when I left, even though I didn't plan on buying much. Turns out, that most of my packing for "what ifs" paid off. I quickly became the dispenser for sunscreen, airbourne, bandaids or aspirin. That was perfectly fine with me, because for once I was being thanked for packing all that nonsense stuff. But I will tell you that there were a few things that I COULD NOT live without on our weekend trips, and once again :) I became a savor of sorts to some.

(ranked in order of importance course)


#1 Sanitizer




This one may sound obvious to some, but let me tell you, it is a life saver. What with walking the streets all day, napping on the grass by the Eiffel Tower, riding the metro and the city bus, handling old books, antiques or shoes, a squirt of sanitizer was about as good as a full body shower.





#2 Passes

Perhaps it was supposed to happen, or maybe it was just a coincidence, but I found I had a lot of time on the night train due to the lack of adequate sleeping quarters (it was a 1970 Harry Potter train that hadn't been cleaned since... 1970). It was our first weekend and we were on our way to Rome :) or Roma for those Italians in the audience. So in the early morning hours I got a little bored since I was the only one who somehow couldn't contort their body in a way to make myself comfortable or ignore the heat, sweat, smell and neck pain to fall asleep. 

I pulled out my travel book, the thing I insisted on taking even though it literally weighed my weekend bag down, and started flipping through the pages. I skipped to a section I found interesting and read about the Roma Pass. I got just enough information to get the gist: unlimited metro, bus and train rides for three days, two free entries into a museum or historical site for one flat fee (25 euro). Those travel books sometimes do have relevant information and money saving tips because no one else in our 16 person group knew about it and it saved us all a ton of money!



#3 Tissues


 Not only are they good for allergies, but in many public places in big cities the bathrooms do not provide tissue paper. Get the travel kind of course...







#4 Questions
No, questions are not something you can physically pack, but you should certainly use them if you have them. Once you get over the fact that you might face an occasional rude person, becoming confident and respectful when asking a question will most likely not only get you an answer but probably some added bonus information. A LOT of people speak English, but if they don't, use your resources to get your point across (map, hand gestures, street name, landmark, etc). Oh and if you are worried about looking like a tourist by stopping people and asking questions... don't worry... the natives already know. Trust me.


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More good eats...

>> Wednesday, August 4, 2010


During the course of one month I got to go to a few places and one of them was a "girls weekend in Paris" (as we called it) and naturally I was excited. Being that I had never been out of the U.S. Although we were originally hoping to venture to London, I ultimately realized 'I'll be happy going wherever!' It was an experience to say the least (as was every weekend we took) and we mastered yet another public transit system (yes!) visited Euro Disney (yes! yes!) and ate French Food (!!!!). 

Luckily, within our small group was a frenchie native. She isn't exactly fluent in the language but was conversational enough for us to pick up on things we certainly wouldn't have otherwise. Like the following... who knew a croque-monsieur was so delicious?? OK, some of you might know but I'm a newbie... This wonderful lunch is complete with frites (french fries), salad and mineral water.




When it came time for dinner one night we wanted to go somewhere cheap for obvious reasons and in my Lonely Planet app for Paris I found a restaurant called hippopotamus... isn't that funny? Well, even though it didn't turn out to be exactly what we were thinking, it was still pretty good. It is mainly geared towards families but doesn't have a lot of options and certainly not what one would consider "French" but maybe that is just because I am ignorant on the issue... however the steak I got was pretty yummy and of course the frites were good.

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Visiting the fam...

>> Monday, August 2, 2010

...I went to see some fam in North Texas this weekend since school is starting soon and who knows when I'll have time to come down again.. I also decided to take my ever-so-lonely camera with me to give her some face time with little rugrats (this was originally going to be just the puppies but some baby cousins actually made a visit too while I was down).


I am no Italian, but I sure can relate to the Guido's out there when they mention family and food because let me tell you, my Mom and my Nana can cook! Thanksgiving dinner probably doesn't spark an excitement in a lot of people like it does in my family, and I honestly feel a little sorry for them b/c they are missing out. Having a grandmother that can cook is like coming home to comfort. The family can be crazy, people can fight, kids can be screaming, dogs can be barking and some may even kick back one too many glasses of vino before dinner rolls out but when it does, there is at least something right in the world... and that's Nana's cooking :)

 Why are english muffins so addicting???

 Time will only tell if my cooking comes up to par with those that have come before me... I am still trying to gain back a neutral opinion after that whole egg incident... but that's for another post :). For now I can just document what I see before me...







Good morning! This "coffee maker" looks more like a beacon of light beckoning all that passes to drink from its vessel and experience truth and happiness...oor maybe just drink the coffee...

P.S. when will 9am not be so early??








And how would a post of photos be complete without the puppy??

There is something to be said for a well-manicured lawn because this yard and all the plants and bushes and trees and rocks and stones and little buildings (like the outdoor seating area) has seriously entertained this puppy... now he turns his nose up at our oh-so-small-and-oh-so-overgrown lawn... oh well, maybe one day ;)

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Traveling through food...

>> Thursday, July 15, 2010

While abroad this summer I got to experience some traditional Italian dishes and a few other traditional dishes on the road. (We took a roadtrip through Switzerland, Germany and Austria). Some say that they are so used to American-style Italian dishes that true Italian dishes aren't preferred, but I don't know what the hell they are talking about because true Italian dishes are delicious! And I didn't even mind the true- al-dente style either!
This pizza was made with love by a true Italian in his pizzeria, and one night I got to make my own! FYI- they don't call pepperonis pepperonis in Italy, and although I never thought about it, it makes perfect sense why they don't... PEPPERs have nothing to do with PEPPERonis, very confusing for the Italians since they have various forms of peppers and one even called peperoncini, that they use in cooking (they are a sweeter pepper that has various forms)...


Oh, and just for giggles I included this one as well...Italians just have a weird concept of American cuisine.. haha
yes, that is eggs and bacon on a pizza...



Now on to the wonderful world of Italian pasta!


(Spaghetti Vongole- Spaghetti with white clams)


I had this dish in Venice and this was my view for dinner...

Beautiful! But we didn't see Brad or Angie on this trip, must have been gallivanting through some other amazing city :)



 

I just included this because it all looks so yummy! This bakery was right around the corner of the restaurant we ate at on the canal. I don't know what the heck the green ones are but those cookies are the size of saucers, can't believe I restrained myself! Oh wait.. I just now remembered I had caffe gelato two stores down...


more coming soon... :)

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