Jean and Jeff’s European Adventure

Wow, as much fun as we have been having here in the UK and our travels on the continent, there really is NO PLACE LIKE HOME!  Even though our house in SF is being rented and we were renters ourself while visiting, it was still home.   We had a fabulous time eating at ALL of our favourite restaurants, being with our pals. I flew to my parents in Seattle for 2 days and we visited with Jeff’s parents in CA. Jeff worked the first week and our second week was pure vacation!

We hosted a happy hour for about 25 of our closest friends at the St. Regis hotel bar….that is one surefire way to get maximum time with friends.  Then of course we had dinners/lunches all around.  Our suitcases were not the only things that went back on the plane a bit heavier : )

I had a photoshoot while home and even showed up as a surprise guest at my old bookclub. No, I had not read the book!

We did not want to stay in a hotel for the duration, so after a few painful attempts to find vacation rentals, Jeff found out that one of our favourite homes that we marvel at in Buena Vista Park neighbourhood, had a rental unit in the downstairs.  The owners Wade and Greg have created a wonderful rental, less $ than most hotels, and you have all the comforts of home.  Check out the exterior…most of you in SF will probably recognise it.  45 Upper Terrace.

We spent a night in Healdsburg and did some wine tasting, wonderful as always..and the weather cooperated perfectly.   Our last day could not have been better, our friend Michelle invited us and other friends to join her and her dog Rowdy on her sailboat.  The next 5 hours sailing on the bay were stellar.  Jeff was in his element (literally!) and Michelle was psyched to have a seasoned hand to help.

Michelle                                       Gwinne

Me, Diana and Rowdy

Jeff and Steve (city in the background)

I was asked to be a vendor for the first year of the member’s marketplace. I was one of two photographers exhibiting.  I met the other photographer that day, and we have been fast friends since.  Christine Welsand has since moved back to the US to the Minneapolis area, and if you are looking for a wonderful portrait photographer for your family or children, please visit her site: 

Photography by Christine Welsand

In preparation, I made magnets, greeting cards and mouse pads from the photos I had taken of Hampstead.  I made composites for the magnets and cards, and those sold like hotcakes!  Here is the composite photo - they are images from Flask Walk and Well Walk. Easily recognisable in Hampstead as people in the 1800s used to come to Hampstead to “take the waters”, the water was bottled on this thoroughfare.

The other member’s products ranged from jewellery, books, handcrafted belts, and services such as life coaching.  It was a very successful event and the first time I have actually had items for sale.

March 8th had us up in the penthouse of the New Zealand Embassy for an evening of Kiwi wine tasting.  The KCWC hosted the event and had Justerini and Brooks in to showcase a mix of reds and whites.  We realised very quickly, though being lovers of red, we appreciated the white NZ wines more.

The New Zealand house has fabulous 360 views of London, almost completely unbobstructed (due to war ravages around it). We took on the bracing March air and went out on the wraparound balcony for the panorama.

Here is a link with a picture and history of the building:

New Zealand House

I belong to two wonderful expat clubs for women, first one being the Kensington Chelsea Women’s Club, KCWC - the oldest of it’s kind in London, over 20 years.  KCWC.  The second is in my own village of Hampstead, the Hampstead Women’s Club.  HWC. Both organise wonderful activities, outings, groups etc. for all expat women.  Both are predominately North American in membership, but have strong European and Asian memberships too.

I volunteered to help with PR for the annual KCWC Fashion Show and worked with a wonderful woman running the event this year, Becky Cohen.  I decided to volunteer my photography expertise as well and photographed the show.  The show was held at the Chelsea Town Hall, a gorgeous old building. It was a lot of fun and I made some more new friends and hope to be in town again this year for a repeat.  Here are a few of the pictures from the event and of one of the models - my friend Maria De Heaver.

Shopping pre-fashion show….

Becky and Maria…

Our third trip in the dreary month of February took us to Belgium to meet our dear friends Denis and Maureen.  They arrived a day earlier to Brussels from New York.  We just jumped on the Eurostar and met them at the Brussels train station where after a jolly greeting we all threw ourselves onto the next train to Bruges..less than an hour trip.  We checked into the Bruges Sofitel…lovely hotel with the most comfortable beds we have found in Europe yet! 

Jeff was the only one who had been to Bruges before, and that was briefly on a business trip, so we basically all had the pleasure of the city unfolding to us and showing it’s charms.  We quickly found ourselves at a cosy pub drinking belgian ales and eating moules et frites or in my case…the first of many meat stews over the next few days.  

Maureen’s first experience with a half yard. Belgian beer is waaaay stronger than any of the Budweiser swill…!  We all got a bit silly that evening needless to say….

We walked around the small market outside the hotel in the morning and had hot waffles and contemplated buying the cute little chicks and bunnies for sale and letting them go.  It was cold and rainy, but we always had another pub to pop into!  Maureen found a cute restaurant for our last night in Bruges - De Vlaamische Pot.  De Vlaamische Pot Restaurant Known for being extremely authentic in cuisine and highly adorable on the inside, we throughly enjoyed our meals of yet more moules et frites and stew for me! 

Inside De Vlaamische Pot..look at Maureen’s muscles…!

We took the one and only canal boat ride.  Run by a family for many years..a must do in Bruges!

On the boat and our colourful driver and tour guide!

Bruges by night…

Bruges by day….

We decided to take a day trip to Oostende to see the North Sea..we all touched it, the windchill put it at about 20F…it was a bracing day at the seaside!

Oostende train station and the North Sea….

The happy foursome then travelled back to Brussels for a night at the Westin which is just off the Grand Place and across the street from the train station..well situated and a lovely hotel with a fun bar for late night scotch tasting..oh my!

Scotch tasting and le manequin pis (why is it famous?!?!) taaaacky.

The Grand Place and Jeff under an old Roman wall…

I made a reservation at yet another “trendy” restaurant.  Babeko Babeko Restaurant, Brussels It was Sunday night so kind of empty, but we enjoyed our meal and the evening ended with the scotch tasting.  We parted ways and all agreed a week detox was in order on the alcohol and chocolate fronts…sigh….  : )

After a whirlwind weekend in NYC, Jeff flew directly to Barcelona overnight and went straight to the 3 GSM conference, working the Yahoo! booth and meeting with customers….uggggh..long days! So I arrived the next day and got to see quite a bit more of Barcelona than Jeff did, until he was free at last 3 days later. 

Our first hotel had us at the Hotel Jazz on Carrer de Pelai, right off the the Placa Catalunya.  Hotel Jazz Barcelona  It is a 3 star, and was fine. A little on the dark side as some rooms face an inner space with little light.  We moved to the Hotel Pulitzer (part of the Epoque Hotel chain) later that week, as the conference was over.  It was recommended through Suzanne’s Files (website for discriminating travellers, foodies etc.) Suzanne’s Files  It was quite nice, just a little loud with the open courtyard design (loud morning breakfast set up etc.) Also in a central location, just off the Ramblas.  Hotel Pulitzer Barcelona.  Every tourist on their first trip to Barcelona has 3 must see/do: 1) La Boqueria - the market off the Ramblas, see pictures below. 2) Tour at least one of the Antonio Gaudi buildings/parks etc. 3) Eat tapas/Pinxtos of course!

At La Boqueria one can find everything from Ox tongue to fine Belgian chocolates. A wonderful place to pull up a stool at one of the many restaurants out of a stall and have tapas and a lovely glass of Rioja. Here is a Wikipedia link to the market history La Boqueria, Barcelona.

Tripe, tongue..you name it!

Pirates selling local meats!?!!

Row after row of yet another amazing item for sale… Emu eggs..about 5″ diameter

On our first trip to Barcelona, we visited Gaudi’s Casa Battlo.  He and Josep Maria Jujol restored the former home in 1905 and created what is known to locals and the House of Bones for a middle class family. You can see from the pictures, the skeletal quality of the structures additions.  Common theory has it that “the rounded feature to the left of centre, terminating at the top in a turret and cross, represents the sword of Saint George (patron saint of Catalonia), which has been plunged into the back of the dragon.”  It was absolutely fascinating, a 15 min. walk from the Ramblas and the roof top is not to be missed.

Exterior of Casa Battlo..           Interior…

Interior….

Looking down from rooftop..

The supposed spine of the dragon..

View from rooftop of other Barcelona rooftops!

We found the architecture to be unlike anywhere else we have been. It is one of those cities where you must look up constantly or the little details such as gorgeous tiling underneath a flat’s balcony will escape you.  A wonderful blend of old and new.

 New friends introduced to us via email, Leigh and Brian, were also in Barcelona - Brian for work. So I was fortunate to be able to hang out with Leigh one afternoon and just wander and also tour the Picasso Museum. Here are some examples of wandering around for 3 days:

Some crumbling church and Leigh in front of the Fine Arts bldg.

Just walking around…

  THE PORT area…

The main Cathedral at sunset..

THE FOOD:

Having only been in London for 4 months, we were still in sticker shock and found that paying in Euros was a bit more palatable and finer meals were justified : )    We happened upon a sushi restaurant a few streets off from the Cathedral.  It was AMAZING…we have since been back and looked it up on Zagat’s and found it rates very highly and the big chefs of Barcelona often eat there!   Here is the link to info re: Shunka.  Shunka Sushi Restaurant, Barcelona

Another treat we discovered 3 months later on our second trip to Barcelona was Comerc 24.  Comerc 24 Restaurant We already have reservations for Valentines Day, 2008 (I am writing this now in Dec. 2007 - just a tad behind!)   Jeff and I have agreed this is probably the most outrageous meal in terms of sheer invention and the most divine tapas we have ever had.  The chef is Carles Abellan.  He worked at El Bulli for 10 years, so you can imagine what comes out of the number one restaurant in the world.   We called for same day reservations and of course were told 8pm was all that was left.  Nobody who is anybody shows up at a chic restaurant in Barcelona before 10pm. But being nobodies and only 2 days left..we took it.  We ended up waiting outside with another older couple from the Bay Area, who were equally amused with the 8pm reservation - dead giveaways we were all foreigners!

Our meal started with an amuse bouche of tiny pastry cups filled with a lemon-lime froth with shaved parmesan on top.  Our ordered 8 courses then started with shotglasses of an apple/celery puree, followed by the most amazing breadsticks with a pesto dipping sauce. Next we were served decadent seasoned macadamia nuts that were dusted in gold.  Following that were pork rinds with amazing flavour to dip into a mayonaisse based sauce.   The dishes kept coming…

Next up were petite tuna sashimi onion pizzas on mini flatbreads..these were my favourite!  Following the pizzas was a wild Hake Pil dish, can’t recall how that was prepared..think we were numb with delight at this point.  Two more to go…next was a tiny beef entrecot dish with a potato and wasabi sauce.  Lastly we were served tuna tartare with a yolk vinaigrette..the tiniest egg yolk ever seen!

We did the touristy thing again and had an 8pm reservation at a trendy restaurant with our friends Leigh and Brian.  NOTI is just north of Placa Catalunya  about 10 min. walk.  NOTI Restaurant.  The place was just starting to hop by 10pm and the paparazzi started taking pictures through the front window…so somebody famous was there, who knows!  Food was also very good, though not quite as memorable as Comerc 24.

Our favourite neighbourhood thus far in Barcelona is the Barri Gotic or Gothic Quarter - buildings here date back to Medival times .  You can just keep turning corners and never get home as your fascination is held at every turn…

******************************************