We arrived at Narita airport late in the day on Sunday, where we were able to get the Navy shuttle to Yokosuka (a bit south of Tokyo), where John lives. It was interesting to see all the signs and such in such a totally foreign language (at least with Spanish and French, I had a clue). But most of the people we encountered could at least speak some basic English so it was easy enough to get around (and most things are also signed in English). Yokosuka was a strange city — it had a very American vibe to it, probably because it was a base town. Overall, it seemed like Japan did have a fair amount of western influence, but yet was so very different as well.

On Monday, John had to work, so we played around a bit in Yokosuka, getting a bit used to the new country and getting over jetlag (even though I didn’t really have any). I did wake up super early the entire time I was there, however. We headed across the street to the train station/mall, where we hit up Mister Donut for some ramen and donuts! Seemed a strange concept to me, but I guess it’s normal for them (and really yummy). Afterwards, we walked down towards the port where there was a pleasant little park with a Japanese warship. There was also a nice choreographed fountain. Quite a relaxing day overall.

On Tuesday, we went to Tokyo to check out the big city. The guys were specifically interested in an area called Akihabra — or Electric Town. This is a huge district of nothing but electronics stores as far as the eye can see. Basically, this is where Japanese geeks come to hang out! I guess we fit right in!! We spent forever there, but it was fun to see the culture of Japan in that sense. We also made a brief stop in Shinjuku, which is a really busy area with lots of huge skyscrapers.

On Wednesday, John was off and available to tour us around his area. We slept in a bit, and then headed off to check out “Big Buddha” in Kamakura. This is a nice little tourist area not far at all from Tokyo (and even closer to Yokokusa). It was probably about 30 mins or so by train. There are many shrines located here, which always come with ice cream shops! I still don’t know about the green tea ice cream, however… Anyway, the Giant Buddha was indeed giant, and I took tons of pictures. We then walked over to the shrine in Hase, which was within walking distance. This is a beautiful spot with nice views over the bay, etc.

Afterwards, we went to Yokohama, which is a huge city just south of Tokyo. There were many electronics stores here including one of the largest one I have ever seen — something like 12 floors of nothing but electronics! We were there for what seemed like forever, as my friends are major geeks (but I mean that in the best possible way). Then we visited the waterfront, where there is a large tourist complex with malls, ferris wheels, and other attractions. The tallest building in Japan is located here as well but we had no time to go up. We had dinner at a place called “Cajun Joe’s” — in Japan! NOT a good idea!!!

On Thursday, John had to go to the base again, so I decided to head off on my own. I wanted to get my money’s worth from our railpasses! I had read about a nice place in the mountains called Nikko. This is where the founder of the shogunate, Tokugawa Ieyasu is buried. There is a huge shrine in his honor, along with many other shrines as well. It is a nice day out. Unfortunately, it seems that all the shops were closed on Wednesday!! I think it would be a great place in the summer, as it’s in the hills, and there are supposedly monkeys somewhere around there. We did meet a very nice man at the tourist office when we asked for directions. He gave us free chopsticks as a souvenir. The town itself is quite beautiful, nessled in the foothills of the mountains with huge cedar trees all around. The shrine itself costs about $10 to visit all the shrines, so not really too bad. It’s interesting that you have to take off your shoes to enter the shrines and temples. It was extremely cold there, so maybe that explained the lack of popularity!

Friday was to be our only overnight trip, when we would venture down to Kyoto. This is the historic capital of Japan, and it is a beautiful spot, with still more shrines and temples (something like 800 of them or something like that). After taking the bullet train (only about 2 hours from Yokohama), we head for our hotel. We passed a huge temple (Honganji) near the train staion, which is one of the largest wooden buildings in the world. Very impressive! They were actually having some sort of service inside but they didn’t mind people popping in for a visit. Our hotel was a tiny place, but it had mats for all four of us for a fairly reasonable price, so it was well worth the effort. The ladies at check-in were quite beautiful dressed in kimonos!

We then head for Higashiyama area in eastern Kyoto, where many of the most popular shrines were located as it is hilly and wooded. One of the first sites we passed here was a huge cemetery. These don’t look anything like western cemeteries however — the tombstones are vertical! We then visited Kiyomizudera, which is an impressive shrine located right at the very top of the hill. The views over Kyoto from here were excellent, and I would say it is highly recommended. From here, there is a street called “teapot lane”, which is pretty much what it sounds like — a street lined with gift shops! I bought many a souvenir to take back home. By this time, it was getting time for dinner, so we found a nice little spot where they served some good [teppanyaki], although I didn’t actually try it. We then walked through Gion (geisha district) on the way back to our guesthouse.

On the second day in Kyoto, the weather was not nearly as cooperative. It rained pretty much the entire day. Since I figured it wasn’t exactly like I’d be in Kyoto everyday, I thought we should push on (not everyone agreed). We visited several more shrines, where I took a ton more pictures. There does seem to be a bit of a difference between the Buddhist and Shinto shrines, but it was sometimes difficult to learn about the differences when you don’t speak the language, unfortunately. What I could say is that they are also extremely gorgeous to see. After lunch, the weather did clear up a bit, and we took another walk through Gion during the day. There are many traditional Japanese places here, so if we had more of a budget, we may have dropped by! The final shrine of the day Kenninji had rather extensive grounds, and was apparently of the Zen order. It was unique in that you were allowed to take pictures inside!!

Sunday was another day of rest for the guys (which I don’t really do), so I decided to head for Nagano. By this time I was pretty much an expert on Japanese trains. Honestly, this isn’t saying much – they must have the simplest and easiest train system in the world! Even if few people speak your language, all the signs are in English and it is organized extremely well with signs and arrows everywhere. This was another rather poor day weather-wise, so I didn’t really get to see much of the Japanese Alps. This disappointed me a bit, but I did see a lot of snow from the bullet train. This was the first snow we saw in Japan! It was lovely in Nagano, and there was yet another shrine to visit so the trip was worthwhile.

I also stopped off in Tokyo on the way back. I first visited a youth/trendy area called Harajuku. This is a cool area, with a quaint little train station next to a big park. Unfortunately, it was raining even harder at this point. This is where all the beautiful people hang out. It is VERY westernized, which is a bit amusing for me, but it was fun to see all the English words, even if they didn’t know what they meant (although I did hear they can read English better than speak it). It actually reminded me a bit of some places I’ve been in Europe. And the umbrellas made it quite colorful. I also dropped by Shinjuku for one more look around, and had dinner at a Burger joint, although they taste a bit different. It was pretty exciting to be in a such a bustling city!

Our final day we spent on the Shinkansen going into northern Japan. It turns out, however, that there isn’t much at the end of the line at all!! It reminded me a bit of Houghton or some town way up in the UP. Like a town that time forgot. Perhaps they are busier in the summer. It was quite cool there as well, but it was interesting to see a less traveled part of Japan.

Anyway, Japan was such a different culture that it was really enthralling to see. I was actually surprised how easy it actually was to get around, and how nice the people were. They would also bow and say nice things (in Japanese of course). I don’t think of Japan as a popular tourist place to go, but maybe that was part of its charm??

There are lots more pictures in the Japan Photo Album

I arrived at DTW a couple hours before my 1:40pm flight to Atlanta. It was a nice day and I was expecting a relatively relaxing day at a couple of airports. I had all my reservations planned and all signs were pointing to a nice weekend. While waiting for my flight, however, I noticed they were predicting a bit of snow for Atlanta. This made me a bit nervous as I know the south isn’t so good at dealing with snow. I went onto Delta’s website and found warnings and cautions about traveling to Atlanta! I was now concerned.

Since there was no good reason (other than it being Delta’s favorite hub) to go to Atlanta, I got in what was to be my first of MANY lines to talk to the gate agent about putting me on a different flight (something Delta.com had suggested I might add). However, the agent was terribly unhelpful, and told me all the flights to San Jose or San Francisco were “sold out”. I was pretty skeptcal as I think they likely could have routed me through another hub. She assured me that there were no delays down there and “everything would be fine”.

However, everything was NOT fine! When I got to Atlanta, it was snowing very lightly. I thought maybe the flight would still take off as planned. This was around 4pm. My flight was scheduled for 7:01pm (DL1579). Even though many flights were canceled, mine was still scheduled. They didn’t actually cancel it until after 5pm. So I trudged down to the service center for my first “rebooking”. They claimed there was no way I could get to SF until the next evening, and offered me a flight to LA instead that was taking off that evening. I grudingly accepted it (knowing full well I would have to rearrange all my plans in the process).

So I was put on a 9:30pm flight to LAX (DL2099) that had a delayed departure time of 11pm. I figured this was better as I could still salvage Saturday anyway. So I waited at the gate for hours, and they were booking people, making announcements about the flight, etc. All seemed good to go until about 10:30 when they suddenly delayed the flight to 11:30pm. It wasn’t long after that they canceled this one as well. So it was after 11pm, and I was in yet another line. Obviously too late to get to any hotel, I know knew I’d be spending my night at the airport. It was well after midnight by the time I got rebooked onto a morning flight to LAX (DL2083) at 9:45am. Still seemed hopeful as I’d have half a day on the west coast now…. But it was getting a bit silly at this point. They obviously weren’t very willing to work with me as I kept trying to get them to send me back to Michigan, but they claimed there was nothing available.

Sleeping at the airpot is terribly un-fun. First of all, they don’t even dim the lights, so unless you have an eye mask or something, you are stuck sleeping in the light. I’m not a very heavy sleeper either, so everytime I heard a sound I would wake up. And it’s very difficult to sleep anyway, when you are all stressed out about being stuck at the airport! Delta gives you a crappy overnight kit, but nothing resembling a blanket or pillow. By the time I got there, there were no decent benches left either. Needless to say, I got maybe an hour’s worth of sleep… and was awoken to…

MORE CANCELED FLIGHTS!!! At this point, it hadn’t been snowing for probably 8 hours or so. Apparently, they have absolutely no facilities to deal with cold weather in Atlanta, which is, btw, the world’s busiest airport…. No, I don’t quite get it either. Anyway, I got in line this time at about 6am… it was probably close to 9 by the time I actually talked to an agent. I’m thinking I spent a total of EIGHT HOURS or so in that same line!! Nuts if you ask me! Anyway, yes, they put me on yet ANOTHER flight to LAX, this time at 1:45pm (DL2087). Gosh, this was getting old…. it was a bright sunny morning in Atlanta, btw. Beautiful morning for a flight. Unfortunately, I wasn’t flying international as they apparently took precedence.

Still, i finally did get half an hour of sleep while waiting for this flight. And at this point, I had pretty much given up on anything approaching a productive vacation. I was gonna have to be content with some decent weather and actually getting to see the ocean. But, alas, this one wasn’t to be either! I guess even though they canceled thousands of flights, the attendants for those flights were nowhere to be found! Without flight attendants, no flight, I guess!! I don’t remember the exact departure time but it was pushing 5pm by the time we actually left. I will say this, once the flight attendants DID arrive, they really expedited getting us on the plane.

So eventually, I did get to LA, and Delta rescheduled my return flight so that I could also return from LAX as at this point it was obviously not going to make much sense to get up to San Francisco. All in all, I was VERY disappointed with how Delta dealt with the whole situation. Most frustrating of all was the fact that they had ample opportunity to reroute me in Detroit, but ignored the pending problem and sent me into the storm anyway. I also felt they needed a lot more agents and customer support to deal with all the people. They had 2-4 people staffing the Service Recovery Center. It is unacceptable to have to wait 3+ hours just to get a rescheduled flight if you ask me!

The only cool part of the whole ordeal was that on my final flight (the one that actually took off) were two actors. Ian Somerhalder (from Lost and the Vampire Diaries) was standing right next to me talking on a cell phone. And Dennis Haysbert (better known as President Palmer from 24 or from the Allstate ads) was there too. I wasn’t sure until I heard his DEEP voice. Kindof cool, if I must say so!!!

Moral of the story? Book direct flights whenever possible!!!

The trip got off to a rough start a couple weeks before we were to leave, however, when I discovered that Alitalia had cancelled our flight!!! I booked my tickets on vayama.com, and they customer service was NOT helpful at all! I thought they should have rescheduled us but instead they insisted we go a day later, which is what we ended up doing. This cost a day out of Rome but I had been there before and was able to rush mom through all the sites quite quickly. But enough about the negative — on to the trip report!

Days 1-2: Rome — The Eternal City
We did arrive on time to Rome and took the Leonardo Express directly to Rome Termini station. From there, we had to call our B&B to get directions. It took me a bit to get my iPhone working but I eventually figured it out. We stayed at Gulliver’s Lodge B&B located just down the road from the train station. I highly recommend this hotel — it was small and quaint. Just make sure you know how to use the locks!!

After settling in, we took a walk down towards the ruins of Ancient Rome. It was a decent enough day, although it did rain on and off. The walk down the road was pretty painless, however and we got a good first tour of the city this way. It was a Saturday so the wide boulevard in front of the Colosseum was closed to traffic — much nicer than the first time I was there!

We stopped by the Roman Forum at the bottom of the hill. We were tired so we didn’t do a tour or anything like that — just walked around to see the sites. It is a bit surreal to be there and to think about how that was the center of the entire Roman Empire 2000 years ago. It’s amazing how well they are actually preserved. We could see many of the arches built by the original Romans, and we saw where Julius Caesar is (supposedly) buried. We then took the stairs up to Palatine Hill, which is just beautiful. There were Olive trees (I believe) up there and the views were very impressive. Of course I took lots of pictures!

We were tired but trudged on to the Colosseum. This was probably the right order to do it as the lines were very long there at this point! The Colosseum is a very impressive site. It is sooooo huge! Very much larger than I had been expecting. We did several rounds of the place, and they also had a few artifacts on display. I think it said they originally could get something like 50,000 spectators in there.

After taking a nap, we headed towards the Trevi Fountain and did the typical tourist walk around that part of Rome (Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Campo di Fiori). The monuments and fountains are so ornate and the artwork so detailed. These sites are so exciting to see because you have seen them in so many movies they seem familiar. But seeing them in person gives you a whole new perspective, I think.

For our second day in Rome, we visited the Vatican. We went there first thing in the morning (which wasn’t all that early as we were still quite tired from the trip). I would say we got to the Vatican Museum around 11am, but that was still a sufficient amount of time. They have more art there than practically any other museum I’ve ever been to! I especially loved the map room (yeah, I’m a map geek). The Rafael rooms were of course amazing as well, though, and I think mom liked them the best. The only bad thing here is that by the time you get to the Sistine Chapel, you are too tired from all the art to really appreciate Michaelangelo’s masterpiece! There is too much to even take in from a single trip anyway, but it seems to tell the entire story of the bible — all on the ceiling of this not all that large chapel.

We went on to St. Peter’s from here. This is one of the largest cathedrals on earth, and of course words can’t really describe it. Another of Michaelangelo’s treasures, “The Pieta”, is displayed here and is something to behold. The square in front of St. Peter’s has to be one of the largest I have ever seen as well (picking up a trend here?). Of course this is when it started to rain!

The evening is really the time to stroll around Rome, however. It is so exciting to see and hear the sites and sounds of such a dynamic city filled with so much history! We walked through all these squares once again, but the weather wasn’t being the most cooperative, and we had an early morning flight to Spain in the morning!

Days 3-5: Barcelona and Gaudi
We took an early morning Ryanair flight to Girona, where we boarded a bus for Barcelona. We arrived around noon — it was a great flight and the transportation was very painless. We stayed at the Acta Antibes hotel, located not far from the bus station. This was a wonderful hotel, and they upgraded us to what I would call a suite — two separate rooms. All for a very good price! But we had no time to waste — Barcelona was calling!!

Our first stop was Gaudi’s masterpiece, La Sagrada Familia. This is the most unique church I have ever visited. On my first trip, I had skipped the interior. For someone on a budget, this is probably not a bad idea as the inside is little more than a construction zone, but I found it fascinating to see a church that is still a work in progress after 100 years! We even went up into the tower where we were treated to a wonderful view over Barcelona. From up there, we also could see the intricate work of the towers up close. (There is a lift that takes you up, and you have to walk down a very narrow staircase).

From here, I took mom to the Gothic Quarter for some shopping — is it just me or do Europeans *really* like to shop?? The area was absolutely mobbed both nights we were there. It is such at atmospheric place though, I really enjoyed taking lots of pictures. I think we got slightly lost as well, but despite all the horror stories I had heard, it all felt very safe there. I love Barcelona!

In the morning, we decided to take the hop-on, hop-off bus around the city. This is a pretty good value as Barcelona is quite spread out. We first took the tour of the newer part of the city, so we could see all the marvelous Modernista architecture along the grand boulevards of the city. It reminds me of Paris, which is the most beautiful city I have ever been to. Eventually we made our way to Park Guell, which was also designed by Gaudi. This is a wonderful place to spend a few hours. There are lots of well-groomed trails. Apparently it was to be a housing development, but I think Gaudi was a bit before his time. The views from here are spectacular though as you can see the entire city.

Later in the day we took a stroll down La Ramblas, which is near the older part of the city. This is a grand pedestrian street right in the heart of Barcelona, and it was absolutely jammed with people. It is great fun (so long as you watch your wallet) as it is lined with street performers and trees and birds. In the middle is the great market, La Boqueria! They have every sort of food you have ever heard of (and much that you haven’t) here!! I had a lot of fun just taking pictures. We got some food to have for lunch, which was one of our best of the trip.

We finished the day by completing the circuit of Barcelona on the bus. We visited the busy waterfront, where I got some nice shots of the sunset. We also went up to Montjuic, where much of the Olympics were held in 1992. I had some wonderful rabbit for dinner (yes, rabbit)!

On our final day in Barcelona, I wanted to take it a bit easy, so we just took a leisurely stroll. First stop was the Picasso Museum, which is housed in a series of palaces in the Gothic Quarter. It specializes in some of his lesser-known works, but has several nice examples from both the Blue and Pink periods. Very interesting stuff in any case.

We then took a walk down to the beach, which is quite a walk as it turns out. It was a bit cool for a swim so we had the beach mostly to ourselves and didn’t linger all that long. Still, we HAD to dip our fingers in the Mediterranean! Barcelona is a wonderful city to get lost in and to take it all in would take years. I must come back someday!

Days 6-7: Florence – City of Art!
Our final stop before heading back to Rome was Florence. Again we had an uneventful flight on Ryanair. Their flights are so cheap that you don’t expect much and on that front, they always deliver! We eventually figured out how to get our train tickets and headed straight for Florence.

Our Hotel in Florence was the Bellettini, which was a nice little place. I have nothing to complain about here and the owners were really enthusiastic, giving us lots of tips on what to do with our short stay.

Our first stop was the Duomo. This is definitely the highlight of Florence as you can see it dominating the “skyline” of the city. The dome is something to behold — as the colors really stand out against the white of the cathedral itself. The inside was rather huge as seems to be the case with most churches we visited in Italy, and there were lots of frescoes and paintings. Maybe we were getting “churched” out??

I think people like shopping even more in Florence than in Barcelona!! At times it was almost difficult to even walk around. Wall-to-wall people! So we walked around a bit before heading for the Academia to see The David. This of course is yet another masterpiece and really is not to be missed. Of course I wasn’t allowed to take any pictures, but there is a replica that sits outside that gives the idea (the original is actualy bigger I think). Although David is certainly the highlight, this museum is worth a couple hours of your time as is lots more to see there.

We had one of our best meals of the trip on the other side of the Arno (south side), on the recommendation of the lady at our hotel. The restaurants certainly were much cheaper over there, and the food we had was really quite good. I believe I had some sort of pork, and enjoyed it quite a bit. I was somewhat surprised that not all the meals involved nearly as much pasta as you might get over here. Delightful in any case.

The next day, we spent much of the day at the Uffizi Museum. In this museum is contained one of the greatest collections of Renaissance works anywhere in the world. And it really doesn’t disappoint. There is room after room of wonderful art. I suggest pacing yourself if you do visit this museum. There is a cafe, but I found it disappointing. They were quite strict about their tables!

We spent the last few hours shopping and walking along the river. The River Arno, and especially the Ponte Vecchio is full of amazing colors. I liked it especially at night — I kept coming back for more and more pictures! Florence is a beautiful city — maybe best for couples…

Day 8-9: Rome and Home
We had one more half day in Rome before taking the long flight home. The weather was SO much better now! This is what Italy was supposed to be like! So we did another quick tour of the sites (with some tips from Rick Steves). We even walked all the way to the other side of the river to Trastevere. This is my favorite area of Rome! It is a really fun place to be at night, and I think mom enjoyed all the shops too! From there, we took the tourist walk all the way back to the Spanish Steps, where they were having a really interesting exhibit on the Berlin Wall.

The next day, unfortunately, we had to return home. Another great trip and I can’t wait for my next adventure!!!

There are more pictures here-
Italy and Barcelona Album

Day 0

The trip started rather early – 3:30am to be exact… Bit early for my
taste! But sometimes you have to do these things to get to costa rica
early enough. The options were either really early, or end up spending the night in San Jose!

After getting to costa rica, I went through customs and found a taxi
quite easily. Seems my fears on that front were rather unwarranted. It
was $3 to get over to denny’s. It was both the most expensive dennys
ever and the most edible! They actually cooked the food, which is more than we do here. They seem to speak very good english, especially in all the tourist areas.

Next, it was off to wait for the interbus… and wait…. and wait…
Almost 3 hours in total! Clearly the 12:45 flight would have been
fine. I was sitting right across from the rental car places so that
was tempting! Oh, and something stung me!! Seems ok now so I think it
was a normal yellow jacket.

The ride to arenal was absolutely wild! I think for most people just
getting here is adventure enough! Around the airport, it doesn’t look too odd
- lots of places we have too but once you get in the mountains, it gets
interesting. The roads twist and turn and twist some more! But it was
really spectacular – too bad it was rainy & overcast. Still haven’t
seen the volcano.

Eventually I did get to the arenal green (my hotel). Cute little place with
really nice people. It practically feels like I have my own personal
place – I’m curious if anybody else is even here. I had some really
amazing arroz con pollo (chicken and rice) for dinner at their tiny
restaurant. It was funny because the waitress/cook had to go get the other girl because I think she didn’t speak english.

Day 1

I started out the day with a really good breakfast at my hotel. I got
the American breakfast with some fruit thrown in. Excellente! I especially liked the pineapple.

I then proceeded to hike to the waterfall which was “just down the
road”. Unfortunately what I failed to realize is that in order to make
the water “fall”, I had to do a bit if climbing… and it was hot & humid.
Eventually though, I got there, paid my $10, and got to hike back down the hill I had just
climbed! But it was well worth it…. just like the paradise you always pictured. A river
plunging hundreds of feet into a spectacular lagoon.

I then went back to my hotel for a shower – felt rather good I must say. I’ve never taken so many showers on a trip in my life!!

I next wanted to check out La Fortuna – the nearest town to here. It’s
a fine town but nothing to write home about. It reminds me of an old
farming town out west, with s bunch of tourist shops thrown in. Had a pretty little plaza.
And lots of flowers everywhere.

I took s taxi to the hanging bridges park. Not really all that easy
without speaking Spanish. Somehow I got there, but he charged me $25!
live and learn but I think if was way too much. Anyway the park is
well worth 22 bucks (just not $72). There are all these neat little
suspension bridges you can walk over the jungle. There was another
waterfall. And I swear I heard some monkeys.

While waiting for the cab, I think Arenal put on a bit of a show.

After a rest at the hotel, I arranged to go to the Baldi hot springs.
Beautiful place! I got dinner and admission for $30, plus another 12
for transportation (which is why I think the hanging bridges guy was
super high). Anyway, the food was quite good – buffet style. I think I
tried plantains, which are a bit like fried apples, I suppose (not really that good). The hot
springs consist of a nine different pools at differing temperatures. I got
lost a few times – it was huge! My favorite was the 100F pool… made
your skin burn a bit. Great way to end the day.

Day 3

Today was a quiet day to let the blistered feet rest a bit.

I signed up for a tour of Cano Negro, which is several hours away up near the border with Nicaragua.
The van pulled up promptly at 7:15 in the morning – days start early around here. We stopped in town
to pick up a rather well traveled Canadian couple (they had been like around the world and back) and were off.

First stop was a rather touristy place right next to a river where the
trees were absolutely covered in iguanas! They said there were over
300 of them. We also spied a howler monkey – my first monkey sighting.
I have never seen so many lizards in my life!! Cool stop.

It too about 2 hours to finally get to Cano Negro, down a rather bumpy
road (to put it mildly). Then we got in a boat for a “three-hour tour”
of the river. Interesting – there was a lot of wildlife, especially
all kinds of water fowl. Egrets, cranes, kingfisher, etc. We did see
some more monkeys – more howlers and I think white faced ones as well. There
were quite s few caimans (like crocs) mucking around in the water as
well. The trip was certainly well worth the $50. Don’t forget tip money!

We were provided a pretty decent lunch right next to the river – I had
more arroz con pollo. It seems the chicken here is truly excellent. I
should try the beef though – there are cows everywhere! The trip today
took us right through what must be the heart of costa rica’s farmland.
Lots of sugar cane and pineapple, along with some citrus of some sort.
And lots and lots of cows, which are tiny by our standard, honestly.

I got back to the hotel just before the rains came (I think they plan
it this way). And rain it did!!! For hours on end, with little end in
sight… It did finally subside around 9pm. Maybe just as well I had
no hikes planned.

I got a ride into town with the really nice manager of the hotel. His
English is ok and you can tell he was really trying. Anyway he took me
to a nice place where they spoke good English, and I had yet more
chicken (really good again). I would have had some fish but they
wanted $20 for it!

Day 4
Today was my day to finally try something adventurous – too bad I
waited until the last day!

But maybe the most adventurous thing I actually did was at breakfast – I
finally tried the gallo pinto! I dunno – it was okay but give me my
bacon any day… But she kindly brought me some fruit as well – the
pineapple is absolutely to die for!

Around 11, the rafting people picked me up for the trip to the Balsa
river to take on my first attempt at white water rafting! This was
supposed to be moderate river – good for beginners. (I certainly
wouldn’t want to try anything they call “hard”).

We picked up a few people and eventually made it to the put in point.
The guides were really good and gave us a lot of good instruction. I’m
not sure I was techically paddling correctly but it did seem to work
out and I wasn’t too terribly sore afterwards. I had a fun group of guys
on the boat so it was kindof fun to get to talk to some people.
The rafting was awesome!!! They didn’t start out slow either – it was right
into the thick of the rapids – probably not something for everybody!
Anyway, I had a blast and we didn’t fall out even once (apparently
that happens fairly often). We had a break for more of that to die for
pineapple! Then dinner was some mote rice & beans…..

I had intended on going back to Baldi tonight until the monsoons
arrived again. Best advice for summer in costa rica? Plan stuff
EARLY!!! It’s been raining pretty much non-stop since 6pm! Next time
I’d stay in town or at least somewhere with a TV!!!!

But the rain is really relaxing and I’ve read an entire book in four
days. Just wish I had more than cookies…

Day 5
I woke up early today for my trip to monteverde – the “taxi” was
supposed to arrive at 8:15. I thought it best to have something to eat
(as dinner the night before consisted of cookies). I opted for the
americano breakfast as my system seemed to prefer it. They might not
eat it but they sure do have good bacon! And the fruit – did I mention
the pineapple??? Anyway, I checked out and met the “jeep-boat-jeep”
guy (turns out they weren’t jeeps but more of the ubiquitous vans that
are everywhere here) and was on my way.

This would have been an awesome morning to hike up the volcano – it
was perfectly clear. There’s always next time…. We picked up a bunch of people
and eventually got to Lake Arenal where you take a nice 30-min trip
across the lake. This is followed by a trail up the side of the
mountain that rivals most jeep trails I’ve been on… Eventually we
made it to my hotel (how I always seem to be both the first and last
stop is beyond me).

The rainbow valley lodge seems like a really nice place. The owner
(Ralf) is really nice, from Minnesota btw, and was more than willing
to set me up with tours and/or give me a ride into town. The place has
a double and a twin bed, private bathroom, and some bananas to feed
the monkeys! It’s perched on a ridge overlooking the monteverde area –
which of course was clouded over… Anyway I thought I would try the
canopy tour so ralf said he’d take me into town.

This is when my plans changed a bit… While looking for a place for lunch I
ran into these ladies I met on the “bus” up there. One of them was interested
in doing this coffee tour and asked me to join them. I decided it might be a nice
change to do something with somebody so I guess the zipline will have to wait.

Anyway, at 2:45 I met them at their hostel and a nice guy picked us up
for the tour. It was a tour of the sugar cane and coffee plantation
that his family ran. The tour was really busy! I think I have hit
vacation season in the states now. Anyway, He started by walking us
through the bananas and plantains (still not used to those). He told
us all about how they grow and harvest them. They try to go as much as
possible organically. Anyway, next it was on to the coffee and sugar
cane. He said they still use machettes to harvest it and it’s
dangerous as that is where the snakes like to live. He told how the
best coffee beans come from higher elevations like this but that it’s
very hard work to harvest. Then he showed the different machines used
to de-shell and separate out the beans. Interesting to me is that the
beans aren’t actually roasted here – they send the good quality beans
to starbucks who does the roasting. Ticos get the second or third
quality stuff. Next we got a little ride on the ox cart. And then he
showed the traditional way of getting the juice out of the cane. We
had some samples too, and even got to make some really sugary candy.
It was really fun and informative.

I went and got done groceries so I could have a nice dinner of chips
and chocolate. Can’t beat that! The arroz con pollo for lunch nearly
did me in….

Day 6
So my day started really early when the people above me got up, around
5am! Turns out that is when the monkeys (?) and coatis are playing
anyway. Unfortunately I scared them away. I had to be up at 6 anyway.
For whatever reason I had a terrible time sleeping here…

My shuttle arrived around 7am as expected, the drivers spoke no
English but we made do anyhow. I got to the monteverde reserve, paid
my $17, found my guide and was off. The guide took us around very
slowly showing us things of interest along the way. During the day,
this seems to mostly consist of birds but we did get a glimse of a
white-faced monkey. When we were in the hummingbird garden later, we
found a female quetzal, which is rather exciting

I went back to the hotel to ask Rolf to book me on the canopy tour the
next morning. Mornings are the time to do stuff here. While I was
having my snack, I saw some more coatis, which look rather like big
racoons.

I then took a bit of a walk to find this private reserve for a short
hike (everything costs money here). This was nice as the trails were
well marked and there was almost nobody there. I didn’t find any
monkeys but there were yet more coatis…. And some pretty butterflies.
Not to mention leaf cutter ants…

Next stop was the frog pond. This is sn exhibit that shows off all the
different species of frogs in costa rica. It was quite interesting.
I especially liked the red eyed tree frog (this is the one you always see
in the brocures). Supposed to be better at night but I didn’t make it back.

I then had dinner at this tree house place (where they had wifi!).
Pizza – only so-so. I’m looking forward to normal food again!!!

Day 7
Today I finally got to try out the canopy tour (aka zipline). It was a blast!! They had a total of 14 lines, the longest of which was 1000m!! And they were way high too! There was also this Tarzan swing, which is pretty much exactly what it sounds like – you swing down through the treetops. Weeeeee! We also did s rappel down from one of the platforms which was a bit odd. This was quite a trip…. flying over the treetops is something else. And it was windy too, which made things really interesting. I thought the guides were great though, and it was easier than I thought.

Anyway I had a blast there. Monteverde was great. So nice and cool. Bit rainy but I think Arenal was worse (rained harder there). The hotel was a great deal and Rolf was really helpful with everything. I think I’d go back. Did I mention I saw a monkey??? He was right out back near my porch. Great views!

After that it gets dull – took the interbus back to San Jose. Stayed at the adventure inn, which is fine if not overwhelming. Good wifi. And I actually had some TV! And a really, really awful burger…

Day 8
To be quite honest, this day was the one I was most nervous about. It
involved a taxi, plane, another taxi, and a boat ride. Here we go!

I was up early yet again so that I could have my complimentary
breakfast at 7, and get a taxi at 7:30. The breakfast was decent – I
went American yet again. Juan (as he said he was called) came promptly
to take me to pavas airport. Only $2 (on top of what the adventure inn
people paid).

My flight left on time at 9am (he asked me about this and I couldn’t
remember for anything what “nine” was en espanol). Anyway, the plane
was tiny! 1+2 configuration. Wonderful scenery on the way. Palmar sur
airport was really tiny…. In the middle of some palm plantations –
it was at this point I really wondered what I was doing.
Took this from the flight:

And this is the “airport”:

But not 15 minutes later my taxi (a Toyota pickup) arrived to take me
to sierpe. My “captain” popped out of some random building to
introduce himself (really wishing I knew Spanish at this point). Then
I was dropped at some restaurant at the end of the earth for like 3
hrs – I’ll admit to some slight nervousness here. Our boat was the
last to leave (maybe it was the cheapest?). The boat ride itself was
fine. Nice dude next to me kept pointing out things I should take
pictures of (in Spanish of course). Lots of “si’s” back from me. After
the long ride through the mangroves, we eventually got to drake bay
where the guy pointed at some random building and said “Jinetes”. I
hopped into the water hoping I would find the place…

Since you are reading this, I obviously did! Now that I’m finally here
I can report that it’s absolutely amazing. I can hear the waves
crashing just outside. The staff here is really friendly too. They
offer lots of tours or you can just take it easy (they provide hammocks).
Reminds me of summer camp. And the food is awesome….. Or maybe I’m just really hungry?

Since it was almost 3pm at this point, I just took a walk along the
beach. There are a LOT of crabs here!! And all kinds of other little
critters as well. I spotted a bunch of monkeys – they are so cute!!
Hopefully those pics will come out. It is really humid here. I think 3
days will be plenty. I was absolutely dripping after my little hike.

Day 9
Today I was supposed to go hiking on cano island but I ended up just
hiking along the most lovely beach and deserted beach I’d ever seen instead.
This was quite a well traveled path and I passed quite a few other folks along the way.

I was up bright and early so that I could get a bite to eat before the
tour (that I didn’t go on). The food here is quite good, actually.
They packed me a lunch to take on my hike. It was quite simple – just
take the trail that runs along the beach.

I ended up hiking quite a ways – about 3 hrs in each direction! I am
poor at pacing myself but I did have plenty of water so that was
helpful. I probably needed a bit more sunscreen (but didn’t end up getting
burned). Basically the path takes you past a series of lodges with some really
awesome beaches thrown in.

What did I see?? Well, a whole lot of monkeys for one thing! They are
really fun to watch – seemed to be throwing fruit at me at one point.
These were still the white-faced kind. They aren’t hard to find as
they make quite a racket in the trees! Seem very playful and intelligent.


(I have more…)

The other most common things are crabs (everywhere) and geckos/
lizards. Both move really quickly. The hermit crabs are fun to watch
too. (The ones in my room are way less fun I must say). I also saw
some horses just running along the beach.

Eventually I got to this Corcovado tent camp which is pretty much just
what it sounds like. Rustic and yet there were a ton of kids there.
Weird. Some of the lodges are super fancy which makes little sense to
me – if you wanted all the luxuries this seems an odd place to come.
Perhaps this is the first Dharma camp?

I got back about 3pm and crashed for a bit. I guess that is just how
it works here. Do everything early and veg out the rest of the day.
Relaxing anyway…

Tomorrow starts really early as I have a 5:30 tour to Corcovado park!
My last real day in costa rica.

Day 10
The day started out bright and early at 5:00 with a wake-up call!
Yikes! But we had to leave early if we wanted to see wildlife. I had
my breakfast at 5:30. It was a small group – me and two families, one
from Belarus and another from Texas. It was interesting as it was obvious there
were varying degrees of tolerance for the conditions….

Anyway, the boat ride took like an hour and a half – it was rainy and
really, really choppy. I wonder how much worse they could have went out in?
Clearly it’s not called the pacific because it is not peaceful! We arrived
via water to the beach. It reminded me of something out of Jurassic
park. The entire beach was moving (hermit crabs again) and you could
literally see the jungle steaming.

Anyway we hiked for several hours and saw tons of wildlife! We saw all
for species of monkey: squirrel, spider, howler (sleeping), and white-
faced. Aparently they are the most intelligent and adaptable, and quite
common. Spider monkeys are very endangered, they only reproduce every
three years or something.

We also saw the very rare tapir – our
guide knew just where to look and got us really close. There was a big
croc in the water there too. And up in the trees, a scarlet macaw.
Very exciting. There were also coati, deer, and this rodent that
escapes me. All in all, an amazing day. Our guide said we were pretty
lucky given the bad weather. We then had lunch and another really
choppy boat ride back.

After resting and showering (I did that a lot here), I thought I’d
take one final hike down the beach. It was nice to dip my feet into
the ocean. Of course I went too far as usual and was sore and sweaty
when I got back (another shower).

But that wasn’t all! I managed to finally get in on a night hike! This
one was really cool. It’s so much more fun when you have guides who
are really into it. Basically we were hunting for bugs, spiders,
frogs, snakes, etc. And in the Osa all of these are rather common.
Especially it seems this odd looking scorpion thing – they were
everywhere! We saw a bunch of frogs too – the guides really knew their
stuff. Lots of facts about the creatures. The bug lady was fascinating
too. It’s neat to see how little fear you need to have of these
things. Anyway it was a ton of fun!

Day 11
This was my last day in Costa Rica…. I had a 8am taxi scheduled to take me to the Drake Bay airport. After a bit of breakfast, the lodge escorted me over to the “taxi stand”. The taxi was like half an hour late and I started to think I’d miss my flight. No worries though — the “airport” was a strip of asphalt in the jungle and there was a dude there with a little scale. Pretty low key! And i still had a bit to wait before the plane would arrive. We had a quick stop in Puerto Jimenez before getting back to San Jose. I took a really expensive taxi ride to my hotel and had a bit of a rest.

San Jose itself is not what you come to Costa Rica for — just another city. But I thought I’d check it out a bit. It was interesting to see how real Costa Ricans live. I went to the Pre-Columbian museum. This was really excellent, actually — they had tons of gold artifacts and such. And they had excellent signage in English. Quite informative. Afterwards I took a stroll on the pedistrian mall and down to the market. Interesting, but not a lot to see or buy.

I remembered one of the guides recommending this place across from the Balmoral hotel — it was the something or the other Cafe. Anyway, I thought i’d have dinner there. I was craving fish, so I asked about this Tilapia Cerviche special. It sounded good enough so I tried it. Anyway, I’m not sure, but I think it was raw… surrounded by lemon juice. In any case, it was really quite good. And I guess it was more of an appetizer, but it was plenty to last me until morning.

After that I just went back to the hotel and watched some TV. It was pouring anyway, and I didn’t want to go out at night. I’m not sure I would recommend that particular hotel, but I guess it worked for the night.

You can view the rest of my pictures here: Costa Rica 2009

This was my fifth trip to NYC — it truly is my favorite city to visit. It is just such an exciting and dynamic place that there is always something new to discover. I know each time I can see something new, but of course you have to see all the classic sites too! This trip, everything was in bloom and it truly was beautiful!

We arrived late on a Friday night to LGA — not the nicest airport in the world, but we were able to take the M60 bus directly to Manhattan ($2). This is a great deal compared to taking a cab or shuttle into the city. Pretty easy too — just have exact change!!! (There are change machines near baggage claim, FYI).

We headed straight for our hotel — the Roger Williams, which is located on Madison Ave in the Midtown South area. This is a nice area of the city as it is walkable to Times Square but also in a relatively quiet area. We got a great deal as we had a nice room on the top floor with a terrace! This was the view out our window…

We proceeded to head up to Times Square for some dinner. We ate at John’s Pizzeria, which is on 46th Street. Really good pizza! For times square, it was reasonable as well. And afterwards we had the most AWESOME cupcakes at the Magnolia Bakery! We of course walked by Rockefeller Center, where the skating rink was still operational, and spent some time hanging out in Times Square. Weather was great!

On Saturday, we headed downtown to the South Street Seaport and for walking around in the area. Walked by the WTC site and popped into Trinity Church. We then headed over towards Greenwich Village. Mom wanted to do a bit of shopping and I just took some pictures! We got tickets for Altar Boyz at the TKTS booth.

We then took the subway up to Central Park. Wow — it was a beautiful day and it seemed EVERYONE was in the park!! But it was well worth it as seeing all the flowers was really cool.

I took this from our hotel — lots of cabs in the city!

After the theater, we headed for the Empire State Building! Indeed, it is the city that never sleeps. We showed up after 11pm and there was still quite a line! It is actually open until 2am. Great views, of course!! You could see the whole city from up there. You really can see what a huge city it really is!

The next day, I wanted to check out Brooklyn a bit, so we headed for the Brooklyn Museum. It is a rather large museum and well worth a look, especially if you’ve already been to the Met or MOMA. The flowers in front were really lovely as well!

Afterwards, we just did some browsing around the city. Stopped into Katz’s in the LES (where we were a bit too overwhelmed to actually eat). Then we walked through the East Village, where we had never been. Really interesting area if you ask me.

I love NY! Like I already said, it’s my favorite city and we are already thinking about what we will do next time we go. Although the flights were crowded, the fact that you can get there in less than 2 hours probably does make it worth the trip.

Album is located here: NYC April 2009

Just testing the photos capability…

Nov 27
Upon our return from Paris on the Eurostar, we spent a bit of time at St. Pancras station taking pictures. It is really a very beautiful station, although since it had recently opened many of the restaurants and such were not yet open. (The picture doesn’t do it justice)

We then went to check into the Travelodge Hotel on City Road. I had gotten and awesome deal here (about $60 US per night). This is a really good deal for London!! And the place was really new as well. No troubles checking in. The room was a family room, so equipped with a double bed and a couch with a pullout underneath (sorry — no good pictures of this). Could easily have put 4-5 people in that room, especially if some of them were kids. There was also a small flatscreen TV. Good value for what I paid.

In order to maximize our day (I think I made a mistake in taking the middle of the day train back from Paris as it cut into our siteseeing time), we headed for the British Museum in order to get an hour or so in before it closed. You really can’t do this museum justice in that amount of time, however. It has some really ancient artifacts and seemed to have some really good Eqyptian things on display. They also have the Rosetta Stone there in a case. It’s a very impressive place but I don’t know how long we could have spent there anyway. If one was really into that sort of thing though, it certainly is a must-see.

We were pretty starved by this time so we walked down towards Covent Garden where the Rock and Sole Plaice is located. This was a fish & chips spot recommended by a few guidebooks I had read. It was a great first meal back in London! Great fish. I’m not sure I have ever had fish quite that good. And those chips were just perfect. I think I could easily live on fish & chips for every meal… Good value, too, even if we did sit down in the restaurant (cheaper if you “take away”).

Everything closes early in London. That is what we learned while there. If I was to go back I’d be sure to get an alarm clock and get up really early! Most shops and such close at 7pm. I’m not sure how people get everything done by 7 and what they do afterwards (pubs looked busy though)! In any case, we had a bit of time to stroll around Covent Garden before things shut down for the night. It’s a cool place and we of course ended up back there before leaving London. It was starting to rain but we did walk down towards Trafalgar Square and out to Westminster before calling it a night. It had been another long day.

Nov 28
This morning we were up early and headed straight for the Tower of London. It is so interesting to see how they have preserved all these old structures and how they sit right next to the modern City. It is a study in contrasts, to me. You would be so much less likely to see something like that in our country. We had 2-for-1 coupons at the Tower, which saved us a bunch of pounds. Justified our 7-day travelcards right there (they were required to use the coupons). Once inside, we were able to catch a Beefeater tour just getting started. He was so entertaining!! They really know just about everything there is to know about the history and he told lots of ancedotes about who had lived and died there over the years. After the tour, we saw the crown jewels. I mean, really, how anybody can wear those on their head is beyond me…. they look so heavy!

After some more fish & chips, it was time to head for yet another museum. This time it was the Dickens Museum near the Kings Cross station. We did take a minute to go find platform 9.75 (9 3/4) of Harry Potter fame. My sister would have been proud! The Dickens museum was very interesting. Unlike most of the other things we saw on this trip, it was small, manageable and not busy. A delightful change of pace if you ask me. He had a very interesting life and they had lots of things from his life that give a nice perspective on who he was.

From there, we traveled all the way across London to Harrods. On the Piccadilly Line. Around 5pm. Not recommended!!! Kings Cross has to be one of the busiest tube stops in all of London and that was a wild ride. But we made it to Harrods so mom was a happy camper, I think. We didn’t need to be there long as we couldn’t afford much anyway! Alas, this was the night I made some errors in my planning. According to my guidebook, the Victoria & Albert was open late on Wednesdays but this is apparently not the case! So we walked all the way over there (not really that far from Harrods) to be somewhat disappointed. Next door was the Natural History Museum which was supposed to have a Christmas Fair but that too was closed up for the night! And it was only a little past 7pm. London certainly is not the city that never sleeps…. We ended up back at Piccadilly Circus for some more pictures and just general strolling around.

I believe this was our night to eat at a British pub. We had a really great meal at the Cambridge — a pub located not far from Leicester Square. I had bangers and mash!! I was afraid at first but they ended up being really excellent. I mean I’m not sure I’d want that everyday but it was still good. Next time I’d like to try some of the other really neat places in London. I really did think all the food we had there was really great — not at all how we had been lead to believe it would be.

Nov 29
Our last day in London!!!
For a bit of change of pace, we decided to spend our last morning out in Greenwich. The trip out there on the DLR was covered on our travelcards so there was no additional cost and I had heard it was a nice little excursion outside of central London. This time I think I was spot on! Greenwich is an absolutely lovely spot with this huge green park. I swear it was just about the greenest park I have ever seen!

Taking the DLR was fun as well, as there is no driver. We stood right up front and could see it navigating the overground tracks all the way out to Greenwich. The Docklands area is really different from central London as well — very modern. Once in Greenwich though, it was back to old narrow streets and wonderful architecture. Our first stop was the little market not far from the main town. Mom enjoyed this market as well and got a few last things to take home with her.

From there it was on to the Maritime Museum (we certainly couldn’t have a day without a museum). I think this was our favorite museum in London. It really is a complete account of the maritime history of Britain and really of all the world’s ships and such. They had everything from models of pirate ships, to an art exhibit on what sailors have worn over the years, to some things on more modern cruise ships. It really did span the whole of maritime history. I don’t think we nearly did it justice so I would certainly recommend a return trip on that one.

Of course the reason to go to Greenwich is to straddle the Prime Meridian so we next walked up the hill to the Greenwich Observatory. This is the spot from which all longitude is measured in all the world. It also has a very official clock so everybody has to set their time up there as well. We just missed the 1pm “timeball”, unfortunately. There was again a museum up there with a few exhibits on the prime meridian and timekeeping in general. And the view was absolutely amazing of all of Greenwich and the Docklands.
And, of course, we did get our picture taken in two hemispheres at once!

It was then time to return to London. We had to maximize our last day in this great city! The DLR only takes about half an hour or so. Probably saves a lot of time over the old way of getting out there. I think it was possible to take a boat as well, but time was of the essence. We had planned on getting to St. Paul’s before it closed but unfortunately they seem to close at 3pm and we just missed it. I took a few pictures of the outside though. Something for next time!

Another busy Tube journey later and we were on Oxford Street, where we weren’t exactly alone…. There were shoppers everywhere! And the streets were really decorated up nicely (although I must say I think Paris does Christmas a little more festively). We visited all the big stores and a few smaller ones too. There were some streets just off of Oxford Street that seemed prettier and less crowded. It was fun walking down Bond Street even if we couldn’t actually afford anything! Our feet were *really* getting sore at this point but I wanted to get back to Covent Garden before it closed, which we did. And mom got to see a bit of their Christmas fair as well (although, yes, it was about closed for the day as well). I had plans for something more impressive, but we ended up eating at this little Cornish Pasty shop right at Covent Garden. You know what? It was great! I would highly recommend it. I was proud of myself since I didn’t eat at any “American” places the whole time I was over there!

We wanted to end our trip with something really “London”. We couldn’t think of anything better than going to Westminster and standing in front of Parliament one last time. And hearing Big Ben sound 10pm one last time. The sound it makes is unlike any bell I’ve ever heard. Really was a great way to top off such an awesome trip! I love London!!!!

Nov 30
Got woke up early by a firealarm at the Travelodge!! Maybe it was just as well as it got us up and around. It took longer to get to Heathrow than I had expected. We did stop in at Pret & Manger for breakfast. I was really, really glad of this as the food on the plane wasn’t so hot this time and we didn’t really end up eating again until we go to Toronto! Good place for breakfast though. I’d like to try their lunch next time out.

After this and the long ride out to Heathrow on the tube, the rest of the day was uneventful and we arrived home as expected after a long and eventful trip. I’m ready to go back…..

Underground Pics
Although it doesn’t fit in with the commentary here are a few of my favorite pictures from the London Underground:

To view the rest of my pictures: London and Paris 2008

Go back to:
Part 1 – London
Part 2 – Paris

Nov 24
The Eurostar whisked us from London to Paris in just over two hours, so we were easily in Paris in time for dinner (note that we didn’t take advantage of this — i’m just saying we could have)! The train really is lovely to ride on and we had no problems whatsoever. Of course on our arrival in Paris, we had a bit of culture shock as we had never been in a country where English is not the primary language! I had done all my research but I was still a bit unsure as to what to do. I knew we needed an RER train to our hotel, but I wasn’t sure how to get tickets. But eventually, we found our way to the right platform and even managed to get on the right train so all was well.

We went straight to our hotel in the Latin Quarter, the Hotel Cluny Sorbonne. It is in a lovely location right across from the Sorbonne. There were also quite a few restaurants located in the general area. It is located on a quiet street, however. The hotel itself is extremely small. You have to “buzz” the door to gain entry and the lift (elevator) is only really big enough for one person. But it worked and eventually I figured out how to get into our room, which was equipped with two twin beds. It was small but clean and well-located.

Since we were in Paris, the first thing we really wanted to see was the Eiffel Tower. We kept thinking that is something you read about, maybe see in a movie or something — not something you actually get to go and SEE. In person! But there it was, towering above us, glittering in the night sky.

Ah, yes, we were now officially in Paris! It really is glorious to see and there was nothing quite like our first glimpse of it. We opted to just go to level #2, although I think we probably could have made it all the way to the top if we had wanted. Something to come back for, I think. The view from even the second level was spectacular, with the Seine River flowing out below us and the lights of Paris radiating in every direction. No picture can ever really do it justice. It was pretty cold up there but I think it was a long time before we even noticed! The view took your breath away, really. But, alas, eventually we had to come back down to reality (where of course many more pictures were taken). From there, we strolled along the Seine until I could figure out how to get back to the hotel on the Metro… Later, we managed to find a really amazing Italian place in the Latin Quarter, not far from our hotel. It was late, we were tired, but this was Paris!

Nov 25
After a good night’s rest, we were ready to do some more exploring. We stopped in a little cafe in the Place de la Sorbonne. It was a great little place and for about 6 Euros each, we got a breakfast of croissants, bread, jam, and coffee or hot chocolate. I don’t think I’ve ever had hot chocolate like they had in Paris. C’est Magnifique!

We then walked up the street and across the River to Ile de Cite. This is where several of Paris’ most famous sites are located. We headed first to the Conciergerie and Sainte Chapelle. We got a 2-day Paris Museum Pass. I highly recommend this pass as it did save us some money, and saved us quite a bit of time waiting in lines at several of the museums. The Conciergerie is the prison where Marie Antoinette was held after the French Revolution, so there was quite a bit of information on what happened during that volatile period in French history. There was also an interesting display in the great room. There were several cells, along with her Chapel that I believe was built by Louis XVIII, after her death. Afterwards, we went to Sainte Chapelle. Of all the churches we visited, I truly think this one was the most spectacular. The stained glass was absolutely breathtaking. It was completely surrounded by glass, each of which apparently tells a different story. It was great to just stand inside there and take it all in. But, of course we couldn’t do that long — we had a schedule to keep!

Next stop was the Notre Dame Cathedral, located on the other side of the (small) island. Of course this was an even larger structure, which is famous from the movie the Hunchback of Notre Dame (along with many other movies I would imagine). It is in the exact center of Paris, the point at which all other distances in France are measured. So it’s importance is rather obvious. The area around here was rather busy as it seems that we weren’t the only ones interested in this great piece of architecture. We did have to stand in a short line here to go through security, but it wasn’t bad. Once inside, the gothic masterpiece again inspired us. It was neat to just stand and look up at the great spires of the cathedral. There are monuments lining the edges of the church as well, so we spent a great deal of time taking all these in as well. Of course we couldn’t read much but I do think we got the idea. The Catholic symbolism was everywhere and again we felt very small and somber. But sad as well. Hard to really put a finger on that one.

Mom will want me to point out that we had the most AMAZING sandwich at some little stand right across from Notre Dame. It was again a bit cold so I think we had a hot chocolate as well. But the ham & cheese was to die for. If anybody knows what kind of cheese that is, we would love to know, although we are sure it wouldn’t be the same here anyway….

From there, we walked along the Ile Sainte-Louis, where there were a few shops. Had some absolutely amazing chocolate and I think mom stopped in a few toy shops. It seemed that everything here was open, even though it was Sunday. Also stopped in the very famous ice cream shop, Berthillon. It was pretty good, although I don’t think it was the best ice cream I’ve ever had or anything. I think we had better food in Paris. Nothing was really what I’d call “bad”. Anyway, next stop was the Marais, as I knew mom would be ready to be getting some shopping in by this time. And shop she did, along with every person in Paris I think! It was wall-to-wall people along every street we were on. Yet, cars still seemed to flow through somehow. We stopped in at Place Voyages, which is a rather nice little park in the Marais. Restaurants line this area, so it would also be a good place to eat.

Our last stop of the day was the Pompidou Museum, which is open late so I thought we would try to squeeze it in. I actually did have a bit of trouble finding it, but roaming and getting lost is half the fun in Paris anyway, right? The museum itself is probably better than the Tate in London, but they are very different. This building is rather distinctive though! And the art is very “out there”, maybe moreso than any other museum I have been to. I think mom fell asleep though — maybe modern art isn’t her thing!! Afterwards, we had a rather forgetable dinner before strolling around the Latin Quarter a bit more. Another great day in Paris!

Nov 26
We awoke early for our date with Mona…. Lisa, that is! This was our morning to take in the Louvre Museum. It was a bright, sunny Monday in Paris so all was set for the perfect day. It wasn’t far, so we just walked over to the museum, entering from the backside into a huge courtyard. I rather think I liked this entry point as it took us a slightly less traveled way, although we did make it to the famous pyramid eventually. This part of Paris if very different from the Latin Quarter — much more businesslike, I think. Anyway, we took all the requisite pictures in front of the pyramid before entering the grand museum. There were tourists everywhere! By far the busiest place we visited on this trip. But, then again, this is the LOUVRE. I mean, this is the museum by which all other museums are judged, I think. And it certainly didn’t disappoint. There was artwork everywhere, each one more impressive than the last. Well, except for Mona herself. She was rather small, and isolated in this big glass cage. Not at all like we imagined, but maybe that is what it’s all about. She knows what’s going on, even if nobody else does. We only spent a few hours at the Louvre, really only doing one main “wing”. There is lots left to explore for a future trip…

We then walked through the Tulleries Park all the way to the Orangerie Museum. This was a last-minute addition on my part. Mom had mentioned how she enjoyed Monet, and I knew he was supposed to have some impressive painting in this museum (and it was covered by our pass). The “Water Lillies” as I think they are called are absolutely breathtaking. They take up 2-3 entire rooms, curved along the walls. You really have to stand back to really get the full impact of the art. I think these were my favorite works of art for the entire trip. Very much worth the trip.

Next, we hopped on the metro up to Montmarte. At this point I just want to comment that we overall preferred the London Underground to the Paris Metro. Both systems were managed well and the trains actually ran more frequently in Paris I think. But the trains were nicer in London and a bit easier to get onto. And both had lots of walking to switch, but the Les Halles Metro connection was especially tricky in Paris. Good systems both of them, however. Much better than what we have in most of the States!

Anyway, as to Montmarte. Very pretty area! And the Basilica was really amazing. I will note though that this was the only area that really made me uncomfortable. There were what I think much have been scam artists in the park right below Sacre Coeur. They were trying to tie something to you, after which, I’m fairly certain they would want some money. We managed to brush them off and get to the Furnicular, which takes you up the hill. But many, many folks got hit up for cash. Something to be aware of.

Once at the top of the hill though, we experienced no troubles and the view was really amazing. You could pretty much see all of Paris from up there! I did walk down the stairs a bit to try and get a few pictures. The Eiffel Tower was rather far in the distance. Sacre Coeur itself is totally different from every other church we saw and beautiful in its own right, I think. This is a great place for tourists to come and spend an afternoon. Down the street, there are lots of touristy shops and cafes. And Place du Terre, which is where all the artists congregate hoping to sell you a painting. I thought they were great, but I’m no art expert. If I had a way to bring it home, I certainly would have been tempted.

As you can see, this was nothing if not a busy day! I wanted mom to get in some shopping, so we headed for the area around the Opera, where the Galleries Lafayette and several other major stores were located. This certainly didn’t disappoint as they had really gone all out for Christmas. The lights flowed up and down the grand avenue. Inside the store looked more like a great cathedral than a store. And there were shoppers everywhere — very busy place indeed. All the windows had cute little themes, just like in New York but maybe even better yet.

Here I made a bit of an error in judgement, thinking we could just walk over to the Champs Elysees, where the lights were coming on that evening. Turns out it was *much* further than anticipated! (Google claims it was actually 2.6 km but it felt much further than that, especially on our weary feet — we should have taken the Metro). Anyway, after our very long walk we arrived at the most beautiful “street” (almost feels wrong to call it a street) in the world! This is the opposite of most streets in Paris — very wide and lined with wonderful trees. And, of course, at the end of it is the Arc de Triomphe. Of all the grand sites in Paris, this may be the most impressive of all. There were more shops to go into, but at this point I think we were a bit too tired to really enjoy them anyway so we focused mostly on siteseeing (and taking lots and lots of pictures). I thought this would be a great place to end our Paris experience in any case. So we walked all the way up to Place Charles de Gaulle, where the Arc is actually located. I’m not sure I’ve ever been to a place with so many camera snapping up pictures. Everything was just perfect though — from the lights to the trees to all the monuments. It really is Paris at its finest. Mom couldn’t quite handle all the stairs, but I ran up to the top of the Arc de Triomphe and went crazy with the camera. Up there may just be the most lovely vantage point to see all of Paris. The view of the Eiffel Tower is unparalleled, at least from all the places we went to. It was cold though, so I think that’s why some of my pictures came out so blurry!

We took the Metro back to the Latin Quarter for dinner. There were so many restaurants there it was really hard to choose one. Whether we always picked the best one didn’t really matter. We were in Paris and everything tasted wonderful to us. This was one long day though, so we were awfully glad to get back to the hotel for some much needed rest.

Nov 27
Our last morning in Paris!
We had breakfast in the hotel. I do think the little cafe on the corner was better but this was good as well. The jam and butter tastes so good over there! Maybe it is just fresher. We only had a bit of time so we did a stroll around the Latin Quarter. We walked by the Pantheon and headed for the market on Rue Mouffetard. I think mom enjoyed this market almost most of all. There was a little shop for every item one might need. It was quiet as I think it was just getting going for the day but that was probably best for us as our lack of French didn’t hold us back nearly so much! We bought some basic things to eat at the train station before heading back to London. The trip back to Gare du Nord was uneventful and we arrived with plenty of time to spare this time.

Overall, I must say that Paris truly is a city to fall in love with, or a city in which to fall in love. It is really amazingly beautiful. I have never been in a place where almost everything you see is a work of art in and of itself. They are a proud people but we didn’t find them to be rude at all. On the contrary, I would say they were nothing but polite to us the entire time we were there. And we never had any issues with the language either. If english was a problem, we could always muddle our way through. Paris is great!

To continue reading the last segment: London, Part 3
(Return to London, Part 1)

To view all my pictures: London Paris Album

Nov. 22-23:

On Thanksgiving day, we flew from Detroit to Toronto and onto Heathrow Airport in London. There was a bit of bad weather in Toronto so we arrived about an hour late to London. It was still rather early in the morning, however. We slept a bit on the plane and felt like we got great service on Air Canada. After a quick run through customs (which went very well), we found the Underground station at Heathrow. We got two 7-day travelcards and were on our way to London!

We weren’t able to check into our hotel, the Holiday Inn Kensington Forum, but left our bags there before heading out to explore London. I thought this was a very decent hotel in a great location as far as transport links goes. I think there are three Underground lines at the Gloucester Road stop, which was right around the corner from the hotel.

We decided to work out the cobwebs from the flight and to get right into the London experience, we would walk towards Buckingham Palace. It turned out to be a bit further than I thought but we did pass by Harrods which I think mom enjoyed. Also a few museums (which it turned out we probably should have stopped in at). Eventually, though, we arrived at St. James Park, which was absolutely beautiful. You’d never know it was late November. From there it was on to Buckingham Palace. Although maybe not the most awe-inspiring place, it certainly was interesting to see the changing of the guard. Really, I don’t think there is a better way to start off a London vacation. There were SO many people there!!! Very exciting to see all the pomp and circumstance.

From there, we walked down towards Paliament and Big Ben. The first site of Big Ben was really exciting! I’m not sure it was until then that I really realized that I was in London! It’s a very busy area during the day and I took loads of pictures of course. Across the street is Westminster Abbey, which is like 1000 years old. So we got in line to see it, of course. Very somber place. More like a huge mausoleum than a church from my perspective, but it was very interesting to see all the graves and monuments to so many famous people. You couldn’t take pictures inside but I got several of the old exterior structure. At this point we were beat so we hopped on the Tube back to the hotel for a bit of rest…

After our nap, we went around the corner to a small chain restaurant for dinner. It wasn’t anything too special but we were really hungry so I think it worked for that purpose anyway. There are lots of nice looking places to eat but it was a bit early so several of them either weren’t open or looked fairly dead. I never think it’s good to be the only one eating in a place. After dinner, we hopped back on the tube to take us to the Tate Modern. This is a huge museum of modern art housed in an old power station. There is a cavernous hall with very little art that you enter first. Unfortunately, we were really too sleepy to enjoy it, but I was glad we went. Outside is the Millennium Bridge and St. Paul’s across the river. It’s worth the trip just for those sites, I think. Also not far is Tower Bridge. So I took a bunch of pictures there as well. We capped off the night in Piccadilly Circus. Since it was a Friday night, the place was really hopping! Very fun place for a little treat.

Nov 24
We had breakfast at a little (and I mean little) French pastry shop across from the Gloucester Road Tube station, Paul. Very good pastries. I think I had my first chocolate pastry, but far from my last!!! It was excellent and highly recommended.

The Tube was a bit of a challenge on this particular day as much of the Piccadilly Line (and all of the Circle Line as it was Saturday) was shut down. So I had to think on my feet in order to get us up to Notting Hill. But TFL gave us a nice Tube map so I referred to that and figured out how to get where we needed to be. London Underground really is fairly easy to use once you get the hang of it. Anyway, this was market day on Portobello Road, so we headed up there for the morning. I think mom really enjoyed all the little markets in Europe and this one especially. It was very enjoyable. She got lots of little trinkets along the way. I do wish I had gotten a few more things though! And we should have eaten somewhere along there as it all smelled oh so good. Very fun place to spend a Saturday in any case.

Alas, I had plans on stopping in at a museum or perhaps strolling through the park but we opted instead to grab our bags. If we had time, we’d eat something at St. Pancras before boarding the Eurostar. Turns out that was the right decision!! From Gloucester Road to St. Pancras, one takes the Piccadilly Line. I don’t know why but on this particular Saturday, EVERYBODY was taking the Piccadilly Line no matter where they were going. So it was absolutely craziness, especiallly if you happened to be carrying 3 bags at the time… People would lean in when the door closed! And, of course, with all the crowds it must have taken an hour or so to get there. So we were rather pressed on time. We had no time to waste. I picked up our tickets and it was pretty much time to board the train, which is what we did. And we were off to PARIS!!!

The rest of the report-
Paris Report (Part 2)
Back to London (Part 3)

My photos are located here: London and Paris Album

The rock structures at this park are really amazing. I took a hike down into the canyon as you can see in the following picture.

This is what it looked like down there:

The “hoodoos” as they call them are various shapes and sizes. But all very big.

And they stretch as far as the eye can see:

Nearby Red Canyon:

I even got up really early one day to get the sunrise!!

Next stop was Capitol Reef NP, located near the middle of the state. The rock formations here were even bigger and more majestic.

Proof I was there!!

I took a 4-5 mile hike, by myself, in the heat of the day so I had to show this shot. It was much more impressive in person. They call this a natural bridge, as opposed to the later arches you will see.

This is the actual “capitol reef” formation, i believe.

My next park was Arches National Park. I got there just as the sun was setting on another nice day in Utah. This is called Park Avenue, I think.

Everywhere you turned there were more arches. I couldn’t keep track of what they were all called, but this one might have been Double Arch.

Another interesting arch:

The state symbol of Utah, called Delicate Arch:

Another long hike took me out to Landscape Arch. By this time I was getting hungry and tired!

I took a brief stop out at Canyonlands National Park. This park is high above the intersection of the Green and Colorado Rivers. It was stormy so I was lucky to not get hit by lightning!!

Interesting perspective through the arch.

Sun sets on another day in the desert.

My final park was Zion National Park, which truly is an amazing place. I think there are less pictures here but it was no less breathtaking.

Here’s a picture of the valley itself.

I hiked to a high lookout point to get this picture from the top.

On the way back to Vegas, I swung through the Valley of Fire. The lighting was really nice for this shot.

Back in Vegas, we see some of man’s creations.

This is the Venetian Casino.

Here is the reproduction of the Arc in Paris.

That’s just a few of the pictues. You can see there rest here:
Utah Pictures