That Mona Lisa moment.
If you’ve been to the Louvre in Paris, maybe you know it?
Awe and a twinge of disillusionment in the same breath.
Entering the gallery to see a tiny little painted woman smirking back across the room honestly underwhelmed me after a teenager’s lifetime of seeing reproductions plastered across canvas, t-shirts, and tapestries.
Then there are moments when reality exceeds expectations.
It’s possible to find hidden adventures in Pisa after visiting the Leaning Tower.
The trick is finding a friend who knows the secret escapes.
Confession: at times on our independent trip around the world, we are absolutely, unabashedly tourists.
“We’re foodies. We’re fans of great design. I love taking pictures. Ted loves drinking coffee. We play the tourist part, signing up for guided treks, sailing the seas on a cruise ship, and snapping cliched shots at guidebook hotspots…”
–Writing Honestly From the Road
When the opportunity to visit Pisa and see the monumental sights presented itself, we penciled out our itinerary excitedly as adventures began falling into place.
A Farmhouse Family Feast: Private Cooking Class and Farmhouse Visit with Walks of Italy
There’s an unmistakable aroma in the air when you visit a working farmhouse. Like a wild yeast grown from spirited spores dancing through the air, the scent is unique and recognizable all at once; a mystery capable of leavening age-old family traditions and responsible for flavoring a one-of-a-kind slice of life.
Golden farmstead-harvested-saffron infused risotto made during private cooking lessons with Walks of Italy at Il Fontanaro Agritourismo in rural Italy.
Chores of the seasons. Stories of family. Pride of a job well done. Joy of a meal shared around a huge table. Characteristics of farmhouse living recognizable from my own growing up years on a family farm, working the summer harvest alongside my siblings and cousins, cooking dinners with mom and dad, carrying the pride of eighth-generation-Oregon heritage.
To me, the ultimate treat in visiting another country is discovering true and beautiful strains of family living and farm production, making friends and celebrating the familiar and unique. Continue Reading…
Hello from sunny Beirut, Lebanon!
It’s been a quiet week on the blog and anything-but in real life.
Due both to lack of consistent wifi and an intentional choice to put priority on in-the-moment living, I skipped posting entries this past week (aside from Monday’s Portland/Bologna piece).
If you follow our updates in the Daily Travel Journal or read our flying tweets, you probably have a pretty accurate up to the moment sense of our location. Since the end of May, we ferried east from Italy, spent time in a quiet corner of Croatia, over-landed through a slice of Bosnia on our way to Montenegro, peeked at Kosovo out the window on our night ride to Macedonia, and hopped by plane from northeastern Greece to Cyprus en route to our June destination, Lebanon. Continue Reading…
You know how everyone talks about traveling to Italy to connect with distant family? We’re not Italian, but it turns out we had a long lost relative waiting to surprise us with a welcome.
You should’ve seen the look of bewilderment on our faces.
Like that scene from The Parent Trap: Hayley Mills, meet Hayley Mills.
Portland meet Bologna.
We blinked twice.
Portland, Oregon, U.S.A. and Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy were declared sister cities on June 5th, 2003. It’s nearly our ninth birthday.
Where have we been all of each others’ lives?! Continue Reading…
Paying a visit to the World Wildlife Foundation’s Nature Reserve near Orvieto, Umbria, Italy.
Italian Origami: Handmade Pasta at Casa Artusi
This post is dedicated to my dear friend, Sara B. She’s an Italian by birth and a genius in the kitchen by passion and practice. She’s been inspiring me since grade school, and it’ll be a fun day when we reunite in Oregon for an Italian feast.
Homemade pasta is to Italy what chocolate chip cookies are to America.
Everyone makes or knows someone who makes the best, every gourmet has their secret trick, and no one chooses a plastic package when grandma’s making a fresh batch.
Once you’ve eaten a steaming plate of fresh pasta, you’ll forever be ruined for the substitute.
Wine: Celli Vini & The Legend of Albana in Bertinoro
East of Bologna, the ancient medieval hilltop village of Bertinoro still feels like a fairytale, boasting a castle dating to 1000 A.D., a palace from 1306 A.D., a cathedral from the 16th century, views overlooking the plains and the coastline of the Adriatic sea yielding the hilltop the title, “Balcony of Romagna,” and wineries producing legendary golden Albana wines fit for a princess.
We took a train from Bologna east to the Adriatic Sea for an afternoon visit to the coastal town of Cesenatico, Italy and a bite of seafood, and unexpectedly ended up with front row seats to Frecce Tricolori’s aerial performance. Though we’re partial to the Blue Angels, these jets held their own. Continue Reading…
