New York, New York February 9, 2012

C had an interview in NY at the end of last week, and so we decided I would head out on a Thursday night bus and spend the (three-day) weekend together in the Big Apple (before he took off for yet another week of interviews).  New York can be tiring, but we had a really fun weekend that was a good mix of taking it easy and exploring the city.  Here’s a map with most of our weekend’s activities marked in green (blue markers are from a weekend I spent in NYC in November, and pink ones are places we have yet to check out).

Crossing the Brooklyn Bridge

Some highlights:

* A few post-dinner stops at Eataly, mostly just for window shopping (but we tried some Pear Vanilla Sorbet and really loved it – magically creamy and not so icy as many sorbets)

* Our session with Freud (and our friend A)

* Some tasty breakfasts, including soft-boiled eggs at Le Pain Quotidien (a favorite of K) and smoked fish at Russ & Daughters (a favorite of C)

* Walking around the campus of “Columbia University in the City of New York” (and the UWS more generally…or is it just “UWS” with no “the”?  I’m obviously not a New Yorker)

* Seeing the dinosaurs at the American Museum of Natural History

* Assorted tasty treats at Burger Joint, Milk Bar, Momofuku Ssam Bar, and Motorino pizza

* Perusing the booths at the Brooklyn Flea Market and then walking across the Brooklyn Bridge back into Manhattan

* A Sunday morning ride on the Staten Island Ferry (great views of Lady Liberty)

We also tried to hunt down some Vendome macarons, first at Saks and then at their pop-up shop in Brooklyn. But Saks was out (“more on Tuesday”) and the pop-up shop never opened (“We put it on our website that the shop was cancelled.”  Um, no, you didn’t – I was looking at their website – and FB – as they were saying this to C.  Later that day the website was updated).  So we were 0 for 2 in locating what look to be delectable macarons. C’est la vie.

That Old Cape Magic August 23, 2011

It’s now been a few weeks since our visit to Cape Cod with K’s family. The only really not very good thing about the Cape is the traffic (and the crowds, and the beach parking situation, so I guess that is 3 things). I think everybody agrees.

But there are some wonderful things about the Cape. I’m not really going to do a google map for our visit to the Cape, since the great thing about being there was we could just relax and hang out at the beach.

But before I tell you about all the fun we had, let me just say, we stayed in Wellfleet, and had some pretty amazing croissants from PB Bistro. I recommend their croissants (and other breads) highly – but I also recommend bringing a book to read. They open at 7; I showed up at 6:45 and waited in line for 45 minutes before I was helped!

In any case, some of the fun we had on the Cape:

K, M, and C kayaking in the tidal marsh outside our house

The West End Breakwater (Provincetown)

The boys, oyster-shucking and -eating

Marconi Beach

Preparing the lobster boil for dad's birthday

The last day was a pretty disappointing 4 hour drive home (should be 2 hours). Including one hour in which we went 2 whole miles. But we had a frappe and fish and chips on the way home, so that pretty much made up for it. Almost.

Trip Report: Portland, ME July 29, 2011

As has been mentioned before, one of the very fun things about living in Boston is all the possibilities for day trips (5 states in addition to Massachusetts are in striking distance for day trips).  The weekend after we went to Montreal, our friend J came to town and we decided to head up to Portland, Maine for the day.  Portland is a pretty easy 2 hour drive north of Boston, and is a fun small city to explore.

Here’s a little map of our trip (plus a few places that we would have liked to visit had we had more time).

Our first stop upon arriving was Duckfat, a place known for belgian fries fried in duck fat.  We loved the fries (though they weren’t quite at the level of the ones in Marche Jean Talon in Montreal), and really loved the homemade sodas.

From the front: Creme Soda, Sunburst Soda (Citrus, Anise, Tarragon), and Grapefruit and Ginger Soda

Across the street from Duckfat we noticed a little bookshop…a cookbook bookshop, Rabelais.  We enjoyed browsing and chatting with the owner (and C got lots of interesting ideas from books about the science of cooking).

After this we headed down to the Casco Bay ferry terminal, and took a ferry over to Peak’s Island.  Peak’s Island is the sort of place that you imagine when thinking about what it might have been like to be at a New England summer house in the 1920s.  We rented bikes (and bought Moxie sodas) at a friendly little bike shop just up the street from the ferry dock, and pedaled around the perimeter of the island for the next hour or two, stopping along the way to explore the beaches and parks that we passed by.

Casco Bay Ferry

Peak's Island

We caught a ferry back to Portland and had a little time to wander around Commercial street (which is not actually that interesting) before dinner at Grace Restaurant.  I picked Grace because I was taken with the concept – it’s an old church that has been turned into a restaurant (and because we used to go to a church named Grace).  The building itself was striking, and the dining room was fascinating: the pulpit was moved near the front door and was where the host/hostess stood, lots of the seats were pews, and there was seating in both what would have been the main sanctuary as well on the balcony.  I peeked in the event space downstairs, and it pretty much looked like a church fellowship hall – which I guess is what it was!  In any case, the concept was great, and the food didn’t disappoint.  We particularly enjoyed a really fantastic gazpacho, tuna and scallop tartar, and their goat cheese gnocci.

Grace Restaurant

Needless to say, we headed back down to Boston with full stomachs, just as the sun was setting.  Not sure what Portland is like in the winter, but for a day trip during the summer, we thought it was pretty great (and much less crowded on a weekend day than the Cape, Newport, etc.)

Montreal 2011 July 16, 2011

It’s been a few weeks since our trip to Montreal, but I thought I’d still write up a little “Montreal Travel Guide/Trip Report” – better late than never, right?

All in all, we had a fantastic weekend.  Friday morning, we hit the road pretty early, after stopping for some breakfast at Hi-Rise (a tradition, at this point, on any non-work morning).  We drove through New Hampshire (best state motto in the union: “Live Free or Die”), and then Vermont.  Vermont is even more sparsely populated than we had imagined, and the capitol building in Montpelier (which we drove through) is smaller than the SF City Hall (which I suppose shouldn’t be that surprising since Vermont has fewer people than the city of San Francisco).  We didn’t see this in person, but let me just point out that Vermont has some peculiar tourism initiatives.

Just after noon, we pulled up to the Canadian border.  Unlike the border crossing on I-5 into BC, this border station was on a two-lane road, in the middle of nowhere, and there was absolutely no wait.  The Canadian official at the station  was perhaps the most pleasant immigration official with whom we’ve ever come into contact.

Nid de Poule

We had poutine at a little local fast food joint, stopped to taste ice cider and wine at a few places in the Eastern townships, and then headed to Nid de Poule, where we were both dining and sleeping that evening.  We stayed at NdP 3 years ago on our honeymoon, and since it was on the way to Montreal, thought it would be a fun place to revisit.  We weren’t disappointed – the “rustic table” dinner was amazing (though a bit overly heavy), and breakfast the next morning was fantastic as well.

Best Frites in the World!

We headed into Montreal mid-morning, and before checking in at the hotel, stopped by Marche Jean Talon, where we enjoyed lots of fresh fruit and vegetable samples, some pastries, and the best french fries in the world.

For the next several days, we explored Montreal.  Some highlights:

*Renting “Bixi” bikes and pedaling across town
*Running up Mont Royal and the great view of the city from the top
*Dinner at O’Thym (our favorite meal in Montreal, and a BYO establishment, to boot)
*Walking by the Jazz Festival in the evenings
*Breakfast at Le Cartet
*Fireworks over the St. Lawrence River on Saturday night

Here’s a map of our trip (plus a few places that we didn’t have a chance to visit but hear great things about).

Bixi Bikes

On July 4, we headed back across the border (an appropriate day to return to the States, we thought).  All in all, we had a fantastic time – both in Montreal, but also on the drives to and from…didn’t hit a single bit of traffic the entire time, and NH and VT are really pleasant states to drive through.

Fun in PNW December 24, 2009

We’ve had a fun week up in the Northwest – first K’s birthday party in Portland, an overnight at her house, and a chance to go to her church and wander around Portland.  How good to see an old friend. Kind of like french fries are a great vehicle for salt and ketchup, walking is a great vehicle for catching up.

Here’s us at the craft fair we wandered around (“The Festival of the Last Minute”):

Goofin' around...

Sunday night C and I took the train up to Seattle. It’s been pretty low-key, but we did get a chance to go to Pike Place (and of course get donuts); taste wine; and visit the long-talked-about La Carta de Oaxaca (which brought back memories of our 2004 Christmas adventures in Oaxaca).

Also, we finally waited out the line at Salumi. We’ve been once before, but gave up on the line (that wraps partway around the block). This time, we braved the cold and the line (which ended up being a 40 minute wait).  We decided it was worth it once – the meat was great - but might not always be worth the wait (on the other hand, we think we figured out the secret to not waiting).

Other than this, we’ve mostly been around the house, getting ready for the Scandinavian Smorgasbord (tonight), watching the Wire, and listening to The Statler Brother’s Christmas Album (the best Christmas album ever, to my mind).

C and I in line at Salumi

C's long-awaited meat plate

P chowing down on the mole (salami) mozzarella sandwich

Weekend Report October 27, 2009

We had a great time this weekend driving down to Santa Barbara for the nuptials of A and J. We left around noon on Friday and drove that day to San Luis Obispo/Pismo Beach, and then drove the rest of the way to SB on Saturday before the wedding. Sunday we meandered our way back home, driving along the Pacific Coast Highway (Hwy 1).

Some themes from our trip:

Sunsets

We saw two gorgeous sunsets – the first, on Saturday, from the patio of the Greek Orthodox church where the reception was held. The church was up on a hill, and from the patio you could see down into a lush valley with the ocean in the distance. The second, on Sunday, we saw at a pull out along Highway 1 in Big Sur, just north of Nepenthe (where we stopped for a drink, some cheese, and fries…but no sweet potato fritters – they took them off the menu!)

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Firestone Tri-tip sandwich, plus their "Pig Sandwich" (in the back) and the largest basket of fries we've ever seen.

Tri-tip Sandwiches

Unbeknownst to me before our adventures this weekend, tri-tip was “invented’ on the Central Coast, near where we were. We had tri-tip sandwiches (clearly a regional specialty) twice – on Friday night at the Firestone Grill in SLO, and on Sunday for lunch at the Country Market in Los Olivos. The Country Market sandwich was the better of the two, but had we ordered our tri-tip rare at Firestone it might have been a close call.

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• The Pacific Ocean We spent some quality time with the Pacific, first taking a morning walk along Pismo Beach on Saturday, and then soaking up gorgeous ocean views pretty much all day Sunday while driving along the (slightly windy) PCH. It was a beautiful, clear day – we couldn’t have asked for better weather.

At the Pismo Beach Pier

K and C at the ocean, near Cambria

The Pacific Coast Highway (and the Pacific)

View from Nepenthe

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Wildlife

Though not the reason for our trip, we came across a number of different animals: peacocks; elephant seals; and a big bass!

Big peacock

Adolescent peacock, trying to show off

Elephant seal sunning on the beach

Elephant seals at war

C and the bass

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• Wine We stopped in to taste wine at a few wineries in the San Luis Obispo area. Vineyards are beautiful in the fall (and especially beautiful to us, since we visited Napa in the fall just before we started dating in 2005). Our favorite stops were Claiborne & Churchill and Wolff Vineyards.

C in 2005, eating grapes from the vineyard (photo by JG)

C in 2009, still up to no good!

Weekend in Point Reyes September 29, 2009

We had a wonderful (and very relaxing) time up in Point Reyes over the past few days. Here are some of the highlights:

We left straight from church on Sunday, and stopped by B-Star Bar for brunch on the way through San Francisco.  Following that, we had a long, windy drive over to west Marin, and were happy to get out of the car when we finally reached our first destination: the Tomales Point Trailhead at Pierce Point Ranch.

This is where the Tule Elk reserve is, and so we were hoping to see some wildlife (and enjoy the scenery). We did indeed see lots and lots of Tule Elk (see pictures below).

After the first afternoon of elk-watching, we headed over to our B & B, and from there went into town (Point Reyes Station) for dinner at a fun local restaurant called Osteria Stellina.  The dinner (slow cooked octopus with chiles, halibut over corn and potato sauce, and goat with kale and creamy polenta) was tasty, and the dessert (almond teacake with plum zinfandel compote) even better.
The next morning, we decided to try again to catch the elk rutting (“antler fighting”). We never caught them fighting, but saw a lot more of the elk, plus some other wildlife on a hike at Drake’s Estero: a cottontail bunny, a mountain lion, and a “jumping fish.”

On our way home, we stopped for a few tasty treats: Barbecued oysters from the Marshall Store, and pizza at Pizzeria Picco (one of K’s favorites) in Larkspur, where we had their special pizza (sausage, cheese, rapini, olives, peppers and fennel seeds) and soft-serve vanilla ice cream with olive oil and salt.

White Gulch, where we saw the largest congregation of elk

One of the bucks we saw at White Gulch, who was jockeying for position (and more female elk for his harem)

Another buck with his harem (yes, that really is what it is called...)

K and C watching for elk at White Gulch on a very chilly morning

K and C at Drake's Estero

As we were driving away, one last buck on the horizon

The tasty BBQ oysters in Marshall

C satisfied after the oyster lunch

Carmel July 20, 2009

My parents flew in to visit their college friends this weekend, and after that reunion C and I drove down with them to visit my grandparents at the coast. It was pretty overcast most of the weekend, but we still had lots of fun: walks along 17 mile drive and along the coast in Pacific Grove; a short hike at Point Lobos; lots of wildlife observation (ranging from ground squirrels and deer to seals and otters); a brief stop at the Carmel mission; dinner at Fifi’s and lunch at the Village Corner; and a great sermon at Carmel Pres. Here are a few pictures:

Home Sweet Home July 8, 2009

The travels have been fun, but we are happy to be back at home and sleeping in our own bed (although C leaves tomorrow for a few days in Bah-stun).

Some highlights:

• A beautiful sunset in Grand Junction
• Driving through the Colorado National Monument
• Kayaking with dolphins outside of Charleston
• Both breakfast and lunch at Hominy Grill
• Riding cruisers to and from the beach (and even through a lightening storm!)
• Celebrating Nana’s 80th (and hoping that I’m in such good shape at 80)
• An unexpected view of the County Fair fireworks from our hotel room in Merced
• A long awaited dinner (on our first anniversary) at Bouchon

Now, it’s back to the real world…

On the road again June 25, 2009

We are going to have a busy few weeks!  Our travels include: the Western Slope of Colorado; Charleston, SC (K); Merced (for Nana’s 80th and July 4th); Napa (for our FIRST anniversary); Boston (C). All within the next two weeks.

Around here, K has been job searching, swimming, and taking care of odds and ends; C is hard at work on his dissertation. We’ve also been trying to pick up tennis (since there are courts right around the corner from our apartment). Also, exciting news in the Featherstone household: the facilities people laid sod in the mud pit in front of our apartment – now we have grass!