Salzburg's Christmas Market: So Many People!

Hello again,

So the time has come to conclude this Bavarian vacation. Let me tell you about Salzburg... where the hills are alive with the sounds of crazy tourists bumping into each other at Christmas markets.

Last night, we went to the Christmas markets first. It was Saturday night (dumb idea on our part) on a weekend right before Christmas. The number of people at this Christmas market made me want to break out in hives. People just bump into each other holding their warm cups of gluhwein. I tried to see all of the ornaments but you couldn't really even get close enough to the stalls to buy anything. So, I tried Plan B. I located every single stall I wanted to buy from and planned to return early this morning. The view at night is wonderful... Christmas lights surround the entire town square and the view in the distance is the Hohensalzburg Castle. Click the link below to find out more.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hohensalzburg_Castle

So, this morning we had breakfast at the hotel. It was a bustling place, with a traditional European breakfast buffet (tea, coffee, deli meats, cheeses, bread, rolls, eggs, bacon, cereal, and yogurt). Then, we set off back down into the town center.

This morning was so much better! We got to the markets as they opened before the church crowd let out. We did sneak into the church where the von Trapps got married. A mass was going on- it was so cool! Note to tourists: Christmas markets are ridiculously more accessible during the day. I got tasty treats, ornaments, and knick knacks to bring home, all in under 45 minutes, thanks to my preview yesterday evening.

Then, we took the city bus to the other side of town across the river.

We wandered the streets and came across a little, tiny Christmas market serving BAKED POTATOES. Holy Cannoli. I got one with bacon, cheese, and GARLIC SOUR CREAM SAUCE. It was fantastic... deliciously warm, so garlicky, and easy to eat as we kept walking.

We walked through Getreidegasse, the more historic shopping district, where I found more delicious treats. It is a charming street with Christmas lights and virtually no cars driving through.

We ended our last evening of vacation at a little restaurant called Spaghetti and Company. It was adorable inside with black and white photographs of old Salzburg and wood panels. Peter had pizza... duh... and I had Penne Arrabiata. It was delightfully spicy- I was surprised as a lot of food in Europe is on the bland side. We finished eating with a bang- a homemade Apfelstrudel with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. I will show you a picture. It beats every apple pie or apple dessert I have ever eaten in the U.S.

We wandered slowly back to the hotel, taking in the views. We now sit in the hotel room, preparing to pack and watching the Sound of Music... which... surprisingly... runs 24 HOURS A DAY HERE ON T.V. Between Mozart and Sound of Music, the Austrians have it goin' on.

We have a long day of travel tomorrow and thus concludes Bavarian Christmas Tour 2013. As we prepare for Christmas in the coming days, I am thankful for you, those wonderfully special readers and friends to Peter and I.

"Welcome, Christmas, bring your cheer. Cheer to all Whos far and near. Christmas Day is in our grasp, so long as we have hands to clasp. Christmas Day will always be just as long as we have we. Welcome Christmas while we stand, heart to heart, and hand in hand."

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Love,
Katie and Peter

Frankfurt to Munich To Salzburg...

Season's Greetings!

It is Saturday evening here, after a whirlwind two days. Here is how it all went down...

Friday morning, we woke up at 7 am in Frankfurt. We got packed up, checked out of the fabulous Hilton hotel we had found on Hotwire, and walked to good ol' Dunkin Donuts. They have techni-colored donuts here. Some are flavored green apple and plum. This was a nice, cheap breakfast that we ate as we walked to pick up our rental car.

We found the rental place and Peter requested the Peugeot... a little French car I was hoping looked like his Honda Fit... well... the man at the desk said, "Mr. Wiley we give you upgrade to a Mercedes C220." I thought Peter was going to faint with joy. I thought, "Here we go... Peter on the Autobahn with no speed limit in a Mercedes..."

We got in the car and Peter grinned with pure happiness. We plugged in the address to our first destination... a little Medieval town called Rothenburg. We arrived in Rothenburg with no trouble at all. This little town is a walled city so you have to park on the outside and walk in. It is adorable! We happened upon a giant Christmas store called Kathe Wohlfahrt. Peter is amused by her last name. Ahem. This store is actually two giant stores full of millions of Christmas ornaments and decorations. It is insane!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I bought a Baby Jesus, an apple, and a Santa ornament. It was a tough decision...

Then we wandered the little Christmas market stands. I found some beautiful handcarved ornaments, Peter had more gludwein, I bought stollen bread (look it up!), and then I bought cookies. Lots of cookies. Butter cookie cut outs and jelly thumb prints. I planned on saving both of these but ended up finishing them last night for a snack. They were so soft and flavorful. I want more before we leave.

Our lunch consisted of a German version of flatbread pizza sold at one of the stands and wood-fired. We tried a flatbread with bacon and cheese. I don't even really know how to describe to you how good it was. I really don't. I am speechless. So, I will post a picture.

We jumped back in the car and hauled off to the Disney Castle...Neuschwanstein. I have posted the link below so you can read about it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuschwanstein_Castle

Ludwig II of Bavaria had it built. We actually decided to be cultural and pay to go inside. We had to walk about 2 miles up the mountain to see it. The view here is majestic. I definitely know why my man Ludwig decided to build his castle up here. The inside is ridiculous... the murals and furniture are so over the top. This man had access to some serious money. But alas, money can't buy everything because he was arrested by the Germans and died alone. The audio tour tells all about it. It's creepishly sad when you walk through.

Afterwards, we ran down the mountain, jumped back in the car, and set off for Munich. We hit some traffic coming in and finally found the garage where Peter kissed the Mercedes good bye. We found our hotel... a rather... shady Best Western. Hotwire did not deliver on this hotel. But that's ok. After dropping off our ridiculously heavy backpacks, we wandered out into the city of Munich. On the train, I got to people watch and the girls were DECKED TO THE NINES to go out on Friday night. I did not get the memo about needing to wear leather pants and platform heels. Darn it.

We wandered around in search of Hofbrauhaus, a giant beer hall. This was number one on Peter's list for this vacation so I went along with it. We wandered through a few Christmas markets with billions of people before we found it. It was INSANE! Thousands of people were inside sharing tables with huge beer steins. I turned to Peter and said, "I can't eat here." With a promise to come back and have a beer there later, we found McDonald's as my blood sugar began dipping dangerously low and the angry Katie came out. :) Peter loves this side of me...

I ordered a "Cheese and Beef," a cheeseburger with about 6 kinds of cheese on it. It was quite tasty. This was a nice, cheap meal and I continued my tradition of trying McDonald's in every country we visit. This McDonald's delivered- fries are the same.

Then, we returned to Hofbrauhaus. We wandered up and down the rows of tables for about 20 minutes before joining a table of 4 other people. Peter ordered a 1 liter mug of Pilsner. He was more than pleased with his selection and loved the atmosphere. I smiled and nodded. The noise was insane. Check that off the list of Bucket List items.

We made a quick stop at the train station to buy our train tickets for Salzburg and returned to the hotel to crash. After sleeping in until 9:30, we got up this morning and packed up to head over to the Christmas markets and the train station.

I found a painted glass ornament and a door decoration while Petey tried some more gludwein. We are collecting the cups from each Christmas market we go to. We have been successful so far and only have one more cup to achieve in Salzburg. My impression of Munich was okay... it is just another big city, in my opinion. Once you've seen a big city, you've seen them all. The real magic is in the journey between the cities.

We hopped the train for a 2 hour trip to Salzburg. We arrived in Salzburg this evening and my first impression of the city is that is is magical. The Alps hug the entire city so as you walk where Mozart grew up, you see view of snow-speckled peaks. The glacier water that runs through here is a vibrant blue-green. This is by far my favorite stop on this trip. I am so happy we have two nights here! I am going to save the description of their Christmas markets for tomorrow's entry. Tonight, we did see the markets, ate a Schnitzel sandwich and ham/cheese sandwich, and enjoyed a Cappucino/hot chocolate at a delightfully cozy little cafe. We are preparing to go to sleep early so I can purchase 15 more ornaments tomorrow, our last full day on this Christmas Market tour.

Hooray!

Cheers,
KT and PD

Frankfurt: Christmas Market 1

Season's Greetings-

Welcome from Frankfurt! Let's get down to business!

We left Dulles yesterday evening at 5:15 pm… it was a relatively good flight. We got Subway to take on the plane so I did not have to eat the nauseating airline food. I ate my sammich and turned on 21 Jump Street. I have seen this movie numerous times and still laugh hysterically when Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill are bike cops. I was laughing so hard I think I woke up some other people on the flight.

Then, I tried the difficult job of sleeping in an Economy Plus seat. I tried twisting and contorting into multiple shapes but nothing worked. I slept maybe two hours. Then, a continental breakfast came out consisting of a stale croissant and a little fruit cup. So, out came my own muffins from my backpack. I was set.

We arrived at 6:30 am this morning (12:30 am at home). It was pitch-black in Germany and I was delirious. We decided to check in at the Hilton and see if perhaps… maybe… our room might be ready. Guess what?!?! It was!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was so happy. We checked in and I crashed! We slept for 4 hours, showered, and set out into town. The temperature here is quite lovely- in the upper 30's and perfect for wandering in a big, puffy coat with a giant scarf.

We wandered the streets. I would compare Frankfurt to a calmer Washington, D.C. I like the feel of the city- the people are friendly… and there are CHRISTMAS MARKETS GALORE!

So, the markets have: ornaments, beeswax candles, hand painted crafts, BAZILLIONS OF GINGERBREAD COOKIES, warm Apfelwein (Apple Wine) and gludwein (warm wine), sausages upon sausages, sauerkraut, potatoes, cotton candy, hand painted cups, giant pretzels, chocolate covered everything, you name it!

We had Pizza Hut for lunch… a nice cheap alternative. There is a Pizza Hut stand and for 3 euros you can get a slice and a Coke. We sat in the cold and ate. I people-watched. No one wears Uggs here… it's kind of disconcerting…

Anywho… then we wandered to Starbucks (there is one on every street corner Sarah Bailey!!!!!!!!!). NO PUMPKIN SPICE LATTE THOUGH… it's shameful. I had to settle for a Caramel Hot Chocolate. It sufficed.

We began our wandering trek through the Christmas markets. I tried the Apfelwein… it is a very, very bitter apple cider. If you like wine and apple cider, you would love this drink. As for me, my go-to drink is a Bay Breeze so it didn't do it for me… and that's ok.

I tried a fluffy Gingerbread square… it's jet-puffed! Very spicy with hardened icing on top. It was quite tasty with my hot chocolate.

For dinner, we tried local favorites from the Christmas Market stalls. I had fried potato pancakes with a side of applesauce to dip them in. These are delicious… crispy, garlicy, oniony, and dipped in the stark contrast that is cold applesauce. I ate three of these giant gems. Mmmmmmmm.

Petey ate a giant bratwurst and a steak sandwich. I tried the Bratwurst… the flavor of the meat was wood-fired. It was quite delicious but I would have preferred to have smothered sauerkraut on top.

I ended my evening eating a Nutella crepe, hot off the griddle. It was perfectly cooked, doughy pancake, and the exact right amount of Nutella. OMG.

Now it is time to retire to the hotel. We have an early morning tomorrow… picking up our rental car, driving to Rothenburg's Christmas Market, seeing the Disney Castle, and onward to Munich. Tomorrow, the real hunt and purchase of tacky Christmas souvenirs begins.

Love to all,
KT and PD

CHRISTMAS MARKETS!

Gutend Aben,

(That's Good Evening in German). The time has come... we have saved our 120,000 miles to go to the GERMAN CHRISTMAS MARKETS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am so excited, I can hardly control myself. We shall be flying to Frankfurt Wednesday evening for a massively quick adventure through Germany and Austria. The entire purpose is to wander Christmas Markets, purchasing gingerbread and eating it in large handfuls as well as finding a plethora of Christmas ornaments.

So your next update shall come from the airport or Frankfurt.

Bis spatter,
(That's See You Later in German)

Katie and Petey

The Grand Finale of our Road Trip

Hello again! Here is the whirlwind explanation of our final two stops. We woke up at Mt. Washington with two more adventures on the list before we left for Maine. We went ATV riding first through the trails at the base of Mt. Washington! So fun! Peter drove and I held on for dear life. Peter hopped off at the end of the tour and started calculating monthly payments for an ATV at our cabin. Oh bother. We also took a ride up one of the ski lifts to take in one last view of Mount Washington in the sunshine.  Petey was quite sad to leave but we still had two more locations to go.

On the way out, we stopped at the Moat Mountain Brewery and restaurant because Peter wants to pick up some locally brewed beer. We had lunch: cheeseburger sliders with Chipotle mayo and a pepperoni pizza. Typical Brewery food, nothing outrageously amazing but not bad either. The drive to Kennebunkport, Maine was about an hour and ½. I fell asleep. We drove right into the town of Kennebunkport and it was bustling with tourists! Our hotel was right on the main strip with a gorgeous interior. We were upgraded to a room with a balcony which was AWESOME. So, we set off to wander the shops. All of the shops were similar, lots of nautical decorations and jewelry. The souvenirs here are quite pricey. We then drove to find the Bush residence. So cool! We saw Barbara and George Bush leave their home to go out to dinner in their mini entourage. I waved and took several photos.

We picked up dinner at a deli and I had a fresh turkey sandwich on wheat bread with Swiss and Thousand Island dressing. I also tried a fresh bowl of Clam Chowdah. This was one of my favorite meals on the trip. We watched the sun on the water from our deck. That night there was a crazy summer thunderstorm too! We went to bed early to get ready for our final destination of Boston.

The next morning, we had breakfast at the general store across the street. I had a famous wrap full of eggs, cheese, shredded hash browns, and bacon. Petey was sad because his bagel was burned. Oh well, you can’t win them all… so then we packed up and got in the car to drive to Boston. On our way to Boston, we took a quick detour to Salem, Massachusetts... home of those infamous Witch Trials.

This town is intense, to say the least. We got parked and lined right up to see the Wax Museum Show about the Witch Trials... creepy! Then, we walked the streets and saw all of the crazy Witch stores. It's a bit overdone. We finished our visit by speeding past the House of Seven Gables, the setting of Nathaniel Hawthorne's book. We refused to pay the entry fee so we appeased ourselves with pictures and some homemade ice cream before jumping into the car and speeding off to Boston. I am pleased with our decision to not spend the night here and move on to Boston. It's a much better day trip.

Boston was not far from Salem at all so we arrived fairly quickly. We found immediately that traffic was out of control. Bostonians stop at random places, sit across three lanes of traffic, and frequently run red lights. So, we circled round and round until we found a parking garage near our hotel. The hotel was ultra modern, so modern that they included a cannabis candle in the items you could take from the mini bar. Bizarre? We set out immediately in the Boston heat and just wandered. We found the ducks from Make Way For Ducklings and all of the historically famous graves like Paul Revere. We had lunch at a little deli and then tried the cupcake shop Isabelle's Curly Cakes owned by Chef Todd English's daughter. I was not impressed with these cupcakes in the slightest. Icing was entirely too abrasive.

We ended the evening at a little bar across the street from Sam Adams' grave. Peter wanted to have a Sam Adams across from Sam Adams so that is precisely what we did. I tried some Clam Chowdah. It was not very exciting... nothing to rave about.

The next morning, we woke up and got Dunkin' Donuts Coffee and jumped in the car. We had one last important stop of Northeast Roadtrip 2013... the Sam Adams Brewery Tour. We arrived  and got tickets but guess what? The tour was going through renovations so we basically went into a room and got more free samples instead of walking around. Peter was THRILLED.

We ended in the gift shop in which Peter bought a bottle opener to mount at the cabin. Then, we set off to drive all the way home. After a quick lunch stop at Boston Market (right outside of Boston, how clever), we hit New York City traffic at approximately 3:30 pm on a Friday afternoon. We sat for hours in the same spot and I almost had a panic attack because I wanted to get home so badly.

We arrived safely after a massive thunderstorm in Delaware and we crashed as soon as we walked into our house. Thus concludes the longest road trip we have ever taken so far... about 80 miles short of 2,000 miles in all.

Amen.

Conquering Mount Washington in a little Blue Fit...

Hello again!

So Tuesday of our vacation has proven to be the best day so far! I woke up around 7 and went for a run on the equestrian trail at the hotel. It was so beautiful to run next to the mountains in the gorgeous summer sun without the intense humidity for a change. I woke Petey up and we set off for THE Mount Washington. Let me give you a little bit of history. Petey and I had a math teacher in high school named Mr. Bailey. Peter was his aide for 2 or 3 semesters and listened to all of Mr. Bailey’s life stories with glee. Mr. Bailey spoke highly of climbing Mt. Washington so of course, Peter decided that he and I have to go do it. So… we drove for about 25 minutes and then reached the bottom of the mountain. O…M…G. It looked intimidating. You must pay to enter this oldest man-made attraction in North America BUT you get a complimentary bumper sticker that says, “This car climbed Mount Washington” in addition to a CD recording to listen to on your trek up. You must also pull over and read very intense directions about giving the right of way to people driving up and pumping your brakes on the way down. In addition, there are complimentary water spots to cool your brakes down when they overheat. Really?

So up we went. This man-made attraction has no guard rails. It is absolutely terrifying going 6,400 feet up and looking over rocky edges in which you could potentially plummet to your death in one false move. So, I did what any other girl would do… I cried. A lot. After about 35 minutes, we reached the top. There was ample parking, a few souvenir shops, and a weather station where scientists do work. Mt. Washington is the location where the fastest wind gusts have ever been recorded: 231 miles per hour. Needless to say, it was more than a little breezy up there. We went into the little museum in which I found out that two cats live there full time with the scientists. So, I listened to nothing else on our tour but instead asked all of the park rangers where the cats were. The short answer is the cats were hiding. Bummer. There is also a large sign listing all of the deaths on Mt. Washington. This was nothing short of intimidating- people have died from falling and hypothermia primarily. One of the guys in the 1800’s was just never seen again. SO CREEPY! We had a picnic lunch in the back of our trusty Fit and began the slow descent down the mountain. This was surprisingly less scary than the ascent. Upon reaching the bottom, Petey explained that this was the coolest thing ever and he wants to have a boys weekend in which he and friends will actually hike it. Ahem.

Back at the hotel, it was time for TEA at MT. WASHINGTON. Yeaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mt. Washington offers tea time at 2 and 3 pm. So, we got served a full afternoon tea in the Princess Room. Peter was THRILLED of course. J We had: English Breakfast tea, ham and cranberry mayo sandwiches, cucumber and dill mayo sandwiches, ginger scones, blueberry scones, and cranberry scones, a puff pastry, a key lime and coconut mini cake, and a flourless chocolate torte complete with a raspberry on top. Favorite part: ginger scones. The scones here are little teeny biscuits, slightly toasted on the outside with a fluffy center. Coupled with fresh cranberry spread, lemon curd, or Devonshire cream, you can’t go wrong! EVER!

After tea time, we asked about the hotel’s complimentary, “Drive a Volvo” program. Well guess what? You can take a Volvo out, drive it as long as you want, and return it without filling up the gas tank… because you want to. CRAZY! So, we got the little red sports car Volvo and drove it like we stole it. Haha just kidding. We drove to the Mountain Coaster and bought tickets. We flew around the Mountain Coaster and then drove until we found a bunch of cars pulled over on the side of the road. We followed them and found a giant spot on the creek with water about 8 feet deep. The perfect swimming hole! We stood with the water up to our knees in the sun. It was so lovely. I could move there.

We decided to have dinner at one of the Mt. Washington Hotel restaurants off the property called Fabyan’s Station. It sits in front of train tracks. We ate outside and had a delicious dinner selection to choose from. I chose the Thanksgiving feast: a piece of fresh bread, then turkey, then mashed potatoes, then stuffing, topped with fresh cranberry, and covered in homemade gravy. The freshness of this combination was unbelievable. Peter had a Caesar salad that was also ridiculously fresh. We hopped back into the car and drove back to the hotel to return our Volvo. Tuesday night we had one last sitting spell on the giant porch of the hotel, sharing a tasty brownie sundae and looking out at the mountains. We wandered down to the creek and looked at the stars. Petey showed me the Milky Way and it was so cool! I had never seen it before. What a romantic that Petey is… J

Love,

KT and PD

From Canada to New Hampshire!

Dear Friends,

A few more days have passed and I have been a major slacker keeping up with my blog! So here we go… Sunday morning we woke up and had a coffee and little snack from Starbuck’s. Then, we jumped in our trusty Fit and went to find the giant waterfall in Quebec City. We paid $11 to enter the park, about 15 minutes away from our hotel. We had to walk a wooden boardwalk pathway and when we got to the bridge that goes across the waterfall, I was scared to death. It was SO HIGH ABOVE THE GROUND! Peter walked back and forth on the bridge, taking dangerous photos and I hid on the side. I could not cross it. It was a repeat of my death defying trip up the Eiffel Tower. The waterfall was beautiful but then it was time to move on.

We searched for some food that was familiar and not disgusting. We found PFK…Poulet Fried Kentucky. The Canadian version of Kentucky Fried Chicken. It was not chicken, that’s for sure. The fries were good but the popcorn chicken should never be spoken of again.

We got back in the car and went to the historical part of Quebec City. The streets are virtually all cobblestone with tacky souvenir shops and gelato. We wandered the streets on this warm Sunday noting again how no one spoke English. Silly me! I purchased the most bitterly sour lemonade ever and we returned to cool off at the hotel.

For dinner, I was rather traumatized so Petey tried a different route for me. He suggested we go to the grocery store and buy little sandwiches. JACKPOT! The grocery store was a 5 minute walk from our hotel so we wandered there and selected a super cheap dinner. I had a delicious chicken salad roll and Petey had a ham sandwich he claimed was so good he wanted to buy 3 more. We wandered back to historic Quebec City where I found the best Canadian ornament of all: a bear carving painted as the Canadian flag. Eh? We ended the night sitting in a park with giant cannons and people watching…

On Monday morning, we woke up and left Canada super early. We had a long drive back into the U.S. and I needed some ‘merican normalcy. We drove from 9 am until about 12 and we happened upon the U.S. border! HALLELUJAH! We waited for 45 minutes in line and then hauled you know what on Vermont’s mountain roads.

We made a quick detour at Pizza Hut… seeing as how there were no little restaurants around. We ate lunch next to a giant gang of Canadian bikers who spoke like pirates. They laughed a lot so we laughed too.

We jumped back into the car to travel another hour or so to the White Mountains of New Hampshire. We made one more stop at Bishop’s Homemade Ice Cream shop. I had a brownie sundae with one giant scoop of coffee ice cream on top. The brownie was like chocolate dough, thin, and so smooth. The coffee ice cream was very mild in the way only homemade ice cream can be. OMG I couldn’t finish it. It was so delicious on this hot day. In this same town, we also found a horse cemetery. This creeped Petey and I out beyond belief so OF COURSE we had to go see it. Turns out this old man who lived in that town buried his horses because they were his only children. Bizarre little place…

We arrived at The Mount Washington Hotel at around 4:30 pm. This hotel is ABSOLUTELY in my top 3 hotels and vacation spots EVER. Holy cannoli. It looks like a majestic white castle set in front of the backdrop of the glorious White Mountains. It has a huge plantation house feel with a front porch that goes on forever. The hotel rooms are the perfect cross between Bed and Breakfast feel with modern amenities. It feels like home. I love every ounce of this place…

Last night we had dinner at Margarita Grill, a tex-mex style restaurant down the road. The cornbread here was TO DIE FOR, cut into giant triangles, a perfect blend of corn, flour, and sweetness. The texture was consistently fluffy. Peter also tried the local beer here and now we shall be on the hunt for more tomorrow before we leave! The tacos we had were fair, not spicy enough here up North.

We also played a rousing round of mountain mini golf in which I won (and by I, I mean Peter). On the drive home we saw a REAL MOOSE! HE WAS HUGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We capped off this beautiful day by having a drink out on the hotel porch at 10 pm. It was so magnificent, I haven’t been this relaxed in quite some time. The bartender made me the most ridiculously delicious bay breeze ever- adding a splash of orange juice in it. We explored the first floor and basement of the resort before retiring to our room. In the basement, there is a prohibition style speakeasy that has been here since the early 1900’s when the hotel was built. It is so freakin’ cool with a cave feel. The history tells of guests who drank alcohol from tea cups there during the Prohibition. The Gold Room here is also where the International Monetary Fund’s regulations were determined and signed in 1944. Cool, eh?

I shall share the best day of our adventure next…

Love to all,

KT and PD

Welcome to Canada!

Hello all,

What a slacker I am. So, I wrote detailed notes about our Northeast Vacation 2013 but I never posted them. So, coming to you 5 months late are the details of our trip. Here we go with part 1...

Bonjour Friends,

It is Day 2 of vacation and there is lots to tell! We left Frederick on Friday at 3 pm. It rained the ENTIRE time we drove Friday night. Our first stop was at Cabello’s somewhere in Pennsylvania, the largest hunting store I have ever been to. It is one step above a typical Bass Pro Shop because the stuffed animals are posed in violent positions… this particular Cabello’s has two bears attacking a moose… classy. I didn’t take a photo in case any younger audience members are reading.

Throughout this trip we have decided to find as many license plates as we can. Currently, I am winning with 23- five of which are Canadian provinces. Petey is slacking with 15- none of which are Canadian. I win.

We made it to North Jersey around 8:30 pm. We checked in at a quality Courtyard Marriot- still in the pouring rain. Then, we went in search for any food available. It took us 20 minutes just to find an Applebee’s because Jersey does not allow drivers to turn left. There are virtually no stop lights, just jug handles. So, we drove all over creation and arrived 20 minutes later. We had a fabulous waiter, a young guy who told us he had been to Baltimore and he “loves our food.” To which I thought to myself, of course he loves our food. Maryland is the best state there is.

The next morning, we left around 9 am. The hotel provided breakfast for $13 a person… we did not partake in this costly endeavor. Dunkin Donuts had to suffice. One chocolate frosted donut and an iced coffee later, we were on the road. We drove into New York and found a delightful little cupcakery called Fluffilicious in Albany. OMG. It was right off the high way… I had a chocolate chip cookie dough cupcake… consisting of vanilla cake, sugary vanilla icing, a soft scoop of cookie dough in the center, and chocolate chips. The cookie dough center was outstanding… the icing was very intense. I gave this cupcake 3.5 out of 5 sprinkles. I told the lady that I belong to THE Cupcake Club in Maryland… she did not seem too intimidated… ahem.

Then, we drove for another 3 hours up to Lake George in New York. It is like Deep Creek Lake on steroids- the lake is about 20 times the size of Deep Creek and goes on FOREVER. The little towns surrounding Lake George remind me of the summer homes in Dirty Dancing. Super cute place to vacation with a family. We stopped at a place called Cate’s Café. It was a little pizzeria with dining al fresco. We split one piece of cheese pizza and ordered a cheese and pepperoni calzone. The pizza was great- thin crust with olive oil and tasty, crispy cheese. The calzone… two thumbs down. L It was not cooked all the way through and full of ricotta cheese and mozzarella. We all know how scared Petey is of ricotta cheese and cream cheese- he couldn’t eat it. Oh well… still a charming place to stop.

Back on the road… we stopped at one rest stop right outside of Canada. They had a payphone. Really? I don’t think I have seen one of those in a long time…

Then, we reached the Canadian Border! Bonjour! We waited for 30 minutes to get through in a nice long line. One of the cars next to us was the Gucci Fiat 500. Classy. I guess?

When we crossed into Canada, it was very much like the U.S. in its terrain. But we thought the land would start to look a little different eventually. Nope… we had to drive about 2 hours to get to Quebec City. It was the straightest strip of highway I have ever been on in my life. SO BORING! And boy, do the Canadians LOVE techno. On the trip, we listened to Ace of Base songs over and over and over again. Since the strip of driving was so boring, we decided to play the alphabet game and find a written word somewhere on the scenery from A to Z in order. This became an intense game, I and Z being the toughest letters. We searched for a solid 30 minutes to find a word beginning with Z. I finally won this game too with the word Zone. Boo yah.

We entered Quebec City around 7:30 pm and found our hotel. The hotel is very modern and clean. But they want $22 to park your car. Mmmmm not so much. So, we found some parking and walked back to the hotel to check in. Back out into Canada we went to find dinner.

So maybe I didn’t realize how French the Canadians really are but holy cow! We walked down the street to find some dinner and EVERY restaurant had snails on the menu. ARE YOU SERIOUS? SNAILS? REALLY? IS THIS A JOKE?

We searched LONG AND HARD before arriving at a little teeny restaurant advertising pizza and pasta. Petey tried a cheese pizza and I got a small bowl of penne pomodoro. The bread was fresh and they served Coke which I needed to settle the bile rising in my throat at the thought of slippery, slimy snails going down. The best part of this dining experience was the waiter. He came back to our table at the end of the night and said, “Have a good evening, eh?” How stereotypically Canadian! LOVE IT!

We then happened upon a gelato shop. Petey selected Mint Chocolate Chip and I chose Cappucino. It is crazy how gelato settles even the most upset of stomachs. Then, we strolled back to the hotel. I will have to save today’s adventures for the next entry. Stay tuned- there is a near-death experience and a big improvement in the arena of food. No worries.

Love,

KT and PD

Vacation 2013: a little jaunt up North, eh?

Hello all,

The time has come for Vacation 2013: a road trip! Petey and I came to the conclusion that we have never taken a true, extended road trip. So, here we are. We leave Friday for a trip into Canada and the North East. Itinerary includes: Quebec City, Canada (home of Petit Champlain, the OLDEST shopping district in North America- holla!), the White Mountains of New Hampshire (where Peter thinks we might zipline- seriously?), Kennebunkport in Maine (home of where I plan to do some whale watching), and then a little trip into Salem and Boston Massachusetts. Salem is a necessary trip as I plan to investigate the Witch Trials and perhaps take some broomstick flying photos. Boston has a bazillion cupcakeries including Scratch and Treat Cupcake Bar. I will try to get to as many as I can in 1 day.

Pray that we can tolerate being in the car for such an extended period of time. We are planning to do some type of physical activity every hour- like stopping and doing jumping jacks or running for 10 minutes. After all, I plan to eat my way through all of the Northeast so I should plan on a little bit of physical activity, right?... Right.

So, the next blog post will probably be from Canada... eh?

Love,
KT and PD