My dearest readers! I can't believe it's the weekend—and another year has gone by. 2014 was a total blur, filled with lots of friends, adventure and fun. Thank you so much for continuing to read my blog. Lots of exciting changes are coming to it in the new year! I so appreciate that you stay in touch and keep up.
This December has gone by in a blink, too. I'm off for the next two weeks (taking a vacation from the blog, too!), but you can catch me on Instagram for lots of holiday updates and more.
Wishing you a lovely holiday!
xoxo
Rachel
PS: A helpful tip for New Year's Eve!
So, today is my birthday! To celebrate, I had the perfect (early) gift. A weekend in my favorite place in the world: Maine. Matt and I headed up there for Labor Day weekend to hit the beach, go fishing, read and relax. We had great weather and great company—so many of my cousins and their kids ended up making the trek north for the weekend, too. It was so much fun to see everyone and catch up on each other's lives.
Also, has anyone else played cornhole? This was only my second or third time. My dad built the boards above himself so that everyone in the family could play. On Saturday night, we had a family BBQ—and a high stakes tournament! The great part is the game is fun for all ages. For example, when the kids stepped up to throw, we had them take 10 giant steps forward to make things fair against the adults. :)
Did you have a nice long weekend? What did you do?
At last! The final leg of my European vacation this summer—three days in Padua and Venice, Italy. When Matt and I finally made it to Padua, we let out a small sigh of relief. We had trekked rom Sweden to our destination, and now we could truly kick back and relax. And since Matt had lived in Padua before, he was in his element playing tour guide here...
More from my European vacation! I know, I know—I'm really spacing this out. ;) A quick recap in case you missed it: I've already covered our time in Stockholm, Paris (Part 1 and 2), Aix-en-Provence, and Antibes. Now, Cinque Terre, Italy! After a bit of a delay due to a one-day train strike in Italy, we finally made our way to the colorful coastal town of Riomaggiore, the first stop in Cinque Terre. Even though the forecast predicted all grey and rainy days during our two-day stay, the weather completely cooperated, gifting us with loads of sun...
At last: all about Antibes! For anyone who has been keeping up with my travelogue of my trip to Europe this spring, this was the next stop (links to the other places I visited are below). From Provence, we took the high speed train to Antibes—a gorgeous coastal spot in the South of France, just past Cannes. After checking into our hotel, meandering through the streets, and finding a delicious café for an al fresco lunch, I already knew: this would be my favorite spot of the entire vacation. Here's why...
I mentioned yesterday that even though we only spent the weekend in Paris, I had to spread it out over two blog posts. There's just too much to say about that city! Matt always laughs at me: I've been to Paris twice now in the last two years , but it still tops my list of places I want to visit next. There's something about it that always makes me feel at home. Plus, it was great to go back after refreshing my French conversation skills in Brooklyn last fall. I felt so much more comfortable chatting and making my way around this time.
On Sunday, we woke up to sunshine, so decided it would be the perfect day to visit Montmartre, a place we missed on our last trip. We grabbed croissants at the boulangerie across from our apartment, and made our way to the metro...
It's hard to write about our weekend in Paris with just one post, so I broke it up into two separate entries so I had room to cover it all. :) It's just a two hour flight from Stockholm—so quick! Last time, we rented an apartment in St. Germain des Pres, so we decided to mix it up and stay in the 13th arrondissement this trip. There's nothing more fun than combing through the apartment listings on Airbnb to choose a place. We found an adorable 1-bedroom right next to Place D'Italie and knew in an instant, it was perfect for us.
So, I have some big news to share! Matt and I booked a trip to Paris for the spring. I'm so excited! We'll actually only be in the city of light for two days—we're squeezing in a weekend en route to Marseille, Nice, Aix-en-Provence, Cinque Terra, and Venice—but I'm so thrilled that we are going back. I loved our trip there last year, and am already feeling overwhelmed at all that I want to do and see that we didn't see before.
I'm also taking French classes at a lovely little language bookstore in Brooklyn to prepare. Even though I studied French for 10 years in high school and college, I'm amazed at how quickly I've forgotten it! It's been so fun to meet once a week and practice conversation with a teacher, and 15 other students.
More updates to come soon on this trip, but I'm happy to cross two of my goals off the list for 2013. :)
PS—A peek back at my trip to Paris last year here and here.
Finally! Pics from my trip to the west coast. Ah, just looking at these makes me want to hop the next flight back. I started the week in Southern California, visiting my younger sister in Irvine. Then, Matt and I made our way up the coast, stopping in Santa Ynez, San Luis Obispo and Modesto, before arriving in our final destination—San Francisco. Here, a few highlights:
*Wine tasting in Temecula: We stumbled upon Chapin Family Vineyards after a quick Yelp search, and loved it. It's a bit more tucked away than some of the other wineries there, but completely worth seeking it out. The 2009 Syrah is one of the best I have ever tried.
*Walking Crystal Cove Beach: My sister and I spent half a day walking this practically deserted beach. The cliffs on the coast make it feel like your own private escape. And at the end, a reward: Lunch at the Beachcomber Cafe, with outdoor seating so that you can take in the sights.
*Disneyland and California Adventure: Matt insisted we go—and I'm so glad we did. California Adventure is a completely unique experience. Grizzly Peak was my favorite part of the whole day (oh, and meeting Donald Duck!).
*Driving through Santa Ynez: It's where they filmed Sideways, but that's not the only reason we went. En route to San Luis Obispo, we stopped to check out a few wineries here. Sunstone Winery was one of the most gorgeous spots I've ever been.
*Pismo Beach: We were lucky enough to time our drive with the sunset—and got to sit on the pier and watch several surfers taking advantage of the dwindling daylight, too. What a beautiful beach! There are swings set up in a few different spots on the sand. So fun!
*Catching a Giants game at AT&T Park: Finally, I got to watch Buster Posey (one of my favorite baseball players) play at his home field. I love that kayakers actually sit out on the Bay to see if they can catch a homerun ball. Bonus: We went on fireworks night. Extra bonus: The Giants won!
*Golden Gate Park: Matt's sister and brother-in-law gave us a wonderful tour of the area surrounding the Golden Gate Bridge. There's nothing quite as exhilerating as peering over the edge of that bridge. Eek!
Have you been to California recently? What are your favorite things to do on the west coast?
Wow—didn't the 4th of July come and go so fast? As I was road tripping from Connecticut to Maine, I started thinking about the significance a single bridge can have as a trigger that vacation has begun. For example, when my sister and I were little, our family would pack up the car to make the 3-hour drive to our beach spot in Maine. It wasn't until we rounded the highway bend in New Hampshire and saw the Piscataqua Bridge in the distance that our anticipation would reach it's peak. We'd roll down the windows, blast the radio, and shriek with excitement as we crossed the state border, the first official marker that our vacation had begun.
When you embark on a summer trip—be it for a weekend or a week—is there a visual cue that reminds you that vacation starts now? What is it? I'd love to hear!
PS—Wedding updates coming soon. Both were beautiful, and so much fun! :)
(Image 1, 2, and 3)
My dear readers, I'm back! Took a few days off for a long weekend in Maine — an amazingly refreshing getaway before I start my new job this week. I haven't been to Popham Beach in five years, something I find hard to believe considering I used to spend the majority of my summer weekends there as a kid. I got in lots of beach time and time with my family including my sister Alyssa who was visiting from the West Coast! Above are a few shots from the trip. Hope you enjoy!
More about Maine here and here.
I can't stop thinking about a summer vacation in Maine. The shots above are of Popham Beach — my home away from home as a kid. My family used to spend the majority of the summer there, swimming and beach-combing all season long. Where did you spend vacations growing up? Have you ever been to Maine?
(Images via David MaherPhotos and mike87055 on Flickr)
As promised, here it is: my California adventure, part deux. For Labor Day weekend, I flew north to San Francisco. After a beautiful (and quick!) flight up the California coast, I arrived to see this: The Golden Gate Bridge. The first day was pea soup fog, but on day two, it burned off. What a sight to see!
On Saturday morning, we left the city fog behind and drove to Napa. Our day of wine tasting began at the Robert Mondavi vineyards.
Next, we checked out the Pride Mountain Vineyards in St. Helena.
Here are a couple shots from inside the caves at Pride during our private tour. The vineyards are 50 percent in Napa and 50 percent in Sonoma, illustrated by the well-marked town line on site. I love the label on this bottle of Merlot, but Pride's best wine was definitely their Cabernet.
We rounded out our weekend with a beautiful art deco-themed wedding in Danville. The setting? The Blackhawk Country Club at sunset. Gorgeous!
Pre-ceremony, the bride and groom provided guests with a few finishing touches. Although I'm pretty sure the fans were for the ladies, Matt couldn't resist.
The bride and groom say, "I do!"
This detail, I loved. How creative are these place cards? One olive please, shaken not stirred!
And no wedding is complete without a big sparkler send off! Until next time California. Thanks for a lovely visit!
Finally! Snaps from my trip to the West Coast. What a fantastic vacation it was! I'm going to post pics in two installments. This is part one. It all started in Southern California — I flew into LAX and got a small taste of Los Angeles before driving north to stay with my little sis. Here I am beach-hopping — Crystal Cove, Laguna, and more. The views were to.die.for.
On my first day there, we decided to venture into LA...
We messed around with Jaws at Universal Studios and went on the Studio Tour!
Here we are outside Jurassic Park — love that Steven Spielberg signed it "Roar!"
We stopped by the Hollywood Walk of Fame to say hello to Uncle Dave...
...and rounded out the day with sunset views from Mulholland Drive.
My biggest vacation goal was to visit Santa Catalina, the island my college a cappella group sang about. We rented a golf cart to drive around and see the sights.
The golf cart allowed us primo access — check out these views from the top!
Here we are leaving the island on the ferry, called the Catalina Flyer.
For my birthday, we went out for Mexican food and rooftop drinks on Laguna Beach.
And on my last night in SoCal, we managed to catch the most breathtaking sunset. Stay tuned for part two: my weekend adventure in San Francisco!
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