River Cruising Through The Netherlands and Belgium
I saw the AMA Waterways ship moored early at the dock in Amsterdam and stepped on board. It was just the beginning of sailing for 7 days with tulip and chocolate anticipation. Seven days ahead of river cruising and I was ready to partake of as much as possible, and why not? It was vacation...
Three weeks of splendid travels ends with a fish dinner
Our last night in Lisbon and we decided to have dinner at the highly acclaimed Leao D ‘Ouro. The restaurant is a historic restaurant since 1842 and located in the bustling shopping area of Baixa. On the way, I asked our uber driver if the meat was good there since I had eaten plenty of...
Lunch and wine in Lisbon-a distinctly authentic meal
After our walking tour around Lisbon, my tour guide Pat Madeira and I needed a traditional lunch and headed to neighborhood restaurant, Esquina Da Bica. We ordered a trio of croquettes (meat, veal and cuttlefish), fish fritters, rice with tomatoes and tempura green beans. Plus good Portuguese wine. Pat pointed out the filling mixture for...
Dried Cod and Cherry Liqueur-Lisbon Style
Continuing on my walk through central Lisbon, my tour guide took me to a dried cod shop. Cod is big in Portugal and some claim it’s the national dish. I was told there’s 1001 recipes for using dried cod but everyone’s mother has a secret recipe which makes it 1002 recipes! Owner of the shop,...
Colorful Lisbon Inside and Outside
I spent the day traveling around Lisbon, Portugal using the Metro and my tour guide, Pat, (lisbonwithpats.com) told me you can tour the metro stations all day and see colorful tiles and art work. She was right, each step and turn had different tiles in shapes and colors which added to the beauty of this...
Welcome to Lisbon!
Hello Lisbon, Portugal. This 1.5 mile suspension bridge looks like the Golden Gate Bridge, right? If it weren’t’ for the famous Christ the King monument on the hill, I’d think I was in San Francisco. We arranged a half day tour with Simply Transfer and Tour and Andre picked us up at the Lisbon cruise...
Barcelona, full of color and tapas
Make sure to look at the street lights, said the narrator on the Hop on Hop off bus along Las Ramblas street in Barcelona, so I did. Next, make sure to visit the market, so I did and wow so colorful! The man selling Jamon hams was an expert slicing samples with his large knife....
Valencia, Spain for Paella
In Valencia, Spain, Paella is very serious cooking. I found a local restaurant to try for authentic paella and asked a Valencia tourist information officer his opinion. He took a good long look at the pictures of cooked paella at Alqueria del Pou restaurant and deemed it the real deal! We started with a pitcher...
Palma de Mallorca History and Chocolate
Palma de Mallorca, Spain is a beautiful seaside town and rich in history. Father Junipero Serra grew up here and left on his journey to start the missions in California and is remembered with his statue. Being from San Diego, I’m familiar with his legacy. One thing I remembered about Spain from a previous trip,...
Nice, France and the Lovely Promenade
The elegance of Nice, France. People strolled through the streets while walking the dog and appeared to be part of an artist’s canvas. I found this shop which captivated me with special sugars for crepes, flavored salts, dried potpourri and many lovely items I just couldn’t live without. How I wish there was a Girofle...
Wine Tasting in Wonderful Tuscany
The weather was perfect for wine tasting in Tuscany in the foothills of Pisa, Italy. On the way there in the motor coach, our tour guide explained the minerals and sea breezes make for some very good wines in this region. This was my opportunity to taste Sangiovese wine since I usually drink California Cab...
