Weekend Wanderings: Split, Croatia

So after a quick stick/manual lesson with the rental car people in Rovinj, we were off to Split! Jk, I didn't actually manage to learn to drive manual, they found an automatic for little old me. But we did end up in Split! It's a small but very old town and we stuck to the historic harbor area to enjoy some sea views and tons of sea food.

1) Dionyse's Palace - If you're a Game of Thrones fan, this is a lesser known filming location for the show. Dubrovnik gets the most credit for the show as it's the setting for King's Landing but Split was also used for dungeon scenes and palace shots. The palace itself remains the center of life in the old town. We didn't wander far from here but the walls of the palace shelter a number of small shops and restaurants within the structure and the basement catacombs have more artists and local merchants. Much like how it used to be back in the good old days.

2) Konoba Fetivi - This little seafood restaurant shares a kitchen with the restaurant across the street (really across the alleyway). We were able to walk up right when they opened around 5pm to request a table for later in the evening. By the time we went back for our reservation time, they were fully booked! Like most restaurants in the area, they have a selection of seafood dishes as well as catch of the day. The food was very good although we had no idea how to debone a fish and they didn't offer so we just kinda struggled through that process.

3) Konoba Marjan - Similar to Konoba Fetivia, 'konoba' means kitchen, this restaurant was small and fishy--in a great way. We made a reservation early in the evening, went for a walk and a drink before heading back for dinner. The waiter here was very informative, sharing the fish of the day (which we'd never heard of) and recommending wine to accompany our dinner. He also offered to debone the fish for us which was much better than us trying to do it ourselves. 

4) Bacvice Beach - A short walk from the harbor is a secluded beach with a small restaurant overlooking the sea. You can rent lounge chairs (someone will come around and charge you) or just enjoy the sandy beach. The sea itself is very calm and shallow for quite a distance so you can slowly wade in or float around on a nice day. There are also bathrooms in the cafe where you could order drinks to take down to the beach. And according to Google, has a great nightlife but we left to go get lunch.

5) Day Trips - We spent two nights in Split before taking a boat to Dubrovnik but there are plenty of oportunities to do day trips from Split. The ferries will take you to a variety of islands along the way to Dubrovnik including Hvar and you can also take a trip out to Plitvice which is a beautiful park full of waterfalls. We actually stopped at Plitvice on our way to Split and it was a great decision! I felt like I was transported to another planet and the trails are all easy to hike. You can also take boats around the park if you don't want to do too much walking. 

Weekend Wanderings: Rovinj, Croatia

Remember how I said I thought Venice was too romantic to visit without a partner? Well, Rovinj is actually the most romantic place I have ever been. Like serious sunsets on the rocks. After the hustle and bustle of Venice, Rovinj was a much-welcome break. There are a couple of main sites to see but otherwise, it's very small and very relaxing.

We ate SO well in Croatia overall but our host in Rovinj was particularly spot-on in her recommendations to us. Also, she had a big cat she held out the window to say goodbye to us (sorry, kitty!).

1) Segutra - This place is in one of the many alley-ways in Rovinj. You can sit inside or at tables in the alley outside (recommended). Like most places in Istria (the northern area of Croatia which was once part of Italy), seafood and pasta reign supreme here. So why not combine the two? My friend and I shared some seafood pasta and black risotto. Yes, the black ink of the risotto will turn your teeth black but just drink more wine. The waiter here was so happy with us because we cleaned our plates. How could anyone leave food behind??

2) Kantinon Tavern - Another favorite of our host, this restaurant is right on the harbor and has a great view of the old part of Rovinj. Sitting out here on a Monday, not being at work, with some wine and a giant cheese platter was pretty divine. The restaurant is also located right along a stretch of other restaurants and gelato shops which didn't hurt.

3) La Puntulina - If you want to eat at this restaurant or some of the other places on the rocks, you would be best served to get a reservation. However, if like us, you really just want to watch the sunset on the water as boats slowly go by, you can just walk up for drinks. We got a spot right on the edge of the rocks next to a swimming hole which gave us serious regret for not having our suits on. I half expected to witness a proposal here but alas, everyone was relaxing and watching the sunset. A German couple behind us took a picture of my friend and I being served our wine and they kindly AirDropped the photos to us (because technology).

4) Punta Corrente - We heard about this park and decided to go for a walk in here but again regretted not having our bathing suits as it was a great, quiet spot to go swimming or just lay out. We had some drinks from a bar mid-park which turned out to be very overpriced but worth it for sipping a pina colada on the Adriatic Sea while looking at the old city from afar. There were a couple hotels next to the park and people were riding bikes they presumably rented in town so is a good way to spend an afternoon.

5) Brist Olive Oil -  If you've rented a car, I would highly recommend visiting the small town of Vodnjan. We went to an olive oil tasting at Brist which sounds really strange because why would you drink olive oil but holy guacamole, you have not had olive oil before. We walked way with 7 bottles of olive oil between the two of us, it was that good (and makes good gifts!). The host there was Irish which was amusing but had married into this olive family. He recommended a restaurant for lunch, Vodnjanka, which had delicious truffle gnocchi and traditional fusi, a type of beef stew. Oh and truffle cheese because you can never have too much truffle oil -- or cheese.

Weekend Wanderings: Venice

Ah Venice! For some reason, I had in my head that Venice was this super romantic place and I should wait to go there until I was in a relationship and we could take a gondola ride together because romance. But alas, I skipped out on going to Venice when I visited Verona (a mere train ride away) and am tired of waiting. YOLO!!

Now don't get me wrong, Venice is amazing! But if you're being dumb like me and waiting for a partner, don't. Just go. You can make anywhere romantic or not (okay, maybe not aaaaanywhere), you'll enjoy Venice either way.

Outside of the usual sites like Rialto Bridge, Bridge of Sighs and taking a Gondola ride, here are some places we stumbled upon (via actual walking or Instagram) that would be worth a wander. Oh and some fun tips in case you arrive at like midnight and are getting lost on water buses like us...

1) Water Buses: Venice - the city of water, land of canals. It seems so exotic to travel by boat instead of bus! But if you're doing so late at night, like after 10pm, make sure you check the schedule at your particular stop. Even though we asked the ticket lady and she directed us to stop C, our little map told us that stop C closes after 10pm. But the lady told us to go there! Well, she was wrong and we should have just read the schedule and not waited half an hour at the wrong stop. So yeah, trust your instincts and double check stations after dark.

 

2) Mercati di Rialto - Obviously you should go to the Rialto Bridge, lined with shops and offering great views of the grand canal. But through the square, there is a large market that has locals and tourists alike shopping for goods. Seafood, flowers, meat, vegetables, fruit-- everything you could think of! Really made me want a kitchen for our trip so we could cook up some fresh food.

 

 

3) Libreria Acqua Alta- This was an Instagram discovery. You know how sometimes you're like "why do I have 500 Facebook friends, I definitely don't know half these people". I feel that way about Instagram sometimes where I've clearly followed someone because we met at a blogger event and I don't remember their real name. But if you stay following them, you get trip inspiration. Like my blogger friend Amy, who actually redesigned this site for me a few years back, who went to Venice the week before me! Cue making a list of destinations based on her Instagram, most notably this book store which is a) amazing and b) has a cool book staircase in the back overlooking a canal. Clearly a popular spot for photo shoots as we had to wait in a little bit of a line. Instagram-husbands/boyfriends were in full force.

4) Osteria Alla Staffa - There's probably not a bad place to get pasta or seafood but this little restaurant was very close to the bookstore and our hostel so in we went! The restaurant is cozy but they were able to seat us right away and although you are close to the other tables, it doesn't feel crowded. The staff were attentive and gave us recommendations on wine and local cuisine. 

5) I Tre Mercanti - Among the many tiny bridges that span the canals, was this little shop. Blink and you'll miss it! It's right on a corner going over a bridge so you can easily get swept up in the tourist groups walking across. Mini cannolis, chocolates and tiramisu, oh my! The woman working there was Scottish and greeted a seasonal English visitor by name when she came in having just arrived from the UK! Such a great feeling to know there are still regulars and people who know your name even now with all the digital clutter.

Weekend Wanderings: Amsterdam

I reached a point where I realized for all my lists of places I wanted to go, I hadn't booked anything or traveled in awhile. So I basically said, "here, hold my beer" to life and booked excursions for a month and a half. Tired of waiting around for "the right time" or someone to go with, just went for it. And surprise! Found people to come along for the ride. Because sometimes you just gotta go for it (that's what moving abroad was all about anyways).

I have long wanted to go to Amsterdam but as a top destination, most of my friends had already been so never booked it. Turns out there were still a few people in my boat and away we went! I had always wanted to visit the Anne Frank House and the Van Gogh museum came highly recommended so those were the two big ticket items on my list.

Here are some suggestions:

1) Anne Frank House

I don't even know where to start, this is a must-see for so many reasons. So instead, here are some tips and facts. I read the Diary of Anne Frank long ago as a teenager and it inspired me to write more. I think I even addressed my journal as Kitty for awhile. I reread the Diary in anticipation of visiting and since it had been a long time. Evidently there are three versions of the diary: the original Anne wrote, the version she edited to be published and a revised version which had additional pages added that were discovered later. I think the version I read the first time was the edited version but it had been further edited by her father initially for publication out of respect for those who had died. But the version I read this time had passages I didn't recall. All in all, it's amazing how similar and relatable people can be across time and experiences. And now a tip: the museum is currently undergoing renovation so you must book online ahead of time. Tickets are released 2 months ahead and go quickly but if it's sold out, you can also pay slightly more for an introductory educational program which includes entry to the museum. Those are available 2 weeks before and we were able to book it but went to the wrong place so missed the program, which wasn't the end of the world as we were still able to visit the museum and Annex.

2) Van Gogh Museum

I think Van Gogh is best known for Starry Night and cutting off his ear but there is so much more to his life and work! He didn't dedicate himself to art until later in life and largely gained fame after his death (like most artists, it seems). But it was due to the efforts of his sister in-law that his work was recognized posthumously. She was married to Vincent's brother who also died around the same time as Vincent so she was left with hundreds of paintings which she exhibited herself. It was her son who founded the permanent museum in Amsterdam to house the works. Van Gogh was also very interested in Japanese art and styled some of his works on famous Japanese art. Who knew?? Apparently a lot of people.

3) Blushing

Just across the street from the Van Gogh museum was this great brunch place, very hipster, complete with smoothie bowls. But conveniently located with wonderful outdoor seating.


4) G's Brunch

This was a fantastic find, they also have a brunch cruise which sounds amazing! They have the standard brunch offerings as well as some great cocktails. Off the beaten path, it was easy to walk in and get seating but was busy without feeling like you had to rush like with a lot of brunch hotspots.

5) The Butcher 

Okay, I know, you should eat local foods but these burgers--divine.

6) Cheese Museum

Pretty small but loads of cheese samples and there's a photo booth downstairs where you can dress up in some great styles and email yourself the photo. Then share with the world for fun:

 

7) Vondelpark 

Don't cycle in Amsterdam. Just don't do it. We saw so many crashes and arguments break out over the rules of cycling and even as a pedestrian, it was terrifying. Locals vs. locals, tourists vs. locals. Just no. But the park was beautiful and massive! There's a restaurant there, apparently called Vondelpark3, that looks like something out of Tower of Terror (in a good way!) and has a huge outdoor seating area. They offer a platter of Amsterdam cheese and meat which I naturally went for.

8) Keukenhof

I regret we were unable to go to this but it's still going on! So if you're going to Amsterdam in April-May at any point, there's a giant tulip festival where there appear to be acres of flowers. We were only there for a weekend so unfortunately didn't make it out there but there are buses that leave from the central terminal and airport that will allow you a few hours among the flowers before returning you to the city.

We did some of the regular tourist things like a canal tour but skipped the Rijksmuseum as the weather was amazing and we just wanted to be outside as much as possible. ALSO--there's a Dunkin' Donuts so you know that happened!

Ps: A "coffee shop" is not a coffee shop....

P is for Porto

You know how a couple years ago suddenly everyone was going to Iceland? We all drank the Northern Lights kool-aid. Well last year, the expats of England all went to Porto and I was like 'wait what?' and missed the boat. Fortunately, so did one of my expat friends so we popped on over to Porto for a weekend of sun and, of course, port!

Obviously I was expecting to have port and a bunch of pastel de natas but I was not prepared for peacocks. We spent part our afternoon walking around the botanical gardens and I was shocked by the shear number of peacocks hanging out! I'd never seen a full blown peacock in person, just individual feathers. They are beautiful and majestic and at one point, I was so close, I was worried they were like swans and might attack me (they didn't but I'm sure that's because they're use to people).

Here are some of the other places we went, things we ate and other things we drank!

• Tapabento- This was recommended by a friend who had previously been to Porto (like I said, we were late to the party). You absolutely need a reservation here but it's not a super fancy place. We were able to email them ahead of time for a table while we were in town. The menu was primarily seafood but it was delicious. 

• Letraria - This place is a diamond in the ruff. Located on a quiet residential street, it's the gateway to a magical beer garden complete with an orange tree, wild strawberries (maybe they're not wild if they've been intentionally planted...), mint bushes and adorable cats bouncing around in tall grass. Oh and their beer selection is great. Plus the staff are very friendly and gave us multiple samples to decide which beer we should taste in full.

• Franceshina - The typical sandwich of Porto, this is a thick sandwich stuffed with two types of meat and cheese, covered in more cheese and then doused in a tomato-tasting sauce. It's like a grilled cheese on steroids doused in soup. And it's amazing. Oh and it's called franceshina but we ate it at a restaurant called Franceshina and it was served by a waiter named Franceshina--just kidding, the waiter part didn't happen. The place was very quiet but the staff were very accommodating. They gave us sauteed mushrooms as an appetizer fo' free and then we finished the meal with a sample of port, to "help with digestion". They also had Wimbledon on so that didn't hurt either.

• Port - Cue all the port in Porto jokes! There's a stretch of wineries along the south bank of the river (generally referred to as Gaia) where you can choose from any number of places to do a tasting. We selected Calem, just out of convenience of time and price. After an opportunity to view their museum, we were taken on a tour of the winery. They don't bottle the port there but they do have the giant barrels and vats of port, ready and waiting to be bottled off site. 

• Zenith - In an effort to avoid super touristy places, we searched for 'hipster places in Porto' and Zenith popped up for brunch and cocktails. To be fair, it also appeared on a TripAdvisor list for top cafes in Porto. But for real, it's very hipster. We enjoyed smoothie bowls (#healthyaf) and shared sweet potato toast with avocado (because can you even have brunch without an avocado and not be a hipster?) and poached egg. We also saw yogurt parfaits and pancakes go by that made us second guess our choice of smoothie bowl. 

• Nutellandia - This magical place is just what it sounds like: a land of nutella. They had nutella milkshakes, nutella ice cream, and my favorite, Pastel de Nata (traditional egg custard pastry of Portugal) with nutella on it. And no, they don't have wifi, just enjoy the nutella. 

After all that eating, we opted for a nice, lazy beach day but unfortunately, the beaches were past the wall of mist so it wasn't very sunny or warm. But there were still loads of people on the beaches and we sat at a cafe sipping beers next to the water before heading back to the sunny side of town, pictured below.

Norwegian National Cake

Let's add a little world culture into the mix, shall we? As you know, I moved to London in May and have been excitedly exploring the city and getting adapted to the slightly different culture here. One of the things I was most excited for in moving was the accessibility to other countries and ability to travel more often. This started with a cruise around the Baltic Sea this summer which was an amazing way to sample a lot of rich history and culture in a short amount of time.

Part of the cruise was in Oslo, Norway. I got to see The Scream and the Vigeland Sculpture Garden, two big highlights in Oslo. But I found myself with a bank holiday weekend (basically a long-weekend) and a friend who really wanted to see some fjords in Norway so back to Oslo we went! Granted, fjords are not in Oslo so we drove west to Bergen and also stopped in Flam. This takes approximately 7 hours, btw.

Along the way though, we saw so much of Norway and the different landscapes. There were mountains and rocky plateaus, as well as huge cliffs and waterfalls. They definitely could have filmed Lord of the Rings here. We even had to stop for sheep crossing the road to go back into the hills!

Some must-haves of Norwegian cuisine include:

• Norwegian National Cake: We were on our way to a piano bar when we saw Cafe Cathedral which had a great patio. But it was against their policy to only serve drinks so we ordered this cake so we could enjoy the atmosphere (and some wine). Layers of light cake are sandwiched with a fluffy meringue or whipped topping. Almonds are also incorporated, almost like an almond sponge cake. It was super light without being overly sweet. That seemed to be a theme among sweets, nothing very heavy or overpowering. 

• Brown Cheese: This is a very common site, with most places offering brown cheese sandwiches which is a roll with a slice of brown cheese on them. We stopped in Flam at a highly recommended (and most excellent) cafe where you could add brown cheese to waffles! You could also get jam etc. but brown cheese seemed more authentic. 

• Skillingsboller (Schilling Cake): These are similar to cinnamon rolls but the ones I saw didn't have very much cinnamon filling, just a light dusting of sugar. The rolls are also a lighter dough than American cinnamon rolls but still delicious. Originally, these were sold for just a schilling, hence their name. Now they're a little more expensive but are readily available at Starbucks as well as homegrown bakeries like Baker Brun right on Bergen's wharf. 

If you're a big nature lover, definitely consider Norway when you're planning your next trip! The fjords can be boated around, hiked in or just cruised through. Regardless, you'll get stunning views and very fresh mountain air to clear your head. 

London Life

When I was getting ready to move to London, I knew there would be some things that were different about England. People driving on the left side of the road means I have to look in a different direction first before crossing the road (or look both directions multiple times). Plug converter was a must. And there were some things I hadn't heard about but read about in anticipation. And yet, there were still more things that caught me by surprise. All part of the adventure!

• Outlet Switches- Different plugs? Yes. But outlets have switches on them so if you forget to turn on the outlet, your phone will not charge. My guess is it's to save electricity and/or prevent fire.

• Fire Safety- Speaking of fire prevention, they take it very seriously here. Weekly fire alarm tests in public buildings, fire doors at every turn, I think the Great Fire really set the standard here.

• Measurements- You've read my laments (hopefully you've read them!!) about converting cups to grams but there's also Fahrenheit to Celcius. People get really shocked if you say it's 70 degrees in Boston...

• Dryers- I had read that most flats don't have dryers. But they have washers so it's a step up from most apartments in the States. But you know that lint screen in your dryer? What happens to all that lint if there's no dryer to fluff it out of your towels? It ends up on you and your floor. More vacuuming (sorry, "hoovering") required.

• Alright?- Even though I have since learned this slang term to mean "how are you doing?", whenever my flatmates ask me "alright?", I immediately grow concerned that I've done something or walked in a certain way to make them think I'm not alright. Nope, they're just being friendly. Chill out, American. 

• Rings- So this is more of a European thing but apparently, one doesn't always wear wedding rings on the left hand but sometimes on the right hand instead. This is a bit difficult because London is very international so I have noticed a fair number of people wearing rings on their right hand but my rings pretty much only fit on ring fingers. So now I play the game of do I let you try and figure out if I'm married or do I stuff a ring on my middle finger instead...

• Gum- There aren't sticks of gum here or individually wrapped pieces. It seems that it's all the chicklet pieces. My guess is it has to do with reducing litter 

• Iced Coffee- Oh my goodness. Iced coffee is not iced coffee here at all. So far, I've received a shot of espresso over ice, topped off with milk and a blended ice, milk and coffee beverage when I've asked for iced coffee. What I wouldn't give for a Dunkin' iced coffee to make this really feel like summer. But Starbucks does have cold brew here so there's a step in the right direction.

I have yet to solve what's a lorry versus a bus versus a truck (are they the same thing?) and I still bust out the calculator when determining baking measurements but, I'm getting there!