By Joyce, on October 22nd, 2020
 COVID canceled the 2020 International Pinot Noir Celebration. While we don’t go every year, we had tickets for the 2020 festival. We had planned to spent time in the Willamette Valley to taste wines and restock our cellars of some of our favorites. Oh well, now we hope to attend the 2021 event. However, even [Read more …]
By Joyce, on March 10th, 2020
 Premier Napa Valley (PNV) is Napa valley’s primary showcase for futures auction of barrels of its most recent vintage wines. The event attracts wine professionals, and those from the wine trade and media from around the world. It also attracts us. It gives us a chance to taste and report on vintages that we will [Read more …]
By Joyce, on February 17th, 2020
We can never stay away from New York City, even if we only pass through it for a few days. We recently stopped by for 2 plays and some food. New York City Theater Ain’t Too Proud to Beg: The Temptations. We enjoyed hearing the group’s incredible songs, listening to [Read more …]
By Joyce, on February 6th, 2020
 Delft Explosion It was a typical peaceful October day in a typical Middle Age town. The weavers, the blacksmiths, the merchants, and the brewers were all going about their business inside the Delft city walls. The farmers were tending their crops and their cattle outside. Then came the explosion. An accidental spark set off a [Read more …]
By Joyce, on January 31st, 2020
 Antwerp: From Birth to Near Death and Back The Romans found Antwerp Belgium in the second century AD. Antwerp rapidly evolved into a major river port and the northern boundary of the Roman Empire. Its sheltered, easy access to the North Sea made it a prized shipping port. By the 10th century, it was under [Read more …]
By Joyce, on January 24th, 2020
 Ghent is an easy day trip from Brussels. The city was built on the basis of textiles. As a major trading center in the Middle Ages, it built a grand city center to celebrate and demonstrate its position and wealth. It continued being prosperous through the mid-17th century until the Dutch closed the canal that [Read more …]
By Joyce, on January 21st, 2020
 Leuven Belgium is an easy 20-minute train from Brussels, making it a perfect day trip. Julius Caesar found this lovely, historic town as a fortified Roman Empire camp. It grew to become the seat of one of Europe’s most important universities in the Middle Ages—a school at which professors including Erasmus and Mercator taught. Today, [Read more …]
By Joyce, on January 15th, 2020
 We are foodies. No doubt about it. We love exploring new places when we travel and revisit old favorites. This blog compiles all of our Paris restaurant reviews in one spot. 1st Arrondissement L’Escargot Montorgueil (38 Rue Montorgueil) 2019: This Marais neighborhood spot specializes in, you guessed it, escargot. We were in the mood for [Read more …]
By Joyce, on January 6th, 2020
 What’s not to love about visiting France’s Burgundy Region? We love its foods, its wines and its atmosphere. We were last there 7 years ago and it was time to get back. Beaune France is the largest city that is specifically in the Burgundy Wine Region. It is also one of our favorite small French [Read more …]
By Joyce, on December 21st, 2019
 Lausanne Old Town Lausanne Switzerland is one of the country’s cultural and intellectual centers. It is also in the center of the country’s Vaud wine region, right between two of its premier areas, La Cote area (known for producing steely white wines, mainly from the Chasselas grape) to the west and Lavaux (known especially for [Read more …]
|
|