London, England

Travel Gal Liz

My sister and her hubby are off to England tomorrow, not just a quick hop across the pond for a visit, but they are moving! They'll be there for a few years and I can't wait to visit (several times). As a little send off, as they start their journey, here's a list of my favorites in London.

 

SIGHTS/ACTIVITIES

• National Portrait Museum: All the royal portraits and more
• Kensington Palace: The Orangery, proper English afternoon tea
• Picadilly Circus: No Times Square, London's version is a bit more quaint
• The London Eye: On the spendy side, but provides fabulous views of London
• Covent Garden: Great shopping and there's always Punch & Judy for drinks
• Shopping at Top Shop: Always good, affordable finds!
• Big Ben: So iconic!

EAT
Want a quick bite? Pret a Manger, with almost as many locations as Starbucks, offers great sandwiches and snacks for those on the go.  Pick up a sandwich and head to Trafalgar Square for great people watching. Porter's English Restaurant: The traditional pies were great!

DRINK
St. Stephen's Tavern - Victorian era Tavern with a picture perfect view of Big Ben to boot.

 

 

STAY
City Inn Westminster - great location, quick walking distance to Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and just blocks away from River Thames.  Best of all, great price. 

And, always remember: 

 

Date of Completion: February 2004 and May 2010, and beyond! Looking forward to finding more favorites.

Tennessee, Knoxville & Nashville

Blogger Alicia's recent trip to Tennessee!

I took a trip to the South and spent a couple days in Tennessee, blowing through Knoxville and Nashville on a whirlwind tour. I started in Knoxville – where the Oregon Ducks soundly pounced the Tennessee Volunteers a couple weeks earlier – and luckily arrived one week after the humidity broke. I spent the two days I was there touring the Old Town, a newly revitalized area now brimming with hip bars (i.e. The Cereal Bar, where one can get any kind of cereal at 3am), coffee shops, restaurants and boutiques.

One of my favorite places was Market Square, a European style plaza layout with pubs overflowing to outdoor seating and unique shops lining the perimeter. There's constantly live music playing while college students study on the benches and children play in the multiple fountains. Tomato Head is not to be missed for a tasty and affordable lunch, even if you have to pay for parking at the nearby garage. But I'm pretty sure this was my favorite Knoxville stop.

The entire reason Knoxville even exists is due to William Blout. A member of the Constitutional Convention in 1787, Blout was appointed governor of the Territory of the US South of River Ohio by George Washington and decided the capitol would be in the not-yet-established city of Knoxville. In 1792, he had his home constructed on the river – The Blout Mansion.

Since then Knoxville has evolved into an educational and musical hub, serving as an outlet for musical talent trying to make it in nearby Nashville. A friend of mine who lives in Knoxville has seen many of her favorite up and coming bands, along with newbies who ended up making it big, and many times for free. With my musical curiosity peaked, I headed to Nashville, but not before spotting my new favorite business sign:

Poor guy.

Nashville is two and a half hours west of Knoxville and a completely different animal. Music is literally blasted by speaker on every street corner. The bars lining Broadway are packed with talent even as I strolled by at 3pm on a Monday afternoon. Almost every bar entrance is crowded by someone with a guitar belting out his or her favorite hits. And unless you've got serious pipes, you may want to think twice about attempting karaoke.
Since I was only there for a day I decided to hit up two of the city's famous locals – The Country Music Hall of Fame and the Grand Ole Opry.

The Country Music Hall of Fame is filled with photos, mementos, trophies, videos and a few binged-out cars. It pays tribute to just about every country star and lots of others who influenced the music scene in Nashville (is there any musical genre that doesn't claim Elvis?). The basic entrance fee was about $20, so if you're a country music fan, its a must see if you find yourself in Nashville.

My last stop was the Grand Ole Opry. At the time of my visit it had reopened only a few days earlier, after extensive cleanup following the Nashville flooding. Unfortunately they weren't yet letting people into the actual building, so I contented myself with touring the grounds.

Next visit will need to for sure include an Opry concert. But if I wasn't so time crunched, I would have extended my visit so I could have attended this:

Huge names? Benefit concert? Only twenty five bucks?? Only in Nashville.

Date of Completion: October 2010

Away...

I've been so busy traveling the world that I haven't had time to post! I wish that was the real reason I've been neglecting the blog. Instead, the truth is life tends to get in the way of things, but enough with the excuses, I never went anywhere, and I'm back to blogging.

Summer has ended and it's the first full day of Fall.  The crisp air and changing colors of the leaves makes me want to bundle up in warm clothes, put on a cute wool hat and Wellie boots to tromp through a pumpkin patch.  That, and take advantage of the beautiful changing Fall foliage.

Here's a sampling of listings from the book where you might see the beautiful Autumn leaves:

• Yosemite National Park, CA
• Rocky Mountain National Park, CO
• Acadia National Park, ME
• Glacier National Park, MT
• Great Smoky Mountains, NC
• Mount Washington, NH
• The Adirondacks, NY
• The Catskills, NY
• Shenandoah Valley, VA
• Northeast Kingdom, VT
• Shelburne Farms, VT
• Canoe Bay, WI
• Grand Teton National Park, WY

My favorite place not listed in the book: Snow Lake, Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Washington. It's a great spot in the northwest for a glimpse of the changing leaves. It's the perfect hike before the winter snowfall, provides small treats along the way of wild blueberries, and nothing beats a great Northwest hike on a crisp, clear day.
Where's your favorite place?

Here's a map for guidance to plan your fall trip:

The Way of St. James and the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela

Galicia, Spain

Talk about a long journey! The Way of St James to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela crosses hundreds of miles across Spain, first beginning at various points throughout Europe.  In Spain, it begins in the mountains of the Pyrenees, traverses through the vineyards of Rioja and travels northwest to the lush region of Galicia.

This 1,000 year old cathedral is said to house the remains of St. James the Apostle, although that is up for debate.  Millions have made this spiritual trek to the cathedral, a cathedral that looks melancoly with its green algae and moss clinging to every available surface.  Although I missed the trek part, seeing the cathedral itself and being in its presence gives one the feeling of renewal.

The Cathedral in Santiago is packed on July 25th, on the day of the Feast of St. James.  The Spanish love their holidays, and this is one of my favorites as it also happens to coincide with my birthday.  Visit the Cafe 25 de Julio, just down the street from the cathedral for a great cup of coffee.

Other nearby favorites: Visit the seaside city of La Coruña for beautiful ocean views, seafood, and get in a visit to the Torre de Hurcules.  While in Galicia, be sure to try a white wine from Rías Baixas, most notable is the Albariño, yum!

Date of Completion: February 2003

The Guggenheim Bilbao

Bilbao, Spain

In addition to the cuisine, sangria, and siestas, another favorite of Spain is its diverse architecture.  Spanning over 2,000 years, one can see Roman architecture in the Aqueduct of Segovia, the Moorish influenced Mudejar style of Southern Spain, Gothic architechture apparent in the cathedrals of Northern Spain, and the Art Nouveau of Antoni Gaudi througot Barcelona. Most recent is the famous Frank Gehry designed Guggenheim in Bilbao.

Although I don't remember much about the exhibits at the museum at the time of my visit, I remember being most impressed by the contemporary architecture of the museum itself.  The curves of the building and the simplistic yet complicated pieces forming the various sides caught the light and seemed to give new life to the city. The Guggenheim Bilbao was completed in 1997 and helped revitalize the struggling port of Bilbao.  

Also of note and commonly photographed is Puppy, located just outside the entrance.  This living piece of art uses florals and greens and is ever changing with the seasons.

The city itself is quite charming and was in the midst of change when I visited - I would love to see what it's like now.  It remains the port of the Basque Country of Spain and is also the most populous city.  The Basque language is still widely spoken, and due to government regulation, all signs and printed material must appear in both Basque (known as Euskara in the Basque langauge), and Spanish.  The Basque must always appear first and more prominent.  Doesn't help to learn a few niceties in Euskara if you ever visit.

Date of Completion: December 2002

La Mezquita

Córdoba, Spain

Spanish history is filled with centuries of religious battles between Muslims and Catholics.  Completed in the 10th century, this mosque is often been ground zero for that tug-of-war. Originally commissioned as a mosque (hence Mezquita), it's also served as a cathedral, then again a mosque, then again a cathedral, you get the picture.  One is first overwhelmed by the columns of marble and jasper throughout and their seemingly endless repetition. As the moorish architecture throughout the mosque competes with baroque influences, you find yourself on a walk through history.

Seemingly endless columns of jasper and marble

The Patio de los Naranjos just outside the mosque provides a respite from the hot Andalucian sun.  The fragrance of the orange trees coupled with the trickling of water running between the patio stones provides a great place to relax and meditate. 

Here's a tip: Throughout much of Andalucia, orange trees dot the courtyards of palaces and line the sidewalks of city centers.  Although they smell wonderful, it's said they taste awful.  Spaniards joke that only the British will eat the dreadful oranges.  The oranges are shipped off every season to make marmalade specifically for the UK market.

Be sure to add La Mezquita any trip to Sevilla or Granada.  La Mezquita is not to be missed!

Date of Completion: February 2003

Spanish Journey

Over the next two weeks, I'll be visiting Spain.

Unfortunately, it's not the real sort of journey involving airplanes and luggage, but a written journey.  I've been dreaming about going back to my second home, and figured that while I lack the time to do so at the moment, I can look through pictures and feel like I'm back there. Through the blog, I'll revisit my favorite places in Spain which also happen to be listed among the 1,000 in the book.

• The Alhambra
• La Mezquita
• Sevilla (Sevilla)
• The Guggenheim Bilbao
• San Sebastian
• Le Catedral de Toldeo
• La Sagrada Familia
• Museu Picasso
• Santiago de Compostela
• Madrid

Let's start the journey Monday!