Destinations — Page 2

Skipping the Crowds in Tuscany

April 11, 2017 By Jillian

It’s hard to believe it has been more than 10 years since I first stepped off the plane in Rome to live in Florence for a semester. It was a long bus ride to Florence, made better by the views, which only increased in stereotypical Tuscan colors as the sun neared the horizon an d we neared Florence. Grand stone buildings, wide avenues, tiny alleys, we had finally arrived. So had the first trickling of the hundreds of thousands of tourists visit Florence each year, many of them booking luxury accommodations in Tuscany. We were all enchanted by the same thing – the romance, the color, the light, the magic.

By the time throngs of tourists descended on Florence just before Easter it was time to get out of the city and escape the crowd. Don’t get me wrong, I love the history, culture and art of Florence, but so does everyone else. Here are two of my favorite places to avoid the crowds in Florence while still enjoying the enchantment of Tuscany.

Fiesole

Fortunately the closest escape is a short bus ride from Florence’s center, so if you are the type of person who wants to pop in and out of the city on your vacation this is a good place to center yourself. Fiesole sits perched on a hill above the city, but with its quieter streets, surrounding olive orchards and villas, it seems a world away. Fiesole is the kind of place most people drive through without stopping, but if you are the type that wants to stop and smell the roses, soak up the experience, or enjoy the magic of the Tuscan hills Fiesole is a good place for you.

If you are the hiking or leisurely strolling sort, there are a lot of beautiful roads to travel in Fiesole. You can easily walk from the center of Florence to Fiesole in about an hour. Remember it is mostly uphill, so wear comfortable shoes. Perhaps the better way is to walk from Fiesole down to Florence. You can follow a map, or more adventurously just follow gravity and continue to walk down the slope. There are several shops off the main Piazza in Fiesole if you want to purchase picnic supplies in town and set yourself up on the side of the Monastery of San Angelo. There’s a few bench overlooking the terraced hills down to Florence – a breathtaking view of the city without the crowds!

If you’re looking for something more quiet and adventurous take a walk from Fiesole to a nearby town, like Settignano. We took a bike tour, but you can also walk from Fiesole to the top of Montececeri and then into the village of Settignano. I did this with both my Dad (on foot) and my roommates Mom and Aunt (on bike), so it’s age friendly. If you’re a history or culture buff you may appreciate the historical significance of Montecerceri – this is where Leonardo Da Vinci is said to have taken his flying machine to test it. The hill is also dotted with caves, quarries and Etruscan ruins, so it’s a great place to “get lost” without fearing a night in the woods. When you’re ready for a drink, or some nourishment, head down to Settignano, a blink if you miss it kind of place that has real charm. Not much of a tourist attraction, the town is known for being the home of Michelangelo and the marble quarries that produced some of the Renaissance’s most famous sculptures. Roman ruins, like almost everywhere else in Italy, are intertwined with the most modern of engineering feats, so don’t ignore an outcropping of old stones.

Lucca

Slightly further afield, closer to Pisa is Lucca. I fell in love with Lucca from the first moment I saw it. A city still enveloped by its Renaissance-era walls, Lucca has the buzz of Florence without the extreme crowds and tour groups. It’s the perfect place to feel like a local, to indulge in la dulce far niente, or the sweetness of doing nothing. If you are looking for a place to sit in a piazza, sip wine or enjoy a gelato without any interruption in your day, this is the place to be. Any one of the large or small piazzas will make for the perfect backdrop to a vacation of indulging in Tuscany’s food, culture or drink. The area surrounding Lucca is rolling hills of vineyards and medieval towns and ruins, still vibrant with life and culture today. Now do you understand where my love of the city comes from?

The best way to experience Lucca is to do so on foot. Am I sounding like a broken record? But seriously, Italy is meant for walking. The medieval town walls are still intact and now serve as a sidewalk of sorts around old town Lucca. Beyond the pleasure of being slightly above the streets and parks, the Passeggiata delle Mura crosses the major areas of the city, allowing you do to a “highlights” tour on foot without car traffic. You can also rent a bike and in the summer you may find yourself in the midst of a cultural show or play on the Passeggiata. If you are a history lover, you’ll notice that the wall is one of the largest intact star shaped walls left in Europe. If you’re a nature lover, you’ll notice that different trees are planted on each of the main sides of the wall.

One thing I love about Tuscany are the old churches. Each has it’s own look, feel and ambiance, with each architect, sculptor or painter trying to outdo someone else. You don’t need to be religious to appreciate the artistry and magic of these churches or in the major city centers either. Some refer to Lucca as the city of 100 churches. While I can’t speak to the number of churches, I can offer that they are distinct in style (more similar to Pisa!), and the Duomo di Lucca, unlike those of the large cities, only faces a small square. To me this is symbolic of Lucca as a whole – unpretentious, yet a gem not to be missed!

I learned quickly that no matter where you go in Tuscany you will be surrounded by delicious food, decadent wine and some of the most hospitable people on the planet. When you’re ready to escape the crowds of Florence, consider giving Fiesole or Lucca a try!

Dreaming of Prague

August 30, 2016 By Jillian

Souvenirs are like tiny memory capsules for me. When I hold the object in my hand I am instantly taken back to the moment of purchase. My favorite souvenirs are earrings – small, easy to carry, and as unique as the market in which they were purchased.

Earlier this month we moved into a new house and as I unpacked my earrings one by one to put them in my jewelry box I took a trip down memory lane. Wooden beads from Bolivia, earrings made of cowrie shells from Africa, and finally a set of hammered copper earrings from Prague.

I laughed holding the Prague earrings in my hand. Unlike most of the other earrings in my collection which had come from back woods type of markets or handi-craft stalls, these were purchased on perhaps the most touristy place in Prague – the Charles Bridge. Somewhere over the Vltava River on the way to see a smaller bridge covered in locks I decided I needed these, and the matching necklace. My husband of course, obliged willingly. 🙂

If you’ve never been on the Charles Bridge it is famous for the numerous statues of saints that line the bridge. Connecting the two sides of Prague, the Castle looks over the bridge, giving the whole area a medieval feeling. It’s also covered in buskers, artisans, painters, and any kind of performer you could ask for – it’s almost like a carnival during peak season as hordes of tourist move from one side of Prague to the other. Many hotels in Prague offer city tours that include the bridge, so you also have a lot of tour guides stopping along the way giving a historical perspective on the bridge, the statues and the city.

Holding the earring in my hand I was taken back to a very sunny day along the Vltava when we climbed to Prague Castle, picnicked in the park, watched street performers do magic, visited the clock tower, and did the traditional “tourist” Prague experience. It was an unusual day for the two of us, who generally like to stay off the beaten path. The rest of the time in Prague we did get off the beaten path, exploring neighborhoods, visiting outlying areas to see soviet era architecture and taking the Prague metro everywhere.

After several moves and three kids only one of the earrings remains in my jewelry box, but the memory of Prague lives on every time I hold it.

Hiking Mt. Shasta

July 28, 2016 By Danny

After climbing Mt Kilimanjaro in 2010, I felt a strong sense of accomplishment but also that mountaineering was not for me. More than anything else I hated the altitude but at lease with Kilimanjaro I didn’t have to do anything technical with ropes or ice axes. Fast forward 6 years and somehow I found myself doing exactly what I never expected to even try on the slopes of California’s Mt. Shasta. Two years ago I managed to join a group of intrepid colleagues on a hiking trip where I climbed Yosemite’s Half Dome. The trek was fun, and with a start-to-summit time of about 4 hours, and a round-trip time of about 7 hours’ total, this was relatively simple and straight forward. IMGP2439

Last year this same group did a 26-mile loop over four mountain passes around Colorado’s Maroon Bells. This was simply the most difficult day of hiking I’d ever completed. At the celebration dinner, following our 16-hour hike which had begun at 10pm the previous evening, Mt. Shasta’s (4321m) 14,179 foot snow-capped peak was announced as our next target. Sure, I told everyone I’d see them next year…but I also said that there was no-way Donald Trump would be the republican nominee for president…. What do I know?

As this was a technical climb we hired guides to help us through the process. To do that we had a short amount of time on some snow the day preceding the hike to learn some basic mountaineering skills such as how to actually use the ice axe. We learned to walk on the ice, fall and ultimately stop ourselves from sliding all the way down the mountain. Naturally, we felt the need to practice this by running off the hill (while holding an axe) and diving downhill as though we were superman. This was fun until one of our team cracked his ankle in a few places. He was taken to the ER and received screws in his ankle and lots of painkillers. As a reminder, this was our practice session. Our group the prior year had started off around 35 people, for what was the hardest day of hiking in my life, we were now down to only 16.
One of the reasons for the low numbers were the odds the various guide services had given to our venture.

Most guided groups climb Mt. Shasta over two days. Indeed, while we were practicing, many of these groups were setting off on their trek. They camped overnight half-way up the mountain, continuing to the summit with us the following morning. We instead chose to skip the alpine camping and start our walk at midnight. There were three guide companies in Mt. Shasta that were contacted by our group, two of those companies told us we were idiots for what we were trying to do, we went with the third. (Now you see why I like these people – like minded to the fullest!)

At 11pm on Saturday night, when most people in California were doing Saturday night California things, we were instead waking up from our naps, doing our best to clear our bowels, and gradually making our way to the Avalanche Gulch trail head for our midnight departure. (Note: All the amazing and yet, WTF am I thinking hiking adventures in my life have seem to start at night.) I had some general feelings of dread regarding my own fitness level, the altitude, the ice axe, the ice itself and naturally those screws that had been inserted into my friend’s ankle. Also in the back of my head was concern for the weather report, which featured late morning thunderstorm, but when I saw the clear, starry sky at the trail head I managed to but those fears to rest.

We started walking.

The guides kept the pace and I have to say, we had some excellent guides. They made the walk up this [to me] practically vertical slope about as easy as walking up the stairs at work. Sure it was long and arduous but many of us felt we were so well paced that, although exerting ourselves, we never felt terribly short of breath or in need of a rest. Still, several did begin to fall behind but overall our group was on target and moving uphill at a very good pace.

With several hikers having difficulty as we passed the overnight camping areas, we had to shuffle groups around a little bit. Part of the reason for this was that above this point, Helen Lake which is nothing but a flat-ish area of snow on the mountain, guides needed to be roped to their group and a single guide could have no more than 4 hikers attached to them. Continuing on we were one group of 4 and three groups of 3, I was in a group of 3.

As we continued from this point, the story starts to change substantially.

All of the things I was worried about—the ice, using the axe, my fitness, etc.—were not issues at all and I was actually starting to enjoy myself as the sun came up and I recognized what a special place I was in. The problem was that as the sun came up most of the other hikers on the mountain started to come down. Those late morning thunderstorms had shown up several hours early and the mountain appeared to be surrounded by dark clouds and piercing lightning shows. Via radio we were in touch with another group from our guiding company, who had camped on the mountain like *normal* climbers and were several thousand feet above us. Their reports were not positive and they turned back as well. For some reason we kept on hiking.

IMGP2448

One member of my trio was beginning to struggle and was very vocal about this in a stunningly constructive way, perhaps because he is a former Marine. He shared that he was feeling the affects of altitude sickness, the items he was doing to help deal with his, and that he wanted to continue but that it was a situation we needed to keep in communication about. This was important as none of us were unable to travel alone and if he needed to go down, we all did, so we slowed our speed an slightly increased the frequency of our breaks. The support of the team in this regard was rather spectacular.

Later, using the Marine as something of a model, I expressed my same concerns with regard to the weather. By this point we had become 4 hikers, rather than 3, as another trio had a member need to descend and one of their hikers was able to join us. I told the group honestly that I was getting quite scared by the increasing display of lightning, the blizzard forming around us, the presence of the wind, etc. Mostly though, it was the lightning combined with “my children need to have a daddy”. Our guide, a former Army Ranger, discussed this with us and we took a vote in which two of us expressed that we felt it might be time to head downhill. Somehow being led by an Army Ranger, who stated clearly that he had full confidence in his ability to get us safely down the mountain, and anchored by a US Marine who was feeling much better and aching to get to that summit, convinced myself and the other doubter that we should press on, so that’s what we did.

We got to the top of the red line, but not to the summit. 🙁

The hiking at this point was also more difficult. The snow had turned to ice and was more slippery. We were often having our boots break through the ice and fall into a knee-deep hole. The wind was sometimes knocking us over. We couldn’t see very far in front of us for the blizzard that was taking hold around us. We were well above 12,000 feet in altitude and thinness of the air was beginning to affect us as well. Oh, and the slope of the mountain was probably 45 degrees.

You may recall from earlier in this story that one group of four and three groups of three had set-off from the camping area. One trio, left a hiker with my group and headed downhill. Another trio was well ahead of us making a run at the summit. That left my group and the original group of four together as we climbed to 13,000 feet in altitude. At that point, the other guide, determined that the weather had deteriorated enough that should we continue, and things get a little worse, that we might not be able to safely descend the mountain. We were turning around.

The first bit of downhill hiking was very difficult and I was again afraid for all the reasons I was afraid before weather was an issue—slippery ice, the axe, slope, fitness, etc. Thankfully this did not last long. We made it just below a region of the mountain that was rocky and glissaded about as far as we could. If you’ve never glissaded before, imagine going downhill in a sled but without a sled. You just sit in the snow and make pretend the mountain is a giant, cold, slide. It was fun.

The only part that stunk about the descent was when we finished, and turned and looked back at the summit, and saw nothing but blue sky.

The DIY NYC Pizza Tour

March 11, 2016 By Jillian

Without a doubt there is a ton to do in New York City – the question is usually where to begin? For me, one of the greatest joys of traveling is the food. I LOVE local, interesting cuisine and restaurants. That doesn’t necessarily mean pricey though – especially in a big city like New York. Eating like a local in New York doesn’t have to break the bank, especially if you’re interesting in something as ubiquitous and typically NYC as a slice of pizza.

The moment you walk out of most of the hotels in NYC you’ll probably be inundated with shop windows advertising a quick bite. Pizza joints abound in New York, and while most places are decent there are some real stars out there that are worth the walk (or ride!) and may show you a different side to New York at the same time. A word to the wise: while credit cards are taken almost everywhere, have cash on hand, many small pizzerias operate on a cash-only basis.

Here are some of our favorites:

Lombardi’s: America’s First Pizzeria

As you would expect, the FIRST pizzeria in the United States was in the Little Italy neighborhood of New York City. Gennaro Lombardi is credited with bringing this Neopolitan street food to our shores. His pizzeria still stands today, down the street from the original location, an homage to the original treat that started the craze. Address: 32 Spring St, New York, NY 10012.

Grimmaldi’s

This place holds a special spot in our hearts as one of our regular haunts when we go to NYC to see friends. A constant contender for the best pizza in New York (ranked by The Food Network and Zagat as #1!), this place feels more like a hole in the wall neighborhood pizzeria than a #1 pick. The pizza however will change your mind – every single time it is delicious. The original location, underneath the Brooklyn Bridge is a bit of a mission – there’s almost always a long line and a no reservations, no slices rule – but it’s worth it just for the pizza. Address: 1 Front St, New York, NY 11201.

Margot’s Pizza

Your timing has to be right for this one. A pop-up spot inside EMILY, Margot’s Pizza requires tickets for its once a month offerings. Lauded as one of the best bar – style pizzas in New York, the thin crust hot supreme is the thing to order. Tastings sell out quickly, as the pop-up only happens about once a month. Tickets go on sale the week before the pop-up. Check out the next date, and book your ticket here: http://margotspizza.com/ Address: 919 Fulton St , New York, NY 11238

Patsy’s Pizza

Heading uptown to East Harlem, Patsy’s is another original on the pizza tour list. First opened in 1933, you may be surprised by the small size of these yummy thin crust slices. Have no fear, no one will judge if you eat more than one! Address: 2287 First Ave, New York, NY 10035.

Our NYC favorites aren’t the only places to go for a slice in New York – there are plenty of delicious neighborhood places throughout the city so if you find yourself across town and looking for a quick bite don’t hesitate to stop someone on the street and ask where you can grab a slice!

We’ve had some pretty crazy pizza’s over the years – so if you got here looking for interesting pizzas, don’t miss this post on Everglades Pizza! Heading to NYC in the Spring or for a weekend? Don’t miss our Springtime in NYC post and our Weekenders Guide to NYC.

Hiking the Four Pass Loop in Colorado

December 20, 2015 By Jillian

It was probably an hour or so after midnight. My feet had already gone through a freezing cold stream and were quite wet inside my waterproof boots. I needed to stop and pee about every 5 minutes. My head was pounding, as it does when I exert myself at high altitude. I had more than 12 hours to go before I was finished. Did I mention that it just after midnight?

Something about being in those situations always makes me wonder why I get myself into those situations in the first place, then I remember…finishing is awesome!

All in, the hike would be 28 miles long, going over four passes all over 12,500 feet just outside of Aspen, Colorado for a total elevation gain of over 7,500 feet. We left town at 10pm for the short drive to trailhead, doing the majority of the hike in darkness to avoid afternoon thunderstorms as we finished. Most tried to sleep beforehand but I failed in that endeavor.

As we started to approach the first of the four passes, West Maroon Pass, I found myself in a small group of 3, and then 4, hikers. As we began to ascend the steepest parts, far above tree-line, I began to notice how spread out the group was with some hikers over 30 minutes ahead of us, just a few hours into the hike, and others over an hour behind us. At this stage I was dealing with the worst of the altitude sickness I was likely to feel but it didn’t help much. Had I not ‘fallen-in’ with these members of the group, by luck, I might have turned back after attaining that first pass.

The group I was hiking with was over 30 strong with nearly twenty setting out with us at the start of the night. (The other third of the group was starting a little later and going counter-clockwise to our clockwise hike.) This group, a bunch of executive types from the financial services industry, has pretty much committed itself to doing something outlandish like this every year. This year was the fourth such hike for the group, my second, with last year’s hike a trip up Yosemite’s Half Dome.

With a quick refresh at the top, having just climbed about 3,000 feet in elevation, the four of us began our descent into a small valley before starting our second ascent. This next leg would be just an hour or so long, our shortest leg of the entire hike. Timing was important, we knew that if it took us more than 7 hours to reach that second pass, affectionately named Frigid Air Pass, we’d need to turn back because it we wouldn’t be able to finish the entire loop in time. On the way to that second pass, we encountered another hiker who had been in front of us but who had slowed down. That hiker, Kevin, joined myself, Eric, Steven and Jessica. We’d be together for the rest of the hike. We made it to Frigid Air in less than 6 hours, so we were on track.

Our next descent was a big one and took us almost to the altitude we started at, but not quite. As we approached tree-line we were greeted by a trail runner, a member of our group, who had been well behind us with his father who ultimately turned back, and was now on a course to finish hours ahead of us. The way he continued running (walking already seemed difficult for us) with a sandwich in his mouth was something of an inspiration to our small band of hikers and kept us all ho-humming along. We made our descent, thought some moving shadows (the effect of our head-lamps on some logs) were actually bears, ate some breakfast and enjoyed a cloudy sunrise. There was a beautiful waterfall and incredible fauna and mountain scenery all around us and it was finally bright enough to actually stop and smell the wildflowers!

This was the time to speed up and make up some time but instead we found ourselves slowing down and feeling the affects of fatigue. A river crossing gave us a lot of down-time, forcing us to change socks and actually sit down for more than a minute. We decided it was probably our half-way point, right around 7am, and the rest was needed as our next uphill segment, named Segment Soul Crusher by our leader, was set to be a doozy. Thankfully, as we moved on and got ready for that climb we were followed by some Elk, or perhaps deer, on the other side of the valley and up the hill. Other than porcupines those would be our only major wildlife encountered. (NOTE: After turning back at the first pass several other members of the group encountered campers dealing with a momma bear and her two cubs. Although it sounded like a unique experience, I was glad to not have shared it!)

We quickly found that Segment Soul Crush was aptly named. It was some of the steepest hiking I’ve ever done and it seemed to go on forever. Thankfully, unlike the final hike up Mt. Kilimanjaro, the trail was pretty solid and not made of scree, a big plus. Still though it went on and on and even had a tantalizingly cruel false summit but we kept walking, mostly in silence. Our biggest break came when we encountered members of our group going the other direction, right about when we should have encountered them, meaning we were all moving in a timely fashion. On the false summit, my group stopped to rest and me, feeling bad as they kept stopping to wait for me, kept on moving. My mental state was one of needing to move forward, constantly, but at my own slow pace. Everyone else was moving a little quicker and enjoying breaks to let me catch up. By me setting off ahead just a few minutes we all moved much quicker.

Approaching the third pass, Trail Rider Pass, we were well above tree-line and the wind was howling at us again. I encountered three women who were running the same route I was hiking, but in the other direction, and they were joking that they decided to ignore the weather forecast for the day and look at Florida’s forecast instead. When I told them I was actually in from Florida they were blown away that my sea-level lungs were still pumping…they were in from Denver for the day. We took eachother’s photos, the rest of my group of 5 quickly caught up, and we were off again. Now though, we were looking at the clock as it was already past 9am and we were expecting some serious thunder around noon. We picked up the pace as we headed down.

It was a shame, this next segment was the most beautiful we encountered in the sunlight and were unable to spend much time enjoying it. First there was the insanely beautiful Snowmass Lake, inviting for a swim much as Odysseus and his men were called by the sirens of old. Our bodies all ached and 20 minutes of that frigid water would have made my body blissfully numb for the final climb up Buckskin pass.

Alas it was not meant to be. We had another 500 feet or so to descend before beginning our final ascent, another 2750 feet uphill. This time we were under the cover of trees for much of that hike and able to enjoy the scenery and shade as the sun became stronger. It was ironic, the sun was finally out in force, the first time all hike, and yet we knew it would not last long. The sunlight though did allow us to witness what must be the grandest dam built by beaver’s I’ve ever seen. I think it was easily twice the size of my first dorm room!

That final ascent was rough, mostly because we were all practically sleepwalking at this point. Still, we knew we needed to keep walking and it took all the energy we had to see it through. Those of us who had felt stronger earlier in the day were now feeling much weaker and it took the 5 of us as a team to really push one another up that final hill. Thankfully, once we left the shelter of the trees we could see the pass the entire time. The little shadows of people up there only helped to make it feel closer and eased the mental stress quite a bit. One hiker, John, who had passed us an hour or two earlier was now hurting and we caught up to him and finished as a group of six.
At the top, we rejoiced for about three minutes before starting what felt like the world’s slowest sprint down that final hill. Our group splintered on the way back to the parking lot with two of our members getting there and to shelter before the thunder started. The rest of us finished quite water-logged and cold. Still we finished and were safely below the tree-line when the thunder began. Others in our group were not so lucky, one shedding his hiking poles (a.k.a lightning rods) as he ran down the hill. In the end, everyone survived and enjoyed a raucous dinner together before departing town the next day.

Skipping the Crowds in Tuscany

Dreaming of Prague

Hiking Mt. Shasta

The DIY NYC Pizza Tour

Hiking the Four Pass Loop in Colorado

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