Traveling The Algarve, Portugal

We've lived in London for nearly 10 months, and about 6 weeks ago, I finally heard about the Algarve. How had I missed out on this little piece of paradise my entire life? As an American, we mostly hear about European beaches on the Almafi coast and Greece and maybe some parts of southern France, but nobody really talks about this hidden little secret of the entire southern coast of Portugal. Due to my frantic attempt to travel as much as possible before baby #2 comes along, I booked us tickets lickety split and a few weeks later we were off! We 4 days in mid-June, which seemed to be the perfect time - weather wasn't too hot yet, and since school is in until July here, the beaches weren't crowded at all.

Below are some photos from my camera, and we have many more from our iPhones I'll try to post here soon.

The End of the World (Sagres, Portugal)

The drive into Salema, the little fishing village beach. We drove back twice just for the fish. :)

Hen had a lot of fun building sand castles and collecting rocks

The best fish we've ever had in our lives. Caught and served on the same day.

White sandy beaches, turquoise waters, and laid-back feeling that reminded me of the Caribbean or parts of Mexico, and the most beautiful cliff-lined beaches I've ever seen. We stayed in Lagos, which is known for the Ponte de Piedade (point of rocks) with beautiful rock formations of grottos, caves, and secret, sheltered beaches. We rented a car and drove to Sagres to see The End of the World and Salema, a sweet little fishing village with a beautiful beach and the best, freshest fish I've ever eaten anywhere. We only saw a small part of Portugal and I've always wanted to visit Lisbon and listen to some moody fado and eat more of the incredible Portuguese cuisine. With any luck, we'll return someday to this beautiful country.

Paris on Valentines day

I thought it would be fun to spend Valentines day in Paris, so we booked last minute eurostar tickets (Henry travels free) and used Marriott points to stay at the Vendome Paris Renaissance for 2 nights with its great location right by the Tuileries gardens. We spent the 48 hours bouncing between museums and restaurants. The weather was typical for Paris winter - cold, rainy, and gray. Similar to London! But without the bad dreary rap - how does that work? :)

We did the Louvre on Wednesday night, getting lost in the Egypt wing and we didn't bring Henry's stroller because of all the staircases, so we were carrying him and all generally exhausted by the time we left. But we saw the Mona Lisa! And Napoleon's apartment! And so many things. Thursday we spent the morning eating and shopping our way through the Marais - breakfast at the Legay Bakery, early lunch at L'as du Fallafel, ice cream at Berthillon on Ile St. Louis, quick walk through Musee Orsay, the Eiffel Tower, and finally, metro back to Bastille for our only fancy dinner at beautiful Bofinger where Mark ordered the whole ocean and I ate a tender buttery Dover sole. And Henry was a gem.

Ice Cream at Berthillon

The beautiful atrium at Bofinger

Thursday we walked back to the Marais for breakfast in the Merci cafe/library, 5 euro for toast - ouch! Afterwards, we did a little shopping in the Marais - Mark purchased some new waterproof boots, I window shopped, then we had lunch at the sweet little Breizh Cafe for crepes. I'm still dreaming about them. We decided to walk to the train station, and walked to the best bakery of my life, Du Pain et des Idees and shopped some of the cute childrens shops in the Canal district.

Breakfast at Merci

Crepes at Breizh Cafe

 Pistachio snail pastries at Du Pain et des Idees

A few thoughts on traveling with toddlers in Paris: compared to London and even NYC, it's much harder to travel with a stroller. Many of the museums we visited did have elevators but they were often small and cramped and had long lines. The two fancy/non-bakery places we ate at (Bofinger and Breizh Cafe) were kind about letting us leave the stroller in the entrance, as there was no official place for them. The metro is a joke - so many stairs, so be prepared to carry the stroller! Everywhere we ate, especially Bofinger and Breizh treated us really well. We made early reservations so we were the first ones in and first ones out (done with dinner by 8:30), and our waiter at Bofinger even brought Henry a complimentary juice cocktail! It was really thoughtful, and as road-weary parents we appreciated the gesture that our toddler was welcomed to be there. We bought him a little travel case and put new notepads, crayons, pens, stickers, and cars to play with, so it was a special treat every time we ate out. If we go back to Paris, I think it's worth it to eat somewhere nice at least once, so this is a good way to do it. We found Paris to be open to toddlers, but definitely not as baby-friendly as other places we've traveled to like Rome or Costa Rica where they just fawn over the kids!

Having trouble sleeping.

I just cannot sleep. I need to try something different - I usually don't fall asleep until at least 2, then have to wake up normally by 8. Not enough sleep.

Anyway, TH is gone on his whirlwind tour of Europe. Turkey, then London, then Brussels, then back to the states and straight to San Francisco. When he was considering jobs to take (over a year ago now) he really wanted to have a job that allowed him to travel, so he chose his current job. Well, I think he got his wish. Who gets to go to Istanbul for work?! So cool.

Not to be outdone, I am also planning to get my jet-set on. I'm going to France and London for my spring break. It was just going to be London, but last minute I was selected to go to France - a French energy company is sponsoring 10 Columbia students for 4 days. I'm thrilled! We will be going to Paris, Cherbourg (yes, as in umbrellas of cherbourg), Avignon, and another city I can't remember. I went to France years ago to pick up my brother from his mission, but it's been long enough to where I have forgotten a lot of the details. After the French tour, I'm taking a train to London to spend the weekend with TH. Less than a month away - I need to start planning!

So I'm flying into Paris a few days early to check out the city, then I'll have some free time in London, too.

What should I do (Paris or London)? I need tips! What should I pack? What should I eat? How fast can you learn french? Here is what I currently know:
Ne me quitte pas (don't leave me),
Je suis fromage (I am cheese)
Je me pelle (my name is)
Je taime (I love you)

I'm not going to get very far. So I will be watching this:


Should I drop out of school in the meantime? Because, wow - I'm not getting anything done lately - and this trip is yet another distraction. Oh me.