After checking out of the hotel at 10am and packing up the car, we walked into town to do a little shopping at the local souvenir shop. On our way out of town we stopped at one last winery before...
Blog posts from wine
Marlborough: wine tasting, day 2
The weather today was quite random - sunny and calm one minute, windy and raining the next. A good day for indoor wine tasting! Lawson's Dry Hills - Our first stop of the day, we just beat a large...
Marlborough: Picton and Queen Charlotte Drive
Awoke to a morning shower, so we were in no hurry and waited out the rain. Eventually, we headed north out of town to Picton and after scaling the viewpoint near Bob's Bay we drove north along the...
Marlborough: wine tasting, day 1
We woke up in a Nelson to a rainy morning but we had scheduled wine tasting for this day so no big deal. First we finished packing, then called all family members to wish them a Happy Thanksgiving....
Nelson: wine tasting on Thanksgiving Day
After sleeping in a bit we headed out on foot to pick up snacks at the grocery store and explore Nelson. Eric went into the city center to check out some gardens and I picked up a tea towel with...
Wellington: day trip to Martinborough
After a great night's sleep and feeling a mild aftershock while laying in bed, Eric got up to work out and I caught up on computer stuff. For breakfast we walked over to Sweet Mother's Kitchen where...
Central Otago wineries
Our first stop in central Otago was Chard Farm, a charming tasting room on a hill above the highway. Just across the road is a old suspension bridge with bungee jumpers over the Kawarau Gorge....
Spain 2014: Granada food and drink
Wednesday After a bit of exploring on our first day, we headed to Bodega La Bella y La Bestia as we read they had good, ample tapas. Eric had a white wine, then a Mahou beer while I ordered a rose...
Italy 2014: Parma
Saturday morning we took an hour and a half train trip through developed countryside to Parma. This was our first time in a compartment-style train cabin, and we were both in a middle seat facing...
Sonoma County: Russian River Valley wine tasting
Porter Creek Vineyards -- On our second visit to this charming tasting room we had an equally lovely visit. Jonathan was a friendly host full of suggestions and stories. Given the small tasting room...
Sonoma County: Dry Creek and Alexander Valley wine tasting
Though we have been to Sonoma County a few times now, we really hadn't explored the Dry Creek and Alexander Valleys, so on this trip we set out to remedy that issue. Zinfandel is king here and you...
Toulouse, February 2014
In mid-February I returned to Toulouse, France, on another work trip. Much of that trip I was quite busy, and given the early winter sunsets, I didn't manage much sightseeing. However, several...
Thanksgiving in Europe 2013: Prague food and drink
Although much of the literature we read before our trip touted how much cheaper Prague was than Vienna we really didn't find the difference significant. While the lodging was much cheaper (partially...
Thanksgiving in Europe 2013: Vienna food and drink
Food For our first night in Vienna, we stayed close to the hotel with a recommendation from the front desk. Gasthaus am Spittelberg serves classic Vienna-style food with pasta options as well. We...
Thanksgiving in Europe 2013: heurigers in Nussdorf
Four years ago we took a tram up to Stammersdorf to try out some local wine during our weekend in Vienna. This time we wanted to make the trip mid-week and discovered that both places we visited...
Texas! exploring Hill Country wineries
Wanting to get a bit of a different perspective, we left Austin on Sunday to head out to the Hill Country for some wine tasting. We researched a few places in advance and decided to visit three...
Portland: Willamette Valley wine tasting
Arborbrook - One of our favorite Oregon wineries, we made this our first wine-tasting stop on this trip. Even though the tasting room has expanded since our last trip, the friendly wine maker was...
Portland: overview
Several months back we wanted to close a credit card that still had points available for free travel. After a few searches Leandra managed to find tickets to Portland in mid-September, so we used up...
Our Itinerary
2024 Trips
San Diego, CA (Jan)
Sarasota, FL (Feb)
Valencia, Spain (Mar)
Mallorca (Apr)
Croatia (May)
Faroe Islands (Aug)
London, UK (Sept)
Bari, Italy (Sept)
Rome, Italy (Oct)
Frankfurt, Germany (Oct)
2023 Trips
San Diego (Jan)
Orlando (Feb)
Richmond, VA (Apr)
Northern Italy (Apr)
NC Mountains (May)
Long Island (Jul)
Wisconsin (Aug)
Chicago (Aug)
Oak Island, NC (Sept)
Brooklyn, NY (Sept)
Bordeaux + Rugby World Cup (Sep)
Castilla y León (Sep)
Seychelles (Nov)
Willamette Valley (Dec)
2022 Trips
Florida (Feb)
NC Mountains (Apr)
Washington DC (Apr)
Valencia, Spain (May)
Hilton Head, SC (May)
Pacific NW (Jun)
Long Island (Jul)
Florida (Sept)
Chicago (Sept)
Poland (Sept)
NC Mountains (Nov)
Euro Xmas Markets (Dec)