Our Tuscan Thanksgiving: The Feast

Armed with two (although we actually used only one) tiny kitchens in our respective villas, we managed to pull-off a delicious American Thanksgiving meal!

Here's the full spread:

Let's break 'er down...

Erin's phenomenal stuffing:


My (and by "my" I mean Emeril's) bacon braised green beans:

B's roasted garlic mashed potatoes:

My classic cranberry compote:

Erin's fabulous roasted turkey (this was the juiciest bird we'd ever had...the secret is a roaster...you can see in the picture the meat is so tender it's falling right off of the bone!):


And last, but certainly not least, Andrew's pumpkin pie with buttered walnut topping:


Not only was there food, but there was fun, too!
Erin found a cute turkey-making kit and brought it along to feed our creative hunger:

We had an awesome time sharing our Thanksgiving feast with the Baughmans!

Up next: Siena

Greece with Eric: Marvelous Mykonos

The minute we stepped off the ferry and on to Mykonos soil, we knew we had come home. Not to a home we'd known before, but to a new home welcoming us with its remarkable sights, tantalizing us with its tastes, and engulfing our senses with its brilliant blue beauty.

The sights of Mykonos arrested our vision with their dreamlike allure...

The intoxicating view from our balcony:

A peek through the crystal sea:

A candid shot of our favorite residents:

A still of the sun slipping off to sleep after a long day's work of warming the Grecian skies:

A glimpse of a pristine façade:

The tastes of Mykonos treated our taste buds to a bounty of flavor and freshness...

The anise-scented ouzo:

The expertly rolled dolmades:

The crisp and deliciously simple Greek salad:

The unique bouquet of Greek wine:

The homey creaminess of spanakopita:

The color of Mykonos livened our spirits with refreshing exuberance...

The azure punches of windows and doors:

The turquoise and cobalt of sanctuary and sky:



The unexpected periwinkle porch:

The sapphire and aquamarine of a secret spot:

Mykonos tickled our senses and embraced our inner islander souls. We love you Mykonos!

Eric - Thanks so much for making the trek out to Greece to see us. We had a blast and can't wait to see you up in Camp Nelson for Christmas!

If you'd like to view all of our photos from our visit from our visit with Eric, please click on this link:
Eric's Visit Photos

Greece with Eric, Photo Essay (with captions!): Athens

The view of the Acropolis and a busy Athens avenue from our hotel room:



Making our way, through the rain, to the Acropolis and Parthenon:

The majestic Parthenon:

Scenes from our first Athenian lunch:

Rick Steves' "Restaurant Steps":

Our darling restaurant:

Best baklava in the world:

Grab the sunscreen because our next stop is the island of...Mykonos!

Joan: Paris, France

Sorry for the brief interruption in our programming. We're now back on schedule.

We hopped on the bullet train to Paris...



...to find some spacious accommodations for our 3 hour train ride:

After a fun train ride we Metro'ed our way to the hotel, got checked-in and headed out to see the Arc:



Per usual, the Arc was stunning at night:

After the Arc we stopped for a quick dinner and then back to the room to plan our next day. The following morning, armed with a flexible itinerary for the day, we headed out ready for some fun!

Our first stop was at:

Sainte Chapelle didn't disappoint! Although some of it has yet to be restored, the stained glass shone brightly with the warm Parisian sun spilling through.

From Sainte Chapelle we headed over to the Musee D'Orsay for some art appreciation. We wandered through Van Gogh's, Renoir's, Degas', and Monet's. Quite a lovely bunch of artists to enjoy! After all of that art, we had worked up a hearty (Ha! I had to.) appetite. The patisserie we passed didn't stand a chance!

Here we are with our adorably wrapped goodies:

And the pièce de résistance, a chocolate tarte and a pistachio eclair...SWOOOON:

In a heavenly French-pastry induced haze we made our way over to the Montmartre neighborhood to see Sacré-Cœur:

High above the rest of Paris, Sacré-Cœur provided stunning views of the sprawling city. We silently observed the beauty of the Basillica interior and then Joan and Brian made the steep trek up to the top of Sacré-Cœur for a great photo op:

Almost Paris'ed out for the day, we had one more (important!) stop before we could head back home. In stead of standing in a long line to visit the top of the Eiffel Tower we decided to grab a grassy seat on the lawn next to the Tower to soak up the grandeur:




Finally we lazily made our way back to the hotel for a relaxing night in the Executive Lounge. As we ate and drank, we mapped out our next day in Normandy, which we will post about later.

The day after Normandy we were back in sight-seeing mode in Paris. Our first stop of the day was Mass at Notre Dame. We had a very peaceful time listening to Mass in French surrounded by the uplifting grace of Notre Dame:

Fun celebrity sighting!! As Joan and I were walking around the apses of the Church (behind the altar) we saw James Franco being filmed on some teeny tiny camera. He was all decked out in a cool 40's looking suit and matching moustache. Good times!

From Notre Dame we crossed the Seine...

...and walked around until we found a fun little café to grab some lunch at. The next morning we hopped back on the bullet train headed for Stuttgart quietly replaying the fun memories we created in France. Cheers to a wonderful time in Paris with Joan!



Next stop: Normandy

**Congratulations to Emily!! You are the winner of the 200th-Post German Goodies. Thanks to everyone who shared a fun birthday memory!**