Photo essay: Fall 2010 travels - Train Travels

This is part four in a series of posts on my fall travels in 2010 to several cities in Europe. The first part was my iPhone cache of photos and the second part was my arrival in Florence. Part three showed our first full stop, in beautiful Cinque Terre. Here I present some of our train travels between La Spezia and Nice.

Train travel can be easy and enjoyable or cumbersome for the uninitiated. Sometimes it can be a cheap option, but other times a flight with a much reduced travel time may cost the same. Do your homework if you have a preference!

At Genova P. Principe. Choo-choo! Bye-bye Cinque Terre. Hello Nice!

Photo essay: Fall 2010 travels - Cinque Terre

This is the third part of a series of posts on my fall travels in 2010 to several cities in Europe. The first part was my iPhone cache of photos and the second part was my arrival in Florence. Here we have arrived in La Spezia (where we hotel'd) and Cinque Terre (where we train'd into every day).

Beautiful. Delicious (best food of the trip). Introduction to a love of anchovies (done right). Gelato (done daily).

Arrival in La Spezia. Choo choo!

Photo essay: Fall 2010 travels - A transfer in Florence

This is the second part of a series of posts on my fall travels in 2010 to several cities in Europe. The first part was my iPhone cache of photos. Here we leave YYZ and arrive in FLR, after a bit of an adventure in BRU. (Will we make our transfer, or won't we?)

Bye-bye Pearson!

iPhone cache: Fall 2010 travels

We visited Cinque Terre in Italy, Nice in France (side trip to Monaco), Barcelona in Spain (side trip to Tortosa parador - recommend!).

I just activated my phone the day I left for this trip. I didn't know how to use it or have any apps, etc. I mostly used it to take pictures of maps and schedules so we could use them as pocket maps. If you're interested in maps and public transportation systems around the world, here are a few pictures:

Map of Manarola in Cinque Terre, Italy to find Trattoria Dal Billy. (BEST meal of trip of amazing meals.)

 

Eating Through YVR: Japa Dog

Why is Japa Dog so famous? What makes locals and tourists alike seek out one of the two specialty hot dog stands found on the streets of Vancouver, BC? Is it really worth the relatively high price tag for street meat? I mean, you could get two regular hot dogs for the price of one Japa Dog...



E thinks that I equate price to quality, but I'm very open-minded about food. I don't have to eat at high-end restaurants to be impressed (although I like to visit those as well). In fact, one of my guilty pleasures is the street hot dog. If I could eat one every other day without concern over my health, I would. On the other day I'd eat poutine.

During a recent visit to Vancouver, one of my missions was to find a Japa Dog stand and eat my way through it.



Well, I did it.

I Got Soul, But I'm Not a Soldier

This was a great concert - despite the lackluster opening act (Wild Light?) and getting violated by fellow concert-goers, watching Brandon Flowers perform is a lot of fun!
- The Killers @ Thunderbird Arena, Vancouver BC (April 24, 2009)