Paris 2012 Day 2

I wake up to sunshine and comfortable temperatures! My immediate mission is to find a croissant and coffee. Then I set off through the Tuileries. It doesn't look like I remember it at all. And it is filled with tourists. So I head toward the Place De Concorde and am rewarded with the memory of a dinner at the Hotel de Crillon (probably in 1988). Next I head for the back streets of the right bank away from the tourists and looking for other places that I recognize. Sadly the best i do is recognizing a Starbucks...and no I did not stop. I finally find myself next to the biggest tourist trap in Paris (The Louvre)...and decide I will see if I can find anything familiar on the Left Bank.

I wander through the back streets until I end up at Place St-Germain Des-pres where there is a band playing dressed in period costumes. I am suddenly nostalgic for this street corner where John and I sat in a cafe watching traffic (1985).

I find a cafe for lunch. I'm having the lamb on a stick with olive Polenta and a Legrand 2009 Chardonnay.

Some other interesting notes about traveling in Europe 18 years later. Wifi is not as readily available as it is in Asia or even Eastern Europe. Travel with a credit card with a chip and pin. Your credit card never leaves the table but the system doesn't work if your card doesn't have a pin.

The French are so civilized. Just stop anytime for a glass of wine or coffee if you get tired of walking. Walking through des Halles, I stopped for a Kir Royale at Chien au Fume.

Paris 2012 Day 1

It has been 18 years since I was in Paris. It has always been one of my favorite cities so it is baffling why it has been so long. I can say that in many ways, it still feels the same. 

I hate CDG airport. There I've said it and I'm done. Oh wait, you want to know why? A 1/2 mile Passport Control line 4-5 people wide. Took an hour for non-EU passport holders to get through.


And, of course, it is raining in Paris. Not wanting to fight my luggage, a train and 2 Metro transfers, I chose the taxi...at rush hour...in the rain. Any way, I did eventually make it to the hotel.


I used Marriott points to stay at the Renaissance on the Right Bank near the Jarden des Tuileries. This is a great location. However, after staying in a hotel that was ~$70 per night in Bucharest, this SIGNIFICANTLY more expensive room is 1/3 the size of my room in Bucharest. Takes a little getting used to. But I'm sure I'll survive. 

So, I dropped my luggage off and headed out into the rain. My mission was dinner because I hadn't had anything to eat all day. Wiley from The Meadowlark Restaurant has given me two restaurant recommendations. Fish La Boissonnerie is the closest to the hotel so I head in that direction. FISH is on the Left Bank near Saint-Germaine des-Pres. While FISH is a haven for English speakers (one of the waitresses is from Waco, Texas), it is a great atmosphere and great food. There are no reservations so it is first come, first served. I was later told that it was helpful to arrive right at 7pm when they officially open. But the bar is definitely worth the wait for the people alone. While waiting at the bar, two couples were there chatting. I would have sworn they had been friends for a while. Turns out they met about an hour before. I met a Scottish couple who lives in Australia and visits Paris for 2 months each year; a couple from South Africa with 3 kids (18, 9, and 2 - Yikes); 3 women from Michigan; and a couple from Napa. 

Now it is the couple from Napa that will be of interest to my Passport to Dry Creek Napa Monday friends. They are from Coombsville...home of John "Coot" Caldwell whom they know and describe as a "mentor." Bob and Anne own Tournesol Wines. Visits to the winery are by appointment so you will be pleased to know that we have our first Napa Monday 2013 winery visit.


And then there was dinner. I  started with Salade de quinoa, julienne de legumes croquants, okras et coriandre [Quinoa salad, crunchy julienne vegetables, okra and coriander]. (And, yes honey, I ate the Okra...it was raw and good.)  That was followed with filet de cabillaud, risotto d'epeautre au poireau, bulots, beurre d'escargot [cod fillet, risotto with leeks, whelks, snail butter]. And for dessert, Chevre frais de chez Quatrehomme, figues fraiches et huile d'olive [goat cheese with figs and olive oil]. And the meal was served with their own wines.

 I love walking Paris, especially at night. Although, it is better when John is here with me.

Bucharest, Romania 2012

First, it is CRAZY hot here. Even the Romanians are commenting on how hot it is. Given that we walk everywhere...well, let's just say it is a challenge...even showering twice a day.


This is a business trip and I'm impressed by how great the team here in Romania have been to work with. Not only in the office but they have entertained us each night we have been here.

Although, I have to say the most interesting part of the trip has been traveling with 2 of DDD's Cambodians who had never traveled outside SE Asia. First, they have been very adventurous in their food experimentation and inquisitive. It has been very refreshing. They have been willing to try ALMOST everything. So far, they have been introduced to grilled squid, Irish Chicken and Beef pies, tuna tartare, Turkish food, Illy Espresso, Romanian wine, and limoncello. It has been great watching them try new things. The tuna tartare was a hit...not so much the limoncello. 


Tonight we had dinner at a GREAT little Italian place. I almost didn't stop because there were only 3 people in the restaurant. But we took a look at the menu and the guys wanted seafood after gorging themselves on meat all week. So after they demolished all the bread while I was trying to decide on a wine, I ordered Tuna Tartare to start and had the Seafood Risotto based on the recommendation of our waiter. Both were excellent! Heak had the Grilled Squid with brocolli and Meakara had the grilled prawns with spinach. I'm assuming that they liked it because they both finished their meals. For dessert, I had the apple tart and an Illy espresso, Heak had the assortment of ice cream (Vanilla, Chocolate, and Rum - which had some fruit that I couldn't identify but which was very good). The waiter brought us the Limoncello as a digestif which Heak did not like at all. 


Tomorrow we play tourist. We are taking the tour bus around to see the city before the Cambodians, a Romanian, and a German head to Phnom Penh tomorrow night. I'm almost sorry I will miss the rest of the trip.

Heak taking a photo of Meakara

European soccer EVERYWHERE!

Under the Romanian National Bank

Street scene - Bucharest City Centre

 Street Scene - Bucharest City Centre

Lots of Banks in Bucharest

Cambodia–Life in Phnom Penh

So it is my last day in Cambodia. I get up at 6am to head to Score! bar to watch the Super Bowl while drinking orange juice. Don’t worry…many others were willing to drink (and smoke) other things…just not me. The place was FULL of US expats. Sadly, the team I chose to root for loses.

I walk to my favorite spa for a foot massage, manicure and pedicure. It is my last chance for a $10 manicure / pedicure. I follow this with my last trip to Brown’s Coffee. I’m really going to miss the people that I’ve met while in Cambodia.

I decide it is time that I see more of Phnom Penh…hey, I’ve been running all over and haven’t had time. I hire a Tuk Tuk driver for a few hours (at a ridiculously cheap rate) and we head out. My instructions…I want to see the city (which required help and translation from one of the complex security guards since my driver does not speak English). He does, however, recognize that I’m on a photo trip and does a good job of slowing down when he sees that I’m trying to take a picture while we are driving.

One of the things that someone told me about the difference in Cambodia now from when it was controlled by the Khmer Rouge was this: “We were digging ditches then and we are digging ditches now. The difference is that now there is noise.” As I rode through the city watching much of the infrastructure work, that was what I always remember.

		Life in Phnom Penh VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL