Rome for Thanksgiving

For the sake of time, I'm going to quickly summarize our trip and provide picture highlights.

Going into the trip was a stressful time because it was shortly after the Paris attacks and everyone was on high alert. There had been warnings issued for Rome and The Vatican, making it even more concerning to travel there. We discussed at length our options and decided we would go anyway because we knew security would be highly present. And we were right. Posted all throughout the city and in each piazza were police and military.

In addition, the airline Lufthansa was threatening to strike, which would directly affect our travel arrangements. At the last minute I was able to re-book our flights to avoid the strike.

These are both realities and complications to traveling, especially during these times. Just keeping it real.

Despite the stressful beginning to the trip, we did enjoy ourselves. The sights, the food, the gelato, the coffee, and the history were all amazing. And we got to have fresh pasta for our Thanksgiving dinner!

Outside a gelato shop near the Pantheon

The Pantheon

Trevi Fountain

Scenic street

Castel Sant'Angelo

Tiber River

Saint Peter's Bascilica

Piazza del Popolo

View from Villa Borghese Gardens

Inside the Colosseum

Constantine's Arch

The Roman Forum

Colosseum

The small whitish building next to the old columns is the Mamertine Prison, which is said to have imprisoned Peter and Paul. It overlooks the Roman Forum.

Our Oktoberfest Experience

Oktoberfest traditionally starts sometime in September and ends around the first part of October. The largest and most famous fest is in Munich, but nearly each city and village throughout Germany organizes their own Oktoberfest. It's the cherished time of year when people of all ages don their traditional Bavarian duds and head out to the beer tent.

Mr. Bloomsbury and I were invited to attend Oktoberfest in the next town over. During this time of year, dirndl (think alpine peasant woman dress) and lederhosen (leather pants for the men) are commonly sold in many stores. We hit up one of the local department stores for ours. They were even running a special for the guys: lederhosen, shirt, hat, socks, and shoes for one price.

When most people think of Oktoberfest, they picture huge tents where beer is consumed by the liter and drunken people dance about uninhibited. While some of this is true, the fest we went to was less about getting drunk and more about enjoying life and being happy. 

Inside the beer tent

We went on a Sunday at noon, so there were many families present with their small children. Everyone sat at long tables with benches lined up and a meal was served. We had the chicken and french fries. A band played cover music on a stage. People drank beer. Everyone was wearing their lederhosen and dirndl. At some point, someone in the band played an accordion folk music and people began to dance. Eventually, people stood on the benches and sang and danced, drank beer, and sang louder. 

Woman delivering meals

The chicken dinner

Folk dancing

We truly felt part of a cultural experience, which is funny to say because the band played many American songs, such as Sweet Home Alabama, YMCA, Take Me Home, and American Pie. It was quite a sight hearing the Germans sing, "I drove my Chevy to the levee, but the levee was dry!" 

Contest to se who could hold out the longest

People standing on the benches singing

Even the old people enjoyed the fest!

In true German fashion, the party ended at 6:00 p.m. (They do like to keep their schedules, even when it comes to drinking beer!) It was a great experience. Our dirndl and lederhosen stand ready in the wardrobe for next year!

The Bloomies are alive!

With the kids going back to school last fall, there came the very mundane routine of being a stay-at-home mom: hauling kids to school, sports, scouts, and other activities, grocery shopping, bill paying, chores, and running errands. None of it was very noteworthy or reason to write about.

In addition, I might have also over committed myself to various volunteer positions, thus filling up nearly every bit of free time I had so longed for when the kids were at home. As such, you may be happy to learn that I have acknowledged my folly in over committing myself in things that take me away from living and fully enjoying the European lifestyle. And so I have determined to cease some of the distracting volunteer roles and recommit myself to exploring and writing about our adventures. I've recognized that I should shed the self-inflicted guilt that comes when I "do something for myself," and, rather, become more free to pursue the things I enjoy - to align my priorities with my interests.

Also competing for time is the enormous task of planning these marvelous trips we take. There's tons of research that goes into finding the best flight at the best price, the best place to stay, and the best attractions, all this while staying within a reasonable budget. I'm certainly not complaining. I do frequently tell people that I am living the dream: getting to be a stay-at-home mom and travel Europe on the weekends!

There were a few highlights from the fall I would like to tell about: Oktoberfest and our trip to Rome. We've also just returned from a trip to Ireland. So there's a lot to look forward to - if you're still checking :)

Panoramic Portugal - Part 4: Sintra

About a 45-minute drive out of Lisbon up into the Sintra mountain range, is the town of Sintra overlooking the Atlantic ocean. The whole town is a UNESCO World Heritage site and a huge tourist attraction, but for good reason. Imagine a place where kings and royalty built their summer "cottages," each home's owner trying to transcend their neighbor.

With only a half of a day to spend in Sintra, we chose to visit the attraction recommended by our hosts: the Quinta da Regaleria. The manor itself wasn't the most impressive in town, but the surrounding exotic gardens were spectacular. The villa's original owner was a Brazilian coffee tycoon, who had the estate built to be his own magical hideaway. The gardens achieve just that.

The grand residence of Quinta da Regaleria

With secret passageways, a romantic chapel, and hidden grottos, it's not your average garden. Perhaps the most exciting feature is the inverted tower. Its spiral staircase descends the well down 88 feet and leads to a concealed passage at the bottom connecting to a series of tunnels that run the length of the gardens.

Inside the chapel

Walkways

Stone-built structures like this are placed throughout the gardens. The top of this turret provided panoramic vistas out across Sintra.

The entrance on the right leads to a hidden fountain.

Looking down at "waterfall lake" with it's playful stepping stones that cross over to an underground tunnel.

Looking down to the bottom of the inverted tower

Looking up at the top as we worked our way down the spiral staircase

One of the tunnels leads to the exit of a cave behind a small waterfall.

A tunnel lighted by a string of white lights

Another exit

The lower part of the garden near the manor is neatly landscaped, but the upper parts are densely wild and unorganized.

Ceramic tiles on one wall of the manor

A photograph, presumably of the original resident and his gang

A footpath along the side of the manor

We spent several hours exploring the gardens discovering its many hidden treasures. Our time constraints (and the hordes of tourists) prevented us from visiting any of the other numerous castles and palaces in Sintra. I feel like I could have easily spent an entire day or two there sightseeing.

Panoramic Portugal - Part 3: The Beaches

Bracing ourselves against a crisp, cold wind blowing up off the ocean, we looked out across the vast blue sea knowing that just across that great expanse was America on the other side. We were standing on the edge of a cliff just up the coast from the westernmost point of mainland Europe, and, despite the heat of summer, we were greeted with a blast of cold air, which created patches of fog obscuring parts of our view.

Ericeira Beach with the fog.
It was like standing in front of a window unit A/C turned on high with the cold air blasting up off the frigid water.

Ericeira Beach

Despite the cold air and the frigid water, sunbathers pitched umbrellas and wind guards to lay comfortably in the sun while some very brave swimmers ventured into the waves. Not wanting to squander the opportunity to catch some waves on some very famous breaks, Mr. Bloomsbury acquired a surfboard and wetsuit and paddled out.

Ericeira Beach

Ericeira Beach

After we'd had our fill of the sand and sea, we drove along the coast, stopping to take in the views.

Such a drastically different coastline than Florida's beaches. The public parking area is above and a narrow trail leads down to the water.



We parked at a less populated beach access and found a path down these cliffs to the water.

This is overlooking a surf school. The area of Ericeira is known for having world class surf breaks and international competitions. Finding surfboard and wetsuit rental was fairly easy. 

Closer in to Lisbon, we discovered the less remote (read: more populated) beaches of Cascais and Estoril, which are located on the banks of the Tagus estuary. Lined with bars, cafes, and castles, this coastline offered a different type of beauty.

The Estoril coastline

A castle on the beach

The views just never ended!

Panoramic Portugal - Part 2: Belém

Another favorite neighborhood of Lisbon we visited is called Belém. It's located on the mouth of the Tagus River and provides some stunning scenery.


Rua de Belem, Belem's main street and historical avenue.
A picturesque row of 160-year-old buildings now surviving as cafes and shops.

A mass of flowers over the entrance

Laundry hanging in the breeze

Pastel-colored buildings

The tiles, the old wooden door

Perhaps the most important café of Rua de Belém is the famous pastry shop Fábrica de Pasteis de Belém, home of the Portuguese egg tart made with flaky pastry.

Inside the café where they were busy cranking out thousands of the pastel de nata.
You can get them from any bakery in Lisbon, but these are said to be some of the best.

Here they are. Beautiful, creamy, deliciousness. Served with cinnamon and powdered sugar.

We got our pastel de nata to go and ate them in the nearby park, which overlooked the river.



A tree-lined walkway in the Praça do Império, an avenue of open spaces and gardens, with a central fountain

A beautiful fountain in front of the Jerónimos Monastery

After our treat and some playground time for the kids, we walked over to the Monument to the Discoveries, located on the river bank.

As we approached the monument, I thought it was a cross, but when we reached the site I realized it's actually a sword.

The monument commemorates the explorers who set out from Portugal and features dozens of figures from Portuguese history.