Bipartisan European Adventure

soon we are about to embark 

on 

a 

bipartisan european adventure

(because my dad and step mom are joining us

i titled it 

a play off my maiden name 

and 

my married name

besides we all know you have to have a good hashtag)

here's a brief synopsis of our trip

21 days

most on the road

traveling from venice

to

munich

to 

prague

to 

brussels

to 

london

to 

normandy

to

paris

to geneva

back to italy

then 

a one day laundry day

back on a train

to rome

for more travel

all with a toddler

(whose potty training/trained gasp!)

it's the last hurrah to get everything knocked off our bucket list before we move back to the states

i've planned it all

i have an itinerary

activities planned almost to the minute

after our trip

i will post all my tips

our full itinerary 

(i am not posting now because it includes dates....gotta be safe ya know!)

it will be fun

it will be trip of a lifetime!

for now i leave you with 

packing tips

because we won't be in one place longer than three days

i am packing in ziplock bags

it's easier to pull out one bag then dump out all the clothes looking for something

for the toddler

i did one outfit in a bag

socks, outfit, panties

for the adults

i bagged by item

ex socks in one bag

underwear in one bag

shirts in bags

(i know this isn't a fully packed suitcase. 

eventually it was fully packed)

you get the idea

here's to making memories

and seriously

i may put this project on my resume....

love love from aviano!

he found a wine he likes!!!!

it only took three and a half years

but

my beer only husband

finally 

found a wine he likes

and 

we found a beautiful vineyard to explore as well
our quest for this vineyard 
all started after we spotted a
50 euro
bottle of wine
at our local wine bar
why on earth was this wine 50 euro??
(note to readers, we are cheap winos
and
only spend avg 6-10 euro a bottle)
we saw the vineyard
on the label
google mapped it
realized it was only a couple of hours away
and
decided
to drive there
to try it
in 
hopes it would be cheaper there
then 
at the wine bar

enter

{santa sofia}

the drive up was gorgeous

 at the end of this tree lined road
sat the vineyard
(this picture doesn't do it justice)
the winery was founded in
1811
Giancarlo Begnoni
the head of the vineyard

was there when we came
and 
he provided us a wonderful tasting experience
without even setting up an appointment!
(perks of going mid week)
he gave us a brief history about the wine he "made"


and 
friends it is worth every penny!
it has only been made
seventeen times
in 
fifty years!
we even got to see the historical cellars
the oldest cellar
dates back to the 11th century!

it is dedicated 
to 
Santa Sofia
the newest cellars

were built in the 18th century
the tour was delightful
very informative

and the grounds were simply gorgeous

i apologize
i wish i had more
and
better pictures
but 
we had a two year old with us
and 
between 
wine tasting
chasing a two year old
and 
listening to the wealth of information from Giancarlo
(whom speaks mainly italian and i speak mainly english)
my photo opportunities were limited
but 
aviano folks 
take my word
drive the two hours 
out towards verona
and 
see this beautiful vineyard
and taste
the wine
it's extremely pleasing to the pallet
(do i sound like a wino yet)
 my beer loving husband
finally bought a case of wine

he calls
"all his"

love love
from 
aviano

a view only God could design

We decided to get away to Cinque Terre this past break

many speak of the beauty of cinque terre

but 

until you see it 

you really don't understand 

how beautiful it really is

cinque terre is a group of five cities

along 

the italian rivera 

the cities are

Monterossor al Mare

Vernazza

Cornigilia

Manarola

and

Riomaggiore 

We stayed at Riomaggiore

 at

{Locanda Del Sole} 

the best thing about this hotel 

is 

FREE SECURE PARKING!!

the hike back from the shore to the hotel

made for a wonderful workout 

Upon check-in

we learned that two of the major hiking paths

via dell amore

and 

the path from manarola to vernazza

were closed

because of mud slides

so

we took the boat

from riomaggiore 

coast at riomaggorie

to

monterossor al mare

to enjoy the view of the coast

and

of course let the little one enjoy the boat

***travel tip***

if you want to go primarily for the beach

stay at monterossor 

at monterossor we took the train to vernazza

when in vernazza stop here 

 

{gelateria vernazza} 

was amazing

and 

had an abundance of flavors 

next 

we hiked 

oh boy did we hike

from 

vernazza to corniglia

this was a 4 km hike

with 36 pounds of toddler 

on my husbands back

 he's a trooper

at the halfway point 

we caught a breeze

and a nice little pit stop 

created by a local 

  

(there were quite a few four legged kiddos on the hike!)

but without the hike

we would have never seen these views

 

 once we reached corniligia 

we took the train

to manarola

 

 where i got to tote 36 pounds of pure cuteness

outside manarola 

about 30 minutes uphill

in groppo 

is the

{wine co-op}

you can buy all your wine here!!

cinque terre is known for 

sciacchetra

a very sweet white wine

it will run about 30-40 euro a bottle

they have other whites and reds 

that are in the 6-15 euro range as well

after manarola 

we headed back to 

riomaggiore

to enjoy a wonderful dinner

where i enjoyed

the traditional

trofie al pesto

it was delicious!

then the next day we headed to 

carrara 

to see the marble quaries that michelangelo used!

but that will have to wait!

until next time

love love 

from aviano

milano in a day

this past easter weekend we went to milan!

i was so excited because it was one city in italy 

i didn't see twelve years ago when i visited as a high school senior 

so

is it possible to go to milan in one day?

YES

but i highly recommend more than one

because 

let's be honest

you need at least a day to shop

we took the train to milan

it's an easy train ride from aviano 

and the most gorgeous site welcomes you when you get off the train

the train station itself!

it is gorgeous

{picture credit: blog eurorail}

the prettiest train station i've been in so far!

when you exited the train station 

another gorgeous site 

welcomes you

the duomo

the duomo is a key building in milan
it is the fifth largest duomo's in europe
and 
the seat to the archbishop of Milan

 i could write a short paper on the importance of it 

but 

i encourage you to 

{click here} 

and 

{here} 

but know this

do not miss it!

go inside because inside you will find

 some of the prettiest stain glass i've ever seen

it is at moments like this that i wish i was a better photographer

and  

 

another look

but i can not take pictures

so to tease you more

  {picture credit: the roaming lama}

**travel tip: while entering the duomo is free

 it cost two euro to take pictures inside the duomo! 

you pay at the booth that greets you when entering**

next to the duomo is the infamous 

{galleria vittorio emanuale II}

aka "the mall" 

where prada and louis are neighbors

and

swarovski lives across the street

it really is a wonderful world

while in milan 

you must see 

leonardo da vinchi's 

"last supper"

the "last supper" is hidden inside

the ordinary looking church 

in the

refectory of the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie 

i was expecting an extremely small painting

similar to the mona lisa

but

"the last supper"

does not disappoint

it is an extremely large painting

and 

while the tour is brief
(you only get 15 minutes to look at the painting, 

seriously only 15, 

they will kick you out)

the painting is stunning

 {picture credit}

and 

don't forget to take in

Giovanni Donato da Montorfano 

fresco

"The Crucifixion"

{picture credit}

more information about "the last supper" can be found

{here}

finally we stopped at 

{castello sforzesco}

{picture credit-mighty mac}

the castle is extremely impressive

it is almost all intact

and

covers a mass amount of ground

by the time we arrived at the castle

we had a very tired toddler

so we 

didn't venture on the tour

(again why you should do milan in two days not one) 

other highlights of milan

chocolate!!!! 

Monte Bloc Gourmet writes a great blog piece about chocolate in milan

read it 

{here} 

and of course buy some chocolate!!

throughout milan there were wonderful statues and art pieces

below are a few we found

disclaimer:

most of the following pictures are straight from my iphone 

so i apologize for quality

and

since i was totting a toddler i only saw bits and pieces

in between goldfish and juice boxes 

i know very little about what i saw

except it was appeasing to the eye

and finally

the coolest way to order at a mcdonalds yet

 we had never seen something like this before

call us sheltered

but we were thoroughly entertained

by

such technology

milan was doable in a day 

from 

aviano

however

i recommend

two days

especially if you have a kiddo in tow!

it is a gorgeous city

and

a perfect combination of

art, history, and modern

love love 

from aviano