The Johnslingtons

While our last stops in Europe were emotionally bittersweet (so many feelings about going back to the States!), they were also gustatorily triumphant. We alluded before to Portugal’s sometimes perplexing nature, but on this second trip through we kinda nailed it. And… we nailed the food, too. Most of what we consumed was real, real… Continue reading Lisbon and the Azores – The Best Stuff We Ate

Fiona’s last stop in Europe was a country we’d already been to on this trip—Portugal! But this time, we explored two new destinations: the capital city, Lisbon, and an archipelago (group of islands) called the Azores. Lisbon is a really cool city that’s actually a lot like San Francisco. It’s on the water, it’s super… Continue reading Where in the World is Fiona? Portugal! (Again!)

Back in May, we were trying to figure out the most intelligent and efficient way to come home. We knew we were going to be coming from the south of France, we knew we were going to land on the East coast, and we knew knew we still wanted to check out Lisbon. Looking at… Continue reading Awed by the Azores

I didn’t want to like Lisbon. Not because Lisbon had ever done anything to offend me, or that I had ever been beaten up by a gang of roving Lisbonians (Lisbonans? Lisbans? Lisbonaires?). My issue was that everyone loves Lisbon. Whenever we mentioned that we were going to Lisbon, we heard: “Lisbon? Oh, it’s so… Continue reading A Lovely Layover in Lisbon

France, right? Birthplace of haute cuisine. Michelin star central. The inventors of so many classic cooking techniques and recipes, you could spend months there, just eating. Us? Well, we were not particularly aggressive – in two weeks, we had just one bistro meal. It was good, though. Anyway, here’s what stood out: Croissants and donuts… Continue reading France – The Best Stuff We Ate

In July, Fiona spent 10 days in France. Our first stop was Nice, a beautiful city on the French Riviera. We got to stay in a really fancy hotel with a pool and a view of the Mediterranean Sea. Fiona did a video tour of our hotel room for her friends: After that, we went… Continue reading Where in the World is Fiona? France!

Our mid-July stay in the tiny medieval town of Caunes-Minervois, France, was one of the very first things we booked on this trip, way back in February. Our friends Grant and Ellen, whom you may remember from our stop in London, have been going to the same vacation spot there every summer for more than… Continue reading (Au Pont) Romain Holiday

This trip has had its share of contrasts. We’ve gone from beachside bungalow to high-rise hotel room. From urban tourist destination to remote family farm. Spacious suburban home to teeny tiny campervan. But perhaps the most striking of these was the one-two punch of Schweiben, Switzerland and Nice, France. Because beyond beautiful views (and let’s… Continue reading Ooh-La-La-Living It Up in Nice

After Austria, Fiona got to spend some time with kids her age(ish) in Germany and Switzerland. First was Kaufbeuren, Germany, where some friends of Fi’s parents, Courtney and Greg, live with their three kids, Zachary (11), Ryan (9) and Lexie (7). During the weekend we were there, Fi did lots of playing, plus some biking,… Continue reading Where in the World is Fiona? Germany and Switzerland!

We grouped together the Stubai, Kaufbeuren, and Switzerland for this post, because they’re all pretty Alp-y. Spaetzle in general, but the one Julie had at Maria Waldrast monastery was particularly good. Tiroler Grostle at Elferhutte. Grostl is basically fried potatoes with eggs and some bacon, with some other stuff. It’s real good. Dry-aged ribeye cooked… Continue reading Austria to Switzerland – The Best Stuff We Ate