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Paris, France - A Daily Walking TOUR

9/7/2024

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UPDATED 2024 - I am asked all the time for help with itineraries to France. If you've been before, great! I can recommend some wonderful "off the beaten path" locations. But for the first-timer, I will start by admitting there is no perfect itinerary. And, follow with, 3 days is not enough time in Paris. But that is what I am asked to share. So if you have more time, this plan will still work with plenty of down time to wander or add another adventure. Highly recommend. And if you are unable to stay longer, this will help you see a good deal of Paris.

That said, I offer the following very ambitious 3-Day itinerary for Paris. It assumes you will not do everything, and that this is all the time you have for the City of Lights! 

First bit of advice, do some reading on being a guest in France.
For some more visit advice, see Advice for Visiting France for the First Time or Dining in Paris

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Biking Germany's Mosel River Valley

6/16/2024

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Germany by Bike, Why?

You're not a biker? And you don't want to be part of a tour group? Why would you want to do this? I had the same questions when considering this Mosel biking idea.

My sister, who admittedly is in much better shape than I, wanted an active adventure to precede a more sedentary 
planned Rhine River Cruise. My criteria were clear: flat, paved, easy with off-road scenery for the non-athlete. Logic dictated that we choose something in a country close to our point of departure, and a bit of research promised all the above if we chose a biking tour through the Mosel River Valley on the famed Bike Path.

The Mosel river (Moselle in France) is the best known of the 13 German wine-growing regions and flows north joining the Rhine in Koblenz. We chose to bike the lower course as the river twists and turns its way along one of Germany's most beautiful river valleys. The region was cultivated by the Romans, and there is plenty of history and wine to explore along the way. Today, its hillsides are covered by steep terraced vineyards where some of the best Rieslings grow. Picturesque castle ruins sit on the hilltops above the charming wine villages along the riverside. 
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Map and more wine information at https://winefolly.com/deep-dive/mosel-valley-wine-guide/

​Click on any image below to view larger 
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Müden, view from our window
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Expect a bit of rain along the way!
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Burg Eltz
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The forest trail back from Burg Eltz
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Bielstein
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Our Hotel in Trittenheim
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Roman "milestone" (league marker)
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High water markers show historic floods
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Bernkastel-Kues
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Stopping in a village along the way
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Trier
A MOSEL BIKING PRIMER
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You can start and stop anywhere along the bike path heading in either direction and it is relatively flat terrain along the riverbanks. For the most part the route is paved and off road, but there are sections where you ride in a bike lane along the highway. Fear not, Germans are very courteous drivers to bikers. There are a few climbs up to a bridge or through some of the vineyards nestled in the hillsides, but when I could not ride any faster than I could walk in first-gear, that’s exactly what I did. 

Biking is very common in this area and you will see every variety of biker along the route. And as the river also accommodates holiday caravans and campers, there are no shortage of places to stop. In every village there are bike shops, grocery stores and cafes to help you rest, resupply or repair should you need to.

We started in Müden* ​near Cochem making our way to Trier in late May 2024. We opted for inexpensive Gites and Inn’s recommended and linked below, but believe me there are much swankier-digs along the route should you choose a more posh stay. You can search "Mosel spa resorts" and find many, but the one I drooled over was Moselschlösschen where we just enjoyed a coffee on their riverfront terrace in Traben-Trarbach.

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO WARNINGS !
Sundays took us by complete surprise. Why? In Germany, Sundays are sacred. The country has a word for it - Ruhetag. Germans take the practice so seriously that Sundays are protected by their Constitution. This means the Lidl supermarket will not be open to purchase sunscreen, that small shop you planned to return to will be dark, and only hotels/inns are allowed to have food service. So prepare accordingly! Visit a park, look for a festival, visit a museum or other cultural spot on Sunday.

Do not expect elevators in these small inns. We just had our meager riding necessities in the bike saddlebags (panniers) so it was not a problem. 
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OUR MOSEL BIKE ITINERARY
< click on any image to view larger

DAY 1    
We flew into Frankfurt Airport (FRA) on Condor Airlines (Nonstops from SFO and LAX - highly recommend their business class option! If you're not traveling at peak-season buy the least expensive ticket and then bid on BoostSeat app to upgrade to a lay-flat seat - Huzzah!)

German trains are easy, and most connecting stations (Hbf) have ticket windows to help you. Recommend you try to sprichst ein wenig Deutsch, but they speak English! We took the ICE 228 Train From Frankfurt Airport to Koblenz* Hbf, (Direction  Dortmund) - 1 hour 13 min. We transferred to the local RB81 Koblenz/Trier train to arrive at the Müden-Mosel stop. A 3 min down-hill walk took us directly to our first 2 nights at the charming family run,
                 Hotel Sewenig (dinner recommended!)

*We skipped Koblenz on this bit of the Mosel Path because we would spend time there on our Rhine Cruise. We also heard that the "scenic part of the ride" started near Cochem.  I'd recommend Koblenz for a visit, but start a bike ride further south. 

DAY 2    
We took a taxi (there is also a bus) to Burg Eltz ++*, which was an amazing excursion into the forest above Müden. We walked/skipped back down through the forest trail which has a "Snow White vibe" after visiting the castle. We had arranged to have our (carry-on!) suitcases picked up at the hotel today and our bike rentals dropped off. We did not rent e-bikes as the buses along the route won’t allow them, and we wanted the option in case we were faced with rain or other complications en route.  We packed small wet packs for the journey by bike to Trier approximately 110 km away. Cost for luggage transport and bike rentals was $340.

DAY 3      Korkenzieher Restaurant Apartment
We rode 26 km to Briedel along the lovely bike path through Cochem, Bielstein and Zell stopping along the way to eat and visit. We encountered a very muddy patch traveling through the forest park. In hindsight, we were really lucky we didn’t have e-bikes because the added weight would have made the journey impossible as we had to climb a hill to get around the swamp. Cochem is lovely, but bus-busy and I'm glad we didn't stay there. Bielstein was adorable but with few services, and Breidel right outside of Zell had a perfect well outfitted apartment above a good restaurant.

Day 4        Christina’s Wein & Art
We had a big ride today to Bernkastel-Kues @ 35 km away heading through Traben-Trarbach which is a delightful village worth visiting! Recommend stopping for a drink at the Moselschlösschen riverfront terrace. Bernkastel was wonderful. Christina's Hotel on Kues side was very nice, but maybe better for a car visit. I would prefer to stay on the old-town side of the river +$$ if I had it to do again. 

Day 5       Gastehaus Moselkloster
Our ride today to Trittenheim was @ 30 km. Really loved seeing Piesport along the way. Worth mentioning, there are plenty of gites between Piesport and Trittenheim. Look closely at the map and you'll see Neumagen-Drohn "the beautiful and oldest wine town in Germany." Want to stay at a winery? Check out the Klimek Winery and guest houses.

Day 6&7         Nells Park Hotel 
Today we planned to ride 42 km to Trier, a city on the banks of the Moselle near the border with Luxembourg. Founded by the Romans in the late 1st century BC as Augusta Treverorum ("The City of Augustus among the Treveri"), Trier is considered Germany's oldest city.

However, the Roman gods had other plans for us with a torrential downpour and high water on the bike path forcing us to reconsider after about 35 km. With stations all along the way, we hopped on the next train and were in Trier in 10 minutes!
GepaeckTransport Mosel brought our luggage to our Hotel and picked up our bikes in the hotel bike rack. We spent 2 nights at a quiet spa hotel out of the hustle bustle of the City in Nells Park. Close enough to walk or bus back into Old Town to tour the Roman ruins, Porta Nigra and the cathedral.

​We found Trier a wonderful place to end our bike adventures before heading by train to Cologne (Koln) to board our Rhine river cruise. Would I do it by bike again? Absolutely!
RESOURCES

Luggage Transport and Bike Rental - $340 2pp bag storage + bikes ++*
  1. https://www.gepaecktransportmosel.de/en/index.php  ++*
Biking Maps and More
  1. https://en.visitmosel.de/cycling/mosel-cycle-path
  2. https://www.rlp-tourismus.com/en/tour/tour/mosel-radweg-gesamtstrecke-von-perl-bis-koblenz/tour.html
  3. https://www.tourenplaner-rheinland-pfalz.de/en/tour/long-distance-cycling/mosel-cycle-path-in-full-from-perl-to-koblenz/3371404/#dm=1
  4. https://burg-bike.de/en/mosel-bike-tour/
Wine Guides
  1. https://winefolly.com/deep-dive/mosel-valley-wine-guide/​

++* Special THANK YOU and mention for Chris at GepaeckTransport Mosel and Sonja at Berg Eltz here! At the beginning of the trip I lost my wallet at Burg Eltz. We called with little hope to see it again. But it was found with cash and credit cards in tact! Meanwhile, we were on our way peddling to Cochem. Sonja connected with Chris Teuber from Gepäcktransport who picked it up from a Burg Eltz employee returning home. Amazeballs, beyond the call of duty and saved my trip! 

Have questions? Drop a note below. Always happy to help.
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an apartment in Paris?

4/29/2022

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Click on any image to see larger
The little flower shop
Louis Vuitton Center
Biking the Bois
Why you
Should visit
should visit
Paris in Spring
The Living Room - I added the fabric and Paris Pillows
The Master bedroom
The guest room/office
Across the street a Boulangerie, Bikes and Bank
Rothschild Park and Chateau
The Billancourt Town Hall
For 2 months in the spring of 2019, a time before Covid and when Notre Dame sadly ignited during my stay, I took an apartment in Paris. Kind of...

​I had visited Paris many times, but always traveling to or from somewhere for a week or so. I wanted to experience a bit of daily life, settle in and brush up my French. I was researching my book about Daisy Polk, so the perfect excuse to stay for a month+.  Originally I had reserved a two story flat in the Rue de Levis 17th Arr., but that fell through at the last moment, and I found a modern 2 bedroom apartment in Boulogne Billancourt with a large outdoor balcony and real elevator. Unheard of in my price point. Booked! (see the red heart on map)

Why I would stay in Boulogne again
Technically not Paris but a separate village that retained its independence when other villages were joining the City, it is served by two Metro lines which makes coming and going to anywhere in Paris a breeze. Actually better than many locales inside the center that are only served by one line. This upscale residential village neighbors the 16th Arr. of Paris proper (where I usually love to stay). That village ambiance is what I (and my guests) loved about Boulogne Billancourt. AND ... the bus or train to Versailles is a 20 minute ride from the front door. What's not to love? 

The trade-off for "modern" was charm, but not comfort. I've stayed in the walk-ups and squeezed my bags into elevators that were hardly bigger than a dumbwaiter. I never stay at big hotels, so if this was the compromise, I was pleased. And a quick fun shopping day in the tissue (fabric) shops below Sacre Coeur (I go there everytime ... talk about eye candy!), and I had some pillow covers and a few yards of fabric to cozy-the-place up. 


We also enjoyed bike riding (rental bikes across the street!), being so near the Seine, fantastic shopping and boulangeries, easy acccess to the Bois de Boulogne park, the Roland-Garros stadium (FrenchOpen), the Edmond-de-Rothschild park, and the new Louis Vuitton Center. For daily living, I could walk to every store and discovered a delightful nursery around the corner. So charming, I always took guests there to take pictures. 

​Would I stay in Boulogne Billancourt again? Absolutely.

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Rue de Levis
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Rue de Silly Boulogne Billancourt
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Villa Tugendhat: Mies Van der Rohe

10/11/2018

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Built between 1928-30, Villa Tungendhat stands today as a perfect assimilation of the creative genius, craftsmanship and design aesthetic of the architect Mies Van der Rohe. Long before he left for Chicago, this man was given creative freedom to create a home using all his then modern bauhaus ideas.

This Villa was the reason for my visit to Brno, Czech Republic. About 206 km southeast from Prague, this amazing property stands among other comparatively ordinary but lovely homes in a nice neighborhood in the hills above the City. And as with trains, planes and automobile's, I arrived late at the close of the day and the Director allowed me a private tour. As a former architecture student at Berkeley, I had written a paper on the Villa. I had written the director to make the visit. But to walk it without visitors, was a dream come true.
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The home feels as modern today, as it certainly must have then. From automated retracting glass windows, to walls of ebony wood and other precious materials, no detail was overlooked. Even the finishes on something as mundane as closet drawers, window coverings and use of linoleum for floors in the main space all serve to create a perfect union of form and function.

And the furniture! Everyone knows I covet a Barcelona Chair. Designed for this home by Lilly Reich.

The home implemented a steel load bearing structure allowing for open design, hot air heating and cooling system, electric windows, and a photocell at the entrance.

This is unique today, but in 1928? A marvel.

More Info: http://www.tugendhat.eu/en/villa-tugendhat/the-architect.html
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Barcelona - 3 Days in Catalonia

4/27/2018

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Camp Nou
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Sagrada Familia
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Hiking in Montserrat
HOTEL: We stayed in the K+K Hotel Picasso 4* Superior, Passeig de Picasso, 26-30  Ciutat Vella 08003 Barcelona. 3 nights ran @ $492 which was a great deal.
Pluses: It's in the Borne District (quieter than Gotic with charm and convenience), easy to get to from the airport (it's right between Estacio de Franca train station and Arc de Triomf Line 1 metro stop),  close to one of Barcelona’s best bars El Bar de l’Antic Teatre. It has a fantastic buffet breakfast ( important if you're an early riser and want more than coffee and a pastry. Why?  Breakfasts aren't a big deal in Spain, and most cafes open after 10 am). The hotel is right across from the Parc de la Ciutadella, and easy walk to everything. The public rooms at the hotel are lovely, even a guitar for your use. 
​Minuses: Don't expect big rooms, but great staff and public spaces make up for it.

WHAT'S the WHAT: Restaurants: Lunch is between 1 and 4 pm. Dinner is between 8 pm and midnight.
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Montjuic Fountains
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Funicular
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Poble Espanyol
Click the "Read More" button to see full Itinerary

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Spain - 14 days Barcelona to Malaga

4/27/2018

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PicturePalau Musica in Barcelona
Thanks to Norwegian Airlines I found some ridiculously cheap tickets from Oakland, California to Barcelona and out of Malaga for the return. Perfect. The plan was Spain from one coast to the other! I convinced my oldest son to join me.  Here is an overview of the trip. For details on specific cities, click on the links below.

From Barcelona  to Malaga hitting 3 separate parts of the coastline in 14 days. We rented a car on our last day in Barcelona and drove it to Granada. Then we took the bus to Malaga (An easy trip, buses depart every half hour). It gave us more flexibility in our travel, but was quite expensive compared to train or bus travel.  Your choice! 

SIMPLIFIED ITINERARY
BARCELONA 3 days
Day Trip to Montserrat Option
BILBAO 1 day 
MADRID 2 days
TOLEDO  1 Day
CORDOBA  1 day
SEVILLE 2 days
Ronda - Day Trip 
GRANADA 2 days
MALAGA 2 days

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Discovering Croatia - Itinerary

10/15/2016

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PictureThe beauty of Krka National Park
GO!
Go before they are on the €uro, or members in the EU and the prices skyrocket. Go while they have not burned out on tourists - who despite our best behavior, can wear down the most hospitable of hosts. To me, it has the best of Italy and Greece combined.  Go, Go , Go.

Croatia has got so many things going for it, I can't even begin to list them all.
  • An amazing coastline - check
  • Friendly people who speak many languages - check.
  • Cities, parks, nightlife, amazing food and historic sites - check and double check.
In fact, so much history that you can't miss it. It's got movie sets (Game of Thrones), Roman palaces and coliseums, great wine (and beer - Pliny the Elder lived in the Pula/Istrian Peninsula) and great highways to make driving the entire country a breeze. I've even shared my "8 Amazing Day Itinerary" with you to make planning a cinch.

Click the "Read more" link below to see full itinerary


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Basque Country - Bilbao, Spain

10/15/2016

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We drove from Barcelona to Bilbao via Pamplona. You could just as easily fly, but the road was easy and the views were beautiful. 
We rented a Hertz - Compact 4/5-Door Car Manual. and picked it up at Calle Viriat 45, Barcelona, It was $167  with $88 in additional comprehensive insurance. Barcelona to Pamplona  took about 5 hours and we arrived @1 pm. We had lunch and a walkabout. We left Pamplona around 3 pm and arrived in Bilbao @ 5pm. The terrain changes dramatically when you head over the mountains into Bilbao. It is green and lush and beautiful. Down down you head into the City of Bilbao along The Nervión river (Basque: Nerbioi) which runs through the city of Bilbao into the Cantabrian Sea (Bay of Biscay). 
Click on any images to see larger full scale
The Guggenheim
The Nervion
The Square
Old Town
The Puppy
Outside the Museum

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Croatia Waterfalls and other amazements

10/15/2016

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Turn on sound. The start features a singer we listened to in Dubrovnik. There is music in every city at night.  The first waterfalls are in Krka National Park. Bring a suit ... you can take a refreshing dip. The second and much larger park is further North in Plitvice National Park. No swimming here. But worth the trek to this magical place. 
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Do you have the Travel Gene?

1/15/2016

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"A travel gene? Who knew genes can compel some of us to wander the earth, seek new adventure and hate to sit still?  In my family we referred to it as "ants-in-the-pants". Well now new science and migratory history explains that some of the human population is just naturally coded to "get up and go". All thanks to ADD and long alleles. 

This is possibly the best news ever ... for me.


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    See my reviews on TripAdvisor!

    Who Goes There?

    I have circumnavigated the globe a few times. I don't do backpacks. And I don't like tour groups. Always ready for a fun adventure! 

    ARTICLES
    1. Boulogne Billancourt  Apartment
    2. Barcelona - 3 Days in Catalonia
    3. Spain - 14 days Barcelona to Malaga
    4. Discovering Croatia - Itinerary
    5. Villa Tugendhat: Mies Van der Rohe
    6. Basque Country - Bilbao, Spain
    7. Croatia Waterfalls amazing
    8. Do you have the Travel Gene?
    9. Dining in Paris
    10. Visiting France for the First Time
    11. ​An apartment in Paris
    12. Paris, France - in 3 Days
    13. Biking the Mosel, Germany

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