Photos!

All of our pictures are up on Flickr... I'm only going to put a couple here, so please click on the link to see everything! http://www.flickr.com/photos/rachelbremer/

Lisbon



Obidos - a stop on the way to Douro Valley where we had Ginja from a chocolate cup



View of Douro Valley from one of the vineyards where we stopped



Ric in Porto



Rachel in Porto

Back in London

We're back in gray, chilly London, which is taking my body a little while to get used to. Allergies kicked in almost as soon as we hit the ground at Gatwick and haven't stopped sneezing since...

We'll put pictures up this weekend, but wanted to let everyone know that we returned home safely and are still enjoying the memories of a great trip. The more time we spent in Portugal (and the further north we went) the more we loved it. Already planning a trip back in early May to visit the Quinta do Vallado in Douro Valley where we stayed this week. Not really sure why vineyards in California wine country haven't decided to put a few hotel rooms on the property... It's such a cool experience, and so quaint. There were only five rooms where we stayed and we woke up to a rooster crowing, orange juice freshly squeezed from the trees on the property, eggs from the chickens, flowers blooming everywhere, and people in trucks heading out to the vineyards to take care of the vines. Really an experience unlike anything we've ever done. And would be SO perfect for the Napa/Sonoma region. Maybe that's what Ric and I should do in our next life...

Happy Friday!

We did it!

Yesterday´s half-marathon was a resounding success! Rachel and I are both a little sore this morning but doing just fine overall. We´ll write more later but just wanted to let all of our loyal readers about the run.

Off to the Douro Valley!

Gran Torino

We saw a great movie on Saturday and just wanted to pass along the recommendation. Gran Torino with Clint Eastwood is set in Michigan and it's about an old guy who befriends the family living next door. I don't want to give too much away, but it's a great combination of funny and sentimental. We walked out of the theater wishing we could turn around, go back in, and see it again. I haven't felt that way about a movie since There Will Be Blood (also highly recommended).

Countdown to race day

Well, we've made it through the winter training season and it's now actually light by the time we finish our runs in the morning (exciting!). We even had warm sunshine for our final 10 miler this weekend (more exciting!). And the official countdown has begun... we leave for Lisbon on Friday after work and will be starting the half marathon at 10:30am on Sunday morning.

After a couple days in Lisbon we head to this winery in the Douro Valley for a little R&R: http://www.wonderfulland.com/wonder2006/sleep/quintadovallado/indexhouse_en.htm#atmosphere. Then we make one final stop in Porto for port tasting and a night in a small hotel right on the water before heading back to London.

It's warm and sunny in Lisbon right now, but they're calling for rain on Sunday, so please keep your fingers crossed that the forecast changes between now and then!

Favorite restaurants

Just one other quick post about our trip to Paris... we've found some great places to eat the past couple times we've been there. All of these recommendations came out of one article in Gourmet Magazine called Paris on a Budget (or something like that...). It's about this new breed of "bistronomiques" springing up in Paris started by famous chefs or their protegees. Bistronomiques are typically small, moderately priced, and focused on high quality, fresh ingredients.

Here's a list of our favorites (in order):

1. Le Chateaubriand
2. Bistro Paul Bert
3. L'epigramme
4. Le Timbre

Paris pics

We took lots of pictures in Paris this weekend, so we'll let those do the talking...

On our way to a huge food market



Yummies





























































Just a small cheese plate... for dessert. At lunch.


Jazz entertainment in Place St. Germain



Our favorite wine bar, across the street from Le Chateaubriand



A beautiful evening











Notre Dame

Hampstead is under construction

Everyone must have been waiting for the snow to melt, becuase about two weeks ago the construction equipment, scaffolding, and warning signs went up all over town simultaneously. Here are some photos of what's happening on Flask Walk alone... Takes away from the charm a little bit so hopefully they'll be finished before we get our first summer visitors!

By the High Street...



Flask Walk close to Lutton Terrace... we have no idea what they're doing, but they've moved about three huge pieces of machinery into an area roughly the size of our bathroom. There's a deep hole in the ground that gets bigger by the day and every time we walk by they've somehow managed to fit another crane or digger in the same tiny space. It's quite impressive really...