Category Archives: Europe

Stairway to Heaven

stairway-to-heaven-sm Sometimes you snap a photo and a caption just pops into your head. Well, it does for some people. I’m lucky if I remember to bring a camera – not mind actually managing to take photos with it. But thankfully, the WanderDad is camera-happy and a witty soul to boot. The photo above is of the church of San Michele in Lucca, Italy. Lucca is a delight to visit, not least because the piazza around this church is a perfect Italian piazza replete with cafes to lounge outside while watching children delightedly chase pigeons over the cobblestones – for hours. A recipe for a perfect (family) vacation afternoon.

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Paris street cafe

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BigB, Paris 2002

Picture the scene: an extended family group enjoying a day in Paris before taking the train to historic Poitiers. It’s about lunchtime and the group has stopped to review lunch options in a narrow street lined with small cafes. And then WanderMom notices that her two-year-old has slipped out of view. Frantic, she alerts the rest of the group and everyone’s attention is immediately focused on finding the child. Within seconds, WanderDad starts laughing, pointing into a nondescript cafe-tabac just a couple of doors from where the group had originally been standing.

This little guy is a kid who just loves his eggs, and is very serious about his food. And he’s a child, who even at two, was ready to take charge of his own destiny. While the adults were deliberating what and where to eat, he spied the customary wire rack of hard-boiled eggs on the counter of the cafe-tabac. Being used to high counter stools from home, he perched himself up on one and without a word of french was negotiating an egg from the proprietor when his Dad spotted him.

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Proposed Cornwall Trip Itinerary

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truro-cathedral

Truro Cathedral, photo credit: Flickr

I obsess about trip planning. There are times when I’ve been known to research a destination so deeply that I’m stymied by all the possible things to see and do when we get there. Inevitably, I find I need to step back, think about the goal of the trip whether it’s relaxation, sightseeing or visiting family and then formulate an overall itinerary building in plenty of options and flexibility – because when you travel with children, flexibility is key. Here’s the itinerary I’ve come up with for our upcoming trip to the U.K.:

Day 0 (evening): Depart Seattle on overnight flight to Heathrow.
Day 1 (midday): Arrive Heathrow, take the HeathrowConnect train to Paddington, and the train from Paddington to Truro. Arrive Truro approximately 20 hours after leaving Seattle. Whew!
Day 2: Explore Penryn and possibly Truro – although all sightseeing in the afternoon could be sidelined to watch the Ireland Vs Scotland rugby match Since this will be our first full day in this time zone, I expect that we’ll all be tired from the journey and hence it doesn’t make sense to try to plan a busy day. But, fresh air and exercise walking and exploring these towns, will help with everyone’s jet-lag and hopefully ensure that we all get a good night’s sleep.
Day 3: Visit the Eden Project and take a short driving tour of the Lizard Peninsula.
Day 4: A day devoted to King Arthur. Although realistically, I think we’ll only have time for Tintagel, Camelford and Dozmary Pool. BigB really is beside himself at the prospect of ‘seeing’ the Lady of the Lake.
Day 5: Hike Bodmin Moor. This is an easy 4-mile hike in beautiful countryside and, hey, it’s a moor, so I can have a Kate Bush moment where I can belt out Heathcliff at the top of my out-of-tune lungs – most likely to the WanderDad’s consternation. (And yes, I do know that Wuthering Heights was set on the Yorkshire Moors, but hey, you’ve got to adapt when you’re traveling).
On Day 6 & 7 we’ll be at a family event and we’ll be back in Seattle by bedtime on Day 8. A short, but busy trip.

Attractions on my ‘oh-I-wish-we-could-squeeze-that-in-too’ list include: the National Maritime Museum, the Heligan Gardens and any number of other interesting castles, parks and other places. But, cramming our days too full will leave no time to just wander which is our favorite way to travel. If you’ve got a must-see attraction or destination in Cornwall, let me know – and hopefully we’ll be able to add it to our plans.

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is there a snake theme here?

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I got a huge kick out of the comments readers left when I posted a photo of the WanderDad with a huge snake – taken in Zambia in 1969. On reading these, WanderDad suggested that I follow up with my photos of the next generation of our family with a python – taken at a petting zoo outside Algoz in Portugal.

As I mentioned last week, Spring Break is a great time for low fares to Europe and The Algarve, on the south coast of Portugal is quite beautiful at that time of year.

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spring break in portugal

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The promenade in Albufeira, at lunch with Grandparents.

The schools will be out (again!) in the next couple of weeks for mid-winter break. This is usually the time when I start thinking about what to do or where to go for Spring Break. My boys are in different schools (elementary and middle) so some years their Spring Break happens on different weeks – which is a royal nuisance. But when the school closure dates line up, April is a great time of the year to take advantage of lower prices for airfares between the U.S. and Europe. Here’s a selection of photos from our trip to the Algarve in Portugal in 2007. I love Ireland and always love getting to hang out with family, but it’s wet and windy in April. So, family members joined us in Portugal where it was fairly warm, with bright sunny days – and, as you can see, brought smiles all around.

Beach walk in Carvoeiro – which is the pretty village where we stayed.

CAM and his Grandfather

Sometimes you need to add ice-cream to get kids to sit still for a photo.

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public transport options from heathrow to central london

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I’ll be traveling to the U.K. in March, flying from Seattle to London Heathrow. Usually for us, Heathrow is a lay-over point where we connect to a flight to elsewhere in Europe. This time, however, we’ll be staying in the U.K. – visiting family, tasting pasties, and finding pixies in Cornwall.

Picking up a rental car at Heathrow and driving to our destination is not an option. Do you remember how tired you became looking after your newborn in those first few weeks after birth? That’s just how I feel when I disembark from a 10-hour overnight flight – I don’t sleep well on planes with or without children. Driving in that state is patently unsafe. (I broke this rule once, after arriving in Dublin, and narrowly avoided a head-on collision within my first 45 minutes on the road).

Now that my boys are older (8 and 12), they self-entertain easily on board the flight and are pretty good at managing themselves and their baggage through customs and passport control. But, as I plan, I assume that no-one will have slept enough and tempers will be short. Connections, to another flight or ground transportation, therefore, need to be easy to find and at least provide seats for everyone.

After reviewing various options – including a FREE flight with Ryanair, we’ve decided to take the train from London to Truro. At ~$180 return for the four of us, it’s not cheap, but since the Ryanair flight in question leaves from Stansted daily at 6:30am, the train is actually cheaper than the cost of getting from Heathrow to Stansted plus an overnight stay at a hotel at or near Stansted. Not to mention that arriving at Noon on Day 1 and planning to catch a flight at 6:30am on Day 2 is NOT a good recipe for happy traveling children. (I know, because we HAD to do this to get to Lucca in time for my sister’s wedding this past June and CAM is still complaining about the experience).

The First Great Western train to Truro leaves from Paddington Station which is connected to Heathrow via the Heathrow Express trains, Heathrow Connect trains and London Underground (Tube). (You can find a summary of all transportation options from Heathrow into central London on the BAA Heathrow Airport website).

Here’s the surprising – and important – information I found out in researching this trip: Using Heathrow Connect, the total cost of open return tickets between Heathrow and Paddington for all four of us comes to GBP 41.50 (USD 62). This makes Heathrow Connect the best overall value for families traveling with children between five and 15. The journey time is 25 minutes direct to Paddington beating the Tube on price and service provided (the approximate journey time on the Tube is 35-55 minutes with at least one change of train required).

Heathrow Connect terminates at Terminal 4 and since we’re flying into the fancy, new Terminal 5, we’ll have to navigate through Heathrow Central to catch the train. This makes the Heathrow Connect service less convenient than Heathrow Express, but at 35% of the price, it’s excellent value for money – and transfers between terminals are complimentary on the Heathrow Express trains from T5.

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photos from paros

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Paros, Greece

As part of last week’s Photo Friday, Heather over at HeatherOnHerTravels posted a beautiful view photo taken on Zakynthos, Greece – there’s an intriguing story behind the photo which you should check out too

Her photo from this Ionian island made me think – wistfully, I might add – of the many fun times we’ve had on Paros, one of the Cyclades islands. It is truly an island paradise. The photo above is the view from in front of the house where we stay on the island (which belongs to a family member).

CAM outside the house where we stay on Paros 1998 (far left of the photo).

What more does a two-year-old need? Sun, open air, a tub of water and a container with which to pour. Hours and hours of endless fun.

Have you been to any of the Greek islands? Do you have a favorite? Do share – I don’t need an excuse to return to Greece, but I’d love ideas on other islands to visit the next time we’re there. Leave a comment.

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Information on traveling to Greece with Children.

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trip plan: ireland

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This post is first in a series where I provide details of the trips I have taken with my family as examples for you to follow. If you have trip suggestions (destinations) for family travel for which you’d like a see a trip plan, leave a comment and I’ll contact you for details.

Trip Focus
When I plan a trip, I find it’s important to decide in advance what the goal of the trip is: to relax, to explore, to have an adventure. This drives all the other planning decisions.
After BigB was born, we spent most of my maternity leave in Ireland to be closer to family. We invited friends from the U.S. to come visit us while we were there. We also wanted to relax and enjoy each other’s company as we adjusted to being a family of four.

Number of Guests : 10 (us + 6 visitors from the U.S.)
The number of people in your party drives accommodation and transportation decisions.
We needed to find accommodation which was just big enough for four, affordable and yet would have room for more when needed. The Tibradden Cottages, two houses and an apartment, are nestled in the hills in South Dublin.

Accommodation
For me, price and space are the most important factors in choosing accommodation.
I can’t imagine staying in a hotel for eight weeks with children. They need space to spread out and be kids. Thankfully there are plenty of self-catering options available in all parts of Ireland. We chose a rental property in the greater Dublin area so that we could be close to family yet have our own space and be away from the traffic and stress of the urban area. We chose a location which wasn’t too rural to facilitiate day trips into the city.

The facilities are spacious and immaculately maintained. There are sheep roaming the hills behind the property which CAM found fascinating – especially when the sheep hung out at the back of the house. Tibradden is a short drive to the nearest in-city neighborhood from which public transportation into town is available.

Flights
In 12 years of flying with kids, I’ve learned that it’s easier to take one long flight than many short hops.
Aer Lingus offers routes between many U.S. cities Dublin and Shannon. Since Aer Lingus does not fly from Seattle, we flew to Heathrow with British Airways and then on to Dublin.

Local Transportation
Think twice about renting a car, you may not really need it.
Dublin Bus, DART and LUAS provide plenty of in-city public transportation options. If you plan to travel around the country, check out the services provided by Irish Rail and Bus Eireann first. Depending on where you plan to visit, you may be able to stick with these services all the way – which will save you money and the heart-stopping anxiety to which any freeway-driver is susceptible when driving on a two-lane road that’s only slightly wider than the car itself.

If you do rent a car, investigate agencies and prices before you leave. You will get a much better rental rate if you book in advance. And above all else, keep in mind that it’s dangerous to drive while jet-lagged.

Dining

Photo credit: flex_plex

There are many, many dining options in and around Dublin. Here’s a few of my personal favorites:

Brunch with kids at The Elephant and Castle in Temple Bar
Dinner with traditional music at Johnny Fox’s in the Dublin Mountains
For a more contemporary dining experience, check out Venu in the heart of downtown.

It feels like I should mention some bars here, but truly, there are too many good places to meet with friends, have a drink and enjoy genuine Irish convivality in Dublin (and around the country) to list – it would take up the whole page. It’s actually more difficult to find a bad bar. Start with The Palace on Fleet St. and ask the barman to suggest the next bar for you to visit. I bet everyone within earshot will have an opinion on what your next port of call should be – and they’ll be happy to share that with you.

Attractions and Entertainment

CAM trying on some of the paraphernalia provided at the Dublinia exhibit. A great stop for kids.

Fun things to see and do:

Visit the Old Library at Trinity College
Have a picnic lunch and feed the ducks at St. Stephen’s Green
Visit the National Gallery of Ireland
Wander up to Christchurch Cathedral. Older kids will enjoy the medieval crypt.
Take the bus out to Phoenix Park. Let the kids run off steam in the wide open spaces. If you’re traveling with little ones, leave enough time to visit the zoo.

Update
Additional info from Kayt, one of the Travel Savvy moms: families with strollers get to go straight to the front of the line at the Guinness Museum. Thanks for the tip!

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family reunion in tuscany

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Last summer, on the WanderDad’s birthday, as he was lamenting the fact that this was his last thirtysomething birthday, my wheels started spinning with plans for a 40th birthday party celebration. It would have to be something special. With most of our families in Europe it made sense to combine “the event” with a vacation.

I went into planning overdrive. How do you arrange a get-together for 30+ people anyway ? Firstly, I emailed all the siblings to find out if they’d be interested in vacationing with us – even if they only joined in for a weekend. The response was a resounding “yes”. Excellent. License for me to continue doing what I enjoy to do best: namely planning a trip.

Borrowing from a habit I’ve developed in my real job (never present a question without also offering a solution), I had floated the idea of Italy in June and no-one had complained or offered any alternate suggestions. Super. Then the fun began. Finding accommodation for 21 adults and 12 children in a place which everyone will enjoy, with enough space to not get on each other’s nerves and plenty of kid-friendly activities is non-trivial. Keeping costs in mind added another layer of complexity.

A guidebook (or two) was needed to direct my research. I picked Frommer’s Florence, Tuscany & Umbria and Lonely Planet Tuscany & Umbria” at my local used book store. I chose Lucca as good possible location, being easily accessible from Pisa airport and with rail and bus connections to Pisa, Florence and the beach. An entry in the “Best Of” section in the Frommer’s guide caught my eye: a working farm with multiple remodeled farm buildings in the hills above Lucca. With a restaurant on site specializing in local cuisine.

Fattoria Maionchi

The owners of this farm have remodeled three out-buildings into apartments each sleeping 2-4 people. The owners live in two apartments with their families. The remaining 12 apartments are available for weekly rental. The facilities are rustic but charming. The apartment in which the WanderDad and I stayed with CAM and BigB was part of the old mill. There was a stream running through the kitchen (under glass tile). That was a huge hit with the kids – we were deemed to have the coolest apartment. An walled garden with a pool and outdoor dining area was perfect for shared dinners every evening – with plenty of space for kids to play. The restaurant provided the perfect location for the actual birthday party.

A collection of cousins – the proof that I am not making this up

I’ve been nominated to arrange the next get-together in 2010. If you have any suggestions or ideas, do let me know.

Details:
Website: http://www.fattoriamaionchi.it
Information on other agriturismo: http://www.italy-farmholiday.com/, http://www.agriturismo.net/
Weekly rentals start on Saturdays.
Rates: $800 – $1200/week – depending on the size of the apartment.
Dinner menus (set price): $25 – $50. Up to 5 courses including wine.

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look what big eyes I’ve got…

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I’m really enjoying hunting through my photos looking for wierd and whacky ones to include in Debbie’s Photo Friday on DeliciousBaby.

CAM, with the treasures he found at the Lucca flea market.

Here’s what happens when you let your kids loose in a flea market in a city in a another country: they buy stuff. Not souvenirs, not momentos, just stuff.

The magnifying glasses made it home to Seattle safely. You’ll be glad to know.

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