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Hello

I have always loved to gather people, whether it’s to cook and dine at home, visit a local blackberry farm for breakfast or berry-picking (and now for fine dining!), drive across Kansas to a vacation home in Estes Park, Colorado or travel to my sister’s family’s villa in Northern Italy or Paris apartment. For more than twenty years I “gathered” adults and middle schoolers to hang out together for mentoring and/or tutoring, and I still believe strongly that we were created for relationship, and that engaging together over interesting experiences of any kind at any age is a wonderful thing.

Writing to my family and friends about interesting travel and food experiences (and attaching the pics), grew into writing and posting pics on websites and social media. I have the great pleasure of doing some of that now for Elderslie Farm, Poggio Verde Country Villa and Fish Creek Estes Vacation Home, and there have been cooking and school garden club sites, as well as other personal sites, along the way.

My latest “gathering” has taken the form of planning and hosting trips to Poggio Verde Country Villa, between Milan and Lake Como (the family villa of my sister’s husband). We have been visiting Poggio Verde and getting to know this stunning area for more than 30 years. When my sister and her husband completed a really lovely renovation there a few years ago and opened the villa to guests, we began gathering groups of interested people to go with us for a week of exploring the area and sampling its superb food and wine. We now take groups in the spring and fall and hope to continue sharing that wonderful experience with old and new friends as long as our health holds!

There are uncountable memories and beautiful iPhone photos of travels to share so I’ve decided to begin yet one more personal blog/website and dedicate it only to pretty places ‘hither and yon’ (and clouds) in hopes that others might find some useful information for their own wanderings,and also in hopes that those who enjoy travelling vicariously can do a bit of that, as well.

Judith

Paris, January 11, 2020

Last year when Mark suggested we come to Paris in January to celebrate our 40th anniversary I thought I could probably bundle up sufficiently to genuinely enjoy it. Well it turned out to be so enjoyable that I suggested on the plane home that we consider doing it again… and here we are! Happy 41st to us!!

Skies over the Atlantic and France

On arrival we discovered the ongoing strikes had necessitated a change in the train schedule so our usual RER B to St Michel ended up being a trip to Gare du Nord, then a train change to St. Michel. It took a bit to figure it out but in the end we made it. We have discovered an exit (Xavier Privas) that has an elevator that pops up at the corner by the Seine and the first view upon exiting, to the right, is Notre Dame. (We were here in January last year before the fire and chose to go to Notre Dame on the snow day, January 22nd, and were so glad we did as of course everything is under repair now and will be for years… and the spire is gone.)

We got settled into the apartment (24 Rue Dauphine), Mark went out to Carrefour (groceries) and Nicolas (wine shop) and Thevenin (bakery – formerly Carton) while I crawled right into bed for a nap (and to listen to more of Boys in the Boat, which I’d started on the plane, and which made the arrival, passport check and baggage claim speed by. When I awoke, Mark was ready to crash for a bit but seeing that it was likely “golden hour” I thought I should at least walk down to the end of the next block and visit the Pont Neuf. Instead of going straight onto the bridge, or to the left, as we usually tend to do, I turned right and was so glad I did. I find myself often on the same streets when I come and this time I’m determined to choose some different paths.

When I returned to the apartment Mark was ready to go out again and get a couple more things, then he started a very simple dinner of the little green beans from Kenya that we love here, plus some roasted potatoes and boiled eggs and a salad (a favorite mix of mache, arugula and grated beets). We had small appetites and lots of sleepiness but needed a little something. It was perfect. He’s gotten so good at making super simple things so tasty… not a lot of ingredients, but great care with each one. It’s tough to go out to eat when we eat so well at home but we’ll try a couple new spots and return to a couple of favorites while we’re here, we hope.


After dinner we love to head out into the dark to wonder at all the things we have seen during the day that now reveal such new and interesting detail at night. Paris comes by the name “City of Light” honestly. I can’t imagine the city’s electric bill and I am grateful for the Parisians and French citizens who pay those high taxes to allow the rest of the world to enjoy their capital city.