Julie’s turn to turn 30!

Exactly 1 month to the date of Noah’s 30^th birthday, it was my turn to hit the big 3-0.  And as Noah mentioned in the last blog – our plans to do it big in NY never came close to happening.  But we did want to celebrate us both finally being 30 in a grand way, so we booked a 10-day dual birthday vacation/babymoon to Lagos, Portugal.

Luckily I had gotten over the worst of my first trimester nausea at this point (don’t get me started on my 2^nd trimester nausea – that is a different story), so I felt comfortable enough making the short flight over to Portugal.  Plus it meant Noah was finally going to get his purely relaxing beach vacation he has been wanting for years.  Let’s just say I have a tendency to want to relax for about 2 hours before I am antsy to do some exploring/activity.  It only took a pregnancy + morning sickness to finally get me to taking an actual relaxing vacation.

We flew into Faro Airport – the main hub in the Algarve region – and picked up our rental car for the ~hour drive out to Lagos.  We booked a studio apartment at the Costa d'Oiro AmbianceVillage.  Minus the small towel issue (it seems they don’t quite have enough sometimes) – we loved this place.  We would 100% recommend staying here – great location to access multiple gorgeous beaches and multiple pools to choose from for more relaxation.  Sadly the only photo I took of our adorable AIR CONDITIONED studio was this one of our patio because there was a cute cat napping on our chair. 

Our first full day we made our way down to our first beach of the week - Praia Dona Ana.  This gave us our first glimpse of how gorgeous the coastline is in the Algarve area – clear water, soft sand, and stunning rock formations.  I also discovered how delicious the donuts are in Lagos thanks to the vendor walking up and down the beach selling these cinnamon-sugar treats. 

Praia Dona Ana

After getting our fill of sun for the day and taking our siesta, I wanted to go back to the beach to try to get some nice photos of the two of us with the tripod.  It was once we were setting up the tripod and camera that we realized we were missing the connector that actually attaches the camera to the tripod.  Essentially we lugged our heavy tripod all the way to Portugal for nothing, and this explains why all of the photos of us are selfies.  Oh well. 

We decided to salvage our evening outing by checking out a new beach to enjoy the sunset.  This is how we discovered our favorite beach - Praia do Camilo.  The main downside to this beach is you have traverse a LOT of steps to get down to it, which means you have to head back up the same huge staircase to get back out.  Otherwise the views from this beach are just amazing. 

Only halfway down the steps

Praia do Camilo

The next morning it was time for a new beach.  I used the hotel’s app to discover Canavial Beach, which was shown as a great snorkel spot.  What it failed to mention was that this was the beach that nudity was common.  And by common, I mean common amongst 40+ year old men.  As I have gotten more than used to this experience living for over 3.5 years in Europe, this doesn’t mean I enjoy discovering that the man setting up his beach spot with his wife and daughter didn't have on a brown speedo.  Nope, he was just THAT hairy down there.  Thanks dude for the everlasting image!!  Because of this, the only photo I took is of the intense path down to the beach. 

We finally hit the actual town of Lagos the following morning.  While I wasn’t super impressed with the town itself (nothing too special in my opinion), it did reveal that there was a gorgeous beach right downtown we wanted to return to with our swimming gear. 

I'll be back

As we were already driving around, we drove by our hotel and continued out to the Ponta da Piedade – a famous rock formation outcrop in the area. 

That afternoon we finally returned to Praia do Camilo (the one with all the steps) for a swim.  We timed it so that we arrived in the heat of the afternoon, and would be able to climb UP the steps once the sun set and the air cooled off.  This meant that we showed up to a very crowded beach.  It wasn’t a surprise seeing how small this little beach is, and we had no problem finding a spot that a family was vacating.  Noah grabbed his snorkel gear and I grabbed my floatie and we were quickly exploring the giant boulders and small caves right by the beach. 

Entrance to a tiny beach cave

After 3 beach days in a row, we decided to take the following day off and spend it as a pool day.  I can honestly say I have never just spent all day lounging by a pool.  This was definitely a first, and definitely enjoyable. 

Of course I stayed in the shade - no sunbathing for this pale girl!

After taking it easy Wednesday morning, we found ourselves back at all those steps to visit Praia do Camilo again that afternoon.  And this time there was a donut vendor to make the day that much better!!! 

Yet another selfie

Finally my birthday, the 23^rd, had arrived.  We drove back into town to visit the beach we spotted a few days earlier - Praia do Pinhão.  I was spending my 30^th birthday the best way – on a beach with my husband with a donut.  What else could a girl ask for?? 

Praia do Pinhão

The interesting thing about this beach is that it is actually a few connected coves of beaches.  We decided to explore, passing through a few man-made cave/tunnels to reach the end – a pretty stone bridge.  Of course Noah had his snorkel along for the ride – I wonder if our son will be as into swimming/snorkeling as his father! 

We wrapped up the day with a birthday cake and a photo of the two three of us that wasn’t a selfie!!  It was a great day that wrapped up a great vacation.  This trip was very special for us as it was our last adventure together before we officially become a family of 3 (or 5 if you count the dogs, which I do). 

Just under 3 months along!

We headed home to Munich the next day, arriving to a clean apartment and two happy dogs.  Side note – Trusted Housesitters is an amazing site that we wish we had found when we first moved to Munich.  Betsy and Pete (crazyaboutdogs) were fabulous! 

Turning 30 in Switzerland

Well as boldly promised by Julie, we are now actively catching up on our blogs now….

Not too long after finding out that Julie was pregnant, I did the most adult thing I could imagine: I turned 30 years old.  Once upon a time Julie and I dreamed up this wild idea that we would fly to New York and invite our closest family and friends to celebrate our 30^th birthdays.  Well I guess that was the 25 year old version of what turning 30 would be like, because we ended up celebrating in the complete opposite manner: in a 12^th century stone chalet in the tiny Swiss village of Lavertezzo.

Julie has a special talent for not only finding the coolest places to visit but also the coolest places to stay.  And this time around she outdid herself with the most amazing place ever – we had the entire chalet to ourselves!  Luckily we got to share it with our good friends Jason and Melissa who made the trip from Baltimore just to be with me (and I guess to see the rest of Europe as well). 

Our trip began with the 4.5 hour drive from Munich to the tiny village of Lavertezzo in the south of Switzerland.  The Honda Jazz had just enough horsepower to get over the Alps through some incredible mountain scenery.  We were a bit surprised to see how small the “village” was where we were staying, but at least it was easy to identify our chalet amongst the church and 4 other residential buildings there.  The owners greeted us at the front door and gave us a tour of the place.  Poor Julie banged her knee on a sharp corner of the staircase and is left with a permanent memory of our trip. 

Sadly due to her morning sickness + cold combination, I didn’t have my trusty photographer to capture the interior.  But Jason later took a photo of the stone path leading up to the house – that patio and table you see is a part of our chalet. 

We spent some time settling in and unpacking the car, then made ourselves comfortable on the patio.  A few hours later, Jason and Melissa arrived in their rental car with a look of “what the hell are we doing out here” on their faces.  I don’t think many people make it out to Lavertezzo on a 2 week European tour.  I cooked up some ravioli and we had a nice dinner out on the patio. 

We woke up the next day and went out looking for some adventure (well Julie stayed back to rest).  One of the top things on our agenda was the contra dam where the Goldeneye bungee jump took place and people can still take the plunge themselves (for a hefty sum of money).  We watched as a bunch of kids insanely took the jump and shuddered each time in disbelief.  On my 20^th birthday I might have considered it, but now at 30 with a kid on the way, this was no time to be doing anything crazy. 

The main attraction in this area is of course the scenery.  In particular, there is the beautiful Verzasca river with a 17^th century Roman stone bridge called Ponte dei Salti.  When we returned from watching the James Bond imitators, we collected Julie and made our way down to the river for a swim.  Normally I would not waste any time jumping in, but this water was painfully cold (I read online the temperature ranges from 45-50 F).  So we (Jason and I) waited for the sun to warm us up before taking the plunge.  We watched as people jumped off the stone bridge into the river, and I totally would have if it weren’t for Julie asking me not too.  Maybe in my 20s… 

One of the bridge jumpers

The largest jump Noah took that weekend

The two swimmers

View from the bridge

After dinner, Jason and Melissa surprised me with a delicious black forest birthday cake.  After blowing out the candles and all enjoying a piece, three of us (again, Julie stayed behind due to her not feeling the best) took a stroll around the village and around the river.  The area really is incredibly gorgeous, and I tried to capture it through photos. 

The next day Jason and Melissa headed out early to drive up to Paris.  When I woke up, I also felt a bit under the weather.  Maybe that swim was not the best idea, because I soon realized I caught a cold (perhaps Julie’s cold – though I won’t blame her).  So Julie and I spent our last day in the chalet relaxing and reading.  Like everyone says, getting old really slows you down.  So instead of partying it up New York City, we were laying low in a Swiss village taking turns blowing our noses.

When the day of my actual birthday arrived, it was time to head back to Munich.  However Julie demanded we get at least one photo of us together by the water regardless of how we were feeling.  So we made our way back down to the river one last time for a quick photo session before starting the long drive back home. 

When we returned to Munich, I picked up my favorite Thai food for dinner.  Between

Julie’s fresh knee injury, the shockingly cold water, the memory of being sick, and the impression of our ancient chalet along a gorgeous Alpine river, I could not have asked for a more memorable and picturesque 30^th birthday.  

Paris in June… with a side of morning sickness

Next up on the ‘catch up’ list is the mother/daughter trip to Paris my mom and I took mid-June.  Only took a full month since the last post to get this one up!!

My mother and I had been planning the Paris trip for months – well before I got pregnant.  We had booked our flight to leave Munich on a Friday and spend a long weekend there, returning the next Tuesday.  So when my morning sickness and 1^st trimester exhaustion kicked in right on time at 6 weeks – it also happened to be just days before we were off to Paris. 

Of course I felt bad that I would be hindering our Parisian adventures, but I forgot that the news of a new grandchild far outweighed any ruined plans my mother had.  She instead was nothing but supportive – which meant that she didn’t quite see everything on her list (but to be fair, usually her unbelievably long sight-seeing lists can be impossible even for the healthy).

To kick off our fabulous weekend in Paris – we started with an early dinner at Chipotle!  Totally authentic France, right?  Now hear me out – I (as well as the majority of normal Americans) appreciate the deliciousness of a Chipotle (or Qdoba) burrito.  Now imagine going over a year since you have had one.  And you are pregnant.  And you are finally within a kilometer of one.  You would do it too.  And if you wouldn’t – well then you are a better person than me. 

That beautiful burrito

Next up – Sleep!  I am pretty sure we also wandered the city a bit and saw the Louvre (from the outside) and walked along the Seine that day too…. but that is the down side of writing blogs months later.  All I can remember for sure was the Chipotle.

Saturday I woke up ready to conquer the city beyond the nearest Chipotle.  On the agenda – check out the views from the roof of Sacré-Cœur.  Now in my head, I remember doing this a few years back with Noah and his mother.  And also in my head – an elevator to the top.  Sadly only one of those things was accurate.  After many pauses and letting a LOT of people pass us by, we made up the 270 steps.  What awaited us was a gorgeous clear view of the city. 

You can totally see the views behind us, right?

Next up was trying to find the specific café that I had visited with Noah and his mom that was in the Montmartre neighborhood because I remember the French onion soup was delicious.  After wandering a few blocks, we stumbled upon the exact corner café!  And the food was just as delicious as I remembered.  We enjoyed French onion soup (leaving the tomato… like mother like daughter) and a croque-monsieur sandwich and of course a baguette. 

Now I have a name in case I want to find this place again - Le Nouveau Carillon

The sandwich did look better when it arrived - we had already started eating it when we thought to photograph it

No raw tomatoes for us

Reenergized by the food, we continued wandering the Montmartre neighborhood in the direction of the Montmartre Cemetery.  By the time we made it to the cemetery, all I could do was find a bench and sit.  But Mom was able to wander the graveyard and enjoy the scenery / take some photos. 

Sufficiently worn out for the day, we returned to the hotel for an afternoon siesta.  Post nap-time we decided to wander the area around our hotel.  We ended the evening people/dog watching at the close by Tuileries Garden.

As it was our third day in Paris and we had yet to go to the Eiffel Tower, we figured it was time to remedy that.  We joined all the other tourists along with the vendors pushing selfie sticks at the base of the tower.  After the obligatory selfie (sans selfie stick – sorry vendors) and a photo of me and baby, we headed away from the tower to find some lunch.  

Post a simple ham-and-baguette lunch, we were off to the Champs-Élysées for shopping to see the Arc de Triomphe.  Again I was the party pooper and just sat on a nearby bench while Mom went to explore the Arc up close. 

We ended the night with a few repeats – dinner at Chipotle (don’t judge me) and people watching in the park. 

Paris is just gorgeous

Monday was our big adventure out to see Versailles.  After figuring out the trains and making our way to the palace with a handful of other tourists, we start trying to figure out the ticket situation.  Only after looking confusingly at the locked doors to all the ticket offices did it hit us that perhaps it was closed.  I checked Google and learned that while there were opening hours listed, I dug deeper and learned those were for the PARK only.  Monday the palace is closed.  GREAT JOB GOOGLE!   So sadly Momma didn’t get to see the inside of the palace, but we went ahead and wandered the gardens since we were there. 

The complete lack of people and the fact that this was roped off should have been a clue....

Last selfie of the trip

Back in the city after a nice siesta, we ended the evening at the park and then dinner at Chipotle a Chinese restaurant.

We woke up on our last day to rain, but that didn’t stop us from making our way to Notre Dame.  The incredibly long line was more than I could handle with my nausea and exhaustion, so we only enjoyed it from the outside.  Like everything else.  (Again – sorry Mom!!).  We instead wandered to a café and enjoyed another croque-monsieur, but this time we added crème brûlée to our menu. 

Before long it was time to head back to the hotel for our luggage and return home to Munich.  So while the pregnancy kept my mom from getting to see much of the inside of anything, this baby has her already booking 2 trips back to Munich for 2016.  One of which will include a trip to Paris with her friends – who hopefully allow her to actually see inside a few things.