Bratefest 2019 - Seattle!

I think this is Bratefest #5 - when as many Brate’s as possible get together to watch our nephew, son or cousin Cam play football. It started when he was at Harvard and has continued on now that he is in the NFL playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. We get together for other reasons too - like weddings, funerals and just general shenanigans, since we enjoy being together but live from one end of the US to literally the other. I myself love going to Tampa for a game. Preferably in winter! But this year when the schedule came out and and the Bucs were heading to Seattle my brother David who lives there suggested we all come out there for the game. While I love the Pacific Northwest and think it’s so beautiful I also know that November could be cold and rainy, but being the good sport that I am I said why not! Well lucky for us the weather couldn’t have been more perfect. Sunny and in the 50’s the entire time - perfect fall football weather.

I arrived a few days before the main group so had some extra time to enjoy with my brother and his wife. Dave actually lives in Bremerton which is across Puget Sound from Seattle, and home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and a US Naval Base. It’s kind of the best of all worlds - a pretty smallish town on the water but an easy and beautiful ferry ride to Seattle. You can get there by car but it takes a lot longer, so for me the ferry is the way to go!

Ferry ride on a beautiful day with my brother Dave! Hello Emerald City!

We took the ferry over to see the Seattle Aquarium which is very close to where the ferries dock.

Definitely worth a visit. We ran out of time before we got to see everything but what we saw was great. Including a couple of huge octopus and some adorable sea otters.

Lots of anemones and sea urchins to touch. Dave made me do it!😱

One thing you need to eat in Seattle is chowder! Lots of great places to have it - Ivar’s is everywhere but we opted for somewhere a little more upscale - Anthony’s!

Anthony’s clam chowder was great - but the sour dough bread is what really makes it special.

The family all arrived and we met up at the famous Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle. A great spot to meet up is at the brass pig right in front of the fish market. You can’t miss it!

Cousins! Jack, Angela and Keeley. Oh and my big brother Phil!

Lots of fish at the market but many other great things - flowers, produce, handicrafts, bakery items etc. So fun to browse.

The original Starbucks is right across from the market. The line is always huge and on this day was at least a block long. There’s another Starbucks a block away so if you’re just wanting coffee don’t wait in line at that one . But it does have merchandise with the original logo on it so if that’s your thing go for it!

Cam joined us along with a few friends of his so we started looking for a place for lunch. Where can we go with 15 people? The stars aligned and we found a great place called Serious Pie that is pretty famous in Seattle because the owner Tom Douglas has quite a following. They were so nice in accommodating our big group and set us up right in the kitchen! We ordered a selection of salads, pizza’s and desserts and just passed them around. The food was great but this group didn’t wait for me to take pictures!

A fun group!

After we ate we walked around some more and didn’t want to miss the famous gum wall. Well at this point it’s turned into a gum alley! I just happened to have a pack of gum with me so got everyone to chew a stick and make a deposit.

Officially called Post Alley. Look for our Br8! Touching NOT encouraged!

Game Day! Time to head to Century Link Stadium to watch the Sea Hawks play the Buccaneers. Another gorgeous day! The stadium is really cool. It’s right next to where the Mariners play, and at one end of the stadium you can see Puget Sound. It was a great game. The Sea Hawks won in overtime, but the Bucs played really well.

Standing room only at every game.

Post game family area for visiting players is basically in the basement. Much better area when you’re the home team but you take what you can get when you’re the visitor.

On our last day all together we went for a little hike at Illahee State Park. Beautiful fall colors and a pretty view of Puget Sound.

It was like another trip to the Aquarium. We saw at least 50 jelly fish swimming in the water and tons of snails, anemones and crabs around the pilings.

Family dinner at Horse and Cow in Bremerton. Lots of navy memorabilia that they have been collecting for 65 years. Don’t ring the bell!

A perfect fall day in Seattle!

Fantastic sunsets every single night over the mountains.

Until next time Seattle!

Bratefest 2019 is a wrap! Thanks for coming along😊

Day 23 - Montmartre

Our last full day in Paris the weather was spectacular. Warmer and sunny - so we headed to the 18th arrondissement which is the Montmartre area famous for the Basilica of the Sacre-Coeur and the Place du Tertre where artists paint and do portraits. Paris is basically a flat city except for the Montmartre area which is a huge hill. If you make it up all the steps to the Sacre-Coeur you are treated to a fabulous view of Paris - worth it! The area is always super crowded with tourists so beware of pickpockets and Gypsy’s.

Ta Da! This was taken after I had already been to the top - made it! The beautiful white Basilica is only 130 years old which is not old by French standards. There was a mass going on inside so I didn’t take pictures but it’s beautiful and worth a visit.

Place du Tertre where the artists gather and paint dating all the way to the 1800’s and the Impressionists. Lots of narrow winding streets with shops and restaurants.

We had checked off all the major things on our list so our goal after Montmartre was just to meander the 9th arrondissement, find some food and enjoy a beautiful day in Paris. Can you think of a better idea? All the arrondissements have their own distinct personality, and the 9th feels very local. Loved it! Lots of small shops, restaurants, flower shops, patisseries, fromageries, charcuterie etc.

A pretty boulevard in the 9th arrondissement.

Lunch in the 9th at Cafe M. We were checking menus as we both wanted a classic roasted chicken and found it here. Delicious!

More meandering took us past this McDonalds. Most subtle one I’ve ever seen complete with a sidewalk seating area.

The majority of Paris is in what is called the Haussmann building style named after Georges-Eugene Haussmann who carried out a massive urban renewal program of reconstruction in the early 1800’s. The buildings are made of stone and looked striped with amazing iron balconies and trim.

Classic example of Haussmann style and everywhere you look in Paris.

Our last day in Paris deserves a stop at a patisserie so we found a sweet little shop to indulge ourselves.

A chocolate eclair for Julie that surprised her by being filled with an enormous amount of chocolate filling and a strawberry tart for me. On such a sweet little street called Rue Cadet.

We eventually made it back to our hotel to start packing for our return back to the states. We stayed at a great little boutique hotel in the Marais called Relais du Marais that was in a wonderful location convenient to getting us quickly anywhere in the city via Metro or walking. The people working there were all so sweet and helpful and got a kick out of our botched attempts at speaking French. We anticipated a quiet evening of getting packed and a good nights sleep before our early morning departure but Paris always has a surprise in store for you. We heard a lot of noise outside our room from the street at about 8:30 PM and opened the windows to see what was happening. To our surprise our quiet street was filled with a protest parade of people marching down the street chanting and waving signs and banners. All of a sudden a few protesters got out of hand and started running toward cars with big sticks and it appeared they were going to start destructive behavior and immediately out of the corner of our eyes a large amount of riot police appeared in full gear - helmets, large shields and batons and took over the street. The protesters started throwing what appeared to be fireworks and the police countered with what we thought were smoke bombs but we soon discovered was either tear gas or pepper spray because our eyes started burning and we were choking. We quickly closed the windows but it took awhile for us to feel normal again. We watched the rest with the windows closed but were super impressed with how quickly the police got things under control with no real force. Behind the mass of riot police were at least 20 police vans following. The protesters peacefully continued down the street and all was well. There are protests frequently in Paris but because the gun control laws are so strong there while there was a heightened sense of anxiety during the protest my first thought wasn’t that someone was going to pull out a gun and start shooting. We asked in the morning at the front desk what was the cause of the demonstration and they said it was the Turkish invasion into Syria.

View from our window of the protest right before the police arrived.

Day 24 - back to Charles de Gaulle airport for the return flight to Chicago where I’ll be spending the weekend with family and friends cheering for my incredible daughter Keeley who is running the Chicago Marathon. - Yeah Keeley!

I feel a bit overwhelmed with gratitude for being able to make this trip with my amazing, adventurous, fun and beautiful friend Julie. We visited so many fantastic places, saw so many incredible sites, ate the most delicious food, drank great wine, navigated trains, fumbled through languages and met warm friendly people. We walked over 155 miles (I know this because I kept track!), and I ate croissants every morning for 24 days. I thought I could never get tired of delicious croissants and found that that is incorrect, At least for now I am maxed out!

Just one morning of the many that started my day😊

We celebrated Julie’s birthday in Portugal with champagne and cake! I think Julie will always remember this birthday!

Happy Birthday Julie! I hope it’s your best year yet!

Thanks for reading about our trip. If you read one post or all I’m glad you came along. This is not the end for me. I have lots more places I want to visit. Check back soon!

A bientot Paris💕

“I am not the same, having seen the moon shine on the other side of the world.” Mary Anne Radmacher

Day 22 - Giverny💕

I have wanted to see Giverny for years - so saying today was a dream come true is so accurate. I love the Impressionists and Claude Monet is my absolute favorite, so one of the things I wanted to do more than anything with having the extended time in Paris was to take the train out to see the home and gardens where he painted so profusely. With the weather forecast being for rain every day I finally decided that I was going rain or shine as my days to do it are running out. Monet painted in all weather conditions so surely it would be beautiful even in the rain right?

I left the hotel at 7:30 and caught the Metro to the Gare St Lazare station where the trains to Normandy leave from, and was on the 8:19 to Vernon easily. It turned out to be a gorgeous day! Sunny and just a slight chill in the air. From my research I know it’s a mob scene there May through August, so while October might not be quite as lush it wasn’t crowded at all. It was spectacular and I took at least 100 pictures. Luckily for you I’m not going to post them all. But if you want more just email me and I’ll be happy to share with you.

Your admission ticket gives you full access to his home and both gardens. Monet first planted the Walled Garden in front of his home with a profusion of gorgeous flowers and trellis’s, and then added the Water Garden across the street accessed by an underground walkway.

Monet home which is quite large.

Walled Garden

Arches which are full of roses in season. Still beautiful even in the fall.

Water Garden with the water lilies. Japanese bridge at the far end.

Bottom left the boats he painted so often.

From inside the home. Top and bottom on the left the views of the walled garden from windows. How beautiful to see from inside the home. All the rooms were painted wonderful colors - just like the beautiful colors in the paintings! It made me so happy!

I was lucky to stay for a few hours enjoying the beauty and then headed back via bus to the town of Vernon where the train to Paris picks you up. Vernon isn’t very large but it’s a pretty typical town in Normandy and I had time to eat lunch and walk a bit.

Found this great boulangerie/patisserie where it seemed every person that lived there was in line for a baguette. Bought a ham and cheese sandwich that was huge and delicious and ate every bite. Unfortunately I didn’t leave room for an amazing pastry of which they had many. Poor planning☹️

In my walk around the historic area I came across Collegiate Church Norte Dame and stopped inside. The church dates back to the 14th century and had some original stained glass and an amazing organ.

Bottom left the organ. I was treated to music by someone practicing - bonus!

The house across the street from the church called The House of Past Times because it’s one of the oldest houses in Vernon and was spared the bombing of World War Two. The corner post is decorated with a carving of the Annunciation where the Angel Gabriel announced the coming of Christ to the Virgin Mary.

The House of Past Times.

Back to Paris via train and met up with Julie for an amazing dinner at Le Bistrot Paul Bert. Both Julie and I had heard of it as it was recommended because Anthony Bourdain featured it on one of his shows. It did not disappoint. We both had the prix fixe option which is common in Paris for dinner - a set price for a starter, entree and dessert. The menu is on a chalkboard only as it changes every day based on what they get that is the freshest. We both had the tomato salad to start which was incredible, brill fish with spinach for the entree, and custard with caramel sauce for Julie and Grand Mariner soufflé for me. We shared the desserts and both agreed the soufflé was exquisite!

What a fantastic meal!

I had to get a close up of the soufflé. Can one ever see too many pictures of dessert?

I will remember this day forever💕 Thanks for coming along!

Day 21 - Raining in Paris

What do you do in Paris when it rains? Exactly what you were planning! Rain doesn’t stop anyone or anything here - you just go. We planned a pretty relaxing day as we’ve been keeping ourselves on the go and covering a lot of ground. Raincoat ✅ Umbrella✅ Off we go!

We started walking down toward the Seine with a potential destination of the Louvre and the Tuileries. We browsed in shops and got a little shopping done - never a terrible idea in Paris. There are so many great shops for anyone and everything. I’m not a big shopper but it was fun.

I love this picture! Another example of the old and the new totally working.

We stopped for lunch at a cute cafe called La Favorite that had been recommended to us and it was wonderful. It was right across the street from a beautiful church I had been in over my Christmas trip where we heard a wonderful holiday concert of Vivaldi.

Eglise Saint Paul Saint Louis

Avocado toast for Julie and a Croque Madame for me. Delicious!

We sat at the cafe for awhile and just people watched. Lots of great umbrellas and we discussed whether or not you can tell a lot about a person based on their umbrella😊

Time to move on so we headed over to see the Louvre. No plans to go inside but such a beautiful building.

With the rain it wasn’t that busy outside so I had to jump up on one of the boxes and do it😊

We meandered down through the Tuileries which are gorgeous gardens that sit between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde. With all the rain Paris has been having the flowers are still gorgeous and the grass is so green!

The Tuileries

The day we arrived in Paris a new sculpture was unveiled in the Garden of the Petit Palace which is an art gallery along the Champs-Elysees. It is a gift from the American artist Jeff Koons that is meant to symbolize love as a tribute to the 130 people that were killed in the November 2015 terror attacks and bombings that occurred here. The sculpture is 40 feet high and we found it. It’s supposed to be tulips but looks more like marshmallows to me, but still cool. The hand is unbelievably realistic looking.

Jeff Koons Tulip sculpture in the garden of the Petit Palace.

The Arc de Triomph. So iconic.

Planning a BiG day for tomorrow so that’s it for now! Check back soon😊

Day 20 - New Places in Paris

Another beautiful day in Paris! We had tickets for Atelier Des Lumières which is new and comes highly recommended. It is described as an immersive experience blending art, music and technology. Kind of a museum where you stand and it comes to you. It was similar technology to the event we went to at the Popes Palace in Avignon. The current exhibition is on Van Gogh so right up my alley having just visited Arles, and a cool Japanese exhibit. It was recommended to get tickets in advance on line as it routinely sells out and the website says they don’t sell tickets onsite. Located in the 11th arrondissement. These seem to be the new thing so something similar might be coming soon to your city so check it out!

Top right picture gives an idea of the screens all around you and one image melting into another. Very cool!

We headed to the Rue Cler area which is in the 7th arrondissement via Metro, and found a great cafe to have a light lunch. Rue Cler is considered to be the most famous market street in Paris with great little cheese shops, patisseries, boulangeries, restaurants and clothing shops. Also quite close to the Eiffel Tower.

Niçoise salad for me and a Caesar for Julie. We can’t stop eating the never ending bread basket!

Is it really a trip to Paris unless you at least visit the Eiffel Tower? So that’s what we did. We had no intention of going up as we’ve both done it a couple of times and good thing because since it was a beautiful day the lines were huge. The best place to get a perfect picture of the Eiffel Tower is from Place du Trocadero right across the river. We saw no less then 4 bridal couples taking pictures there and it was a Monday!

It never gets old!

We took the train quite a ways out of the main area of Paris to visit the new Foundation Louis Vuitton Museum. Totally mind blowing! It opened in 2014 after years of construction and the building alone is worth the price of admission. They have different exhibits to display a wide array of cultural experiences, and the current exhibit is on Charlotte Perriand. Born in 1903 she was way ahead of her time. Architecture, painting, sculpture, photography- her goal was was to profoundly improve daily life. She has a new fan in me. If you are going to Paris I really think this is a must see!

Foundation Louis Vuitton Museum. What does it look like to you?

Top left - view of the old from the new. Bottom right - an amazing waterfall that flows into pools around the base of the building.

Does this seem like Paris to you? A view of the modern area from the Frank Gehry roof - spectacular! 📷 credit to Julie!

I’m going to keep coming back to Paris until I’ve eaten at every one of these!

Finished our day with a great meal at Chez Janou. Sea bass for me and scallops with risotto for Julie. We resisted dessert - a first!

Loving every day here! Pinch me💕