Travel Log: London, UK

 

I took my first trip to London when I was 15 years old. I spent 3 weeks out of my summer and it was the best family vacation. I'm not sure why it took me 20 years to come back. The one thing I noticed that was different from before was the smog. There's less of it. As the food scene has started to evolve, I can see myself coming back again.

Preview: Europe 2014

It's that time again.

 

I have an itch to get out of the country so I finally pulled the trigger on our next European trip. So far I've booked accommodations to London, the outskirts of Paris and a day trip to Brussels, Belgium. This time around, I'm having Visa Concierge book all of my restaurant reservations. I have a good sense of where I want to dine in London (the list is very short) but Paris is another story. I know I'm not willing to fork over 150 EUR for a meal.

 

As for the convenience of concierge services, I still have to research when I need to place my requests. I have a good 6 months to work this out which is plenty of time. I hate it when I can't find reservation info on food blogs. By trade, I'm a researcher so I hope to help others looking for the same information.

 

London

 

St. John: Book 90 days in advance by calling 020 7251 0848, email reservations@stjohnrestaurant.com or online at TableTop.

 

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal: Reservation system operates on a 90 day rolling basis on TopTable.

 

L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon: Book 60 days in advance on their website.

Travel Log: Messina, Sicily

By the time Hubs and I arrived in Messina, Sicily, we were already exhausted and we still had two more destinations to go. We decided to skip a tour excursion and explored the city on our own time. Early on we learned that Sicily is a city where pedestrians don't have the right of way and you literally have to run for your life trying to cross the streets.

As we were exploring the city, I was actually surprised to find mainstream stores like Zara and H&M to department stores that carry major designers. Before we walked back to the cruise ship, we stopped by a small pizzeria and picked up some pizza. Pizza in Italy regardless of region is delicious and made with fresh ingredients. It's also cheap too. I don't think we paid more than 4 Euros for two slices of pizza. I'm totally bias now. It's going to be tough eating pizza in San Diego.

Travel Log: Pompeii, Italy

After our tour of the Amalfi coast, our last destination near Naples was Pompeii. This was an ancient city that was destroyed and entombed by a volcanic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in AD 79. The eruption buried the city under 13 to 20 feet with ash and pumice. The city was rediscovered and escavated some 1,700 years later. Pompeii is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Italy with about 2.5 million visitors every year.

Travel Log: Amalfi Coast, Italy

Midway through our Mediterranean cruise, we found our way to Naples, Italy. I didn't find the city as interesting as Rome or Florence so we decided to do a tour of the Amalfi Coast and the ancient ruins at Pompeii. The southern coast of Italy is absolutely beautiful. The waters are calm with a shade of blue and green. It is also famed by its production of limoncello, an Italian liqueor. I never had limoncello in the States but here it's super strong. A shot of tequila pales in comparison.

The town of Amalfi is also known for the Piazza del Duomo and Duomo di Amalfi (dedicated to Saint Andrew the Apostle). There were various cafes in the piazza offering limoncello, gelato, pizza and specialty items. I think the most unique thing we did was drink the fresh spring water from Saint Andrew's Fountain. It was the clearest water we've ever tasted. It was pretty amazing to be at the site where the relics of Saint Andrew the Apostle resided.

Travel Log: Vatican City

Vatican City is the smallest country in the world measuring just 110 acres. It is surrounded by a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. Roughly 33,000 tourists come to visit the city each day. The Vatican Museum is open to the public and it contains an immense collection of sculptures and masterpieces from Renaissance artists. The most famous attraction has to be the Sistine Chapel. It's an amazing work of art particularly by Michelangelo. It was too massive to photograph even though we weren't allowed to photograph anything in the Sistine Chapel. Oops! All was forgiven as we entered St. Peter's Basilica and I drenched my face with holy water. Visiting the city is probably every Catholic's dream destination. Thankfully I was able to do this while I'm still young. Hallelujah!