Apr 20, 2023

Barr, Alsace in Springtime

As we do most spring or fall breaks, we travel to Alsace in France. It is only a short three-hour drive from here (Frankfurt area) and an Alsatian village in the Vosges Mountains provides the perfect get-away.

This time, we chose Barr, a fairly quiet village to the south of Obernai, in the Bas-Rhin department. It gets rather overlooked by the usual tourists. We like it this way.

Only this time around in Barr, we found most Winestub (Alsatian-style pub/restaurant) to be closed. Some looked permanently closed, some were maybe shut down permanently. Others were listed as open, based on the website, but we found them closed as well. Of the dozen or so Winestub or restaurants in Barr, we found only one open on our arrival day:

Restaurant Caveau Folie Marco

We enjoyed a very good dinner ( I had La Munstiflette), and the ambiance and service were excellent.

La Munstiflette at Folie Marco

Friends like to ask what we do on these quiet days in Alsace. Well, we walk a lot, eat well, take afternoon naps, enjoy wine in the evenings, walk some more, and have time to reflect. We like to visit ourselves.

We had rented a half-timbered vacation home close to the village center, and everything was in walking distance – as it should be.

Mar 29, 2022

Cherry Blossoms in Washington, D.C.

For the past couple of years, like many of us, I have taken to mostly armchair traveling, and have few chances to take photos. But with both adult children living out of the country (London and Washington), I still get to travel a bit with the help of their photos. With their friendly permission, I get to post them here. Thanks, Margo.

Our daughter Margo took these photos after work in Washington, D.C, probably sometime between the end of a workday and Happy Hour.

When my husband and I looked at her photos, we both realized we had never been to the Washington Monument Grounds in springtime. In the early 90s, when we lived in Westminster, MD, we often took our international visitors for sight-seeing to DC. Family and friends often came during the hot and humid summer though… never in spring time.

In Germany, the best places to enjoy cherry blossoms are in Bonn, Hofheim i.T., Schwetzingen, Hamburg and some other cities.

To view the best 10 cities in Germany, visit: Japan in Deutschland Cherry Blossom Viewing

Washington Monument March 2022

Washington Monument Grounds in springtime

We experienced three seasons of Cherry Blossom viewing while living in Japan. The only difference between Hanami in Japan and cherry blossom viewing here is – most Japanese have blankets to sit on the grass, and they bring a lot of good food, and alcoholic beverages. Lots of it.

Washington, D.C.
Mar 21, 2013

Cherry Blossoms in Japan

This is the time of year, when the cherry blossoms (sakura) are out, I truly miss Japan. This cherry blossom viewing (hanami) usually lasts for about 7 – 10 days in spring and you can follow the course of it, moving south to north, via every weather channel.

My friend Yoshiko from Kitakyushu has just sent me these photos and with her permission, I want to share a bit of this Japanese spring with you.

Before posting this, I went through my journals looking for entries made about hanami during that time. I was hoping to recall some special memories, but I only found one entry.

My husband, three-month old Thomas, and I were in a small park, where a drunk kept yacking at us while taking our photos. Unfortunately, this was the only entry I could find.

Another year, we were all stricken with the stomach flu and the third one was filled with mostly cool and rainy days. You see, memories are sometimes fonder than the actual experiences (when daily life catches ups with us).

On the two occasions, when I revisited Japan in 2008 and 2012, I got to experience hanami in all its glory.

Anyway, these photos below were taken on 20 and 21 March 2013.

Cherry blossoms in Japan

 

Kokura Castle in Kitakyushu

If you happen to read this and would like to tell your most memorable cherry blossom event in Kitakyushu to NHK, you can apply here. Deadline is 28 March and your entry needs to be in Japanese.

 

 

Apr 6, 2010

Springtime in Sicily

A passenger, sitting behind me on our flight to Trapani, commented how green the island looked compared to her usual summer visits, when the land is brown and parched.

Vineyards on Sicily

The land is green and lush in April. I heard golfing in Sicily is really good in this season as well.

Narrow streets and tall houses in Trapani

This is one rare front without laundry hanging on the balcony. Wherever we turned we could always see laundry flapping in the wind.

A typical thing to do on a lazy afternoon – watching people passing by in the street. It is very common to see people spending their free time like this.

street dogs

I guess I forgot that there are many more dogs roaming the streets without a master in Southern Europe. At night, after dinner and wine, we would often pass a sleeping dog on the sidewalk.

I have taken a fancy to Sicily, its pace, people, and pleasures.

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