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A rosy point of view at Back 10 Cellars
Sometimes it’s nice to look at the world through rose coloured glasses. If you need a little help to get into your positive POV (point of view) then I suggest the Rose Coloured Glasses Rosé from Back 10 Cellars. The intense shade of pink veers towards fushia. The deep shade is perfectly matched to the carefully designed label reflecting a “city folk living on a vineyard” vibe. When I visited the winery this fall, I learned the owner, Christina Brooks, intentionally matched the font colour with the first vintage of this beautiful rosé, a mix of Pinot Noir and Gamay. Ever since, the matching has been reversed, letting the grape…
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Fireside Raclette at Hidden Bench Estate Winery
“Who was sick in my house?” my mom asked rather sternly walking through the front door. This was many years ago. I had hosted a high school graduation party at our house. Just a small group of girlfriends. Not a big party. But I suppose it was a fair question. We were 18. We had the house to ourselves. It smelled terribly. Reminiscent of smelly gym socks. We were not a rowdy drunken teenage crowd that evening. Food, rather than drink, was our focus. We even got all dressed up for the event. We had a raclette party. And that cheese stinks. In a really good way. So when I…
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A beer garden in Munich
A nice by-product of travelling is getting inspired ideas. In Italy, I had the brilliant idea to buy a gelato maker (an unsuccessful quest in Finale Ligure). In Barcelona and Florence, I was inspired to learn about art and architecture. And in Germany, the idea that began to percolate was to open a beirgarten (beer garden) at home. Of all the eating and drinking establishments we visited throughout Europe I was most smitten with the beirgarten. In truth, this fascination had started in Austria but it was a full on love affair by Munich. In Munich, I finally got up the courage to order a full litre of beer in…
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An unexpected stay in Füssen
In Germany, we had advance reservations 4 nights ahead of us. This was not our usual tactic. But summer was coming, and so were the crowds. We thought it would be smart to book ahead. Having travelled for almost 3 months at this point, we were feeling like seasoned backpackers. We even mastered the fax machine to make reservations. We were so proud of our organizational skills. Except we forgot to plan our transportation. Arriving in Füssen at the end of our Romantic Road bus trip, we discovered there was no train or bus available to Kempton where we had booked the youth hostel. We were stuck in Füssen. The…
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Cruising the Rhine River and Romantic Road
Castles, castles and more castles. In hindsight, we should have packed a bottle of wine for the 8 hour cruise weaving its way down the Rhine River. The scenery was beautiful, but it was a leisurely pace. We started the cruise in Koblenz. The youth hostel was in a fortress high above the city. There was a great view of the Rhine River where it forks with the Mosel River. Unlike other hilltop youth hostels we stayed at, it was easy on the legs. We arrived by chairlift. The restful cruise ended in Mainz where we stayed for a couple nights. We explored around Mainz and nearby Wiesbaden. I have…
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Berlin in a day
It was a common scene. Sarah and I huddled over our trusty map of Europe on our dorm bed. The Let’s Go Europe within easy reach. A purple highlighted line marked our trip on the map. The line ended in Berlin. We did not yet know where it would continue. That evening in Berlin, I wrote in my journal “we planned out our trek through Germany”. But first, Berlin. The next morning, we locked our heavy backpacks in the train station and made full use of our 24 hour city pass. This was less than three years since the historic dismantling of the Berlin Wall. I had watched those scenes…
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A spirited bridge in Prague
It was our last night in Prague. We always seemed to end up on the lively Charles bridge at the end of the day. The bridge had a great energy. We would meet up with other travellers and soak in the vibrant scene of musicians, street artists and overall boisterous crowd. On this last evening another spirit was present in the air. A clairvoyant type of energy. The lines on my palm apparently stored clues to my future. I documented what the fortune teller told me in my travel journal. Prague was not on my radar when we planned our backpacking trip. In fact, I had removed the section for…
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Fun and joy in Vienna
Our travels had some highs and lows. “We were on such a high from Salzburg and Venice, I guess it could only go down”. Excerpt from my journal entry for Vienna That’s how we found ourselves upside down on a roller coaster in the Prater amusement park in Vienna. To cheer up. It worked. It’s a top notch amusement park. Despite my less than cheerful mood, I liked Vienna. I was impressed we could experience the city’s world renowned opera (Mozart’s Magic Flute) for $1.50 with standing room admission. I had one of my most memorable meals – a delicious Schnitzel the size of my plate with potatoes and sweet…
