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OT: Mr. Bear's next adventure!
#79997 02/02/05 01:06 AM
Joined: Apr 2003
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axiomite
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Just finishing up on plans for our next trek!

This one's a biggy.

NYC, USA
Lucerne, Switzerland
Tuscany, Italy
Burgundy, France
Paris, France

All in just over two weeks! (3/12 - 3/29) How much trouble do you think he can get into in all those place?

Can you tell we got the "wine bug" on our last trip?

There will of course be plenty of pictures when we return. Sharing the pics with you guys is half the fun of my trips!

Any suggestions of things we must see/do while there? We've never been to Europe before!


Re: OT: Mr. Bear's next adventure!
#79998 02/02/05 01:24 AM
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aficionado
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sounds great but not enough time though to enjoy everything.


------------------------------------------------
Leave the gun, Take the canolis.
Re: OT: Mr. Bear's next adventure!
#79999 02/02/05 01:24 AM
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 16,441
shareholder in the making
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shareholder in the making
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Gahhhh! I hate you!! Damn... childless... free time... person!



Re: OT: Mr. Bear's next adventure!
#80000 02/02/05 01:32 AM
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 239
local
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local
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What'cha gonna be up to here in the Big Apple?


Tuscany, Italy
Burgundy, France
Paris, France


My finacee are big winos. Er, you know what I mean. Your best bet is to just go to small producers' chateaus. They'll treat you well. Really - avoid the big obvious growers. You'll be practically family at the small producers... they'll sell you bottles cheaply, and if you're lucky, they'll give you a glass of the family wine (almost always made from their best crop, and never sold).

We had a wonderful trip int he Loire valley in October '03...

Last edited by Engine_Joe; 02/02/05 01:51 AM.

---- A Woofer in Tweeter's Clothing... M60s, VP150, QS8s, EP350 Onkyo TX-SR702, Denon DVD-3910
Re: OT: Mr. Bear's next adventure!
#80001 02/02/05 01:39 AM
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You don't truly have the wine bug until you make it out to the Napa/Sonoma area....

Oh, and I have a picture request: I want to see Mr. Bear fondling a pair of grapes dangling from a vine in Burgundy.

Re: OT: Mr. Bear's next adventure!
#80002 02/02/05 01:48 AM
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 2,185
connoisseur
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I spent 2 weeks in Tuscany in 2000. We rented a villa in Sovicille, just outside Sienna. We rented a car and took day trips to visit the hill towns. The last 3 days of our trip was spent in Florence, where I proposed to my wife. Suffice to say it was a fantastic trip.

I have my list of recs for that trip somewhere, I'll need to find it if you're interested. Granted, I don't know how much time you have in Italy though.

Highlights.
Food:
1) Drink as much wine as you can. You pay by the glass so you don't have to worry about buying the bott.e
2) Order local specialties, even if it's daring. My best pasta was a wild boar pasta. 2nd would be the fried goat at Buca San Antonio in Lucca. FANTASTIC. I also had horse in Parma, but that's another story (but good).
3) Food tends to be better in the small towns, in small out of the way restaurants. Big towns like Florence can be a rip off, just like eating at the airport or Fisherman's Wharf.
4) In Florence, try the steak, especially steak balsamico at Aqua del Due. Better than the Florentine, I even went twice. It was even shown on Rachel Ray's $30 / day show.

Towns.
1) Sienna. Great duomo (church), though you'll get more than enough in any relatively large town.
2) San Giamignano (spelling)? The "Manhattan" of Italy, GREAT white wine.
3) Asissi. Go see St Francis of Assisi, I'm Catholic, but not religious. This was very moving for me.

Sites:
1) Statue of David in Florence. It's the only thing in the museum, but worth it. It looks like real flesh.
2) The Main museum in Florence (now I forget the name).

We tend to use guides like Go Italy and Frommers. Fodor's tends to be too fuddy duddy for us.

If you want more info, PM me. I loved that trip, can you tell?

Re: OT: Mr. Bear's next adventure!
#80003 02/02/05 01:59 AM
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 16,441
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I hate you, too.

Re: OT: Mr. Bear's next adventure!
#80004 02/02/05 02:03 AM
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 2,185
connoisseur
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Hey, I have a 2 1/2 year old too. That was back when I wasn't married yet...

We have another coming on May 4 (boy woo hoo!) So I'm getting everything in now. Just got back from 4 days in Tahoe, 3 days of boarding. 10 days in Kauai next month. Then it'll be Disneyland for the next 5 years...

And as a local Bay Area person, I have to admit, Tuscany has MUCH better wine and WAY cheaper prices. $4 for an outstanding house bottle? You can't even get that at Costco.

Last edited by oldskoolboarder; 02/02/05 02:05 AM.
Re: OT: Mr. Bear's next adventure!
#80005 02/02/05 04:23 AM
Joined: Aug 2004
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axiomite
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>>My finacee are big winos

Oenophile is "before" -- Wino is "after"


M60ti, VP180, QS8, M2ti, EP500, PC-Plus 20-39
M5HP, M40ti, Sierra-1
LFR1100 active, ADA1500-4 and -8
Re: OT: Mr. Bear's next adventure!
#80006 02/02/05 04:47 AM
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 239
local
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Posts: 239
Oenophile is "before" -- Wino is "after"

Oenophile is for Robert Parker-trusting snobs, who have lost their zest for creative wines and replaced it with "bursting with fruit" wines for everything. They're what are killing diversity in wine.

Not that I have a strong opinion on the matter, or anything...


---- A Woofer in Tweeter's Clothing... M60s, VP150, QS8s, EP350 Onkyo TX-SR702, Denon DVD-3910
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