Part 3, the Louvre…What can we say?…It was all we imagined and more…Venus de Milo…Final photos of the Louvre…

Venus de Milo by Alexandros of Antioch, also known as Aphrodite of Milos. It was amazing we got this shot free of onlookers when 100’s were crowded around also trying to take photos.
Waiting for the perfect opportunity to get a photo without more people in the photo. I have an app that removes people, however, it impacted the quality, inspiring me to leave them.

With only today and tomorrow remaining to see more of Paris when Friday is laundry and packing day, we must admit we have done our fair share of sightseeing. We’re ready to call it a day, keeping in mind, we have two weeks in London coming up in a few days and more sights to see.

Many of the statues were of a spiritual nature.
Exquisite fireplace and mantel.

Actually, we’ve seen most of which we wanted to see in Paris, leaving nothing nagging at us as a “must do.” Considering our combined general lack of interest in sightseeing, we’re satisfied that we’ve done exactly what we’d hoped and we’re ready to move on.

Artemis, the Moon Mistress.
Scary looking skeleton statue.

The high cost of great food in Paris and the taxis required to get to the higher quality restaurants can take a huge dent out of one’s wallet. London, although not known for great food has reportedly improved over the years and we expect prices to be the same.

This statue was make incorporating color.

Tom’s picky taste buds make dining out in mid-range restaurants challenging. Either he likes fine dining or fast food, neither of which we do often. Fast food? Never.

One can only imagine the skill required for the detail in this sculpture.

Tonight, we’re booked for Bistrotters which was in the #2 spot of best restaurants in Paris upon our arrival. It’s moved down to the #5 position dropping since we originally booked it. Last night we dined at a very popular restaurant that gained added notoriety when Obama’s dined there awhile ago. We’ll report on both restaurants with photos and pricing tomorrow.

These three statues were placed together perhaps created by the same sculptor.

It was hard to get either reservation. Somehow we got lucky when there were no waiting lists for weeks. Tonight’s reservation sent us several email messages asking for confirmation for our reservation. Guess, they don’t want to miss a beat. Good planning on their part.

It was necessary to raise the camera over the heads of the visitors in order to take this photo.

Overall, dining in Paris has been a bit disappointing. Unless one is prepared to spend US $200, EU $150 for two, most of the food is mediocre at best. Yes, we’ve had a few good dinners, although not filling, especially when my meals contain a small portion of protein and a few cooked vegetables

The Louvre contained many nudes difficult to identify online.

There’s an extra charge as much as US $8, EU $6 to order a side salad of only greens. They don’t have salad dressings other than olive oil which I don’t care for alone on greens. 

I wish we could identify each statue. There hasn’t been enough time to research the subject of every one of our photos.

It’s hard to spend that much for a small bowl of mixed greens that aren’t satisfying or filling. Each night, after we’ve gone back to our hotel, I’ve eaten a good size portion of organic raw nuts to top off the inadequate meal.

From the Roman period.

Tom is able to fill himself with potatoes, bread, and rich French sauces made with flour. For me, eating a deck of cards sized portion of salmon and a cup of green beans is hardly satisfying. I know, some may say, if we dined during the day, a smaller dinner would suffice. 

Entitled, The Boy Struggling with a Goose by Botheus, possibly from 160 AD.

My way of eating literally kills the appetite for 20 to 24 hours and I can’t conceive of eating when not hungry.  Tom is always full from the previous night and never cares for breakfast or lunch, although I’d gladly go out to dine with him.

This painting is entitled, The Fish Market After 1621 by Frans Snyder.

I suppose on the upcoming cruise ships we’ll have breakfast each day. It’s tough not to eat twice a day on a cruise ship. I’ll skip the nuts, eat a light dinner, and maybe be ready for bacon, eggs, and veggies the next morning. After all, we’ve paid for the food at the recently higher cruise prices over the prices we paid when we last cruised over a year ago from Barcelona to Venice.

Baby angels with Jesus.

Paris is a beautiful, artsy, historical city. Overall, we’ve enjoyed our time here. However, we aren’t city people.  We like wildlife, nature, down-home warm friendly people, and locations filled with natural beauty. Our hotel concierge staff has been wonderful although some, not all, other service staff throughout the city have not been friendly. 

Headless statue in a room filled with statues.

Why did we choose Paris and London? Simple answer. We’re traveling the world. We felt we couldn’t leave them out of our itinerary when neither of us had visited either city.

Tom in front of a statue of a hunter in the center courtyard.

Then again, we chose to visit London when our upcoming cruise sails out of Harwich, England on August 31st and, visiting Paris and then London was a logical way to fill a month’s gap in our itinerary. 

Another exquisite statue in the courtyard under the glass pyramid.

Also traveling on the Eurostar (the so-called, “chunnel”) under the English Channel on a train was on the list of things we wanted to experience. In three days, we’ll be on that train. That’s exciting!

In the center courtyard on the ground floor of the Louvre.

With few tours planned for London, we’ll probably plan less in advance on the remaining days waiting to see what we feel like doing day by day.

In the courtyard within the Louvre, surrounded by the glass pyramid, the views were excellent.
Of course, there were many expensive shops on the way to the exit.

I have a planned lunch date with Liz, whom I met through “comments” who lives a train ride away from London, who’s coming to the city for the day. How exciting! I’ll have a “girl’s lunch” and Tom gets a few hours on his own. He’ll like that!

Once we exited the Louvre, it didn’t take long to find a taxi.
We spotted this view from the window of the cab while we were driving back to our hotel.

For those still working, it’s “hump day.” Start to relax and wind down for the weekend!

It wasn’t long before we spotted the famous landmark, the Eiffel Tower, a short walk from our hotel which has been a great location for our time in Paris.
Ah, there it is.  The Eiffel Tower has been my favorite sight to see in Paris.

                                           Photo from one year ago today, August 12, 2013:

No photos were posted one year ago. As time marched on as we continued in our travels, eventually we started posting photos every day which will start soon in these “year ago reflections.” For details of our story that day with tips we’d discovered required for “turning off the brain at night”, please click here.

Part 1…River Seine Dinner Cruise…Loved it!…Many Paris photos!…

Tom was carrying his dress shoes in a bag when the dress code for the dinner cruise stipulated no sports shoes were allowed. However, on a rainy evening, they made exceptions when most of the passengers were wearing sport shoes.

Yesterday, we asked the concierge at our hotel to call the river cruise company as to where we were to go for the boat for the dinner cruise. The River Seine has hundreds of tour boats along its banks. 

As we walked down a few flights of step to the boardwalk along the River Seine searching for the dinner cruise boat, the Bataueux Parisiennes.

Our tickets didn’t indicate a location as to where to find the boat which was surprising. Then again, we’ve found in Paris, that even if directions and instructions are provided in English, they are often confusing and incomplete, which we’ve discovered to be the case almost everywhere we’ve gone.

The walkway onto the boat.

Leaving the hotel on foot at 8 pm, we found our boat, the Bateaux Parisiennes which we’d booked through Viator, a reputable online tour booking company that makes arranging tours relatively easy.

As soon as we were seated, we were served these little French pastries and champagne. I didn’t try the buns but took a few sips of the delicious champagne. Tom ate all four of these pastries plus three of the white buns.

With vague instructions, we managed to arrive at the dock for the luxurious boat where we were immediately escorted to a table by the window. When I’d booked the event, I’d chosen the option for a table in the center of the dining room, away from the window which was the additional US $100, EU $75, over the all-inclusive cost for two at US $270, EU $202.

Dark clouds loomed over the city for days as it rained heavily off and on. 

Safari luck kicked in once again, and we were seated at the window at an ideal table for two.

Most of our photos shown here today and tomorrow were taken through the blue glass dining enclosure on the boat. We apologize for the unavoidable glare.

After seeing how impossible it would have been to take photos from the center of the dining room, we were all the more grateful for the window seats. With minimal areas to stand outside the glass-encased dining room, most of our photos today were taken through the glass diminishing the quality. 

The gold pillar tops as the boat drove past Pont Alexandre III. We boarded the boat at 8:30 explaining the darker photos.

Surely, in our remaining full week in Paris, we’ll have many more unobstructed photos to share.

The ornaments as we passed under one of many bridges.

The boat was full of well-dressed passengers. The dress code indicated no sports shoes were allowed so I wore the blister-inducing sandals I’d worn a few days ago and we brought along Tom’s dress shoes in a cloth bag. 

This foie gras appetizer was amazing. I savored every morsel along with the single perfectly cooked, cold asparagus spear, lying atop a line of what tasted to be an anchovy paste.

Once we boarded the boat we noticed that many passengers were wearing dressy casual clothing with sports shoes. It had been raining in buckets all day. Tom never had to put on the dress shoes. Nor was a sport coat required, which Tom no longer has in his possession.

Tom’s appetizer of grilled prawns and vegetables.  He doesn’t normally care for shrimp. After sharing a few prawns with me, he said, “There was nothing offensive about this.”

On several occasions, we attempted to get someone to take a photo of us together, which always presents a challenge. A couple of young women offered, but, the photos they’d taken didn’t work out so well with the bright lights in the background. We’ll post them tomorrow.

We weren’t certain as to which building this is as we cruised under another bridge.

The dinner was fabulous, to say the least. The menu options allowed me to order an appetizer, entrée, and cheese plate for dessert at an extra EU $5, US $6.69. Tom had my included dessert along with his menu as shown in these photos.

We’ll find out what building this is when we go to Notre Dame on Monday.  It was next door to the Cathedral.

A glass of champagne was presented to each of us the moment we were seated and throughout the dinner, two full bottles of French wine were served and left at the table for our consumption. 

Interesting architecture located along the River Seine.

Since I don’t drink alcohol for health reasons, (although I did taste the wines), Tom wiped out the entire bottle of the white wine and half of the bottle of the red wine.

As night fell, it became more difficult to take photos with the glare of the glass enclosure.

Tom was pleasantly tipsy by the end of the evening. Tom is not a big drinker, rarely drinking at “home” and often drinking water instead of a cocktail in a restaurant. 

Many bridges were constructed with ornate decorations.

When he does imbibe, he’s a fun drunk, doesn’t slur his words, doesn’t fall down, and has his wits about him, including his great sense of direction and sense of humor. He simply ups the ante on his humor and playfulness, all of which I thoroughly enjoy. We had our usual great time, perhaps escalated by the romantic environment and that insane playfulness.

Tom’s eyes were also riveted on the beautiful scenery.

After dinner, we wandered outside to the small outdoor area of the boat (the rain had stopped) staying outdoors to watch the City of Light go by as the boat made its way back to the pier.

On occasion, we spotted advertising along the River Seine.

Docking at 10:50 pm, we were anxious to make our way to the Eiffel Tower for the on-the-hour light show. Tom dragged me along to ensure we were the first people off the boat hoping we’d make it on time. Had we waited five minutes, we’d have missed the light show.

A portion of Notre Dame.

The crowds in the area of the Eiffel Tower at 11 pm were like nothing we’ve ever seen. It was literally body to body, but, the excitement generating from the crowd was intoxicating. I was literally reeling, not from the few sips of wine, but from the energy of the crowd.

With the full moon only days away, we enjoyed seeing it peeking out from the heavy cloud cover.

Surprisingly, it felt safe. Armed guards were everywhere and, other than the necessity of taking precautions against pickpockets, for us, Paris felt relatively safe, even at night in the crowds. 

Some of the spires of Notre Dame.

At this point, as I write here late in the day on Saturday, August 9, when this morning we left for the Louvre, which we walked for almost five hours, the dinner cruise on the River Seine may prove to be our favorite experience in Paris. 

As the boat continued on the River Seine. The 2½ hour cruise eventually turned around to go back the way we’d come enabling us to see the other side.

The combination of gourmet French food and seeing many of the major venues along the river created a memorable experience.

The French architecture in apartments, condos, and office buildings is pleasing as well as the more prominent and well-known buildings in the city.

Plus, wrapping up the evening with the Eiffel Tower light show capped off the perfect evening. We couldn’t have been more pleased. 

At this point, we were nearing the turnaround spot.

With the handy food list in French on my phone, the chef on the boat easily and willingly accommodated my requirements which our excellent waiter gladly relayed to perfection. 

There were many dinner cruise boats on the River Seine for considerably lower prices, as low as US $51, EU $39 per person which we less luxurious with standard fare. We’d researched extensively to decide on the Bateaux Parisiennes which was highly rated on various websites.

As it turned out, many of the menu options were suitable for me. I gave Tom my dessert while we paid the extra US $6.71, EU $5 for a delicious small portion plate of a variety of French cheeses. Superb!

There were many day tour boats along the river.
The sight of all the well lit boats on the river at night was captivating

We finally fell asleep well after 1:00 am with smiles on our faces awakening at our usual early time to begin yet another fine day in Paris. Tomorrow, Part 2 with food photos and our exciting nighttime photos and video.  Please check back.

Tom was certainly enjoying the included two bottles of wine plus two glasses of champagne served when we were seated. He prefers the white over the red.

Photo from one year ago today, August 9, 2013:

We found this type of bat in the house in Boveglio, Tuscany, Italy. (Not our photo). Living in the mountains covered in lush vegetation and many flying insects is an ideal habitat for bats. Finding this bat is the house startled us. Little did we know what awaited us in Africa. For details of that date, please click here.

A visit to a museum in Paris…Many photos…Was the fine dining fine?…A day in Versailles on a guided tour…We’ve walked 23 miles (37 km) so far!

Tom, standing next to an enormous statue.

As much as we’d like to be able to identify each artifact that we share from museums and art galleries, based on the limited time we have when posting daily with photos, most of these photos are presented with little information. By clicking on any of the links, you will be directed to more detailed information. However, we invite you to contact us about a specific item which we’ll be happy to research on your behalf. 

Also, based on a poor Internet connection and also the number of photos we’re posting in Paris, there’s a formatting issue with spacing between photos and paragraphs. We apologize for the inconvenience.  hank you.

Ancient busts.

 
A chair that may have been used for a ritual.
Could this artifact be a drum?

We simply have too many photos for one post about our experiences of the past 24 hours; a visit to Musee de Quai Branly, a newer, built in 2006, architecturally interesting museum with a wealth of treasures from around the world and two special exhibitions transpiring at this time: Tatoueurs, Tatoues (tattoo exhibit in photos and films) and Tiki Pop (South Pacific pop art new and old).

Wood carving with considerable detail.
Hand-carved chest.
One wonders what the oversized ears may indicate.

And, today, Wednesday, we took the train and spent over four hours at Chateau de Versailles on an outrageously rainy day. With many photos to post, tomorrow we’ll start a two day series on Chateau de Versailles and its unbelievable gardens and the exquisite rooms and art in the palace, posting at our usual time.

Small characters.
This appeared to be a voodoo doll.
Life in the city.

Back to yesterday…After spending a few hours in the beautiful Musee de Quai Branly, we walked next door for our 7:00 pm reservation at the upscale restaurant, Les Ombres. The combination of the museum and the restaurant located in the lush garden of the museum were ideal for a fully rewarding experience.

Asian art.
Religious artwork.

Entrance to the museum (to which we walked) was US $24, EU $18, and dinner which we’ll describe at the end of today’s post was less than we’d expected at US $155, EU $116 for dining in a gourmet French restaurant.  Of course, a few bottles of champagne or wine, of which we didn’t partake, could easily sail the bill up to hundreds more.

Painting of dapper man.
Wood carved mask with a crucifix.

Built in 2006, as a newer museum to Paris, it had a tough act to follow when this city has numerous world-renowned museums and of course, the famous Louvre which we’re booked to see on Saturday.

Mask carved from wood with some metal.
Tall wood carving.
These were from Haiti.

Interesting architecture, convenient location to the Eiffel Tour, lush gardens, and a wealth of artifacts from around the globe from centuries past, makes this a worthwhile tourist attraction. 

Small wood carved men.
Totem pole.
North American Indian art.

Much to our pleasure, the museum, although crowded, was no less crowded than many other highlights we’ve encountered in the city of Paris.

Many artifacts were predominantly male.
One can only guess the significance of these.
Tall male structure.

At times, we question the design of certain venues when there appear to be unoccupied wasted spaces and long and seeming endless walkways until one reaches the main attractions as was the case at Musee de Quai Branly.

Warrior.
Mother and child.
Perhaps a symbol of a type of birthing chair.

Once we reached the exhibitions, the design improved, as we meandered our way through the dimly lit rooms and display areas. Once again, I commend Tom for his excellent sense of direction, preventing us from frequently retracing our steps in the somewhat confusing floor plan.

There were many artifacts encased in temperature-controlled cases.

With the number of photos we’ve taken, most of which seemed to turn out well, we could literally spend days presenting them here. However, with so many other sights to post in our remaining ten days in Paris, we have to pick and choose what we think may appeal to our readers the most.

Austere and frightening.
Mardi Gras costumes from centuries ago.
This was identified as a bear costume.

If you aren’t interested in art and museum artifacts, we apologize if you find it dull. In any case, we’ll be back with other topics that hopefully appeal to your tastes over the next several days.

These costumes could have taken months to make.
These costumes were made in preparation for Mardi Gras in Mexico.
The skill and time required for the detailing in these costumes are astounding.

After touring the museum, we wander next door to Les Ombres, an upscale restaurant located on the museum complex. Reviews were mixed on TripAdvisor but, we always try to keep in mind that every diner may have an entirely different perspective of a dining experience. 

There was some representation of the American Indian.
Many artifacts appear to represent the need for an ancient civilization to be armed for war.
The interpretation of specific items may be very personal.
We find that if there are mixed reviews, some five stars, and others less, it may be worth a try. In this case, our experience at Les Ombres was more ambiance based than the perception of the food.
This damaged figure is a woman giving birth.
These masks and figures were from the South Pacific.
These are Peruvian artifacts.

Undoubtedly, the ambiance couldn’t have been more perfect. Had we been able to get a later reservation than 7:00 pm, we could have enjoyed the Eiffel Tower light show at 10:00 pm from our table. 

Wood carvings.
Intricate door to either a room or a house.
Another intricate door.

Booked in advance for days, if not weeks, we took the early seating, hoping the food would justify missing this major highlight of the restaurant.

Early decorative items.
Many items were found on archeological digs in the 1800s and early 1900s.
The colors were eye-catching in the 100’s of years old tapestries.

Although beautifully presented and served, the food fell short in a few areas; one, the menu option for the fixed price three-course meal didn’t offer a beef selection of the main course; two, the portions were so small, when we left, I was still hungry.

Interesting tapestries from the Middle East.
Many of the masks were intended to ward off evil spirits.
These figures were almost life-size.

Tom filled up eating lots of crusty rolls with butter but, he too, felt the portions were too small. We both had the salmon which couldn’t have been more than 4 ounces, (113 grams). 

Decorative posts.
We were intrigued by the amount of skill that went into the production of many of these artifacts.
Decorative mask.

Adding the four tiny pieces of broccoli as shown in the photos with a few tablespoons of broccoli puree, that was my entire meal. I just couldn’t justify spending another US $32, EU $24 for a side salad, although Tom encouraged me to do so.

Celebratory masks.
Body piercings are common in many African countries.
To us old-timers, this poster looks familiar.

Tom’s meal included an appetizer of delicious although tiny portions of shellfish and octopus risotto and a chocolate dessert which he seemed to enjoy. Without the crusty rolls, he too would have been hungry when we left.

This photo was from the 1930s in the US.
Many tattoos in Asia were designed as a result of popular Asian art.
The museum currently has an exhibition of tattoo art from around the world.

By no means are we saying this restaurant wasn’t worthy of a one time visit. For those eating three meals a day, these smaller portions may have been satisfactory. And, the service was excellent, the ambiance dreamy and overall, we had a lovely experience.

Saturday Evening Post, March 4, 1944.
Many of the ancient artifacts were headdresses and costumes worn in war or celebration.
An interesting light pattern of words that was scrolling along the floor as we entered and exited the museum.

After all, we’ve accomplished in the past 24 hours including many miles of walking, we feel refreshed and committed to continue on with our ongoing exploration of Paris with gusto.

The beautiful fresh flowers adorned the already inviting ambiance of the restaurant.
Tom, ready to dine at Les Ombres.
Tom chose the fixed price option at EU $68, US $91.

Hopefully, tonight when we’ll brave the rain again after we’ve just borrowed an umbrella from the hotel, we’ll have a slightly more at an Italian restaurant we’ve agreed to try with several non-pasta items on the menu that will work for me.

Butter arrived at the table imprinted with “Marie Antoinette.”
These warm cheese-filled buns arrived before dinner. Tom said they were good.
Tom lobster, prawns, and octopus risotto was delicious but a tiny portion.

Look for Part 1 of our Versailles series starting tomorrow when early in the morning we’ll head back to the lobby of the hotel, armed with our laptops, fresh mugs of our favorite iced tea, and the excitement of sharing another fabulous Paris experience with our readers all over the world.

We both had the same main dish (entrée in French translates to “appetizer”, grilled salmon topped with shredded cabbage and a slice of cauliflower. These four bits of broccoli were no larger than the end of a thumb. This consisted of my entire meal, not quite enough after a busy day of walking for hours.
Tom dessert. At the top, is a rolled filled chocolate cake with a Grenache frosting garnished with chocolate candy sticks. Below is a dollop of chocolate ice cream atop of spoonful of a chocolate sauce containing chunks of chocolate.
Our dinner bill at EU $116 was slightly under US $155, based on today’s exchange rate.
View of the Eiffel Tower from Les Ombres Restaurant.
________________________________________________

Photo from one year ago today, August 6, 2013:
No photos were posted a year ago on this date when our discussion revolved around how much we’d budgeted for our monthly expenses for our travel. For details of that post, please click here.

Scouring Paris continues…Early morning train to Versailles on Wednesday…Tomorrow’s post will be 4 to 6 hours later than usual…

This is a typical Parisian scene of a French Balcony which has no room for sitting, but offers a view and often room for flowers, such as these.

Yesterday, was a quieter day than the prior days. Twice, we went out walking to check out a few areas we’d never tried. On the first time out we looked for a coop or health food grocer where we could buy raw nuts which we found within the first a half-hour, returning on the return walk when we didn’t want to carry anything.

Wherever we may walk, we can find our way back for two reasons; one, Tom’s excellent sense of direction and two, spotting the Eiffel Tower.

After spending US $47, EU $35 for the equivalent of two pounds of raw nuts, we continued on looking for new restaurants to try. We were in luck when we stumbled upon a brasserie, cozy-looking restaurant with casual seating that we decided we’d return for dinner later in the evening.

This is the famous Pont Alexandre III bridge and visitors area which we visited.  The top of the pillars are gold and the street lamps are made of crystal.

When dining in French restaurants, it’s a different experience than in the US and in some other parts of the world. Nothing is quite the same as it appears on the menu and thus one must be diligent in asking questions and being prepared for the end result, at times less than expected, at other times, more than expected. The service can be slow at times.

A closer view of Pont Alexandre III.

Of course, one can become easily startled when seeing the breakdown of the bill when as much as 40% is included in the food costs considering all the taxes and service charges (gratuities are included as service charges). It’s no wonder that the items on the menu seem higher than one might experience elsewhere in the world. 

Having seen this and other areas in photos over the years, it was exciting to visit them in person.

French law requires that tips and taxes be included in the price. The intent in part was to avoid tourists from the confusion of tipping when VAT tax was included in the food cost. All of the service charges may be kept by the owner or, the owner may dole it out to the employees as tips which is expected.

The expanse of the River Seine and its many bridges attracts many tourists.

In cases when the service is over the top, it is suggested on various online site to pay EU $1 per EU $20 of purchases, a reasonable plan in the event the gratuities don’t go directly to the service staff or, as a special token of appreciation of a job well done. 

A bell tower on a church.

It’s highly entertaining walking the streets of Paris. Having walked a considerable distance from our hotel we’ve been able to investigate totally different neighborhoods, each with its own flair and personality. 

Shopping for food and cooking meals in Paris would definitely be an experience with a variety of ingredients and options of less common ingredients.

However, we can only get so far on foot when faced with the return walk. As a result, we’ll be taking the subway, train, and bus for some of our upcoming venues. Of course, we won’t miss any of the popular venues due to the fact that they are too far to walk, using public transportation as needed. 

“Knock off” designer bags, shoes and clothing are commonly found for sale on the streets.

Tonight, we have a reservation at Les Ombres, a restaurant we’d investigated on foot several days ago. Only a 15-minute walk from our hotel, the setting near the Eiffel Tower, packed during the day was situated on exquisite grounds. Both the menu and ambiance appealed to us.  

Even fine French cheeses were for sale in refrigerated cases at the Farmer’s Market.

Although the restaurant is only rate #3657 out of 15,585 in TripAdvisor, we felt that with the difficulty of getting a reservation, it must be something special in addition to its ambiance when seeing it was packed in the afternoon when we walked by. 

These mushrooms caught my eye.  Wouldn’t these be lovely to cook?

Considering that this rating puts it in the top 24% in Paris, we felt it was worth a try. One can assume that the difficulty of getting a reservation may be a good indicator of reasonably good food.

Beautiful flower shops can be found every few blocks.

We’ll report back tomorrow as to our first fine dining experience in Paris, hopefully with rave reviews and more good photos of today’s adventures when we use to the metro to seek an exciting venue.

On Sunday, we stumbled up a Farmer’s Market along the boulevard that was winding down in the afternoon after an early morning start.

Tomorrow, we’ll be on the train to Versailles in the early morning and won’t be posting until later in the day upon our return. Thus, our post will be available approximately eight hours later than usual.  

This venue celebrated architectural shows and conferences from what we could tell.
We laughed when we noticed this old fashioned “iron” used as a door handle at a laundry service. Walking the neighborhood we’ve found a nearby self-serve laundry which we’ll use the day before leaving for London on the 16th. By hand washing our underwear, we can get by for the two-plus weeks in Paris.

Most likely late tomorrow, in order to remain in the order of our activities, we’ll post the exciting venue we plan to visit today and photos of tonight’s dinner at Les Ombres restaurant. 

Flowers lining the walking paths.
There are flower gardens throughout the city, this one close to the River Seine and Eiffel Tower.
More flower gardens growing at the foot of the Eiffel Tower where there’s a huge park where many visitors lounge and enjoy the view.
The following day, on Thursday, we’ll be posting photos of Versailles sharing what hopefully will be another extraordinary experience as we make our way through the City of Lights.
Tom said this was the best dinner he’d had since we arrived in Paris. The total for last night’s dinner was US $57.72, EU $43.10. Tom had one large beer and I had a large bottle of sparkling water. Had the waiter requested the small sparkling water I requested, as opposed to the large, the total bill would have been comparable to the last two nights.
My dinner was mediocre last night when there were few items on the menu that worked for me. I’ve never been a fan of those tiny shrimp, although the cod in the salad was good. When we returned to our hotel, I dug into the nuts, still hungry after dinner.
Tom’s meal included a dessert. He selected the crème Brulee. After eating it, he told me that he prefers when I’ve made it. Tres Bon!

Photo from one year ago today, August 5, 2013:

Pescia, Italy was the town we drove to for grocery shopping, via the steep and winding hairpin turns of the mountains of Tuscany. The meat department in the grocery store was the best we’ve seen anywhere with the finest deli meats, bacon, and cheeses. For details for that date, please click here.

The Paris trek continues…So much to see…Plenty of time to see it all..

Due to a poor WiFi signal in the hotel, and the numbers of photos today, we’re having issues with paragraph spacing.

The front entrance of the French Army Museum, Musee de l’Armee de Invalides with the bullet-shaped evergreens.
The lush green grass and the neatly trimmed evergreens at the museum.
Cathedral de Saint Louis des Invalides located on the ground of the Musee de l’Armee des Invalides

So far we’ve walked 15 of the 40 square miles (103 square km) of Paris. In a way, I’m thrilled it’s raining today.  Having tossed all my tennis shoes along the way, I only had a few pairs of leather Keds, one new and one almost new.

World War I tank as we entered the museum.
The massive courtyard of the Musee de l’Armee des Invalides was used as a staging area during times of war.

Normally, these shoes don’t hurt my feet but after all these miles, I must admit my feet are rubbed red in spots, and a day off from walking will do wonders. The rain is a good excuse to keep us from a long walk today.  Although, if my feet weren’t still hurting, we’d probably attempt it, rain or shine.

This was a helmet from medieval times.
Guns on display in the “old department” from the 13th to 17th centuries.

We need time to continue planning our remaining open days, many of which are already booked. In Paris, one feels compelled to keep moving in fear of missing something.

Body armor from the 17th century.
Primitive arrowheads and stone and metal weapons.

Yesterday, we’d planned to walk to our heart’s content in a new direction. Checking out the map we decided to attempt to make it to the Musee de l’Armee des Invalides, France military museum with such areas as the DÔME DES INVALIDES, TOMB OF NAPOLEON I. The cost to enter the museum was US $25.50, EU $19 for both of us.

Handmade spears were seen in the “old department.”
 
Huge decorative cannon.
A suit of Armor on man and horse.

The walk to the museum was far, taking us an hour of actual walking time and another hour of checking out restaurant menus and other sites along the way. The weather was ideal, cool, in the 70F’s, 21C’s, making the walking easy.

Another huge cannon and cannonball.
Could this be body armor for women?
Full armor for soldier and horse.  That must have been one heavy load for the horse to bear.

The museum consists of an “old department” from the 13th to 17th century, the “modern department” Louis XIV to Napoleon III, 1643 to 1870, and to the “contemporary department,” the two world wars 1871 to 1945.  We saw them all.

Chain male.
 
Tomb of Napoleon I.

Surprisingly, the museum, although busy, wasn’t uncomfortably crowded, nor were the streets we walked. From what we’ve read, tourism slows down a little in August due to its usual heat. Since we arrived the hottest day was Friday at 86F, 30C which has steadily gone down a little each day. 

Beautiful alter in the area where the tombs were displayed in private rooms.

We love having all the time we’ve scheduled to be in Paris, leaving us feeling relaxed and unrushed, allowing ample time to write here each day and riffle through our zillions of photos from the prior day, in itself a time-consuming undertaking. By noon each day, we’re off, anxious to find the next treasure in Paris.

This ceiling is breathtaking.
Construction and artwork are amazing.

We’ll still have several days left to explore on own our attempting to walk to more points of interest. Perhaps, if we’re diligent and our feet hold up, we can see most of Paris on foot in our 16 days.

Tomb of Joseph Napoleon II.

Last night, feet tired, we decided to walk to a reasonably nearby Japanese Restaurant, ranked #1017 of 12585 restaurants in Paris. It may sound like a high number on the list but it proved to be in the top 8%, not too bad of a choice which we’d investigated in advance. 

More exquisite ceiling art.

Although Tom likes Chinese food (only the same certain dishes) we’ve had Japanese in the past both cooking for ourselves and dining out. The dinner was excellent and coincidentally it was the same cost as the prior night, to the penny as shown in these receipts below at US $54.38 (the exchange rate changed overnight) including the gratuity and all those pesky taxes.

The tomb of Sebastian Le Prestre de Vauban, “an engineer who revolutionized the art of siegecraft and defensive fortifications.

We enjoyed the dinner although, when we finally returned to our hotel to relax after another tiring day, I ate an entire huge bag of pistachio nuts, lasting through two episodes (sans commercials) of “Murder in the First.”  Tom had a similar meal to mine but with the big bowl of rice he managed to eat with his chopsticks, he was full.

Tomb of Marshall Ferdinand Foch, World War I.

This morning, the hotelier approached us as we sat in the lobby writing, offering us a complimentary breakfast due to the inconveniences of the leaking bathroom. Hesitantly, we accepted since we rarely eat breakfast (except on cruises when we have two meals a day). We wandered downstairs to the hotel’s café to an average breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, and pastries.

Tomb of Louis Hubert Gonzalve Lyautey, French Army General.
Napoleon II, King of Rome.

Tom didn’t touch a single French pastry, instead opting for toast with butter and jam, which he only eats on cruises. I laughed. Had I been able to consume flour, I’d have had a hard time eating only one or two of the yummy looking pastries. Oh well. Without my strict way of eating, I wouldn’t be in Paris let alone walk three miles in three days let alone 15 miles. Who’s to complain?

My sauce free but nicely seasoned skewers with tuna, salmon, scallops, and prawns.
The comprehensive menu at Japonaise. 
The receipt from last night’s dinner all-inclusive at EU $40.60, US $54.51. By having a few less expensive dinners such as this, our budget will allow dining in three or four pricier restaurants.

We have many more photos to share with our readers as the days march on. As I wrote this we decided to head out again, after posting today’s story and photos, now that the rain has stopped.  Much more tomorrow!

Photo from one year ago today, August 4, 2013:

While living in Tuscany all last summer, we made a point of cooking using local ingredients as we often do. In this case, we made pan-fried chicken breast meat filled with ricotta cheese, spices from our garden, wrapped in pancetta from the amazing deli at the supermarket. For details from that date, please click here.

Annual celebration in Campanario…Videos and photos…Daylight fireworks…Four days until departure….

We took these two videos around 1:00 pm on Saturday as the cloud rolled in and the sound of the fireworks reverberated through the hills.
It was fun to see the results of the shooting fireworks in the hills of Campanario as the town prepared to celebrate the religious holiday, Festa do Santíssimo Sagramento.

Driving in Campanario at different times during this past week, we’ve noticed areas where street lamps were decorated and colorful banners draped across the roads near the church. 

Busy preparations surrounded the church in Campanario as workers rushed to get the decorations in place for Saturday’s religious festivities.

The closer we drove to the local Catholic church, it was obvious, some type of celebration was on the horizon. I had little luck finding out information about the celebration online, finally sending Gina an email for an answer.

She responded in her most endearing broken English that last night was the annual “Festa do Santíssimo Sagramento,” (feast of the blessed bleeding) also known as “Festa do Senhor Jesus” (feast of the Lord Jesus).  

Workers decorated archways over the road consisting of evergreen branches.

With the lack of parking in the area around the church, it was evident that the only way to partake in the festivities would be to have someone drop us off or walk the very long distance from our house to the church with trips through a long tunnel each way, not an ideal spot for walking. 

Instead, we opted to watch from our veranda as much as we’d be able to hear and see. We found this website that lists all the religious celebrations in Madeira, of which there are many throughout the year.

These roads leading to the church were decorated with lights and garland.

As we wind down our time in Madeira, we find ourselves comfortable staying in except for an occasional trip to the supermarket or the little grocer. As of today, we’ll have consumed the last of the meat in the freezer leaving us with a choice of dining out or having one last favorite meal over the next three nights.

With no opportunity to cook for the upcoming 77 days of travel, we’ve decided to make our favorite dinner, the usual gluten and starch-free, low carb pizza one last time, cooking it fresh over the next three nights as opposed to cooking it all at once and reheating it. 

Local citizens mulling around the area chatting and smoking amid the workers preparing for the big event.

With a quick trip to the supermarket tomorrow for a few remaining ingredients to be added to the several ingredients we already have on hand, we’ll be set for meals until we leave early Thursday morning.

Had we gone to the feast, there would have been few, if any, items I could have had when starch, flour, and sugar are commonly used in many popular Portuguese dishes. 

As we drove away from the church we spotted these flowers.

In these past three years, I haven’t made one exception in my diet, not a single bite. I’m not about to start faltering now when it’s my good health that has made our travels possible. 

Today, a warm sunny day will draw me outdoors for another walk up the steep hill. With a slight touch of melancholy as I huff and puff my way up the hill, I’ll accept that we’ll soon say goodbye to this beautiful island of Madeira, Portugal as we make our way to our next adventure.

Photo from one year ago today, July 27, 2013:

Lisa and Lucca, owners of the 300-year-old stone house in Boveglio, Tuscany, Italy, stapled cloth netting to cover a few of the windows to reduce the number of flies entering the house. It was hot and we couldn’t keep the windows shut for another day. The wind blew the fabric from the three windows they’d covered and only a few days later, we had biting flies in the house again. I resorted to wearing my BugsAway long pants and long sleeve shirt to keep from getting bit when I couldn’t find any insect repellent at any of the stores. For details from that date, please click here.

How much will we spend dining out in Paris and London… A year ago…Link to photos with step by step instructions for making a gluten free, low carb bread free sandwich…

Midday clouds create a pretty sky.

With only eight days remaining in Madeira we realized that we won’t be cooking another meal until October 16th when we arrive in Maui, Hawaii for our six week stay. 

From July 31st, our departure date until arriving in Maui when we’ll make our way to a grocery store, it will be no less than 77 days without cooking a single meal. This is even longer than the 75 days we spent in Morocco when we either dined out or dined at home with lovely Madame Zahra making our meals.


Clouds rolling in at the end of the day.

First, we’ll be arriving in Honolulu on October 5th by way of cruise ship when we’ll spend 11 nights in Waikiki in a vacation rental fully equipped with cooking facilities.  However, as we mentioned earlier, we’ve decided to mostly dine out while in Waikiki rather than purchase an the required inventory of basic cooking items in order to prepare our meals.

As a result, currently, we’re making some of our favorite meals, knowing full well, it will be a long time until we can do so again.  Each time we move to a new location, its at this point before departure that we take stock of all the  remaining food stuffs, making our meals utilizing everything we have on hand.


Some flowers continue to bloom over the summer months.

Here’s our menu for the next eight dinners: all low carb, gluten, starch and sugar free:
7/23  Taco salad (no shell), side of roasted vegetables
7/24  Pork chops with sautéed mushrooms, side of roasted vegetables, steamed green beans, small side of tuna salad on a bed of lettuce, green salad
7/25  Same as above in order to finish off pork chops in freezer
7/26  Filet mignon with sautéed mushrooms and onions, steamed green beans, side of roasted vegetables, side of coleslaw
7/27  Italian meatballs in sugar free pasta sauce, topped with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, side of green beans (only veggie Tom will eat), side of roasted vegetables, side salad
7/28 Portuguese sausage omelet (using remaining fresh eggs) with onions, mushrooms and leftover cheeses, side salad using all leftover vegetables
7/29  Dine out
7/30  Dine out
7/31  Fly from Madeira to Paris, leaving in the morning


These low clouds have wafted in over the last few days.

By following this menu, we’ll use all of the remaining foods except for some basic inventory items (olive oil, butter, seasonings, etc.) which we always leave behind for the next occupants.

While in Madeira, we’ve dined out only a total of five times, mainly due to the cost.  As we booked more and more vacation rentals far into the future, all requiring deposits (some as much as 50% of the rent) and, with our upcoming “Family Vacation” in Hawaii in December and, with the necessity of dining out over the upcoming 77 days, we decided to tighten our belts.


This is one of the kids that have grown over the summer.  They’re fairly far into the yard next door which with our camera, we can’t get a clearer shot.  The markings on her head are amazing with the white ears and black markings on her face.  When I yell out “baah” to her while I’m standing at the railing, she looks up at me and “baahs” back.  It’s not quite as fun as talking to a warthog but, is fun none the less.

As a result of our frugality, we’ll have saved over US $1200, EU $891, on the food budget for our 75 days in Madeira.  This savings will offset some of the high cost of dining out in Paris for the 16 days we’ll be living in a hotel. We budgeted US $1600, EU $1188 for those meals a relatively small amount for Paris. 


Tom is always spotting interesting cloud formations.  In this case at dusk, he spotted a seahorse in these clouds.  Do you see it?

With the savings we’ll have incurred in Madeira which we’ll split between Paris and London (budgeted US $1500, EU $1114, for 15 days) our combined total dining budget total for Paris and London is US $3100, EU $2302. 

By splitting the above budgetary savings in Madeira of US $1200, EU $891 between the two cities over 31 days we’re left with a total of US $138.71, EU $103 per day. 


Ominous looking cloud at dusk from our veranda.

Although this amount won’t get us into the finest of restaurants every night, if we choose casual dining every other night, spending under US $50, EU $37 we’ll be left with US $227.42, EU $169 to spend on the alternate night’s dinner in nicer restaurants.


Gladiolas growing in a pot on our veranda.

Since I don’t drink alcohol and Tom doesn’t drink wine, usually ordering only a few cocktails and, we don’t order desserts, we’ll have enough to otherwise spend on a menu.  Of course, there are restaurants in Paris where a couple can easily spend US $800, EU $594 for dinner in a fine dining restaurant.  That won’t be us. 

A dog looking down at us as we stood on the road.

Traveling the world as we do requires careful and diligent budgeting and planning.  Both of us have learned to avoid a “laissez faire” attitude when researching our options as to what appeals to us.  We have learned to utilize a strong sense of self control which is necessary for us to continue on, enjoying our lives without worrying about finances.

There are plenty of other aspects of travel one can worry about, if they so choose.
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Photo from one year ago today, July 23, 2013:

One year ago to the date we shared the making of our bread-free gluten free, low carb sandwich including step-by-step instructions with photos.  For the remaining details, please click here.

Upcoming changes in our lives for over 66 days…Hotels and ships…

Yesterday, we noticed this flower growing in our yard, as it breaks free of its pod.

Once again, we begin the process of winding down. The last flight we took from Marrakesh to Madeira after paying for overweight luggage, aloud I promised Tom that I’d ditch the second computer bag and lighten the weight of my luggage.

These colorful steps are located at the elementary school in Campanario.

Yesterday, I unloaded everything in my laptop bag tossing several unneeded items and placing the few essentials in his laptop bag. Luckily, his bag can hold both of our laptops which we’ve done all along. Now we’re free of one heavy carry on bag.

Weeks ago, I unloaded no less than 10 pounds, 4.5 kilograms, of clothing as I’d also promised that day. I’d said it aloud, more to myself than to him. He never asked me to do this nor expected it. His luggage weighs almost as much as mine. 

This house appears to be unfinished.  This has been a common case everywhere we’ve traveled.

Today, we’ll head to the supermarket for what I’d hoped to be our last trip, butTom reminded me that we’ll need more water and another visit to the ATM before leaving Madeira. With 17 days remaining until departure and the tiny fridge and freezer, we probably couldn’t have lasted that long.

Finally, we booked our flight from Boston to Vancouver for September 17th. We were pleasantly surprised when the one-way flight was only US $173 each, EU $127.22. 

A stairway to a cave.

All bookings required to make our way to Hawaii on October 5th are in order. Arriving by cruise ship we’ll stay in Waikiki for 11 nights and then head to Maui for another six weeks staying in a vacation home. We’ve yet to book several island-to-island flights in Hawaii, not necessary at this early date. 

Once we arrive in Honolulu and are settled in our vacation home we’ll book the next few flights. We’ve learned when we need to book early and when it doesn’t require a sense of urgency. Thank goodness for our spreadsheet (which is saved in several locations each time it’s updated), or it could be tricky keeping track of all of our comings and goings.

We didn’t see any reason to enter this cave.

Tomorrow, we have to return the blue rental car to the Funchal airport when Europcar’s lower prices weren’t available on any online site. We had to switch to Hertz for an equally good deal for our remaining 16 days. 

We’ve learned to book cars through discount sites for as much as 50% less than the going rate. But, they don’t allow a booking at those lower prices for more than 30 days. 

Two caves side by side.  Surely, kids in the area have enjoyed these over the years.

We have no choice but to continually rebook online for more time in order to get the discounted pricing. The annoying part of this plan is the necessity of returning to the rental car facility each time to sign new paperwork. Its time consuming but, well worth it when saving over US $1000, EU $735.35 during the 75 days we’ll have spent in Madeira.

Most travelers don’t experience this dilemma when on a vacation/holiday for one or two weeks. For us, the car rental issue is an ongoing challenge. At times, in certain locations, a driver is simply more convenient. We continue to play it by ear as we go.

These are the pods that have been growing in the yard that finally bloomed as shown in today’s first photo.

This morning as I put two more loads of laundry into the small front loading washer, I thought about how we won’t be living in a vacation home with access to a washer from July 31 to October 5, 2014. Here’s where we’ll spend the total 66 days that we’ll be on the move:

  • July 31 to August 16 – Paris hotel
  • August 16 to August 31 – London hotel
  • August 31 to September 14 – Cruise from London to Boston
  • September 14 – September 17 – Boston hotel
  • September 17 – September 23 – Vancouver Hotel
  • September 23 – October 5 – Cruise Vancouver to Honolulu

Usually, we do six to eight loads of laundry each week. Leaving out the usual towels and sheets, we’ll be paying high fees for our laundry during these almost seven weeks. Long ago aware of this reality, we budgeted for this expense.

Also, we won’t be cooking a meal for 66 days.Also, we’ll be dining out during the 11 nights in Honolulu when it won’t be worth purchasing the necessary cooking supplies over this short period. 

Yesterday, Gina explained that the number of cloudy days we’ve experienced lately is unusual. 

Those of our readers that had followed us through 75 days in Morocco know the angst we had over the never-ending spicy food. Within the first week, we couldn’t take another bite. At least going forward, we’ll have plenty of variety during the above venues, consisting of ships and restaurants. 

We’ve begun to adjust our thought process to the changes we’ll experience over the upcoming months, differences we’ve experienced for the short term but, never for this long. We’ve never moved this often in a short period of time.

One of our neighborhood goats taken from the highway. It’s hard to tell if it’s a female or male when both have horns and beards.

We continue on, full of hope for continuing good health and relative ease of safe travel. On the flip side, there’s always Paris!

Photo from one year ago today, July 14, 2013:

Not our photo posted on our story about insects in Tuscany.  For details of that day’s post, please click here.

A special photo…A memorable couple long ago…An inspiration to continue on…A year ago, a little village in Toscana…

Need I say, I went nuts when we saw these huge hanging Angel’s Trumpets, while on a drive a few days ago? As Tom maneuvered through a narrow winding road, I squealed when I saw these, hollering, “Stop!  Back up!” The road was too narrow for me to get out of the car so I took this photo with the window down. Wow!

It was the halfway mark of our time in Madeira as we mentioned in our yesterday’s heading. It’s hard for us to believe that we’re on the downhill now of living in this wonderful home in Campanario on this exquisite island.

At a distance, we saw a boat. Could it be a local fisherman?

We’ve determined that it usually takes about a month for us to decide if we’d ever considered returning to a location. As for having the time to return to a location, that in itself is a question for us to consider. There’s so much world left to see.

The shoreline is exquisite around the island. We wondered how the residents of the homes on this cliff could possibly get to their houses. That would be a fun outing to tackle.

We’ve contemplated that, down the road, perhaps we’ll choose four favorite locations and revisit them throughout the year at the same “perfect weather” times of the year, for example; South Africa during their winter months of June, July, and August. We were there during December, January, and February when it was a scorcher. 

Another creek under a bridge.

In years to come, in a perfect world, I could easily spend half of the year in Marloth Park, South Africa, and the other half here in Madeira. But, speaking of “half’s,” my “other half” would have to be on board. At this point, he can’t contemplate such a plan and I totally agree with him when so much excitement awaits us.

Yesterday, on our way to the supermarket, a cloud cover created this amazing view.

It’s not that I’m thinking of slowing down. By no means! As the perpetual dreamer and romantic, my mind tends to get ahead of me and I love to plan “way ahead.” Let’s face it, I’m 66 years old. Tom is 61. At some point, we’ll run out of steam.

However, when we were on our first and favorite cruise on the Celebrity Century on our way through the Panama Canal, one night an older couple sitting next to us, joyfully told us their stories of traveling the world, living in Africa, going on safari, and seeing much of the world.

As it began to rain, little puffs of clouds dotted the hills. 

We were both in awe as they excitedly told one exciting story after another. They were in their 90’s and still traveling! At this point, we were on our first foray outside the US at the beginning of our journey together, although both of us had traveled internationally before we met.

We had only a few stories to share with the delightful elderly couple and we encouraged them to go on and on.  With a captive audience, they enjoyed retelling their tales easily recalling details with each of them with a sharp memory, still intact after all their years.

It’s always interesting to see the homes nestled in the hills as shown here.

They inspired us and continue to do so as our journey continues. It’s hard to believe that we spoke to that couple in January 2013, a mere 18 months ago. How we’ve changed! We’ve learned so much. 

Another view of the valley on our way to the supermarket.

Our learning curve is literally at the “tip of the iceberg” based on the parts of the world we’ve already visited.  There’s so much more to learn. However, as experienced as we think we are now, it’s nothing compared to where we’ll be in a few years.

Mud running in a creek in Ribeira Brava.

I must admit that this traveling business has been a huge boon for our memory as has a strict diet which, BTW, Tom is finally following with me. He gave up the sweets, gluten, and starch a few days ago on his own, without prodding from me. 

His motivation is more inclined toward his frugal nature. He wants to fit into the clothes he already has and not have to replace everything in larger sizes.

It was cloudy yesterday, but a ray of sunlight reflected in the area to the left-center of this photo creating a pretty scene. Utility lines often obstruct our photos. With modern conveniences in Madeira, they are impossible to avoid.

Whatever his motivation, I’m happy. It means we’ll have more time together, he won’t have trouble hauling our bags and the quality of his life will be greatly improved. I can’t guarantee he’ll do this forever but for now, I’m thrilled. All I want is for him to be healthy so we can continue this life together for as long as possible.

Maybe we’ll be fortunate with good health to be able to continue our journey well into our 90’s like the couple on the Celebrity Century.  In any case, if we cannot, we’ll strive to find a joyful alternative of staying in one place for longer periods, like six months in Marloth Park???  With Ms. Warthog at our door each morning or Mr. Kudu stopping by the veranda for some pellets?  Heaven on earth.
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Photo from one year ago, June 24, 2013:

This restaurant was located in the town of Benabbio, Tuscany, Italy, and was the closest to us, a 30-minute drive on the treacherous roads from our home in Boveglio. Although the food was wonderful and the prices fair, neither of us felt safe driving back at night in the dark, especially if Tom had a beer or two with the crazy drivers whipping around the road. As a result, we seldom dined out while living in the remote mountain village of Boveglio. We learned a valuable lesson after we left Boveglio…that we shouldn’t live in such remote locations, especially where no spoke English was spoken, adding to our sense of isolation. Although, once we got into a routine, we ended up enjoying the 75-day stay. For details of that date, please click here.

An experience we’ll always remember about Madeira…One year ago today…Cote d’Azur, Toulon, France…

 We took this video yesterday morning as we scurried up the steep hill to see what goodies the musical truck had on hand.
What a wonderful morning we had yesterday! We heard music blaring from loudspeakers that may have been either the produce or the fish truck. There was no way to determine which it was from the outside of the truck.
We were excited that the musical truck had fresh fish on hand. Check out this video.
We didn’t need more produce for a few more days and we were hoping it was the fish truck. When we heard the music we figured it was worth checking it out.
The fish guy held up a tuna for us to inspect. It was smaller than some of the others, but this size was perfect.

Looking up the road we saw two neighbors making a purchase wondering, as we worked our way up the steep hill while making the above video. Alas, we were in luck! It was the fish guy with the morning’s catch on ice. We couldn’t have been more thrilled. Tom is not usually interested in eating fish, but on occasion will have some shrimp, scallops, or lobster. 

Next, he weighed our tuna. It was slightly under 8 kilograms, approximately 17 pounds.

To my surprise, he seemed enthused and agreed to eat whatever fish we’d purchase as we stood at the back end of the fish truck taking photos and trying to decipher what types of fish the two fish guys had on hand. 

First, he removed the head and tails using a huge knife.

There was a small handwritten sign posted as shown in the below photo listing the names of the fish and the prices. As one of the fish guys rattled off the names of the various fish with tuna as the only fish we could decipher, which in Portuguese is “atum.” 

The names of the various fish they had on hand we impossible for us to determine except for the tuna which was our first choice in any case.

“Atum” sounded like “tuna” which once he cut it, I was certain that it was. Tuna is second on my list of favorite fresh fish with salmon in the number one spot. I could hardly contain my enthusiasm. 

He continued cutting.

After watching him cut a fish for the neighbor, we realized we’d have no option than to purchase an entire fish.  He selected a small tuna for us weighing in at 8 kilograms, equivalent to 17 pounds.  Of course, the cost is based on the weight per kilogram before cutting off the head, the tail, and removing the entrails.

At US $4.76, EU $3.50 per kilogram, the cost of the entire fish was US $38.12, EU $28, coming to US $2.24 per pound before cleaning. If this doesn’t make sense bear with me. 

He reached into the cavity and started pulling out the entrails.

Once fully cleaned, we were left with 12 large servings at US $3.18 each or US $6.36 for two. We gave Judite, who was still here cleaning the house, a good-sized bag of the fillets we cut once back inside, leaving us with 10 servings. Luckily, we managed to make room in the tiny freezer to store what is left after we’ll cook it for two dinners in a row.

He was highly skilled most likely as a result of years of experience. Plus, he had all of his fingers.

Although we’d prefer not to freeze any of it, we had no choice. We already had excellent leftovers from last night’s dinner for tonight. Thus, we’ll have the tuna both Friday and Saturday nights. 

Finally, he began cutting the tuna into manageable chunks which we later cut into fillets.

Ah, the simple things…they delight us. We’ll never forget the sound of the musical trucks driving on the steep hilly roads in Madeira to awaiting patrons relishing in the organic produce with the freshest and strongest flavors we’ve ever tasted and, the fresh-caught fish brought in from the sea practically to our door. It’s all magical.

This was our remaining tuna after we gave Judite a good-sized bag, some of which we’ll cook over the next few nights and the remainder which we sealed in Ziploc bags and froze for future meals.

Today, we’re off to Funchal to deal with the package currently held at customs in the main post office where we’ll be required to pay custom and VAT fees on the contents, returning home after a few errands (provided we can find the mall) and to cook our tuna. 
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Photo from one year ago today, June 6, 2013:

Our ship docked in Toulon, France, Cote d’Azur, where we disembarked with a lovely couple, Nicole and Jerry, who were from Montreal, Canada and we’d met onboard the ship. We spent a lot of time together, enjoying every moment. Together, we wandered the area near the port of Toulon. For details on that date, please click here.