It's fun to be a short drive from so many other countries...

Two nights ago Granny and I got all "tres chic" and headed off to a night in Monaco.
We walked around the palace which was so stunning.
Wonderfully clean, peaceful. Very much like a fairy tale.
We learned a lot about The Grimaldi's and then went down to Monte Carlo for dinner.
It was not the best meal of my life but it was passing and we met a nice couple. They were Cuban American and very sweet.
The man was sort of like Ricky Ricardo. He called Grandma "Bella Nonna" and me, just plain "Bella". After dinner we walked around for a bit and then headed home.

Our tour guide for the evening was HYSTERICAL! She is originally from the north of China and moved to France 7 years ago after marrying her French husband.
She kept taking pictures of me and saying things like "I should have know you were an actress! That is why you are so pretty. I was thinking oh why is she so pretty!". Then she was obsessively taking pictures of me. Posed, candid, etc. She said I really knew how to 'make a picture". She had lots of historical info and plenty of gossip. She drove us by Sean Connery's house (Grandma was thrilled!), pointed out where Bill gates has a home, told us the kind of salary's housekeepers get ($500,000 a year!) and how much it is to rent an apartment on the Grand Prix Circuit during the race ($45,000 for 3 days!!!).

Yesterday we took an all day tour to Aix en Provence. It was a private tour and our guide was Leo, a native Nicoise. He was dapper and dressed all in white, gave great information etc.

Aix was wonderfully charming. We got to see where Cezanne died, saw a Cezanne and Picasso retrospective at the museum, had lunch (I had an amazing salad with watermelon and orange melon and yum, yum, yum! followed by a stewed peach concoction with the obligatory glass of Rose from Aix.)

We also stumbled across 'Rue de la Masse". Leo told me it is a very typically French last name, specific especially to the south of France. See! I told you I was French! In one of the cathedral's I saw a painting of the wedding of the last King of Provence. he had four daughters. I am actually reading a book about them at home so that was cool. Also, i discovered there is a St. Sarah! She was Mary the Virgin mother's attendant!

The only bump in the road was when Leo pulled me aside to ask me if I might join him for a drink later that evening. Flustered, I said I'd have to check with Grandma. His response was to tell me to eat dinner with her and then meet him later. Anytime. As late as I want... EW!

Anyway, after Aix we went to St. Maixime and saw Mary Magdalen's skull. It was sort of amazing.

After a long drive home Granny and I went out for a relaxing dinner in the heart of Old Nice. We listened to some fun musicians. I think they were called 'The Basketeers" and had some glace and went home.

Today, we took a trip to Ventimiglia in Italy. We went to the market. It was a mad house. I'd like to see Italy some other time. I feel this wasn't a fair representation of the country.
I had a yummy sandwich of roasted a veggies and olive oil and an espresso so all was not wasted. I also bough some gifts :-)

After Ventimiglia we went to Menton right over the border in France. It is right on the sea and is surrounded by mountains. it is much more charming than Nice and I think I'd like to stay there next time I arrive in the south of France.

Until then, I will sit on the beach, walk up to the Chateau and look at more apartment prices in the newspaper :-)

Glace for Breakfast is OK by me...

Today we headed off at about 12:30pm (so late!) and went directly to the Fluer Marche.

It was exactly how I had remembered it.

We bought some peaches and pears and plums. yum!

I bought my olives and tomates provencales form the lovely woman who runs the stand and then went on a hunt for my baguette and fromage.

The man who usually sells them was already gone! Oh no!

So, Granny and I went off in search for the rest of our picnic on the streets of old Nice.

We wandered for a bit not finding anything open.

We came upon the who ice cream shop that I remembered from my last trip.
They must have at least 70 flavors (including, olive, rosemary, etc...)

Grandma got rhubarb and apricot sorbets and I got Vanilla and Lavender ice cream.
It was our first meal of the day and it was oh, so good.

I got directions to a place where I could buy a baguette and we headed over there.

It was a nice, leisurely walk through the heart of old Nice and we both enjoyed it.

When we got to the boulangerie it was closed until 3:30!

So, we thought we'd get a coffee and cool off for a bit.

All of the socca places and cafe's were packed so we went into this little restaurant called Oliveria.

Little did I know it would be some of the best food I had ever put in my mouth!

They specialize is Olive oil from all different regions with all different tastes.

We got some tomatoes with mozzarella and some pureed aubergines and peppers.

It tasted like the sun and the earth and it was amazing.

Different dishes got different oils.

The gentleman that owns the place used to live in Manhattan so we had a nice chat.

I would highly suggest anyone who is anywhere near Nice go to this establishment!

After our little meal we bought our baguette (finally!) but there was no fromage :-(

We walked back to our hotel with the intention of walking up to the Chateau that looks over the city but instead we booked ourselves a trip to Monaco and Monte Carlo with a 3 course dinner.

Grandma is getting all dolled up as we speak and I am just sitting here trying to remember every slight, smell, taste and color...

It's starting to all blur together...

I will write about the last day Granny and I had in Paris (until we return in 3 days hehehe)...

We got up early and decided we would go to Versailles. We had a Seine dinner cruise planned for the evening and we thought a nice day among gorgeous grounds and massive opulence would put us in the right mood to be wined and dined and cruised.

We left the Hotel and headed towards the closest metro. My plan was to grab a quick croissant and a cafe and head on our way also possibly buying a picnic lunch.

We went into a patisserie to make our purchases but spotted a very yummy looking cafe across the street so we decided on a sit down breakfast and a picnic lunch.

The food was GORGEOUS! I have an omelet with potatoes, gruyere and tomatoes. Of course it came with a salade and the obligatory cafe creme.

After our food we headed to the metro, got off to make our RER connection and made a terrible discovery. It was Monday. Versailles is closed on Monday. MERDE! Back to the metro it was but... wait... our stop is closed for repairs? MERDE!

We were quite far from our hotel so we did what any sensible girl would do... we hailed a cab (which took a VERY long time...)

Instead of Versailles we decided to do Notre Dame and Saint Chapelle.

Notre Dame was stunning as always. Grandma was very happy to be there.

The line for the bell tower was mad so I did not go up.

Instead we had a nice relaxing lunch in the shadow of Notre Dame. It's this little cafe/creperie I went to with Katie. I had a salade (with too much fromgae! I had to take some of it off) and a 1664.

Next, we walked along the seine to get to Saint Chappele. To my shock and total delight waiting right on the corner was Bertillon! The worlds best ice cream which I somehow managed to miss last time I was in Paris. I was surprised to find it open because my guidebook so it was closed for August. But they were wrong! I had a double order of nougat and caramel. mmmm heaven....

Saint Chappele was not a disappointment. The top floor (which is really what you want to see) was closed for renovations when I was here two years ago. It is totally stunning. The books of The Bible are on the stained glass windows and there is this balcony at the end.

So stunning. The chapel is also heavily decorated with fleurs des lis. They had this lovely pair of silver fleur des lis earrings so I got a pair.

After all of this we went back to the hotel and got all glammed out for our night on the seine.

The cruise was lovely.

In my opinion the food left a bit to be desired but in these cases you are paying for the experience more than anything.

Granny and I got a prime table right at the very front corner of the boat.
The views were superb and so was the wine. We almost finished a bottle of Rose which is a big feat since Grandma rarely drinks at all!

My favorite part of the night was when I said "you know, there is a smaller version of the statue of liberty somewhere on the seine, I have never seen it though. I wonder where it is?" Not 1 minute later "New York, New York" starts playing on the sound system and I look up to see Lady Liberty staring me in the face with The Eiffel Tour in the background! I nearly cried :-)

Our night ended with packing and then the next morning we headed to the airport for Nice!

I love it here. The air, the light, the food.

It is so wonderful.

We arrived at The Hotel Suisse and discovered that we have a gorgeous room with an amazing view of the bai de anglaise. I think I have a knack for booking hotels with great views!

We unwound for a few minutes and walked down about 100 m to the private Opera Plage. We had lounge chairs and an umbrella and waiter service. It was a perfect day at the beach in my opinion. I think Grandma enjoyed herself a lot as well although due to the treacherous and rocky entrance and exit into the water she only went in once. I think I must have gone in and out 6 or 7 times :-)

We got back to the hotel, showered and ate dinner at cafe Bliss. It is just across from the port.

It was a cute little family run place that specialized in pizza.

The owners sister was born in Australia but has lived in Nice for the past 40 years. She had this very charming accent. A combination of Aussie and Nicoise. And, she spoke a form of Franglish (what I call the oh so effective combination of French and English words to convey some sort of message to someone) that puts mine to utter shame.

I had a salad of lettuce, tomato, love, warm brie and some little savory chevre pastry followed by a massive and impossible to finish pizza du jardin. it had herbs de provence on it and I was happy.

We took a walk along the boulevard de anglias and went to bed.

We were very tired and accidentally slept until 10:30. Whoops!

Our plan is to go into Vielle Ville and then head out to Monaco and Cannes. We'll see what happens...

Ah, Paris...

Sorry I have left you all blogless the past few days.

As usually happens to me in Paris I have been go, go, go!

I arrived tired from my final evening in Dublin.

When I arrived at the hotel I was truly impressed.

It is in the shadow of The Pantheon on this stunning little alcove.

We have a room right at the front of the hotel and the views are gorgeous!

After a bit of freshening up Grandma and I headed out.

We hit the Pantheon and intended to see Notre Dame but Grandma tires easily and after the walk to notre Dame form The Pantheon she needed a rest.

We had cafe and fromage and a few sweets (my first crepe of the trip!) at this little cafe looking out onto the towers of the cathedral.

It was directly next to shakespeare and Company which is one of my favorite places on the planet.

I strolled along for a while and found myself in the Theater section, as usual.

I traced along the shelves with my fingers looking for an old book. I collect old books and I always have good luck finding something in Shakes and co.

To my delight I came across a 1st edition (1918( copy of a collection of J.M. Barrie plays.

Ever since to "The Wendy Complex" I have had a deep affection for Barry.

I am very pleased with my purchase.

After we finished at the bookstore we walked to "Les Deux Magots", a famous literary haunt that I have been wanting to get to for some time.

There were more locals than tourists which I always think is a good sign.

I had the "Les Deux Magots Salade" sans poullet and Granny had it sans oueff.

It was a delicious concoction of greens, raisins, eggs and curry sauce. Mmm.

I also had a class of Red Sancerre. It was dry and tasted of cherries. Lovely.

We then headed back to the hotel and slept like babies.

Yesterday we woke up and headed out for what would turn out to be a VERY long day.

We started with breakfast at a cafe just down the way from our hotel.

I had the "anglais" option which was a selection of breads with jam, butter, orange juice and coffee plus a delicious omlette and salade vert. the eggs were prepared perfectly!

Granny had the same sans oueff (I am sensing a theme here...)

We took the L'open tour bus. It's one of those hop on hop off deals and it made me insane.

I much prefer walking or the metro.
We went to The Louvre first. Saw the big three (mona, venus, and winged victory) and that was about it. The place is massive, not very well ventilated and Grandma was getting quite annoyed.

I do plan to go back to the museum and spend some decent time there one of these days...

We missed out on The Musee D'Orsay so we decided to move on to The Arc De Triomphe.

There was some sort of military ceremony going on which we got to see so that was pretty special.

From there we took the metro (I was so over the hop on hop off thing!) to The Eiffel Tower.

The lines were insane (although we got to skip the main line at the bottom because one of the workers felt bad that Grandma had to stand for so long. We got totally VIP treatment! hah!)

Once up there it was stunning, as would be expected. Much too crowded but really it didn't matter.

Grandma said she was happy she got to go to The Eiffel Tower before she died. (which I reminded her wouldn't happen for a VERY long time) Mission accomplished on my part.

We strolled down to Cafe Le Dome.

I had an amazing Croque Vegetarien and some less then stellar frites and a lovely 25cl's of cotes du rhone.

We cabbed it home and passed out exhausted from our 12 hour day.

Losing track of time a wee bit...

So yesterday was my last day in Dublin (for right now) and I didn't quite know what to expect.

I went out in search of the best Vegetarian food in Dublin. Went into Cornucopia on Wicklow and was not disappointed.

It is a tiny little spot with a really chill manager named Phil who is super dedicated to what he does.

The breakfast I got was so yummy and super hearty. I couldn't even finish it!

After breakfast I headed to The National library on Greg's suggestion.

On the way there I finally found Hodges Figgis! I bought a Colm Toibin novel called The Master and a collection of Yeats poetry.

Once at the National Library I saw wonderful exhibit on Yeats. I found the stuff about The Abbey Theatre especially interesting.

After the exhibit I saw a short Yeats's play. I had never read nor seen any of his theatrical work and I found it quite interesting. It utilized a lot of mask and movement work. I'd like to look deeper into his other theatrical writings.

I went to The National Museum and The National gallery.

Both were sort of underwhelming so I didn't waste much time there.

Walked for a bit in Merrion Square and saw the Oscar Wilde memorial.

Went back to the hotel, intended to pack, did not and then went to read in The Iveagh Garden. It is really quite lovely and set back away from everything a bit.

Next up for me was dinner with Aoife.

We went to a brilliant place called Gruel.

I had Brie stuffed Risotto Balls.

Totally killer. The place itself had a very homey vibe and the staff was super friendly and cool.

We went on from there to meet up with Dave (or Dublin Dave as I fondly refer to him) to see Brendan Behan's "The Hostage".

I was so excited to see it. I had done research about what was playing in Dublin before I ever left the states and I knew this is the one I didn't want to miss.

It was a sight specific show being done at the Patrick Pearse House.

The cast consisted of I think about 13 actors.

They all did a really amazing job.

I was totally sucked in and entertained and devastated by so many things.

I was especially impressed by the man playing Leslie.

He was so committed and interesting and I felt this total connection to him the whole show.

After the show was over I introduced myself and he said he could tell I was really genuinely enjoying myself which was nice to hear.

After, Aoife, Dave and I all went to O'Neill's for a pint with all the cast and crew.

I met the woman who runs this company, Wonderland Productions.

I think the work they are doing is really brilliant. I'd love to bring them to NYC to work with The Vagabonds! I also met most of the other actors. They are a really fun and sweet lot in addition to be supremely talented.

Once we were all properly introduced and settled in my new friend, Noel who played Leslie, and I got to talking.

It turns out he is a very special guy and we got on so very well.

(I think we really bonded over our matching scars on our noses...)

It's really amazing when you meet someone and there is just this true and immediate understanding and appreciation. It doesn't happen too often so I really treasure it when it does.

Needless to say I was out until all hours of the morning with my new, true blue, friends.

I basically went back to my hotel for a few minutes, packed and left.

Dublin airport was a madhouse but I did indeed make my flight on time.

I had a whole row to myself so I just sprawled out and slept for a solid hour...

We'll get to the Paris part of my trip soon but just to wrap up Dublin...

Being in Dublin made me feel so lucky.

I met so many new, warm, interesting people.

The country is stunningly beautiful, full of history and ghosts and tragedy and romance... I could go one and on and on...

That is why I have decided to go back and spend the last 4 days of my trip there.

I feel at home there.

Paris will always hold a special place in my heart and NYC is home but Dublin is something else. Ireland in general holds some sort of deep spiritual resonance for me.

I am very much looking forward to meeting my extended family in Sligo later this month and then finishing up this smashing trip with my new friends and my new adopted city of Dublin.

(Side note, a reader mentioned that they really like the way I describe men's eyes. Eyes are so telling in people. I think it's odd that I haven't dedicated any time to describing a gal's peepers...Let me talk about Aoife's lovely eyes for a moment... Her eyes literally smile, all the time. I know it sounds corny but it's true. She is a whip smart girl and not at all silly or goofy. But, she is funny and light hearted and totally kind and honest. You see all of this in her shimmering eyes and her face transforming smile. She really put me at ease right away and I feel that I have made a life long friend.

To describe yet another pair of eyes I'll mention Noal's. They are very intense without being self consciously so. I think the intensity comes from the way he seems to be always searching for something true. It can be difficult to look into eyes like that but quite exciting too. I think that is why his performance was so striking. His eyes told everything. And they subtly shifted with the physical and emotional change his character was going through.)

The above picture was taken by Dublin Dave outside of The Patrick Pearse House. It was intermission for "The Hostage" and we were drinking good tea out of real china! Yay! And, please take note of those smiling eyes on Aoife :-)

Getting a bit behind but no worries

Hello all,

I left you almost blogless yesterday due to some heavy carousing!

Yesterday was grand.

I headed off a bit late, 11am, on my own to see Kilmainham Gaol.

It's about an hours walk away so I took a cab.

The gaol is amazing. Very moving to witness all the history there first hand.

I was told they film quite a bit of movies and shows there including The Tudors (they us the dungeons and the exercise yards).

After Kilmainham I walked over to The Guinness Storehouse.

It's like Willy Wonka's Factory for grownups.

I had my tasting of Guinness which is about a quarter pint and then walked through the rest of the exhibit to the 4th floor where you can hand in your ticket and you get to pull your own pint for free. The other option is to go to the 5th floor and get served a free pint. But, pulling your own pint is more fun AND you get a certificate with your name on it!

I hadn't eaten so I had lunch in the Storehouse. great views of Dublin, yummy food. I had a St. Kevin's Brie and Apricot chutney sandwich with Potato Leek soup. I try and make a pint of having potatoes with every meal if I can :-)

I went to St' Patrick's and Christ Church Cathedral after that and walked back towards the center of town. Wandered around Temple Bar a bit and tried to find my way to Hodges and Figgis Bookstore near Trinity. I didn't know the street it was on so I didn't have much luck.

I decided to ask these lads who were standing in front of a pub where it was.

They looked to be about 14 but in reality they were 21. They gave me some very convoluted directions and then asked me in for a pint. My first instinct was to say know but I thought 'Hell, I am on Holiday and some real Dubliners want to buy me a pint, why not?!?"

I went in with Allen, Karl and met their friend Brian once I was at the table.

Allen was a mess, all spitting and shouting and trying to be handsy.

he kept begging me for a kiss and it was getting really annoying. I even pretended to have a boyfriend, that didn't seem to matter to him. His friends were quite sick of his persistence also and they formed a protective barrier around me.

Karl was extremely friendly. He is at University but he really wants to be a fireman.

His sister lives in NYC and worked as a nanny and a waitress and is also an actress.

Brian was very interesting. Looked very 80's punk. A bit hard, too skinny, very pale, his skin was not so great but there was something very charming about him.

He was very passionate about the Irish language and the culture and he really appreciated that I had done some homework before coming to their city.

He said most Americans don't know what GAA is or even the IRA. Odd...

I had a fairly nice time with them and we went our separate ways. they headed off to the horse racing and I headed off to find the book store.

No such luck.

I got a bit lost and found my way back to my hotel.

I love getting lost in new cities!

That evening I headed out to Spy bar to meet my friend Chelsea's friend Aoife.

She was dj'ing and it was a great time.

Everyone at the bar was either an English language teacher (Aoife's friends) or a journalist (Aoife's boyfriends friends).

I only had to buy myself one drink while I was there.

Everyone else was very generous in their drink buying.

I met a guy named Cormack who loves American Baseball so we had a LOT to talk about.

I also must say that Aoife is so lovely!

She is very cool. It was like all of the people at this bar could have been dropped in the middle of the east village and done just fine.

They are hipsterish without the bad attitude or the artifice. I like it!

After I had been there for a bit Greg and his friend Joe who is also staying with Colm (Toibin) came to meet me.

We moved upstairs for another drink and headed out to a gay bar.

The bar was fun and we made some new friends.

Niall who now lives in Brussels branded himself the "Male Irish Kathy Griffin" told me he wanted to talk to me because my hair was so cute and proceeded to try and touch my boobs for the rest of the night. pretty typical night for me in a gay bar.

His friend Matt was also lovely (and straight, who knew!?!). A woman named Julie was also with them, she is from Kentucky but has been living in Ireland for 4 years getting her PhD. (I think...).

We moved on to yet another bar and this one had DANCING!

It was loads of fun. I danced, drank, made flirtatious comments, got sneak kiss attacked on the dance floor and eventually realized I needed to leave.

Greg and Joe walked me home which was very sweet of them.

A note about Joe, he is also a New Yorker, grew up in Darien (yeah CT!) and it very handsome and smart. I have heard tell that someone way have referred to him as looking like a "greek god", I'd say that's not too far off.

In my drunken stupor I facebook chatted with my mom and Chelsea and probably a few other people.

I also ordered room service, Hah!

I am awfully behind on my photo uploading.

Facebook has been giving me some difficulties.

But, I will remedy that all later tonight or when I arrive in Paris tomorrow, eek!

I guess I'll write about today when I am finally in for the evening.

Ta for now!

oh dear...

I am a bit too drunk to blog tonight.

It was much needed.

Guinness, Jameson and a good crew can be a bit much at times.

Many thanks to Aoife for introducing me to a whole new side of Dublin,

And, many, MANY thanks to Joe and Greg for taking me to gay bars and walking me all the way home.

Hopefully I'll remember everything in the morning.

Slainte!