New Yorkers in Mallorca

Part 1

Our Spring break plans weren’t always very linear. We initially discussed a trip to Eastern Europe but in the end decided on heading in the opposite direction, more specifically southwest to the Balearic Island of Mallorca. Our friends from New York (and parents of Mila, Olivia’s bff from Pre-K), moved to the island about 3 years ago and had been inviting us to visit ever since. As this would be our first trip to any Balearic Island and an opportunity for Olivia and Mila to reunite, we felt this trip was meant to be.

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Just Over the Fence – Côte de Provence (A Wine Post)

One constant about the world of wine is that there is always something new to be learned, experienced or wow’ed by. And just when you feel you have a handle on things you’re quickly reminded that there’s so much more to take in, and that repertoire of knowledge you have is but a boat on the vast sea. Such was the feeling of moving to Provence and living in the Côte de Provence AOC. Before moving here I had a pretty good idea that most rosé wine I had ever drunk (and others in NYC typically drink), is mainly derived from Provence. The arrival of Spring in New York City summons rosé season, a vibrant and much awaited shift from cold weather and red wine drinking, to warmer weather and deliciously paired rosé.

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Alpine Time, Winter Vacation Part 3

The second week of the girls’ school winter break took us back to France and into the Haute-Alpes department or region. From there, we headed into the Ècrins National Park in the Dauphiné Alps (or the southeastern part of the Alps), for a week of skiing and snow activities. The Dauphiné Alps are home to the second highest mountain in France, the Barre des Ècrins at 13,458 feet (4,102 meters). We rented a house for the week with our friends Laetitia and Loïc and their kids. We aimed to hit the slopes of Réallon throughout our stay (Réallon is a mountain they’ve skied for years and is great for families with kids).

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Ciao, Italia! – Winter Vacation Part 2

Italy has been on our minds since we moved to Provence due to its proximity and all the other reasons to visit (the food, its natural beauty, the culture, Diabolik, and the list can go and go). As we planned to spend the second week of the girls’ winter break skiing in the Alps, we looked into places in Italy that were within a 2 – 3 hour drive of our final destination. This led us to Torino (or Turin), the 4th largest Italian city situated in the Piedmont region. Once the capital of the Kingdom of Italy, today’s Torino is a modern city with visible connections to its historic past, a commercial powerhouse and a cradle of Italian cultural identity touching various industries (auto, culinary and sport to name a few).

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The French Riviera – Winter Vacation Part 1

The French – Italian border town of Menton (France), is about a three hour drive from our town in the Var, headed east. Along the way, the promise of an abundance of mimosa trees in bloom on the “Route du Mimosa“, helped set the initial part of our course. February seems to be the best time to observe the yellow trees that are capable of turning a landscape from good to gold. This part of the drive paid off with several memorable views of the mountainous landscape accentuated by the pop of mimosas. As the Route wound down, we found ourselves near the coast headed towards Cannes, a place we had not visited previously. The clear sunny day prompted our lunch on the beach where the open vista of the French Riviera offered rationale as to why Cannes is so popular with many different types of crowds.

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Winter Blues.. and Greens!

January on the Côte d’Azur has proven to be mostly sunny and mild. Mornings and evenings can be a bit cold but there’s also a good stretch throughout day where temperatures hover between 50-60 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s certainly a departure from winter in New York, something I’ve always wished to hit the fast forward button on and re-emerge in spring. Well, here in the south of France true winter seems to be forgotten.

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Grandparents and a Rockin’ Getaway

It’s finally beginning to feel as though the seasons have changed. November brought on a bunch of rain and the days became significantly shorter with only about 10 hours of daylight on average. December’s arrival meant a few things for us including a 2-week school break for the girls, the holidays, and a visit from one set of grandparents. We were excited to spend more time together and have family over to share in the year-end celebrations together which included Brigitte’s birthday.

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Color Me Fall

It’s that time of year when the days are shorter, cooler and wetter. So far November has lived up to its season but not without layering on fall charm. We had heard a little about the nearby town of Collobrières, the capital of the Maures region, that sits inland and is tucked closer to the Massif des Maures mountain range. The town is well known for its chestnut groves and cork trees, both serving as mini local industries producing numerous chestnut related products (i.e. ice cream, spreads, liqueur and more), and cork items respectively. The chestnut harvest festival is one of the most popular events in Collobrières and takes place in October. Although our day visit occurred a few weeks after the event, we still enjoyed the flavorful town and a perfect fall outing.

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Corsica: Part 3

Before our return to the mainland (France), we built in an extra day in Bastia in order to explore a bit of the northern part of the island, more specifically Cap Corse. Bastia is the 2nd largest city in Corsica and its location on the northeastern coast gives it extraordinary views of the Mediterranean and great access to Italy. In fact the Italian island of Elba is perfectly visible from the coast, leading one to wonder what Napoleon had thought as he looked back at his beloved Corsica during his exile there.

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Headed South to Sardinia

Originally when planning our two-week vacation for the fall school break, we thought of going to Italy (mainland), from Corsica but the forecast dissuaded us from realizing our ambition. Cloudy and rainy would have massively hampered our experience so we decided otherwise. Instead, we opted for Sardinia as the weather was to be more favorable and our appetite to discover something completely new excited us even more.

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