Soles of Her Shoes

Monday, February 18, 2013

BRAZIL Part I: Rio

Brazil, oh Brazil. One word clearly defines you - AMAZING!

Bottom line: If you have never been to Brazil, GO! And go ASAP. The beaches were clean and top notch, water warm. I have never encountered such nice people, and the food and drinks weren't too shabby. So, with all that rambling, I hope you finally believe me that Brazil is truly unbelievable.

And now, since pictures always explain much better than words can, let's roll the pics.

We stayed in the Ipanema neighborhood of Rio, which I highly recommend. Far less touristy than Copacabana, great restaurants, good shopping and it felt safe.

Rio's Botanical Gardens are worth checking out.

Travelling to the top of Corcovado to see the Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer) statue which provides for beautiful views and a close up view of one of the "new seven wonders of the world" (the "Christ the Redeemer" statue).

Another set of great sights can be had by taking the tram up to the top of Sugarloaf. High above Rio, you can see for miles.

The Escadaria Selaron (Selaron stairs) are incredible. Selaron, a local artist, took it upon himself to fix up the long set of stairs near his house. He began tiling each stair and continued for years. He would take tiles from visiting tourists and place them among the thousands of other tiles on the stairs.

Finally, we did a lot of relaxing. Champagne at sunset on the beach was one of our favorite ways to reminisce about what we saw that day and relax.

Good times in Rio, and this was just the beginning of a great trip. More adventures to come...

Friday, September 28, 2012

Beautiful San Juans

I don't think I could have asked for a better one-year anniversary celebration! Frank and I hit the road and jumped aboard a ferry.

An hour later we were in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island.

We enjoyed a great lunch then headed to our bed & breakfast, Wildwood Manor. You can't go wrong with this place. Every detail is covered and the food is out of this world! We settled into our room then jetted off to Roche Harbor.

Roche Harbor is beautiful and we were lucky enough to catch a gorgeous sunset while eating on the deck of the bar and grill in town.

Frank found his favorite boat in the sea of boats (no pun intended) in the harbor (check out the boat name if you are still scratching your chin about what the boat's appeal is).

Saturday we woke up and enjoyed our first of two delicous breakfasts at the B&B. Lemme tell you, those guys can cook! We had incredible fruit, pancakes and a lavender panna cotta - yum. Then we headed to the state park for a hike and came across an old lighthouse. Pretty lil thing.

And when we returned to the B&B there were deer everywhere out front. Hellooo mr. buck!

Sat night we went to Duck Soup Inn. All around it was a phenomenal experience - great atmosphere, great food and most importantly incredible drinks! If you are on San Juan Island - run to Duck Soup Inn...fast.

It was such a fun weekend and we left with great memories.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Texas Roundup

Last month, Frank and I jumped on our horses and giddy-uped on down to Texas. The reason: so that Frank could ride in a professional rodeo. Just kidding...

We headed down to the Lone Star state to celebrate a friend's birthday. And it was a blast. We stayed at a cabin about two hours outside of Austin. We did some serious river floating...

BBQ'ing on a true barbeque...

Wine tasting....

And then out in Austin the last night, which led to many funny moments. And a HUGE rainstorm. But we didn't let it ruin our fun.

Last, but not least, we couldn't miss a final meal of true, Texas BBQ. Salt Lick was the lucky place and it was to die for. I don't think I have ever see this much meat in such a small space...and no that is not meant to be dirty, thank you.