Monday, June 28, 2010

the Nashville/Tennessee list

Sometimes it's hard to be a tourist in your own town, so I've decided to make a list of the places I want to visit in and around Nashville and then start crossing them off!

show at the Grand Old Opry
Jack Daniels
Ryman Tour
movie at the Belcourt
Country Music Hall of Fame
Cheekwood
Love Circle
Wax Museum
Arrington Vineyards
Parthenon Museum
Bluebird Cafe
Loveless Cafe
General Jackson
Hatch Show Print
Belle Meade Plantation
Traveler's Rest
Battle of Franklin
Battle of Smyrna/Murfreesboro
Wildhorse Saloon
Pancake Pantry
The Hermitage 
Rock City/Lookout Mountain/Ruby Falls

Monday, April 5, 2010

Orangina for president!

President of drinks, that is!  I tried Orangina for the first time during our trip to Paris.  I immediately declared it to be delicious - the perfect combination of orange juices, fizz and just the right amount of pulp.  It was especially refreshing after climbing the seven flights of stairs (which we later nicknamed "le morte") of the apartment building where my cousin was living.  Today, Orangina is still a treat - whether we're in Europe or at home, especially since it's difficult to find here in the States.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

viva la crepe!

I love crepes.  In fact, I love them so much that one might divide my life into pre-crepe and post-crepe sections.  This is partly due to the fact that I associate crepes with trips to Europe (something else I truly love).  I ate my first crepe almost three years ago in Paris.  My cousin was studying in Paris at the time, and our first night in the city, she took us to A La Bonne Crepe.  We had dinner crepes and dessert crepes, and even though we mistranslated "coco" as cocoa instead of coconut, we savored every bite, accompanied by little bowls of cider to drink.  And so began my love affair with crepes.  For the rest of the trip, we had to stop at nearly every crepe stand we saw - for lunch - a ham and cheese, for an afternoon snack - a simple butter and sugar, and for dessert - Nutella.  I was hooked.  Each subsequent trip to Europe, I have always looked for creperies and have been fortunate to find them in both Rome and Dublin.  After every trip to Europe, I mention how I would like to open a creperie at home, since there weren't any near where I live.  It seemed like it would be pretty easy since it's a limited menu, not a lot of ingredients, relatively small amount of capital to start, little competition, etc.  And then, a couple weeks ago, we discovered a creperie just a few miles from our house.  It's pretty new - less than a year old, but it was delicious!  So other than someone else beating me to the idea, I am so happy to know I will be able to indulge in a crepe more than one week out of the year! 

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Observations from a cafe patio


  • Most Americans must think they drive a compact car, as evidenced by the number of cars I watched laughed at attempting to park in the compact-only lot. Whatever time they think they saved by parking so close to the cafe was surely lost in the number of times they had to attempt and reattempt backing out to leave. The "winner" executed a 6-point, 90 degree turn.
  • Motorcycles are loud. This is especially noticeable when an observer is sitting outside trying to read, since apparently a Harley must be revved in the parking lot for five minutes to reach a state of "warmed up and ready to depart."
  • When in public, people should attempt to speak in a low voice, unless they have a foreign accent, in which case, they can be exempt from this common courtesy - I thoroughly enjoy listening to accents!
  • Smoking should be banned.