EuroTrip: Le Chateau de Cruix et le Beaujolais!

I was pretty sad leaving Paris because I just love that city so much. I had some of my best memories there in college and then again with Phil. I was excited though to leave because our next stop would be in the Beaujolais. As a former French teacher, I taught my students all about the Beaujolais nouveau and how this is such a big thing. Obviously we were there in summer so we missed the festivities, but we were still going to stay in the wine region and we were going to be sleeping in a chateau. I have always had a love for chateaus, I always found them to be so beautiful and I loved the history behind them and how families would pass these homes down through generations. We stayed in a chateau that is now owned by our tour company, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have a racy past...

Chateau de Cruix. 8/2014

It was originally constructed by the Sarron family, a notorious family plagued with scandal in the medieval period before being sold to the Bellet family where it remained until 1936 when it was again sold, this time to the Bernard family who sold it in 1955 to a cruise company that used it for their employees before Contiki purchased the property (and pretty much turned it into a party house) in 1980. It was a pretty neat place to walk around, there was even an old chapel on site and the architecture was amazing. It's fairly empty now with bunk beds built out of two-by-fours crammed into rooms that were crappily divided to fit in more people. In it's day though, it must have been something. 

I felt okay walking around though you could feel the building's history around you and I am sure it is haunted to some extent. We had windows that would just close on their own. I didn't feel anything sinister there, but Phil did have this weird nightmare about something trying to pull us out of our window as we slept. That night, the window kept rattling even though there was no wind and if you looked at it, it would stop. Creepy!

The views are still amazing. I spent a lot of time outside. It was pretty cold still, but I didn't mind. 

Beyond the Chateau. 8/2014

My favorite time though, was at night. It was just so quiet and beautiful. It was beyond romantic to be there despite all of the craziness that other people staying there created, it was simply magical.

Twilight at the Chateau. 8/2014

After we arrived at the Chateau, we were rushed into the cuvage, where we had our first wine tasting of the trip. Beaujolais wine is young wine and it is red. So, if you like red wine this is where you buy it. We bought a bottle for Phil's mom and one for us. We're saving it for our anniversary in January, but every time I look at it sitting on the dining room hutch, I just want to sneak a little sip. 

Phil, forever being the star of most things, got volunteered to be in the demonstration of how they cut the grapes from the vines. I really wish I had videotaped it, but I just got pictures:

Phil, the grape man. 8/2014

After the demonstration we had wine and hung out for a little and talked. I also am not big on being in huge groups for very long so I started to wander around and take more pictures. I got some more of the grounds and then the view from our window:

Chateau roses. 8/2014

Beaujolais road. 8/2014

From our window. 8/2014

Afterwards, we made our way down to the dining room for dinner. My birthday is still upcoming so we buy a bottle of white wine (which is also delicious) and we have it with dinner. Then we all sat outside drinking wine and getting acquainted with one another. Looking back our time at the chateau is where we all began to bound as a group. Later that night, Phil and I would get separated. I spent much of the night outside because I was just so in love with being in the wine region while he had a fun time in the chateau's basement that they turned into a club. To me, though, it reminded me of every frat basement party I had ever been to over the course of my time at Rutgers. I was okay in missing that. Kelsey would spend much of the night running into either Phil or me and asking us where the other was. We finally found each other long enough for him to give me our room key and for me to go to bed. He eventually followed.

The next day, we stayed by the pool and just hung out with Kelsey while Ellie went on a hike where it seems everyone got lost doing. At the end of your hike you got a small lunch that they were nice enough to bring back for us. The one thing I did not like about the chateau was how wine fueled it was, but if you were hungry there was no food and there was no place to walk to to buy it. A good portion of our tour was prepaying for food, but Contiki meals sucked. They often were flavorless and insanely small portions especially when they took you to the Chateau where the only meals were their meals and you had to wait for specific meal times to then be fed things that weren't all that wonderful. I would have liked to not have had to pay them any money for food and just bought my own as we went. I also did not like how when you were in a Contiki property, they would pick people to serve the food and to bus the tables, on their vacation that they just paid all of this money to do. I felt especially bad for the people who in real life are servers and were enjoying not having to do that while they were away.

Panorama of the chateau (and Phil). 8/2014 

Regardless though, our time there was beautiful and I just loved getting to have that experience as a whole and with Phil. I became very relaxed there and just enjoyed it which was huge for me because coming into our trip, I was totally burnt out from moving and from my job. I really needed to get away and have a fun time with the man I love and we did just that. 

Disclaimer: I really love France and Chateaus. I blame Lifetime and Danielle Steel because growing up I saw the Jewels mini-series with Anthony Andrews and thus began my adoration for this place and my dream that one day I would marry a duke...

EuroTrip: Bonjour, Paris Part Deux

Our following day in Paris was filled with so much stuff and a crazy early start. We had planned to hit the Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame, Musee d'Orsay and the Eiffel Tower.

Our first stop was the Arc de Triomphe. We got there before it opened so we stood in line and waited for the doors to open. It was crazy how fast that line grew and how happy I was that we had gotten there early. I had forgotten why I had not climbed the arch when I had lived there in college. I was quickly reminded as to why: to get to the top of the arch, you have to climb a spiral staircase that seems never ending. Even the most fit people that were around us were struggling and panting by the time they reached the top. We stopped and took breaks and still felt awful when we reached the top. Our legs felt like rubber and you just trip over your own feet as you walk along the roof for the first few minutes, but the view was amazing...

Sacre Couer. 8/2014

It was a complete view of the city. I was able to get a few awesome shots, like this one of Sacre Coeur in the distance. The last time I had been to Paris, my professor lived right around there in Montmartre, a fantastic, artistic part of the city. The only part I never liked about that part are the men who try to sell you the bracelets at Sacre Couer. They are very persistent and will try to grab your arm to put the bracelet on you and once it's on, they try to force you to pay because it's so difficult to get the bracelet off.

Paris avenue. 8/2014

I also got to get a solid view of the axis of Paris. It's amazing what Haussmann did for Paris and how even today, it remains very much as he shaped it in to. Paris is just such a beautiful, wonderful city. I don't think I could ever hate it, even on my worst day. 

Eiffel Tower. 8/2014

Afterwards, we stopped at a cafe where Phil got to experience his first Orangina and croissant and pain au chocolat. We decided to skip Notre Dame and head back over to the Eiffel Tower where we found probably the longest lines we have ever seen. So, we hung out and took pictures before leaving the tower. 

Phil took me to lunch at a crazy expensive restaurant next to the tower where we had wine, and cheese and we split steak-frites. It was some of the most delicious food I have ever had. As we left, we got caught in a Paris rain shower and had to wait it out underneath an awning. It was just so very...Parisian. 

We strolled down along the Seine and we watched the boats on the river. I was shocked by how many bridges tourists are just defacing with those stupid locks. We did not put a lock on any bridge because I find it to be such a crappy thing to do. The weight of those locks are destroying major parts of the city and causing such a fade that I was able to find locks on other bridges throughout our trip. And really, do you think your lock of love really stays there forever? It doesn't. They are eventually taken off by the city and the locks are melted down. 

We got lost in each other and the city that day. We walked by the Hotel des Invalides and eventually hit the Musee d'Orsay. We didn't have time to go in because we had to catch our ride back to the hotel. We found two girls from our trip sitting on the bridge and we joined them. Kelsey and Ellie would become our good friends on that trip going forward. This is also where Phil gets approached by a man who says he has dropped his ring. Phil does not wear a ring, but the guy keeps insisting and then demands money until Phil tells him to pop off pretty much. The guy leaves in a huff after begging for money because now he hadn't eaten in days. 

Earlier that day, I had had a woman approach me to give money to the deaf children of Paris which we did not and walked on. She probably would have tried to pick pocket my purse had I not had an anti theft bag that was zipped up and close to my body. I was amazed with how many schemes we ran into. I had never had an issue in the city before, but not that day. 

I was also amazed by our tour company and tour manager that day too. We caught our ride back, but two girls were chasing our bus trying to get on and our tour manager just did not care. He would have had us keep going had we all not started to say something. This was a big issue I had with Contiki. As a tour company that markets to young singles that are often women, I thought as a company they would do more to ensure safety, but as my TM said that day and several times after, "if you're not on the bus when we leave, we assume that you're just having a fun time elsewhere." I had booked the trip before I met Phil and had planned to do this trip alone. That concerned me because I had chosen a tour company for this adventure because I was single and I thought if nothing else, a tour would keep me safe and clean, but what I came to find is how they largely didn't care about either. 

By the end, I was thankful to have gone with Phil because together, we made a great vacation and a lot of memories with one another. I think I would have been miserable had I gone alone. 

EuroTrip: Bonjour, Paris!

Even after the entire trip, as I look back Paris is still my favorite part. I had lived there in college and had creamed about going back there. And now, I had finally made it back. Only this time, it was even better. I had Phil with me and we got to have a lot of alone time in Paris.

Phil & I. We survived snails! 8/2014

Before leaving London, Phil gave me my birthday present early. I saved writing about it until now because he had planned to give it to me in Paris at the Eiffel Tower because he knew that many years ago when I had lived there and was wide-eyed and not even 21 yet, that I had made a promise to myself that I would return to Paris with the man I would marry and finally climb the Eiffel Tower which I had visited a lot, but never went up.

Eiffel Tower. Typical Tourist. 8/2014

Instead though, Phil gave it to me in our hotel room in London. It is a beautiful necklace with a heart charm. In it, there are two amethyst hearts meaning him and I and then around it is a bigger gold heart that represents our love and the bigger heart has diamonds in it, showing our future. He said it's our promise necklace that once we're both better situated, that we will get married. It was perfect. I absolutely love it and it really made London okay even after all of the crap we went through.

I wore it for the rest of our trip.

I wore it our first night of Paris too. We had dinner with our group and then had a bus tour of Paris before we stopped and had champagne and escargot. I had never had it before and probably will not have it again, but it was not as awful as I thought it would be. It tasted like butter and garlic and had a bouncy consistency. Phil swallowed his like a pill out of disgust.

Our next stop was the Eiffel Tower were we took so many pictures, but my favorite is the one of us together.

Phil & I. Eiffel Tower. 8/2014

We decided to head back to the hotel early and spend time alone. We got to bed early because we knew the next day we were going to pack everything in and do something special for my upcoming birthday. 

EuroTrip: Arrival in London

We flew out of New Jersey into London-Heathrow. I had been so busy with moving and everything else that I had going on over the summer that I had forgotten to pre-select our seats on the airplane. I wasn't able to check in online either because of the terms of our tickets. Best laid plains, right? So, we got stuck with crappy seats in the middle of the plane.

This was also the first time that I went through airport security and was nearly stopped....so they could search my bun. Yes, that bun in my hair. I was shocked but they checked, found nothing and we were allowed to board.

It was very early in the morning when we left, we actually watched the sun come up over the runway at Newark airport. We hung out and waited until we were finally able to board our plan. I have flown transatlantic before so I was ready for a nap and to wake up in Europe, however, Phil had not flown that kind of flight before and so began his exclamations every time we hit turbulence that we were going down and going to die.

I had to remind him that these were things you do not say on a plane in a post-9/11 world, even if you're terrified....suck it up! Which he did and after several movies and an okay meal, we landed at Heathrow.

Wherein we have our first argument over a sim card, but I find one and we are able to tell everyone we landed. Then we had to take the 45 minute ride on the metro into Camden where we were staying. We stayed at the Royal National Hotel which was clean enough, but really had some elements of "The Shining" that I could have lived without. We showered and met up with some other people we would be traveling with at the pub in the courtyard. We didn't stay long because we were exhausted.

Phil & I on the ferry after we just left the port of Dover. 8/2014

The next day, we planned on sleeping which we did and booked a bus tour for later. We walked around, found nothing really in the immediate area and wound up being annoyed with London. It did not help that the staff at the Royal National was awful and so rude. They would not help us whatsoever and were more into talking to each other than answering any questions. We wound up having to even get a refund on our bus tour because we could not get help in finding where it was. I found most of London flat out rude.

We retreated to our hotel room with hard cider which we drank out of tea cups and listed all of our London based grievances. I fell a little more in love with Phil that day because he really tried to make it better even though London was such a let down. It was just expensive and abrasive! We even did the classic red phone booth pictures to find how awful those booths really are-- they reek of piss and vomit.

The next day, we were up early to begin our trip. We met up with our Contiki group and we were off for my city...Paris. We took a bus to the ferry where we got to see the cliffs of Dover and we floated off to France! The ferry trip was a bit of a haze because we were so jetlagged, but I will never forget how exciting it was, knowing that we had our entire trip ahead of us. 

The Changes That a Year Will Bring

Last year, I was in a brand new school district teaching a subject that I hadn't taught since student teaching. I had finally left world language and was at last working on my standard certificate in English. It was a crazy year filled with the unknown, so many challenges and changes.

And one of those changes was meeting Phil. Now, I made a good amount of money in my early writing career writing about dating, heartbreak and what it was like to be an adrift 20-something. However, this is not one of those overly dramatic stories that you might be used to reading from me. This is the beginning of a true love story and one that I hope gives those adrift 20-somethings that are still navigating the uncertainty of this age, are looking for.

Our first Valentine's Day, February 2014. 

It was January when I met Phil. It was a blind date set up by a teacher in my building who at the time I barely knew, but felt gutsy enough to put it out there because as she would tell me, every time she talked to me all she could think of was her friend Phil. In her mind, we had to meet.

Only, Phil never facebooked me like she told him to do. I was also pretty much done with men, having had another bad relationship the year before and since then, every date I went on or guy I dated turn out to be a total and complete dipshit. I really was just enjoying teaching and being alone, finding it easier than putting myself out there and either getting hurt or finding myself disappointed by someone else.

However, my teacher friend was persistent and asked me if he ever contacted me. When I said that he hadn't, we decided that I would message him and I did. Then he responded and we talked for days. We had our first date where he will tell you I was cold and closed off, but I wouldn't have sat there for six hours if I wasn't interested. We had dinner and then coffee and we saw American Hustle where the usher nearly carded me and charged him for a child's ticket. We laughed about it though and it became a running joke. I knew I was attracted to him at dinner, but I knew I liked him by coffee and then for sure in the movies. Then he nearly broke the reclining seat in the theater by pulling the button instead of pushing and we both nearly got motion sickness because that is not a movie you should see when the only seats left were the front row. The end to the date was awkward with neither one of us sure how to end it, but I am glad I said I had a fun time and that he then said we should do it again.

It was our third date where we sat at a bar, tipsy on beer and playing the infamous "napkin game" which is just like never have I ever, but with a napkin. He gave me a ridiculous card and in it he wrote a poem that both rhymed and included every major thing that we had talked about up until the point and left it with the idea of a relationship. Here's where we have yet to find common ground on it. I say that he asked me out and he says I did when we then got into a pissing match and I updated my relationship status on facebook. I still say, he asked me out.

And nearly a year later, and we are more in love with each other than ever. Though, we have found the past month awfully stressful with my return to teaching and writing my master's thesis and he taking six classes this semester, but we're doing it! I do wish sometimes though on the really hard days that we can go back to the dream of a summer we had. We backpacked through Europe over the course of August and it was just a long standing dream come true for me.

Which will be what I focus my first bunch of entries on. Our first stop will be London and the horrible time we had there, but Phil made it special in the end. Stay tuned!