Roaming Raos

We had saved a trip to the Dalmatian region for our last big European vacation (big because it marked our 15th wedding anniversary :P) before moving back to the states. We wanted to go there at a very specific time and we wanted to visit very specific places so it took quite a bit of planning. It was not easy, but I think given the days we had and all the places on our wish list for this trip we were able to come up with a very productive itinerary. It was like we were playing connect the dots on a map of Dalmatia. Take a look! :)

The last time we visited the Canadian Rockies was almost  a decade ago. I don't know why it took us as long as it did to revisit a place that gorgeous when we had all the reasons in the world to. Canada and its Rocky Mountains finally made it on our travel list again this Summer (thanks to the emotional black mail of our six year old who did not think it was fair for him to have seen so many cool places in the world, yet to never have been to his favorite fellow Lego fan cousin's house in Canada :P) Don't you just love it when you have family to visit in amazing places? :)

Crazily Captivating Corsica  We had another 3 day weekend to visit Corsica and while we would have liked to explore various towns and beaches of the island, we really wanted to visit Calvi. The flights into Calvi were considerably expensive, few, and far between. We ended up finding a great flight deal to Bastia so we decided to fly into Bastia Poretta airport, renting a car and driving to Calvi instead. We would have needed the car anyways to visit some of the beaches on our list. Even though the drive was only a little more than an hour we would essentially be driving from the north east end of the island all the way across to the north west of the island. We figured it would be a nice way to see more of the island, given our time constraint.

When deciding on our Spring/early Summer beach holiday we could not decide between Italy's Sardinia & France's Corsica. We had heard so much about both islands. After endless research and discussions we decided we'll do weekend getaways to both a month apart :P Yes, it was THAT hard to pick. It is amazing how these two islands like two siblings are so similar yet so different in so many ways. Here's hoping that our experience and this two part blog makes your choice a little easier.

On day four of our trip, having checked-off most of the sights on our list, it was finally time to explore the Icelandic capital - Reykjavik where we had been staying since our arrival. It is a pretty small capital (population approx. 120K) with a big heart. It offers such a unique blend of contrasts with all the buzz of a big town, and all the enchantment of a small town. So colorful and full of life, yet so sophisticated and cultured.

We have all seen Justin Bieber's "I'll Show You"  and/or Bollywood's "Gerua" and wondered about the magical locales these videos were shot at and wished we could go there someday. And, if you have not, you need to. Believe it or not, these two videos have quite a big role in the tourism boost that Iceland is experiencing lately. So much so, the guides and operator mention both the videos on their tours. Although, I had to correct our guide when he said Shahrukh Khan was a pop star :P Anyways, Iceland's South Coast is probably the only place in the world where one can stand behind a waterfall, walk on a black sand beach, and touch a glacier on the same day. If that is not reason enough for anyone to put Iceland on their must visit list, I am not sure what is.

While planning for our Iceland trip, one of the most important things to decide for us was if we wanted to rent a car and drive around ourselves or take a couple of tours instead. There are pros and cons to both, and it really depends on how long your trip is, how extensively you want to explore, and what you value more - flexibility and cost effectiveness or convenience and efficiency.

How deep is our love? They say that if you want good desi food in Paris, you should take the Metro or RER to Paris Nord and then take the Eurostar across the English Channel to London. They are not joking!!! We realized this within weeks of moving to France, and the foodies that we are I could foresee multiple trips to London to get our desi fix. A few weeks ago I came across a Eurostar New Year promo and it was too good to pass up on an "all you can eat Desi food weekend" in London. What can I say? Desperate times call for desperate measures, maybe? :P

Our first long weekend after moving to France and our choice of destination was easy. We could hear London calling us! Or maybe we could hear ALL the London desi eateries calling us? :P (You can check out our blog on London desi eateries here ) This was going to be my fourth time and I can go to London another dozen times. (We have made one more trip since then and hope to go at least once more before we return to the US before the end of the expat assignment.) That says a lot about how awesome London is to visit because if you ask anyone who knows me they'll tell you I DO NOT like going to back the same place over and over again. Why would you when you have so many new cool places to see? Except if it is London, Lahore or San Francisco! Then you do not count  <3

Iceland had been one of my most desired places to visit for the longest time. My interest was first sparked when I saw some calendar worthy shots of its limitless natural & geological wealth that my husband's coworker shot on his photography tour about 3 years ago. I remember coming home and doing a quick search only to realize that a trip to Iceland for a family of four can seriously break a bank, so it had to wait.

Fur our first Winter holidays in Europe we decided to visit Prague, Czech Republic as it is supposed to be beautiful around that time of the year with all the Christmas markets and holiday decor. We flew to Prague on Christmas eve because it was the cheapest to fly on that date and the ticket was still not cheap by any means. It is basically not cheap to fly to anywhere around Christmas; we figured we might as well go somewhere we had never been and was known to be beautiful enough to make tolerating the cold worth our while.

This was our third trip to Germany, but our first to Berlin. You cannot live in Europe and never go to Berlin, you just cannot. That would just be weird and so that was precisely why it was our pick for the Easter Long Weekend trip.

On the last weekend of winter break we drove down to Bordeaux with the kids and one of my husband's French colleagues. He was heading down there to see his girlfriend, we had room in the car and if he did not mind travelling with kids we certainly did not mind the company :) It was actually a pretty interesting five hour drive and I am positive our chatty family gave him a headache by the end of it :P I mean we did not hold back at all; from playing Desi tunes in the car, to eating chicken & gg salad sandwiches, to sipping on tea out of a thermos, we made sure he knew what a Desi road trip truly sounds, smells and feels like :P Do not worry, we got him there alive and well, we think :P

Early Saturday morning when many were still making their way back home after a Friday night out on the town in Helsinki, we were on our way to catch a flight to Ivalo, Lapland - the northern most airport in Finland. It was also the closest one to our dreamy destination,  Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort . We were expecting a really small plane, but to our surprise it was a pretty big and full one. I think the Japanese myth that a baby conceived under the Northern Lights is a happy/lucky/boy baby might have to do something with it :P

Last weekend we were able to go on a short Finnish getaway without the kids; thanks to a dear friend who voluntarily watched them for us <3 Honestly, it was great to just be by ourselves for the weekend after a long time, but like all Desi parents there was major guilt that took over us. Sigh. I think short breaks like these are healthy for kids and for parents, and if only they came without the baggage of guilt. We thought the extreme temperatures might be too much for them, but once we were there we thought the kids would actually have had a lot of fun had they been with us. We already know we'll have to go back with them soon.

This was our last day in Italy, but by no means was it the least. How could it be when we would be exploring the island of Capri? From Jacquelin Kennedy's sandals to Grace Kelly's cropped pants to the elusive Blue Grotto and the magnificent Mama Mia Road, Capri has several claims to fame and so it was a sure shot on our Italian itinerary.

We had planned to spend our last three nights on the Amalfi coast to celebrate my birthday and end our Italian adventure by taking in the beauty of its sparkling gems. It was a bright, sunny day and we decided to take a slightly longer route from Rome hoping to be able to drive along the coast on our way there. We went completely old school with a map and just picked a local road that seemed to be leading to the coast and after driving for about 30 - 40 minutes we were able to see the refreshing blues of the Tyrrhenian Sea.

We left Florence around 10 am and did not reach Rome till the evening thanks to a detour/distraction AKA Tuscany's luxury outlet, The Mall. That was one small detour on the road, one huge dent in our budget :P  My birthday in a few days was a valid excuse to go I'd say, no? I refuse to take the entire blame though, this idea was my husband's as much as it was mine and those who know him, know exactly what I mean :)  We arrived at The Mall early (beat the Asian tour bus crowds :X), the kids cooperated, and we were out early enough to grab a quick lunch from a panini stand on the road to save time.

One falls in and out of love many times in life. But, there is one kind of love that never goes away - the forever love. Such is my love for Florence. As soon as I started seeing those rolling Tuscan hills on the drive to Florence, it brought back memories of movies like "Only you" and "Under the Tuscan Sun". Movies that made me want to visit the Tuscan region one fine day. That fine day was here. :D

We had an ambitious itinerary for our remaining eight days in Italy after Venice. So, we decided driving would give us the most flexibility to actually execute it despite it being our least preferred means of travel in Europe. Anyone who knows my husband knows he becomes "Restless Rao" just at the thought of driving in European city centers. But, somehow he has always been the designated driver between the two of us and I have always been the nominated navigator. I think it might be because I tend to drive with a lead foot and he is not the best with directions :P

A grand tour of Italy had been on our travel wish list for years. So, when it came to deciding the destination of our first big vacation after moving to France, Italy was a clear and unanimous winner. We decided to start up north in Venice and make our way down Italy. Well, the fact that we were getting cheap air tickets into Venice made us decide, I should say. :P And, when it is a cheap ticket you are either flying out really early or getting in really late.

So, I was a bit nervous about sending our first born on his first ever school camping trip at age 11 (they start at as early as 4 years here in France :O) We figured the best way to keep ourselves from spending the entire weekend fretting about him was to take a little trip ourselves. :P Adeen was off to Buthiers with his class on Friday morning and the same night we drove to Bruges, Belgium after work. It was a comfortable 4 hour drive and we had a nice hotel on the periphery with an easy 10 minute walk to Bruges center.

This was a very quickly planned, short, one night getaway. Even though I am a planner and like to put in considerable time and research into each of our trips, I feel sometimes plans like this one are all you need for a change of pace and scene in life, and come back with a better attitude an a brighter smile. It had been a little over a month since our big move to France and things were moving much slower than we had expected. (I mean, 3-4 weeks to get your internet and TV, really?)