Providence, Rhode Island, December 2007

After visiting Katie I took the train up to Providence, Rhode Island to visit Allie at Brown University for a couple of days. I didn't realize when booking this ticket that Allie would be in the middle of finals week. As such, College Hill was pretty quiet, apparently it is pretty lively every other time of the year. I got into Providence about 3pm to snow flurries, on top of the 2 feet of snow they had received the day before. The problem was, it froze that night, so all the sidewalks were extremely slick, I must've slipped like ten times walking up Thayer Street. Turns out Uggs have zero traction - who would've thought? We ended up going out to her favorite pizza joint for dinner and then caught the late showing of Polar Express at the IMAX theater in downtown Providence, part of our festive countdown to Christmas.

The next day Allie gave me a tour of the campus, we slipped and slid along the pathways through the campus. We took some pictures in the main green, Brown's version of a quad, which is a rectangle of gorgeous old buildings, and was covered in a white blanket of snow. We walked through the Greek Row, and by the famous Brown gate, where all the freshman ceremoniously walk through at convocation, and then all graduates exit out of.

We walked up to the gym and I got to see Allie's locker room - which was covered in fiesta decorations; streamers, sombreros, and cactus's, apparently freshman decorate for certain games. After Allie did some studying and I did some shopping we took the trolley up to Federal Hill, known for its famous Italian restaurant row for dinner. After dinner we waited in the freezing cold for the trolley to return. I was jumping and dancing in place trying to keep warm, much to Allie's chagrin. She claims to now be used to the cold weather...I don't think that is something I could get used to. Even when you finally get inside, it takes at least 10 minutes to defrost!

Allie had yet another night of studying, but we grabbed Starbucks and made a quick stop at the bookstore for some Brown University duds and in the morning before I took the train to Boston for my flight back to the west Coast. A quick, mellow side trip, but it was great to see a slice of her college experience.

New York City, December 2007

I flew out to New York City the day after my last class. I just beat the blizzard and arrived in the FREEZING city to a fresh coat of snow. Katie has been living in Manhattan since late August, and I stayed with her at her cute and cozy apartment in the Chelsea neighborhood. With Katie working Thursday and Friday, I was left to explore the city solo, and meet up with her after work. However, Thursday came with additional snow flurries, and even though I was able to make it to a few Christmas-y sights (Rockafeller Center, Palace Hotel Christmas tree, Lord & Taylor, and Macy's window displays)...my feet were soaked and freezing by mid-afternoon, so I hiked back to the West Side and warmed up at her apartment watching Project Runway and Top Model reruns. We met up later at Alta - a tapas restaurant/bar Katie had read about, in the West Village, and dined on some awesome fare: bacon-wrapped almond stuffed dates, tomato crostinis, and fried goat cheese balls (Katie thought any food with 'balls' in the name was worth ordering for a laugh, ha ha ha).

Friday night - I continued my solo venture by day - mostly cruising the Upper West Side, though I took a detour to check out the "Block Beautiful" in Gramercy Park, a street of picture perfect New York brownstones. At night we ate at Bread - famous for what else, different kinds of bread! After dinner and some wine, we walked around the Meat Packing District and then took a cab we met up with our high school friends Lauren and Jeff, at a fun bar in the East Village.

Saturday was our day of walking and shopping, we did brunch at Bubby's in TriBeCa, got a few token pics in front of the firehouse, prowled the flea market in Hell's Kitchen, and basically shopped all day. We spent most of our time in the West Village, which is probably my favorite neighborhood in New York. All the storefronts, shops, and residences are so picturesque, its the perfect blend of old and new. Most of the buildings are old and historic looking, but have been restored and prettied up to become scenic hot-spots. And because of it's chic street appeal, many designers have taken up residence, Marc Jacobs, Coach, and more. We did also stumble upon a Santa and elf pub crawl which was a sight to see!

As it started to get dark and cold, we headed back to Katie's apartment to change and met up with Jeff, Lauren, and Brett at a Chinese restaurant for dinner, before going back to Brett's apartment to watch SuperBad. Afterwards we walked to Rudy's - hands down one of the most random bars I have ever been to, but such a fun time! They served $7 pitchers, and gave out free hot dogs - you can't go wrong! After we were a couple pitchers deep we decided to play flip cup at our booth, acquiring plastic cups from the bar back. All in all - it ended up being a pretty good time, lots of drinking, laughs, and good times to go around. We ended up changing locations at about 1:30, taking full advantage of the fact that bars don't close until 4am in New York City! We ended up at an Irish pub around the corner, and befriended the DJ to play our favorite 80's and 90's songs, and danced around, laughing and being silly until 3:30, when we finally retired. It was a blast!

Paris, France (June 2004)

Katie and I arrive in Paris to torrential downpours. Seriously. It was not quite the Paris I had imagined - the City of Light overcome by enormous curbside puddles and blustery winds that would turn your umbrella inside out every 100 yards. However, we decided to make the best of it, and explored as much as our soaked feet would allow us. We stayed in a cozy B&B in Montmartre, literally in the shadow of the amazing basilica Sacre Couer. We were a two minute walk from the Place du Tertre - the artists quarter, where you can walk through and around easels of Paris's scenic sights. There was a creperie on the corridor from Sacre Couer to the Place du Tertre, which had delicious crepes, both sweet and savory. My favorite was the crepe de pommes (apple) and nutella banana (hazelnut and chocolate spread + sliced bananas). Katie and I tried a savory crepe, it had something like egg, cheese, ham, and spinach in it. Definitely prefer the sweet ones, the savory kind reminded me of a not-so-great breakfast burrito. As we continued to explore the city, we found arrondisements we liked more than others. While the Champs Elysees is a must-see, the surrounding area is one giant tourist trap, food and souvenirs are double the price, if not more. We liked the 8th, the area around the Eiffel Tower and Les Invalides, there are a lot of great patisseries and coffee shops with character, especially on Rue Cler. Also worthwhile is San Germain, across the River Seine from the Louvre. There are an array of famous coffee shops to choose from, many of which once entertained the likes of Hemingway, Victor Hugo, and Voltaire. My favorite was Deux Magots - which has a long standing rivalry with its neighbor Cafe Flore (also good).

We also hit up a lot of the usual tourist attractions: the Louvre, Moulin Rouge, Notre Dame, one church I would highly recommend also on the Ile de la Cite is Sainte Chapelle. This church is a famous reliquary as well, home to the Crown of Thorns. The building itself is supported by a delicate framework, built so that you are hardly aware of the beams, making it feel as though you are completely surrounded in stained glass. It is definitely a very peaceful and spiritual space, well worth the 12 euro. So there you have it - even in the rain you can have a fabulous time, it's simply Paris!

Las Vegas, December 2007

This was the Vegas trip of shows! Typically my Vegas trips are wild weekends with the girls - lounging by the pool during the day, and going out clubbing at night. However, this December, our trip down to Sin City was prompted by the reunion tour of none other than the Spice Girls! I kid you not... Ashley entered the ticket lottery and received a code for the Las Vegas show - not only did we get tickets but at the best location! Four plane tickets later, and we were on our way... We arrived in Las Vegas late Thursday night, and spent the majority of Friday cruising the strip, shopping, showing off the city to our Vegas newbie Carrie. My dad called us around 3 and said, he had been given 5 tickets to Celine Dion from her theatre's manager! We weren't planning on going to 2 concerts that weekend...but hey, why not? We got dressed up, drove down to Caesar's Palace and met up with my dad. Our seats turned out to be AMAZING, we were in the 6th row, center, on the floor. It felt as though she was singing directly to us, and she looked absolutely stunning, her outfits are exquisite! Our show was one of her last performances, wrapping up her 5 year "A New Day Has Come" tour. She was somewhat emotional during the performance, saying that the people in her show have become a family, and these 6 final shows are exciting but heartbreaking at the same time. Overall we had an amazing time, and left the theatre belting out her songs as we walked through the casino. Then for the much anticipated concert: Spice Girls! Unfortunately we weren't sitting quite as close as we had been in Celine, but nonetheless, an AWESOME concert, it was all I hoped it would be! The Spice Girls started out with (what else) "Spice Up Your Life!" And as you can imagine, the crowd was mostly twenty something girls - like ourselves - dancing and singing along to every word. There were a lot of special effects, and wardrobe changes, they opened in their new Roberto Cavalli designed outfits, but even hearkened back to updated versions of their former alter-ego's: Posh, Scary, Baby, Sporty, and Ginger. They played from about 9:15 - 11:00 covering all the greatest hits, the singles from their solo albums, and a few candid songs from their movie. The finale was AMAZING, glitter rained down as they sang "Wannabe" and then finished with a rousing chorus of "Spice Up Your Life." It was picture perfect, I couldn't have asked for anything more!

Victoria, British Columbia (January 2006)

Chris surprised me with a weekend getaway to Victoria, B.C. for our 1-year anniversary. We took the Victoria Clipper ferry there and back, a 2-hour boat ride that goes by surprisingly fast. As part of our vacation package they gave us a basket of muffins, fresh fruit, and champagne which we nibbled on as we filled out crossword puzzles to pass the time. I had been to Victoria once before, but I was like 10 years old and traveling with my grandparents. Needless to say, this was a slightly different experience.

We checked into the grand Empress hotel, which is stunning both in facade and decor. We dropped off our luggage, bundled up for the chilly weather, and went exploring. Victoria is very pedestrian friendly and we walked all around, checking various boutiques and souvenir shops. I had a lot of shopping success and bought a purse, party top, a black jacket, and a tweed winter coat which were all marked at clearance prices (apparently in Canada sales only come twice a year in July and mid-January) - perfect timing! We stopped into a great tapas restaurant for lunch and dined on blue cheese stuffed figs and bacon wrapped dates...along with some excellent sangria, to gave us a nice buzz for the rest of our afternoon. As we were heading back to the hotel we came across a street musician dressed as Darth Vador playing the violin - pretty weird!

We got dressed up and walked outside our hotel to see the Victoria Parliament buildings silhouetted in beautiful lights - a perfect photo op. Out on the town - we had dinner and drinks at a steakhouse (the name now escapes me...) and hung out at a nearby bar/club for a while until my darling but uncomfortable high heels began to hurt more than I could bear. When we returned to the room I was surprised to find chilled champagne and chocolate dipped strawberries waiting for us-what a sweet surprise! We spent the rest of the weekend doing much of the same; sleeping in, checking out the Victoria food scene, and exploring new corners of the city. It was a fantastic weekend getaway!

Florence, Italy (second trip, July 2005)

Florence is definitely one of my favorite cities in Italy. You can pretty much walk everywhere you'd need to go, there is awesome food and shopping, and if you feel the inkling for open space, the reaches of Tuscany are at your fingertips. This time around we passed on the 4 hour Uffizi Gallery line and 2 hour Galerie d'Academia line (home to Michelangelo's "David") and ventured outside Florence proper. We had heard about a Tuscany bike tour from some tourists on the train, and decided to look into it. I think we ended up going through the company I Bike Italy which ended up being about 50 Euro for a 4 hour bike tour, free bike and helmet rental, our lovely Hungarian guide, and lunch at a Tuscan restaurant en route. We paid our money and were off, eager to get some real exercise, as opposed to just walking everywhere for 3 weeks! After all the brochure promised a "leisurely ride." Not a chance! The 2 hours there was basically all uphill, and we're not talking leisurely hills, these were switchback slopes up and out of Florence. Our saving grace was some incredible views at some of our short lived pit-stops. Our guide must have been a marathoner or something, because he was hauling! After having to walk our bikes up some steep grades, we finally plateaued in a little village outside Firesole. We parked our bikes and found we were eating at a restaurant across from Galileo's childhood home (fun fact). Well, sweaty as we were, this meal was completely worth it - probably the best, most authentic Italian food I have eaten in my life! We drank local Chianti, a selection of antipasti meats and cheeses, amazing pastas and soups - it was like one gourmet dish after another. Satiated from our meal, we were beginning to feel like this bike ride was worth it, and were thrilled to hear that the majority of our ride would be downhill! Hooray, especially since by then my legs felt of jello. We cruised down the hill, overlooking old Medici villas that had been converted into mansions, and countless olive orchards. Our guide gave us a 3 minute schpeal about how many olives are required to make 1 bottle of olive oil. We continued past some gorgeous Tuscan villas with stunning views of the region. Finally we made our descent back into Florence, peeled ourselves off the bikes, and remained achy and sore for the next 2 or 3 days. But overall it was worth it, I'd recommend it to my fellow travelers - just keep in mind leisurely activity it is not!

Innsbruck, Austria (June 2005)

We dropped on in to Innsbruck, Austria after spending a late night out at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany. Needless to say our two hour train ride to Innsbruck was less than desirable. We arrived in Innsbruck around 11am. The Tyrolian village was cool and quiet, with a dense fog just beginning to lift off the city. As the fog dissipated, the massive, gorgeous Tyrol mountains began to peek through. The entire city of Innsbruck is nestled in a valley between these snowy peaks, you feel like you are completely surrounded by mountainous terrain. It doesn't take long to explore the city center; there are pretzel shops, antique prints, and plenty of options to try a local brew for the beer enthusiast. We strolled through the Altstadt (old town) which sweeps around along the Danube. I don't know if it was that we were taken by the famous "Danube" name or the fact that the river was accessible, but my friends and I decided to climb down to the river and dip our feet in, just to say we did. Well, we climbed down the rocks into the gray clay-like sand, and found that the river is FREEZING! Even in the height of summer! After relaxing by the river, we found ourselves some traditional Austrian grub and retired to our room as the city was overcome by a tremendous lightning and thunder storm.

Venice, Italy (second trip, June 2005)

Venice speaks for itself. Every turned corner yields a discovery; young lovers kissing in the shadows...families walking together while slurping cones of gelato to avoid paying the fee for a table...elegant gondolas cruising beneath sloping footbridges, a hint of Italian melody hummed by the gondolier. Venice is of course also overrun with tourists in the summer, and pigeons as well: they even sell pigeon food so that tourists can seize that quintessential Venetian picture...or at least an entertaining one. We fell for this, and purchased a handful of pigeon food, outstretched our arms and were overrun with a flock of aggressive pigeons. While it was a little bit gross, it did make for some really funny pictures.
Venice is the perfect city to get lost in, it is even somewhat of a challenge to lose yourself, as most of the canals end up winding back to Piazza San Marco. My friends and I stayed close to the Piazza, but attempted to walk deep into the city, as far away as our tired soles would take us. We stumbled across unknown canals, small gated parks and alleyways strung up with laundry lines, where dozens of garments were left out to be air dried. As we moved away from the tourist hub of Piazza San Marco, the locals seemed to come out in droves, we saw kids kicking around soccer balls in the dirt and old women leaning out their shuttered windowsills, chattering away to their neighbors in rapid Italian. As we found our way back to the city center, dusk was settling in and there we saw a new side of Venice. All the lampposts came to life, and the lights that run the length of the piazza created a dazzling light that accented the stars. My friends and I ate at an outdoor bistro, drank wine, and spent the rest of our evening dancing across the piazza, laughing and singing together.

Windsor, England (June 2004)

Windsor is famous it's castle, the largest inhabited castle in the world, where Queen Elizabeth II spends many a weekend. It's a quick train ride out of London, and a breath of fresh air from the bustle of the city. While the castle is off limits to visitors, pedestrians can stroll around the perimeter, taking in the hourly changing of the guard ceremony and a few information museums about the castle and its function and purpose. Despite the grandeur and impressive size of the castle, my sister and I found the town of Windsor to be much more entertaining and enjoyable. The streets are quiet, cozy, and idyllic, reminiscent of a storybook. Antique century-old storefronts host a plethora of shoppes; selling everything from meats and fresh cheeses to baubles and souvenirs. There are tourist-pleaser's as well; women dressed in traditional English garments and bonnets stroll the streets carrying baskets of flowers, requesting a few quid in exchange for a picture. My sister and I stumbled upon a "crooked tea house," a tea and crumpet shop that was built to appear off kilter, complete with furniture and accessories that tilted slightly to the right. We also happened upon a new restaurant that was debuting its menu for review. We were seated and told to draw a number out of a hat, upon which they brought us the dishes those numbers corresponded to. Luckily we liked our selections, so we ended up with a free, gourmet lunch only at the cost of our food critiques. Overall Windsor was an relaxing day trip out of London; I wouldn't recommend staying the night as you might find yourself bored without any nightlife or without enough sights to keep you occupied. Either way, it is definitely a worthwhile jaunt into the country.

Rome, Italy (second trip, June 2005)

Navigating Rome is like navigating a jungle. Narrow alleyways twist and turn, opening into oval piazzas, from which pathways stretch beyond like fingers into the depths of the city. Rome is chaotic but enchanting. Where else can you find Greek and Etruscan ruins preserved in the midst of the city? In addition - the food is amazing; delectable pizzas, pasta carbonara, and mouthwatering gelato, everywhere you look, if ever the hint of hunger should succumb you. My friends and I tried to check out the best of what Rome had to offer, energized by frequent espresso breaks. At the Trevi Fountain, we cast our wishes by tossing a penny backward over our left shoulder into the massive, tiered fountain. We perused the Forum, walking amidst remnants of columns and buildings that still hold the glory of ancient Rome. Fragments of statues dot the forum, saturated with symbolism and legendary stories (you must take a tour, otherwise you will not know what you are looking at). Later we dared to put a hand a inside the Bocca della Verita, "the mouth of truth," at the Church of Santa Maria is Cosmedin, made famous by Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday. Legend has it that Romans took their spouses here to test their fidelity, the truth tellers were spared, but the all-knowing river god would bite off the hand of those who had sinned. Afterward, we continued past the Spanish steps, through the Pantheon, across Piazza di San Pietro - leading up to awe inspiring wonder that is Saint Peter's Basilica. Since we were in Rome in June, shortly after Pope John Paul II's death in March, we were able to view his tomb in the basilica's crypt. Four days in Rome is not nearly enough to cover all that the city holds - but you must see and tour the Vatican and the Coliseum. Walk through the Arch of Constantine where Roman soldiers would march through after returning to the city victorious after battle. Take note of the monstrous cobblestones that are marked by deep cuts in the rock, a memento from the days of chariots (truly!). Rome's chaos is perhaps overwhelming in the midst of your journey, but it is an experience that will award you many memorable moments. I still think back to the memory of a perfect baguette, a cat sunning itself in an open window, a local family strolling and socializing through the piazza under the setting sun.

Heidelberg, Germany (June 2005)

With its baroque charm, and views of the River Necktar, Heidelberg is a charming German town off the Romantic Road. We rolled into Heidelberg and camped out at a family run B&B, just off the main pedestrian thorough-fare. The town's most notable site is the Heidelberger Schloss (the castle atop the hill). And with a city center, Heidelberg is easily accessible by foot, with plenty to explore. We toured the city with a German native, who gave us the inside scoop on University history. Turns out that the Universität Heidelberg used to have a "student jail," for student's who disobeyed curfew and essentially broke the rules. Over the years, this jail burgeoned to house many, many "delinquents" and became a popular fraternity of sorts, as everyone wanted to do wrong to get into the jail. We were lead through the student jail which is covered wall to wall with murals, signatures, and autographs from those students who were considered too disobedient to live without supervision. Eventually the jail was disbanded, but the gates and murals remain - a nostalgic testimony to some of the first students who identified college life with more than just academics. Also in Heidelberg, in addition to narrow streets and picturesque houses we found legal absinthe and hookah bars, definitely a college town!

Civita de Bagnoregio, Italy (July 2004)

I had heard about this obscure Umbrian hilltown, Civita through my university's study abroad program. Unfortunately the program had been retired a year before I was eligible, but I was determined to seek out this little off-the-beaten-path corner of Italy. My sister and I based ourselves in Orvieto, and went through a challenging ordeal to find Civita. We asked many a local on how to find this seemingly mysterious town. After many blank looks and shrugged shoulders we got some sort of answer in broken Italian. Following this stranger's advice, we uncertainly boarded a bus to Bagnoregio, supposedly nearby. We were two of three people on this enormous blue bus, and definitely the only ones who spoke English. With a hope and a prayer, we stayed on board for about an hour, driving through gorgeous rolling hills of vineyards and fields of sunflowers. Once off the bus we followed handwritten signs toward Civita. One sign read "Il Paese Che Muore," which we later found out to mean "the dying village," referring to Civita's dwindling population of 15 year-round residents. We followed these signs through Bagnoregio's dusty streets until we came upon a fantastic clearing - and there it was! The plateau of Civita rises above a sweeping valley. The town is charmingly medieval in every way, its only connection to the modern world is accessibility to Bagnoregio via a steel footbridge. Standing on the bluff overlooking Civita was both exciting and exhilarating. Once across the footbridge, it was like stepping back in time. Almost all of the architecture is carved from the stony earth. The sleepy town was almost completely deserted, even at midday on a warm, summer afternoon. Everything about Civita hearkened back to medieval primitivism, one church, one B&B, one tiny cafe. There seemed to be amazing views from every vantage point, of the valley below and beyond. Civita seemed like a pocket of Italy that had defied modernity, everything about the town felt so untouched, It was truly rewarding - not only to finally find it after all that, but I felt like we got to experience Italy the way Italy was meant to be seen. Finding this corner of the Umbrian countryside definitely satisfied our appetites for discovery.

Versailles, France (second trip, July 2005)

Extravagant is the word that comes to mind when describing Versailles. The palace, the decor, the gardens, every part of the estate was built with Louis XIV's mindset of wanting to be bigger and better than anyone had ever imagined. Keep in mind when visiting that the palace is closed on Tuesdays, I experienced this the hard way on my first visit. While the Hall of Mirrors is fantastically decadent and dripping with gold trimmings, the crowds are huge and undesirable. My friends and I grew so claustrophobic from the swarms of people at midday that we rushed through the palace tour and spent the majority of our time exploring the gardens. The gardens are HUGE and stretch as far as the eye can see. Everything is clearly organized into a grid of rose gardens, statues, and fountains. Directly down the steps from the Palace of Versailles is a huge pond where you can rent rowboats by the hour and cruise around Louis's private lake. Kind of a leisurely, lazy way to spend an afternoon - which is exactly what we did. We rented a row boat and cruised around, half rowing, half sunning and talking, with the occasional paddle splash to each other and our neighboring boats. It was really fun afternoon just relaxing, taking a little time out from go-go-go travel to just enjoy the spectacular scenery and great company.

Amsterdam, Netherlands (June 2005)

Amsterdam has got a little bit of everything to offer its visitors. A little bit of culture; Van Gogh's masterpieces, more canals than Venice. And a little bit of the latter; "coffee shops," oozing with recreational drugs, colorful sex and condom shops. Red Light District display windows where women of every shape and size lean against the glass in their lingerie, saucily enticing the next customer.
Amsterdam is also home to a literary martyr Anne Frank. The three story "Anne Frank Huis," located on the Prinsengracht canal, houses the original hidden rooms where Anne Frank and her family and four others hid from Nazi persecution. Visitors can explore the Achterhuis ("secret annex" in Dutch) where Frank and her family camped out for almost 2 years without surfacing. The Achterhuis was located above a packing warehouse storefront - that stayed in business throughout the Frank's hiding. It is a humbling experience to view the small space where the family lived, sometimes in silence as to avoid being discovered. When walking through, you notice that while most of the original furniture was removed when soldiers raided the house, the wallpaper and papers tacked on the wall have been preserved behind a layer of plexiglass. Anne Frank's own original diary entires are distributed throughout the Achterhuis, and more artifacts are on display in the museum space adjoining the house. The museum hosts an exhibition on the life and times of Anne Frank. For anyone that has read this moving diary, I highly recommend visiting Anne Frank's house, it allows those of us who read along with Anne Frank's diary entries to experience her world and struggles with new dimension.

Monaco & Monte Carlo (July 2005)

Monaco is home to the cleanest, most pristine train station I have ever seen in Europe. This clean, orderly, air of perfection extends beyond the train terminal and permeates the tiny country. With unemployment and homelessness rates at 0%, and no income tax, this constitutional monarchy is almost a utopia of sorts. The pleasant climate and casino culture attract tourists from far and wide. We took a 35 minute train ride in from Nice to explore Monaco and Monte Carlo for the day, awestruck by the immaculate nature of the country. Everything is kept up, from the sidewalks to the harbors, to the architecture, nothing is unkempt or on the verge of becoming so. We ambled around town, not really sure of what sights were notable sans the esteemed Monte Carlo Casino. Manicured gardens and boutique hotels are the norm in Monte Carlo - evidenced by the expensive vehicles parked outside. Bentleys, Rolls Royce's, Mercedes, the list continues...basically a car collector's dream, all vying for recognition or sponsorship at the Monaco Grand Prix - Europe's annual, revered car race. While cruising Monaco we also took in St. Nicholas' Cathedral where Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier were married decades ago. We didn't have a change to sample any cuisine while in Monaco, as prices were so overpriced, hunger seemed like the better alternative. An item as small as a bottle of water was 5 euro at one shop! The luxurious amenities even crossed from land to sea, as the Port of Monaco was packed with enormous, sparkling white yachts. We laughed, joking that the sight alone prompted the "Lifestyles of the rich and famous," voice to echo in our heads. Overall - while it is perhaps the cleanest, safest destination you will ever visit, I thought it lacked what most travelers seek, culture, variety and of course a little unpredictability.