Europe

Porto.

Posted on by lisadnovak

September 2024

Thoughts. 

I swore I’ve been to Porto before, back in the early days of “when we were young”. Portugal was one of my first real trips with David, so there was as much “how compatible are we really” and “can this guy hang” as “wow, Portugal is culturally interesting”. As a result, my recall of the visit is primarily lifting some Sagres Beer mugs from a great beachside bar, and a stay above a nightclub in Lisbon. And deciding, hell yeah this guy can hang.

Twenty years later, he can still hang. And 20 years later, I’m standing in the middle of Porto realizing: nope, definitely never been here a day in my life. But we used every one of our four days there making up for it. It was a lovely trip, in large part because we got to spend time with San Francisco friends who moved to Porto the same time we moved to Barcelona. My cousin was also with us for a few days and we roamed the city with just the right amount of plans. Highly recommend. 

Stay. 

  • Selina. We walked into this place on a Thursday night and … whoa. Great vibe, but great vibes are not always great when you are trying to sleep. Still, a great neighborhood (Ribeira) and cool place with rooms surrounding a large courtyard and bar/restaurant. I’d go back.   

Eat.

  • Mae. Absolutely delicious dinner. We cancelled our original dinner plans and didn’t have a spot to go, so sort of roamed a bit trying to find a place. This one was recommended by a hostess along the way, and I am still thinking about this meal weeks later. 
  • Brasao. Delicious and not small Franchisina (little French girl), one of the traditional dishes in Portugal.
  • Nicolau Porto. Best breakfast we had. And we had a lot of breakfasts. Acai, pancakes, french toast, oh my.
  • Casa Guedes Traditional. Sat at the counter eating amazing pork sandwiches, and watched the guy making them by the dozens. 
  • Mercado do Bolhao. Beautifully restored market with endless stalls. I would have liked to have explored a bit more.  

Play.

  • Porto Bridge Climb. Loved this with the kids.
  • Boiler Studio. The tile painting workshop with Daniella was a real highlight. She has a new studio with lots of offerings, I just wish we also had time for the Pastel de Nata workshop.
  • Jardins do Palacio de Cristal. Lovely morning in the park strolling.
  • Praia de Matosinhos. We (Milo) got to surf with his school buddy at a fantastic beach. We rented from Onda Pura and afterwards got to swap stories with the Porto expats at a picnic.
  • Sail on the Douro. There are hundreds of boat cruises for a reason: it’s great! Pick one and see the city from the water.

Northern Greece. 

Posted on by lisadnovak

July 2024

Thoughts. 

Post Bulgaria, we had a little time. Because we are crazy – and because we have a fabulous Greek goddess in our life, Liz, giving us tips – it led to a road trip through the northern coast of Greece. David and I visited the Greek Islands years ago, and had a mental picture of what it would look like. But this little slice of vacationland was totally different: off the radar, fewer crowds and incredibly cheap.

We started in Kavala, a good jumping off place for a few days. Day 1 we hit the “famous” Ammolofoi beach, and Day 2 we took a fun / chaotic / ferry to Thassos Island and visited a little beach hamlet. From there we drove to the Halkidiki area – one of the three “sleeves” in northern Greece.

I appreciated the organized beach bars in all of the towns, with chairs, wicker umbrellas and full service happy hour at the ready. Every place was comfortable, cozy, welcoming and not an inch of stuffiness. These are family resorts for Greeks who want to relax. I’m so glad we went.  

Stay. 

  • Nowhere of note. Infinite Airbnbs and hotels. 

Eat.

  • To Araliki / Kavala. On this day we decided as a family we could eat Greek food every day for the rest of our lives. This big statement is coupled with a controversial one: the Bulgarian shopska salad beats out the traditional Greek one every time! 
  • Lemomidis Mpogatsa / Kavala. The day we discovered Bougatsa – essentially Greek breakfast pie – it was all over. We went daily to this tiny bakery for the flaky cream and feta filled pies.
  • 1901 Old Town Cafe / Kavala. Found a fun wine bar to play Phase 10 around 7pm with every variety of negroni so I had to love it. When we walked by later at 10pm, it was a REALLY fun wine bar where one would definitely not play Phase 10. Cute spot, nice waiters. 
  • Taverna Tra Tria Pitharia / Nea Paramos. Super family friendly tavern directly on the water. If you fell off your seat you would fall in. Clearly this made the souvlaki, fresh fish, tzatziki, eggplant, salads and 5 Euro pitches of wine taste even better. 
  • Taverna Pirofani / Sarti. Lots of Greeks “lined” up for dinner only added to the fun. One of my favorite family dinners just for the people watching.  
  • Bokeh / Vourvourou. Compared to everything else we ate in Greece, it was expensive but had a super hipster hotel vibe on the water. Good stop on the way to Sarti.

Play

  • Ammolofoi Beach / Kavala. Maybe 2 miles of beach bars, water sports, and a crystal clear sea, complete with a water jungle gym and water slide paddle boats. Great day. We preferred the first set of daytime beach bars over the second set; less club music / crowds.   
  • Potos Beach / Thassos. Cozy, artsy beach town on the island. But mostly, just taking the ferry to see an underdeveloped island was a cool experience.
  • Beach Arcades / Every Beach! All the arcades all the time. Turns out Greeks like air hockey too. And, miniature cars for kids to drive.

Bulgaria.

Posted on by lisadnovak

July 2024

I’m just sorry Christo is missing from this photo!

Thoughts.

The first thing people asked when we’d say we’re going to Bulgaria was: why? The answer is simple: we know the three best Bulgarians in the world.  

Going there felt out of the way and it was, if only in the sense that we were coming from Austria after meeting them a lifetime ago in San Francisco and now living in Spain – worlds away in every respect. But we promised Vera, Lubo and Christo we’d come one day. Twenty years later, it happened.  

Driving from Sofia to Plovdiv and then the Black Sea was like living a history lesson. Driving through the endless countryside of sunflowers, it was if you could see a country emerging from the Communist Era in real time. Where did this world begin and the last one end? What was it like for our friends to live through this time and then decide to move to the States at such a young age? I left Bulgaria full of respect for a life that from an American point of view feels so difficult, but one that when you actually live through it just feels like … life. 

Everything we ate was delicious (shopska salad!), every person we met was full of humor. The locals were vaguely shocked and fully delighted to have us in their country. And, from the moment we arrived in Gradina, we felt like we entered an untouched Bulgarian tradition. This special pocket of sand is a place where old friends have gathered seaside for 30 years and everything/not so much has changed all at once. The camping scene is a true throwback for that reason, and I hope it always stays that way. Thank you Very and Lubo for inviting us into your world. 

Stay. 

  • Camping / Gradina. The camper experience was close to our hearts thanks to many RV hours in Geyserville! But the camper community was the best part.. literally thousands of RVs all creatively decorated only feet from the Black Sea. We loved our time on the “south side” under the pine trees. 

Eat. 

  • Blue Stone Donuts / Plovdiv. Delicious donuts (accompanied by two kinds of burgers) at the foot of some of the oldest Roman ruins in Bulgaria. 
  • Rahat Tepe / Plovdiv. Beer garden with giant, delicious BBQ chicken skewers and shopska salad. 

Play. 

  • Red Flat / Sofia. David found this- a full replica of a Cold War Era apartment in the heart of Sofia. This made our entire stop worth it, as it gave us a much clearer understanding of what everyday life was like, not all that long ago. Highly recommend. 
  • Basilica of St. Sofia / Sofia. Orthodox church with remarkable ruins underneath.  
  • Liucy’s Surf Bar / Gradina. Best top secret beach bar in the world. We spent every day (and night) here. Why leave?  
  • Windsurfing / Gradina. At Liucy’s Bar, they have it all. Milo and I went windsurfing for the first time! The ironic twist is that he and I can only do it when there is barely any wind 😉

Salzburg & Beyond.

Posted on by lisadnovak

July 2024

Thoughts.

I always wanted to go to Salzburg because of the Sound of Music. Even though Austrians don’t even know the movie. And as the only superfan in my house, I was afraid of the ridicule. 😉

But also, the nature. I can now vouch that the technicolor green rolling hills and mountains and iridescent turquoise lakes are exactly as I dreamed of.

We will find ourselves back in that part of the world one day. There was much to see, and it’s not overcrowded in that part of Europe. There’s no stress about dinner reservations, tickets selling out, or ridiculous heat. Still tourists, but also locals. For that reason, I liked the Lake Wolfgang and Leogang Valley areas more than Salzburg itself. We were there for just a few hours but that was the right amount of time. 

Stay. 

  • Hotel Peter / Lake Wolfgang. I found this place during my first travel planning experimentation with ChatGPT (!). It was the perfect spot on the perfect lake. Even the cloudy, cool weather didn’t dampen the beauty of the place or the kindness of the staff. The food was great too. We laughed how there were more vegetables to be had in our first 4 hours in Austria than in 9 months in Spain. 
  • NaturHotel Forsthofgut / Leogang. I can only credit finding this stunning hotel to a brilliant social media strategy. The place constantly showed up in our feeds and was promptly bookmarked on the “dream of staying” list. It was our splurge hotel but I’m not sure we’d go back. It was just as beautiful as the IG photos and the staff were incredible helping us with logistics. Maybe we’re just learning that the big-ish resort experience with a massive activities program doesn’t feel totally right for us. That said, with younger kids, I can see this being a great option. Milo and Nola will vouch for the water slide. 

Eat.

  • Almstadl Schwarzensee / Lake Wolfgang. This tiny spot off of Lake Schwarzensee has fondue, candlelight and Austrian folk music. So yes!   
  • Genussschmeid / Lake Wolfgang. A Spanish restaurant serving Mexican food in landlocked Austria. There’s a riddle in there somewhere. But the restaurant was fun and funky, and the food was good.

Play. 

  • Pro Travel Radverleigh / Lake Wolfgang. Traditional bike rental and the start of a super fun family ride despite my flat tire. We rode around ¾ of the lake and then took a ferry back from St. Gilgen. I recommend the ferry experience almost as much as eating Kaiserschmarrn and apple strudel in St Gilgen for lunch.   
  • See-Biker / Lake Wolfgang. E-bike rental. I am a bit of a purist, but my first real e-bike ride clarified why people love it. It allowed Milo and I to ride up a 17% grade and around Lake Schwarzensee. This wouldn’t have happened without the assist. Definitely a highlight. 
  • Original Sound of Music Tour / Salzburg. You already know I am a Sound of Music nerd. I love this movie, and I know every song. So to visit many of the film locations was so much fun, especially because the kids got really into it and the guide was great. And yes, you get to sing on the bus!  
  • Peter-Wiechenthaler Hutte / Leogang. Hiked up to the mountain refugio. It was the first major hike since David’s knee surgery, and we didn’t expect it to be so tough. Great views tho and next time we stay for a beer at the top. 
  • Senses Park / Leogang. Creative mountain park for families. Just taking the cable car up and seeing the view was enough for me, but the kids also loved the different sensory experiences using water, sand and art installations.

The Dolomites.  

Posted on by lisadnovak

December 2023

Thoughts. 

We entered this trip knowing very little about skiing in the Dolomites. Skiing in this part of Italy is such a different scene – super fabulous (more fur than I’ve seen in a lifetime in Cortina alone), super laid back (no one else was on the slopes until what seemed like midday?) and super delicious food you wouldn’t expect (with a heavy German influence). We first spent a few days in Alta Badia at the NaturHotel which was wonderful. It was situated right near the lifts, served delicious food and the staff truly took care of us. 

After we moved to Cortina and I was less enamored. It’s the site of the Winter Olympics in 2026 for the second time– the first being 1956. Part of it was the lack of snow, and part of it was that it was Christmas / New Year’s with little value to be found. The people watching made up for the disastrous hotel at least. But I’d say if you have a chance to ski in Europe, we’ve enjoyed ourselves far more in Austria and France.   

Stay.

  • Miraval NaturHotel / Alta Badia.
  • Hotel Mirage / Cortina. I am only writing about this place because it was terrible. Please do not be fooled by the number of stars! 

Eat. 

  • Rufugio Lagazuoi / Alta Badia. Any restaurant you need to take a cable car to is a good restaurant to me. The views from the top of Lagazuoi were incredible   and we had the chance to hike around to peer into WWI hideouts. 
  • Il Vizietto di Cortina / Cortina. Cozy date night spot with good pasta chased by complimentary grappa.  
  • Ristorante Pizzeria 5 Torri / Cortina. decent pizza
  • Il Ponte / Cortina. Decent pizza and worth mentioning because Milo’s pizza had fries on top. 
  • Baita Fraina Enoteca / Cortina. We finally experienced “the scene” in Cortina. And it’s definitely a scene inside and outside. Despite the snow and freezing temperatures, there was a throng of people outside drinking vino…  
  • Bar Caffe Sport / Cortina. This place was more relaxed than Baita Fraina but equally as jam packed inside and out. 

Play. 

  • Dolomiti Superski Pass. Highly recommend this pass thanks to its versatility and relative affordability (for skiing).  You have access to an entire series of mountain chains that seems to go on forward. And on that note…
  • Sellaronda. I still can’t believe we did it. Or rather, that I – as the current worst skier in the family – made it. The Sella is a famous 40km+ ski circuit in South Tyrol where you circle the Sella group in one day. It was a bluebird day with the kind of winter adventure I had no idea my kids were ready for. Highly recommend.