It's been a looong time since I've posted, and I blame it all on wedding planning. But I'm finally back in action, and I'm here to share some epic photos from our trip to St. Bart's way back in March of 2016. As a pseudo bachelorette party, we decided on a long weekend getaway that was worth every penny and every second of travel. It goes down in the books as one of my favorite trips of all time. With that, here are some of my favorite photos.
Travel Guide to Portland, Maine
After traversing the West Coast this past summer, Chris and I decided to pay the East Coast a little visit for what I thought was just his birthday celebration (turns out we also got engaged!). New York is usually the obvious choice, but since I've been there multiple times, going somewhere new (my new travel rule) felt like the right thing to do. With an expired passport and most of the U.S. already covered, we set our sights on Portland, Maine knowing little to nothing about the culture. And now, this city now holds a very special place in my heart.
For a short trip, this could not have been any more perfect. Portland is a small, lively city with a rich design and food culture. It also offers day trip options to amazing places like Acadia National Park for a good nature fix. Our trip was dedicated to trying everything we could get our grubby little hands on, and we made it a point to do so. So let's start with our focus: the food.
On our food crawls, Chris and I experienced 3-4 restaurants per day. Yes, that's correct - we indulged, guys. BIG TIME. And it was worth it. We carefully planned our order selections so that we could try as much as possible. And now we can tell you all about it!
Our first stop was at Duckfat to kick us off, so we only ordered a small bowl of the smoked duck breast and kale, as well as the poutine to save stomach space. Both were amazing and it was our first taste of Portland, which signified the greatness to come. Not only was the food great, but the branding of the restaurant was perfectly exectuted – emphasizing this gem of a design culture.
One of the highlights of our trip was an unbelievably tasty brown butter lobster roll that will rock your world and cause you to second guess why you ever ate anything else in life. This small roll might make you wake up crying in the middle of a lobster roll induced dream, wishing you had one (or two) sitting on your nightstand in that moment to throw back into your gullet. It will literally make you sit back in your chair at Eventide Oyster Co. and wonder what you did right in life to deserve such a treat. We went back a second time over the course of our stay to have another and savor every bite. It's not only about the lobster roll, everything here is simply delicious – an absolute MUST!
We also greatly enjoyed Fore Street for their wine selection and dessert. We stopped in at the end of the night for one last bite and sip. A posh, dim lit lounge area sits next to the dining room and makes for a great going out, or night cap, ambience.
A final favorite spot is Central Provisions. You can't make reservations, but we only waited about twenty minutes for a table and ordered around (oops!) ten small plates from the menu. This particular night we celebrated Chris's birthday and our engagement – the champagne was flowin' and the small plates were pilin' up. A standout dish was the suckling pig, but everything was delicious and their craft cocktails are very thoughtfully mastered.
If your sweet tooth is calling, The Standard Baking Co, which lives below Fore Street, has an excellent selection of pastries. We stopped in for morning coffee and a croissant to find ourselves sitting on their outdoor patio, soaking in the quiet morning hours.
I also fell in love with a few Portland brands that gained my Instagram following: Portland Dry Goods and KCollette. Portland Dry goods carries quality brands and unique pieces. Though pricey, if you find something you love it's worth it! KCollette has a curated collection that's authentic and celebrates the story and craft of each artisan. I wanted everything in there, and it was a pleasure to browse.
Since Acadia National Park was a little too far for our short trip, we did a day trip to Camden where we had brunch, went antique shopping, and drove up Mount Battie, which overlooks the bay and town. Traveling to Portland in early October is the perfect time to see hints of fall arriving in shades of red and yellow, giving the feelies that Fall often gives – happiness and contentment.
Portland was an incredible choice for a four day weekend trip. Great food, an impressive design culture, and kind people. Plus, it's a smaller city so it's very simple to navigate. I highly recommend and have so many more amazing ideas to share if you are curious. Thanks for reading!
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Final U.S. Road Trip Destination: Salt Flats in Utah
Our final destination was the Salt Flats in Utah, and it was incredible. It's difficult to comprehend that this vastness of white space is made up entirely of salt! When we arrived there was a camera crew present, not sure what they were filming but it makes sense. The flats are the perfect blank canvas for any shoot.
Chris had a blast doing donuts in the salt while I videoed his little adventure. After all, the flats are known for land speed records, so why not!
There's not a lot to this other than the beauty of simplicity and the wonder it brings to your eyes. The blurred out mountains in the background are a nice touch as well, adding just the right detail to complete a nicely joined minimalistic composition. If you wanna get crazy and venture to Bolivia, Salar De Uyuni is another salt flat that's INSANE!
And that my friends, is the end of our road trip journey. The end to my freedom from corporate America, the end to car snacks, endless sunshine, adventure and optimal levels of happiness. Sigh...
Thanks for reading along, hope you were able to take away some inspiration for future vacations....and back to the grind. Have a great week!
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U.S. Road Trip Destination 7: The Redwoods
Being straightforward with all of you, I admittedly had a little wine hangover from Napa when we arrived at Redwood National Park. The wine may have caused a headache, but it didn't distract from all of the beauty in front of us. For those of you who haven't been or aren't sure what the redwoods are, they are known to be the tallest trees on earth! Giants if you will. Guinness book of world records winning bragging right champions. Awesome freaks of nature. They make you feel so small in their enormous branches.
As massive statement pieces of earth that feel prehistoric and Jurassic Park-like, they mean business and you should feel lucky to be in their presence. Pretending I was Dr. Ellie Sattler for a hot minute, I secretly wanted Chris to unexpectedly peek out from behind a fern and say "clever girl.." but a girl can't have everything.
We didn't do much other than a lot of ooohing and ahhhing, particularly at the fallen tree trunks that revealed their crazy roots! Every piece to the redwood puzzle was visually appealing and an unexpected surprise. It was a quick stop, but a memory that will last forever. Stay tuned for our final destination!
Hope you're having a great day!
U.S. Road Trip Destination 6: Napa Valley
Ah yes, Napa Valley. My favorite part of the trip and what I've been waiting to share with everyone. As another first time experience, Napa has been up against some hype from family and friends. And why wouldn't it be? Wine tasting in vineyards in sunny weather amongst some of the best restaurants in the business? Yes please. I will taste all of the wines and eat all of the foods.
To start, I'd been really excited to stay at Harvest Inn in St. Helena after we booked it a few months ago, and it lived up to its expectation. Full of lush greenery, it was a very peaceful place to stay and just felt very comfortable. We were lucky that the adult pool was right outside of our room, making everything all the more convenient and slightly subtracting the paleness from this transparent body of mine.
On our first day we had lunch at Cook, and then visited Turnbull, the winery a friend of ours used to work for. Cook was simply delicious and Chris and I splurged a bit with 2 glasses of rosé and a glorious salad to start. He had the hanger steak (tomatoes were killer fresh!) and I had the halibut risotto. Plates were cleared and we were two happy travelers.
We had a bit of a unique experience in Napa, given that Chris's good friend David Kasper is the sommelier for Thomas Keller's amazing Bouchon. He not only knew the ins and outs of the Napa culture, but he also knew a thing or two about wine and then some. He was pretty much our tour guide and responsible for all the fun we had and the knowledge we gained.
To start our day, we stopped in at Bouchon bakery where we picked up coffee and a few baked goods. I opted for the Almond Croissant and a few Macarons (as a souvenir - I didn't take it all down at once, guys) to prime our stomachs for the wine and food that we would be consuming all day. David had already kindly set up a few tastings for our arrival, and we very thankfully followed his lead.
Our first stop was at Colgin, a very special winery that exists in a private gated off chateau. We were given a tour of owner's wine cellar that included bottles of wine dating back to 1887. While everyone was admiring the types of wine and the history, I was admittedly critiquing the label designs and taking note of classic french fonts. After, we walked upstairs into a dining room, and tried three wines: 1. 2005 Tychson Hill 2. 2012 Tychson Hill 3. 2012 Cariad. My favorite by far was the 2005 Tychson Hill.
I listened intently as wine lingo was thrown around while I sipped and munched on crackers, nodding in agreement to things that I knew little about.
Our next stop was at Scarecrow, a very intimate appointment made by David where we entered the private residence of Bret Lopez and his wife Mimi DeBlasio. We were fortunate enough to share a bottle of the 2011 Scarecrow while listening firsthand to Bret talk about the J.J. Cohn Estate and all of the history leading up to the winery today. You'll note that Scarecrow is a nod to J.J. Cohn's production of the The Wizard of Oz while he worked for MGM. Their second wine follows suit, called M. Étain, french for Tin Man. They left us with parting gifts - a bottle of M. Étain and copies of Bret's photography books, titled Floral and Fungi, which are composed of stunning photographs taken within walking distance of the estate.
Kindred spirits, indeed, and an experience I will never forget.
That night we had a gluttonous dinner at Bouchon, feasting on various items off the menu like truffle chicken, melon salad, and a variety of other delectable dishes. Bouchon is wonderful and the team knows what's up, and now they especially know our love for food, since we cleaned all of the plates.
I will say that our experience was quite different than the recommendations of wineries I received from friends, we were lucky enough to go the exclusive route. My next visit to Napa I hope to include wineries like Opus One and Silver Oak which I hear are so beautiful. If you have anything to share about wine, please let me know!
For now, onward to our final destination, the Redwoods!
