29 Places I’d Love To Go Back To

If time and money weren’t an issue, where would you go?

We’ve spent the past two years working while traveling.

Both time and money have been a daily challenge.

But the work we do ,(and the people managing the Internet and power grid in the countries we’ve been to) has allowed us to successfully work and travel for over 2 years.

We are now returning back to America because we want to once again spend time with our families and be part of their lives in-person.

But given unlimited time and money…

Here are 29 places we have already been that we will love to return to.

(In some cases we’ve noted the things we would do there.)

1. Tanzania, Africa – tour the tanzanite mines, see the Serengeti
2. El Cid Resort, Cancun, Mexico
3. Munich, Germany – Could live here
4. Germany – Pretty much most places we’ve been
5. Puerto Iguazu, Argentina (see the falls at midnight with the rainbows)
6. Mendoza, Argentina – spend another weekend enjoying the wineries
7. Lake Atitlan, Guatemala
8. Chichicastenango, Guatemala
9. Granada, Nicaragua
10. Boquete, Panama
11. Quito, Ecuador – neurotic crazy city, but awesome too.
12. Cuenca, Ecuador – See the surrounding hill country and take Spanish classes
13. French Polynesia – this time I would go to Bora Bora or Moorea
14. New Zealand – almost anywhere in New Zealand. We could probably live here if our family did.
15. Bali – do more diving and see more of the island
16. Malaysia – but see more of the country outside of Kuala Lumpur
17. Hong Kong (Hong Kong Island)
18. Brunei
19. Chiang Mai, Thailand – stay inside the old city walls during a cleaner air quality season.
20. Hoi An, Vietnam
21. Udaipur, India
22. Bilaspur, India
23. Hyderabad, India – Nothing can prepare you for a trip to India except a trip to India. This time we know what to expect – and the food… oh the food was so good.
24. Slovenia – Viktorija and family, thank-you, thank-you, thank-you!
25. Krakow, Poland
26. Budapest, Hungary
27. Northern Italy
28. Rome, Italy – live in an apartment for a month
29. Mallorca, Spain – Stay at an all-inclusive resort, see the castle on the hill above Palma, see the old defensive castle on the water, go diving.

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Italian Apertivos: Leaving Italy

After having spent one more week with our friends Mara and Fabrizio in Verdello (near Milan), Italy, it was time to leave for Germany.

But not before partaking of one of the great things of Italy, apertivos.

Having an apertif is not only just having a drink, but it’s something of a cultural thing in Italy.

Think of it as the same concept as America’s Happy Hour, and you get the idea.

Drink specials and buffet snacks are part of the Apertivo experience.

Because there are so many historical places and nice plazas to visit, you can almost always find an apertivo place somewhere near a cathedral, castle, or old city wall and moat.

Our final Thursday night in Italy, Mara and Fabri took us to a nearby town for apertivos.

It was quite nice to tour through the old city and sit by the fountains coming out of what used to tbe the old city’s moat.

After apertivos, Mara and Fabri took us to meet up with other new friends (Adriano and Cami) at the Centro Sportivo for a birra spina, costine, and polenta con porcini (Beer on tap, ribs, and polenta with porcini mushrooms).

Thank-you Mara and Fabri for your hospitality, for some great times shared over excellent food, and great friendship.

And congratulations once again on your marriage!

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Italian Summer Festivals

One great thing about spending the summer in Italy is the summer festivals.

Most weekends, one group or another sponsors a festival. The group can be anything from a political party, a local sports team, or any group looking to raise a little money.

The festival consists of a live band, a bar, and a “restaurant”.

It’s a great place to meet up with friends for a good dinner and a fun night.

We got to go to one in Verdello twice. The first time we went with Mara and Fabri. While we were there with them, we were introduced to some of Fabri’s friends.

The second time we went, we went with Fabri’s friends, who by that time had become our friends as well.

We ate some great food, and danced to the music…a little. The music that night was more like traditional music with specific dances. But that doesn’t mean we didn’t have fun.

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Mara and Fabrizio’s Wedding

The next time Jonathan and I get married, I think we’ll do it the way Mara and Fabri did.

At a castle. In Italy.

Of course, Mara and Fabri are Italian, so a castle in Italy was probably a bit easier from them than it would be for us.

Their wedding was amazing from start to finish. Jonathan and I got to see both Fabri and Mara prepare for the wedding, since we were staying with Fabri’s parents (Thank you Luisa and Gigi!).

The ceremony itself was held outside the townhall in a lovely garden.

After the ceremony, they took pictures with the guests.

And were treated to surprise showers of flower petals and streamers.

Then it was off to the castle for the reception.

At the castle, Mara and Fabri organized tours of the castle so that guests could know a little about the history of the castle and the area.

The tour was fantastic. (They even made sure to offer one in English for us English speaking guests!) I learned a lot about the area, and the history of Italy as well.

It was really amazing. The castle has not been restored, for the most part. The paintings are as they were in the 1490s. Stunning.

Now I need to say a little about the food. It was some of the best food I’ve ever eaten. The starter course was a buffet, and it lasted for about 2 hours.

There were meats, cheeses, olives, sushi, fresh vegetables, quiche, polenta, bruschetta, and so much more. I wish I’d gotten more pictures.

Then there were 3 courses of plated dinner service. Delicious.

And then, there was dessert.

They had cake:

And a dessert buffet

Then there was dancing.

Jonathan made sure everyone got the chance to dance. Even Fabri’s great aunt (who is in her 80s).

We had a wonderful time, and we wish all the best to Mara and Fabri!

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Parmiggiano-Reggiano Cheese factory tour: Parma, Italy

When Jonathan and I visited Mara on our honeymoon way back in 2007, we mentioned that we would like to tour a Parmiggiano cheese factory. Mara looked and looked, but we couldn’t find a tour to go on.

When we came back this time, the first thing she said to us was that she was able to book everyone (who was here for her wedding) a tour in Parma to see how they make cheese. And not just any cheese. The world’s greatest cheese.

Because cheesemaking starts very early in the morning (around 5:00), we got up nice and early to be there to start our tour by 8:00. We did get to see the sunrise which was beautiful.

Since we were inside the factory while they were making the cheese, we got cool outfits to wear to protect our clothes. (Just kidding. The superhero costumes were to protect the cheese from us.)

The tour was great! We got to see most of the process.

We saw them testing the curd:

Mixing it

The head cheesemaker even let us taste it (for flavor and consistency).

We saw them remove the cheese from the giant cauldrons.

And move it to the mold.

We saw the room where the new cheese goes before it gets its salt bath.

We saw the salt baths,

And even got to flip a cheese wheel ourselves.

From there it was on to the aging room.

From there we got to see what they did with the leftovers.

The leftover curd, gets cooked again, and becomes ricotta cheese.

And the leftover whey is used for a variety of purposes. One of them is a local cure for gout.

That concluded our tour. At the end we were give delicious samples of cheese and the chance to buy some more to take home with us. We were also given some really great cheese knives.

From there we went into the center of Parma and looked at the city a bit before having lunch. They have a beautiful cathedral in Parma. And it was fun to look around.

Thank you Mara and Fabri for organizing a really wonderful day. It was fantastic!

UPDATE:
So many people have asked us questions about this tour that I asked Mara if she could help us with more specifics for anyone who wants to do a similar tour themselves. So, here’s the information from Mara.

Thank-you Mara!

The place we took the tour in Parma was the below:
C.P.L. -Via Pupiola, 15 – BAGANZOLINO (PR).

However one need first to make arrangements contacting the “consortium”, so they can schedule with you the date of the tour and the relative guide. The tours are free and there are also English speaking giudes. Tours are Monday through Friday and by 8.00 AM you need to report to the cheese place (so plan either to get up early or stay overnight in Parma:-). I was in touch with a very helpful lady named Cristiana, here is the email address: sezionepr [AT] parmigiano-reggiano.it

There are a few places that offer tours, so it might not be the same one we visited: once the date of the visit is finalized the consortium will advise you of all the details of the place.

If you need more information or help, let me know.

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A Day at the Lake

In order to celebrate a successful move into their new home, Mara and Fabrizio (Fabri) decided to spend a day at the lake. And, they took us, and their friend Dario, with them.

The lake (I can’t remember the name of it oops…) is beautiful.

There was also a resort on the shore of the lake that had its own swimming pool, restaurant, and other facilities. This is where we spent our day.

We swam.

And we did nothing.

A whole day of doing nothing (and I mean literally nothing. Both Jonathan and I forgot books, so we didn’t even read. We just laid there, enjoying the Italian countryside.)

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Milan, Italy: Didn’t Get To See The Last Supper

Exploring Milan with my Parents, Sister, and Grandma

Extremely disappointing point of the day: Having reserved tickets over a month ago on Expedia, my mom got confirmation that her tickets for seeing The Last Supper were confirmed.

However, whether it was the fault of Expedia or the travel company they hired, my parents and Grandma did not get to see Leonardo Da Vinci’s “The last Supper” while in Milan.

We had booking confirmations – 6 receipts, but the tour company had proof they had emailed Expedia (1 day after the tickets were booked and confirmed by Expedia) to say they were already full.

And so one of my grandma’s dreams has not been realized… seeing The Last Supper.

High point of the day: Finding Milan’s Best Gelato Shop

It’s called Chocolat, and you simply must go when in Milan.  Gelato is, of course, wonderful everywhere, and I don’t know what makes it even another level better at Chocolat, but I doubt we will ever be able to go to Milan again without us going to Chocolat.

(There was a lot more to this post about our day in Milan, but somehow it got deleted. Will return to write the rest in a while.)

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Bergamo, Italy

Bergamo is a big and beautiful old city on a hill overlooking a large section of Northern Italy.

It was built as part of the Venetian empire, defending against the… well, pretty much everyone. (French, Spanish, Germanic tribes, Milanese, etc.

Carrie and I really enjoyed our day in Bergamo when we were here in 2007 for our honeymoon. One of the images which stands out to me was being inside the church looking at the duomo, where there is a 14th century painting of the last supper that did have 14 people painted at the last supper, until one of them was painted out (sometime).

So going back to Bergamo this time, while here for Mara’s wedding, we had hoped to see the painting again.

But we got there too late and everything was pretty much closed.

Still, the architecture was beautiful to look at, and we enjoyed the time with Mara and Fabrizio, and getting to know Keith and Annmarie, who hosted Mara years ago when she was an exchange student in Wisconsin.

At the end of the night, you could see one of the old arches lit up in the colors of the Italian flag.

This year is the 150th anniversary of the unification of Italy, so it’s neat to be here this summer while various displays of Italian patriotism are being shown around the country.

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Interviewed again on James Martell’s Affiliate Radio Show

It’s an interesting road when you venture out to do something different than the status quo, or different than the norm.

James and Arlene Martell are people I have learned a lot from in my journey towards online affiliate income. They are definitely role models as a couple that works together in their business and life, and make the pieces of a complex picture work well together.

It’s quite fun to be asked by the people you admire if you would be willing to share your experiences and perspectives with them, and we got the opportunity to do that a couple weeks ago (from Italy) on James and Arlene’s WebmasterRadio.fm show (Affiliate Buzz) for affiliate marketers.

You can listen to the radio show (or download the audio and listen to it as an MP3 on your phone/player) from the link below.

http://jamesmartell.com/affiliate-buzz/affiliate-marketing-success-stories-world-travel/

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More on the traditional production of balsamic vinegar

True balsamic vinegar is made of one thing: cooked grape juice.

But, it takes a minimum of 12 years, and lots of love, to transform ordinary juice into delicious balsamic vinegar.

Labrussco grapes are used for the juice. Lambrusco is a grape native only to this region of Italy.

It is then poured into a battery of wooden barrels. There are 5 barrels of 5 different woods, and 5 different sizes. (The wood types include: oak, juniper, cherry, and other local woods.)

To prepare new barrels takes at least 2 days. They need to be thoroughly cleaned with soap, salt, and lots of warm water to remove all the tannins from the wood.

Then, after the grape juice has been cooked for 24 hours, it can be poured into the battery, filling each of the 5 barrels to the top.

The barrels are then left uncovered during the summer. They need hot summers and cold winters to become vinegar.

After an entire summer of resting, about ¼ of the volume of each barrel would have evaporated, concentrating the flavor.

During the cold winter, the vinegar can be moved from one barrel to the other. The smallest barrel is filled from the next smallest, and so on. This evenly distributes the flavors of each wood into the balsamic.

It takes 12 years to transform 100,000 liters of grape juice into just 10 liters of balsamic vinegar.

Not all vinegar is made from a blend of woods.

Sometimes a maker will make a reserve – a vinegar aged in only one type of wood. We were able to taste a reserve from juniper wood, and one from cherry. It was amazing to taste the difference!

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