Europe 2019
Dublin, Barcelona, and Florence
2019
Planning the Trip
Another European adventure in the books! For this trip, Nick picked Ireland, I picked Barcelona, and we both wanted to go back to Italy...for the food of course! We definitely learned a lot from our last trip (check out that post here) and we were ready to tackle this one head on. We still followed the same plan for booking flights, AirBnBs, and food, but got a little more adventurous with our excursions and had the best time! The only obstacle that I faced was packing...we were traveling to 3 different climate zones and Nick only let me take one bag and one carry on. I definitely did not meet the weight requirements.
Dublin< Ireland, and Northern Ireland
On this trip, we drank a lot of Guinness and ate a lot of fish and chips. One of the perks of visiting Ireland is that if you take an excursion to Northern Ireland are you are knocking out two countries in one trip! In Dublin, we stayed at this Airbnb and it was the perfect location. It was just a few blocks from Temple Bar street, which is the happenin' place in Dublin and right across the street from the River Liffey. We visited in early June, but it was still quite cold so make sure you pack layers that you can peel off throughout the day and wear on your other stops.
We went on a couple of excursions during this trip and the one to Northern Ireland and Belfast was one of the best. We took the black cab tour with a native Belfast resident and we drove around the city, stopping along the way to hear about the city's long and storeyed history. Another excursion we did was to the Gaint's Causeway, which was so fun. You can check me out in the picture above gingerly crossing the rope bridge from one spot to the next.
Barcelona, Spain
Barcelona is one of my favorite destinations because it is a mix of a beach town and city life. And the food is amazing! The weather was the perfect temperature in early June where you could hit the beach during the day and maybe grab a light cardigan or jacket in the evenings. We stayed in this Airbnb and it was the perfect distance to all of the shops, the beach, and great restaurants. It even had a patio that looked out over the city. Each afternoon, we bought a bottle of wine and spent time on the patio until making our way back out for dinner.
One of the biggest selling features for this city is the food. A friend recommended checking out the La Boqueria and I feel like we went there almost once a day. You could find vendors for everything from eggs and candy to seafood and meat. The locals would use the market for grocery shopping, but we used it for lunch and dinner. We sampled everything!
For all of the other meals, I use the Yelp app for everything. I looked up the highest rated places and that's where we went. It did not lead us astray a single time! I definitely recommend La Alcoba Azul, Rosa Negra, and La Pepita.
Florence, Italy
The last stop on our trip was Florence, Italy. In my opinion, I enjoyed Florence better than Rome because you still got to experience the culture and cuisine, but the city felt smaller and less touristy. For our excursions, we visited places outside of the city and we got to see a lot of the Italian countryside complete with Pisa, and vineyard, and a Vespa ride through the countryside (which was a highlight of the trip).
We stayed at this Airbnb, which was right down the street from the Boboli Gardens and next to all the shopping and food you could ever want. In fact, it was right next door to a quaint wine shop with some of the best charcuterie we had all trip! For lunches, I would recommend the sandwiches from Panini Toscani and All'Antico Vinaio. I preferred the first one, but Nick loved the second. For dinners, I would also suggest Ditta Artigianale, Trattoria La Casalinga, and Trattoria Da Benvento (all found via ratings and reviews on the Yelp app).
Ponte Vecchio
Piazza in Florence
The Duomo in Florence
Italian Excursions
Cooking Class and Market Tour
There are 3 things that I would definitely recommend doing while visiting Florence. One is attending the pasta-making class that we booked here. We started the day at a market in Florence, tasting each ingredient we bought as our guide walked us through the history of each seller and of the food we were about to make.
We then took a bus to one of the most picturesque farmhouses I have ever seen! There, the guide, a professionally trained chef, and Carmella, the quintessential Italian grandmother, walked us through the entire process of our 3-course meal from start to finish. There was plenty of wine to go around and we ate the Italian way: taking our time and savoring each dish. Afterward, they even emailed us the recipes for all of the dishes. This was one of my most memorable excursions from all of the trips we have taken!
This was the only excursion that we didn't pre-book and was a spur of the moment, and I am so glad we did it! It was a definite James Bond moment as we were cruising through the hills of Florence and past the vineyards of Tuscany. We each got our own bike, which I definitely recommend, and spent about 30 minutes with the guides learning how to drive. After that, we headed out on the roads!
We stopped at a few locations on the way and actually ended up at the same farmhouse from the cooking class for happy hour appetizers and some wine (not too much though...we were driving!). This was a great way to spend an afternoon and we had such a good time.
If you do anything while you are in Florence, you NEED to do the Cinque Terre day trip. These 5 fishing cities nestled into the coastline are some of the most colorful and amazing houses I have ever seen. There is a fair amount of walking on this one, so make sure to bring comfortable shoes for sure.
You start the day with a train ride to the first city and walk all the way around with the help of your guide. The train also takes you to the second city, but from here you can choose to do the hike or take the shuttle to the next stop. If you are able, definitely do the hike. The hike is around 2 miles, but the views are worth it. Plus, at the next city, you can reward yourself with a dip in the ocean and some amazing gelato. Once you reach the last city, you can take the boat all the way to where you started. The only regret I had from this trip is not bringing a million outfits for all of the great photo opts!
