What They Ate

K is generally a healthy eater but not very adventurous. Her friends is a healthy, adventurous eater. Our first dinner was fondue. The best fondue I have ever had. It was rich and nutty. Maybe it was the perfect alpine setting that made it so good? The girls were a little silly that night after a long day of travel.

 We discovered kids menus in France. I don't know why I just found out about this on our last trip. The food is good-no chicken nuggets. The girl's choice was usually fish, often salmon. In Lyon we ate at two Paul Bocuse restaurants, Nord and Sud. Lunch was at Monoprix because the girls slept in-sushi, yogurt smoothies and lots of Little Schoolboy cookies. I intended to keep the cookie box to compare ingredients because they are so much better than the ones we buy here.  In Avignon we had Vietnamese and Thai food at K's request.

The girls ate lots of ice cream and gelato.  Usually chocolate.  I always had coffee flavor but I tried speculoos one time and it was great.

In Italy it was more fish and lots of pasta.   In Venice we had lunch at the Hotel Daneili for the wonderful view.  The food was great also.  Dinner was at Harry's Bar.  The girls loved it and I think the pasta was some of the best that we had.  The girls each had had a non alcoholic bellini.

We discovered many fun new drinks.  The girls had delicious fruit punch at the Splendido in Portofino.  We broke the bank with Spites at the Cipriani in Venice.  We also discovered a drink called "Diablo" on France.  It is kind of like a Shirley Temple but comes in different flavors.  The girls favorite was citron.

We had many memorable meals.

Sugary snacks in Isle Sur la Sorgue.

Followed by some dog petting

Fondue in Cogne, Italy

In France, the girls discovered some new drinks called "diablos."  They are kind of like a Shirley Temple but they come in different flavors, the girl's favorite was citron.   Having a diablo in our favorite courtyard in Avignon.

Sunday brunch at the Intercontinental Hotel in Monte Carlo

Our favorite place in Portofino-we ate here several times.  I loved how they have throws on the backs of the chairs in case it is chilly.  Nice touch.

Lunch at the Splendido in Portofino

St. Bernards and Cow Bells

Our next stop was the charming town of Mageve, France.  The most direct route there from Cogne is the Mont Blanc tunnel but I thought that sounded a little boring and claustrophobic so I decided to drive through the mountains instead.  The drive was a bit (a lot) harrowing.  We were on a road that was suspended on the side of the mountain, I had to do a lot of deep breathing.  The girls were watching a movie and oblivious to where we were.  The road briefly went through Switzerland and we went through the small town of Martigny so we stopped at the St. Bernard museum.  The girls loved it especially because they had some dogs they could play with.  From there it was onto Mageve.  When we arrived we opened the back food of our room and we welcomed by the sound of cowbells.  We were also welcomed with herbed water and cake.  I loved our charming alpine hotel especially since they drove us into town for dinner, I didn't realize how tired I was of driving until I got in the van and was able to enjoy the scenery.
The next day we had planned to take the cable car to the top of Mont Blanc but unfortunately it was closed because of rain.  We walked around Chamonix in the rain trying to find the Moncler store for a friend but it too was closed.  We had lunch in a cozy restaurant and continue on to Lyon.

Delivery of cake and herbed water on our patio