Chilly Vacations



Sometimes, I think I would like to stay at the Ice Hotel. Then I remember that I am wearing a long coat in my mildly cold office.

Still, it sounds so exotic! Intricately carved ice. Accomodations like igloos. Sleeping on top of reindeer skins. I could do it for one night, right?

Greg and I are not "beach people." Yes, I love St. George Island and I love taking daytrips to the beach. But I have no desire to lay on the beach for days, hot, sandy and sunburned. I would rather explore a new city or national park than lounge on an island somewhere in the Carribean.

But it wasn't until recently that I really contemplated the other extreme: cold vacations. I confess, I have never been skiing, and I probably never will, because I know my limitations. I shouldn't attempt things like aerial silks, souffles, and skiing. But I could be easily enticed to spend a long weekend in a lodge, curled up under heavy blankets, reading beside roaring fires, and drinking thick hot chocolate.

I would love to relax for a few days in a lodge, from the cutting edge Hotel Zhero  in Austria to the modern classic Hotel Jerome in Aspen, Colorado.

Three more things I want to do on cold vacations:

1. Reindeer Sledding in the Norwegian Lapland.

2. Snowshoeing in Vermont

3. Soak in Iceland's Blue Lagoon. The water is warm even in the winter when snow is falling!


Here's what I would pack to curl up with a book next to a roaring fireplace in any of these places:

Fireside Chic by lesliemcglothlin featuring chain jewelry

Madewell chunky cable knit sweater / J.Crew elastic waist pants / Sorel cuffed boots / Stella & Dot chain jewelry

My Travel Itch: February Edition



Photo: Vintage Suitcase available from Always Maybe Vintage

Travel Week continues!

Five Hotels Where I'm Longing to Stay:


Pavillon Des Lettres Each of the 26 rooms in this Paris hotel is designed around a famous writer.

The Halcyon I'm always longing to to back to Bath, England, where I studied abroad in college. This romantic and chic hotel would be the perfect place to stay.

Wythe Hotel This buzzy Brooklyn hotel has impeccable design and terrific views. I want to stay here the next time we go to New York.

Tierra Patagonia This is a dream. That is all.

Viceroy Palm Springs Could I plan a whole vacation in the desert? Maybe, if I could stay in a hotel that evokes Old Hollywood glam.



Five Museums/Exhibits I'd Love to Experience:


Museum of Natural History Celebrates Theodore Roosevelt This year-long memorial at the Museum of Natural History in New York celebrates Teddy's contributions to conservation.


Matisse Museum in Nice This museum dedicated to one of my favorite artists is housed in an 18th century French villa.

Butchart Gardens in Vancouver, BC  55 acres of gardens. 26 greenhouses!

Sound of Music Tour in Salzburg, Austria, might be the only film tour I care about doing.

The Hemingway Home I'd like to pay tribute to Papa H at this museum in his home in Key West. I don't think I'd have any trouble planning the rest of a vacation in the Keys!


Where are you longing to go?

Are You a Lake Person or an Ocean Person?

I was inspired by A Cup of Jo to make this week a travel-themed series. When you go on vacation, do you prefer to be by an ocean or a lake?



Until very recently, my upbringing in the panhandle of Florida and my utter lack of experience with lakes had made me biased against lakes. I have always loved the ocean. I love hunting for sand dollars amongst the shells on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico. I love the dramatic landscape of the rocky coast of Maine against the Atlantic at Two Lights State Park. I love the jawdropping views of the Pacific Ocean driving along the winding Highway 1 in California.

In my naivete, I thought that lakes were murky. Stagnant. Muddy. Most of the lakes I had visited had been small and man-made. One of my favorite authors, Shauna Niequist, often writes about summers spent on Lake Michigan, and through her luscious descriptions my mind began to open.

Then this summer, on our honeymoon, Greg and I spent a day hiking in Olympic National Park. We cobbled together several short hikes so that we would be able to take in the beaches, rainforest, and lake in one day.

We were advised at the Visitor Center that our easy hike through the temperate rainforest would end with a mile or so walking along the shore of Lake Quinault. I will never forget our first glimpses of the lake peeking through the trees. Gradually, our views grew bigger, the way watercolors seep across paper.

I was entranced. And my mind was changed! Lake Quinault was not murky, it was crystalline. It was not stagnant, but placid. Thinking about it more, it makes a lot of sense. I love the ocean for its sweeping views and closeness to nature, not for boardwalks or high-rise condos. A beautiful lake can offer the same introspection. And I've never been one for surfing (or swimming out far, for that matter) or lying on a beach towel for days. Many lakes are surrounded by good hiking and towns to explore, which are both things Greg and I are interested in when we plan vacations.

Now, at my desk in the middle of February, I'm dreaming of a lake vacation.

My best friend Julie's family vacations near this lake in Lugano, Switzerland. Doesn't it look like a dream?

What about you? Are you a lake person or an ocean person? (Or both?)

Photo of Lake Quinault taken by Greg.

The Inn at Langley

Someday, I will post more about our honeymoon itinerary, which included Portland, Seattle, and the Puget Sound. But with Valentine's Day just around the corner, I want to tell you about what is surely one of the most romantic places in the world:

Situated just off of Washington in the Puget Sound, The Inn at Langley is a true sanctuary on Whidbey Island. With views of the Saratoga Passage, a James Beard Award-nominated chef, and all that Whidbey Island has to offer at its fingertips, The Inn at Langley is a kind of paradise.

Every one of the inn's guest rooms has a porch with 180 degree views of the Saratoga Passage. The views are staggeringly different at high and low tides. Unlike most hotel balconies, the porches at the Inn at Langley are actually spacious enough for two people to enjoy. It's perfect for sipping coffee or a glass of wine, or for reading a book while listening to the water.

The rooms are sumptuously comfortable. They include wood-burning fireplaces, which are enjoyable year-round in the Puget Sound. The inn has a small library of books and movies to bring back to your room, and a wine cellar showcasing the best of the Pacific Northwest. The decor, like the view, is placid and serene. Even the bathtub overlooks the water. 

On our first night, we enjoyed a six-course dinner at the inn's restaurant. Many of the herbs and greens were grown right in the restaurant's beautifully landscaped garden. Even the flowers on the table were from the garden. The restaurant features an open kitchen, so we could watch as Chef Matt Costello prepared each imaginative course. One of the most memorable courses that night was a roasted duck breast with a pine and cherry sauce. After hiking the previous day in Olympic National Forest, the pine sauce filled our mouths with the fragrant taste of the Northwest.

Each course was paired beautifully with a wine. While the menu said six courses, the whole evening was more like eight or nine, because the chef kept sending out playful little bites, such as a chocolate chip cookie cotton candy before dessert.

One of the most brilliant moments came when the crab course was served. There had been two candles sitting on our table. As the waiter came around, he told us that one of them was not actually a candle, but rather coconut oil that had been burning. He extinguished the flame and poured the toasted coconut oil over our plates. Incredible!

The Inn at Langley is situated in the heart of the town of Langley, which has a few streets of boutiques and restaurants. The residents could not be friendler nor the town more quaint. Whidbey Island is small, so it is easy to get around and explore. We drove about an hour and a half to Anacortes to catch a whale-watching tour. We ate lunch on the Greenbank Farm at Whidbey Pies Cafe where we savored the regional specialty of loganberry pie.

On our last day, we went for a hike at Ebey's Landing, a national historical preserve. We forgot our camera, but I can assure your imagination that there is nothing more breathtaking than a prairie that is along the ocean.



Make sure to leave enough time to just enjoy the inn. Go for strolls on the beach. Greg got close enough to a heron to snap this picture as it took flight.

 

  

We will certainly come back here again and again for special anniversaries. We were lucky to be here during June, which is the peak of whale-watching season, but I would like to experience it in the winter months, too. The Inn at Langley is a retreat for all the senses.