Travel

Visiting Annecy [France]

Kristie Wells

Annecy is located on the Northern edge of Lac d’Annecy and is known as the Venice of France due to the channels running through the middle of the city. It is about 1/2 hour from Geneva and just over an hours drive from Chamonix-Mont Blanc, which made it a great candidate for a day trip.

December 2011 Road Trip

We spent quite a bit of time walking through the gardens and along the shoreline, soaking in the cool Winter breeze and being the good tourists we are, taking a gazillion ‘selfies’ on Lovers Bridge.

Annecy: Dec 2011

Annecy: Dec 2011

Annecy: Dec 2011

Annecy also offers great architectural monuments, and my favorite was the Palais de l’Isle, also called the “old prison”. It was built in 1132 in the centre of the Thiou canal. It started out as the primary residence of the Lord of Annecy and later became the county seat administrative headquarters, a courthouse, a mint, and finally a jail. It was classified as a historical monument in 1900, and today houses a local history museum.

Annecy: Dec 2011

Annecy: Dec 2011

While interesting to see during the day, the structure really comes to life at night and you can see why it is [one of] the most photographed building in all of France.

Annecy: Dec 2011

We toured the Cathédrale Saint-Pierre d’Annecy, Impérial Palace and the Basilique de la Visitation. Our last stop was the Château d’Annecy, the former home of the Counts of Geneva and the Dukes of Genevois-Nemoursand currently used as the Art and History Conservatory of Annecy and the Regional Office of the Alpine Lakes. It is perched atop a hill and offers lovely views of the lake, the town and surrounding areas.

Annecy: Dec 2011

 

Annecy offers just enough sight seeing to make for a great day trip from either Geneva or the Chamonix region. You can see more photos from our trip here.

Paris in December

Kristie Wells

Heuer and I are in Paris again for the Le Web conference, and this time we have chosen to rent an apartment located on the edge of the Marais. I have come to love this neighborhood and can’t imagine staying anywhere else now. So much to do here. So easy to get anywhere we need to be on the Metro.

The apartment was lovely, with a nice updated kitchen and good sized living area. The only down side was the loft bedroom has a fairly low roof. Like ridiculously low.

Paris: Dec 2011

It did give us a good chuckle, and while there was another bedroom on the main floor, the bed upstairs was larger and more comfortable, so we decided to deal with it. Happy to announce I only cracked my head on the roof twice during the week. Heuer won’t admit how many times he hit it.

This trip we were able to take in two new museums, the Centre Georges Pompidou:

Paris: Dec 2011

Paris: Dec 2011

Paris: Dec 2011

And the Musée d’Orsay, where the only photos allowed are on a platform where you can soak in the views of the city, which some will call art:

Paris: December 2011

Paris: December 2011

We of course ate our way through the city as usual, and nothing disappointed for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I just need to get better at writing the names down so I can remember them and/or offer recommendations.

You can see more photos of our trip to Paris here: Paris 2011 Set

We have decided to take an extra week this time to explore a bit more of this country and will be heading to Chamonix in the French Alps for some skiing [please snow!], Geneva and Annecy. Stay tuned!

Dusting off my passport.

Kristie Wells

I am not a worldly traveler. United States, yes. Mexico, yes. Canada, yes. Even some Central America. When it comes to getting over seas, I have failed miserably. I did get to Germany once (Dresden and Munich) when I spent two weeks over there for work, back in 2005. There were enough social activities scheduled during the conference that I got a decent glimpse of both cities, but I would love to get back and really explore.

I have had other opportunities to travel with friends (London, Paris, Italy), I just never pulled the trigger. This must change going forward. Living with travel regret, sucks.

So when the opportunity came up to travel to Israel for my new gig, I jumped at the chance. Of course, I spent the first five days in meetings (Tel Aviv and Herzliya), but on my last day there – I had the opportunity to play tourist. When asked for recommendations on what I should do with my day – every single person said ‘Jerusalem’. So I booked a tour.

365me

We visited the garden of Getsemane and Mt. Olive. Then we headed into the City of David where we spent most of the trip walking through the Armenian, Jewish and Moslem Quarters then went to the Western wall, Via Dolorosa, and finally the Church of the Holy Sepulchre Via Mt. Zion. The entire set can be found on Flickr.

I am not what some call ‘religious’, but I was moved. It was simply incredible to be surrounded by so many people who ‘believe’. To stand in a place that holds so much history. It was a wonderful opportunity to soak it all in.

I am glad I made it to Israel (hopefully the first of many trips). The people, the food, the culture, the history – truly wonderful. Israel is one to put on your travel list folks.