Portland's Restaurant and Wine Bar - Phoenix

The dinner started with an icy flavored martini.

Portland's is a favorite stop of mine for a leasurely dinner before a play at Phoenix Theatre.  It is located on Central Avenue in Phoenix.  The Light Rail stops right in front of the restaurant, and also in front of Phoenix Theatre, which makes this a good choice for a night out. I prefer going on Saturday night to get the Fixed Price menu and a bottle of wine at a reduced price.  The fixed price meal includes an appetizer, main course, and a desert. Here is a sample of what was available on one of the nights.



Prosciutto-wrapped Asparagus
Prosciutto di parma with Dijon cream sauce



Add a nice bottle of wine.
This is not included with the "fixed price" but is normally
a reduced price and good value.

Wonderful Sterling Silver Angus Steak
with creamy au gratin potatoes & demi-glace.
Very very good.

Claire's flourless chocolate torte
Dense chocolate cake made with Guittard
chocolate served with strawbetty coulis

This will satisfy any and every chocolate craving.

Tiramisu
Light and creamy layers of mascarpone cheese
& espresso-soaked ladyfingers

A light dusting of chocolate on the top makes this a great finisher.

I recommend calling for reservations and asking for a window seat.  There is outdoor seating, so depending on the weather that is a great call also.

Portland's Restaurant and Wine Bar

Books and Plans for Paris Trip

I've finalized the plans for the twelve days in Paris.  I was finally able to design the master map that I wanted to build. The street map, complete with wonderful chocolate shops, cafes, secret gardens, and hidden passages and galleries.  I can now plan the path that we take from museum to museum to be able to take advantage of all that Paris has to offer.

I've used several books to find my "best places", as well as independent internet surfing.  Here is the list from my library. These are all Amazon affiliate links for me.

Rick Steves' Paris 2011 - Nicely organized walks, sites. Rick has great advice for making a trip awesome.

Rick Steves' France 2011 with map - I used this for the day trips that we are taking to some of the chateaux.

Knopf Guide: Paris (Knopf City Guides) - This is a great book to have once you return home too. It's beautifully illustrated. Even though it is small, it's a little heavy to carry on the trip.

 City Walks: Paris, Revised Edition: 50 Adventures on Foot - This is a little box of 50 cards...walks.  It is easy to take one of the cards with you as your leave your apartment.  The walks start and end at a Metro station.

Historic Paris Walks (Codogan Guides: Historic Walks S.) - Provides historical background on various areas. I used it to compliment the Versailles Gardens walks.

Frommer's Memorable Walks in Paris - I got some great ideas for the Marais district from this book.  These walks also start and stop at Metro stations.

The Patisseries of Paris: Chocolatiers, Tea Salons, Ice Cream Parlors, and more - This is the reference that I used when I marked my map so that I know where the closest chocolatier is located at any given moment.

The Authentic Bistros of Paris - This is my reference for the bistros and cafes.  As with the Patisseries book, this support my cause to sample the cuisine throughout the trip.

Markets of Paris: Food, Antiques, Artisanal Crafts, Books & More, with Restaurant Recommendations - We have an apartment during the trip, so we often eat a nice sized lunch at a cafe or bistro, and then shop the markets for fresh cheeses, meats, fruits, breads, wines...and of course, deserts.  Arms are loaded as we make our way back to the apartment to enjoy our at home meal.  Shoes off, we can enjoy the new tastes while we marvel at what we saw during the day.

These books are great references to use as you plan your trip, remember your trip, or just dream of the trip to come.

New Orleans - Street Music

The streets are filled with sounds all day long.  You can talk about this, but the best way is to click on a video and tap your toes along with the tunes!  Here is a sampling of what we saw as we walked through the French Quarter. Some of the videos may be in other posts...to add to the atmosphere.

Check all of them out.  The last one is my favorite.  I should have bought a CD...

Tempe Town Lake Regatta

Tempe Town Lake from in front of the future Boat House.

Enjoying the great weather at the lake. Son is in a regatta today, two races, so I brought the camera for some action shots.

The Mixed foursome race

Happy with their results (2nd place)

Team of 8, mixed.  They came in first in their division.
(1 out of 1!!)

Having fun learning something new.

He had a fun day!

Interested in rowing classes? Here is your connection (no affiliation).
Tempe Rowing classes

Electrical Power in Europe

I have an adaptor that I can use in France, but my next extended trip includes France, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, and England.  I have started the research to determine what I need to take with me so that I don't need to spend the time on my travel to get a converter.

I normally carry several electronic devices that I use on a regular basis: iPhone, small camera, and large camera.  I also take a small netbook so that I can archive my photos, blog, and connect to family at home.

I want to be able to balance the variety of plugs, making sure that I can go to the different countries, with the need to charge my electronics overnight.  I also need to consider space, since I will be traveling with only a carry-on bag and a backpack.  I also need to make sure that I will be able to plug my US plugs in...my laptop plug is three pronged.

These are my options. The pricing is very reasonable and I am going to purchase several so that I can take a limited time to recharge.

The links below are affiliate links. These are the ones that I found on Amazon.

New Orleans - Old street names

I liked these tiled street name markers.  A few were taken at various stops along the same street.  I wanted to post them all here so that I could look at them and pick a few that I wanted to print. The frame holds three.  Which three do you like the best?

Mississippi River - New Orleans

I am always drawn to the water. The river is low at this time of year, until the Spring thaws start to feed water in from the northern rivers.  There is a walkway along the river and it creates a nice place to bike, jog, and walk.

Wooden stairs lead down in to the water, or river's edge,
depending on the time of year and water flow.

This is looking west towards the center of the city
and the highrise hotels.

This is looking east towards what appears to be
an industrial area.

This is looking north, away from the river,
and back at the St Louis Cathedral.

This is directly across the river.  There appears to be
a nice long log laying in the sand as the perfect place
to stop and take in the scenary.

This shows how nice the walkway is, paved with bricks
and lit by tall lamps.

Birthday Picnic in Courtyard

Happy Birthday to our "Birthday Girl"!  We celebrated with her birthday lunch in the courtyard of Place D'Armes.  Baguettes, meats, cheeses and fruits, along with some yummy red wine created quite the feast. We pulled our resources and found towels for tablecloths, cups and glasses from the rooms. 

"Birthday Girl" gets to wear the special hat. 
Check out her hubby's expression.

Our Pinot Noir wine from "Pinot Evil".

Friends gather around the festive tables.

More than enough for all to enjoy.

This photo didn't work as well as I thought that it would.
I was trying to get me in with the group.

Inside Jackson Square - New Orleans

Jackson Square is a nice park area in front of St. Louis Cathedral.  It is lush and shady, with plenty of benches.  The iron work is beautiful and while most has been painted, some of the benches show a little wear and rust, adding to the charm of the park.

There is an entrance on each of the four sides
with gates and lamp posts.

Lamps light the way and make a beautiful scene at night.

There are fountains throughout the gardens.

St Louis Cathedral stands watch over the park.

Drinking fountains

A large fountain at the main entrance.
The banana bushes had some damage with the recent cold weather.

Benches are available throughout the park.

These trees had bright red berries.

Mardi Gras Decorations in French Quarter

Preparation for Mardi Gras begins as Christmas is winding down.  Twinkle lights and trees stay up, the colors change from red and green to purple, green and gold.  Every day brought new decorations to the balconies and storefronts.

Tree decorations shown in a storefront window

Balconies are dressed with ribbon, balls and twinkle lights

The "Christmas Tree" in the hotel lobby has been
changed to a "Mardi Gras Tree" in mid January.
It will stay that way through mid March.