The Brown Dog Deli on Broad Street and the Mister's News

How do I judge a restaurant?  Well, I am still thinking about eating this incredible Tempeh Reuben three days after the fact....

Okay.  I agree.  It looks like an ordinary sandwich.  Tempeh, sauerkraut, baby swiss with thousand island dressing on toasted rye bread.  OMG!  And, I don't say that very often.  This place has it going on!

In our street wandering, house searching, gelato tasting, lazy days of summer, we were lucky enough to wander in here.  It's quirky.  It's different.  It's blue.

It has the menu on the wall.  And, that menu includes some pretty decent vegan and vegetarian choices.  Smiling!  The mister ordered a French Onion Grilled Cheese.  Certified angus roast beef, caramelized onions, Gruyere, provolone, and baby swiss on sourdough with homemade au jus.

What am I thinking right this second?  I am thinking that I am going to be downtown tomorrow and if I time things just right, I may be able to slip in there and eat another Tempeh Reuben!

The Brown Dog Deli is located on Broad Street and I know that you are already feeling the urge to check this place out.  You can tell them I sent you but, I will probably already be there :)

We just got back from the airport at Myrtle Beach and the house is a buzz with goofy teen-agers and we wouldn't want it any other way.  It's about time to head them to the pool, though, because we are getting loud.

OOOOOHHHHHH!  And, how could I forget to mention the mister's big news?  He is working downtown part-time and loving it already!  Can you guess what he is doing?  I'll tell you more later!

Hope you are enjoying a fantastic afternoon!  Happy Tuesday from Charleston Treasures!

Florence, Naples and the Isle of Capri

Buongiorno!  I have survived the week-end and am finally sleeping on a semi-normal schedule.  What a jolt back to reality!  Life in America versus life in Italy....faster, louder, busier, scheduled.  But, we are gradually getting back into routine.  However, our stack of travel books is never out of eye-sight...

Traveling is an addiction.  The desire to see all and know more is strong with us. I really wanted to share our two day trips with you before I get back to blogging about my number one city, Charleston. 
  
We knew we would leave Rome.  Our hearts are always tied to the adventure.  We wanted to see more, well, everything and of course, that isn't possible.  But, with Rome's great train system, some outside-of-the-city travel was very doable. 

After two days of traipsing around Rome, we bought train tickets to Florence.  We were in search of a tiny church...Santa Margherita de'Cerchi.  

This humble setting was the stage for so many historical events.  It was the site of the marriage of Dante to his bride and it also contains the tomb of Beatrice Portinari, Dante's great love and the subject of so many of his writings.

Unfortunately, the street signs of Florence are fairly non-existent and those that do exist did not happen to be on our map.  UGH!  After strolling, walking, fuming and getting irritated, I fired up my cell phone and google maps did the trick!  Needless to say, I am not looking forward to this month's cell bill but we found it.

Santa Margherita de'Cerchi is not a free standing, cathedral style church.  It is simple, built into a long stretch of unadorned buildings on a tiny back street. We finally found what we were looking for.  As you can see from the photos, it is very unassuming, lowly.  And, the inside is the same...

Beside the tomb of Beatrice sets a small woven basket.  She accepts prayers for all those in need of relationship healing....because of the Dante's unrequited love for her??  It was a beautiful, calming spot in our busy adventure.

Also, in Florence, we discovered this amazing structure~

The "Old Palace" still fulfills its original role as town hall in Palazzo Vecchio.  Pretty incredible!  And, we spent an hour wandering through the Baptistry...
 

This dome by Brunelleschi was finished in 1463 and it was the largest of its time to be built without scaffolding.  No, thanks!  But, it was one of the most amazing sites of our trip....layers upon layers of angels.

We adore Florence and can see ourselves returning one day....but, after hours of working our way through the extremely narrow streets, it was back on the train to Rome.  Only to get back on the trains a few days later.....to this spot~

 Naples.  We had a long, dirty, two mile hike from the train station to the port.  I have to admit I was grumbling a bit on this one.  Naples is not a place that I would prefer to return but it most definitely was a means to an end.  That end being one of the most beautiful slices of heaven on Earth....the Isle of Capri.  You can actually see one of the hydro-foil boats we hopped on to get to this island.

After the hydro-foil, we hopped on this and set off to explore...

From here on out, you get to see the island through photos.  No amount of describing on my part can share with you it's beauty.

I could feel my brain screen-shotting every vista throughout the day.  I wanted to bring it all home with me.  A memory to relive long after departure.  It was beautiful and everything that I had imagined.  I have to admit that the mister gave me a shove on this one and I will be grateful for a long, long time.  I was hesitant to travel through three different parts of Italy in a single day but the mister knew how I had longed to visit this paradise.  Gratitude!!

We shared a fabulous meal on top of the island...again, screen-shotting the beauty in my head.  And, thanks to our waiter from Sri-Lanka for snapping this picture!

With another cup of fresh cherries, we boarded the hydro-foil to take us back to the train so, we could get onto the subway and eventually work our way back to our 9th century monastery to crash for the evening.  Did I mention that their fresh cherries were totally amazing?

  
Our day-trips were memorable and now, we are back in our current realities doing homework, creating our careers, and the mister is up and getting dressed for his first day of tour-guiding and carriage driving in our most favorite city.  

If you are out and about and happen to see him laughing with a bunch of tourists from the high seat of a carriage, give him a wave.  He will appreciate it!  Hope you are set up for a fantastic week.  

Happy Monday from Charleston Treasures!!

New York City and Rome

My love for traveling began long ago.  In high school.  My French teacher, Madame Beafore, was incredible and from her I learned that the world was very vast, that people had their own unique customs and cultures and that it was our responsibility to reach out, to push ourselves out of our comfort zones, to discover these people, and to see as much of this great world as possible.  For those four years and Madame Beafore, I am eternally grateful.

I am also grateful that my mister shares my pioneer spirit and my desire to see the world.  We love to travel, to search, to seek.  I am also lucky that he tends to be on the patient side.  When I dig my heels in and refuse to budge another step, he grabs my hand and gently pulls me along.  I love traveling but I also love my comfort zones!

I bought us matching backpacks years ago and we still pull them out before every trip.  What more do you really need to see the world?  A journal, good pens, passports, wallets, a camera, glasses, sunglasses, fresh fruit, dried fruit, adapters, some plantain chips and a makeup bag....

This trip began in New York City.  We love NYC!  We love the energy, the craziness, the shows, the people. 

Just one quick night in the big apple and we walked and talked and came back to each other.  We have always used traveling to ignite, to reunite, and to look forward.  We do lead busy lives and walking away from those lives for just a bit gives us the chance to remember why we fell into each other lives to begin with.  Kind of sounds a bit crazy but it works for us.  Mamma Mia works for us, too!  The show was fantastic!

New York City led us to JFK to board a plane to Dusseldorf, Germany and on to Rome.  I have a couple hundred pictures from this trip so, this post will be mostly photos from here on out. We toured more churches and saw more Holy Ground than I believe we have on any other trip...

With so many beautiful churches and ancient buildings to visit comes many incredible painted ceilings...

We also had the chance to fall in love with every outdoor market that we passed.  Flowers, fresh fruits, vegetables, eggs.....a city after my own heart!

 

We also hit the major tourist "hotspots"...

Vatican and St. Peter's Basilica

The Colosseum

The Pantheon

Palatine

Arch of Constantine

The wine and food and bread and cheese were all out-of-this-world fabulous!  We tried to sample it all.....

Gnocchi and Spinach Ravioli

Insalata Mista (Salad with tuna)

Lasagna with and without meat

Grilled Vegetable Risotto

Sliced Beef with Balsamic Glaze and Potatoes~Grilled Vegetables and Pasta with Cream and Black Pepper

I ate olives by the bowl full!

And, started every meal with Bruschetta...

As you can see, we did major amounts of eating.  I have no pictures of the incredible pizza or gelato that we consumed....probably because my hands were usually full by the time I thought about photos!!  However, I now have an extreme gelato addiction!

Readers have asked, "Why post about traveling outside of Charleston?"  The fact is that this blog is a record of some of my most interesting experiences and sometimes, those experiences are not in Charleston!  

I love to share meals,  interesting books and fantastic places to go and every once in a while, I discover things outside of our own great city!  

Check back tomorrow because I want to share our day trips to Florence, Naples and the Isle of Capri with you.  Today, though, I am heading into my favorite city~Charleston, of course!  Hope you are gearing up for a GREAT week-end.  

Happy Friday from Charleston Treasures!