So due to a technical glitch where I couldn’t manage to sync all my photos from my phone to my PC, this posting is even later than my typically belated ones. But with a bit of extra time these days at home with the Corona Lockdown, I finally dove in and got this done (whew!).
It seems like forever ago, but I still feel that I am carrying a few extra pounds from the trip. Being the holiday season with no real responsibilities or things to be done aside from entertaining the boys, we ate a lot. We had a lot of cooks in the kitchen (or the grill) whipping up everything from steaks to pancakes, meatballs, soups, and even fondue. Even when we did leave the house, we continued to eat: amazing Mexican at Condessa, Tom’s Dim Sum (2x), Prime Rib at Longwood Gardens, Reading Terminal, Annie’s Pretzels, YangMing (it was takeout, which means we ordered more than was physically possible for any humans to eat), and that was all before getting to New York City. It was great to have time to spend with the family, keeping up with important traditions like lighting the Channukah Candles and going to see the latest Star Wars on Christmas Day while creating new ones — I think fondue will definitely be part of our holiday rituals now.
NYC with the boys was as full on as ever, even with my parents over to help. Chika and I did manage to get out for a night to have some great sushi, drinks, and even dessert at Momofuku’s (interesting, but overrated). Probably the biggest moment of adventure on the trip was when we boarded the plane and found other people were sitting in our seats. After 10 minutes of anxious wondering, we finally got the word that the whole family had been upgraded to business class!!! Kids now think this is the way it should always be. I should only hope our luck continues for 2020!
A friend from work had shared his new family holiday model of renting a big Airbnb in a city and chilling. So when it came to deciding what to do on this years family trip, which included all the grandparents, it seemed that this would be good solution. We started working on Rome: good weather, good food, some good cultural activities for the boys. But as we had all been to Rome, we decided to go a bit further and added a few days in Naples on the trip, to visit Pompeii and of course to eat the best pizza in the world.
The planning team sprung into action, and we quickly had sorted out our flights and major accommodations. We included a few days in Berlin to get everyone settled in and get over jetlag. After a few relaxing days (with plenty of good German bakeries and an exciting Georgian restaurant extravaganza) we were finally off on our travels.
Everything was smooth — all our bags managed to pass regulation and we made it through to Naples without much incident. There was the arrival at our rented apartment in a dark back alley of Naples late in the evening without being able to get in touch with the owner, but finally at the last second they appeared and we were off to our flat — at the top of 3 flights of narrow stairs. But the place was nice a fresh, with a great little terrace with view out to the harbour. The boys were tired from the travel, so I went with the parents on a walk to find some pizza and beer to consummate our arrival. The next morning, Chika, Yukie and I went on a breakfast run. Surprisingly, the culture is more to eat in and enjoy a pastry at a counter than to bring home, but eventually after an hour we found a place a few blocks from our flat with a nice selection of goodies. We also came to the realization that the dingy alley we arrived in was in fact blocks away from the central arteries in our area of Naples.
We decided to take the bus to Pompeii (planes, trains, automobiles, and buses!) as it was directly around the corner from our flat. It turned out to be an easy journey even with the Napoli drivers, and without much hassle arrived at Pompeii. We did attempt to hire a guide, but they kept us waiting until a big enough group appeared to eventually we gave up and went on our own with a few audio guides. It was a beautiful day exploring the ruins, and a great experience for the boys to see the real ruins.
We had booked a seafood restaurant for dinner, but on the way there we realized that traffic in Naples was not going to cooperate — not only could we not get a cab, but the journey to the restaurant was going to be longer than expected. Fortunately, we had scouted some places the night before and was able to get a table for a very nice meal and the first of many pasta carbonaras for Kai (he is now our official connoisseur for pasta carbonara and has acquired a taste for pepper in the dish).
The next day we made the trip to Rome after a morning excursion to Santa Lucia. While the train ride was an express trip of a little over an our, we decided to add some extra adventures of travelling to and from the trains by metro. Who needs a gym when you have stairs and luggage right? We found that our flat in Rome was right in the middle of everything, just a few hundred meters from the Spanish Steps. For the dinner the 1st evening we traveled all of 10 meters across the street to one of apartment hosts recommendations. An excellent meal, but the pasta carbonara was a bit too spicy for Teo but we were able to switch for a pasta pomodoro at the table. On a separate food note: there is an amazing supply of ice cream in Rome. You really cannot go more than 2 blocks without some sort of cold cream on offer. While the boys like the store next door with the blue smurf ice cream with marshmallows, I liked Giolitti’s classic fares (the oldest shop in Rome) the best even if it was quite overcrowded.
We spend the next days exploring Rome — historical sites like the Colosseum, parks, and of course lots of food. At least for one night, Chika and I managed to sneak out and enjoyed some drinks at the Jerry Thomas Speakeasy which is on the top 50 bars in the world list (and from our experience definitely worthy).
All in all, was a great way to spend time as a family together. Our lucky boys had full on attention, and it was great to have some extra support in keeping us all together in the big cities. Thanks to mom and dad to helping make it all happen.
Spring holidays. In 2017 we went to south to Italy. In 2018 we went West to France. So the obvious logical step was to head East. We had been to Vienna twice — once before Kai was born with my parents, and later when Kai was still an infant with Yukie. As it turns out being late in planning, the availability of apartments wasn’t so great but then discovered that an hour further in Bratislava (the capital city of Slovakia) were some good properties available with Hilton points which I never seen to able to spend anywhere. It was worth exploring, and being so close to Vienna we could always use it as a base.
It was about 5-6 hours drive, so we decided to stop in Salzburg on the way. As we had visited before, I decided to explore some a new destination, Schloss Hellbrunn. Actually when searching TripAdvisor a business school classmate had posted about the “trick fountains” as a must see. I was curious how could a fountain be that exciting. We were not disappointed. It turns out the Archbishop whose summer estate it was had a great sense of humor — in various areas of the garden he had hidden spraying jets and would spring them on unsuspecting guests. On a perfect Spring day, these were delightful — the whole family enjoyed immensely. In addition, I highly recommend the restaurant.
On to Bratislava. There were a number of accidents which showed up on our navigation, leading to some extensive detours. Over all, we missed many hours of traffic jams but did arrive around 8pm to our hotel. They had upgraded one of our rooms to a suite, which was great for ordering in room service. The next morning we enjoyed a great breakfast buffet (also comped by the hotel) and headed up to Devin Castle, with origins over 1000 years old. Amazing outpost with great views of the Danube. After a quick stop at an petting zoo, we headed into the old town. The biggest problem we found in the old town was deciding what to eat — there were multiple Japanese restaurants (one specializing in Kobe steak), wine bars, Scandinavian, and of course Slovakian. And there were more ice cream stores than in any other area I have ever seen in my life (I am being serious). We spend the rest of the afternoon leisurely eating before heading back for some swimming at the hotel.
The next morning we debated what to do next — do we head back to Berlin via Krakow or Prague, stay another night, move on to Vienna. In the end of the day we decided to pack up and head to Vienna and then decide from there. We ordered the best Kaiserschmarrn on the planet at the Imperial Hotel. The food there was also quite nice. Afterwards we spent some hours walking the innercity of Vienna before it was time to head home.
After trying all the directions, it is hard to say which is best. All of them have great things to do and eat. I am happy to return to any of them again.
Even though he has only turned 6, Teo has already started to define his own sense of style. While we may have had some slight wavering along the way, Teo set in motion a fantastic celebration at Berlin’s Legoland Disovery Center. Chika and I weren’t exactly sure what we would do or how we would manage 9 children for 3 hours, but at least we knew that there was only one exit which was watched so the worse case scenarios were limited. It turns out we had nothing to fear. We had a great host who was full of spirit and kicked of party from the very first moment. Of course there was food and drink and cake and present openings, but then we also had a quick model building exercise. All in all we managed to kill the 1st hour without too much fuss. Over the next 2 hours, I must have ridden the Drachenbahn (Dragon Train) at least five times, taken kids to the bathroom 3 times (not too bad overall), and refused buying them additional candy on top of the cakes more time than I can recount. But we safely survived, the parents who had 3 hours were extremely satisfied, and I think Teo had his best birthday yet. Mission accomplished and time to rest at least until Kai’s birthday in October.
A biz trip turned into a family trip turned into Xmas and New Years in Japan. After some chaotic travel (my connected flight via Frankfurt was cancelled, rescheduled, delayed), I did make my flight to Tokyo.
Of course food is always a core part of the experience, and shortly after arriving we were off to a “catch your dinner” restaurant with our friends Mark and Debbie. Kai nailed the first catch (a red snapper, which we had sashimi and grilled), while Teo caught some eel, shrimp and other fish. The rest of us enjoyed the catch, and enjoyed some tasty Japanese beers.
The next day, the boys and I went to visit my college classmate Wes Heiser (whom is now back to Japan after many trips around the world and a long stint in Singapore) who had moved outside to Tokyo to Fujino (halfway to Mt. Fuji). It was a different kind of living from Tokyo (where six of us were sharing a < 30sqm studio) — wood burning fires (powered by wood — see Kai with the axe), gardens and mushroom farms, plus some friendly cats. We managed to attend two mochi festivals on the 2 days, plus a relaxing onsen (hot spring bath) by the river. All-in-all, was great to catch up with Wes and the family, have some alternative to city life for a bit, plus a chance for papa to catch up with the boys he hasn’t seen for a few weeks.
Over the next days we celebrated Xmas, had a reunion with Japanese friends from New York City 25 years ago, went to play giant Pokemon video games (2x), went on a few bakery runs (I really loved Transparente in NakaMeguro), and had all-you-can-eat dim sum with Mark and Debbie. Oh, and did I mention an epic date night/birthday dinner at the Conrad hotel from Chika.Â
It also seems to be a recurring pattern to run into friends from around the world in Japan. We had a great time catching up with Remy and Mariko and kids. Perhaps a bit too much fun after Remy and I went out too late to shabu shabu, jazz clubs and bars where someone missed their train, came back with me to the flat at 3am, accidentally switched on the light, and you kind of get the picture (but we did discover a late night food markethall which is now once of my favorite places in Tokyo).Â
I could be happy with my family anywhere in the world for the holidays, but this was an extra special treat.
Pokemon Masters
1st Catch
Our Super Fisherman
More catch!
Lumberjack Kai!
We found this caterpillar in the log. Apparently tasty when fried!
Sometimes the fates blow the wind in your sails, and this year it brought us back to the USA. It was all the usual subjects: Yardley, Philadelphia, Atlantic City (extra special thanks to Mike and Mel for offering their penthouse condo at 9600!), New York, and Bryn Mawr. And all the core team was present: Grandma, Pop Pop, Uncle Mike, Aunt Mel, Cousins Sydney and William. But we had some special appearances with Paula & Allan, Lenny and Rose, cousins Jeff, Oliver, Sharon, Michelle, Joel, Barry, Judy, Marsha (and even a PDS classmate I hadn’t seen in 30 years). And also got to visit Allan & Alaina in Phila plus Kevin, Joe, Cat, Dave and newcomer Oliver in NYC (and Anri & Yass via NJ Transit delivery service). From people menu perspective, we dined extravagantly. On the food menu we did that as well. There were steaks: White House Steaks, Sacco’s steaks, steak steaks, porterhouse steaks. There was dim sum (both New York and Northeast Phila). There was seafood: lobsters, scallops, shrimp, and salmon. Of course there was sushi — both of the every day variety and the Michelin star variety (thanks KC!). There were cakes: full doses of Casel’s sticky buns, Sydney and Grandmom’s homemade delights, and an epic Japanese crepe/creme/fruit cake from Anri & Yass. There was ice and ice cream (although the portions were so insane — the kids size was basically 3 scoops in Germany). And there were a few drinks. Gin featured quite prominently on the trip. As did sake (especially at the Double Knot). All rounded out with a Kettle One gibson at Tomatoes towards the end. There was beach (aka ocean) and pool basically every day. Even when it rained. Between Teo going floatee free and Kai wanting to jump in the surf, I barely sat 10 minutes on the beach.
Beyond family, friends, food, and beach and pool there wasn’t much more. And there didn’t need to be. I am ready to go again.
Like usual, when there is a big occasion the Wolfson clan begins planning in advance. It was mom and dad’s 50th wedding anniversary, which meant that it was an all-hands-on deck affair, which means planning around school holidays, doctor’s rotation schedules, and seasonal context (the warmer the better). Running through all the permutations, we decided that the Club Med Sandpiper Bay in Southern Florida in October was a good fit. Good mix of activities for kids and adults, functional transportation logistics (there was even direct flights from Berlin to Miami), and then of course there was the unlimited food and drinks which came along with it.
While planning was good — we had locked down everything in February — the universe wasn’t always cooperating. A Hurricane Irma was heading to Florida in late August, which could have wiped out the whole resort. Luckily things moved further west and we never really noticed much impact. Around the same time Air Berlin (our carrier to Miami) filed for insolvency. What made matters even worse is that given that the whole of Berlin was off on school break that week, the remaining flights were scarce and extremely expensive. To hedge our bets, I cashed in the bulk of my United Miles but still could only get flights from Munich. While it was definitely an unpleasant episode to lose our flights, at least we were able to add on a few extra days of holiday in Miami and have a chance to visit Uncle Lenny and Aunt Rose.
When the trip finally came, it seemed that all the bad luck had passed. We had a fantastic time with relatively smooth travels, pleasant weather, lot of eating (maybe too much), and quality time to spend together.
While it has only been a couple of months, I feel I am ready for round 2!
So it may be a bit presumptuous to start off with Part 1, but since we had such a great time on this Italy trip I can undoubtedly state we will be back for sure. It was Easter break holiday for schools and since we had already planned major long haul trips to Japan in summer and USA in fall we therefore decided to try an extended driving trip. Chika drove down with the boy on the Wednesday evening and then on Friday morning we drove to Lake Como. Our trip over took us through the mountain passes, what Chika then coined the “spaghetti” roads which has so many turnbacks, everyone but me had was getting carsick. On the bright side, the alps were gorgeous, the sun was shining, and the boys fell asleep allowing us to make the whole trip non-stop. We arrived late afternoon at our accommodation (up another winding road off the lake, but only 5 minutes off the main road). The view of the lake and the mountains was fabulous. We had a simple 2 bedroom apartment — it worked out great to allow the boys to have their own room, but we all could get together for nice breakfasts on the terrace with views of the lake.
On the second day. we went to see our friend Manu who lives close to Como center, and stopped on the way at a park in Lenno where the boys fell in love with the dandelions. After meeting up in the city, we had great meal at a lovely restaurant on a quiet square with some of the best tiramisu we’ve ever had.
On the last day, we decided to stop at Villa del Balbianello. We even took a short boat ride there to at least get a short time on the lake itself. Amazing garden and house developed by a cardinal in the 17th century. Will need to go back for the full tour. Afterwards we ended up skipping the tourist pizza and went straight to La Fabbrica Del Gelato for a different lunch. Chika and Kai even had seconds after their doubles (and then Teo I think stole most of Chika’s).
Finally, it was time to drive home. After crossing the mountain passes, the weather went from 24C and sunny to 2C and snowing! On top of it, I had wanted to wait to Germany to get more gas and it seems there aren’t so many stations along the highway as in the US. By the time we reached the station it had been registering 0KM left for the last 10km. Chika was not so amused, but we made it home safe and sound. It’s less than 24 hours, but I am ready to go back again!
This year I was able to enjoy Wiesn (or Oktoberfest at the rest of the world calls it) with friends, family, and co-workers. It’s a great adventure, especially when not taken overly seriously.
Today was a great milestone for our family — our first child on the first day of first grade. The principal and master of ceremonies provided a few anecdotes in the introduction, including new things can be both exciting and scary at the same time (especially when she mentioned that Kai will be in the graduating class of 2029!). Here is to new adventures!
