Our Hawaiian Vacation

I guess it’s finally time to share our trip to Hawaii. It’s been almost a year. 

We got back from Hawaii at the end of January 2020. What would be the first confirmed case of coronavirus in Hawaii was brought by a tourist who arrived in Maui the day we left. People were wearing masks in the airport, but we didn’t really think too much about it. We were riding high from our vacation and blissfully unaware of what 2020 had in store for us. 

Besides, we were a little distracted. Once our plane landed in Baltimore, we had a lot to do. While we were on vacation, we had terminated our lease and found a house in a different state. Oh and that lease we terminated ended 13 days later, and not a single thing in our apartment was packed. I don’t know why we keep planning trips close to big moves, but our honeymoon was the same way. Moved from Durham to Charlotte, and 15 days later, we were off to Croatia. 

I never thought I would run a marathon. Really, I never thought I would run a half-marathon or a 10k. But when my husband said we could go to Hawaii for 15 days in the middle of winter, and the only catch was running 26.2+ miles… I was sold. 

The marathon he chose was the Maui Oceanfront Marathon, so that is where we started our trip. We stayed at The Four Seasons Maui at Wailea, right by the start of the race. My qualifier for hotels is that they must be able to bring me a drink while I sit on the beach or by the pool. That’s all I want. My husband just wants activities. Luckily, we both want amazing food and thats where we can find a compromise. We hadn’t stayed at a Four Season in a while, because there are so many amazing hotels that aren’t so exorbitantly priced; but, after Hawaii, I remember why they are able to charge so much. 

FS Maui was fantastic. It is a family-friendly resort so they have a regular pool and an adults-only pool. We spent almost every day at the latter. The adults-only pool had an infinity edge overlooking the ocean, a swim up bar, and two hot tubs. On our first day there, we sat in the hot tub with drinks served in coconuts, watching a pod of whales jumping in the ocean at sunset. It was the perfect way to start our trip. They also have a fantastic spa that is basically the only reason I could walk after the marathon literally broke me.

If I do another marathon, a nearby spa, or a place with cryotherapy and compression, will definitely be a qualifier. A fun “day before” activity will also be required. 

They say the biggest mistake you can make before a destination marathon is exploring your destination. Not because you shouldn’t sightsee, but when you’re in good enough shape to run a marathon, the best way to explore is by walking around the city. And boom, there goes your well rested legs. Luckily, I was able to find the perfect way to explore Hawaii.

I discovered the Maui Flight Academy through FS Lanai, our post-marathon destination. My husband has always wanted to take flying lessons, and this was the perfect early-birthday present. Weather was a bit dreary, so we weren’t able to go on our original volcano-spotting tour. Instead, we flew over Molokai, Kaui, and Oahu.

My husband was taught how to do a touch-and-go on Molokai and full landing and take off on Kaui, where we stopped for lunch. Kaui and Oahu were the two islands we weren’t visiting on our trip so it felt very cool having my husband fly us to Kaui to get poke and guava cake and then fly us over Pearl Harbor and Honalulu. 

The resort has some wonderful restaurants on the property, but none of them can rival their Ultimate Dinner experience.

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To celebrate finishing the marathon, we booked our dream private dinner that consisted of a custom six-course menu with wine or cocktail pairing, a personal waiter for the evening, and a flower crown for me. And it all took place at a custom, private, oceanfront setting. 

After this, it was off to Lanai. Lanai was previously the world’s largest pineapple plantation, and 98% island was privately owned by James Dole… yeah, that Dole. Later, it was under the control of David Murdock until Larry Ellison purchased the island, minus the harbor and private homes constituting the remaining 2% not owned by Dole. 

Larry Ellison has actually done some pretty cool things. He originally stated his intention to invest $500 million in sustainable energy and farming on the island, and actually created solar-powered hydroponic farming system. There are two 20,000 square foot greenhouses currently in use and there are plans to create four more. Besides renovating the existing Resort Lanai and building the Sensei Lanai, Ellison built a new water filtration system, refurbished the 1920’s movie theatre, and built a resort-style olympic-size public pool for the ~3100 locals who live on the island. All of this is just to say that there has been a conscious effort to not spoil the island or make it too touristy. 

Even FS Maui, as nice and beautiful as it was, seemed very resort-y. A lot of Hawaii felt that way to me - like you weren’t really on an island or in a remote destination, but on a very americanized luau themed beach vacation. Lanai didn’t have that vibe. It was such a calming experience that felt miles and miles away from home.

For our stay, we were lucky enough to choose between the two Four Seasons - Resort Lanai and Sensei Lanai. Sensei Lanai is an adults-only “wellness enclave” that offers private wellness consultation and personalized itineraries featuring spa treatments, fitness classes, and island activities. Basically my ideal vacation… my husband, not so much. Resort Lanai was an absolute dream for both of us. It had a bit more energy, plenty of actives, a great choice of dining experiences, and it’s own spa.

Everything about it was just completely relaxing, even the activities. Both activities we opted for took place on a boat. First, we went on their “Snorkel Sail” on a 50 ft catamaran.

It was the first time we went snorkeling since our honeymoon, where I had a minor freak out in a cave while snorkeling on our honeymoon, so I was a little nervous about this one. But, it went great! It wasn’t a private experience, which definitely helped me calm down since there were more people in the water, but it was still a small group so nothing felt over crowded. In fact, I was the only person at the front of the catamaran on the sail back to the resort (every one else was watching the sunset behind us, but I get seasick if I don’t look forward). 

The second activity was deep sea fishing, and well… it was more like deep sea cruising. We got to watch the sunrise from a 45’ high speed boat, but we didn’t catch a dang thing. If you do catch something, the chefs at Nobu will make a couple different preparations for you that night. But, again, we caught nothing. It was still really beautiful and a fun experience so I’m not upset about it. Besides, we had to check out and fly to the Big Island that same day. 

Lanai was definitely the highlight of the trip for me and the one place I would love to visit again. 

After Lanai, we spent a few days on The Big Island before heading home and started packing for our big move!

Maybe by this time next year, we’ll be able to take another vacation…

xo,

Megan

Five Big Updates

DISCLAIMER: I AM NOT PREGNANT. YOU CAN STOP ASKING.

It’s been 18 months since our honeymoon, and five truly exciting things have happened that I haven’t written about. Mostly, we’ve just been biding our time in Charlotte and spoiling our good girl Dixie, but we still have some big news to share. Again, not pregnant. Sorry mom.

(black top & bottom) (white top & bottom)

O N E

A week after our honeymoon we got married! Yeah, you probably know this. I decided not to share wedding pictures or planning here, so I’m including it in the updates. We were so lucky to have to most amazing weather after the hurricane changed course and the most wonderful friends and family to celebrate with. I also highly recommend the pre-wedding Honeymoon. J started work immediately after the wedding, so initially our options were pre-wedding honeymoon, or no honeymoon at all. I am so glad we did the honeymoon early. All of the details of the wedding were figured out when we left (three weeks before the wedding) and there are going to be last minute stresses and updates no matter where you are. Why not be somewhere relaxing and amazing? Wedding planning is so stressful, it was great to spend quality time with my husband and relax before the celebration.

T W O

For our wedding gifts to each other, I put J on the waitlist for a special watch (Rolex 116610 for any watch nerds out there) and J put me on the waitlist for a puppy. We got really lucky with the watch and were able to purchase one in about three weeks, but we didn’t get as lucky for a puppy. Well, after OVER A YEAR on the waitlist, we were matched with the sweetest most handsome little brother for Dixie, and in November we picked up our teddy bear pup. If you don’t follow me on Instagram and haven’t seen the excessive pictures yet, Meet Duke! We’ve been told he’ll be anywhere between 25lbs and 65lbs full grown, so stay tuned to watch him stay little or get double dixie’s size. He’s already 23.8 lbs…

T H R E E

The envelope from the NC Bar Association was delivered while we were on our honeymoon. We were too nervous to open it before our wedding, but we can now say that J passed the North Carolina Bar Exam and had his first big boy job as a lawyer! This is probably more exciting for me since I’m not the one who actually had to go to work doing lawyer things, but I’m so proud that all his hard work finally paid off. This news was also much more exciting before updates four and five..

F O U R

It didn’t take long after passing the NC bar to figure out that we didn’t love Charlotte. I grew up with an amazing community and friends that are basically family, and we just couldn’t find “our people” or a community that felt the same in Charlotte. We absolutely love the US National Whitewater Center and how close we were to Asheville. We spent every weekend running on the USNWC mountain biking trails or letting the dogs run around and swim in the river. Dixie is happiest running around in the muck and swimming after me in the Catawba. We trained for my first half and full marathons on the trails and I ran my first 10K there. I will definitely miss being close enough to Asheville that we could go up for the day (or even dinner when we were feeling stir crazy… I like driving, okay). Especially when the Charlotte weather became unbearably hot, we would get the pups in the car and head to the mountains. But we finally decided that these two things weren’t enough reason to stay in Charlotte and made the decision to move.

leggings - shoes - jacket - pupper

F I V E

Move where you ask? We have now officially moved to Atlanta, GA and Princess Dixie and Duke finally have a yard and are living the life they deserve.

This will be our seventh move and the fifth state in the seven plus years we’ve been together and it is definitely our last. We are so excited to put down some roots.

We’re calling in the Tree House and I can’t wait for you to visit!

chair - table - light fixture

Come see us and check it out yourself!


xx,

Megan





BECOMING A RUNNER

In the past five months, I’ve run 5Ks, 8Ks, 10Ks, a half marathon, and I am about to run a full marathon… and I still cringe when somebody calls me a runner. Sure, I’ve run all my life, but as part of another sport. Just running to run was never the goal. I’ve always felt that there are people faster than me, people who take it more seriously, people who love it more than me… I’m not a runner, they are. Just because I log the miles, doesn’t make me a runner.

But that’s wrong.

leggings ($108) - tank ($48) - sports bra ($68) - water bottle ($15) - hat ($38)

I started running because J wanted to run another marathon. I had no intention of doing that, but I wanted to spend time with him and be involved in something that was about to be a big part of his life. It was great for us to go out to the US National Whitewater Center early every weekend and spend time outside. Even if we weren’t running together. Even if I finished two hours before him, went home, got the dog, came back, and still had time to take the dog for a swim before he finished running. This thing I started “just to bond with my husband” turned into something that’s a part of my daily routine and can’t imagine stopping. As I type this, we are in Hawaii to run my first marathon.

I'm still not entirely sure how I went from I-will-only-run- if-CrossFit-makes-me to running 26.2 miles for fun. But I think these seven things are a good start. Maybe this is all nervous rambling before the marathon, but maybe these things will help somebody else become a runner too.

*and of course, all you really need to be a runner is to go out and run…but I had YEARS to do that was was never able to motivate my self. So if you’re like me and need a little incentive, these tips are for you.

O N E - SET A GOAL

My first goal was to run four miles. I had never intentionally run more than a 5k, and four miles felt impossible. Once I accomplished that only a week into training, my husband encouraged me to sign up for a half marathon. The Maui Oceanfront Marathon to be exact. I wasn’t going to say no to a trip to Hawaii in the dead of winter, so I quickly signed up.

Then my husband found the Southern Fried Half Marathon in NC that sounded fun and fell on the exact weekend that called for a half marathon in his full marathon training plan. He assured me that with the combination of running and CrossFit that I had been doing consistently for the past month, I was ready for a half marathon. He also found an amazing dog-friendly VRBO with a fenced in yard on the water in the Outer Banks where Miss Dixie Doodle could live her best life.

VRBO in Kill Devil Hills, OBX ($195/night)

I felt I was ready to at least do a run/walk strategy and I was definitely ready for a relaxing weekend in OBX, so I said sure and ran my first half. To my surprise, I was able to run the entire thing. I felt so good and finished ten minutes under my goal time, so I wondered if I should switch to the full marathon. If I was able to conquer my first two goals in a month, what could I do with four months of training? And if I only run one marathon, it may as well be in Hawaii. I don’t think I’ll ever to another full, but I’ve loved training for one (repeat, one). Having this once truly unattainable goal become more and more realistic has been so incredible.

So pick a goal… start small and set new goals as you grow stronger as a runner or set one big goal. JUST GO FOR IT!

T W O - FIND A MOTIVATOR

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5 mile progression

First 8K - 10’50” per mile

Second 8K - 9’12” per mile

Third 8K- 8’16” per mile

tank ($33) - watch ($399) - watch strap ($49) - 8K race ($45)

I’m going to start by saying that losing weight should not be your motivator. You should never exercise to lose something, but to gain something. Yay for healthy relationships with your mind and body! In CrossFit my goal was always strength, so my mini-goals are always what I like to call “CrossFit Party Tricks”. First it was handstand push ups and then I switched to a muscle up. After relentlessly ripping my hands, I dropped the muscle up goal for butterfly pull-ups. Specifically, graceful butterfly pull-ups and not the dying-fish-out-of-water pull ups I have now.

For running, my goal was to get faster and meditation. I wanted to be able to quiet my mind and just run. I’m still working on this, but one thing that has helped me is the gratitude mile. Just a mile of your run where you think about and list all the things you are grateful for. It could be the great weather that day, or how strong your lungs and legs feel, or it can be much more personal. For me, the next best thing to quieting my mind is flooding it with positive thoughts.

So what do you want to gain out of running? Strength? Endurance? A Community? Whatever it is, let it motivate you on every run, even the ones you don’t feel like doing.

T H R E E - GET OUT THERE

My other motivator is obviously Hawaii. I want to see all 26.2 miles of the Maui coastline, I want to see as many whales as I can, and I really don’t think I could have finished some of my longer training runs without this pushing me. No matter what you’re training for, I highly suggest signing up for some races along the way. If you just want to do a 5K, Sign up for a 5K! If you want to do a 10K, sign up for a 5K and a 10K! Want to do a Half Marathon? That’s right, try a 5K and 10K too! Some people suggest doing races other than your goal race because it helps you get used to the race routine - like using the port-a-potty, handling bag checks, and queuing up for the race. All of that is easy enough to figure out. I say get out there and sign up for races because its fun! I love the energy and adrenaline at every race and it makes me even more excited to the next one. Here are some of my favorites and some I’m looking forward to:

5K - Belcara Health 5K at the Baltimore Running Festival, Baltimore, MD

leggings ($108) - shirt ($55) - shoes ($160) - ring ($25) - 5K race ($45)

I love this race. It’s a great intro into running. The 5K course is an easy out and back, and no it really isn’t scenic or pretty. But! The medals and shirts for the Baltimore Running Festival are fantastic and you even get a medal for the 5k! It’s easily my favorite medal I’ve gotten. It has a great expo, and since it’s Baltimore, all of the swag is from Under Armour. After the 5k, grab a beer or two and hang out by the water and cheer on the Marathoners and Relay-ers. The Half Marathon will start shortly after. There are a lot of people at the festival doing challenges like the BaltiMORON-athon (5K + Half on the same day), the King Crab Challenge (Frederick Half-Marathon, Baltimore 10-Miler, and the Baltimore Full or Half Marathon), or the Maryland Double (Frederick Half and Baltimore Half or Full Marathon). The challenge medals are also truly awesome so keep an eye out for those!

These races are popular, but won’t necessarily sell out. J registered for the BaltiMORON-athon and I registered for the 5K about two weeks in advance last year. But it’s always better to plan ahead.

10K - AJC Peachtree Road Race, Atlanta, GA

This has been ranked the #1 Race in the 10 mile or less category by BibRaves for THREE years in a row. I’m not one for big races, but I’m recommending this “Independence Day Parade” for the giant party it becomes. You’ll see everyone from beginners to elite racers, some in outrageous costumes, and some showing off practical patriotism. This is an extremely popular holiday race, so plan ahead if you want to spend your Fourth of July running in Atlanta (yes, it’s hot). Members of the Atlanta Track Club are guaranteed entry into the race, but if you aren’t a member you can either register for the lottery by March 31 or register for a Kilometer Kids Charity Race Number, which guarantees you automatic entry. Charity Race numbers are $200, but $165 is tax deductible and goes directly to the Kilometer Kids program.

Half Marathon - Urban Bourbon Half Marathon presented by Jim Beam, Louisville KY

This is one of the races that I’m really looking forward to. I really really enjoyed the OBX Southern Fried Half and do recommend it. OBX in November has the perfect running weather and the course is very flat except for the bridge, which was actually my favorite part of the race. It had the best views and after training on hills, I was able to fly past some of the people I had been chasing for nine miles.

Back to the Urban Bourbon Half… First, how fun is it to say that name? Urban Bourbon, Urban Bourbon, Urban Bourbon. The Urban Bourbon Half starts and finishes in downtown Louisville, but only 1 mile of the race is out-and-back. The rest is a nice loop through Cherokee Park and the final stretch is a straight away down Main Street. There is some elevation change, but nothing serious. The race is presented by Jim Beam, so the race is restricted to those 21 and up, which just means that you don’t have to worry about a teenager passing you and questioning your life choices and impending death. It also mean alcohol! In addition to the bourbon-themed medals, you’ll also get bourbon samples and beer after the race. Plus the race shirt is a long sleeve tech shirt (my personal favorite) and you get to spend a weekend in Louisville. Whats not to love?

Some other Half Marathons on my bucket list are Napa-to-Sonoma, Bar Harbor, Old Port, Great Wall, Sarajevo, and Athens.

Full Marathon - Maui Oceanfront Marathon, Hawaii

I have been so impressed with the Maui Oceanfront Marathon (MOM). We initially picked this one because it’s flat, along the coast, and in Hawaii. But it also has aid stations at almost every single mile that are all run by members of the community who benefit from this race. We’ve also been receiving frequent e-mails from the race director with tips on signing up for things like the post-marathon whale watching sail, a sunset tour of a national park, and his favorite luaus. The race also recommended hotels that are big supporters of the race and has a great discount code for a rental car. There is also a Half Marathon, 15k,10K & 5K if you want to make it a group “Run-cation” but not everybody wants to run a full Marathon. There is also an early-start marathon for those who want to run.walk a marathon, but are worried about the cut off time. I’ll post a review of the entire race experience once we’ve run it, but right now, I am so impressed with the organizers of the race.

If Hawaii isn’t calling to you, some other bucket list marathons to check out are Big Sur, Missoula, Paris, Midnight Sun, The Big Five, and Banff. If you want more of a party / boot and rally vibe… definitely check out the Medoc Marathon. It may be the only one I would ever consider doing.

F O U R - FIND A BUDDY

me: tank ($33) - leggings ($90) - belt ($25)

J: tank ($45) - shorts ($55) - watch ($600)

I think it is so important to have a running buddy. It doesn’t even need to be somebody who will physically run with you, just somebody who you can talk to about running and keep you accountable. J and I don’t run together very often, but every weekend we go out to a trail together and do our own runs separately. I also love using apps like Nike Run Club, Strava, or Apple Watch to record my runs and stay connected to running friends in different states.

Seeing my friends log runs on these apps and being able to support them from afar motivates me to log my own miles. I also love the support you can give (and get) on a daily basis instead of only on race days. The hardest part of running isn’t the races, it’s logging those daily miles. Having an accountability buddy will make those daily miles a lot easier!

F I V E - GET A COACH

I remember chatting with somebody after the Southern Fried Half Marathon who was shocked that this was my first Half Marathon. I had the right shoes (Nike Next%), knew the proper water station etiquette, brought my own fuel for the race (Jelly Bellies), and had throwaway layers with sweat wicking clothes underneath. She said for her first half marathon, she wore her old, falling apart high tops (I can’t even lift in those shoes!), a long cotton tee with no shirt underneath, tried to drink water from the water station while running at her full speed, and had never tried a Gu or other fuel before the race (hello tummy troubles!).

These were only things I knew how to do because I had my husband semi-coaching me. If you don’t have a friend or loved one to help you with these tips, join a local running club! A lot of clubs have perks (like the Atlanta Track Club are guaranteed entry into the AJC Road Race) but it’s also a great way to train and find your community. Google or Fitt.com can help you find a run club in your area!

Other things I didn’t know to do were small check ins with myself. How’s my posture? Is my breathing steady? Am I scrunching down or leaning forward? What is my head doing? Why am I looking down instead of looking ahead? The guided runs from Nike Run Club were a huge help and I don’t think I could have gotten through my first few weeks of training with them. I loved

S I X - GET THE GEAR

leggings ($108) - tank ($48) - sports bra ($68) - water bottle ($15) - hat ($38) - watch ($399) - watch strap ($49)

The barrier to entry to running is very low. You don’t need much to get started. You really don’t even need real running shoes - any sneakers will do. Once you start upping your mileage, you’ll probably find that you need an upgrade. Go, in person, to a local running store to find your perfect fit. Take the time to work with a salesperson who will watch you walk and run to see how your pronate and watch you try out shoes on the treadmill or outside the store. Running shoes are expensive, but finding the right pair will make your runs so much more pleasant.

Other items that have helped me run are special racing shoes, my absolute favorite running leggings, anti-chafing balm for my thighs and armpits (ugh), a headlamp for runs ending in the dark, a light up vest for runs at dusk and dawn, a good running belt, compression socks, trying out a ton of different fuel options, designated running headphones, and running gloves. Seriously, running gloves. Gloves before long sleeves is the best layering tip I got for winter running and investing in good running gloves was a life saver.

S E V E N - FIND YOUR SWEET SPOT

Maybe you set an easy goal and want to push yourself more. Maybe your goal was a bit too lofty and now you need to readjust. It doesn’t matter. Once you’ve gotten into a rhythm, figure out what you like and roll with it. Maybe you just like having a run streak, or logging two to three miles a few times a week. For me, I really enjoy half marathons. I think it’s just long enough to push me, but not so long that my body feels terrible afterwards. It’s also a short enough distance that, while training, I will rarely have to run more than one hour on a week day, which has been a huge issue while marathon training - especially now that it gets dark so early. I have a long list of bucket list Half-Marathons and have made plans to run a few with friends I don’t get to see very often.

France - Royal Riviera & Our Adventures

Okay, it took me over a year to write this but here it goes.

France. The first think that comes to my mind when thinking about the final leg of our #MediterraneanHoneymoon is anxiously figuring out how we would move our wedding to Savannah when the voluntary evacuation was ordered. Luckily, we didn’t have to, but I’m still a little annoyed that so many people were asking if the wedding was cancelled while I was on my honeymoon. Let me liiiiveeee.

I know, I know. “You poor thing. Your life is so hard. How ever did you overcome this trying time? You’re just so brave.”

In terms of France, I had only been to Paris before our trip, and much like my first time in Italy, it wasn’t my favorite. The World Cup was in Germany that year, and I visited right in the middle of the tournament. It’s already a highly touristy anti-tourist city, and all the soccer fans just exacerbated that well earned reputation. Luckily, the Cote d’Azur was nothing like my experience in Paris.

We stayed at the Hotel Royal Riviera in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. This was an amazing old-school-glam hotel that reminded me of all the golden age movie stars who would summer in the south of France. It was a bit like The Homestead in Virginia or The Breakers in Florida, only in Europe and PINK. The rooms were well decorated and spacious (even by American standards), and we had a great view of the gardens and ocean.

The rooms were fantastic, but my favorite part of the hotel was the Jasmin lounge right next to the heated pool. The restaurant was only open for lunch, but they had the best rosé and some delicious lobster pasta. J preferred their tandoori chicken, but agreed about the rosé.

Breakfast was served on the terrace overlooking the pool and beach every morning. It was a beautiful spot, but it fell a little short when compared to the breakfasts in Croatia and Italy. I’ll be honest, it was difficult for me to enjoy the food in France. Not that it wasn’t delicious, but after spending a year working out and counting my macros, my body was not pleased with the dramatic change. I had spent the last 10 days lounging around and eating whatever I wanted and fitting into my wedding dress was starting to look impossible. So it kind of worked out that there was only one restaurant at the hotel open for dinner. It was a great opportunity to check out some of the cute little casual restaurants in town that didn’t offer an 8 course tasting menu.

On our second night in France, we had arguably the best dinner of our trip, and despite our food fatigue. Monaco is extremely close to Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, so we crossed the border to enjoy dinner at Le Louis XV in the Hôtel de Paris. I’m going to get on my wannabe foodie soap box for a second and sound like a pretentious prick, but stay with me… or skip to the next paragraph… you do you. Still with me? Okay, Le Louis XV was a culinary dream. It’s the flagship restaurant of Alain Ducasse, the first (of his) to be awarded three Michelin Stars, a member of Les Grandes Tables du Monde, and widely considered one of the 100 best restaurants.

This was the third restaurant on our trip that is included in the Michelin guide, so here is a fun fact: the Michelin Guide and star system was initially created so people would drive more to try new restaurants and therefore wear down their tires fasters so they would have to buy new tires more frequently. The food was delicious, but the service… OH THE SERVICE. White glove service. The waitresses wouldn’t take plates away until we were both done eating. How did they know we were done eating? They paid attention to us fixing our plates! All my mom’s and grandmother’s nagging was finally appreciated. As soon as I arranged my silverware to indicate that I was done, no more than a few seconds would pass before a waitress was there to clear the empty plates out of our way. It was so beautiful.

The service is really what I remember most about our meal. I wish I could remember the details of every little thing we ate, but the highlights were the first course and the tea course. The first was small bites of fresh fish that was quickly steamed in a dome at the table. It was a wonderful presentation and I still remember how delicious each piece was.

The tea course at the end of the meal was my dream. A cart was brought to the table with fresh herb plants. After choosing which herbs you wanted in your tea, the waitress would trim the plants, add it to a glass tea pot, and pour hot water over the fresh herbs. It was the perfect way to end such a gluttonous meal.

Now, with only two days left of our honeymoon, our leisurely vacation turned into a sprint and didn’t stop until we sat down at our wedding reception eight days later. `

Up first, our final boat day of the trip. This was definitely the nicest ship - the yacht was spacious and beautiful. The service wasn’t quite up to that in Croatia and wasn’t anywhere near as good as the service on the yacht in Italy, but the scenery made up for that. We cruised along the coast past Nice, Cagnes-sur-Mer, Antibes, and Cannes before stopping for lunch at Ilê Saint-Honorat. The Island was first inhabited by Saint Honoratus around the year 410. It quickly became home to a large monastery, although it was frequently attacked by tribes of Arabia. Later the island became a popular place of pilgramage, before again succumbing to attacks from the Spanish and Genoese.

During the French Revolution, the island was seized by the state and sold to an actress. Eventually, Ilê Saint-Honorat was sold to a local Bishop who wished to reestablish the monastery. The community still exists today and is home to 30 Cistercian monks who cultivate the vineyards on the island to produce wines and liqueur. While we weren’t there for the Annual Grape Harvest, we did get to try the local wine at La Tonnelle Restaurant.

After drinking wine and snacking on squash blossoms, we hopped back on the boat for a slow cruise back to port with plenty of stops to snorkel and sunbathe.

For dinner we wandered around town until we found a cute spot for pizza and, since we were in France after all, frog legs and escargot, in Beaulieu-Sur-Mer.

 On the * FINAL DAY * of our Mediterranean Honeymoon, we ventured on J’s favorite adventure of the trip - a Ferrari Sightseeing Experience. That’s right, my husband would be driving a California T4 on the same roads that killed Grace Kelly, and I would be sitting helplessly in the back seat.

The car pulled up to the Royal Riviera and we jumped right into that bright red Ferrari. After being told that this was a DRIVING experience, and not a RACING experience, Josh started the car and we were off to Monaco. We had beautiful views of the coast before turning around and starting our climb to Eze. It was a pretty cloudy day, but the views were still fantastic and it was kind of fun to chase the clouds up the hills.

We stopped at the Chèvre d’Or in Eze for drinks and snacks before driving back down to our hotel. It was an adorable hotel with the most amazing gardens. It also sits atop a cliff, so the views are breathtaking. Of course I only took videos of the view, and I can’t share videos here. They are saved to my Instagram highlights if you’re interested!

With a whole lotta traveling ahead of us, we headed back to the hotel and had a light dinner at the hotel bar with Rosé champagne & foie gras… because France.

Overall, we had an amazing honeymoon and I am so thankful for the lovely people at Brownell who helped us plan and booked everything for us. Between moving to Charlotte, Josh graduating & taking the bar, finalizing wedding plans, and figuring out job plans, there is no way we could’ve had such an amazing honeymoon without their help.

We liked them so much that we enlisted their services again for our upcoming trip to Hawaii!

Stay Tuned!

Italy, Part II - Our Adventures

Our main adventures in Italy were all about the sea. Since we didn’t have $100,000+ to spend our entire week in Italy on a mega yacht, we opted for a sunset cruise and full-day rental on a mini-yacht.

Like I mentioned in my last post, one of the benefits of Casa Angelina is that it’s situated right above One Fire Beach and it’s dock. So after a day sipping spritzes by the pool (complete with free snacks and cuban cigars), we quickly changed and descended to the beach. After walking down about a million stairs (the one drawback of One Fire Beach) we were able to have a smaller shuttle boat take us to the mini yacht for our sunset cruise.

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I said before that I don’t care much for Italy, as I’ve always had my least-favorite trips there, but very very very few things can beat the Amalfi coast from the view of a boat. I cannot recommend the company we used more. The boat was lovely and our captain and stewardess were absolutely lovely. The captain was also our guide on the sunset tour and made sure we always had drinks and snacks, gave great information about the spots we were passing, and still managed to drive the yacht (sometimes with his foot as he poured more Prosecco). He was also the captain when Matthew McConaughey rented the yacht, which my husband - a huge Dazed and Confused fan - really got a kick out of.

For the sunset tour, we started by circling past Positano before turning east and cruising toward Furore, which is home to some truly insane cliff diving. Next, we cruised pat Conca Dei Marini on our way to the bustling city of Amalfi. The main reason we staying in Praiano was to avoid the crowds in Positano and Amalfi, and seeing these cities, with their bright lights and bustling crowds, from afar was just perfect. I’m sure both of these towns are beautiful on land, but I honestly can’t imagine the view being better than the one from the Tyrrhenian Sea.

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We kept cruising past the lemon-lined hills of Ravello and toward UNESCO World Heritage site Minori & the beaches of Maiori. A little bit past there, we turned around to take in the sunset and make a very slow cruise back to our hotel. I don’t know if we just got lucky or if the Amalfi Coast always has beautiful sunsets, but the sky was absolutely amazing every single night of our stay.

We hopped off again at One Fire Beach, said goodnight to our captain, and dragged ourselves up the steps to Casa Angelina for a good night’s sleep before jumping back on the boat in the morning.

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After breakfast at Casa Angelina (I still think about that breakfast on a daily basis), we headed back to the beach for a fully day of sun and swim on the boat. Instead of heading East, we started sailing towards Capri. For the full day on the boat, our awesome captain was joined by a stewardess. She was born in London, but her father is Italian, so she grew up bilingual. Honestly, it seems like a little thing, but having two people (or even one) on board who was fully fluent in English and Italian was so helpful and made every excursion onto shore worry-free.

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We took our time getting to Capri and stopped a few times along the way to dive off the side of the boat, do a little snorkeling, and explore some caves. Thanks to my panic attack in the cave near Dubrovnik, J was the only one who swam into the caves. I was perfectly content snorkeling near the boat. I still can’t get over the crystal clear water.

As we got to Capri, we did stop to see some caves that did not require me to swim to. Capri is most widely known for the blue grotto, but we chose to skip it. The blue grotto is only accessible by boat (which wasn’t a problem for us, but is inconvenient if you aren’t already planning a boat day), but the boat you need to actually get to the grotto isn’t the same boat you need to see the grotto. Once you reach the blue grotto, you will need to wait in line with the other boats for a chance to get into one of the small rowboats that can take you inside the grotto - for an additional cost, of course. The lines and crowds waiting to get inside felt too touristy for me, so we opted out.

Instead, we chose to see the white grotto and the coral grotto. There were still lines, but there were maybe only two boats ahead of us at the white grotto and no line at the red grotto. The red grotto was beautiful with bright, rich coral lining the walls of the cave, but the water in the white grotto was beyond. The water was this crazy bright aquamarine, and its one of those rare cases where the pictures actually do it justice, even if they look crazy edited. The middle picture above is the white grotto, and I didn’t edit it at all.

After the grottos, we pulled around to the marina and took a taxi up to the main street of Capri. I probably should have planned better or looked for some boutiques or a place to have a drink because I was immediately overwhelmed by the swarms of tourists on Capri. It was way too much. You couldn’t take more than two steps without running into somebody or somebody running into you. So instead of seeking out small local stores or an aperol spritz, we took refuge in some of the higher-end stores. After walking around for an hour, we ended up leaving the island with some goodies from Hermes, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, and Louis Vuitton. I did, however, demonstrate some self-control and restrained from buying some insane sneakers from Louis. Okay, that’s a lie, I tried to buy them but they didn’t have my size in the color I liked.

After leaving Capri, we sailed towards Nerano for lunch. Nerano is a small fishing town on the coast near Sorrento. While the town may be small and modest, the dishes found in it’s restaurants are anything but. It’s actually home to Wolfgang Puck’s favorite restaurant in the region - Lo Scolglio. Unfortunately, I forgot to give a stewardess a time when we would want lunch (so she could make a reservation) and then we spent too much time on Capri to wait for a table there. Instead, our stew got us a table at Ristorante Maria Grazia, the restaurant that invented the famous Spaghetti all Nerano.

Spaghetti alla Nerano is fresh pasta with fried zucchini and caciocavallo or provolone, and it is unbelievably delicious. We also ordered mozzarella and prosciutto and grilled calamari. The pasta was definitely my favorite, but the calamari was served whole, which was really cool and reminded us how fresh the seafood was.

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After eating, it was time to return to Casa Angelina. We sat on the boat and finished our Prosecco while watching the watermelon party on One Fire Beach, and as nice as our hotel was, we did not want to leave the boat. This day and evening was the highlight of our time in Italy and almost made me want to visit the country again. Almost… there’s still so much we haven’t seen.

Like the Cote d’Azur! Stayed tuned for a recap of our time in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat…

xoxo