travel Archives - Page 23 of 74 - My Healthy, Happier Life

Over 9 months ago, four of our closest friends, who make up our “Supper Club” group decided to book a week trip to Switzerland. It started as a whim when we’d all enjoyed one too many glasses of wine during one of our infamous supper club cooking evenings on a Saturday night. Elizabeth pointed out that the only time off from her MBA program was Spring Break, which would be a perfect time to visit us in Europe. Within a few days the group agreed that it was a plan and marked the dates on our calendar.

When we finally got our act together and started planning trip details, one item rose to the top of the list – skiing. Where better to take our friends skiing for a weekend than Zermatt. Home of the Matterhorn and skiing 365 days a year, we were excited to experience a new city and the German side of Swiss culture.

Our 48 hours in Zermatt were perfect. The days were filled blue sky, sunshine and lots of time on the slopes while the evenings were filled with rich, delicious Swiss food and exhaustion induced sleep.

We stayed in a small studio just a 5 minute walk from the lift which Brad found on AirBnB. The studio housed the 6 of us perfectly and featured a larger than expected bathroom, a small kitchenette, wireless, a ski storage area and all the linens and kitchen tools we needed for our two night stay. In keeping with Swiss culture and stereotypes, it was also spotless! We would highly recommend this Zermatt AirBnB for anyone looking for simple and reasonably priced accommodations.

We spent three full days skiing the area which is the largest ski area we’ve ever experienced! There are over 225 miles of pistes (trails) in Zermatt that cross through Switzerland and Italy! The mountain was perfect for our group as more than 60% of the trails are red slopes which are the equivalent of blues and blacks in the United States. I was able to ski with the guys the entire trip keeping up on the red routes though going slower as I made my way down the long, steep runs slowly but surely – huge headway since December when I started skiing over here!

What intially struck us about Zermatt was the shear size of the mountain and area as we were on a gondola at one point for 30 minutes before we started skiing. However, at the same time, we were able to ski all the way down from the top of Matterhorn Glacier Paradise (12,740 feet)! In addition, the area felt very natural, untouched and filled with glaciers, huge mountains, and exposed boulders.

On our last day we stopped at a fun, unique area called Iglu-Dorf or the igloo village. Igloos fill the small area along with fur laden tables and chairs allowing skiers a place to stop and enjoy fun music, mulled wine and a break in between runs.

We enjoyed dinner and drinks at four different spots in Zermatt, each very different but so much fun!

Our first stop was Elsie Bar, a tiny bar across from the church in Zermatt and features everything from local beers to champagne and caviar. We enjoyed a glass of champagne and 6 oysters before heading to dinner.

Our first dinner spot in Zermatt was not recommended by one but three different friends. That is the sign of a great restaurant! Every bit of Restaurant Julen was perfect from their warm atmosphere and comfortable booths to the friendly staff and delicious Swiss German cuisine. Our entire table ordered a lamb dish as the restaurant is known for their lamb which they raise right outside town.

The next night we started with drinks at Papperla Pub while enjoying their live band and a lively apres ski crowd. Their aperol spritz was refreshing after a long day on the slopes and cooled us down after two straight hours of dancing to the cover band. The band even played our request of Sweet Home Alabama which almost caused us to lose our voices from singing, ahem shouting the lyrics.

Finally we ended our food tour of Zermatt with a fondue dinner at Restaurant Pinte in the Pollux Hotel.

Our eyes were bigger than our stomach as fondue, rosti and raclette were enough to leave us with cheese induced night sweats but man was it delicious. I think I need a long sleeve shirt that says “I ski for cheese” because that is the way we all felt by the end of the weekend.

What an incredible weekend but I am happy to spend the rest of today recovering on the couch with Bo!

If you could request one song from a cover band what would it be? Mine is always Dixie Land Delight or Sweet Home Alabama

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On a small little street in Lyon sits a culinary treasure – Café des Federations. Suggested to us by one of my dear friends in Geneva, Lauren Collins, who is a talented free lance writer for the New Yorker magazine, this restaurant was nothing short of amazing. The small space is ornately decorated with posters, pictures and memorabilia from the region while the noise carries from table to table as people coo over the delicious Lyonnaise cuisine.

Lyonnaise cuisine refers to the cooking traditions and practices of Lyon, brought the the region in the 16th century by Catherine de Medici. She brought her cooks to the court and requested that they prepare dishes using the local produce while still leveraging their Florence training. Since then the cuisine has become known across the world and it had since helped put Lyon on the map as the ‘’world gastronomy capital”.

The common dishes include coq au vin, Lyonnaise potatoes, poached eggs in red wine, pistachio sausage, charcuterie, and Beaujolais red wine. Sharing a bottle of wine at lunch felt like such an abnormal treat as it isn’t often that mom and I have wine with lunch, much less sip our way through an entire bottle!

Their lunch menu is quite simple, which after a few overwhelming menus this weekend was a welcome change. The classic menu, which is 19.50 euro per person, included the following delicious dishes:

Delicatessen Lyon
Caviar de la Croix Rousse
Salad of the day (lentils)
Rillette herring
A hot dish of our choice – Stewed pork cheek, crayfish dumpling and chicken liver

There really is no way to describe the lunch other than to say that every dish was absolutely incredible in a rustic, French way that left us craving more but too stuffed to think of having another bite. The staff, including the owner, was so sweet and hospitable that we found ourselves laughing and making conversation with them. It didn’t hurt to see that for once we had planned accordingly, thanks to Lauren’s guidance, and made reservations. In the two hours that we sat enjoying our meal more than 40 people walked in, trying to snag a table to no avail.

When in Lyon, go to Café des Federations. We just discovered that they also serve dinner which will be a no miss destination on our next trip. Until then, when in Lyon, do not ask questions, do not question the menu, do not think about a diet, but instead indulge and enjoy everything they serve or offer you. It will be incredible and you’ll remember the meal for ages.

Bon appetite!