like the proverbial phoenix

i haven’t blogged in a while. more than a year. so much has happened. i finished the book (“day trips from new york city”) at the end of 2010 but personal drama soon unfolded that nearly sunk me into a deep decline. it has taken me months to feel any semblance of normalcy. i can say with all honesty that i have never felt such sorrow in my life. and i hope to never feel it again. i still don’t feel like my usual, happy self. i know that will take time. but i am just too impatient by nature.

i moved from new york city to portland, oregon, in february. i had wanted to leave nyc for a while but not like this. being forced out of the only home you’ve known for 20 years and having to say goodbye to friends, some of long standing, others of shorter duration, was beyond difficult. i would not wish what happened to me in the fall of 2011 on anyone. having lost practically everything i had worked so hard for has been a trying and humbling experience. i didn’t know how to get through the mire, much less the day to day. for so long, it felt as if i was drowning. but i was pulled out of the deep end by my friends. friendship and family are invaluable. who really needs jewels, knee-length purple suede boots, $400 meals? when you lose it all, you realize how important love is. not that i ever took it for granted but i did learn who really cared about me and who was only a superficial friend.

i am currently regrouping and recharging in the pacific NW. i have feelers out for jobs, have had meetings with hiring managers. it will pan out soon. i am optimistic. in the meantime, i am still freelancing, albeit at a less breakneck pace, writing my first novel and enjoying the fresh air. i am anxiously awaiting the dry weather so i can start hiking and biking around town. i might try dragon boating, too. i miss my nyc friends terribly, especially t and k. they are two of the kindest, most supportive and loyal people i have ever known. still, i am visiting nyc in june to see them and others and transport my stuff from storage to the west coast. i have looked at neighborhoods and apartments here and am really excited about decorating my first solo flat. i have only ever lived with others and can’t wait to buy new and vintage pieces to decorate my abode.

the future looked dim for a while but i know there are only blue skies ahead…

there once was a girl in nantucket…

in nantucket with my good friend sara roo. staying at the white elephant. the flight here was, you guessed it, choppy and scary. little planes aren’t the most stable as it is. add typhoon shandana to the mix and you know it will be turbulent.

been beyond crazy busy with goodlifereport.com (please subscribe if you haven’t already), justluxe.com and “the insider’s guide to new york city.” haven’t had much time for my little blog.

the hike from hell

inexperienced hikers usually know their limits. they gradually work their way up from short, leveled trails to more intense climbs. not me. i go from 0 to 3500 right away.

over the columbus day weekend, i went hiking and camping with three friends. now, i may seem like a city girl but i love the great outdoors. some of my favorite vacations have revolved around admiring the wonders of nature (new zealand and norway, anyone?). i love to camp as well and have been trying to coerce my friends to go with me for years, to no avail.

so when my friend suggested we hike and camp in the catskills over the columbus day holiday, i embraced the challenge. now, i have a bad right knee. no cartilage. it stiffens when i play tennis for too long or walk more than five miles. this saddens me as i used to play tennis for four hours straight without tiring. but such is life and old age. at least i’m not senile yet.

the four of us ascended slide mountain on friday. it’s the highest peak in the catskills.

the day dawned bright and crisp but we had a late start. as the day progressed, the temperature dropped considerably and i realized belatedly that i should have brought another layer of clothing and my winter gloves. unfortunately, my inexperience and bad knee slowed us down a bit even though one friend was gracious enough to lag behind so i could catch up.

the view from slide was spectacular, if a little obstructed. we admired the kaleidoscope of color on the other mountains. the peaks were riotous with leaves in red, gold and purple. but our admiration didn’t last long as we had to reach level ground before night fell. we didn’t make it. we faced a plethora of large, sharp, rock slides that slowed us down and as the sun finally melted away, we were left with just two headlights and a small flashlight to light our path. how the hell were we gonna get out of this?

the most experienced of us kept his cool, even though he had never hiked in the dark before. with patience and encouragement, he got us all safely down the most treacherous slide i have ever seen. jagged, with two “paths” that conjured up thoughts of scylla and charybdis (i chose scylla), it took a lot of fortitude and a bit of luck to traverse that slide without falling. it probably wouldn’t seem all that daunting in the daylight, but at night, it looked like a 50 foot drop to land. fear made the adrenaline pump through my veins, although i was more afraid for my friends than myself.

tired, cold and hungry, we agreed to camp at the first expanse of solid ground we saw, even though it’s illegal to camp above 3500 feet in the catskills. the wind whipped our tents, but we erected them and ate our dinner, shivering in the cold and almost laughing about our adventure. knackered, i tried to sleep but hearing one of my friends yell, “go away!” twice at whatever was outside their tent, made me shiver uncontrollably and slumber impossible. i thought, “jason voorhees is out there and he’s been laying in wait for some stupid hikers to get stuck up here. mom and dad, i love you.”

of course, i survived the night without being slashed by some deranged lunatic and trudged onward to cornell and wittenberg mountains (the latter has the best view of the catskills), sliding down what once seemed like treacherous rock slides but by now were just minor obstructions. level ground and a real bathroom never looked so good…

la belle languedoc

the languedoc-roussillon region of france stretches west from provence to the spanish border. it’s widely believed to be the largest producer of wines in the world although people outside of france are more likely to have tasted a côtes du rhone or champagne than a corbieres from the region. until recently, the quality of wine was sub-par. thankfully, a resurgence in traditional winemaking techniques has turned things around.

we landed in montpellier and drove to narbonne. out first stop was the chateau l’hospitalet. the chateaux in the languedoc aren’t really chateaux in the true sense of the word but are more large manses or even farmhouses. i woke to the sound of birds singing outside my window. l’hospitalet offers comfortable rooms with views of the lovely vineyard but i thought the wines were mediocre. i much preferred the corbieres rosé chateau ollieux romanis and vins de pays de l’aude rouge capucine from chateau ollieux romanis in monseret. a small family-run winery, ollieux romanis makes wine the old fashioned way and you can taste it in the finished product. unfortunately, it’s not available stateside.

vines at l'hospitalet

at the vineyard

the garden at l'hospitalet

entrance to ollieux romanis

barrels at ollieux romanis

we toured the abbaye de fontfroide, the first of several cathar sites in the region (the languedoc is officially known as le pays cathare, or cathar country). the cistercian monastery was founded in the 11th century by saint robert. the monks are long gone but the abbaye is kept in working order as if they still inhabited the space. it’s a soothing place, with lavender fields and rose gardens. i wanted to lay down among the lavender and have the sun caress my skin. but it was time to go elsewhere.

lavender at the abbaye

inside the abbaye

grounds at the abbaye de fonfroide

stained glass inside the abbaye

we worked our way from the coast to carcassonne, the medieval walled city and the most visited heritage site in france. standing among the battlements, i could imagine its inhabitants forever fearing invasion from all directions. marauding crusaders, at the behest of the pope, slaughtered 400 cathars in carcassonne. about 60 people currently reside inside the city walls. their perfectly maintained cottages can be seen from the top of the fortress. too bad they have to contend with 4 million visitors each year.

a view from the battlements

a home inside the walled city

carcassonne

a street inside the citadel

part of the city wall

the restaurants and shops inside the fortress are tourist traps so we left the citadel and ventured to nearby le parc, franck putelat’s one-star restaurant. an amazing and laughter-filled four-course lunch followed.

collioure sits near the spanish border and is decidedly catalan in flavor. once occupied by the visigoths, it was also home to the knights templar in the 13th century. houses are washed in reds, yellows and blues rather than the more traditional white. it’s as if i was in seville again. bullfighting is common as is sangria and paella. i spent a wonderful sunny afternoon discovering small alleyways and climbing to the highest point in town to look at the pyrenees and the blue mediterranean.

restaurant in collioure

alleyway in coilloure

view of the sea

more collioure

pink house

collioure harbor

our last stop was the chateau valmy, a mansion designed in the style of mad king ludwig’s castle in bavaria. rapunzel was always my favorite fairy tale princess and valmy would be the perfect castle at which to recreate her story. the carefully manicured grounds are expansive, with rose bushes and vines running for acres. the carbonnell family occupies most of the castle but five bedrooms are available to paying guests. i thought of hiding in one of the kitchen cupboards. i don’t think they’d find me…

chateau valmy vineyards

chateau valmy vineyards

the chateau

chateau grounds

a different view