Happy Wednesday! I just returned from five days of hiking in the English Lake District with Elli, one of my best friends from college. We walked 85 miles in five days and fueled up with many, many eats that I couldn’t wait to share. I’m going to check in again tomorrow with more thoughts on the experience (and next week with more London adventures) but for now, I hope you enjoy this peek at the journey so far!
Yesterday morning, I went for a sunny, shorter weekday run in the park to shake it out after my long run on Tuesday and stay loose for the Oakley Mini 10K tomorrow. It was the perfect June morning…except for the heat. I was meeting my friend Maggie at our usual spot to do 4 miles together before she headed to work and I went to study. The one mile jog up Park Avenue to left me sweating while I waited for her at the corner! We ended up mixing up the run due to the need for shade, and also because the Central Park Conservancy keeps shutting off parts of the reservoir loop for construction at odd intervals. It was the usual trails, but a zig-zag route.
Cleopatra’s Needle
Fairy lights make everything magical
One of the best parts of spring break was getting to spend quality time with my dog Sasha. Another was enjoying leisurely dinners with my dad (he would agree with this order – she’s got the whole family trained!) We share a love of art and history, and I probably got so interested in both because I grew up tagging along to galleries with him by day and watching documentaries on TV together late at night. One night, we decided to head over to Luc’s Cafe, a French brasserie close to Main Street that’s always bustling. The outdoor area is really pretty, with twinkly lights all around.
Bistro accoutrements
Inside there are photos all around of classic French scenes, and there’s a large map of France on the back wall. I like the decorations here because they blend in with the atmosphere, and aren’t too garish. Just enough to be quaint!
Mussels + frites
As the snow melts and hope springs eternal that winter is falling away, my dad figured it was his last chance to get a steaming mug of French onion soup and a toasty croque monsieur. I’m always happy to have mussels marinière. It combines one of my favorite seafoods, mussels, with a delicious white wine and garlic sauce – and a little butter, because everything tastes better with a little butter! My portion came with frites, of course, which were cut shoestring-style. Everything was quite tasty – I couldn’t partake in his dishes, of course, but he helped me polish off that giant vat of mussels!
Dark chocolate is heavenly
We were a little full for dessert, but after heading home and taking an evening stroll in the neighborhood with Sasha, we each found room for a delectable piece of dark chocolate from Bridgewater Chocolates, another Connecticut institution. I went for a square of dark chocolate filled with sea salt and caramel. Yum!
All in all, it was a delicious meal and some great daddy-daughter time. What’s your favorite memory with you and your dad?
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