Jacksonville - Riverside

As we travel around the USA and set our itchy, exploratory feet free around the newest cities and atop the oldest mountains, I forget that sometimes it is just nice to be home. I am grateful that between the cross country travels and planning for the next ones, we find ourselves (very comfortably) here, in Jacksonville, Florida.

In general, Jacksonville City is very spread out. It is the largest city in the U.S. by land mass and also by population. Yes, traffic is a bastard. There are many neighborhoods that make up this part southern, part northern town and I have decided to make an effort to share a few of my favourite places with you. After all, it is just a good a travel destination as any to scratch those itchy feet and explore. All you need is a little local knowledge...

First up, is the lovely little nook that we call home - Riverside - an area that we feel very lucky to have landed in for our time here in the USA.

There is no way better to introduce this inner city suburb than as old meets new - where century old colonial homes greet graffiti walls of contemporary arts districts. It's eclectic. It's buzzing and happening. Best of all it's welcoming. Think cafes, antique halls, farm to table restaurants, a 1920's movie theater, plenty of parks, people biking, huge old oak trees covered in Spanish moss, tattoos, craft beer brewery's and tap rooms, vegan bakery's, beards and bars. All perched not too far from downtown and right beside the very wide and very beautiful St. Johns River.

For however short or however long, this place has become our home. And it is nice. And I want to share it, from my perspective, with you.

To Nashville

I've been reading about Nashville. There is a copy of Garden and Gun that sits in the upstairs bathroom that I like to pick up and look at every now and then. It has made me curious. It promised me in one of its articles that Nashville, TN, wasn't just a redneck, hall of fame, bootscootin' place to visit. Yes I had judged. And yes, this was my worst nightmare. As I read more I was promised that 'a ways from the punishing lights and honkey tonks of Broadway', I would find a forward thinking and contemporary cultural scene, flourishing culinary options and a creative hub for Tennesseans and, for the south. So as the infatuation and curiousness grew, I quickly realised that a free weekend and a nine hour drive was all that was needed to take me there. 

I quickly convinced two friends to join me and soon enough we had an itinerary - food, a pennyweight pop up event, 12 south and more food. So we set off from Jacksonville, Florida and we drove -- To Nashville.

We made our first pit stop at Octane Coffee, Atlanta.

We arrived in Nashville and were mesmerized by the beautiful home of the equally beautiful Elise Joseph, and left with goodies from her pennyweight pop up event.

We explored 12 south where we giggled over wooden spoons, spent far too long but no where long enough at Imogene + Willie, lined up for ice cream, searched through vintage stores filled with leather and bones and met an Australian Shepherd named Lardy.

We arrived at our ultimate destination - Rolf and Daughters. We sat at the communal table where we surrounded ourselves with sour dough and seaweed butter, brussel sprout salad, squid ink canestri, bucatini fra diavolo, pork ragu and all of the desserts. We washed it all down with eggwhite cocktails, beer and prosecco. Quite possibly the best meal of our lives...

We had breakfast at Barista Parlor. We discovered marmalade paired with egg on a savory biscuit (scone for those non southerners), bought artisan chocolate and had a polaroid taken by some new friends that we had met at the pop up event the day before.

After rummaging through one last beautifully sourced second hand goods store, we said goodbye to Nashville and began our drive home.

We stopped for dinner at The Optimist in Atlanta. We sat at the bar and ate oysters, mussels, she crab soup, fish and chips and snapper. Quite possibly the second best meal of our lives...

We couldn't possibly leave without dessert. We shared a pint of salted caramel vanilla 'pretzel' nut at Vintage Frozen Custard.

We drove through the Atlanta fog and the rainy night and eventually made it back home.

Garden and Gun, thank you for setting the record straight and for suggesting that I visit Nashville.

Nashville, thank you for sharing your charm with us. You truly are a southern gem. We liked you. A lot.

Bubbles in Central Park

Sometimes you have to forage to find beautiful things. Sometimes you find yourself among beautiful things without effort or search. Sometimes, these are the best times. Spontaneity. Surprise. Chance. Moments.

This time, I found myself among bubbles in Central Park.

I am certain that in NYC, it wouldn't be very hard to find yourself surrounded by a spectacle or situation that you didn't set out to find. In fact, I think it could become difficult to do the contrary. But to stop and appreciate that moment, in all of its beauty… that is what makes that moment.

So when I found myself in this situation, watching faces in the park as gigantic bubbles were spun and burst – I stopped. And it was pure and utter joy. I was glad to be there. In that moment.

Lake Sunapee, New Hampshire

On the western side of  New Hampshire is a small village cluster that surrounds Lake Sunapee. We arrived at our modest lake side cottage in the tiny village of Georges Mills to discover that everything was frozen, including some water pipes and the lake.  Winter, in all of its glory, had been found.  It didn’t take us too long before we were out standing on the lake. This surreal (and slightly scary) feeling wasn’t new to me. I had done this many times before in Sweden (once, my host dad insisted on driving the car onto the lake).  However, standing on a large, frozen body of water was still as exciting for me as the first time. I swear I kept hearing it crack. It was 4-6 inches deep, we were told. Thick enough to head out and ice fish. Instead we just walked, and skidded, and tried our very best to chase Taj the dog around without falling over.

Things I will remember about Lake Sunappe:  the joy of cooking a simple meal in the kitchen for the first time in over a week, exploring the streets of  New London, Wilmot, Andover and Potter Place, neatly piled fire wood against the red timber houses, drinking red wine on the lake as we rolled snow balls and the snow fell, the fire place at one of the local restaurants, watching movies in the cabin while it was storming outside,  the weight of the snow on the leaves the morning after the storm, shoveling snow from the drive way, the endless amount of white.