After the snow

We're interrupting our Top Ten lists so we can show you what happens after it snows for a few days! We were lucky that it was not too windy during this storm, and the fresh snow stayed really nice.

Here's Craig skiing underneath the Aiguille Perceé (Pierced Needle), and me skiing in the Sache Valley, both in Tignes.

-SK

#10! And Best and Worst

OK, we've spent some time reflecting on Phase I of le Reve, and have put together a plethora of lists for you!

And with each list, we'll be counting down what we think are the TOP TEN SITES in Europe. Very exciting.

Steph and Craig's #10 European Tourist Site is ...

Le Pont du Gard, the roman aqueduct in France. We've visited it twice, and been impressed both times. The setting is park-like, and it's free to get in (of course you pay for parking).

List o' the day: A Menagerie of Best and Worst

1. Best Tourist Office: Chamonix, France
   It has free wi-fi and little cubbies to sit in with your laptop if you get there early enough. Oh yeah, and good tourist information.


2. Best General Tourist Publications: Hungary
   Hungary offered a national tourist brochure, a country-wide camping map, and - best of all - a full-color glossy mouth-watering "Cuisine of Hungary" brochure.


3. Best Place for a Camper
   France, anywhere! (Our best campgrounds and campsites lists are coming soon.


4. Best Prices on Diesel Fuel: Luxembourg and Poland
   Both well under a euro a liter
   (Most expensive fuel: Sicily)


5. Worst Trash: Greece
   There were plastic bags and bottles all over the roads


6. Best Roads: Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands
   And all toll-free!


7. Worst Roads: Albania, Bulgaria, Serbia


8. Cheapest Country: Albania
   But there's nothing to buy there, so go to Montenegro or Macedonia instead.


9. No Longer a Good Deal: the Dalmation Coast, Croatia
   It completely caters to the tourist trade and prices are the same as Italy now. Go to Montenegro instead. (Yes, we like Montenegro!)


10. Most Expensive City: Vienna, Austria
    We spent €250 in a day, and that was camping!


11. Cheapest Cities: Palermo, Italy (Sicily) and Porto, Portugal


12. Best Wine Deals: Bulgarian Bordeaux Blends and Vin de Savoie
    The Diamanitza No Man's Land from Bulgaria is excellent at about €7, if you can find it! (We got it at a bottle shop in the town of Sandanski) And our local favorite is the Charles Gonnet Chignin for €4.70 a bottle.

Snowing again

We had a great time with Andrew and Cori! They brought us a bunch of items from our USA wishlist: Bourbon, vitamins, zinc tablets (it's cold season after all!) and Clif Bars. Thanks guys!

Now, as you can see by the photo, it's snowing again.

That means that we're inside today, updating le Rêve web site, and working on our Top Ten lists.

Starting today (if the Internet connection continues to work, it's being frustratingly slow right now), we'll be start sharing our top ten lists with you. Stay tuned...

-SK

Our World...

Today we leave to pick up Andrew and Cori in Milan. They will be staying with us for a week, and, believe it or not, it looks like it will snow for the better part of that time, so I'm not sure how much skiing we will get to do...

To keep you all occupied while we're occupied, I've put up the beginnings of a new feature on our web site. The basic theme is: "We think our life is boring... and you probably will too!"

You can view the work in progress by going to le Rêve home page, and clicking on the link called "Our World".

-SK