The Traveling Baesels: The Adventures of Jerry and Annette

Italy, Travels, and Game 162: Memories in the Making

2012-02-07T10:56:00.001-05:00

I’ve had recent conversations with my family and acquaintances about “Game 162” the spectacularly historic Rays-Yankees game where the Rays’ come-from-behind win earned them a wildcard berth in the American League playoffs. My memories of The Game are intermingled with those of our trip to Italy which is where we were on that momentous evening.

My husband Jerry and I flew to Italy on September 21st for a month’s slow travel on the back roads of Italy. We had found happy homes for our season ticket seats for the games we knew we’d miss and crossed our fingers that we’d have post-season games to follow via twitter and MLB.com. However when we left the Rays only had a small glimmer of hope to make the playoffs which would require winning almost all of the remaining eight games and for the Boston Red Sox to lose most of theirs.

Unbelievably, each day as we drove through the Dolomites and the Friuli region of northeastern Italy, that glimmer of hope got a little brighter. On the morning of September 22nd we headed north up the western shore of Lake Garda up into the Dolomite region of Italy, We spent our 26th anniversary at Pa’ Khraizar a lovely chalet styled inn in remote Sauris, a village famed for it’s Prosciutto di Sauris a savory smoked ham aged for at least 10 months. We ate a lovely anniversary dinner of local specialities, in a cozy honey-colored, pine-paneled dining room. We woke on the 23rd to a misty, stillness only broken by the sounds of the town bells and roosters. And the news that the Rays had beaten the Yankees 15-8!

Lake Sauris at Dawn: View from our Room

The mist lifted and the sun came out as we drove through mountain tunnels and narrow canyons leading from the mountains into the valleys of the Friuli-Venezia Giulia Region of northeastern Italy. We lunched in Udine at Al Vecchio Stallo and then continued onto Cividale del Friuli where we stayed three delightful evenings at La Cjase dai Toscans a small B&B in the heart of the old city. We rambled about the cobblestone streets of Cividale and explored nearby towns and villages of the rich wine country. During which time, the Rays managed to win 2 of 3 games against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Cividale del Friuli on the Natisone River

From Cividale, we headed to Trieste to meet up with friends from St Pete, Florida for a couple of nights. We stayed in the lovely and historic Savoia Excelsior Palace Hotel where from our balcony we had an expansive view of the Adriatric Sea and the historic port of Trieste. We ate VERY well in Trieste, enjoyed drinks in an ooen air café on the historic Grand Canal, walked up the hill to view the Duomo and marveled at the views over the city to the sea. And while we were enjoying the treats of Trieste, the Rays won two more games against the Yankees.

The Grand Canal of Trieste

We woke up on a bright sunny fall day in Trieste on the 28th realizing that the glimmer of hope that the Rays could make the playoffs was almost as bright as the sun shining on the Adriatic Sea below our balcony. That night’s game could decide it all, although the Boston Red Sox were still in the hunt.

View of the Port of Trieste from our window at the Savoia Excelsior Hotel

That day we drove south from Trieste through the relatively developed Veneto region to the expansive Po River Valley for a 4 day stay at Le Occare an agriturismo (farm stay) in a rural area about 15 miles east of Ferrara. Once we passed the outskirts of Venice we quickly entered the flat lands of the delta where agriculture, lagoons, and wildlife reigns supreme.

Fishing Nets & Huts with Comacchio in Background (Po River Delta)

Le Occare is a 68-acre farm and B&B that has been in the same family for three generations. Once a hemp and tobacco farm it now boasts acres of nut trees which are tended as much for the truffles that grow beneath them as for the bounty of nuts from the trees. The owners also grow vegetables, herbs, and berries in a kitchen garden, have an apple orchard and fields of corn and soybean, and make their own honey from their own bees & hives. Le Occare provides large and charming rooms for guests, deliciously prepared meals (breakfast and dinner), comfortable common areas for relaxing, trails for strolling and birding, good advice on places to visit, and a warm welcome to all guests.

Jerry walking at sunset at edge of Le Occare orchards

Le Occare is a two story ancestral stone farmhouse which is covered by vines and surrounded by pomegranate bushes, pine and nut trees. It is home to a lovely bunch of truffle hunting hounds who are more than happy to go for a walk with you or sit by your side as you enjoy a quiet afternoon in the garden. The home is charming with stone floors, thick walls, heavy doors, warm colored walls, floor to ceiling book shelves topped with a collection of old stoneware pots, and a huge welcoming kitchen where all the magic happens. One of the reasons we chose Le Occare was for the food and Cristina did not disappoint. We stayed 4 nights and ate every breakfast and dinner there.

Le Occare with a wonderful truffle hunter standing guard

We arrived at Le Occare late in the afternoon on the 28th. After a short walk with the dogs and a nap we settled down to a spectacular dinner served on old family china and linens. A big dinner and a bit of wine after a long days drive did not bode well for the idea of staying up to follow the game in the middle of the night. But I was determined to follow t at least the first few innings. So I read until 1am when the game started. I hadn’t figured out the WiFi yet, so I used my Blackberry and followed my St Pete twitter “list” which as expected was lively and informative. However, after several innings of “watching” David Price struggle and no score for the Rays, the need for sleep got the better of me and I decided to just catch the recap in the morning…with coffee.

Past Le Occare dogs kept me company in my rocker

Just before 4 a.m. I woke up for a wander to the WC. I thought, “I should check the final score” (figuring the game would be over and the Rays would be headed home for the winter). As I got out of bed, I saw much to my surprise that the game was still going with a score of 7-3, but groggily I figured the season was about to be over. Then just a few minutes later on my way back to bed, my twitter stream literally exploded as Evan Longoria hit the 3 run homerun and the score was now 7-6. So there I stood in the middle of a darkened room in my cotton nightgown and with bare feet on a cold stone floor saying to myself “well, I can’t go back to sleep now”.

So I sat down on the edge of the rocker in the corner of the room, shivering just a bit, to see what would happen next I held my breath Out 1, Out 2….I’m beginning to think I’ll get back in bed where it’s warm for the last out. Then I see that Dan Johnson is up to bat and there I hear the collective groan of resignation across the twitterverse. Echoing that sign, I headed back to the warmth of the blankets. And WHAM BAM….my twitter stream exploded for the second time of the night as Dan Johnson hits the homer that ties the game. TIES the game! Hubby woke up on that one, because, no, I just couldn’t keep silent.

Jerry rolls over to look at me with that resigned look only 26 years of marriage could produce as he sees me sitting up in bed staring intently at the screen on my blackberry. “What’s up?” he asks. “We’re tied 7 -7 in the 9th”, I say. “Wow, what time is it?” he mumbles as rolls back over.

My blackberry screen can produce an amazing amount of glow light, so I retreated back to the corner of the room in the rocker, this time with socks on and a blanket wrapped around me. I now knew I’d be up until the game was done and that might not be anytime soon.

Play by play, tweet by tweet, we (my twitter friends and I) crawled through the 10th inning then 11th inning. There was a lot of “breath holding” and rocking on my part….lots of rocking. 12th inning and Evan was up again. Finding it hard to believe lightning was going to strike twice in one game, I kept rocking figuring we were going to see the 13th inning.

Then a there was a mini eruption on twitter as the rain-delayed Boston Red Sox game resulted in a loss for the Red Sox and we all realized that even if the Rays lost we’d get one more chance in a tie-breaker game against the BoSox. The just a 3 minutes later and for the THIRD The Rays had won on a homerun by Evan Longoria. Once again a squeal escaped my lips and Jerry once again rolled over “what happened?” We won, We won, We won!

As I climbed back into bed, I realized that the sky was starting to lighten over the fields of the Po River Valley. Birds were rustling in the bushes outside my windows and I could hear the stirring of the truffle dogs. The Rays had won in a spectacular fashion showing the grit and discipline many of us admire them for. And there would be more games to follow on Twitter from the back roads of Italy. It was now time for sleep…and later a celebratory coffee, maybe two.

(portions of this story will soon appear in an e-book written by Paul Kocak (@kocakwords) about Game 162. I'll keep you all posted when his book is available)

Enjoying the Bounty of the Market

2012-01-07T21:00:00.000-05:00

Yesterday we enjoyed a great brunch made at home almost exclusively with what we bought at Marche Jean-Talon. My friend Kelly who lives here in Montreal came to visit. I came to know Kelly through Twitter some years ago and first met her IRL (in real life) when Jerry and I went to see her photography and art card work at a local art/craft market. She's very talented (google "chickapug" or "pugadee" if you'd like to see one of her amusingly quirky creations).Well, here I'll post it:

by Kelly Brown available thru Etsy at http://www.etsy.com/listing/52363121/chickapug-or-pugadee-8x10-print

For brunch we served pan-fried arctic char and a starter of smoked trout that we purchased from Les Delices de la Mer. I roasted brussel sprouts, "rainbow" carrots, and shallots.

Jason blanched and then broiled asparagus (white and green) served w/ freshly grated parmesan cheese. Kelly brought excellent fresh cut fruit from Eden (at Galleries du Parc).

Dessert was an EXCELLENT Tarte Tatin that Jason made with russet apples, ice wine (apple), and puff pastry dough from Pain d'Or

And we also had a plate of 3 excellent raw milk cheeses from Que Lait Cru w/ a few more russet apples.

We drank a Orvieto Classico and tried Jason's Honey Wine (or Mead) with dessert. Both very good. A game of Rummikub and a spot of tea with more conversation capped off a delightful (and delicious) afternoon. And I just remembered...there is a little of the Tarte Tatin leftover. Bye!

Review: Montreal 24

2012-01-04T18:39:00.001-05:00

We love Montreal. Ever since our first visit in 2003 we have found the City inviting, interesting, eclectic, energetic (without being demanding) and delicious. It didn't take us long to buy a small vacation apartment in Old Montreal (at the time we lived in Pennsylvania and was just a 9 hour drive, or short plane flight away). We come up in all seasons, even winter. I always say I need at least 2 to 3 weeks of winter now that we live in Florida. We love to explore Montreal on foot and by car. We love our old standby places to eat but always want to try something new (new to us). I've read history books of Quebec and Montreal. I've tried, with limited, success to gain a bit of mastery over the French language. We've met a few people in our building and through twitter. And after 9 years of visits, we find we still have so much to experience and learn. and yet we feel oddly at home.

Montreal 24 is the most recent book on Montreal that I've read and it is wonderfully thoughtful and informative. Written by Bill Brownstein a long time columnist for the Montreal Gazette commenting on city and cultural life in MOntreal, the book explores Montreal one hour at a time. Starting at midnight at the Garde-Manger he works around the city an hour at a time visiting such landmarks as Fairmont Bagels, Joe Beef, L'Express, Boustan's, La Banquise, Wilensky's and more. He talks food: chicken schwarmas, poutine, grilled salami/bologna sandwiches and egg rolls. He talks entertainment: Grumpy's bastion of bluegrass, Cafe Cleopatra's burlesque/stripjoint complete w/ dragqueens, Toyko's nightclub. But the best part of the the book is when he talks about people. Colorful hard-working, serious-eating, talented, off beat, and proud to be Montrealer people. The book is a window into the heart and soul of the City. A must read for anyone who loves Montreal like we do.

Tea: An Oasis on a Frigid Winter Day

2012-01-03T15:48:00.000-05:00

Today was cold here in Montreal. Sunny. Pretty. But...cold, a high of 5 degrees Farenheit (-11 with windchill). That my friend is what I now call "eye watering cold". We went for a short walk (all bundled up like colorful Pillsbury dough boys) and most parts of us were warm (thanks to wool, down and fur). Most parts except for that space between the top of the scarf and the bottom of the hat known as "the face". So the eyes watered and the sinuses complained a bit..ok a lot.. But our brisk (and thankfully) short walk was well worth the chill to get to Ming Tao Xuan Tea House (or Salon de The) at 451 St-Sulpice in Old Montreal.

The Tea House is on a corner across from the Notre Dame Basilica. The room has large windows and beautiful wooden display cases of tea pots, buddhas, porcelain figurines, bronze/brass deities, and more. Across one wall is a vast assortment of teas, one of the largest I've seen. By the windows are several comfortable tables for enjoying tea. We were seated and given an extensive and informative menu of teas with detailed descriptions that was very helpful in helping us choose our tea.

We chose two different kinds of tea. Jason had the Golden Water Turtle oolong tea. and I had the "medicinal" tangerine tea (I forget the exact name). It was served in a traditional style with multiple pots on a small wooden tray. Our server very carefully showed us the proper way to prepare, pour and serve the tea. It was delightful. We spent a long time enjoying the sun coming in through the window and talking and leisurely drinking out tea

Chips Anyone?

2012-01-03T10:00:00.000-05:00

My husband loves fish and chips. He is always trying to find the perfect Fish and Chips spot. And we came pretty close to it last night at Brit and Chips on McGill in Old Montreal.

Brit and Chips serves Cod, Haddock, Salmon, Hake and (sometimes) a fish of the day in various different batters. I had the Haddock in a Maple Syrup Batter, Jason had the Cod in the Burgundy Lion Batter, and Jerry had the salmon in the Guinness Batter. All the fish was moist and flaky. Jason thought his was a bit too greasy. Jerry's and mine were fine. I loved the slight sweetness of the Maple Syrup Batter but I think Jerry's salmon was the best tasting fish.

The chips (fries) were excellent. Flavorful and served piping hot. Jerry had the mushy peas which he said were good, but Jason and I just can't get into the concept of mushy peas to begin with so no opinion from us. Jason refused to eat what looks like "baby food" and they remind me to0 much of the canned green peas I grew up on and hated.

Jason also ordered the Tandoori Popcorn Shrimp, small shrimp in a Tandoori flavored batter. Very good. The short beer selection was a good selection. They have our new favorite Newcastle Brown Ale which was as good with Fish and Chips as it was the other night with Indian food at Gandhi's.

The room is a pleasant,well-lit, long skinny room with an open kitchen and a high top counter and a number of small (mostly two person) tables. Take Out is available. Brit and Chips is located at 433 Rue McGill in Old Montreal. They are open 7 days a week. Website: www.britandchips.com

Review: For 91 Days in Savannah

2012-01-01T20:17:00.000-05:00

My husband and I often drive the 95 corridor between Florida and the NE and we make it a point to stay a night (or two) in Savannah (or Charleston). Up until now we've never had a lot of information to help guide our short stays. This book solves that problem. It's easy to read and well laid out. It has gorgeous pictures. And if you are reading it online or on Kindle Fire (like I did) where you can link to the Internet, you can click on embedded links to their original blog posts with more pictures (and reader comments) or on links to places they've visited or eaten at.

The EBook is a compilation and refinement of the writer's blogposts and photography published over the 3 months they lived in Savannah. It isn't an exhaustive source for hotels, which is fine since we have our favorites. But they provide quite a lot of interesting details into the 24 squares of Savannah, graveyards, tours (kayak, dolphin, trolley), quirky restaurants and a few outlying towns (such as Beaufort).

I look forward to our next visit to Savannah and will be sure to have the book on my Kindle to help guide us and enhance our stay. Well done, guys!

New Year's Eve in Montreal

2012-01-01T13:44:00.000-05:00

We had a cozy and relatively quiet New Year's eve, we three. It was lovely. The day broke with a freezing rain and gray skies with warmer temps (mid 20sF) than last few days. We chose to spend the day reading, working on photographs (I still haven't gotten through all my Italy photos), computering, listening to music (Adele, Nat King Cole, Hugh Laurie) and napping. We had an early dinner at Gandhi's our favorite local Indian restaurant in Old Montreal. After Butter Chicken, Chicken Korma, a lamb dish I can't remember, samosas, aloo gobhi, and vegetable biryhani with naan and mango chutney, well we're were almost in a food coma. We wondered through Old Montreal as people started drifting in for the celebrations later in the evening. We re-assumed our positions on couch and chairs with champagne at the ready. Around 11 we started to celebrate with Anderson Cooper and Kathy Griffin on CNN and at midnight the fireworks went off over the Old Port right outside our windows. I bundled up and threw open the windows, drank champagne, and took these photos smiling as I listened to happy revelers below our windows.

A Snowy Wednesday in Montreal

2011-12-28T15:40:00.000-05:00

Word yesterday was that the storm headed up through the NE of the US was possibly going to dump 5 to 7 inches of snow overnight. It rained. We woke to snow flurries and bare pavement. We had counted on being "snowed-in" being ready to bake and cook all day.

So instead we lazed about reading until finally the snow started to fall and just simply shouted at us to get off our lazy as&es and go for a walk. Never ones to ignore shouting snow, we bundled up and went for a walk in Old Montreal. We poked about a few new stores, escaped a sudden gusty winds by ducking into Marche Bonsecours, ate yummy crepes with hot chocolate at Creperie St-Paul, and dawdled in the snow taking pics.

Now back in front of the fire getting ready to read (the cooking and baking is going to wait until tomorrow) here are a few snowy photos from today's walk.

Place Jacques Cartier, Old Montreal on a Snowy Day

Whimsical Christmas Decoration outside the Ville de Montreal (City Hall)

All Bundled Up

On Rue St Paul in Old Montreal (Dome of Marche Bonsecour in distance)

Rue St Paul (Marche Bonsecours)

Notre Dame Bonsecours

Walking on Rue Notre Dame in front of Ville de Montreal (City Hall) in the snow

Darwin Slept Here

2011-12-28T15:07:00.000-05:00

Darwin didn't actually sleep HERE, with me (I'm not THAT old). Rather I READ Darwin Slept Here which proved to be a great, snowy day,couch read, shining a light on Darwin as a young man before the "book", the fame, and the white beard. It also provided glimpses into parts of Brazil, Argentina and Chile both in Darwins time and the 21st century, as the author, Eric Simons attempts to retrace Darwins journeys up and down the coast of South America. The author has a wonderful zest for travel and discovery, a shared passion with Charles Darwin. The book is well written and well paced and paints a clear picture of both the young Darwin and the land that at times fascinated and at other times confounded him.

A Love Letter to a Market

2011-12-24T19:16:00.000-05:00

Market Chronicles: Stories & Recipes from Montreal's Marche Jean Talon by Susan Semenak is an affectionate, insightful, inspiring and beautiful portrait of the largest open-air farmer's market in North America (est. 1933).

It is a love story of the market that is near and dear to thousands upon thousands of Montrealers. It is a story of the seasons of the market, the people who make the market and the delicious bounty of the market. And it provides delicious recipes utilizing the treasures available at Marche Jean Talon.

The photography by Albert Elbilia of farms and fields, stalls & stores, people and animals, and food prepared from the bounty is beautiful. I especially love the portraits of those who work to bring such wonderful goodness to those of us who shop at the market.

We visit Montreal 3 to 4 times a year. And we never quite feel at "home" until we've been to Marche Jean Talon so it is usually on our "first day" list. Yesterday we shopped there and bought cabbage, basil & thyme, onions, strawberries, fresh apple juice, and apples. We nibbled on sausage made from white boar (sanglier) and deer (cerf) as we walked around. And, of course, I had a crepe with butter and sugar...I always have a crepe avec buerre et sucre. It was snowing outside and I wandered past the last of the balsam trees covered with snow while Jerry bought the hot off the grill sausages. We will be back every 3 or 4 days while we're here in Montreal. For fresh eggs, many turnips or parsnips next time, and more apple cider. Now with this wonderful book I have a great appreciation for and understanding of the merchants I meet and buy from.

The book is available on Amazon, at Costco, and I'm sure at the wonderful Librairie Gourmande located, of course, at Marche Jean Talon.

A Snowy Wintry Day in Montreal

2011-12-23T19:13:00.000-05:00

Yay! It snowed all day today. So we will have snow on the ground for Christmas after all. I woke early and saw the snow falling gently out the window and heard the sound of the Hotel Nelligan's empty wine bottles making their way into the bottom of their trash bin. I decided to roll over and soak in the sheets. But pretty soon it was time to hop out of the red flannel PJs and head out to Marche Jean Talon for early lunch and fruits & veggie shopping. We drove up St Laurent in the falling snow, ate crepes and sausage (boar and deer) at the market, bought apple juice, herbs, strawberries, cauliflower, cabbage and onions and people watched. Oh and took some photos. Here are a few (the complete set is at my flickr site: www.flickr.com/photos/abaesel/


Blueberries and Oranges at Marche Jean Talon


Bundled up for Marche Jean Talon

Chocolat Store in the Snow

What the heck am I doing in the snow??? Dinosaur at the Old Port Science Museum

Flowers at Marche Jean Talon

Santa? Nice Ferrari Jacket there. Shopping at Marche Jean Talon

Stocking up for the holidays at Marche Jean Talon

Snowing on Rue St Denis

Best Bagels EVER!

2011-12-22T17:46:00.000-05:00

We arrived in Montreal last night in a freezing rain and under a low cloudy sky. But our apartment was in perfect shape, warmed up quickly, and after a run to Costco for supplies we snuggled down for a long nights sleep. We woke to sunny skies (and slightly icy sidewalks).

After an excellent chicken and irish cheddar cheese omelet prepared by Chef Jerry, we were off to the movies (i love the holidays and afternoons in the theatre). Enjoyed Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (best of the franchise I think).

Then in close to rush hour traffic we snaked our way across Montreal making reservations as we went. Stopped at the Kitchen Gallerie (http://www.kitchengalerie.com/) on Jean Talon and scored 9pm reservations for tonight (the last night they are opened before their month long vacation). Got reservations for my birthday on January 8th at Au Pied de Cochon (http://www.restaurantaupieddecochon.ca/).

Then the true treat of the day? Fresh warm bagels from Fairmount Bagels (www.fairmountbagels.com). Located at 74 Fairmount West, this bagel bakery is the original bagel bakery founded in 1919. The Fairmount bagel is chewier, less puffy, and slightly sweeter than the more commonly known New York Style bagel. People line up all day long waiting to walk off with warm bagels in brown paper bags (with plastic bags for storage later). Most people don't even get to the curb before they are biting into one of the heavenly halos. When I walked out with my two huge bags, there were three clusters of people on the sidewalk hovering over open brown bags taking that first bite. Bags of bagels are also available at Costco, IGA groceries, and other selected stores. But really, if you have a chance to savor a warm bagel fresh from the bag...oh take it!

The New Year in Montreal

2011-01-09T18:27:00.000-05:00

Jerry, Jason and I flew up to Montreal on the 30th of December for 12 days. Our friends Jimmy & Cricket followed on the 31st to spend New Year's Eve and a few days more with us.

Jimmy, Cricket, Annette & Jerry

We've had a wonderfully lazy time. I think we've felt more like hibernating bears than anything else. The weather has been quite nice: a little snow, a little cold, a little sun, a little wind. We've done a bit of exploring, showed off Montreal to Jimmy & Cricket, and eaten a lot...tried old places and new. Haven't done as much walking as we normally do, something to do with that hibernating urge. Naps have just seemed more appealing.

Rue St Sulpice on a Snowy Winter Evening (view from our apartment)

Holiday Decorations on Rue St Paul

As always we've made sure to get in at least one trip to Marche Jean Talon, one visit to Gandhi's in old Montreal for Indian food, several trips to Fairmont Bagels and one trip to Rue St Bernard (along w/ Drawn & Quarterly). We cooked at home and made a new version of Hungarian Goulash with sweet paprika bought from Gourmet Laurier. Jason experimented with emulating Gandhi's Chicken Korma with spices bought at Olive et Olivse in Marche Jean Talon. We bought baguettes and croissants at Pain Dore on Laurier (as Olive et Gourmande was closed, we're hoping just for the holidays). We celebrated my birthday at Moishe's on Rue St Laurent. An old time steak house celebrating 75 yrs this year and which has according to my husband: the BEST Romanian dill pickles ever (and his Romanian mother made great pickles)

A Merry Assortment of Apples at Marche Jean Talon

On New Year's Eve we cooked at home with Jimmy and Cricket, and then wandered around the Old Port with other happy revelers and watched the midnight fireworks from our apartment windows.

The Magical Tree on Place Royale: My Favorite This Year

Happy New Year Eve Skaters in the Old Port

We discovered a new find (for us, not for Montreal, since its been in business since 1942) Beauty's on Mont Royal. A wonderful diner serving great food for a reasonable price with good service, big windows, and Beauty himself sitting on a stool near the entrance to greet you and direct you to a table. And of course, I can't forget, we made the pilgrimage to Juliette et Chocolate on Rue Laurier. As always I had my chocolate raspberry brownie balsamico and tried yet another hot chocolate flavor...this time Ghana...which so far is my favorite. Is my favorite always the last one I tried? There is a long list to come.

My favorite, raspberry chocolate brownie balsamico and Ghana Hot Chocolate

Jimmy enjoying his Chocolate Chaud at Juliette et Chocolate

On Saturday we had the pleasure to meet up with Kelly and Tom at La Croissanterie Figaro on Fairmont in Outremont. I met Kelly through Twitter (@misskitteh9). Jerry and I had previously met her at a art/craft market last summer. On Saturday we all met up at Figaro's and ate and talked for 2 1/2 hours in the back corner. It was really nice to meet her husband Tom and to have the leisure to get to know them better. It was a delightful time.

We ate at Laloux (on des Pins) for the first time and had a delightful dinner with excellent service. Jason had the Bream which he LOVED. I had a very good butternut squash gnocchi. Jerry had the steak on polenta. Appetizers were excellent, the salads being the best. Desserts were creative and delicious. Our server made excellent recommendations regarding wines by the glass to go with our meals.

The only slight misstep of the visit was our meal at Serafim in Old Montreal (on the corner of Rue St Denis and Rue St Paul). We went for Sunday brunch when we found Le Cartet closed for the holidays. The owner chef seemed cranky and well...rude. They sat us at a table far too small and too close to adjoining tables for a group of 5 adults. When we asked to move to a different table, the server said yes (which given that the restaurant wasn't even 1/3rd full seemed the right answer.) We heard her get growled at by the owner and she attempted to find out if we were "just staying for coffee". Needless to say we didn't move. One of the attractions of the place (besides it being open was that it billed itself as "organic" foods). But organic doesn't mean uninspired or cardboard-like or just flat over cooked. I mean, really, how can you make a pancake taste like overcooked cardboard? The vegie burger was entirely too dry. The omelet with bacon was actually an omelet with bacon slices just plopped on top of it...not an omelete cooked with bacon in it...and although that may have been a translation issue, we asked specifically for cheese. We were told that cheese came IN the omelet. There was no cheese, in (or on) either of the two omelets. Then when I went to pay for the bill which is at a register in front of the open kitchen, I got the dubious pleasure of listening to the owner/chef yell and harangue his waitstaff. Whether they deserved the harangue was none of my business, but I shouldn't have to listen to it. Needless to say, we will not return to the Serafim anytime soon.

Here we are, all bundled up for a New Year's Eve Stroll

nom.nom.nom. Elk & calf early evening Yellowstone

2010-11-28T21:38:00.001-05:00

nom.nom.nom. Elk & calf early evening Yellowstone, originally uploaded by abaesel.

The light was poor but this was such a lovely sight. The young elk rose from a nap and bounded over to his standing his mother. And there in the lovely grassland along the Madison Valley in western Yellowstone....he had his snack.

Clepsydra Geyser, Lower Geyser Basin, Yellowstone

2010-11-28T21:18:00.001-05:00

Clepsydra Geyser, Lower Geyser Basin, Yellowstone, originally uploaded by abaesel.

Clepsydra Geyser is one of the most regularly "performing" geyser in all of Yellowstone. It erupts almost continuosly up to heights of 45 feet. It is located in the Lower Geyser Basin off the road between Old Faithful Lodge and Madison Junction. The Lower Geyser Basin has a number of beautiful hot springs, mud pots, and other geysers, easily accesbile by a series of boardwalks and paths.

That is clear, clear water of a blue & gold hot spring: West Thumb, Yellowstone

2010-11-28T21:10:00.001-05:00

That is clear, clear water of a blue & gold hot spring: West Thumb, Yellowstone, originally uploaded by abaesel.

Our first day in Yellowstone NP we drove north from Grand Tetons and stopped for a walk around the West Thumb Geyser Basin that is located along the shorline of Lake Yellowstone. A series of boardwalks and paths wind through geysers, hot springs, fumaroles, and geysers at and in the lake's edge. It was a magical introduction to the geysers of Yellowstone. This one here was steaming but the water was crystal clear magnifying the colors of the beautiful spring.

Smokey Sunset: Grand Teton National Park

2010-11-28T21:05:00.001-05:00

Smokey Sunset: Grand Teton National Park, originally uploaded by abaesel.

Bull Elk and part of his harem: Grand Tetons near Lake Jackson (at dusk)

2010-11-28T21:04:00.001-05:00

Bull Elk and part of his harem: Grand Tetons near Lake Jackson (at dusk), originally uploaded by abaesel.

This Bull Elk and his harem came out in the early dusk to graze in grassland along the Grand Teton park road near Lake Jackson. It was the first time we heard the enchantingly eerie "bugling" of the male elk. A truly memorable sound.

Autumn Splendour in Grand Teton NP

2010-11-28T20:55:00.001-05:00

Autumn Splendour in Grand Teton NP, originally uploaded by abaesel.

We spent four days in the Grand Teton NP in late September of 2010. One afternoon we drove along the East Side of the Valley (along the Moose Wilson Rd & Teton Park Rd). We stopped for a short hike into the autumn colors and snapped this lovely picture

Oregon Trail Register Rock, Guernsey, WY

2010-11-28T20:03:00.001-05:00

Oregon Trail Register Rock, Guernsey, WY, originally uploaded by abaesel.

Register Rock is a 100 foot sandstone cliff that sits back from the Platte River. Thousands of emigrants traveling the Oregon, California & Mormon Trails would camp at the foot of the cliffs. And many of them inscribed their names, place of origin (or where they were headed and dates on the rock. It was like a great big hotel registry for the campsite. A trail follows along the base of the cliff allowing a visitor to view the inscriptions. The day we were there, I was accompanied by a resident Corgy (probably from the local ranchhouse) who led me down the path and back to the parking lot.

Angry Skies over Fort Laramie, WY

2010-11-28T19:53:00.001-05:00

Angry Skies over Fort Laramie, WY, originally uploaded by abaesel.

We visited Historic Fort Laramie on the Platte River on a day that started sunny and soon became gray and threatening. Fortunately this sky skirted north of where we were and just put on a great show for us. The Fort complex sits on the banks of the Platte River. It was originally built to serve the fur trade & fur traders. Once the western emigration began in earnest the US Army took over the Fort to serve the wagon trains on the Oregon and Mormon Trails. Its a lovely expansive spot with considerable amount of the buildings reconstructed. There is an informative film showing every 15 minutes or so in the visitor center. Well worth the drive to see.

Big Skies over Colorado's Pawnee National Grasslands

2010-11-28T19:35:00.001-05:00

Big Skies over Colorado's Pawnee National Grasslands, originally uploaded by abaesel.

First day of trip. We drove from Denver Intl Airport to Cheyenne via a sidetrip through Pawnee National Grasslands. The Grasslands are on the western edge of the Great Plains but saw limited agricultural use. They were withdrawn from cultivation after the Dust Bowl. The grasslands are filled with birds and known for its raptors which we saw soaring in these BIG skies. We also saw several herds of deer, old windmills, and very few cars or people. A lovely welcome to Big Sky country.

Sunrise over Coffee Pot Bayou, St Pete, Florida

2010-11-09T19:33:00.001-05:00

Sunrise over Coffee Pot Bayou, St Pete, Florida, originally uploaded by abaesel.

This was the morning of Yarik's 1st day of work at Beall's. I was driving to pick him up and stopped to catch the sunrise over Coffee Pot Bayou. A wonderful way to start the day.

Classic Boats and the Old Port on a Rainy Day

2010-08-22T18:13:00.000-04:00

Have spent much of this lazy, rainy Sunday in the apartment: cleaning, eating, napping, reading, and blogging. But we did venture out for our daily walk into the gray drizzle of a Summer Sunday. We walked down to the Lachine Locks where the Port was hosting a 3 day Classic Boat Festival which boasted a whole floating stable of classic boats from small wooden power boats to a tug or two. There was music, food, a whole host of information booths on everything from the history of the Port of Montreal to cleverly decorated Boat Bags. Here are a few pics from the day: Enjoy!

Historic Restored Ocean-Going Tug Permanently Moored in Old Port

Is it a Car or Is it a Boat? It's a Woody! A '59 Woody

Out for a Cruise at the Classic Boat Festival

Rain on Woody

New Floating Boat Docks at Lachine Docks: Perfect for Classic Boat Show

Woody 59

Rudder in the Rain

Classic Boat Show Activity at Lachine Locks

I Made a Friend Today at Marche Montreal (and got myself a Chickapug)

2010-08-21T20:19:00.004-04:00

I've been on Twitter over a year now (@abaesel2)and have found interesting, clever, informative, and engaging people in the Twitterverse. Its always a real treat to meet one of my twitter friends IRL (In Real Life) especially when they turn out to be as charming and interesting as their tweets. And such was the case today, when I met Kelly Brown AKA @misskitteh9. Kelly, as she describes herself on twitter, is a digital artist, photographer, and Photoshop fanatic. I had seen some of her work on her Esty site: http://www.etsy.com/shop/kellydbrown and loved it. Today I got to see her AND her work IRL at the Marche Montreal. Kelly has a wide variety of subjects from Paris and Montreal to alpacas and marmots, from gardens and butterflies to horses and handsome dogs. And then there is Chickapug (or is that Pugadee?) Well, whatever you call the cute fella, I got my very own "Chickapug" (magnet) today. Wanna see?

The Marche Montreal is in its formative stages having just started its Saturday gatherings on August 12th. Located in a parking lot on St Dominique near Prince Arthur Street, the goal of the market is to provide a venue for artists, craftspersons, food vendors, musicians, jewelry makers and fashion designers, as well as secondhand goods sellers. Although still small, there were interesting things for sale today and a talented jazz guitarist was playing as we left. The market is just one block over from St. Laurent and easy to get to by car, on foot, or public transportation. Here is a website with more info: http://marchemtl.wordpress.com/

Oh and here we are....@missketteh9 and @abaesel2 at the Marche Montreal.

The Great Street Explore: Rue Bernard, Montreal

2010-08-19T22:11:00.002-04:00

Jerry and I have a new Montreal Project: The Great Explore. We're going to take a street which we like (or looks interesting to us) and walk it from one end to the other and back. Stopping for explores, food, photos, whatever strikes our fancy. And if the street proved rewarding, I'll blog about it. So our first candidate is Rue Bernard in Mile End and Outremont.

We walked it on a breezy, sunny weekday in mid-August. We started at Rue St Laurent and the Mile End neighborhood and walked to Avenue Wiseman in Outremont (and back). It was a very pleasant walk. Much of the street is lined with trees or flower pots or colorful murals. Most restaurants have sidewalk seating in the good weather months and interior space that opens onto the sidewalks. The area is a mix of boutiques, restaurants, apartments, theatre, and neighborhood services: bakeries, depanneurs, dry cleaners, and local take outs.

We used to visit Rue Bernard every time we were in Montreal when the lovely and delicious Bouchees des
Gourmandes was located in a little spot where a tea company now resides. Nooffense to the tea company, which I'm sure is quite nice, but I mutter and grumble everytime I walk past. I miss Bouchees and the wonderful woman who owned it).

So this time we wandered the streets looking for what other treats might be in store. And we found several.

Drawn & Quarterly: 211 Rue Bernard West. This is an enchanting and offbeat bookstore which serves at the flagship store for Drawn & Quarterly, a leading North American Art and Literary comics and book publisher. Their store leans heavily to graphic novles (both new and vintage) but it also has a very whimisical and delightful selection of children's books and a small but fine offering of fiction and non-fiction books. I always find something I've never heard of that I end up loving and passing on. For more infomration check out their website at: www.drawnandquarterly.com

Lester's Delicatessan: 1057 Rue Bernard West. We've eaten at Lester's a number of times and always enjoy their (famous for over 50 years) smoked meat and ICED COLD Stewart's root beer (comes in diet too). They have much more on their menu, but we never get past the smoked meats. Summer time brings out the shaded sidewalk eating area but as it was full we ate indoors this time under the approving gaze of a signed PR photo of William Shatner hanging on the wall (near the Petticoat Junction and Get Smart Lunchboxes). As you should surmise, the decor is eclectic to say the very least. Service is always prompt and prices are reasonable.

Bilboquet (Le Glacier Bilboquet): 1311 Rue Bernard West. This is really great ice cream...really great...and I LOVE ice cream. We'd heard of Bilboquet for over 6 years (and had a scoop or two when offered at a restaurant) but this was our first visit to the actual Bilboquet itself. Not disappointed. The had a large selection of ice creams many with fresh seasonal ingredients. I had the raspberry and vanilla ice cream which was wonderful. Waffle cones were fresh and crisp. There is seating inside where they also serve sandwiches...but really who can resist eating ice cream over a sandwich (although I'm sure they are fine). There is also seating at small tables and benches outside (under a shade in the summer)

Outremont Theature: 1240 Rue Bernard West. The Outremont was built in 1929 in fine Art Deco style. Originally it was a movie theatre, but over time it became a renowned venue for theatre and music. Famous Quebecquois singers and musicians, rock groups in the 70s and 80s graced its stage. Due to declining business the theatre closed in the late 80s. It was purchased by the City of Montreal in 1993 and underwent a 7 year renovation reopening in 2002. The Outremont now provides the City with a fine venue for film screenings, music, comedy, and theatre. For more info:www.theatreoutremont.ca

Le Moulerie: At 1249 Rue Bernard, Le Moulerie is a very convenient place to eat before or after a show at the Outremont. They have a long and shaded sidewalk terrasse as well as a pleasant interior. As the name suggests they are known for their mussels and that’s the only thing we’ve had to eat there. And, they were very good. They have a full menu of other seafood (and non-seafood) offerings. La Senzala. At 177 Rue Bernard in Mile End, this colorful restaurant offers Brazilian/Bahia cuisine. We haven’t eaten there yet, but it gets decent reviews on various internet foodie sites so we’ve added it to the “to eat there” list. Bistro Le Republique 1051 Rue Bernard. A bustling bistro on a corner with great sidewalk terrasse. On our list to try.

O 'Macaron et Chocolat 1005 Rue Bernard. A small stylish storefront offering French style macarons, very pretty (and I’m sure tasty) chocolat, coffees etc. My heart was set on Bilboquet ice cream this visit. So a taste test had to wait.

Boulangerie Cheskie Heimeshe Bakery 359 Rue Bernard. You can smell Cheskie’s for several blocks away. Known for their “old fashioned” rugelach, cheese Danish, cookies, cream puffs, and the Babka, this is a warm and delicious smelling bakery serving both the surrounding Jewish Community and Montreal at large.

Boutiques. There are a number of boutiques on Rue Bernard that I find charming and a littel out of the ordinary. They include Kokoon at 1061; Style Labo at 122; Au Printemps at 1110; and Papillote at 1126

Riddell's. For 50 years George Riddell made fishing lures and sold them out of his shop at 55 Rue Bernard (where he also lived). A “character” many would say he was a man proud of his craft and more than a little fond of fishing. He passed away just this last June and I’m sad to say I didn’t discover his shop before he died. I would have loved to have wondered around in it. The shop hasn’t been cleaned out yet. Many hope someone will find a place for his 50 year collection of lures. Check out this YouTube video filmed in 2008 to get a glimpse of the man and his store (filmed by Tim Van Horn)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H748UOtBpQM

Montreal: Summer on the Lachine Canal

2010-08-16T11:49:00.016-04:00

For many people, summer in the Montreal means walking, biking, or boating along the Lachine Canal. The Canal stretches 14.5 km from the Old Port of Montreal to Lake Saint-Louis on the St Lawrence River. There are a total of 5 locks to navigate for boaters and paved biking/walking/jogging trails with small pocket parks and access to local attractions such as the Marche Atwater.

Construction of the canal was begun in 1821 and finished in 1825 creating the port of entry for a series of canals that opened up the interior of the North America to the Atlantic Ocean. Interestingly, the famed Erie Canal was also opened in 1825 with the same purpose. In addition to providing important commercial shipping passage, the canal also provided power (hydraulic) to a growing manufacturing community along the Lachine.

With the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 1959 (built to handle the newer, larger freighters headed for the Great Lakes: hence the term “Lakers”) the Lachine Canal fell into disrepair and was largely unused for any navigational purpose for almost 4 decades. In 1997 a revitalization program started. Bike/Walking paths have been constructed along its entire length. In 2002, the canal reopened for pleasure craft. Today additional improvements at the locks (boat docks, cafes, landscaping, and historic markers) are added each year.

Summertime sees heavy use by boaters wishing to make the slow and scenic voyage through the 5 locks and 14.5 km of canal (an average of 3 hours without stops). These photos were taken on August 15^th at Locks 1 and 2 at the entrance to the Canal in the Old Port of Montreal. The photos show many happy boaters, brand new almost-ready-to-open floating docks, the newly restored historic ocean-going tug The Daniel McAllister and summer blue sky.

The area around Locks 1 and 2 are easily accessible (year round) from Old Montreal by foot or bike and boasts several cafes, benches for resting, and closeup views of lock operations. We often bike a few miles further up the canal to Marche Atwater for produce and pastries. But sometimes we just sit and watch the boats go by. It is a place well worth the visit.

A Wonderful Old Man Who Knew Margaret Mead

2010-08-08T19:57:00.002-04:00

A Wonderful Old Man Who Knew Margaret Mead, originally uploaded by abaesel.

This delightful Ubud store owner talked with me about being a young boy when Margaret Mead lived and conducted her studies in Bali. His older brother acted as a secretary for her. He said that he "liked her".

Hanoi - Street Scene: Young Man

2010-07-25T21:16:00.002-04:00

Hanoi - Street Scene, originally uploaded by abaesel.

We visited Vietnam for a month in 2008. I especially loved Hanoi, despite the frenetic traffic (or perhaps because of it). Motorcycles and scooters were everywhere, likes swarms of bees. Parking was at a premium, usually on sidwalks originally meant for pedestrians and street sellers. Here is a young man on his scooter. Waiting for a friend? or perhaps waiting for a tourist who will pay him to take them to another part of town (not me, I was scared enough walking through the traffic, much less being part of the traffic swarms.

Golden Tunnel at Knowth Passage Tomb, Ireland 2005

2010-07-24T21:11:00.003-04:00

Tunnel at Newgrange, originally uploaded by abaesel.

one of our favorite days in our 2005 trip to Ireland was a cold dreary August day spent at Knowth, Newgrange and surrounding area. There were few other visitors and we were in no rush. This is one of my favorite photos I took from within the dimly lit innards of the Knowth Passage Mound.

Gators in the outhouse?

2010-07-24T16:16:00.002-04:00

Gators in the outhouse? , originally uploaded by abaesel.

In June of 2008, Jerry and I drove from Nashville down to Florida. On the way we made a detour through the Okeefanokee Swamp in South Georgia. Had a nice walk on a boardwalk through a swamp area and noticed this sign near the "marina" and nature center. (we didn't see any gators...but we sure saw a lot of stinging biting bugs...lesson?....don't walk in a swamp in shorts!

A Flowers Salute: Machu Picchu

2010-07-23T16:02:00.002-04:00

machu picchu, originally uploaded by abaesel.

We were lucky on our visit to Machu Picchu to be able to stay and be the very last group out for the day. We were able to watch the sun go down behind the mountain and watch the shadows lengthen across the ruins. I loved the sun shining on this random red plant (flower?) giving a salute from the ancient walls. A peaceful moment in an otherwise busy and full day of exploring.

A Flowers Salute: Machu Picchu

2010-07-23T16:01:00.002-04:00

machu picchu, originally uploaded by abaesel.

Nobska Light, Cape Cod

2010-07-22T21:40:00.002-04:00

Nobska Light, Cape Cod, originally uploaded by abaesel.

For several years we visited with friends each July in Falmouth, Cape Cod. This is a photo of the lovely Nobska Light near Woods Hole. That is Jerry reading and soaking up the sun and seabreeze. (2007)

Nobska Light, Cape Cod

2010-07-22T21:39:00.002-04:00

Nobska Light, Cape Cod, originally uploaded by abaesel.

This Basket is an Office: REALLY

2010-07-20T18:12:00.002-04:00

Longaburger Corporate Offices - REALLY!, originally uploaded by abaesel.

This is the Longaburger Corporate Offices in Newark Ohio. Yes, they are famous for their fine baskets. And a good sense of humor. We stopped by for a photo a few years ago on our way to Cincinnati from Philadelphia...well worth the 20 minute detour off the main highway.

How come I don't have a color???

2010-07-20T00:51:00.002-04:00

How come I don't have a color???, originally uploaded by abaesel.

Sheep and lamb on the Dingle Peninsula in Ireland.

Michael Quirke, wood carver, Sligo

2010-07-18T20:36:00.002-04:00

Michael Quirke, wood carver, originally uploaded by abaesel.

Michael Quirke is a woodcarver in Sligo, Ireland. He is a former butcher shop owner who now carves and sells his works out of his former butcher shop. A delightful man good with carving knife and with a story. Here is is writing down the names and brief stories behind the two pieces we purchased (to his right)

No dog? no guitar? no problem

2010-07-18T17:34:00.003-04:00

No dog? no guitar? no problem, originally uploaded by abaesel.

5 Years ago Jason (my son) and I spent two weeks driving around Ireland. We had the best time. He discovered Jameson's Irish Whiskey (loving that at 17 he could legally drink it too). We discovered James Blunt before he had his hits here in the US. and I discovered how fortunate I was to have a 17 year old son who was willing to explore the Emerald Isle with his "old" ma. This photo was taken in Galway...the group really made us laugh!

Harvest Time - Rice Fields - northern Vietnam

2010-07-15T19:48:00.002-04:00

Harvest Time - Rice Fields - northern Vietnam, originally uploaded by abaesel.

On our way from Hanoi to Halong Bay in October of 2008 we passed ripening rice fields ready for harvest. Here you can see the marriage of both traditional and modern equipment used for harvesting. Anything to get the crop in on time and in good shape.

Sally Lightfoot Crab: Galapagos

2010-07-13T21:25:00.002-04:00

Sally Lightfoot Crab, originally uploaded by abaesel.

I always want to call these little jewels of the Galapagos shore "Holly Go Lightly". Probably Audrey Hepburn wouldn't have thought much of being referred to as a pretty little crab...then again....

The Falmouth Frog

2010-07-13T21:12:00.002-04:00

Cape Cod Frog (Falmouth), originally uploaded by abaesel.

We are missing Cape Cod this summer. Enjoyed a summer visit several years in a row to stay with friends in a lovely blue clapboard house on Elm in Falmouth. There was a big shady pond in the backyard filled with these fat little guys (on and off the lily pads). At night they created a symphony of ribbetts that sounded like slack stringed banjos.

Silly Seabird Saturday

2010-07-10T22:53:00.002-04:00

Blue-Footed Boobies, N. Seymour, Galapagos, originally uploaded by abaesel.

These two were doing a little "dating" on Seymour Island in the Galapagos late one afternoon. We all thought they looked like Laurel and Hardy with their funny "duck" walk.

Friday Favorite

2010-07-09T22:53:00.002-04:00

Mom and Sea Lion Pup, originally uploaded by abaesel.

Galapagos: Mom and Sea Lion Pup on the beach- contemplating a swim? Actually I think Mom was planning her fishing foray and junior just wanted her to stay "home". He was quite an inquisitive little guy. while mom was fishing, he thought any amply endowed middle aged woman in a black one piece bathing suit MUST be his mother. Yes, that's right, I had on a black one piece bathing suit!.

Montreal Mardi Gras Parade

2010-07-06T22:49:00.002-04:00

Montreal Mardi Gras Parade, originally uploaded by abaesel.

Scene from tonight's closing parade of the Montreal Jazz Festival celebrating the music of Louisiana and Mardi Gras! Floats were brought up from New Orleans especially for tonight. Fun! Music! and lots of Beads!

Gelati in Old Montreal

2010-07-06T15:44:00.004-04:00

Les Delices de l'Erable at 84 Rue St Paul west in Old Montreal is as its name implies a retailer of all things maple. But what we love about the place is it gelati counter. They of course always have a few that contain maple syrup (or maple chunks...one of my favorites) but they have a wide assortment of fabulous fruit gelatis (today's strawberry was incredible and jerry always loves the 2 scoops for price of 1 coconut gelati). We've been going there for years and have noticed that they have a reduced assortment these days (we really miss the meringue ice cream they used to sell in the summer) and they sometimes run out before they close in the evening. Hope this is just a temporary glitch and not a sign of financial issues, because their closing would be a true loss to the neighborhood.

So if you are out and about in Old Montreal, do me a favor. Get yourself to Les Delices de L'Erable and have yourself a couple 0f scoops...you'll thank me for it!

Remember This Little Guy?

2010-07-06T14:50:00.004-04:00

Its my little pal from Italy: Topo Gigio. When I was growing up, he was one of my favorite acts from the old Ed Sullivan show. Always so sweet and endearing. Gooooood Night, EDdeeeee!

I saw Topo in a shop window in Old Montreal. When I inquired, they said they had two "models". One soft cuddly Topo who chatters in Italian when you press his hand (On the Ed Sullivan show, Topo, of course, spoke heavily accented English). The smaller model was a "standing" Topo who dances and sings. Sounds cute, except that he sings (in Italian) Billy Ray Cyrus' Achy Breaky Heart. I'm mean REALLY...that is just wrong on many levels. So I brought home the cuddly and chatty little Topo. I wonder what he is saying?????

Monday Memory: Dingle, Ireland 2005

2010-07-05T12:08:00.002-04:00

Dingle, Ireland, originally uploaded by abaesel.

My son Jason and I spent 2 weeks driving around Ireland in the Summer of 2005. Here he is outside a music store in Dingle where we had just bought our first James Blunt CD (before he hit it big in the US) after hearing him almost non-stop on Irish Public Radio for the previous 10 days. Great town Dingle: pubs, music, people, and great sunsets.

Fireworks over Alexander Bay, NY

2010-07-04T16:47:00.002-04:00

Fireworks over Alexander Bay, NY, originally uploaded by abaesel.

This year we are in Canada on the 4th of July, so will miss out on Independence Day fireworks. But we have great memories of years past. This photo was taken in Alexander Bay (1000 Islands area) in New York in 2005. Wonderful fireworks over the St. Lawrence River.

Saturday Out & About In Montreal

2010-07-03T17:41:00.007-04:00

Slept in then lounged around watching the Germany vs Argentina quarter final game. Finally the lovely sun streaming in the window (and our growling stomachs) got us up and out of the apartment. Drove up to Jean Talon for early lunch at Bombay Masala. As always, fabulous chicken korma, lamb biryani, and naan for a very reasonable price. Now fortified for an explore we headed off to the Jean Talon Market for avocados and tomatoes.

oh, and a mango gelato

and berries

With our larder stocked up (also bought some spices and balsami creme/glaze), we drove down to St Catherine near The Village...where the street is closed off to cars and restaurants have built outdoor terrasses for the summer and artist set up their wares in white tents. It was a popular spot today.

After an hours walk, we decided to go back home for a nap and the end of the Spain/Paraguay quarter final. Good idea, except Rue de la Commune our route home was jammed with holiday goer traffic. Just jammed. So what to do? Take pics out the window of the car. And wish I had remembered a bottle of water.

Cirque du Soleil's Totem

2010-07-03T10:30:00.006-04:00

(images from the cirque du soleil official site for TOTEM)

Jerry and I saw the new creation of Cirque du Soleil: Totem. The Giant Blue and Yellow swirled-striped tents sit on a quay in the Old Port of Montreal. As the Cirque is based in Montrael, traditionally the newest creation is debuted on the Montreal quay. Always very exciting to see a new Cirque du Soleil performance, its always special to us to walk through Old Montreal to the big tent and to see it here.

In the words of the Cirque: TOTEM traces the fascinating journey of the human species from its original amphibian state to its ultimate desire to fly. The characters evolve on a stage evoking a giant turtle, the symbol of origin for many ancient civilizations.

As always the performance intertwines the humorous with the profound, the quirky with languid beauty, "small" subtle feats of concentration with "big" eye popping feats of strength. Costumes and music were magical.

We especially loved the opening act of the 2nd act where a couple flirt and fight and ultimately intertwine suspended above the floor on a Fixed Trapeze. The amerindian Hoop Dancer was a portrait in grace, coordination, and tradition. The Devil Sticks act was a "smaller act" but no less mesmerizing. I could go on and on and ultimately end up describing the entire show including the amusing "Italian Tourist Clown" (call me, okay???)

Totem opens in Quebec City on July 22nd and Amsterdam in October. With more cities to follow.

Glimpses of Canada Day in Old Montreal

2010-07-01T21:04:00.006-04:00

A Quiet Summer Evening in the Old Port of Montreall

2010-07-01T14:47:00.006-04:00

Today is Canada Day and the Old Port of Montreal is anything but quiet. There are bands, a kids zipline, demonstration ski jumping (without the snow), and thousands of happy people. I'll post pics of all that later. But first, the Old Port a week ago: on a quiet summer evening. People were strolling, roller blading, laying in the grass, sitting on park benches, laughing, eating, and just enjoying a mild summer evening (absent humidity, biting insects, and heat...one of the many reasons we love summer in Montreal).

Montreal's La Fete Nationale Parade (Sainte Jean Baptiste Day) June 24th

2010-07-01T11:29:00.010-04:00

Sainte Jean Baptiste Day (June 24^th) is celebrated throughout Quebec. Since 1977 it has been celebrated officially as the national holiday (La Fete Nationale) of Quebec. This year we attended the La Fete Nationale Parade which was a wonderful surprise. Not the typical parade of bands and floasts with little cohesiveness of message. The Parade was a celebration of the important events, ideas, and people who have been influential throughout history of Quebec. It was a riot of color and sound; a sea of blue and white. There were ginormous, magnificent “giants” carved from wood and decorated in fabric which depicted the famous and influential Quebeckers from founding to modern day. Although all in French (and we speak little French) the message and importance of these events, ideas, and people were not lost on us. The parade was a riotous celebration of Quebec and its language, French. But this was no “white man, euro-centric” French (which I’m afraid many of us outside of Quebec think). In looking at the faces IN the parade and all the faces lining the parade, we were struck by the inclusiveness of Quebec. A rainbow of ethnicity lined the street. What binds them together? Their shared experiences of culture and history in Quebec and yes, their language, French.

more photos of the parade please check out:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/abaesel/sets/72157624226671591/

Nashville: CMA Music Fest 2010

2010-06-12T14:07:00.011-04:00

June, 2010 (posted belatedly)

Well, here we are again. Our 4th year of making the trek to Nashville for 4 days of country music fun, good food, and great friends. For the past 4 years we've driven to Nashville to meet our friends Peg and Jeff (from mason, ohio), colleen (from New Hampshire) and Moe (from Boston). We've stayed the last 3 years in luxury and wonderfully, reliable air conditioning at the Hermitage Hotel (6th and Union). On a day like today when its 94 degrees and a heat index probably over 100, the hotel is a welcome oasis to rest and recharge before heading back out to have fun in downtown Nashville.

This past May, Nashville (and much of Middle Tennessee) was hit with historic flooding that impacted a considerable number of businesses and venues in the downtown. What is truly amazing is that you can hardly tell. The effort, which MUST have been 24/7, to clean up and get businesses reopened is astonishing. There are a few places that smell a little musty and whose floor boards are worse for wear and I'm sure they've got more work to do after the Festival is over. But restaurants are open, western wear and honky tonks are alive and kicking, and the spirit of Nashville has never been more enthusiastic. There is much work left to do in the area outside of Nashville and contributions to rebuilding organizations are greatly appreciated. This year a large portion of the CMA Music Fest proceeds is going to rebuilding.

We arrived Wednesday in Nashville. We ate dinner at Monelle's on 6th Ave North in Germantown area of Nashville. Family style dining with home cooking food. Fried Chicken, fabulous porkchops, greenbeans, corn pudding, cold slaw, broccoli salad, cucumber salad, biscuits, and peach cobbler. Sat a table w/ a family from Tennessee and Ohio. We've eaten there for breakfast before (which in some ways in even MORE food than dinner). Had a great time as always and waddled away to the Marty Stuart's Late Night Jam.

For the 9th year Marty Stuart has held his "Late Night Jam" celebrating traditional country music and raising funds for Nashville's Music Cares program. Its held in the old Ryman Auditorium and is always a treat for seeing country through Marty Stuart's experiences and eyes. This year we were also treated to acoustic performances by Keith Urban!!! and surprise guest Vince Gill. The concert starts at 10pm. We left at 1:30 (and it was still going strong).

Fontanel. Yesterday we went to the newly opened Fontanel Mansion. Formerly the home of Barbara Mandrell and her family, it is the largest log home in the world and is now owned by a music producing duo. The mansion is open for tours. Grounds are open for hiking and horsebackriding. A great restaurant (operated by the Loveless Cafe folks) is located at the entrance to the grounds (along w/ a gift shop). The Mansion has only been open since last Monday but it is well run with a very friendly and acccomodating staff. The tour of the home is both about Barbara and her family as it is a mini tour of memorabilia of major country stars (such as Alabama, Big & Rich, Kenny Chesney, & of course the Mandrell sisters). We were invited to hold guitars of famous artists while toru guides took pictures of us with our own cameras (no price gouging for photos here). Barbara's daughter, Jamie, is director of hospitality for the Fontanel and she spoke with us for awhile with no pretense and good humor. Lunch at the cafe was excellent (wait staff was a little rusty on the menu, but heck they'd only been open for 4 days). We spotted John Rich as he walked into the gift shop for an autograph signing session. All in black and VERY fit!

That's John Rich's guitar!

Loveless Cafe. Having a hankering for fried chicken and biscuits, we drove out to Hwy 100 and the Loveless Cafe. As always, food was great. Jerry swears the biscuits are the lightest and fluffiest on the planet. (I bought a biscuit mix in the gift store, I'll see if I can replicate them).

Thai Phooket An unlikelier spot for a good Thai restaurant would be harder to find. Located in a single story, dumpy looking building with temporary signs plastered across the roof, Thai Phooket is located directly across from LP Field in the middle of a large parking lot. We had seen it when we drove into town on Wednesday. We decided to try it last night before Concert #2 at LP Field. (As the thought of another evening of LP field hamburgers and pretzels wasn't appealing. The restaurant was excellent, authentic, and very friendly. We'd go back again, concert or no concert.

Concerts. The food and Fontanel are great, but the real draw for this week (and why we come in the HEAT of June, instead of some more appealing time of year weather wise) are the concerts at LP Field. And so far, we haven't been disappointed. Our favorite performances so far? Alan Jackson who was surprisingly and charmingly chatty and nostalgic and had a much longer set than last year. Josh Turner, magnetic and energetic as always. Lady Antebellum in perfect harmony. Jason Aldean who hits the stage running and never lets up (am I the only one that thinks he reminds me a little of Elvis?). Miranda Lambert whose performance style has really matured over the past few years. She has a much more nuanced performance alternating between the hard charging rock and roll style of "loves given up on me" to the haunting "The House that built Me". Keith Urban was just electric!!! He is just the BEST. And he was joined by the gals from Little Big Town to rock "A Little Help From My Friends" in honor of all the many people who helped out (and are still helping) during the Nashville floods. Carrie Underwood gave a high energy show on Wednesday. And Reba was wonderful, although we thought her set was too short...making room for Kid Rock who we didn't stay for.

Hillsborough Area Went out this morning for late breakfast. Ate at Fido's on 21st Avenue. Great brunch and fabulous latte. A much better deal without the wait than the Pancake Pantry just down the street...i know blashphemy...but true. We walked the few short blocks in the area of stores. There are very nice boutiques, an expensive but astonishingly well stocked kitchen store, and BookMan/BookWoman bookstore (used). Jerry says that the bookstore has the widest selection of used Science Fiction he has ever seen anywhere in a used bookstore. And we've seen our share of used bookstores.

We will be back next year...already made our reservations. We're hoping its not so hot, so we can get down to the Riverfront stages for more rockin' music!

For more photos of Nashville CMA Fest 2010, check out my Flickr set at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/abaesel/sets/72157624219816009/

2010-02-26T21:43:00.002-05:00

Sanur Beach, Bali Indonesia.

Only in the Great White North

2010-02-26T19:50:00.004-05:00

Jerry and I went to the annual Camping, Fishing and Hunting expo at Place Bonaventure in Montreal today. A huge meeting of camoflage, guns, fishing rods, fishing lodge owners, kayaks fittedfor fishing, boats, sno cats, trailers, and more. Including something we've never seen before (although our great friends to the north who love ice fishing have probably dreamt of one of these). A ice house trailer for pulling out on the frozen lake. It can be cranked down to sit on top of the ice. It comes with toilet, bunks, stove and MOST importantly predrilled holes in the floor with manhole like covers. the one we looked at had 7! As jerry said, the beer you can just put outside the door!

Chocolate in Montreal

2010-02-26T19:26:00.004-05:00

One of my favorite guilty pleasures in Montreal is hot chocolate and brownie at Juliette et Chocolate. We have traditionally gone to the one on Laurier but just noticed that one had opened on the corner of St Laurent and Prince Arthur. So today, after a couple of hours wandering around the Hunting, Fishing and Camping Show at Place Bonaventure, we drove up for a treat.

Juliette et Chocolate has a wonderfully large, high ceilinged corner space with tall windows looking out on to the street scene. They have a extensive menu of all sorts of hot chocolate prepared in a variety of ways. Today i had the milk jivara (a milk chocolate made of criollo and trinatario criollo beans from Ecuador made with brown sugar and a touch of malt). As always i indulged in the raspberry chocolate brownie w/ a balsamico "sauce". It was heaven!

Winter Humor in Montreal

2010-02-26T09:24:00.004-05:00

As the old license plates in Quebec province used to say (in French) "Quebec is Winter" (just like Canada IS hockey). Quebecers know how to embrace and enjoy every last ounce of winter through festivals, outdoor skating, skiing, good boots, big coats, and a good sense of humor. This sense of wry humor is no better demonstrated than in this winter "ski cap" toppers to downtown St Paul street sign advertising kiosks advertising Milk. Here are just a few.

Rest and Recharge

2010-02-24T21:26:00.004-05:00

Yesterday was a perfect day of resting and recharging. The day started out with snow which eventually turned to spitting rain. We gave ourselves permission to read, write, and rest in front of the fire. Watched a little Olympics. Ate a great lunch that Jerry fixed. Read some more (Malcolm Gladwell's What The Dog Saw). Then went for a walk in late afternoon around Old Montreal. We stopped into Olive et Gourmande on Rue St Paul west for coffee and their spectacular apple turnovers (really the best I've ever had anywhere...second in greatness only to their palmiers). We sat on high stools at a lovely wood table in a nice warm atmosphere and read the Gazette and drank coffee. We continued our walk and then ended up at home to enjoy the rest of a lazy afternoon with more reading and more Olympics.

Montreal: Highlights Festival 2010

2010-02-22T19:48:00.003-05:00

This week Jerry and I are enjoying our favorite city, Montreal. The City is celebrating its annual Montreal Highlights Festival which is a celebration of arts, food, and winter activities. There are culinary extravaganzas and shows (we went to a Celebration of Cheese last weekend). Musical, dramatic, and comedy performances at a number of theatres. And then all the fun activities in the Old Port/Old Montreal, our favorite. Ice skating, ferris wheels, bands on the nighttime stage, fireworks, acrobats, bonfires where we can roast sausages and marshmallows (my fave). And on Sunday there will be the annual musical concert comprised of the horns, bells, and whistles of the ships wintering in the port. (maybe a few church bells as well). I'll have more about that with pics after sunday.

The weather has been beautiful: a little snow, a lot of sun, temps right around 32. But snow is coming over the next 3 days. Maybe up to a foot. I'm smiling, because that's what we come here for in the middle of winter.

Eating? Of favorite Montreal activity (next to naps in the winter afternoon). Breakfast at Le Cartet on McGill: excellent omelet with asparagus and comforting hot chocolate bowl. Dinner: Marichi's a new Indian restaurant on Place d'youville in Old Montreal. Very good. nice atmosphere, warm and inviting, not too noisy. Late afternoon lunch: Cafe Griffintown on NotreDame West. Odd little neighborhood spot with limited menu but excellent meatballs! At home: great cheese, mandarin oranges, almonds, and baguette

Puri Manggi, Lovina, Bali

2009-09-21T08:28:00.002-04:00

Puri Manggi: The Mango Palace is a lovely boutique hotel set in the hills above Lovina on the north shore of Bali. It is nestled on a ridge with luxurious landscaping including a bounty of mature mango trees (hence its name). There are a small number of individual bungalows and a few rooms together that face towards the sea. The rooms are large and quiet with comfortable beds and wonderful outdoor (semi-covered) bathrooms (the sinks are inside: commode and showers are outside). They had decent air conditioning and a very nice front porch with chairs and lounger. There was a television in the room for DVD watching with a very nice supply of DVDs in many languages in the dining room…but we never seemed to get around to it. We enjoyed the quiet.

Puri Manggi has the most spectacular pool I have ever had the pleasure of swimming in and sitting around. It sits at the entrance of the property taking full advantage of the broad view down to the sea (some distance away) and the wonderful cooling breezes coming up the slopes. Jerry and I are decidedly not “pool sitters” and yet there we were happily ensconced on comfortable loungers sipping a sprite and reading our books under a big umbrella. We took the occasional dip in the pool in the company of swooping swifts and swallows (and later towards dusk a few bats coming for a drink…of water of course). Jerry loved the reclining ganesha statue that spouted water from its trunk. He’d go and stand under it and get the water to cascade on his neck and shoulders. I’m sure he’d love one for the pool at home!

We spent 4 nights at Puri Manggi. Our room came with breakfast and dinner and we were happy to have all the meals there because the food was excellent. There was a nice choice each evening and it was excellently prepared. We also had lunch a few days, once served down at the pool. We even took a cooking class with the chef Gede Suadnyana and his assistant Komang Agus. In the morning of the day of our class, we accompanied Gede to the Singaraja market to get food for dinner that night. We wound our way through the vendors and he stopped to check the ripeness of a papaya or haggle a price for a side of yellowtail tuna...fresh…carved up in front of us yellowtail tuna. We saw freshly killed chicken (with heads on) and pig in many pieces (including the yet smiling head sitting on the counter…a little unnerving to see Wilbur smiling in the next world). It was a wonderful place with the scent of fresh fruit and fresh spices permeating the whole market place.

Our cooking class was later that day at 4 pm. We met Gede and Komang in the hotel kitchen (along with Mimi the kitchen cat) and proceeded to make a Balinese salad, a chicken curry, a beef curry, and a dessert (the name of which I am going to have to root out of my file and edit this post later) which was made like a rolled pancake with coconut/pineapple/sugar filling. We grated coconut, we grated roasted coconut, and we smashed spices and garlic and chili with mortar and pestle. Balinese do not believe in a food processor, except perhaps for making coconut milk (after you’ve hand grated the coconut). They believe the flavors are better by hand. Fortunately we had kind chef teachers who were willing to finish the job when Jerry and I wimped out. It is HARD work and these men must have arm muscles like iron. The dishes turned out delicious and we really appreciate Gede and Komang’s kind instruction and good humor.

One morning we rose before dawn to take a car down to Lovina beach to catch a motorized outrigger out to see the dolphins on the Bali Sea. The sea on the north side of Bali is very calm; at least it was this day. There is virtually no surf, which I suspect is why it is not as popular as the Kuta, Legion, and Seminyak regions. So out on the calm sea we rode in a skinny outrigger with thick bamboo poles for the “outriggers” and a 9 horsepower gasoline engine strapped with a rope to the cross strut. Now I’d like to say we were one of a few boats out in search of the dolphins on this quiet, predawn sea, but I can’t. It was like New York Times Square at rush hour. With all sizes of outriggers and tourists with every make of camera trying to catch a photo of the sleek, gray bullet of a dolphin.

We were lucky, we saw many dolphins. And we were lucky that our boat driver wasn’t one of the ones that made the mad dash to descend on a pod of dolphins on first sight. It reminded me rather sadly of the “bad guys” in the Pacman game trying to chase poor Mr. Pac Man down. Rather our driver figured out which way they were headed, made a dash around the pack and positioned us to race with the dolphins as they swam out of the madness and leaped in our wake and at our bow. It was pretty darn cool. Didn’t get a decent photo…but I stopped trying…I was so entranced with being with the dolphins.

We decided after that to leave them alone, kind felt a little like a bunch of hunters interrupting their morning feed. So we returned to the shore weaving our way through smoke from rice fields wafting across the still bay and gliding past sleeping sail boats and yachts moored in Lovina Bay.

The staff at Puri Manggi was one of the most considerate and delightful group of people we have ever had the pleasure of meeting. They were gracious, considerate, efficient, friendly, and kind. They were curious and talkative. They were very good at what they do. They made what would have been a very a wonderful visit into a FANTASTIC visit.

Besides the cooking class, we also had a massage and flower petal bath, and a manicure. The spa is in a delightful open sided building down the hill from the main complex of rooms. It is nestled in the trees (mangos of course) and has a fountain and stream running around the perimeter of the building. So there we lay on tables in a room open to the tree tops with the breeze coming in and the sound of birds, and water, and geckos filling our ears. And we had a wonderful, wonderful massage. Then we sat in another room open to the trees in a giant tub (big enough for two) of hot water and filled with flower petals. What a delight! The manicure was also great. She took her time and did a bang up job on my banged up hands filled with hangnails and broken nails. We had a delightful chat about her home and her family and about rock and roll and our shared loved of Michael Jackson and Bryan Adams! Music…the international language!

We also had one of the drivers take us to Singaraja one day to go to Hardy’s (a department store with everything from food to shoes) and the central market. He was an amiable and helpful young man. He apologized that “his English not so good” but we communicated well and he was very helpful accompanying us through the markets and giving advice. Jerry found some knives (always on the lookout for new knives) and we bought a few kitchen gadgets (like a coconut grater, although I’m really going to try and figure out how to do that on a cuinsinart!!). We marveled at all the many colored fresh eggs (including pale blue ones…that are especially nice for temple offerings apparently) and all the fresh spices. We also were fascinated by the extensive amounts of foodstuffs and decorations are sold exclusively for the many offerings that are made to the Gods in temples and homes and on streets throughout the day and week. It’s a whole cottage industry!

On our final night at Puri Manggi our package called for a “candlelight” dinner. We thought every night was a candlelight dinner, so we didn’t think there would be something special. But we were wrong. The staff told us not to come out of our bungalow until the appointed time. Minutes before we were to arrive the power went out, island-wide, pffft! Just like that we were in blackness. But to the left of the dining area under a reconstructed “rice storage house” was a low table set on a platform decorated with cloth & ribbon, candles and flowers. Surrounding the little structure were over a dozen bamboo posts with votives set on top. Enough light to eat by. In fact it was just the right amount of light to eat by. It was utterly romantic. And to top it off, at the entrance to the platform the staff had formed the word “goodbye” with flower petals. It was charming. Then Gede and his staff served a wonderful meal of shrimp cocktail, mixed skewers of meats served on miniature hibachis, and banana flambé served tableside with ice creams and a strawberry flower.

Although the power came on for a short while, it eventually went off again leaving us with a few votive candles for light. Jerry and I decided to go swimming in the pool by candlelight. It was the best swim of our life. We lay back and stared up at the Milky Way filled with stars of the unfamiliar southern sky. We were lost in it the seeming chaos of the billions of stars. It was a lovely, truly memorable evening.

Cloves, Flowers, and Plastic Streamers: The Bali Countryside

2009-09-21T05:21:00.003-04:00

Bali is basically a verdant agricultural island with rich volcanic based soils, ample rain (most of the year), and intelligent agricultural practices of terracing and crop rotation that have stood the test of time. There is of course, rice, but also corn, coconut palms and bananas. There are a myriad of different fruit trees. And there are more exotic crops of coffee, clove, mandarina (oranges), nutmeg, and tobacco.

We drove from Lovina via Singaraja and Mt Batur and Mt Agung (two high volcanic peaks) over to Sidemen in Eastern Bali. The drive takes you from the “dry (or rather drier) side” to the wet (or wetter) side” of Bali. Along the northern flanks of the mountains were acres and acres of clove, coffee, mandarina, coconut palms and other crops. The clove is harvested from tall trees both for use as the spice and as export (primarily to Europe) for use in cloves cigarettes. We saw locals drying the clove on plastic or canvas sheets alongside the road (we also saw people drying their clothes the same way just laying on the top of bushes alongside the road, curious habit). We also saw them drying shredded tobacco and rice in the same way. In fact we saw rice laid down in driveways so that cars would drive over it and in time separate the seed from the hull. Clove gathers use long skinny poles meters and meters in height that have smaller bamboo poles slid through holes in the center of the pole to form footholds. So it forms just a single pole as opposed to a double poled more traditional ‘western’ ladder. It looked pretty precarious to me.

And speaking of harvesting techniques, we noticed that in every home, every restaurant and in every hotel room there are always ample flowers laid about carefully and with consideration. A few frangiapanes are always left on the pillow of our beds. And yet, there are still flowers on the trees! I know there are many trees, but still. Well, it appears that in many places it is someone’s job to go out in the morning (especially after a rain) to gather all the fallen flowers (frangiapane and bougainvillea especially) carefully off the lawn and ground. And these flowers are used that day. We’ve also seen people with long poles gently tapping the branches at the tops of the trees to “encourage” willing flowers to fall to the ground. It is a lovely custom.

Another colorful and curious, if perhaps not environmentally sound, agricultural practice is the use of strips of plastic bags to make long streamers to drape across rice fields to discourage birds. It’s interesting to see the different “styles” of streamers and who apparently has access to colored bags versus plain white ones. I don’t know if they are recycling or just using new bags. And I don’t know what happens to the old streamers, I suspect they may clog up some stream somewhere. But farmers apparently need the birds kept away from growing rice and they really are pretty festive to look at. And it’s better than shooting the birds, which I think may have been the more, generally accepted method!

Lihat Sawah, Sideman, Bali

2009-09-21T04:10:00.003-04:00

Compared to where we’ve stayed previously to Lihat Sawah you would think that this would not be a favorite spot. The power went out on a number of occasions. There was no air conditioning. The bathroom, although serviceable, was small and anything but romantic. And when the power went out so did the water and plumbing. The food wasn’t great (although it was good enough). And it was in a very quiet place with “little to do”. But in spite of that and maybe because of that, this little spot in the hills of Bali is one of my very favorite memories of Bali.

We arrived on a gray day with spots of rain (in fact it rained off and on for the entire stay). When we first arrived it seemed they weren’t expecting us, but communications soon cleared and we were happily shown to our room on the second floor of a “villa” overlooking the rice fields and chili plant fields. For westerners the concept of villa conjures up some pretty grandiose ideas, so you can stop right there. Everything was pretty basic but what we did have was space and a fabulous view and quiet. We had a large covered veranda as large as the bedroom with a chaise, and table and chairs, and a view to the hills. We had a lovely 4 poster bed with mosquito netting and large doors and open windows with white curtains that blew in the almost ever present breeze. There were two big ceiling fans and decent lights. A soft, warm, creaky teak floor and a very basic “all in one bathroom” which was clean and when the power was on it had decent water pressure with good hot water.

I then proceeded to be sick having caught jerry’s cold that he was just getting over. It went straight to my throat and chest and I felt pretty darn bad. We managed a short trip into Klungkung to see the market, a traditional painter and a silver smith and then we limped home up the hills to hide out in our treetop bedroom. What a wonderful place to be sick. From the bed there were views out all the windows with the sound of rain on the roof and birds in the papaya, kiwi, lychee, and starfruit trees. There was good food and hot tea from the owners which was brought to our veranda for every meal (except breakfast when I managed to make an appearance).

We listened to the roosters crow ALL day from all across the valley. We watched a flock of swallows descend on the chili plant fields when heavy rains came. I don’t know if the rain forced insects down out of the air or up off of the plants, but when it rained the swallow/swift population quadrupled at least flying low over the chili plant fields. And on our last night there we listened to the drums and chanting celebrating the end of the month of Ramadan observed by the small yet visible Muslim population on Bali

One night we had a bird spend the night with us. A small brown bird flew into the eaves under the veranda roof. He seemed disoriented like he had lost his way to his tree before dark. Many birds are blind at night, so I guess he was attracted to our light. So there he sat occasionally disturbed by my movements, but generally just hanging out. When we retired to our bedroom, he came in through the open grating above the door and flew around above us until he found a place to settle down for the night. When dawn came, he stirred and started chirping before he figure the way out by the light of dawn and flew home with quite a story for the flock.

When the sun was out, I could lay on the veranda chaise and read or nap. Jerry and I played gin rummy with a pack of cards we bought in Ubud. We played scrabble on his Iphone. We read. And I slept. I slept a lot. But between the medication and the inhaler I brought from the US and all the healthy food we’ve been eating with heavy emphasis on fresh fruit and good tea, l recovered in amazing time. Thankfully.

Before we left we took a walk down into the valley along a quiet road that wound through the rice, chili plant, and corn fields. We crossed several rivers on old wooden bridges. We passed a mechanic shop with gasoline sold by the liter out of plastic water bottles. We saw women carrying offerings to temple on their heads. We passed men and women working in the rice fields: harvesting, weeding, shoring up old terrace walls. It was a lovely walk under a gray sky, one that gave us a sense of the rhythm of life for people in this valley region.

We paid 550,000 rupiah (or roughly 55 US dollars) per night for the villa room including dinner and breakfast (drinks and lunch were extra). I also had a great massage for 80,000 (yes, 8 US dollars) in my room.

The Sounds and Scents of Ubud, Bali

2009-09-14T23:06:00.001-04:00

Our hotel, Alam Indah, is situated to the south of the main center of Ubud on the other side of the Monkey Forest. It is nestled in a rural area with rice fields and homes and a few other hotels. The bungalows are spread out amongst lush gardens. Our bungalow is two stories with two large verandas and windows that open wide to nature. Our bed has mosquito netting for the evening. And given that there are only fans and no a/c we sleep with windows open, netting drawn, and mosquito coils on. Fortunately the evenings are fairly cool in Ubud (although last night was a bit too muggy for our taste).

Given our “one with nature” living arrangements we have come to realize that rural Bali is anything but quiet. At the moment there are at least 3 different types of frogs making their nightly racket. There is one that goes tchittchittchittchit; one that’s got a slower raspier tsktsktsk: a “ribbitt” frog: and a croaker whos croak ends in something that sounds like a small fart…honest…like a teeny whoopee cushion. Then we have a cricket of some sort (or another frog) that sounds like a car alarm. And then we have the roaming gecko(s) whose voice pops up from above, below, and near with its chatter and then “uhoh, uhoh, uhoh”. Jerry thinks its sounds like “f*^k you; f*^kyou”.

So there you have the underlying amphibian orchestra. Now you have the confused rooster who will periodically crow at any time of night or day…but gets going full throat at 4:30 in the morning…just long enough to wake you up then he goes back to bed until around 6. But let’s not forget the dogs…often doing their 101 Dalmatian thing, where they appear to be barking to the next neighborhood dog (probably something about those damn monkeys in the monkey forest who get all the food and attention).

Then we move onto man made sounds. From the far distance come the sounds of the gamelan or rinkhik with the melodic clinking of bamboo traveling far distances. And tonight for the first time the sounds of kites are extending into the night. Yes, kites can make sounds. They have HUGE black kites that fly high in the sky and seem to growl (something to do with vibrating strings). I’ve heard them during the day, but tonight someone is flying one into the night!

The smells of the evening are really wonderful, even the mosquito coil adds a certain richness to the recipe. Wood smoke from fields, incense from spirit houses, tuberose from the small bouquets left throughout the house, fresh air as the breeze comes through the window.

Last Post from Kuta, Bali

2009-09-06T08:30:00.004-04:00

Tomorrow we head up to Ubud which is up in the hills, a little cooler, a little quieter. Will spend a week there. Before leaving I'm going to do a "cleanup" blog post. All the things I forgot to mention in the order they occurred and just general thoughts and impressions of our first days in Bali.

Garden Life: The gardens at Poppies are beautiful and full of life. There must be at least 10 different types of butterflies of many sizes. Fish in the ponds. Dark green frogs under the bridges and in the lily pads. Cooing doves, warbling shrikes, soaring swallows. Orange Red Dragonflies and the occasional white one. And our mystery night caller. Somewhere on the thatch roof of our cottage there is a creature that I can’t figure out if it’s a bird or a mammal or what. But once in a long while it will first chatter: chitchitchitterchitchit and then it goes uhoh uhoh uhoh uhoh uhoh uhoh ooooh. Silence. Its quite comical, even when it does it in the middle of night…I know I’m nuts…but I love the sound. More research.

Pura Uluwatu. I’m afraid that I gave this lovely temple very short shrift in my “Tale of the Monkey” blog post. Uluwatu temple (Pura is the Balinese word for temple) is located on the western tip of “the Bukit”, an arid peninsula that just out from the mainland. Once considered primarily a no man’s land (due mostly because there is little to no water there) it is now developing considerable tourist facilities and resorts due largely to the fantastic surf breaks located around the Bukit.

Pura Luhur Uluwatu (its full name) is one of the holiest temples in Bali. It sits atop a sheer rocky promontory with cliffs extending down to the surf. It is considered a “directional” temple that has significance in the lives of all Balinese not just local villages. It is the guardian of the southwest and dedicated to the spirits of the sea. It is relatively modest and unadorned but quite pretty. The innermost courtyard is for Hindu worshippers only, but you can see much of the area through the gates.

When we arrived there were only a few tourists (and of course the ubiquitous monkeys) and we enjoyed wandering the outer courtyards and grounds in quiet. As we started to leave we saw a large crowd of people coming down the path to the temple. All dressed in sarongs and sashes, mostly in white. The women mostly had on beautiful lace dresses or blouses. And all carried some form of offering, flowers, food, carvings, even a live duck. And there were hundreds of them (temple goers not ducks), then we realized there would be several thousand if not more. We chose not to stay knowing that the ceremony could be long and would mostly be beyond our sight (although frankly there were so many people there would not be room for all in the inner courtyards. It was VERY festive feeling. I’m glad we got to see it, because it changed our impression of the temple from something ancient and historic and perhaps static to something very modern and a live.

Discovery mall

As part of The Tale of the Monkey I mentioned getting my glasses fixed at Optik Tinggal. It is located in a modern multi storied shopping mall in Tuban (south of Kuta). The mall is large, modern, air conditioned…quite nice. And it opens onto a promenade that goes along the beach lined with open air restaurants and cafes. We bought a few sarongs, some incense, sandlewood soap, and some bread. Yes, bread…from a wonderful place called Bread Talk. Kind of like the Starbucks of the Bread and Pastry world. Fresh made pastries and bread in the middle of the mall. Flaky pastries, puffy pastries, cakey pastries and really good French baguettes, who knew?

We had a juice and fresh lime juice soda at a promenade-side Baroque Café that looked out onto the sea. It had big misting fans and shade. It was lovely to sit and rehydrate after the long walk to the mall. After that we attempted to walk to an area that was supposed to have a “night market”. We went where the map said, but either it wasn’t “night enough” or its well hidden. We were tired and hungry and gave up the pursuit. Opted for taking a nap instead.

Later that night we had dinner at a restaurant Jl Kartika Sawa and for the life of me I can’t remember its name. Will have to search through the receipts tomorrow. It was a LARGE open sided restaurant with corrugated roof, exposed piping, BIG fans, and Stone flooring. They served an extensive Chinese menu, international dishes, and what we came for: grilled fish. I had grilled GIANT prawns, jerry had the fish sampler. It was very good, very fresh.

On the way back to our hotel, we walked along the very trendy, “lit like it was day” Kuta Square. Big stores, lots of restaurants and bars on broad sidewalks. We stopped at the Haagen Dazs which had sit down service and a menu of chocolate fondue, crepes, and sundaes. I had the monte carlo…coffee icecream chocolate sliced toasted almonds, waffle cone crumbles and whipped cream…yum!

Interesting and Odd sights today. 1) Siamese Twin dogs conjoined at the hip, kind of: strangest thing I’ve seen in a long time. They seemed to be strays but looked in good health. Gives a whole new meaning to chasing your own tail! 2) Kites. Sunday must be kite day because all over the area, anytime you looked in the sky there would be kites of all shapes and sizes and colors. This afternoon there was a HUGE one made to look like a big black bird while close to it was a small squirmy orange one that look like a Koi fish. 3) Temple Procession. Today we turned a corner (in a taxi) onto a street in Kuta and were faced by a large procession of people in temple garb walking down the street (taking up half of it). The man in the front was carrying a baby, so it probably had to do with one of many ceremonies that takes place in the early months of a baby’s life. This is not a rare occurrence giving another interesting aspect to traffic in Bali.

And finally: Two Comments on Proper Restaurant Attire

I’ve just got to say it. I know this is a resort and surfer town but there really are somethings that one should NOT wear to a nice Balinese restaurant. First of all, Balinese people are relatively conservative in dress and manner. They put up with a lot to have all the skimpily clad beach goers walking up and down the streets all day. Second when it comes to dining in the evening at a restaurant as lovely and romantic as Poppies, there really should be some standards. We sat near a table of 10 suntanned, happy, easy going Australians. They seemed quite nice and friendly. But I have two observations. In no case should a bright blue “wife beater” tank top t-shirt be appropriate attire for a nice restaurant and this is especially the case if you are big, barrel chested middle aged guy with a beer gut. I don’t care how nice you are… put on a shirt for gods sake. Second, if you are really busty or otherwise big enough that you have to wear a bra under a spaghetti strapped dress, then you probably shouldn’t be wearing a spaghetti strapped dress. When did we start this trend that makes it okay to have your bra straps showing next to the spaghetti straps. It’s bad enough on teens, but really on women my age with the pounds to go with the age??? Just say No!

DenPasar

2009-09-06T06:05:00.000-04:00

Sunday: 6^th of September in DenPasar;

The day was cooler than yesterday with a bit of rain this morning, a few more clouds, and a nice breeze. After breakfast on our patio (more banana crepes and bacon), we took off to DenPasar with 3 goals in mind: the Pasar Bedung (the 24 hr traditional market); the “fabric” street; and the Bali Museum. (Again photos will follow when I can get a faster upload connection on the internet).

Denpasar is a city of 400,000 of which about 30% are Javanese, Muslims, Sasaks from Lombok, and Chinese-Indonesians. It is somewhat of a ‘working’ town without a lot of the traditional “tourist” offerings (including no beach). But we found it interesting for a Sunday explore. It’s located about a 20 minute taxi ride from Kuta (which costs 5 dollars).

Pasar Badung (which means Badung Market, Badung being Denpasars original name) is a 3 story brick market located on the Badung River in downtown DenPasar. The ground floor is fruits and vegetables, the 2^nd floor is spices and sundries, the 3^rd floor is clothing, shoes etc. The spice floor was very interesting and fragrant. The only slightly off-putting thing about our visit was a “guide” attached herself to us as we entered. I had read about this, they guide us through the market and would get a cut on anything we’d buy. We were REALLY just looking so felt awkward. However, her English was pretty good and she really wasn’t too pushy. Although I know she was disappointed we really didn’t want to buy any spices.

On an adjacent street, Jalan Sulawesi, are the fabric shops. Over two long blocks of stores hawking all types of fabric for clothes, sarongs, and sashes. Quite a busy street. We found one fabulous shop (I’ll edit the post with the name/address: once I organize my receipts) with high quality goods and no pushy sales jobs. A delightful owner helped us pick out some lovely gawzy fabrics to make into cool pants later in Ubud. The fabric was about $2 a meter.

Then we walked about 3 blocks down a quiet street with Muslim clothing stores, a mosque, and “halal” restaurants. The cafes were quiet and empty as this is Ramadan where all Muslims fast during daylight hours. Further down was a quiet tree lined street which led to a large park, plaza and the Bali Museum. A gamelan orchestra (a traditional set of musical instruments) was practicing for tonight competition. A lovely cacophony of sounds. There were many kites in the air, a common Sunday afternoon activity. Kites of all sizes and colors, a beautiful sight.

The Bali Museum is worth the visit to Den Pasar alone (although jerry loved the fabric street). The museum is a compound made up of traditional courtyards complete with the traditional split gates (Candi Bentar), bell towers, charming gardens (with ancient frangiapane trees), shrines, and sculptures. The compound mixes the styles of old palace architecture and temple architecture (Puri and Pura). The most interesting set of exhibits was in the Gedung Karangasem building which displayed on several floors information and exhibits depicting and explaining the spiritual and ceremonial life of the Balinese: which is the cornerstone of their lives.

As in the market, we had a guide “attach” himself to us. He worked for the museum but it isn’t clear whether we had a choice or not to use him. He just kind of started the tour and we paid at the end. But it was worth the 5 dollars a piece. He was informative about the museum but he also took time to answer many of the questions I had already about temples and ceremonies from things I’d observed so far. He was quite charming and helpful.

After the Museum we were happy to see the BlueBird Taxi at the curb, we were ready for a swim, lunch, and a nap. We’re feeling rather sluggish this afternoon, so have given ourselves “the afternoon off”. After all it IS a vacation!

More About Kuta/Legian/Seminyak

2009-09-06T05:25:00.003-04:00

Saturday, August 5^th: Kuta

More About Poppies

We continue to be enchanted with our little oasis in Kuta, Poppies Cottages. Service is fantastic. Every evening before sundown, two women come and light the mosquito coils on the front patio and in our bathroom. And they recharge the electric mosquito repeller that is plugged into the wall. In the morning we have breakfast brought to our patio and we eat outside listening to birds and watching the cats on the thatch roof of the adjacent house. This morning we had two banana crepes, a Spanish omelet, wonderful bacon (its International Bacon Day after all), fresh pineapple juice, jam, and Bali Coffee. The cost? $8.70 including tax and service. The same thing at the pool, our delightful pool. Clean towels, cool drinks, and you can order lunch off the menu. Again, astonishingly reasonably priced.

So let’s describe this wonderful pool (pics will follow). It is a freeform pool with water a delightful refreshing temperature. There are fountains of water coming from “masks” in the wall. Multicolored bougainvillea leans over and shades about 1/3^rd of the pool dropping delightfully romantic flowers to float on the water. Frangiapane and palm like bamboo also surround the pool. Spotted doves and lyrical song birds flit in and amongst the bougainvillea flowers. One of the “house” cats patrols atop the coral wall. After a refreshing dip we laid on comfy chaises and read and napped in the shade. Heaven.

Walking Kuta:

Kuta is a pretty frenetic place full of tourists and surfers of all nationalities (heavy on the Austailian). Motorbikes, taxis, bemos, and trucks cascade down the narrow streets. Shop owners call to you in passing. It sounds a bit much, but I think we were expecting it and frankly aren’t that overwhelmed by it (at least in small dosages). For one thing, people are very polite, even when they are trying to sell you something. With only a few exceptions a polite “no thank you” is accepted and you are bothered no longer.

Legian Street:

Legian Street is a tree lined busy street filled with surf related shops, restaurant, and night clubs. It is famous, unfortunately, for the Kuta 2002 bombings that occurred at a well known night club popular with tourists in particular Australian tourists. 202 people of many nationalities died (including Balinese and Javanese workers)and another 244 were seriously injured. It was a tragedy both for those who died as well as for Bali itself. Bali is a very peaceful and gentle island and the bombings came as an unacceptable shock to all. A little bit of the “old” Bali died that day along with all the people.

Suffice it to say, Bali (at least Kuta/Legian/Seminyak) doesn’t appear to have let their guard down since. All cars/trucks/motorbikes and people are checked out before entering the major hotels and many restaurants. Security officers stand in front of many of shops, banks, restaurants, and clubs They are always polite and often helpful.

Along Legian Street near where the bombing occurred, the Balinese have erected a beautiful memorial which lists all the names of those who died. It is on a prominent corner and was funded by many people and business owners in the area (there are also memorials in at least 4 cities in Australia. We stopped by on our walk in the area and reflected on the many events of the past decade across the world that has forever changed our perceptions of humanity.

Seminyak:

One evening we ventured up to Seminyak for dinner. We ate at Sate Bali which serves traditional Balinese food. It was on a tree shaded street in a quieter part of Seminyak. We had the “Rice Table” (Rijstafl) where we could sample a variety of Balinese dishes and desserts. It was good. We especially like the pork dishes. I liked the minced duck in a banana leaf. And with the exception of the traditional black rice pudding, we loved all the mostly fruit inspired desserts. The only little surprise was that they took only cash….almost the last of our cash. So there we were without cash for a taxi. And ATMs are not a common sight in many areas. So we took off walking to the main area of Seminyak looking for the ubiquitous money changer office. Fortunately we didn’t have to walk too far, and the rate wasn’t too bad. So with cash in hand, we grabbed a taxi for the shopping district where we walked off some of our dinner before going home to bed.

Practicalities: Phones, Money, and Internet:

Internet: Our hotel has free WiFi…wireless (so I am typing this from bed after an afternoon nap). There are many places with free Wifi. Some restaurant/cafes offer free WiFi during hours where business is typically slow. Others who offer internet at a charge, offer it at a very reasonable price. Now this is in Kuta. We will see what other areas have to offer.

Blackberry My blackberry works here. I signed up for the international plan before I left so that I have unlimited email and texting. So that is primarily how I correspond with folks at home.

Skype. We have skype on my notebook, so we’ve used that to call home (you can call to phone numbers as well as connect to computers). We tried it out to call my mother and it worked like a charm. It cost us about 2 cents a minute. Far less than the $2.40 reduced rate charge on my blackberry and the $4 buck a minute “regular” charge by cell phone.

Local Phone. Our friend David lent us his Balinese phone (he visits here each winter) to use while here in Bali. We bought a sim card for $5.00 bucks that gives us about 300 local minutes. So we can more easily call our hotels, drivers etc.

ATMs. Not all towns have them once you get out of the bigger towns. Also, sometimes there are scams/rigged machines. So the best advice is to use ATMs associated with actual banks. Exchange rates are good but you know those fees on both ends!

Money Changers. CHECK THE RATES and commission fees. They vary widely, street to street and day to day. Ask your hotel for a reputable money changer. Some will try to fast talk you and confuse you when counting out the money. If you feel uncomfortable cancel the exchange if possible. Fortunately in Kuta there are very good money changers with good rates.

Travelers Cheques. I feel old. Travelers Cheques are going the way of the dinosaur. We knew that before we came (AAA doesn’t even sell them anymore). But it turns out that MANY money changers really ding you for cashing a traverlers cheque. We can only figure there must have been quite a counterfeiting operation going on with TCs that increased the cost of doing business in them. However our money changer is an authorized American Express outpost and cashes them for only slightly less than the exchange rates for dollars. They also have offices in Ubud so we’re set.

Uluwatu: Or the Tale of the Monkey

2009-09-06T04:59:00.002-04:00

Before I tell you about Pura Uluwatu (temple) I must get to the monkey story. Since it turns out well, I can say it will be one of my favorite travel stories (although it could have turned out much differently). Uluwatu Temple is located at the very end of the Bukit Peninsula. Besides its lovely setting on a high cliff, it is home to a gang of monkees…hundreds I suspect. We were told to watch our cameras, our earrings, hats, and glasses. So off came earrings and hats. But for those of you who know me, you know I am as blind as a bat. If I had to take off my glasses, I’d be in serious dangers of falling off that wonderful cliff and frankly wouldn’t be able to see a thing. So we took our chances (you can see where this is going can’t you).

After wandering around the temple (mostly monkey less) we headed down a tree shaded plaza to an overlook. I was watching a monkey sneaking up on jerry and was fiddling with my camera (strapped firmly around neck) when out of nowhere a monkey leaps out of a tree onto my shoulder grabs my glasses off my face and off she/he goes. There I am blind yelling “jerry, the monkey has my glasses” (to the general amusement of more fortunate European tourists). We attempted the “scare him” tactic: clapping, yelling. The small monkey was amused. We tried “here little monkey, good little monkey” approach. Again, amused. Jerry actually tried the stern father approach with “Put the glasses down!!!!) Again, amused. (That tone didn’t work with our son either) And all this time I’m thinking…do you suppose they carry rabies??? (Let me digress to say, that I had prescription sunglasses with me and extra glasses back at hotel…but these were my favorite orange glasses. And as Jerry points out, cost more than my Lumix camera, given the complexities of my lenses). I’m thinking, do I have something he might want more? Some little flashy thingy (where is Will Smith when you need him). Finally, a local comes up, the peanut salesman (for people not monkeys…so they say). He coaxed the monkey to drop the glasses in exchange for the peanut. And then he coaxed a 10,000 Rupiah reward from us ($1) in exchange for the glasses. Glasses that were minus one nosepad but otherwise unscathed and unscratched. Happy ending. And we left half wondering: did that peanut guy train those monkeys??

PostScript: Twitter To The Rescue

For those of you who wonder why people Twitter, well lets just say everyone has their reason, er, addictions. But in this case, I’m glad I do. Over the past few months, I deliberately developed some twitter friends (tweeps or twiends) in Bali in the hopes of learning more about the wonderful place we’re visiting. So there I am in the taxi with a wounded set of glasses wondering where I can get them fixed. Out comes the blackberry and off I tweet “Can sometime tell me where I can get glasses fixed. Had run in with monkey”. Within 30 minutes, I had a recommendation from 3 different tweeps all recommending the same: Optik Tanggal in Discovery Mall in Tuban/south Kuta. So off we went (it was in walking distance). And there at Optik Tanggal, I got two new nosepads, installed within 5 minutes for 3 US dollars. And voila, glasses fit again, as if there had never been one of those scrounging, devious, lighting fast little butthead of a monkey at Ulawatu Temple.

Bali: Arrival and Kuta: Post 1

2009-09-05T20:25:00.001-04:00

Thursday: September3rd, Morning:

What a delightful flight from LAX to Hong Kong. Yes, I know it was 14 and ½ hours, but Cathay Pacific Biz class (thank heavens for American Airlines frequent flier miles) is really super. First (the most important) the seats recline FLAT and every position in between flat and upright. The cubicles are private and quiet. The temperature in the cabin was pleasantly cool, enough to use the nice fluffy duvet we got for a blanket. Food was excellent, got both dinner and breakfast. And they served dinner right away so we could eat and get to sleep. And sleep I did. Besides the comfy seat, I took 1 ibuprofen 1 5mg ambien (the smallest amount) a glass of water and two fingers of a very nice port (and I didn’t eat heavy for dinner). I slept for almost 6 straight hours and dozed for another two. Heaven! Flight attendants were exceptionally attentive and pleasant. And to top it off the little biz class kits had dermalogica spritzer and moisturizer…my favorite brand and one that doesn’t make my eyes water.

So here we are in Hong Kong Airport. It’s a gray somber day outside. Hills rise to the left of the tarmac. We board in a few hours for Bali again on Cathay Pacific. I just took a shower in the first class lounge…feel refreshed and revived. We had a little dimsum for our 2^nd breakfast of the day. Have free wireless and my bberry works. Yes!

Friday, September 4^th, Kuta, Bali: Full Moon

The Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong to Kuta was uneventful and pleasant. Getting through immigration check was a little less pleasant. There were several plane loads of people processing through at once. And although it took only minutes to buy our 30-day tourist visa, it took well over an hour to get through passport check, just too many people and not enough imigrazi officers. It was very hot and humid and we were tired. But a friendly group of 30 something surfer dudes from California kept us entertained just by being stereotypical stoner dudes from California who had more than a few beers on their 16 hour flight from LAX.

Kuta

We were met outside the International Terminal by the friendly driver from Poppies Cottages where we will stay for 4 nights. He was a welcome sight as I stared into the sea of hotel drivers from across Bali waiting for their arriving customer. It was lightly raining, also delightful after sweating in the terminal. It took us about 20 minutes to drive to Poppies (located on Poppies Lane 1) in Kuta. As expected the roads were full of taxis (Taksi) and motorbikes. But after all the warnings we received at how bad the traffic is, all we can say is that isn’t even half as bad as the traffic in Hanoi or Saigon (which of course means it IS still pretty bad). So we feel perfectly fine negotiating it as pedestrians. We’ve even had a few cars stop and wave us across the road, an unheard of act in Vietnam (where such politeness would probably cause a 10 vehicle pile up).

Poppies Cottages: Oasis

We arrived at Poppies Cottages after driving through streets lined with stores, restaurants, surf shops, bars, and hotels and filled with tourists and surfers from all over the world. We maneuvered down the ever narrowing Poppies Lane until we came to the coral and stone walls and picturesque wooden gate. Poppies Cottages on Poppies Gang 1 is a magical, beautiful, oasis in the midst of crowded and hectic Kuta. There are 20 lovely, private cottages. Sitting in my room I can hear none of the hustle and bustle, only the doves, birds, and occasional rooster crow.

Our cottage is a roomy and comfortable thatched roofed structure. With wooden framed windows looking out onto gardens filled with palms, bromeliads, bougainvillea, poinsettia (huge evergreen poinsettia) and small shrines and statues. Everywhere you look there are flowers. There are ponds filled with fish. Deep red/orange dragonflies dance about the water. Number markers telling the direction to your cottage are simply decorated with a single fresh flower. The free form swimming pool is well shaded and is lined with fountains. Poppies has free wifi and a small library with computers available for use.

And then there is the bathroom which is my favorite bathroom ever. It is partially open air (although screened for mosquitos). Part of the roof opens to the sky, below which is a gravel bed lined with plants and Balinese statues. So as you take a bath you can hear the wind through the palms outside and if it rains the rain would gently fall to the gravel bed below. The rest of the bathroom is under cover with stone floors.

There are 3 resident long legged cats: two are grey and white and one is a ginger/orange cat. They are quite comfortable with attention.

Around Town

Made’s Warung

We dropped our luggage, took a shower, and took a nap! But once rested we were off for a stroll and food. We walked down Poppies Lane towards the water. We eventually made our way to Made’s Warung, a local institution. It’s located on Jl Pintai Kuta. It’s a large Warung: two stories, open to the street. With high ceilings and a thatched roof, the restaurant boasts a large wall filled with pictures of old Bali. The décor is whimsical including many statues of curious characters some religious, some not. Food offered is Indonesian, Balinese, and International. We tried the pork satay, BBQ ribs (served braised in a broth), and the fried noodle special. They have the local beer (Bintang) on draught. I had a beer, Jerry had a coke. It was plenty of food!! Total cost? $15.

Kuta is definitely not a sleepy little surfer town anymore and we didn’t expect it to be. But it is definitely still a surfer town. Surf board shops, surf lessons, billabong and quicksilver shops abound. And of course surfers of all nationalities (heavy on the Aussies) are everywhere. We spent some time drinking a fanta sitting on plastic chairs under a shade tree at the beach and watched the waves. They ARE beautiful…long curls of water. And this is the ‘easy’ beach. No wonder they all come here to surf, we haven’t even seen the “good” surf beaches yet.

Smart Salon

Kuta is also a shopping town: everything from knockoff Oakley sunglasses and Bintang Tank Tops to beautiful made crafts and clothing. There is also an abundance of places to get manicures, pedicures and massages. We stopped at “Smart Salon & Relaxing Spot” (Jl Pantai Kuta No 204). A clean, modern, and restful looking place, Jerry and I each had a manicure, pedicure, and foot reflexology massage (including a mini head and neck massage). For the two of us it was $36. And frankly, we think it was one of the better manicure/pedicures that we’ve had anywhere.

Pithe Can Thropus

After our mani/pedis we wandered down Jl Pantai Kuta and found a beautiful store called Pithe Can Thropus. The store had beautiful made fabrics, purses, puppets, sarongs, and many other items. Excellent quality and innovative designs (especially the purses). I found a lovely sarong with birds on it which I bought. I may head back there before we’re down for one of the lovely purses (my weakness).

Poppies Restaurant

There are McDonalds and Starbucks, but also delightful and delicious local warungs boasting delicious Indonesian and Balinese dishes at very reasonable prices. We ate at Made’s Warung last night. Today for lunch we tried Poppies Restaurant (across the lane from where we are staying). The restaurant is set in a lovely garden with flowers, palms, and pond (and another long-legged cat who was rather vocal about thinking she deserved some portion of our lunch). I had the mie goreng (a fried noodle dish) which was lovely. Jerry had a Caesar Salad which was good (and came with hard boiled quail eggs) and a delicious tomato soup (which was OK…not great…but OK). A delightful gesture was that at the end of the meal our waitress brought us a tray with ice cold wet towels and toothpicks. The towels were deliciously soothing after a day of shopping and walking in the sun.

Quail Botanical Gardens - Encinitas, Ca

2009-08-31T13:06:00.009-04:00

Over 35 years ago I visited a newly opened Botanical Garden in north San diego County, Quail Gardens which was formed from land owned by Ruth Baird Larabee, an avid plant collector and naturalist. Now known as the Quail Botanical Gardens it boasts 27 themed garden areas with plants from all over the world. In the 35 years since I last visited, the Garden has grown in area, height, and complexity.

There is a delightful series of trails and walks that wind through bamboo and sub tropical fruit gardens, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa, herb and bird/butterfly gardens, and more. The bromeliads are everywhere (make sure you look up) and the cork trees are amazing! There is a small gift shop and refreshment stand and the old Larabee House and Library.

We loved the subtropical fruit gardens and were envious of their black sapote tree that has fruit that supposedly tastes like chocolate!!!! We saw a male Anna's Hummingbird working the vines around the base of a kumquat bush/tree. It was sunny and not too hot.

The garden is located just a short way off Interstate 405 (San Diego Freeway) in Encinitas. Take the Encinitas Blvd exit, turn inland, and turn left on Quail Gardens Drive. Check their website for operating hours and special events: www.qbgardens.org

A few photos from a delightful afternoon walk:

Diner 437, St Pete, Florida

2009-08-12T22:19:00.005-04:00

August in St Pete? Hot, humid, thunderstorms a daily occurrence, did I say hot? But its also kind of empty without the winter snowbirds and visitors. Which means getting into restaurants isn't a major event. Which means that getting into my very favorite restaurant Diner 437 is still possible. But I guarantee you that this new and deliciously happening restaurant on Central Ave in downtown St. Pete will have a line out the door once "the season'"starts. Because they should have a line, they are that good.

With the kitchen helmed by Domenica Macchia (@dmacchia for you twitterphiles) this is "diner food with a twist" and " not your mama's meatloaf". Domenica thinks a lot about her food, her specials, and makes delicious comfort food. Her food is anchored to the traditions of her upbringing in the boroughs of New York and the precision of her culinary training. And it won't cost you an arm and a leg.

Today's special was roast lamb, tuscan bean soup, and rice pudding. Can't wait until Saturday when the special will once again be the best prime rib. Her salads are great (Jerry loves the spinach) and I can't wait to try the grilled cheese (if I can ever get past the specials). Domenica has an eye for detail, a dedication to the right way to cook something (like her simple and delicious spinach NOT cooked within an inch of its life), and a wonderful whimsical approach to food.

Oh, and did I mention that Domenica, who operates from an open kitchen lined with a long counter has a warm, welcoming personality as big as her heart? Stop by, grab a stool, eat a little, gab a little, enjoy!

Diner 437 is open for lunch Monday - Saturday and for dinner Wednesday through Saturday. Closed Sundays. It is located at 437 Central Ave in downtown St. Pete.

Day One - Driving the "Back Way" from Villanova to Cary, NC

2009-06-04T21:19:00.006-04:00

(Photos wouldn't post today...will try tomorrow...please check back)

We are tired of the 95 through Baltimore and DC, so being willing to trade-off boredom and traffic and potential traffic jams for a more scenic if slightly slower road, we headed off down the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake. We turned off the 95 in the vicinity of Newark, DE and headed down 13/1/113 (depending on where we were). It was a clear blue sky day and we had the top down on Diva56 (yes, with hats and SPF55 on). Drove by the NASCAR track in Dover (where there were thousands and thousands of RVs at least ½ with American flags flying tall). We were happy the NASCAR loving RVers had apparently gotten there the day before to start all that NASCAR revelry, otherwise that section of the 13 would have been a gauntlet! We did pass the “Red Bull” team (our first indication of serious party making ahead) (photo).

Having eaten early we were hungry for lunch early. As we were traveling down the “Blue Crab Highway” our thoughts naturally turned to…yes…crab for lunch. We first stopped at Susan’s Seafood with hopes of fresh crab. We did find an eye popping array of fresh crabs and fish but for take-away only…no benches, no cookers.

Appetites whetted we turned off 113 and headed for Chincoteague about 10 miles east. The last time we were there was on a cold, blustery, gray day about 23 years ago (off-season, in search of ponies). The weather was markedly better this day and we found Don’s Seafood Restaurant with fresh, fresh, off the boat, blue crab steamed up nicely. It was so sweet that I didn’t even use the clarified butter (and since I think crab is sometimes just a good excuse to eat butter that statement says A LOT). Jerry had oysters. Wild oysters are out of season in the Chesapeake, but the restaurant owner Tom, (…yes I know I said the restaurant is named Don…but he is long gone…it’s Tom now)., anyway Tom raises oysters in temperature controlled conditions which means he can sell them if the “off season” and we can eat them all year long. So Tom’s Coves oysters were served to Jerry and it was all I could do to keep from eating just the one allotted to me, the crab eater. They were great…reminded me of northern oysters (sweet, firm, a little metallic) more than the southern Gulf oysters we get in Florida. The tray of 6 blue crabs was $15 bucks. Jerry’s oysters were 11 for a dozen. Oh, and Jerry also had great fish and chips (8 bucks). It was a very reasonable meal for such fabulous food. Don’s is located on the main drag in Chincoteague. Come off the bridge and make a left, about ½ mile on your left. (Unless you come after the new bridge is done…then make a right about ½ mile on your right).

Before lunch we scouted out the local farmer’s markets (a 6 tent affair with locals selling jams/preserves, fresh baked bread, Tom Cove’s clams (he apparently does clams too), herbs, etc. ) It was set in the parking lot of Don’s restaurant overlooking the water.

After lunch we drove back over the intercoastal waters and marshlands and stopped to figure out what the tall, dark birds in the marsh were. Glossy Ibis! About 20 of them feeding in the tall marsh grass. There were also HUNDREDS of laughing gulls (black heads, very garrulous, hence the name) feeding, socializing, and apparently nesting in the marsh waters (we saw birds flying with nesting material in their talons). We drove by the large NASA facility Wallops Island Flight Facility. Wallops participate in tracking of space shuttle missions, suborbital flight research (including test missiles, high altitude balloons etc). There is a visitor center but we didn’t have time, put it on the “next time” list..

With full bellies (and really wanting to nap and not drive) we pointed Diva56 southward with about 4 hours of driving yet. Crossed the Chesapeake Bay Tunnel Bridge, managed to thread our way through Norfolk/Southhampton without missing a turn (and heading back the way we came) and then got hungry. So it was BLIZZARD time! Stopped at the Dairy Queen in Courtland, VA (butterfinger/oreo mix for anyone interested) and then wandered next door to the “Peanut Patch” which sells Feridies Roasted Virginia Peanuts fixed all so many ways. Family run and local, we had fun taste testing and buying. Check them out if you have a need for crunchy fresh roasted Virginia peanuts http://www.feridies.com/.

Then it was straight to Cary, NC where we arrived about 6pm at the home of our long time friends from Issaquah, WA, Bruce and Karen. As always they warmly opened their home to us and make us feel at home. We sat and talked and played with the cats, Ginger, Tank, and Annie. We caught up on things with son Eric. Then we headed for Danny’s BBQ a local, non-chain establishment off of Tyron in Cary. Great BBQ both North Carolina style as well as other styles more familiar (to us) styles. Grilled corn. Hush puppies. Good coleslaw and beans. VERY tender Baby Back Ribs. Afterwards we went to Goodberry’s a “custard style” ice cream stand (which we visited several years ago on our last trip through Cary). Hot Fudge with roasted almonds…yummy!

After the early start, long drive and big dinner, we could barely keep our eyes open long enough to mount the stairs to our cozy bedroom. We slept well and deeply.

Sunday at the Reading Terminal Market

2009-05-25T18:23:00.007-04:00

One of our favorite places in Philadelphia is the Reading Terminal Market. Although not all the stalls are open on Sundays (the Amish for instance do not open) enough stalls are open (about 2/3rds I'd say) to make it worth the trip. And as a bonus if you get there before the "after church" crowd its delightfully easy to get around, find a seat at one of the many food stalls, and get a latte without a 10 minute wait.

The Reading Terminal Market is located at 12th St and Arch Street and occupies the groundfloor and basement levels (storage) of the former train shed of the Reading Railroad Terminal (which is now part of the Philadelphia Convention Center). There are over 80 vendors (food, crafts, clothing, produce, meats, fish, fruits/vegies, coffee, ice cream, etc.). Founded in 1893 the market has weathered the Great Depression, food shortages of WWII, and the flight of Philadelphians to the suburbs in the 50s and 60s. In the 1980s, after several decades of declining fortune, attention was again turned to restoring and encouraging businesses in the Market and it is once again a robust, fun, and delicious market.

For more info as to hours and special events, check out http://www.readingterminalmarket.org/

This past Sunday we enjoyed fabulous roast pork (jerry) and Italian styled pulled pork (me) sandwiches at Dinic's. Had a reliably good latte from City Coffee. Grabbed a pastry to eat while walking at Termini brothers. And bought terrific fresh large "white" prawns and "tiger" prawns (from the Golden Fish Market) freshly made hummous, great asparagus, mangos, and salad greens for dinner with Jack and Judy yesterday evening. Also, took a moment to take photos of some of my favorite signs. Signs which add to the charm and ambience of a great institution.

Kindle2

2009-05-23T11:01:00.001-04:00

I have a Kindle2. Never thought I'd want one. Never thought I'd really like it. Wrong on both counts. I decided that the new Kindle (being smaller/thinner and lighter) might make a great travel aid when we take long trips so that I don't have to lug along 15 lbs of books in my suitcase. Then I tried one and discovered that a) you can make the font bigger (great for aging eyes), b) you actually can make annotations on a page (great for book club reading), c) its easier to hold in bed when you are laying down than a really big book, d) you can share e-book purchases between family members with different kindles (as long as they are registered to the same Amazon user), e) it has really good battery life (especially when the wifi is turned of), f) its really light weight and, g) important for traveling - you can store an AMAZING amount of books on it. So I'm sold. And I haven't even explored the world of blogs, newspapers, and magazines yet. One learning curve at a time.

Pike's Market with the Kids

2009-04-20T01:50:00.003-04:00

Flying Fish Market...Laurel ogling the fish!

A Week in Seattle (Part two)

2009-04-18T13:47:00.008-04:00

Red Robin and Northgate Mall. I love Red Robin...I miss Red Robin. One of my favorite family style chain restaurant. Great menu, atmosphere. Love (and miss) their Banzai Burger is great. (teriyaki, pineapple...and for those interested cheese, lettuce etc...i just love the teriyaki sauce and pineapple...yum). There Asian chicken salad...also really great. Fabulous shakes...and a tower of great onion rings...literally...they stacked them on a vertical stick...making a tower...so they don't stick all together while you are waiting to eat them. Had a great time with the family...10 of us. Afterwards I went with Laurie and Aaron into the mall because Laurie needed to return something to the Kitchen store. And lo and behold...a Sees Candy store...sigh...another thing I miss in the east. Had to go in for molasses candy, a bordeaux, and a mocha. heaven in a tiny white bag with brown print.

Gilman Village, White Horse Toys. When we were in Issaquah we stopped by Gilman Village for a walk around. It seems sad and lonely at the moment. STores have always come and gone but with the economy as it is...they seem more gone than usual. Couldn't believe the Sweet Addition Candy store was gone. But one of our old favorites from when jason was little is still there (but in a different location)...White Horse Toys. The quintensential old-fashioned toy store. Big sprawling with all kinds of toys for all ages. A wonderful spot. Jason and I looked for treats for Laurel, Will and James. Had a lot of fun.

Capitol Hill Earlier in the week, the boys and I drove up to the Capitol Hill area of Seattle and walked a bit on Broadway. Ate Dick's (okay...not as good as Kidd Valley, In-n-Out (in CA), or Five Guys (on eastcoast/south)...but good meat and good shake. Had excellent latte, mocha, and espresso at Vivace (bought beans for friend Verna). And visited a wild store: Metro Clothing Co offering clothes and accessories: fetish, gothic, military, subculture, and industrial..something for everybody no? Jason found a size 13 pair of white shoes with pointed toes (kind of pimp shoes if you ask me) for 20 bucks...I admit...they look great.

Steelhead Diner We had one of our best meals at lunch (late breakfast) on Saturday at the Steelhead Diner near Pike's Public Market. Steelhead is located at 95 Pine Street (at Post Alley). Tall ceilings, big windows, and outside terrace (overlooking Post Alley). Eclectic food heavily influence by NOLA (new orleans cuisine). I had absolutely fabulous fried eggs on grits...fantastic grits...with sausage. Jason had the "Rich Boy" sandwich with Uli's hot sausage. Yaric had the Flash Fried Oyster Loaf on a big roll. The oyster were perfect lightly breaded and crispy on the outside and still succulent on the inside. Jason also had the chicken and Andouille Sausage Gumbo...perfectly spiced. And we shared the fried chicken spring roll. A wonderful combination of crispy and fresh, sweet and spicy...lovely and delicious. We all highly recommend this place!

Byrnie Utz Hats and Wild Ginger One afternoon we drove downtown and parked around 5th and Pike/Pine for a bit of an explore. The parking lot under the Red Lion isn't cheap but its extremely convenient for the area. In walking down to Wild Ginger for lunch we passed Byrnie Utz Hats (since 1934). Located at 310 Union STreet (between 4th and 3rd) this is a real, quality (mostly men's) hat shop (although they had some fine sun hats and "go to meeting" hats for women. Stetson, Borsalino, Kangool. Big old oak cabinets. And both the boys found a hat. Jason finally found the top hat he's been searching for. He's been looking for at least 3 or 4 years for reasons that escape me...but he's been on a mission. But with top hats not exactly being in style and with him having a nearly size 8 head...its been a challenge. I admit...it fits him (in style and in size).

So with hat on head, we strolled down Union Street to Wild Ginger (1401 3rd St). Delightful lunch. Fabulous mango mojito...I'm really picking about mojitos, like them refreshing and not too sweet and the mint needs to NOT get stuck in your teeth. This was perfect. Food portions were very large so we ended up with way too much food. Phad Thai very good...nicely spicey. Spring rolls very good. Jason had a noodle soup (that I don't remember the name of)...he loved it. Nice room with big windows...good service.

Seattle Aquarium Had a great afternoon with Jennie and her 3 kids at the Seattle Aquarium. There is nothing like seeing the aquarium through the eyes of children...their wide eyed enthusiam for the octupus at feeding time, the "nemo" fish, the little sea horses (auntie annette, did you know that the daddy has the babies???). My favorites are the otters, sea and river. love them, love them.

A Week in Seattle (Part one)

2009-04-18T00:17:00.010-04:00

Can hardly believe we've been here almost a week. Have had a great time. Don't even know where to start...let's see...let's start with food...since we've eaten many great meals with good friends.

Jak's Grill with Jim and Lynne Zeller: Drove out to Issaquah on Sunday night with the idea of having dinner with Jim and Lynne at Sushiman on Gilman Blvd (more on Sushiman later in the post). But they were closed for Easter, so we met at Jak's on Front Street instead, which turned out to be a great choice. Started in Issaquah in 1996 they now have 3 locations (Laurelhurst and West Seattle). They serve wet or dry aged beef at reasonable prices. They have a good wine list with excellent wines by the glass. The room has a good buzz/hum without being impossible to have a conversation with the person across the table from you. We had a great dinner (I had the steak salad which was very good) with good conversations getting caught up on the news of mutual friends and offspring. As much as storefronts on Front Street in Issaquah have turned over in the last 10 years it was great to see a survivor doing well (or as well as can be in this economic climate)

Las Margaritas with Jim and Sharon Hoel: Another Front Street survivor, our old favorite for Mexican food in the area. They've spruced up the interior, put in a "cantina" side, installed some great murals, and expanded their menu with good results. As always very good food with good portion sizes (speaking of portion sizes, my margarita was HUGE).

12th Avenue Cafe

Had breakfast/lunch at the 12th Avenue Cafe a long standing favorite for Issaquah diners seeking a great breakfast for a reasonable price and good comfort food for lunch and dinner. We originally went to the 12th Avenue cafe when it was actually on 12th Avenue in a peculiar round building with a pointy top. Its decor (then and now) was accented with photos and memorabilia of aviation, a nod to the time when there was an airport in old Issaquah at 148th street. Their pancakes and bacon are divine. Yaric's clam chowder was very good and his chili hamburger was...well...he had to eat it with a fork and knife...excellent. The 12th Avenue Cafe is now located in the shopping center off of Gilman that houses the Target.

Sushiman with Randy Holeman

We finally got to Sushiman (on Gilman in Issaquah) when we had lunch with Sensei Randy Holeman (our karate instructor when we attended the Karate West school of Shudokan style karate). We had a delightful time with Randy getting caught up on news from the dojo and his families life. The sushi was good but not as good as we remembered from our years in Issaquah. The California Roll was excellent. But the crunch roll was way to0 salty. The eel was a little over cooked. The yellowtail was tasty but bizarrely cut. And there was virtually no one there for lunch..no one. I know times are hard and sushi is expensive but I was surprised.

Back in Time (for School) - Arbor

We drove out on Friday to visit Jason's elementary school (Arbor Montessori Schools) which he attended from 1st to through 4th grades. We met with mary o'brien who started the school and although semi-retired is still quite a presence there. Evan Flay (one of Jason's classmates) joined us too. It was quite the walk down memory lane as they've made many improvements and expansions over the years. But the core and the spirit of the place remains the same. Such lovely memories. Mary's oldest son Sean (who was a few years ahead of Jason) is back doing his student teaching. That was an amazing experience...we hadn't seen Sean in 10 probably...he was 15 then...now he's teaching!

Walk around Mirror Lakes

Drove out one day to Tiger Mountain and Maple Valley to drive by our old houses and visit neighbors and our very favorite dentist of all times (Dr. Danny Rude, Maple Valley). We were in luck and both Peggy W and Mo R (some of our old neighbors were home). We visited and once again admired the beauty of the MirrorLake Pond. Took a walk around the pond and went by our old house (where once again more trees have gotten taken down, must admit it does let in more sun...but I loved those trees by the lake).

Black Diamond Bakery (donuts and other good stuff)

When we discovered that the old bakery and donut shop in Maple Valley is no more, we drove out to Black Diamond to the Black Diamond Bakery for donuts, muffins, and cookies. The historic bakery (established in 1902 in a building that is still part of the modern day bakery/restaurant) was and is famous for its bread baked in a brick kiln. We often went there for breakfasts (which they are famous for and has caused more than one expansion over the years). The donuts are still perfection...truly homemade...cake (not raised) with delicious rich frostings (not too sweet).

Fischer Bros Meats in Issaquah. Established in 1910 and owned and operated by experienced butchers this has always been the best place for quality meats. They have, hands down/no questions asked, THE BEST jerky (beef and turkey) anywhere on the planet. We always have to go by and get some when we are in town. Our friend Kim, swears by the bacon burger meat (with the bacon ground up in the ground round) yummm... We went by and got jerky enjoying the smoky wonderful smell of the shop and grateful to see "bear" still sitting on a seat near the window where it has sat for at least 15 years...Jason used to love to play with bear whenever we visit when he was younger.

Sunday in Seattle

2009-04-15T01:02:00.006-04:00

Sunday dawned gray and drizzly. I let the boys sleep in recuperating from travel the day before. Around noon we ventured out and headed down towards Elliott Bay in search of Easter lunch. Jason remembered Cutter's a fabulous seafood restaurant down by Pike's Market. Fortunately for us Cutter's is still in business, still fabulous and had room for us. We ate oysters (yaric and i loved them, Jason gamely tried one and didn't gag but that's the best he'll say about it), wild coho salmon, macadamia nut covered tilapia, an apple cobbler, and great wine. It was wonderful to sit in the festive room overlooking Elliott Bay watching the ferries crisscross the bay. It brought back memories of many other sunday lunches at Cutters during our years here including their fantastic garlic rosemary focaccia that you can smell the minute you walk in the door.

After lunch we walked through Pike's Public Market which was largely open for business. It was wondeful: interesting crafts, wonderful flowers, chukar cherries, art, views across the rainy Elliott Bay to the harbor, buskers playing guitar and singing. Again, we were walking in memories through the market of so many weekend visits in search of vegies, fruits, fish, "teeny" donuts, coffee, and flowers...always the flowers.

Lunch at Cave Man Kitchens

2009-04-12T13:55:00.003-04:00

When we lived in the Seattle area in the 90s one of our regular "funky" places for lunch (or dinner) was the Cave Man Kitchen at 807 W Valley Hwy in Kent (a suburb south of Seattle, WA). Cave Man is a motley collection of single story ramshackle buildings housing a series of "smokers" where they smoke a variety of meat to perfections. There is a "order" counter where you can order sandwiches, hams, turkeys, dinners, sides, etc. Fabulous pork BBQ sandwiches are my favorites. I had a few hours to kill so went in search of the Cave Man to see if it was still in operation. It was...EXACTLY the same. All food is "to go" and since it was drizzling the picnic tables weren't particularly inviting. So armed with a dozen paper napkins I ate, very happily, in my car. yummmmy! They also do catering and custom smoking (bring in your own meat...as they say on their website "you choke 'em, we'll smoke 'em). www.cavemankitchens.com

A visit to the Left Coast

2009-04-11T12:41:00.002-04:00

Landed at SeaTac airport in Seattle last night. My first trip back in 3 years and my first long visit in...probably 8 years. Meeting Jason and Yaric today when they fly in from Florida. Really looking forward to our time here.

Stayed near the airport last night at a La Quinta on 188th and Hwy 99. Walked in around 10 pm and realized that I had landed in the land of Gnomes. At first I thought it was an anime thing...until I saw the sign...this way to GnomeStock. Capes, leather, pointy hats, more leather, wild hair, forest accoutrements. Of course, this morning the "gnomes" look like...well techie geeks (said with a full measure of affection for techie geeks)...like they could attend Full Sail. Jason would fit right in. Having done some research...there is something called Gnome.com...which is a search engine. maybe the staff? I googled Gnome Stock and only came up with "Gnome Stock ticker applet"...which does not sound like a party invite. And BTW none of these people are short and oddlooking...at least not in morning light!

Other odd and interesting things this morning. Saw on KOMO news, that a farm out east of Seattle, called Friendly Haven, is renting out Easter Chicks. You get a small batch of them for 30 bucks for the week with a 25 deposit. They say no one actually wants the chicks for longer than a week. no kidding. I wonder what the loss rate is? Boy I bet those little chicks have stories to tell back at the barnyard.

This La Quinta is a bit worse for the wear...old building. there wasn't enough room in the eating area so I ate on a couch holding my cereal bowl in my lap (and they were out of hard-boiled eggs). My toilet was running occasionally...but I met the handyman in the hall and he fixed it right away...very pleasant chap. Parking is horrible..they had to give me a parking pass so I could park behind the Denny's next door...sigh. However, it was a reasonable price, clean, and convenient location. Also, pretty well sound proofed...my window faces out towards the airport and the jet noise did not bother me at all.

Manatees at Play

2009-04-04T16:43:00.001-04:00

Our house, once its finished, is located one short block from Coffee Pot Bayou in St. Petersburg, Florida. Where 23rd Avenue deadends into Coffee Pot Bayou is a favorite hangout for manatees especially during the “winter” months. They like the warmer waters (because its shallow), the supply of vegetation growing in the bottom of the channel, and the fresh water that discharges out of the storm drain (they like to drink it!). There are often one or two manatees that will lay just below the surface and will very slowly raise to the surface, snuff and snort, and they lower themselves smoothly back down below the surface. This morning there were 2 (we think maybe 3) manatees located just a little further out than we normally see them and they were much more active. They were rolling around, “waving” their tails and little fins, and of course, snorting and snuffing. Playing? Mating? Young un’s. Don’t know…but it was sure a great way to start off the morning

St Pete Grand Prix - 2009

2009-04-04T16:29:00.005-04:00

Spent a few hours wondering around the General Admission area at the Grand Prix (and since it was just Friday and less crowded we also managed to snag a few seats in the grandstand for the Le Mans Series qualifying races.) It was slightly overcast and a bit humid, but not bad. We were grateful for the free earplugs provided by Brighthouse Network in their booth. It was loud that is for sure. Enjoyed watching the people, te cars, but must admit…I’d only spend the whole day if I could sit in the shade and drink cold drinks - preferably something with rum in it and a paper umbrella ! We will have to work on that for next year;

Two Great Locals Spots in One Day

2009-04-04T16:27:00.000-04:00

Hungry for a hamburger at lunch time we went to the Dairy Inn on 9th (address). This modest fast food establishment with picnic benches is always busy and sometimes VERY busy. We ordered their “almost famous” burger which was perfect. It was as good as Five Guys (sshhh…don’t tell because we really like Five Guys). And they had shoestring fries(my favorite) and a terrific vanilla shake. They also have soft serve icecream…but we were too full to try one of the sundaes…THIS time. They also have salads, philly cheesesteaks, hot dogs, and numerous other sandwiches…but we will go for the burgers!

This evening we joined our friends Ronnie and Ellen at the Old Northeast Tavern at 201 7th Ave North (on the corner of 7th Ave North and 2nd Street North in the Old Northeast…where else). A locals spot with two rooms: one a large pub bar with a GIGANTIC TV and board games and a quieter but still friendly dining room. Guiness on tap (as well as a slew of other beers). Had an excellent pear and mixed green salad and a think crust garlic shrimp pizza. Not so loud we couldn’t talk…always a bonus. Good service. We will be back…its walking and biking distance from the house.

Twilight Parade (Festival of States) - St. Pete, Florida

2009-04-03T11:41:00.001-04:00

For our second year in a row, we went to St. Pete’s (Florida) annual Festival of States parade held each year on a Thursday evening towards the beginning of April. In recent years it has been held the Thursday before the start of the St. Petersburg Grand Prix.

The evening was delightful with temps in the 70s and breezy. The sky’s few clouds turned pink in the setting sun just before the parade reached us on Beach near Grayl’s Hotel. There was a really good turnout of oldsters and youngsters, dogs in strollers (yes, I said dogs), kids in strollers eating foot long corn dogs, and throngs of people in their beach chairs. Parents stood with their infants and toddlers at their first parade. A “first” memory to build upon as they come back year after year until the “little” ones are big enough to run out into the street to claim one of the mardi gras bead necklaces on their own.

Michael Andretti was the Grand Marshal with his racing team in cars following him including Danica Patrick (one of Jerry’s favorites). The Second Time Arounders (http://www.secondtimearounders.com/) band and drill team performed early in the parade (and in fact was the only band this year…I suspect a time of the economy). Fresh from their Macy Day Parade performance in 2008 the Second Time Arounders boast a rifle corps, baton twirlers, pompom drill team, flagsters, and of course the band…a huge band…there were at least 20 saxophones, 30 trumpets, 8 tubas, etc. etc. And they are good. And it always gives me a lump in my throat to watch them. I don’t know why. I guess because I’m kind of weird about marching bands in the first place and its thrilling to watch a band made up of people who so love band music that despite (or maybe because of) “advanced age” (heehee) they will march, practice, and perform to their hearts content.

Fireworks followed the parade. Parade goers meandered over to the park overlooking the marina and listened to the Second Time Arounders perform while waiting for and then watching the fireworks. Again…I love band music so thought it was a really good addition this year (although listening to Bon Jovi’s Living on a Prayer played with tubas is a little scary). It was a delightful evening.

Bald Eagles Nesting Pair on Honeymoon Island

2009-04-03T10:45:00.002-04:00

Learning to fly — soon (article from April 2, 2009 edition of Tampa Bay Times)

The first documented bald eagle hatched on Honeymoon Island in Dunedin is about 6 weeks old now and should be almost ready to venture from its nest by the end of this month. According to Wilf Yusek, one of the volunteer eagle nest monitors, the eaglet that rangers have dubbed "Cupid" — it hatched after Valentine's Day — is starting to grow flight feathers even now. "They fledge at about 10 to 12 weeks," Yusek says. Sometime late this month or early May it will likely hop up and down testing its wings, then get out onto a nearby branch and try flapping its way back in. Eventually the eaglet will work toward flying tree to tree. The nesting pair enlarged an old osprey nest near the north end of the Osprey Nature Trail and has been raiding ospreys for their fish, said Dan Larremore, the state park's environmental specialist. A barrier, set up 330 feet from the nest per federal guidelines, has been erected, but Yusek, a part-time resident from Canada and a photographer, will periodically add photos of the eaglet to his Web site

New (to us) in St. Pete and some old faves.

2009-03-31T19:02:00.002-04:00

The Globe Coffee Lounge. Located at531 1st Ave North, this place is a funky, comfortable, friendly place that reminds me of my old favorite CoolBeans (on steroids) in Issaquah, WA. High ceilings, old funky stuffed chairs and sofas, vintage 50s dinette sets, art scrambled on the walls and counters, soups, desserts and great lattes and other drinks. And FREE Wifi. (and plenty of plugs for those energy gobbling laptops). This is going to be one of my favorites…only thing is they aren’t open until 11am…so they aren’t an early morning haunt.

Mid-Peninsula Seafood Market and Restaurant located at400 49th Street South, Casual (picnic and dinette tables with mix and match chairs). Kitschy tropical décor. Order at the counter and they bring you your meal. Excellent grilled shrimp. Good stone crab (old or hot). Good fries and cole slaw. Very reasonably priced.

Orange Blossom “stand”. Located on Hwy 19 in north Clearwater at Bellair, Orange Blossom is a huge warehouse selling fresh citrus of all types and local fresh vegetables (onions and Ruskin tomatos are “in” now). They also have my favorite orange soft serve ice cream…not too sweet…mixed with vanilla…yep…creamsicle. We drove about 10 miles out of our way for that treat!

Mazzaro’s Italian Grocery. I know I’ve written about Mazzaro’s before and this probably won’t be the last time either. I love this place. I LOVE THIS PLACE. I love it from the minute I drive in the parking lot and look at the colorfully painted hodgepodge of a building with a papermache Italian woman greeting you at the door. I love it when I walk in and smell the wonderful perfume of fresh, fresh meats, cheese, wines in storage, fresh pastries and even fresher pasta, oh and lets not forget the freshly ground coffees. I could just stand there and breathe if I wasn’t so eager to find the treasure of the day. Today, it was the search for good mozzarella and basil (to go with the Ruskin tomatoes that I bought at Orange Blossoms). A little fresh roast beef and garlic bread and we were set for dinner on the patio back at Jimmy’s pool house. Did I say I LOVE Mazzaro’s? It’s located on 22nd Avenue in St. Pete just a few blocks east of 34th Street.

Reporting from St. Pete

2009-03-30T10:21:00.002-04:00

A working week in St. Pete as we helped my mom moved into her new apartment and met with contractors/architect on our house addition/remodel. Here are a few tidbits from our “time-off time”.

Eats:

Fresko’s. We’ve eaten at Fresko’s (located on the marina in st. pete, fla) once before. We had an inside table and a very mediocre meal. Probably wouldn’t have gone back except our working brunch was scheduled for there this morning. Despite rain, we ate on the deck (courtesy of effective clear plastic curtains) and had a delightful brunch. Very good eggs benedict and frittata. Good coffee. Lovely view. Glad we went. We’d go back for brunch.

Leverock’s (on S. Pasadena on the Westside of St. Pete). One of several locations of an old standby in St. Pete. Fish/Seafood. Went with mom, jerry, Jason and yaric. Good tilapia, sword fish, and fired shrimp. Lobster bisque had way too much butter and salt in it…and salads were uninspired. Potatos (mashed or baked) excellent.

Harvey’s 4th Street Grill. A local’s haunt. One of our favorites for good, basic food with a warm inviting atmosphere. The restaurant celebrates its 25th anniversary this week on the 1st. We have plans to go. Had a fabulous French dip…excellent, tender beef, soft/crispy roll, not too salty aujus. Great gin and tonic. Oh, and they have guiness on draft.

Panera's on 4th Street in St. Pete...free wifi...good bagels and lattes.

Coca cola anyone?

2009-03-20T21:36:00.003-04:00

US Air is once again providing non-alcoholic beverages free of charge. No more lugging on plastic bottles of coke bought at the last minute from the news stand. No more digging around for exact change. Just a cup of ice and a can of coke. As it should be.