Cruising Through Life

New England Adventure

2011-09-02T12:29:00.041-05:00

Well once again we've loaded up the car and headed out in the direction of New England. We are hoping the aftermath of hurricane Irene does not affect us too much.

On this trip we plan stops at Hanover, PA; Philadelphia, PA; Mystic, CT; Old Sturbridge, MA; the Boston, MA area and a Boston Redsox game; we plan a short drive into both New Hampshire and Maine. Once we leave the Boston area we will head west through upstate New York to Niagara Falls. From Niagara Falls we head north into Canada, proceeding on to Toronto. We'll spend a few days in Toronto and then head south to Waterford, IN where we will visit with friends for a few days.

From Indiana we head for home. Not sure yet what we'll do between Waterford and home, but you can bet Lee will come up with something.

Here we are day two. Arrived Hanover, PA safe and sound. We made Knoxville, TN last night, one missed turn, damn GPS!

Nashville was the worst part of the drive. When we hit Nashville it was three-thirty in the afternoon and raining. You'd a thought it was rush hour, where do all these people come from? Obviously either no one works or there are a bunch of folks making an exodus to Nashville to make it big!

No real sight seeing yet, that begins tomorrow with the Synder's Pretzel and Utz Potato Chip plants. No cameras are allowed at the pretzel place, obviously pretzels have more secrets than we thought.

Today we passed through Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland. Crossed the Shenendoah and Potomac rivers. Passed by the location of Meade's Headquarters and Harper's Ferry. And we are officially in the north as we have crossed the Mason-Dixon Line!

Some neat names: the towns of Rural Retreat and Max Meadows; A Mother's Hunger State Park, and many more. And here I thought the Arkansas towns of Pickles Gap, 56, Toad Suck, and Oil Trough were weird.

I told Lee I wasn't sure why she wanted to do these drives, she's either sleeping or reading, so she never sees anything along the way. Next time we fly!

So ends day two!!!

Day three began with a wonderful breakfast served up by our B&B host, Bruce. After breakfast it was off to the Snyder's of Hanover pretzel factory. What an operation. Would you believe eight tons of pretzels are produced every hour. They go through 250,000 pounds of flour a day. They installed 16,000 solar panels on twenty six acres which produces thirty percent of the power used by both the factory and the headquarters building.

Then it was off to tour the Utz potato chip factory. Equally as awesome. They produce something like 32,000 pounds of chips an hour. And for every pound of chips, four pounds of potatoes are used. Utz is still a family owned business serving all fifty states. All the product they produce in a day is shipped within twenty four hours. They adjust production in accordance with demand so chips don't sit in the warehouse. They also use 100% cottonseed oil, so the chip is lighter and more flavorful.

After our tours we of course visited the outlet stores, so now our once empty trunk is now filled with chips and pretzels.

More fun to come tomorrow, the rain is supposed to ease up so maybe we'll get to do some outside stuff. End day three!

Day four. I must begin with if you know us, you know we are not the average tourist. Today we drove to York and attended the State Fair in York. Why you ask? Well it happens to be the oldest state fair in the USA. It started way back in the 1700's. So pretty significant.

The weather actually played fair and by mid afternoon the sun peeked through and brought a bit of blue sky.

We missed the birthing of a lamb by about twenty minutes. Bummer, but, the pig was ready to give birth to ten to twelve piglets within minutes. We waited and watched to no avail. Six hours later still no piglets:(

We got very interested in the goat competition. Milking goats that is. We learned that this particular breed of goats is judged on the the size of their mammory, how well they walked with what we thought was a very full udder. Then the arch of the back and other factors played into who won. Another interesting tidbit or should I say observation, is that they pee first and then poo!!! LOL. I know TMI.

All in all we had a good day at the fair. The highlight was getting a stellar deal on a new mattress. Yes, you read right. We bought a new mattress at the Pennslyvania State Fair. How crazy is that, but I remind you, we are not the average tourist. I mean you be the judge, seeing the Liberty Bell or buying a new mattress!!!

We have eaten at some great eateries and some not so great. So far, we are having a great time. Stay tuned to tomorrow, Gettysburg on a Segway!!! You gotta love us. End day four.

Day five. This trip surely does not have the flair our Alaska adventure had. No hay bales, moose, or bears. No heads carved in mountains or hail storms in Deadwood! So we are having to struggle to make the blog worth the read.

Today we drove to Gettysburg, y'all know where thats at or have at least read about the battle. Some say it was the turning point in the outcome of the Civil War. We spent the day and it was a very good day. Our initial plan was to take a tour on Segways. The weather being so unpredictable, we decided to do a double-decker bus tour. How silly, the last open bus tour leaves at 10 a.m. The closed bus was running, hmmm, nope not for us. We were instructed to start our days adventure at the visitors center. So thats where we headed.

Turned out to be the best thing for us to do. We purchased tickets to watch a film, a History channel presentation narrated by Morgan Freeman. The film was followed by a Cyclorama. This was absolutely awesome. Narration as well as sound effects were added. It was as if we were present on the battlefield. Goosebumps for sure. After this moving experience we proceeded to the museum. All I can say is, if you've never been here, you need to come.

There was so much to see, but we got hungry and needed lunch. So we headed back into Gettysburg proper, had lunch at The Pub & Restaurant, and then walked Gettysburg square. Drove up to the National Cemetary, walked the hallowed grounds and walked across to Cemetary Hill.

As we walked, one could not help but to visualize the bloody battle. Then we drove the twenty-six mile loop of the battlefield of Gettysburg. I hope to get some photos posted soon, as they will surely tell the story better.

We had a nice dinner and returned to our B&B to prep for our departure tomorrow. We resigned ourselves to watch the movie, "Gettysburg" before bed. Hanover, PA was a very nice stop. Tomorrow we head to Philadelphia. End day five.

Day 6. Day six began with a wonderful breakfast at the B&B, then we packed and headed for Philadelphia. We had a few stops semi-planned, but it being Sunday, most were closed.

One stop we did make was the Apple Store in Lancaster, PA. About a month ago I bought Lee a tablet, not an iPad. She nor I have been impressed with it, so I decided it was time to move her to the world of Apple. She is now connected and is installing apps!!!

After Apple it was off to Philly. Fairly easy drive and arrived our B&B two and a half hours early. The inn keeper was accommodating and checked us in. Luggage etc in room, we headed to the Eastern State Penitentiary. The facility shut down in 1970 and is now a historic site. We spent a few hours there. What an interesting place. Al Capone once was a guest here, his cell was quite a sight.

After our tour we had dinner at Jack's Firehouse, located in an old firehouse, a neat place and the food was great. After dinner we returned to the B&B and chilled. Tomorrow we tour some Constitution stuff, will try to locate Tun's Tavern, birthplace of the US Marine Corps. Tuesday we head to Mystic, CT.

So far we're having a great time. End day six!

Day 7. Where to start. Our adventure started by getting on the wrong trolley. The trolley driver was great, told us we were going in the wrong direction, so he flagged down the trolley going in the direction we needed to go, told him we already paid, which we had, and let us off so we could hop on the right trolley.

We got off at City Hall, the original Philadelphia City Hall. We went into the visitor center and signed up for the tour. We were given instructions on where to go and what time we needed to be there. So off we go. I think both Lee and I thought we were going to do like a historical tour of City Hall. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

We get up to the 7th floor and follow the "red" line to the tour starting point and wait for our time slot to be called. A uniformed guard comes and calls our time. Shows us to an elevator where five of us cram in. He closes the door, hits the switch and we proceed to go up. And up. And up. Past the clock towers, the elevator has windows so we have a great view of the metal super structure. And up!

Finally the elevator stops, the door opens and we are greeted by "watch your head" signs. We walk out and follow a small passage way to a door. Holy crap! We are 40 stories above the city!!! Had it not been a little hazey, I believe we could have seen Russia!

OMG, the view. We could see the entire city and more. So, although it wasn't quite what we expected, it turned out to be an awesome experience.

From there we walked to Independance Hall Center. Philly has so much history. Toured the Philadelphia Mint, no photos allowed, bummer, saw Ben Franklin's grave, Penn's Landing, etc. Had a Philly Cheesesteak sandwich at Campo's and walked some more.

Needless to say this was a great stop for us. Didn't get to see all we wanted to, one day just doesn't afford the time to get it all in. But, we got a very good taste of Philly, a taste we'll savor for years to come.

Tomorrow will bring the worst part of the trip for me. Heading to Mystic, CT and have to negotiate the Cross Bronx Parkway in New York. I cannot tell you how many times in my life I have driven the Cross Bronx, and each time I hated it more. Probably haven't driven it in fourty years, still I dread it. Needless to say I'll get through it and all will be good. Tomorrow nights dinner, Mystic Pizza!!! End day seven.

Day 8. Arrived Mystic safe and sound. Lee said the experience of the George Washington Bridge and the Cross Bronx Parkway is plenty to last her a lifetime.

We did laundry and headed to eat. Had a wonderful dinner at S&P Oyster House right on the seaport, tomorrow we'll do Mystic Pizza. After dinner, guess where we went? Oh come on, you can do better than that. A hint, something Lee really likes to do. Okay, I guess I'll tell you, we went to the casino. Surprised!!!

Tomorrow we have a big day. Will tour the Seaport and Museum and the Aquarium. If time allows, we'll drive down to the Coast Guard Academy. Not sure what else Lee has on tap. At some point we'll pop in on some of my old friends, folks I've not seen since the mid-seventies. All in all it's been a good trip. End day eight.

I attempted to post a link to a few photos, but it failed. So if you really want to see the few pics I have up, go to photobucket.com and search tawcat, that should bring you to my main album page, from there look for New England Adventure. Otherwise you'll have to wait til we get home.

Day 9. As you know, we are not your average tourists. Started the day at Kohl's. Before we left we watched the weather forecast for each city we'd be in. Not sure what happened, but the weather hasn't turned yet, so we needed shorts and short sleeves!

After coming back to the hotel and changing we headed for Mystic Seaport and Museum. What we figured would be a one day affair, will turn into a second day tomorrow. We'll also do the Mystic Aquarium tomorrow. Still have some running around tomorrow. UPS store to send a box of stuff we bought back home. We just don't want to have a trunk full of stuff going across the Canadian border.

Then we'll pack up and be set to leave Friday morning. Seems we've been gone a long time. End day nine.

Day 10. Good day. Started by going the UPS store and sending stuff home! Then we headed for the Seaport. Another two hours touring there before we felt we had seen all we wanted to see. Off to lunch.

Lunch consisted of "slices from heaven" at the now famous Mystic Pizza. The pizza was great, a quick trip to their gift shop and we were off to Mystic Aquarium. The aquarium opened in 1973, I was still living here then. I remember my first visit there, wow the place has really expanded. Great exhibits. We had a good time, got to pet sting rays and sharks.

Tonight, we pack for tomorrows drive to Sturbridge, MA. Almost at our half way point. Life is good.

Remember I mentioned we had to go and buy shorts. Temps tomorrow, low in the thirties with frost; high of sixty-seven, go figure!!! End day ten.

Days 11 & 12. So we arrive Auburn, MA before noon, so we proceed to Old Sturbridge Village, spent about four hours touring the way the early settlers lived in the 1800's. So far we've had a great time. Last night, something special happened, I won't go into great detail, but it was a very very special evening. My son, Jeff, who I have not seen in twenty-six or so years, came to meet us in Auburn. We had a very nice visit. Dinner wasn't that great, Chuck's Steak House and MargaritaGrill, somehow they are touted as Auburn's number one place to eat. (gag)

At any rate we had a wonderful visit and hope that we don't wait another twenty-six years. Late visit, we said goodnight at about two-thirty, yes, morning!

This morning Lee and I hit the road en route to Newton, MA. Again it was a short drive, so we decided to go into Salem. The witch capital of the world. I think one either believes in ghosts and witches and such or they don't! We spent about four hours walking around. You know Salem is the home of "The House of the Seven Gables.". Pretty eerie to say the least. Needless to say, I checked the car before we departed. Made sure we didn't have uninvited guests hiding in the trunk or back seat!!!!

Left Salem, arrived our B&B, went to dinner, and now chilling and planning tomorrow. Looks like we will drive through New Hampshire and Maine tomorrow. Looking forward to eating lobster in Kittery, ME. Then back to the B&B, Monday we head into Boston for the day, and taking in a Boston Red Sox game Monday night. They play the Orioles, look for us, we'll be above the Red Sox dugout!!!

Tuesday we begin our trek west!!! End day eleven and twelve.

(Note: I'll proof and edit when we get home; sorry for all the errors.)

Day 13. Had a wonderful day, temps in high sixties to low seventies. We took a drive to York Harbor, Maine. Had a wonderful lunch at a little seaside restaurant. They served steamed clams, like I mean real steamers, like the ones I grew up with. Yum-O!!! I followed that up with a lobster roll, fresh steamed lobster in a large hot dog roll, OMG, it was sooooooooo good. Lee opted for fried clam strips, enough food for four prople between us. Full as ticks, we headed to Nuble Point. Beautiful place, lighthouse and all. Of course we had to stop for ice creams at Brown's, one of those places that everyone tells you, "you have to stop and get ice cream there!". Talk about good!!!

On the way back we stopped at the Kittery outlet mall. Believe it or not we got out of there with just a magnet!

Back to B&B and getting ready for dinner. Quiet evening tonight, have to rest up for our day in Boston tomorrow!!!

End day thirteen.

Day 14. Beautiful day in the Boston area. We started out figuring out what "T" train we needed to take into the city. Then, what stop. Finally off the subway and in the middle of Bostonians busily walking here and there. We figure out how to get to the visitor center and proceed. With maps and brochures in hand we leave the visitor center en route to the Freedom Trail. After several blocks we realize we are going the wrong way! So we turn around and head back. The Freedom Trail is pretty interesting if you like looking at old houses and buildings. Places like Paul Revere's place and the old North Church, to name a few. We decided to lunch in little Italy, and then scurry back to the Robert Gould Shaw memeorial to meet our tour guide for the Black Heritage Trail tour.

Our guide shows up, a very interesting gent, dressed in a US National Park Services uniform. He introduces himself as Horace Sheldon, eighty- seven years old and the oldest person with the USNPS. Try to picture him. Probably five foot two; very grey hair bunched together in the back fashioned in a small ponytail; small little beard, also grey; and supported by a short cane on the right side. And very gnome-esque. Needless to say a very interesting gentleman. This is a ninety minute tour, up and down Beacon Hill several times. The man could walk. He was very interesting and very intelligent, knew his history for sure. At one point he addressed the group saying, "I can get you to the museum in time to view the little sixteen minute film, or you can hang out here with me. And you're going to learn a helluva lot more from me."

How can you refuse!!!!! Probably the best guided tour we've taken to date.

After the tour we made our way back to the "T" and jumped on the train headed for Fenway. Did you know Fenway will be one hundred years old next year!

Got there in plenty of time to have dinner before we went to the game. I'll address the restaurants at the conclusion of the trip, just a hint, the meal was fantastic.

We had great seats behind the Red Sox dugout. The stadium was packed, on a school night. The Sox have not been doing well, I think they lost like eight of the last nine games. No matter, we were in Fenway Park. Well, we are convinced they were saving this game for us, Boston slammed the Orioles with an eighteen to nine victory. Go Sox!!!!

Took a packed train to our stop, made our way back to the B&B around eleven-thirty. Gathered things in preparation for our departure and then to bed. End day fourteen.

Day 15. Rise and shine, shower, a bite of breakfast, pack the car and head out. A day of rain:( Oh well, could be worse. On the way we took a little side trip. Pulled off the highway to stop at a Polish bakery I used to go to when I was a kid. As long as I'm here, figure I'd give Lee a short tour of my childhood. I left the Springfield area in 1964, I was so surprised of how well I remembered my way around.

No problems finding my old home, my grandmothers house, my old schools, which are no longer there, it was a fun walk (drive) down memory lane.

Okay enough goofing off, time to hit the road and head west. Arrive Schenectady, NY. Only one night here, just a stop to do laundry, have a good nights sleep and head to Niagara in the morning. So far the trip has been fantastic. End day fifteen.

Day16. Uneventful drive from Schenectady to Niagara Falls. Arrived with enough time to visit the Falls. Just a totally awesome experience. I doubt there are enough words to describe Niagara Falls. One cannot fathom the amount of water that passes over the falls. One of the Park Rangers told us that 675,000 gallons of water fall at the point of Horseshoe Falls every second! The Falls are identified by several different areas, each with it's own features. So as the ranger continued, billions and billions of gallons of water pass over the falls every hour.

Totally impressed by this Wonder of the World, we could not help to take notice of the force of the water above the falls. I could go on and on, but I've said enough, once the photos are posted you'll see what I'm saying.

We enjoyed a nice dinner and then made a stop at the Seneca Casino, pretty amazing and pretty busy. Nope didn't hit a big jackpot so back to the hotel. End day sixteen.

Day 17. Still no WiFi:( Had a nice breakfast at the Inn restaurant then headed for Toronto. Stopped and marveled at the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. Sadly I have to admit that the Canadian side is far nicer than the US side.

En route to Toronto we took a short side trip to visit a few of the Canadian vineyards. Who knew this region had so many vineyards. Lee sampled a few wines, I was driving! After the vineyards it was back on the road Toronto bound.

Easy drive. Found our B&B, ummmm, didn't look like a good neighborhood at all. But, all is well, kinda reminds us of the Quapaw Quarter in Little Rock. We walked downtown, about a mile and a half, to meet friends we had met on a cruise. We had a wonderful meal at a neat Greek restaurant. After dinner Steve and Lorraine gave us a short walking tour. There is as much downtown Toronto underground as there is above ground. The area is known as the PATH, Google it, you'll be amazed. After, they drove us back to the B&B, sure would have loved to be a fly in car on their drive home. LOL.

Tomorrow we'll tour part of the city and then we'll drive out to Steve and Lorraine's for a cook out, can't wait. It's late, so time to sleep. Life is good. End day seventeen.

Day 18. Today we headed into downtown Toronto. We took in a bit more of the PATH, stopped by the Hockey Hall of Fame, and walked Toronto's underground. Pretty awesome. Then came the rain! We walked back to our B&B in the rain. About a two mile walk, needless to say we were drenched. Lee attempted to dry clothes with her hair dryer, didn't work. Luckily we were going to Lorraine and Steve's for dinner and could use their dryer!

Headed to dinner. We had such a great time at Lorraine and Steve's. They were such great hosts. Steve grilled steaks to perfection and Lorraine prepared several great side dishes. We left full and with dry clothes!!! End day eighteen.

Day 19. After a fun night, it was up early and on the road headed for Waterford, Michigan. A good drive, we stopped somewhere in Canada for lunch. Found a little place called Kathy's Country Cooking, figured we'd give it a shot. We walked in and sat down. After several minutes of being ignored we decided to leave. I mean we were not even acknowledged, while others that sat down after us were being served. So needless to say I have no raving recommendation for Kathy's!

We arrive at Susan and John's in Waterford, Michigan. Susan prepared a wonderful turkey chili for dinner. Not sure what time we went to bed, we sat up and chatted and laughed and laughed till we hurt. End day nineteen.

Day 20. Susan and John had a full day planned. First stop Yate's Cider Mill where we indulge in fresh apple cider and hot homemade doughnuts. Then it was off to Frankenmuth. This is a little town founded by a dozen of German monks way back when. A very neat place. After walking around all the little shops for a few hours we decide to have our "big meal" of the day at the Bavarian Inn. The food was fantastic, traditional German fare. Needless to say we left full as perverbial ticks! Then we headed to one of the neatest stores ever, Bronner's Christmas Shoppe. This place has every Christmas item one could ever think of or could ever want. After a full day we headed back to the house and chilled the rest of the evening.

Short note, Susan was thrilled in finding "salt rising bread.". Not sure what this is, but it was special. End day twenty.

Day 21. What an interesting morning. First, no power! Not sure what happened, but the entire neighborhood was without power. Second, it was raining and third, this one we have to laugh about. Remember the note about the salt rising bread, well it seems Milo, Susan and John's Tibetan Terrier decided the bread was tempting. Somehow he managed to get a loaf off the table. Only three slices were left. Poor Milo. He may have thought it was a good idea at the time, but his tummy was not happy with his decision. Poor baby vomited on the carpet and to feel better he jumped up on Susan and John's bed. That didn't help, he vomited all over the bed!!!!! Poor poor Milo, we felt so bad for him.

We packed, got everything into the car, and we all headed for breakfast. After a wonderful breakfast at Bob Evans, we hit the road. Our trek home has begun. Spending the night in Indianapolis at a Drury Inn! Tomorrow next leg towards home. End day twenty-one.

I'm guessing this is like day twenty-three. We are home!!!!!!! Short entry for the day as we have a lot to do. Need to unpack, go buy groceries etc. We arrive home a bit after noon. We could have made it in last night, but figured the last hundred-fifty miles would be grueling. And it would have put us on the road about thirteen hours or so and put us at the door around nine in the evening. Wouldn't be fair to the animals to walk in and go to bed. In the next day or so I'll finish up the blog, get links to pictures posted, get mileage stats posted and do the restaurant reviews. Also have to do all the TripAdvisor reviews for the places we stayed.

Great to be home!!!!!! End Our New England Adventure!!!

Okay, finally have all the photos posted, you can go to this link "New England Adventure", this will bring you to the main album, from there you can navigate to the sub albums.

Some stats of the trip: miles traveled - 3,978.5; gas mileage - 30.31 mpg, once again we took Lee's VW CC; traveled through - seventeen states and Canada - Arkansas, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, and Ontario, Canada; stayed at - eleven hotels/B&B's and John and Susan's; slept in - twelve different beds, not counting the ones we tested at the fair.

Hotels/B&B and restaurant reviews will be posted on TripAdvisor instead of in the blog. If you are interested in reading these reviews go to TripAdvisor.com and I believe you can search Lee's nick, punkinlr, and it will lead you to all of our reviews.

Thanks to all who have followed us through our adventure. We had a great time and we hope you did too! Until next adventure, love and hugs!!!

Farewell to Annie Laurie!

2011-07-28T10:16:00.003-05:00

It seems a new chapter in our lives has begun. After thirteen years of boating together, we have sold our Annie Laurie.

Why? Well if you've kept up with our travel adventures, you can see that we've put quite a few miles on the rubber of our cars. Pretty hard to be hundreds, if not thousands, of miles away from home and get home for a weekend on the lake!

The decision was not an easy one. Our Sea Ray 320 was our dream boat and we spent many an hour aboard her. She has found a new home on our local lake. Her new family includes three young children, so she will not be lonely. We trust she will grace her new family with as much fun as we had aboard.

For us, our travels continue. We are planning a drive to New England, followed by a Savannah, Georgia adventure. After that, well we've just not planned that far in advance yet.

Our New England adventure will carry us through Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Canada, and Michigan. Watch the blog for daily postings once the adventure begins.

The Wonders of Nature

2011-06-22T12:16:00.002-05:00

Over the past several months I have been watching web cams and live streams from two separate locations. One is the Decorah Eagles site and the other the Norfolk Botanical Gardens site. The latter is now being broadcast by the Wildlife Center of Virginia.

In both instances, three eggs were laid and three hatched.

These sites are amazing. We had the opportunity to watch two sets of adult eagles lay eggs, tend to the nest and the eggs, and then watched the hatch. All I can say is awesome.

First the Decorah eagles. The diligence of the parents is absolutely phenomenal. I am sure there are photos and possibly a few videos of some of the rigors Iowa weather brings. On one occasion the nest was filled with snow. Momma eagle kept adjusting her body to shelter the eaglets from the extreme conditions. The babies have left the nest. Not totally. They are in the process of fledging and it is such a joy to watch them winger-cize and to hop from nearby branches. This morning I had the joy to watch one take flight. It hopped off the branch and took flight, a short fly around and back to the branch. In just a short few days they will all fledge and for the most part be gone from the nest. For about three months after fledge the eaglets, as well as the parents, will return to the nest periodically. Mainly to feed as their hunting skills need to be honed. Momma and papa eagle will continue to bring food. Eventually, they'll be gone, in hopes that the parents return once again to the nest in the fall to start yet another family.

The link to the Decorah Eagles is here: .

Sadly the Norfolk eagles weren't quite so lucky. On April 26th, the mother eagle was out hunting and was hit by a US Airways commuter plane as it attempted to land at the regional airport. A joint decision was made by the Virginia Wildlife personnel and the Norfolk Botanical Gardens staff to move the eaglets to the Wildlife Center of Virginia (WCV).

The decision was based on a single parents ability to provide enough food for the developing eaglets. So on April 27th the eaglets were moved. The WCV had to construct a new enclosure to house the eaglets. And have since added a flight pen to the enclosure. The Norfolk eagles are doing fine and seem to be doing all the things they need to do to be released into the wild in late August.

It surely has been an education watching these babies develop. Being able to observe all they go through is just wonderful. The way the parents tend to them and watch over them. The WCV staff are being very careful so as not to allow the eaglets to form bonds or to become dependent upon human intervention.

If you have never experienced an eagle encounter, I encourage you to visit the sites. Looking forward to Fall and hopefully two new families of eagles.

The Norfolk Botanical Gardens eagles link: .

Enjoy.

Celebrity Eclipse

2011-01-31T15:18:00.008-06:00

We left cold snowy Arkansas on the 21st of January heading to Miami. Arrived Miami about an hour late due to tarmac delay to de-ice the wings in Arkansas. We left bitter cold to arrive at a very rainy, but 77 degree Miami.

Spent the night at the Holiday Inn Downtown, across from Bayside and about ten minutes from the cruise terminal. We've stayed here before, not a five star hotel, but very clean and accommodating.

Friends from Ohio were flying in as well. After check in we all headed to Bayside. Grabbed a mid-afternoon snack and walked through all the stores and headed for dinner at Lombardi's. After a filling dinner, we headed to the CVS pharmacy, to buy wine for the cruise. Amazingly CVS has a nice selection of wines. After CVS we headed back to the hotel.

Saturday morning began with a nice breakfast, followed by a quick repack and hailing a cab.

Got to the pier and cruise terminal without incident. A quick check-in, no hassles at all. Followed by a short wait to board the ship. On board we walked the ship a bit and then selected "The Bistro on 5" to have lunch. Most things on board are included in your cruise fare, however, ships have specialty restaurants that require an additional fee. Bistro on 5 was an additional $5 per person, well worth it as it wasn't crowded and offered a nice selections of made to order sandwiches and salads.

While having lunch the announcement came over the PA that guests staterooms were ready. So after lunch we went to our cabin. Our cabin was next door to our friends, which made things convenient. Cabins were very roomy and our balcony was one of the largest due to its location on the hump. This is where the ship extends out a bit, quite nice.

The ship is very well laid out and navigating throughout the ship is rather easy. The ship in all has sixteen decks. Deck two has the medical clinic as well as the gangway for getting on and off the ship in ports. Deck three hosts the Guest Relations and Shore Excursion desks and the Grand Foyer. Deck four and above host the gift shops, bars, restaurants, spa, theater, and Café al Bacio & Gelateria. Guest cabins are on all decks.

Our ports of call were Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Costa Maya, and Roataan, Honduras. We got off at the latter three, foregoing Grand Cayman. Grand Cayman, although very nice, requires the ship to anchor out beyond the reefs and then tender its passengers to shore. Tendering is not our favorite thing to do, as many times the water is rough and you end up bobbing up and down for the twenty or so minute ride in.

Costa Maya found us at our favorite haunt, Pez Quadro, where the girls got massages on the beach, like $25 for an hour, and John and I sat and drank beer. After the girls were done we ordered lunch. Pez Quadro is clean and the food is great. John had a super deluxe nacho plate, Susan had lobster tacos and Lee and I shared a combo plate. After lunch we walked the shoreline and caught a cab back to the ship.

We were supposed to take an island tour in Roataan, but Susan was not feeling well, so Lee and I got off and shopped the local area.

Cozumel found John and Susan swimming with the dolphins, while Lee and I took a Salsa and Salsa tour. This is the same group we did this tour with in Matzatlan in 2007. And it was equally as fun. Check out their website at salsaandsalsa.com, you can also find them on Facebook.

The ship was great. We dined in the Moonlight Sonata, which is the main dining room, three of the seven nights aboard. The other nights found us sampling the specialty restaurants. Qsine, which is very unique and a dining experience that took a bit over three hours. Murano's, probably our favorite. The presentation very personal, as some meals and desserts were prepared table side. Lastly was the Tuscan Grille, an Italian Steakhouse. Very elegant and the food pretty darn good. As stated earlier, each of the specialty restaurants required an additional per person fee which I think was like $30 per person.

The ship also offered the Mast Grill where one could enjoy burgers, hot dogs fries, Polish sausage, onion rings and more. And the Oceanview Cafe which was a buffet, and open for each meal. Not your usual walk down a long serving line, rather they had several islands with each island offering a different cuisine. Everything from eggs to order, Belgian waffles, stir fry, sushi, salads, carved meats, smoothies, desserts and a lovely ice cream bar. I'm sure I'm missing something, but you get the idea. Also offered is the AquaSpa Cafe, and yes, by the name you've guessed that serve up the healthy foods. We walked by a few times, but never sampled any of the offerings, although it all looked so good. But hey, we were on vacation, who thinks healthy!!!!

The one show we saw was great, a female impressionist. She sang with the voices of Cher, Celine Dion, and Michael McDonald to name a few.

The ship was pretty spectacular and believe this or not had lawn. Yes real grass! They had golf putting, bocce ball and even had a picnic on the lawn. Very serene just sit on the lawn and watch the sea go by. They had a Solarium that was adults only which they enforced and it offered a very nice quiet place to read and relax.

I think it was the day we were Roataan that we decided to take in a movie while on board, we went to see Social Network.

The most interesting bars were the Molecular bar which specialized in drinks created a mixologist, the liquid nitrogen was the neatest. The Martini bar and Crush were very cool. Crush was a table with ice that specialized in vodkas. Every flavor, brands etc. Quite entertaining to say the least.

Many different clubs and lounges, too many to mention individually.

The only complaints were the dance venues. The best music was by the D'Revalations and most of the time they performed in the Grand Foyer 3. Dance floor not big enough and the down staircase basically led to the middle of the dance floor. There was a Big Band hour performed by the ships orchestra, however, they didn't play any Big Band, so just not sure why they labeled it a Big Band Dance Hour. The Sky Lounge, which had a wonderful dance floor was seldom used except for theme stuff, and then the place of course was packed.

Overall the cruise was great and we surely recommend it. Usually on ships past, everything gets quiet by eleven, not the case with this ship. At one in the morning the ship was still alive with activity. So Celebrity must be doing something right!!!!

Alaska 2010 - Our Big Adventure

2010-08-02T21:13:00.052-05:00

Heading out en route to Alaska via automobile!!!!! Yes by car, approx 4,700 miles one way. So it's quite possible one of us will be flying home.

Our trip will take us through Mt Rushmore; Little Big Horn and the Edmonton Canada Mall. From Edmonton we will head to Alaska, stopping in Delta Junction (where I was stationed), North Pole, Alaska, Fairbanks and a two night stay in Denali. Then we will head south to Anchorage where we will spend about twelve days with Lee's brother and his wife.

While there we'll do some day trips, a little fishing, and then a two day trip to Seward's Sea Life Center. And then ultimately head south for home.

Our return trip will take us to Hamilton, Montana where Lee's cousin has a summer/winter home in the mountains, where we will spend two days. Our journey will then continue South East, stopping along the way to see yet more historic sites. Our trip will culminate in St Louis with a Cardinals game. And then it's heading home, possibly via Birmingham to pick up my mom and bring her to Little Rock for a couple of weeks.

Oh and if you haven't kinda figured a time line out yet this trip will take approximately six weeks. This will be the longest period of time Lee and I have been away from our babies (cats and dog). A trip of a lifetime for sure. I am going to try and upload photos to our online album and will try to send everyone a link. We are looking forward to the adventure, not necessarily the thirty plus days in a car.

We have a house sitter that will move in to take care of the home front while we're gone.

(Link to photos posted at end of blog)

July 30, 2010 – The big adventure has begun. Left Little Rock around eleven a.m. Stopped in Marshall, AR and enjoyed lunch at the Sunset Inn. Well lunch was okay, the fried okra was great.

On to Springfield, MO with a stop at Branson Landing. Quick stop in Bass Pro Shop, didn’t buy a thing! Yes I checked my temp and I was normal. Next, two mistakes. First: Stopped In a little wine outlet, they specialize in Missouri wine. What a deal, three free tastings, and then a dollar each for each additional taste. Ended up buying six bottles, well actually the deal was, buy four get two free. So Lee got two she liked and then I picked two I liked and also picked the two free. Have to laugh. The four bottles I picked were less than the two Lee picked!!!!

Next mistake. Happened upon an olive oil and balsamic vinegar shop. OMG, flavored EVOO and flavored balsamic, yum-o. Well no, of course we didn’t get out of there without buying. Bought two bottles of French Walnut EVOO and two bottles of Tuscan Herb EVOO and two bottles of eighteen year old balsamic vinegar, which they will ship to the house. Then bought a bottle of French Walnut EVOO and a bottle of eighteen year old balsamic to bring to Alaska.

At this point I told Lee we needed to go. No more shopping, we don’t have any room in the car for anymore stuff. We have like four thousand six hundred miles to go and if we buy like this along the way, one of us will end up as a hood ornament.

On to Springfield where we stayed at the Drury Inn and Suites. Ya know we stayed in one of these in Mobile and absolutely fell in love with the place. So they have become our hotel of choice. Included with stay is an evening gig they termed “kick back.” Starts at about five thirty and goes til seven. They have a nice hot food buffet, Friday is hot dogs with chili and baked potatoes. As well as salad, veggies and dip; chips and dips and pretzels. Oh and hot popcorn. They offer a soft drink fountain and adult drinks. At check in you receive a ticket for three drinks. They offer beer, wine, mixed drinks and umbrella drinks. Morning brings a hot breakfast. Batter made waffles, sausage, bacon, etc.

The rooms are clean, free Wi-Fi, refrigerator and microwave. Did I mention the rooms are clean! And the staff, omigosh, the best for sure. I could go on, you’ll just have to stay at one to appreciate my comments.

Tomorrow we head to Omaha! End day one.

July 31, Day 2: Headed out drove towards Omaha, destination was actually Council Bluffs, IA. When I turn off the highway towards our hotel a Bass Pro Shop is like right in front of the hotel:) Oh wait, there’s a casino too! The Horseshoe casino, and then I see the hotel sign, well heck, we are staying at the casino!!! Lee planned that perfectly, she has the casino, I have Bass Pro, can’t get any better than that. Beautiful hotel, Hilton Gardens, great room and a free breakfast. Lee got a weekend special, where a real sit down cooked to order breakfast was included. Uneventful night and no we didn’t win:( End day two.

Aug 1, Day 3: This morning we head towards Rapid City, SD, an eight hour drive. Not a bad drive, but boring as hell. One can only oouu and aah at corn fields for so long, then it becomes monotonous. One good thing, the speed limit in SD is 75mph. Let me tell you, Lee’s VW CC rocks. Comfortable, quiet, and 33 mpg, can’t complain. En route to our bed & breakfast we stopped at the infamous Wall Drugs in Wall, SD. I won’t bore you with the history of this drugstore, but I encourage you to Google and read about it.

Arrived Black Forest Hills B&B right at 6pm. Had a wonderful dinner, OMG, Lee got Freshwater King Shrimp, the plate came with three; they were the size of small lobsters and tasted just as good. I had the salmon, can you say yum-o! During dinner we had a visitor, the resident cat. Never saw a white cross-eyed blue eyed cat before!!! Max, was a very loving audible male, and I am sure he knew we were an easy target for scraps. Max stayed and shared dinner with us:) Cheesecake for dessert which we were told Max did not like. Hmmm, obviously they didn’t know our charm with cats as Max enjoyed dessert with us as well. I’m sure he knew we were missing our babies:)

After dinner, we planned to go to Mt Rushmore for the night lighting ceremony. I go up to the room to change, open the suitcase, and all these little white pellet things are everywhere. What the heck!!!! Seems Lee’s pillow burst, I’m sure we’ll find pellets for days.

Off to the ceremony, I won’t go into all the details, all I can say is awesome. At the end of the ceremony all veterans were invited down to the amphitheater stage to assist in the retiring of colors. I could not believe it. The entire place, thousands of people, stood and gave all of us a standing ovation as we made our way to stage. I’m guessing probably fifty veterans were on stage, and many more still in the upper seating area, Lee said she was surprised there were as few as there were. After the flag was lowered and folded, we were asked to pass by the individual holding the flag and lay a hand upon the flag, as so many before us had. You know I am not really into receiving praise for my service, but I can honestly say I was moved by the reaction of the people. Made our way back to the B&B and had a very restful night.

Tomorrow, breakfast at nine after which we’ll head back to Mt Rushmore for a day of reading about and touring the monument. Day three is behind us!

Aug 2, Day 4: Up early, breakfast served at 9a.m. Waffles, sausage, orange juice and coffee, all very well prepared. Off to the Crazy Horse Memorial. I can’t say enough about this monument, sadly we’ll not be around to see its completion. Google it if you’re interested in this kind of stuff.

Umm, short commercial break. The scene; over a thousand miles from home, driving through the mountains and my phone rings. I grapple for the phone and see that it’s my mom so I hand the phone to Lee. Mom says hello, and then says “you know I’m always thinking of you.” She then proceeds to explain to Lee that she was at the grocery store and while in the meat department she sees they have soup bones! You know a bone that has remnant meat and usually used to make a soup base. Mom continues to say that the bones were skinny and that she mentioned that to the butcher. He promised her that he would make some “healthy” soup bones for her. Now you must understand that my mom is Polish and cooks some terrific Polish meals. The soup bones are used to make a dish called “pierogi.” Pierogi is made from flattened dough filled with various food items. Cabbage, potato and cheese, fruits and meats. Kinda looks like a small turnover, however, not fired, rather boiled and served with drawn butter. So the soup bones are the mainstay for the meat variety. Mom assured Lee that she would get enough and freeze them for Lee!!!! Mothers, you just have to love them. I love you mom!

On with the trip. So we leave Crazy Horse’s Memorial and head to Custer State Park and the Wildlife Loop, some 68 miles of driving windy twisted roads through the Black Hills. You’ll understand when you see the pics. We saw buffalo, elk, deer, antelope and red ass donkey. Honest that’s a species of donkey. Mountains, mountains and more mountains. Traversed a stretch called Needles Highway and Pigtail Bridges. Again when you see the pics you’ll be awe struck.

Somewhere we made a wrong turn and ended up making the 68 mile route into like a hundred miles. We started this trek about 12:30 and didn’t get back to our B&B until five. Yep four and a half hours driving through South Dakota’s Black Hill’s. No complaints, it was a site to see. Got some super pics of Mt Rushmore as well. Our original plan was to re-visit Mt Rushmore, but after our wrong turn, we ran out of time.

It would not be fair of me to leave out the carrots and donkeys encounter. However, I don’t feel I’d do the story justice, so that is one you’ll have to ask Lee about.

After a phenomenal meal at the B&B and the return of Max, we retired to our room for a relaxing whirlpool bath and the “Final Rose.” If you don’t understand that, no problem.

End day four, heading to Billings, Montana in the morning.

Aug 3, Day 5: Left the Mt Rushmore area en route to Billings, Montana. For those of you that know Lee, you know how she loves casino video poker, so needless to say a quick stop in Deadwood, SD was a must. Went into the saloon that Wild Bill Hickok had been shot and killed on August 2, 1879. Looked like a nice place to drop a few nickels. About thirty minutes into our stop it began to rain. Then it began to hail and hail it did. OMG!!!! When you see the pictures you’ll understand. Within thirty minutes the hail had clogged all the drainage grates. Streets flooded, water poured into the saloon, the ceiling began to leak and the kitchen flooded. Hour and half later the streets were covered with hail, store owners out shoveling as if it had been a winter storm. We were told by the owner, in August in Deadwood you always park under cover. Luckily the town was filled with bikers which forced us to park in the deck. LOL, when we finally got to leave, we went to the garage to get our car. The elevator was filled with at least six inches of ice and doors tried to close, would hit the ice, ding and open. Something you’d see in a horror film. Made our way to the car and proceeded toward the exit. When we hit ground level water and ice was up to our door wells. What an experience!

On to Billings; the remainder of the trip was rather uneventful. Arrived at our little B&B got checked in and all was good. This little B&B reminded both Lee and I of our grandmother’s house, kinda had the same smell too!!!!!Do you remember what your grandmother’s house was like? The host directed us to a nice little restaurant within walking distance, The Montana Brewing Company, sorta like an Applebee’s. And yep, it also had a casino in it. After dinner Lee found a machine and sat down to play. The casino chairs in this place and in most of the Montana casinos were like office chairs. Plush and comfy, some even had massagers in them. I stayed at the bar. Met a couple of other guests from our B&B. A seventy-one year old dad, Norman, and his son Adrian. They were from England and were here for a three week bicycle adventure. I believe they told me they started in Oregon and the end point was Cheyenne, Wyoming to tour the site of the Battle at Wounded Knee. They stayed in Billings for a couple of days and were actually catching a Greyhound to Rapid City, SD at midnight August fourth. I think we stayed until a bit after eleven. We convinced Lee it was time to go, and we all walked back to the B&B together. End day five.

August 4, Day 6. Got up, had breakfast together and said our goodbyes.

Our plan was to backtrack about an hour and go the battleground of Little Big Horn. Lee talked herself out it being it was mostly a drive around tour. So we went to Bed, Bath and Beyond to replace Lee’s pillow. Then it was off to Cabela’s. Bought a few shirts and headed for lunch. Lee wanted Mexican, big mistake, within thirty minutes she was suffering from terrible reflux. Poor baby, four hours in a car en route to Great Falls, Montana.

We checked into a little place called the O’Haire Motor Inn, now if you haven’t Googled anything I’ve suggested to this point, this is one place you want to Google. Be sure to read about their lounge, the Sip ‘N Dip!! Behind the bar is a huge aquarium, they actually hired a guy and a gal that don mermaid/merman attire and they swim around entertaining the customers. They also have a piano bar where Pat, probably in her eighties, plays. She was a hoot. She has been playing at the place since they opened in the mid-sixties.

A fun part of this place is the rubber duck. In your room is a rubber duck which becomes yours. Then when you travel you take your duck and take pictures of where you are and send them back to them. They have huge wall where they post all the pics they receive. Really, you need to Google O’Haire Motor Inn!!

I think we stayed at the Sip 'N Dip for an hour or so, Lee gambled a bit, but still wasn’t feeling well, so we went to bed. End day six.

Aug 5, Day 7. Left Great Falls heading to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Long driving day, but we’ll be in Edmonton for two nights.

I took a few pictures in Montana, we’ve been driving through the state for two days. Although pretty country, one can only enjoy the plains for so long. We saw lots of cattle, some prong horn antelope, a few deer, lots of sheep, many bee hives and hay bales. Hay bales for as far as the eye could see. Saw round bales, bezillions of them; hay bales shaped liked water troughs, very oblong; square bales, I had never seen a square bale; and even got to see some of those now almost extinct rectangular bales, you know the ones we all saw growing up. Witnessed many electricity generating windmill fields. I mean more windmills then one could count.

Crossed into Canada without incident. Presented our papers, answered a few questions and we were on our way, ten minutes tops.

Stopped in Lethbridge for lunch at East Side Mario’s. Ate light, soup and salad, didn’t want to chance Lee’s tummy again. Lee napped until Calgary where we stopped to top off the tank and she took over the driving. A nice relief for me and gave me time to catch up on my blog.

Finally arrived our hotel in Edmonton. Checked in and ready to eat. Nice little restaurant next door so we opted to try it. I won’t go into all the details of dinner, but it was absolutely awesome. While at dinner I asked Lee if she ever called our credit card folks to let them know we were traveling, she said she forgot. So I told her we needed to call before we got embarrassed. Too late, our card was declined. No problem, I whip out my debit card and hand it to our waiter, he comes back and says I need to put my pin in. No problem, I enter my pin and all seems well, oops, nope my card is declined as well. Oh well, we pay with cash and will contact our card companies and get it straight.

Tomorrow we’ll sleep in and have a day of leisure at the big Edmonton Mall. So far all is well. And the VW performing great, yielding us 32+ mpg!!!! And we need it, gas in Canada is like $1.29 per liter, yep that equates to like $5.00 per gallon. Bed time. End day 7!

Aug 6, Day 8: Happy birthday to me!

Day spent at Edmonton Mall, 800 stores, plus numerous restaurants, a full size ice skating rink, an amusement park, a water park, a wild animal exhibit, a sea lion adventure pool, a gorgeous casino, where Lee actually won like $50, and so much more. I mean the place was like a city, oh yeah, and it had two hotels in it.

Driving through Edmonton was a bit confusing, but Ms Garmin (GPS) handled the task well.

The hotel we are staying at is the Matrix, very nice place. Complimentary breakfast and wine tasting in the evening, we got here too late last night to go, but tonight we’ll check it out.

Our room is very spacious with a very nice view. One cool thing about the hotel are the elevators, in order to push a floor you need to slide your room keycard into the slot. Once accepted you can push the desired floor. Really good for security.

Rested a bit before wine tasting and dinner.

So for today I’ll call it a night and end here.

On to Dawson Creek in the morning. End day eight.

Aug 7, Day 9: Ended last night with a wonderful dinner at the hotel restaurant. The Wildflower Grill, very much like Little Rock’s Brave New. Very nice menu with a very nice presentation and all was so yum-o.

On to Dawson Creek. Nice drive, lots of countryside, some wildlife, and Canadian speed limits. I’m still trying to figure out the mph vs kmph, and all the distances are in kilometers, ugh!

Arrived our B&B, the Northern Lights B&B. Nice little place with nice accommodations. Only problem here was the narrow staircase leading to the upstairs room. No banister and the wall is lined with pictures. I start up and immediately knock a picture off the wall. Okay, go slow. Whew finally to the top! Damn it, forgot I had my backpack on. Knock two more pictures off the wall at the top of the stairs. Can’t catch them, so they tumble down the stairs breaking glass while they tumbled. Okay I am totally embarrassed. Then I get upstairs set the suitcase down, stand up and smack my head against a low ceiling.

Time to go chill, so we go to the laundromat to do laundry. Four loonies (Canadian dollars are referred to as Loonies) to wash, four to dry, so eight bucks to do a small load of laundry.

After laundry we go to Mr. Mike’s to eat. Very nice steak house and good food. Then it’s back to the B&B. I am not allowed to carry anything upstairs. Very pleasant sleep. Got up showered and went down for breakfast. This had to be not only the best breakfast, but the prettiest as well. Homemade crepes, with ham and scrambled eggs, kinda like an enchilada, with a nice crème sauce with dill, fresh asparagus spears with the same sauce, and home fried potatoes. Of course coffee and juice. I was very careful bringing the suitcase down, nothing broken.

After breakfast, we said goodbye and headed north to the Northern Lights Lodge at Muncho Lake, BC. We stayed here two years ago when we drove with Lee’s brother. Nice place, huge log cabin lodge, owned and operated by it’s 1980’s founders. Wonderful restaurant and great atomosphere.

Rained along the way, yuck. Many kilometers of gravel road, poor Lee’s car! Saw our first moose, so the spell is broken. Ready for bed and a good nights sleep, provided the baby in the next room doesn’t cry all night.

In the morning we head to Whitehorse. End day nine!

Aug 9, Day 11: Got up about seven, showered etc and went down for breakfast. On the road by nine. Nice day, started out overcast with a little drizzle, but cleared up, sun came out and temps hit sixty-four degrees. Along the way we saw buffalo, lots of buffalo. These are not the cattle type buffalo, these are wild herds.

Lee’s driving so I tell her I’ll open my window, they were on both sides of the road, and take pictures. So I roll my window down, ready my camera, get ready to shoot and she drives by. So I say thanks, she says well tell me what to do. I said why would I tell you I’d open my window to take pictures!!!! Forget it just drive.

We hit construction and have to wait to cross the bridge. As we begin across, a bear saunters across the road on the other side of the bridge. I say see the bear? She says no. I tell her where it is, oops too late. She gets to see it’s butt as it crests the hill. We continue. More buffalo, again I roll down my window and she rolls past. I’m convinced she has no idea what the term Kodak Moment means.

On to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada. Check into the hotel, a new place called, The Skky Hotel. Very nice rooms and very very clean. Off to supper at the G&P Steakhouse and Pizza. We ate here two years when we made the trip with Lee’s brother. The food is great and they have everything, Italian, Steaks, Mediterranean, Chicken and BBQ!!!

Back to the hotel for a relaxing evening. Tomorrow we head to Tok, Alaska. End day eleven.

Aug 10, Day 12: Arrived Tok, Alaska. And one more hour added to our day. Gaining hours is cool, but they make me tired.

Pretty good drive, eight hours not counting stops for gas, restrooms and stretch breaks. The roads, ugh, frost heaves and lots and lots of gravel road. Had a few construction delays, but nothing major. While Lee drove I snapped pictures, while I drove Lee napped, go figure. But like I said, she isn’t into Kodak moments!!!!!

Wildlife today included a porcupine, deer, a wolf, and something unidentified that scurried across the road.

Hope for a restful night, children next door and they sound rowdy!!!!

Tomorrow on to Delta Junction. End day twelve.

Aug 11, Day 13.

Morning arrived in Tok. Had a good nights sleep except for the lack of warmth.

This has been the first room we had with a ceiling fan so we turned it on low. After all, at home we sleep with our ceiling fan on year round. When I awoke I mentioned to Lee how cold it got, she pointed to the window and said it was open. Guess the window is always left open. Brrrrrrr!

We went down for breakfast which was nice. I think all B&B’s operate with a like breakfast menu, well except for the one in Dawson Creek. The usual yogurt with granola, I’ve eaten more granola in this two week period than I probably have in all my life. We were served a very nice egg and cheese casserole with all the trimmings.

After breakfast we packed and hit the road for Delta Junction, Mile 1422, the official end of the Alaska Highway.

A short hour and a half drive and we arrived Delta Junction. After the tour of the visitors center, the usual “we made it” photos, we headed to Ft Greely, five miles down the road. In 1991 I was stationed with the Army at Ft Greely for two and half years. I was excited to give Lee a tour of where I had been. The Fort has changed, many new structures and a lot of construction. The Fort had been closed in 1997 as part of the big money saving efforts by the Department of Defense. However, in 2002 under the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, Fort Greely was reopened with a new mission. Quite exciting to see all the changes.

Then it was off for a reunion with old friends. We spent the day and night with Ben and Sharon, friends of mine from my days of being stationed here. Hadn’t seen each other for fifteen years, they haven’t changed. Well of course they changed, as did I, much older. We visited, talked about old times and new. Relived some of the good moments when I was stationed here. We laughed so hard. Needless to say we had a ball. End day thirteen.

Could not email for the past few days due to lousy wi-fi and no internet access. Ben and Sharon refuse to get technologically connected! They have no answering machine or cell phone!!! How do they survive!

Aug 12, Day 14. We had planned to get on the road by ten, but didn’t leave until noon.

We had planned to stop in North Pole, Alaska so Lee could see the big Santa Claus house, but she was happy seeing it from the road. Next stop, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, to tour their new museum. We planned on staying about an hour, ended up about two and a half. No problem, we were headed to McKinley Creekside Cabins near Denali National Park. A short two and a half hour drive and we arrived, checked in and had supper.

Our cabin was ample, not big at all, and it did have inside toilets!!!! Hey don’t laugh, that’s a plus! The creek ran about 20 feet from our cabin door, very nice. This was the only place where Lee had to rough it, no TV!!!! So early to sleep. End day fourteen.

Aug 13, Day 15! Today we arrive Anchorage, yippie.

Last night Lee told me we were going to sleep in, as we really didn’t have a lot planned and only had a three hour drive to Anchorage. LOL, she was up before seven!!!! Well, I guess that’s because we went to bed around nine, remember no TV!!!

So we got up and got ready to hit the day. Breakfast at the little restaurant and back track about twenty miles to get gas. My bad, I forgot to fill up in Fairbanks, so we basically were close to “E.” So back to the gas station to fill up. Ugh, $3.88 a gallon. We are ready to go.

Back about fourteen miles to the Denali Park Road. There are quite a few options for touring the park, several bus tours that last anywhere from six to twelve hours. I think the furthest one can go into the park by vehicle is like ninety-three miles. We opted to do our own drive in, the max a car can drive in is fifteen miles. Lots of beautiful scenery, saw a moose and a huge caribou. Caught a glimpse of Mt McKinley. They say that during the summer months two out of three days the mountain is covered by clouds. And yep, it was!

Again our plan was to be headed towards Anchorage by one, never left Denali until after three. About a hundred miles down the road in Willow we hit rain. This is the first real hard steady rain we’ve hit on the trip. So we had to slow down just a bit, mountain roads and rain does not make a good mix for safety. Other than the rain the drive wasn’t bad at all.

Around seven-thirty we pull into Lee’s brother’s driveway. Yippie, we made it. Late supper and to bed. End day fifteen.

We will be here for about twelve days before we head back. Tuesday we head to Seward to visit the Sea Life Center, we’ll spend one night and two days there. The only other activity we have planned is a day of salmon fishing. The rest of our time will be spent relaxing and just meandering around Anchorage visiting some of the native cultural centers etc.

I am going to attempt to get all my pics downloaded from the cameras and get them up on our album pages. Probably won't even begin that process until tomorrow.

This may be my last post for several days. Sure hope you have enjoyed the read, as much as we have enjoyed the adventure.

Aug 17 & 18, Days 19 & 20: We left Anchorage Tuesday morning en route to Seward, a little coastal city about a hundred-twenty or so miles south of Anchorage. The quest is to visit the Sea Life Center. This is a rescue/research facility funded mainly by Exxon after the Exxon-Valdez fiasco.

While there we toured the facility which is awesome, many live sea life exhibits as well as educational movies and talks about the center’s goals and accomplishments. Special tours are also offered. Lee and I opted to do the Puffin encounter, the behind the scenes tour, and the octopus encounter. Needless to say all were very interesting.

During the Puffin encounter we were shown the research facility, the feed prep rooms, and a few of the rooms where they keep and treat the birds. The highlight was being brought into the aviary and were allowed to feed the birds, awesome. The pictures will tell the story.

The behind the scenes tour was pretty neat, basically this was an educational tour about the center. Pretty amazing how they pull in salt water from Resurrection Bay filter it and use it to fill all the tanks in the center. More amazing is the process they do to filter and treat the water for bacteria and contamination before returning it to the bay.

The octopus tour was probably our favorite. The highlight here was to watch an octopus being fed and being able to interact with it. Here again the photos and videos will tell the story much better than I can.

During our drive to and from, we saw some mountain goats, salmon going to spawn, and a few eagles. The sun came out today and it actually hit 67 degrees. Not missing August in Arkansas at all. We do miss all of our friends, our babies and our boat.
Not much planned the next few days. Salmon fishing on Saturday!!!! So day twenty is now history!

Aug 20, Day 22: Today we kind of chilled. Went to the Alaskan Heritage Center, an okay place. This is a native center where basically the story and history of all the Alaskan tribes is told. Not a place where you can spend hour upon hour; a couple of hours does it. There were supposed to be a few demonstrations on totem pole carving and prepping food (wild game) for winter storage, for some reason they never happened. So we looked at the exhibits and all the hand made jewelry and crafts. Nice stuff, but nothing we couldn’t live without. For me, on a scale of one to ten, this was like a four. Not something I would do again.

We did have lunch at the Wishbone Café, a little fried chicken place that has been serving pan fried chicken since 1955. All I can say is I left only the bone!!!!
We stopped at a few other local stores before heading for the house. Once home I called our fishing guide to confirm tomorrows outing. Oops, they dropped the ball on this one. For some reason they were never notified of our reservation and therefore did not have us scheduled. So no fishing tomorrow. That could be a good thing as my sister in law has no room in the freezer.

Tomorrow we will drop back to the forty and punt!!!! We’ll go to Saturday Market, kind of a big flea market kinda thing. Local artists, musicians, food vendors and vendors of all sorts convert the city parking lot into a big fair like midway. Neat to go and just people watch. After that we may made our way to the local Army/Navy store; this place has become tradition with us.

Tomorrow eve we will do steaks on the bar-b and have a relaxing night at home.

In a week, next Thursday, we get on the road and head for home!!!!

Enough for now, end day twenty-two.

Aug 24, Day 26: Haven’t done much the past few days. Sunday we ventured out to the Greek Food Festival. Very similar to the one in Little Rock with a few exceptions. First, they had a bar, yep, a fully stocked bar; second, they were raffling off a 2010 Mercedes SUV; tickets were $100 each, and believe it or not they had lines of people waiting to buy a ticket(s); and third, they had an ATM on site. The ATM was the giveaway that this was a very serious festival. Food galore. Omigosh, they had desserts, full dinners, Gyros, Greek doughnuts and so much more.

The day threatened rain, but it turned out nice, which was good for the festival. The festival ran from Friday to Sunday and if the amount of people that were there Sunday was an indication of Friday and Saturday, they had a very successful event.

Saturday evening Pat grilled steaks that were absolutely fantastic. He used a seasoning, but all he would tell me was he bought it at a little place downtown, so I'm thinking I'm not gonna find out what it was. He served up baked potatoes and corn on the cob. Yum-O.

Sunday I cooked chicken wings. In the morning I showed Pat how I season the wings using Rendezvous Rub and Tony’s Creole Seasoning. Popped them in a baggy and put them in the fridge. Put them on the grill about 5:45 and by 7:00 we were eating. Lee did her beans and slaw to go with the wings. Not sure how many wings I grilled, but when the eating frenzy stopped only one wing remained!!!!! I’m thinking the wings were a hit.

Monday was a laid back day, kinda depressed because we leave in a few days. We met Suzanne for lunch and a tour of the Governor’s office. Lee and I came back to the house and chilled.

Then Lee got this bright idea to mow the grass. Though the yard isn’t big, using a push mower sure made it seem like a golf course. Lee and I took turns and maybe an hour and a half later the yard was complete. Silly girl, bet she never dreams up that idea again.

Today, Tuesday, we all met for lunch. Pat went back to work and Suzanne had errands to run. Being election day, she took the day off, nothing going on in the Gov’s office today. Lee and Suzanne are on a street corner somewhere waving signs saying "Vote for Parnell." Tonight we will head to dinner and then stop by the campaign headquarters for what we hope is a victory celebration.

Tomorrow, we pack; yuck! But we can’t stay here forever. Thursday will find us awakening early, saying our good-byes, finish putting stuff in the car, and heading south en route to home. Enough rambling for today. End day twenty-six.

Aug 25, Day 27: Wednesday morning came early after a late night watching election results. Not sure I mentioned that Suzanne is the speech writer for the Governor of Alaska, thus the interest in the election, and the fact that his being elected will ensure a position for Suzanne for another four years!!!!

After dinner we headed to the results party, hung out there til about 10:30 and then headed for home. Watched the tube until the incumbent Sean Parnell was declared the winner. Everyone seems pretty confident that Governor Parnell will win the election in November.

Today is our last day in Anchorage, tomorrow we head for home, our real home in Arkansas. So we will spend the day packing our bags, loading up the car, topping off the tank in preparation to begin the four thousand- five hundred mile trek to Arkansas. Our journey home will take about two weeks, stopping in Hamilton, Montana to visit one of Lee’s cousins, and St Louis, Missouri to take in a Cardinals game. The Cardinals game will be the culmination of our Alaskan Adventure. From St Louis, next stop will be home.

Over the next week cell and internet service will be sketchy so don’t panic if you try to call or email. As soon as we can we will reply.

Although we have the day ahead of us, I don’t foresee anything earth shattering happening today.

Short funny quip. Today, still Wednesday, we go to this little home cooking restaurant, Granny B's, for lunch. Lee asks what the soup of the day is. The waitress looks at her and she says, "No soup today, it's too hot. When it's hot outside we don't have soup."

Lee and I look at each other and laugh, it's only like 58 degrees outside. But the sun was shining so maybe they consider that a heatwave!!!!! Too funny.

Supper tonight was delicious, turned out that I was the cook. We did fresh salmon, snow crab legs, oven roasted veggies and a nice salad. The crab was served with drawn butter. The salad dressing was a french walnut EVOO and 18 year old balsamic vinegar that we bought during our stop in Branson, Mo. No one complained so I think it all turned out well.

Settling back and enjoying our last night with Lee's brother and his wife. It's been a great visit and we had a wonderful time. We're packed and have everything ready for the car. We'll get up with Pat and Suzanne, bid them farewell as they scurry off to work and then we'll get ourselves ready and hit the road. First stop is Tok, about a five hour drive. We'll get to bed early as Friday begins our long days of driving. Looking forward to home and our own bed! End day twenty-seven.

Aug 27, Day 29: On the road heading for home. So far two stops down, many yet ahead. Nothing earth shattering to report, however, we have noticed that the mountains that didn’t have snow on them on the way up, now have snow!!!

This morning was probably our chilliest morning, a blistering 44 degrees.

A few construction delays, but nothing serious.

Saw another wolf, such an awesome animal.

Long day ahead tomorrow and no wi-fi or phone, I just don’t know how two people that are so connected to email are doing this, but we are!!!! Guess that’s a good thing.
End day twenty-nine!!!

Aug 28, Day 30: Left Whitehorse around nine a.m. Not a bad day, about eight hours to our next scheduled stop which is Liard Hot Springs Lodge in British Columbia. The drive wasn’t too bad, a bit of construction, but being Saturday no long hold ups or following Pilot vehicles. Quite a few RV’s on the road to home, well, south anyway.

Not much wildlife at all, more buffalo, but not much else.

About four-thirty we pull into our stop for the night, Liard Hot Springs Lodge. We are ready to have a nice dinner and kick back for a restful night. We check in, get our stuff from the car and proceed to our room. OMG!!!!! This is the worst place we’ve stopped. Kinda like something out of a Hitchcock or Stephen King movie. We have to rethink this, quick. So we get the phone number for the Northern Rockies Lodge, we’ve stayed here before, and call. Yes they have a room!!!! So we proceed to retrieve our stuff and put it back in the car.

Lee goes in and tells the folks we can’t stay here tonight. They ask why, and Lee tells them the room is nothing like the picture they have posted on the web site.

Back in the car en route to the Northern Rockies Lodge.

About an hour later we get checked in, same room we had on the way up, drop our stuff into the room and head for dinner. Just can’t beat this place.

Settled in, will have breakfast here in the morning, then head out to Dawson Creek. End day thirty.

Aug 29, Day 31: Got up, had breakfast and got the road around nine.

Arrived Dawson Creek around five this evening. That brought us back to Mile 0 which completes our drive of the Alaska Highway in both direction. Yee-haa, about 2,844 miles, a milestone many folks never get to experience.

Saw some awesome wildlife today. About fifteen minutes on the road and we came up on a small herd of young caribou in the middle of the road and they weren’t moving. So we just sat and waited. Finally they let us go. Another thirty or so minutes and another small herd. The coolest was the lone young caribou that was walking in the middle of the road right in front of us. Finally it moved off the road and let us go, as soon as we passed it came back onto the road. Lee took some pics and video, I’ll get those posted as soon as I can.

The drive was pretty non-eventful, a couple of construction delays, but nothing significant.

When we arrived Dawson Creek we checked in, dropped our stuff and walked to the casino. Yeppers, there is a Chances casino. No we didn’t win. Then we walked through the Walmart, right across from the hotel, now isn’t that a winning combo. A casino and a Walmart within walking distance.

And then we hit our first dilemma on the trip, what to do for dinner. We split a burger and onion rings about two hours up the road so neither of us our really hungry. So we decided to go back to the car and pull something out of our “on the road” food bag. So dinner, and I use the term loosely, consisted of peanut butter crackers, chips, and crunchy cheetos. At midnight we’ll be sorry we didn’t do dinner. For dessert we have Jelly Belly jelly beans!!!! Who says we’re not prepared!!!

Tomorrow we head to Calgary, our longest day on the road, nine hour drive time, add an hour for lunch and then we lose an hour due to the time zone. So we probably won't get to Calgary until like eight p.m.

Note of interest, checked some vehicle stats today. We have average about 57.4 mph, fastest speed was 92.3, must have been passing someone. So far we have averaged about 31.2 mpg!!! This VW CC rocks. I'll post actual figures once we get home and I can do all the calculations. End day thirty-one.

Sept 1, Day 34: Crossed border into the USA. Weird, must have been a new officer who was going through training.

We handed our passports, asked the usual questions of, any alcohol, tobacco, plants, food, citrus, more than $6000 cash, etc. She then asked for me to roll down my back window. More questions, where were we coming from, how long did we stay, what was the purpose of visit, etc. All the while she was looking for approval from her training officer. Asked to turn off engine and pop trunk. More questions, what was the tag number and state of registration. Our reply was the two digits and two letters and Arkansas. She was puzzled, she looked to her training officer, “only" four characters? I then say it is a state issued specialty plate. Understand that they have a camera pointed at your plate which she can see. She asks, “what is to the right of the last digit?” We reply, a black bear, again, one of Arkansas specialty plates. At this time the training officer looks at us and says, “Razorbacks.” We nod and smile. More questions, what are your occupations, you visited your brother, and how long were you in Canada? Ya know you have to be patient and smile and answer and, well you get the picture.

She then informs us that we have been selected to take an agriculture survey, so please pull into the parking area and enter through the front doors.

By this time Lee is going bonkers; we’ve got two bottles of wine, you have a bottle of Crown; and we have a bag of food; and so on and so on. Ugh!!!

Into the customs office, lots of people waiting for one reason or another, so we figure we just wait. We look around and there is the training officer leaning on the desk, he beckons us, so we go to the counter. He has our passports and a sheet of paper, some kind of a form. He begins asking questions; where are you from? Little Rock. Do you have any food? No. Well we have chips and snack foods. So no food he says! And he scratches through that section of the form.

He continues; my daughter is a baby nurse in Anchorage. She tried to talk my wife and I into moving to Alaska. But we’re not sure we could handle all the darkness in the winter. Lee says she is a pediatric orthopaedic nurse. They talk about this.

More small talk of our drive up and our drive back. Our passports are handed back to us. More small talk. Probably spent ten to fifteen minutes chatting. Finally we say our goodbyes.

Very nice guy, Lee and I conclude he wanted a break and being Lee and his daughter were nurses, he figured us nice folks to visit with.

Done with customs, we head to Hamilton, MT. Not a bad drive, we arrive at seven.

This is the first time we have been to visit Lee’s cousin at their Montana cabin!!!!! I am not going to go into describing this place, I will dedicate an online album titled “The Mountain Cabin.”

This morning we sleep in as our plan is to spend the day and hit the road tomorrow, Thursday, to continue our journey home. Plans change!!!!

I think most of you know that Lee and I really love wildlife. Well here at the “cabin” there are deer, turkey, grouse, quail, elk, a pond with trout and more. So I suggest we delay our departure in the morning and spend one more day here. After checking, we are given the green light to stay.

I start looking at maps and distances we will have to make up. Remember we have to be in St Louis no later than noon on Sunday for the Cardinals game.

So when we leave here Friday we have seventeen hundred miles to travel in two days. We decide we can do it, so we cancel the next two days hotel reservations. So when we pull out Friday we will drive until we get tired, hopefully we will be close to Sioux Falls, SD.

At some point this morning Buford asks if I want to go with him to get a tractor tire rim. Sure. So we head down the road to a neighbor, Ray. He and his wife have lived here for about forty - five years. Buford introduces me, I respond with "a pleasure to meet you." Ray shakes my hand and says, "you don't know that yet!!!" I laugh. What a character, neat guy, like seventy-eight or so. Introduces to me to his dog Montana, no breed, a true Heinz 57, but so friendly! Then Ray looks about and says we got two cats, Fuzzy and Nuts, but neither of them have nuts!!! They're usually around, but I guess they've been out whoring all night. Doesn't do them any good, they ain't got nuts!!! In all this he is using expletives to describe everything. I am nearly in tears from laughter. And yes, I know, it was, a pleasure to meet him!

Back to the cabin, we unload the tractor rim, we roll it down the embankment to an area that has a circle staked out. Buford plops the rim down and says, "she's got her fire pit." Too funny.

So this afternoon, Bunny and Buford ask if we want to help feed the deer. Well, duh, yes!!! So we get ready, Buford gathers the buckets of food. He and I get in a “Mule,” kinda like a John Deere utility vehicle. Buford tells me to drive!!! I’ve never driven one of these, but what the heck it’s an adventure. Lee proceeds to go with Bunny on a four-wheeler! Yes you read that right, Lee actually climbed aboard a four-wheeler.

Buford directs me and we head out. OMG, not fifty feet from our start point is a young buck standing there as if he knew food was on the way. Where the hell is my camera!!!!!

We proceed with our feed mission. At the edge of the cleared property we stop and walk a bit. Then we drive to the pond, walk a bit, chat etc. Then we head back to the house.

As I proceed up the hill a doe jumps from the brush right in front of me!!! Looking to my left and right a few more deer just stand and watch. Buford says don’t go too slow, they’ll get nervous.

What a fun time. We go to a local steakhouse for dinner and on the way back we pass so many deer we couldn’t count them. Passed about thirteen elk grazing in a field. Almost ran over a rafter of turkey. And just down from the driveway was a covey of quail. We are like in total awe. And we have another full day ahead of this wonderful Montana outdoors.

Needless to say, we are so enjoying this trip. End day thirty-four.

Sept 2, Day 35: Well today we received a sign that says we have to move to Montana. A three-legged deer showed up on the property!!!!! Really, I'll take pictures when we go to put feed out.

Spent a restful, yet exciting day here. Watched deer pretty much all day. Took some pics and hope at least a few are album worthy. Lee did laundry and we all played a game of dominoes. Then it was time to put out feed!

Went to a local burger joint for dinner, we are full. Came back from dinner, packed suitcases and packed the car. Planning on leaving not later than eight in the morning, we have a full day of driving to catch up with. By staying an extra day, we are basically five hundred miles behind schedule.

Gonna be an early night to bed, so I'll just call day thirty-five done!

Sept 3 & 4: Departed Hamilton en route to St Louis.

Not much exciting, just putting a lot of asphalt and concrete under our tires. Made Wall, SD around ten, slept like five hours and then we were up and on the road. Both of these days comprised of about fourteen hours of driving.

Finally around ten p.m. we arrived St Louis. Checked in and headed to our room. No driving until Monday. Tomorrow a brand new day!!! Both the third and fourth of September are history.

Sept 5, Day 38: A sleep in day, yippie. Got up and made our way down for breakfast. After breakfast we went back to the room for a bit before heading to Busch Stadium. The St Louis Cardinals play the Cincinatti Reds. Listening to fans, it sure didn't sound like the Cards were having a great season, but today they were winners with a 4-2 win. And we witnessed a three run homer hit by #7 Matt Holiday.

Lee did great on the tickets. We got seats in the Bank of America club, section 278, west side of the stadium, so basically we sat in the shade for most of the game. Not sure how Lee managed the deal, our tickets were all inclusive. A buffet that was served for two and a half hours beginning one hour before game time. Drinks, beer, wine, and soft drinks were served up to the middle of the eigth inning. We had reserved outside seats with open seating in the air conditioned club house and it had it's own restrooms. Yeppers Lee did great.

After the game we headed back to the hotel. We were going to go down to the "kick-back" (Drury Inn), but the place was packed. So we handed off our drink tickets to the folks in line in front of us and headed to the casino.

Spent about three hours there, I lost, but Lee did okay. So back to the hotel and dinner. Caleco's a little Italian place that stayed open until three in the morning. Lee had ribs and I had shrimp, and it was oh so good. Then we headed back to the hotel and up to the room. I think it was like midnight when we realized how late it was, so we headed to bed. No big deal as tomorrow the drive is easy and destination home! So far the trip has been awesome. End day thirty-eight.

Sept 6, day 39, final day of this adventure: Slept in again. We passed on breakfast, showered, packed and checked out. Hit the road around ten-thirty. Took our time coming home, no need to rush after traveling some 9,000+ miles, and it's Labor Day!!! By the time we got home, got things out of the car, greeted and were greeted by the pets it was probably nine.

I think we were in bed by eleven, ahhhh, the comfort of ones own bed!!!!! Sweet dreams world this adventure has come to an end.

Before I end this entry, I need to give special recognition to a very special person, my wife Lee. She spent numerous hours Googling, reading reviews, checking dates, making reservations and the plans that made this trip so wonderful. Only one place she decided to stay at was a bust, not her fault, the website was very misleading. She declined to stay there, the place was just not fit for the living. Some how, in the middle of no where, no cell service, she located a credit card pay phone, made a call and got us a place an hour down the road. Obviously all went well as neither of us flew home;) And you wonder why I like her so much!!!!! 'nuff said.

Over the next or day so, I will do some editing and titling of photos and will repost the link to the online albums. I am also going to do a review of the places we stayed i.e. B&B's, hotels etc. and weather. I also plan to include a fuel cost and an average miles per gallon. So check back next week for the final entry.

Places We Stayed
Alaska Road Trip 2010

During the thirty-eight day trip we slept in like twenty-three different beds. We carried our own pillows from home, so our heads found total comfort every night!!!

Drury Inn, Springfield Mo.

As with all Drury Inn’s one cannot be disappointed. The staff is probably the best we’ve ever encountered, very professional, personable and courteous.

The rooms are great, clean and appealing. The Drury chain offers breakfast, and what they refer to as “kick-back” both of which are free. The “kick-back” runs from 5:30p.m. to 7:00p.m. each evening. They offer a small buffet with a featured item each day. The buffet may include hot dogs, with chili and all the fixings; nachos; chicken wings; meatballs; egg rolls; baked potato, and salad, along with chips and soft drinks. Each guest is given a coupon good for three alcoholic drinks per evening. Served is beer, wine and mixed cocktails. The soft drink fountain is open until 10p.m. and fresh hot popcorn is offered until 10p.m. as well.

Needless to say the Drury Inn’s have become our hotel of choice.

Hilton Garden Inn, Council Bluffs, IA.

Short to the point here, the hotel is part of the Horseshoe Casino. Included in our stay was a complimentary breakfast which was pretty darn good. The room was great and of course convenient to the casino. Only real disappointment was the Jack Binion’s Steakhouse located in the casino. Service was lousy, waiter most impersonal and the food for what we paid was not good. We both had steaks and to be truthful the presentation, preparation, and flavor is much better at a Lone Star Steakhouse.

A plus for the guys is the Bass Pro Shop within walking distance!

Black Forest Inn, Rapid City, SD.

This was a cozy little B&B tucked away in the Black Hills. We spent two nights here. Our room was titled the Tuscan Room, I think for a few reasons. The room had a whirlpool bath and the window above the bath looked across the front lawn of the Inn. Very clean and very quaint.

They had their own restaurant, Bistro on the Terrace. The food was absolutely fantastic. The King Freshwater Shrimp were so good. They were the size of small lobsters and tasted as good.

Breakfast is included in your stay and consisted of fruit cups, Belgian waffles and sausage, and was so yummy!

This is a place we will return to in the future.

The Josephine B&B, Billings, MT.

A very nice, clean place. I addressed this in our blog. Located in downtown Billings it was within walking distance to several restaurants.

Breakfast was delightful and filling.

O’Haire Motor Inn, Great Falls, MT.

Here again I addressed this place in our blog so I won’t dwell. The restaurant attached to the motel is Clark and Lewies and serves a great dinner and an equally good breakfast. At $70 a night it can’t be beat. Have duck will travel!!!!

Matrix Hotel, Edmonton, AB, CA.

Located in downtown Edmonton, this was a neat place. Very clean, very art deco and very spacious rooms. We spent two nights here as we wanted to be fairly close to the Edmonton Mall. Each evening there is a complimentary wine tasting for an hour or so. Breakfast is also complimentary. The attached restaurant, The Wildflower Grill, was very nice and offered a nice menu. The food was very good, but pricey. The latter is true throughout Canada, lunch on an average probably ranged in the $30 - $50 area and dinner, a hundred bucks easy. And we never ordered anything extravagant, pretty much basic meals.

Northern Lights B&B, Dawson Creek, BC, CA.

A very nice place with a nicely decorated room. We had the upstairs room which caused a bit of embarrassment for me. The staircase leading to the upstairs was very narrow and had no handrail on the open side. If one slipped they would fall directly into the kitchen. Trying to be cautious as I navigated the stairs, I immediately knocked a picture of the wall. Glad that it did not have glass, I proceeded with apologies. When I got to the top landing I had to negotiate a ninety degree turn to the right to proceed up the final two steps. I forgot I had my backpack on and promptly knocked two framed pictures off the wall. They tumbled and shattered, ugh! Needless to say I was beside myself. The hostess was very forgiving and wouldn’t even accept my offer to pay for the frames.

I suggested she post a sign “no backpacks allowed” at the foot of the stairs.

In the morning we were served our best breakfast of the entire trip. Ham and egg crepes with a dill sauce; roasted potatoes and grilled asparagus with the same dill sauce; yep I know you’re saying asparagus for breakfast? It was awesome. As an appetizer before breakfast a banana, granola with vanilla yogurt cup was served.

Northern Rockies Lodge, Muncho Lake, BC, CA.

I think I could talk about this place for days. We stayed here in 2008 when we accompanied Lee’s brother during his relocation from Florida to Anchorage.

We had only planned to stay here on the way up to Anchorage, however, we ended up staying here on the return drive as well.

The entire place is great. The rooms are clean and cozy and the food is terrific. Has a nice little history to it.

SKKY Hotel, Whitehorse, YT, CA.

We stayed here both going and coming back. Very nice place, clean and roomy. Fairly new, I think it opened like February of 2009. Very nice staff and with a full service restaurant. We ate dinner and breakfast here and both meals were great. I just don’t think they really understood what “no berries” means. Lee ordered the breakfast fruit cup with granola and yogurt twice, both times told the waitress, please, no berries. The waitress even asked back if melon was okay. Both times the fruit cups came with berries!!! Nothing so dramatic that we wouldn’t stay here again.

A Mooseberry Inn B&B, Tok, AK.

Another place we spent the night going and coming. A very remote little B&B with very comfortable rooms. On the way up we stayed in the Iceberry room, which was comfortable, but quite small, no complaints. On the way back we stayed in the Moonberry room, very plush with a large bathroom and large balcony. Not that we could use the balcony as the mosquitoes were so bad!!

Coffee on at 7:00 a.m. breakfast at 8 a.m. In the kitchen breakfast service was listed as: Hot - 8a.m.; Warm – 8:15a.m.; Cold 8:30a.m.

Breakfast included the now usual yogurt/granola cup; a breakfast casserole, and home baked bisquits. We had a great breakfast just about everyday.

McKinley Creekside Cabins, Denali National Park, AK.

Very nice place to stay. Lee had to really rough it here as there were no TV’s in the cabins! Nothing fancy, very friendly staff, quaint restaurant, just a nice warm and inviting atmosphere. When we got to the cabin, Lee found a nice little note and two homemade cookies. A very nice touch. The creek ran right in front of our cabin and you could hear the creek as it rolled over and off of the rocks.

Lee accidently left her pajamas when we left. A call to the office and they put them in the mail, they were waiting for Lee when we got home.

Hotel Seward, Seward, AK.

A very unique little place. I guess during the gold rush this place was a brothel!! Very quaint, not the most comfortable bed, but comfy nonetheless.

Seward itself is nice little town that has a year round population of I think 3,000. Being this is the home of the Seward Sea Life Center, quite a few folks work there. The rest of the folks, not sure, your guess is as good as mine. In speaking with one of the waitresses in a local eatery, she said once the last ship leaves on September 15th, the town basically shuts down.

Liard Hotsprings Lodge, Liard River, BC, CA.

We checked in and within fifteen minutes checked out and got a refund. Dirty carpets, smelly hallway and the room was terrible. The bedspread and linens appeared old and over used. Lee didn’t want to take the chance of pulling back the bed covers. The kicker is the room rate was $140 per night.

Not for us, Lee called the Northern Rockies Lodge, about an hour down the road, we lucked out, they had a room. Got there, checked in and found we got the same room we had on the trip up.

Liard Hotsprings Lodge surely did not represent what their website described.

Days Inn, Dawson Creek, BC, CA.

Another place we stayed at in 2008 with Lee’s brother. Very clean, with nice sized rooms and breakfast in the morning. Located within walking distance to Walmart, right across the street, and about a block away from the casino.

Travelodge Calgary University, Calgary, AB, CA.

Another downtown hotel. For those that know me, you know how cautious I am about my surroundings. Getting to this place was like getting to the Josephine B&B. Just seemed to be in a not so great part of the city. However, as it ended up, it wasn’t that bad of a place. Probably the oldest hotel we stayed in, and it showed its wear. But it was clean and very convenient to restaurants. We ate at Red Lobster and for the first time while in Canada our dinner bill wasn’t a hundred dollars.

They served a very nice continental breakfast in the morning. All in all it turned out to be an okay place to stay.

Days Inn, Wall, SD.

This place was okay, we actually napped here. I think we arrived about 10:30p.m. and were gone before 6a.m.

This was our first drive into the night. Because we opted to stay in Hamilton, MT an extra day, we had two fifteen hour driving days ahead.

The room was clean and the staff very personabale, for what we saw of them. I am sure the cleaning staff were puzzled when they got to the room. We didn’t even shower. We got up and hit the road, well we washed our faces and brushed our teeth, combed hair and left. Had to make St Louis.

Drury Inn, St Louis, MO.

We arrived around 10 p.m. Staying two nights here and this will be our last nights in a bed other than our own.

I am not going to dwell on this hotel as I covered it pretty much above. I will say we had a very spectacular view, about a block from our window stood the St Louis arch.

Sunday we took in a Cardinal’s and headed for home sweet home on Monday!!!

Again kudos to Lee, she did an outstanding job in planning the trip and choosing all the places we stayed.

Home safe and sound and happy to be surrounded by all our three and four-legged babies.

Total round trip mileage of the trip was 9,733.5 miles. Fuel expenses came to $1,173.10, purchasing 294.75 gallons of gas and averaged 33.02 miles per gallon. I had to refigure this several times as it just didn’t seem possible. The majority of our driving was highway with speed limits from 65 to 75 mph.

Lee’s car, as with most VW Passat’s, requires mid grade fuel 89 octane or better. In Canada most stations offered a regular unleaded, a mid grade at 88 octane and a premium of 90 octane. So we opted for the 90 octane.

At 72 mph and burning premium (90 octane ) fuel, the car was averaging 35.4 – 35.7 miles per gallon. Seems that was the winning combination to achieve the best fuel economy.

So there ya have it, our story and our adventure. Still have some pictures to post, title and edit, other than that, I think we can say the blog is complete. Hope you enjoyed reading it and stop back in a about a week, hopefully I’ll have the other pictures posted.

Thanks for reading.

Links to photos: Click and Use Links On Sidebar to View All Albums and Videos

Click for a Quick Look Overview Version

The Mountain Cabin

Spring in Arkansas

2010-05-13T19:34:00.002-05:00

I know, it's been awhile since my last post. Life has it's priorities and blogging just happens to be a hobby.

Yep Spring has arrived in this wonderful State, and with it, the bicyclist's have immerged from their winter cocoons! I am not a big of those scantly dressed, spandex wearing, helmeted folks that feel they own the road.

Most State laws read about the same; bicylists must obey the rules of the road. And to that do, I applaude you. However, most are the most inconsiderate group of people I've ever encountered. I'm just not sure why they believe they have the right of way. I'm thinking they think they are pedestrians. Wrong!!!!

They are out there on wheels; just like a scooter, motorcycle or automobile. Sorry folks, but you do not have the right of way. For some reason their brain is filled with misconceptions of invulnerability. Lets see, they are out there in cute little shorts, bike shoes basically made of fabric, shirts that fit way too tight for most of them, and then of course the all protecting piece of crap of a helmet.

My wish is that local law enforcement enforce the law and ticket the jerks on bikes that violate the rules. I know that if I rolled through a stop sign, ran a red light, or pulled out in front of an oncoming right of way vehicle, I'd be ticketed. So lets get on the band wagon and be fair about this. Oh yeah, and don't go condeming the vehicle/driver that ran over your butt because you suddenly pulled out in front of them.

Mind the rules, ride your bike within them, and all of us will be happy.

Our Azamara Journey Cruise

2010-03-09T11:16:00.003-06:00

Our trip began on Tuesday February 23rd. Arrived at the airport a bit after 10 for a 12:05 flight. We went up to the Continental counter and presented our documents. The gentleman, Major Washington, took care of us. As he printed our luggage tags he asked if we had paid, we said yes. He told us next time do not as Continental does not charge military for their bags. He then proceeded to get his supervisor and proceeded to affect a refund for our bags!!!!
Arrived at the gate in plenty of time. Still reveling in the baggage refund, the flight counter personnel began to announce the boarding call. They announced pre-boarding for their Elite members; and then to my surprise they announced, “military personnel may board at this time.” Wow a super gesture by the airline.
Once aboard our little puddle jumper, our flight attendant, Fernando, proceeded to make the standard announcements. He was great. Very entertaining and very efficient. He made the flight!
Our flight was uneventful. Arrived Miami 15 minutes ahead of schedule, way to go Continental. Taxi from the airport to our hotel, the Holiday Inn at the Port of Miami, cost us $23. A quick 20 minute drive at rush hour.
Check in at the hotel was a breeze. The room, not the Hilton, but very nice. Free Wi-Fi!!!! The room was clean, and had some very nice amenities; soaps, lotions and shampoos; iron and ironing board and a safe.
Right across the street, Biscayne St, was the Bayside Mall. Very nice. Several restaurants, tons of shops right on the bay. We chose to eat at Lombardi’s Ristorante. Very good meal and generous portions. A caution here, check your tab, they apply a 18% gratuity. I didn’t check and gave an additional 15%, I am sure Orlando the waiter was very happy!!!!
Morning found us with a very leisurely wake up. Check out was 11am. We checked out on time. A cab was parked across the street just waiting for us!!!!! Took about 5 minutes to the port and gave the cabby $8.
Up to this point out trip was basically flawless with surprises.
At the terminal, baggage porters greeted the cab with luggage tags. After handing off luggage we proceeded to the terminal. All personnel were very cheerful and accommodating. Went through the security stuff, filled out our H1N1 questionnaire and then to the check in desk. Okay, we have cruised many times and are very experienced at this. All our documents in hand and ready. Oops I forgot to sign two documents, darn it. Oops again, the credit card I originally listed had been deactivated by the credit card company in January with a new card issued. I failed to make the change on our online documents. Again my screw up.
We spent a total of 5 minutes checking in. We were then directed to a seating area. We sat maybe 10 minutes when they announced we could board. We were aboard by 11:30. An area was set up to check hand carried luggage/items which were immediately delivered to your cabin. Lunch service began at noon. We proceeded to the Windows buffet. Sushi to die for, yum. After lunch we walked around the ship. The ship is small, can get to any where aboard in 5 minutes or less. So our tour of the ship lasted ummm, 5 minutes!!!!!
Announcement that cabins were ready came about 1:30 so up to our cabin we went. Very very nice cabin. Roomy and nicely laid out, we were impressed. I’m guessing that around 1:45 our cabin phone rang, it was one of the gals my wife met on the Cruise Critic forum. She asked if we would like to meet them in Windows for lunch. Although we already ate, we obliged.
Probably sat and visited an hour. The girls then went off to library, The guys went to the cabins. When I got to our cabin one suitcase was at the door. I proceeded to unpack. About the time I was done with suitcase 1, suitcase 2 showed up. By the time Lee got to the room everything was unpacked and suitcases stowed under the bed.
Mandatory lifeboat drill and sail away. So far great!!!! No rowdy kids, well no kids at all! No college “drink til we puke” kids either! I’m thinking I’m really gonna like this cruise.
We had dinner with our new friends in Windows. Very nice menu, lots of great Sushi, yum-o.
After dinner we headed to the casino. Very small and very empty. So we made our donation and headed to bed.
Thursday, a laid back get acquainted sea day. Had an impromptu get together with folks we met on the Cruise Critic forum. Did Broadway trivia and won a book mark for knowing the most popular YouTube download. In case you don’t know, I Dreamed A Dream, by Susan Boyles!
We then attended the Cruise Critic party sponsored by Azamara. I’m guessing 30+ folks showed up. The Captain was there as well as several other ship staff. They served wine and more wine and you could order what you preferred. The party was wonderful, delicious snacks and no hurry to rush us out. Lee recognized the Captain from our first Celebrity Galaxy cruise. We had the distinct pleasure of being invited to his table on that cruise. We introduced ourselves and lo and behold that evening when we got back to our cabin we had an invitation to dine with the Captain again.
Thursday eve we dined with friends in the Aqualina restaurant. Lee had broiled Chilean Sea Bass and I had broiled lobster. Along with appetizers and dessert we were full as a tick. The remainder of the evening found us in the casino, nope didn’t win!
Friday, another day at sea. I can honestly say we are enjoying the quiet of the ship. Met up with new friends and really didn’t do much of anything. Adjusted our reservations for Prime C so we could dine with friends. The Prime C was so good. Appetizer was Ahi Tuna Sushi for me while Lee had a traditional shrimp cocktail. Lee opted for the roasted tomato soup while I had the arugula salad. We both ordered the filet mignon, hers medium well, mine medium rare! Both steaks were prepared to perfection. Not sure what we had for desserts as several were ordered. However, the recommendation was the home-made doughnut holes, they were awesome they were served with three different dipping syrups, chocolate, vanilla and caramel. Needless to say we were stuffed.
I think we headed to the casino to drop a few nickels before we headed to the Looking Glass lounge for the Champagne Request hour. You basically put a name of a song in a bucket and if your song was picked the band played it and you got a glass of champagne. The band and the DJ were very good. Not totally the music we prefer, but we managed to dance several dances. After this event we headed back to the casino, hmm it was closed and it was only 12:30am. Next day I learned the casino policy; if the tables are idle for 30 minutes they close the casino!!!!
Saturday, St Croix day, we slept in, not sure why, but we didn’t get up til about 10:30. We took our time and probably got off ship around noon. St Croix was nothing to write home about. We walked around the little town, bought a few souvenirs, drank some local beer and headed back to the ship. It was so hot. We cooled down and headed to lunch. Grabbed our books and found a quiet little niche and vegged for a couple of hours. I opted to head back to the cabin and nap, while Lee found a tucked away lounge chair, where she tried to read, but ended up napping. This is Captains Dinner night, so we had to clean up and dress. Great part about this line is no formal wear. I did put on a sport coat. Lee as usual was stunning. We began the evening in the Cova Café lounge where pre-dinner drinks of your choice were served. Can’t have a Captain’s dinner without a photo shoot. We all gathered on one of the elegant staircases and pictures were taken by the ships photography staff. Escorted to the Discoveries Dining Room, we were seated at the Captain’s table. Our drinks were brought to the table. The wine of the evening was introduced, both a red and a white. Lee had red, I had white. Both were very wonderful wines. The dinner was outstanding, far too much food for one seating, but we managed. Well heck, we didn’t want the Captain to feel as if we did not enjoy it!!!!!
We ended the evening in the Looking Glass where Karaoke with the band was the venue for the evening. We had a ball. Danced a few dances, got up as a group and sang Friends In Low Places, what a hoot.
The last singer of the evening happened to be Jordan Bennett of Les Miserables. Yes he was fantastic and what a treat for us.
Sunday found us in Marigot, Saint Martin. Very disappointing as it was Sunday and nothing was open, go figure! So we grabbed a cab and headed to Philipsburg on the Dutch side. Well not too much better over there either. Only one ship was in port and not much was opened, but more than in Marigot. The girls shopped. We stopped for lunch at Taloula’s café. Lee had a burger and I had a grilled mahi-mahi sammie. Visited the Guavaberry Emporium, tasted a few of their samplings and headed back to Marigot. Prior to catching the tender we went to Sarafina’s Bakery. A nice French style bakery. Had an afternoon snack, boarded the tender and returned to ship. Spent the rest to the afternoon doing laundry and prepping for dinner!
Dinner in the Discoveries Dining room, sadly it was a disappointment. The appetizer was good, however, the remainder of the meal was not so great. Lee had chicken and it was not good at all, overcooked and cold, as was the baked potato. My wine braised baby back ribs were, well, at some point in life I am sure they were ribs! Not good, so I am pretty sure we will not dine there again. The buffet, Windows by day, Breezes by night, has been very delightful. Every evening sushi is served and every evening the Sushi chef prepares a special sushi.
After dinner we headed to, where else other than the casino. Still donating at this point, I have faith the slots will loosen up eventually. After a few minutes there we headed once again to the Looking Glass for the big Country Western night!!!!! I got yanked onto the floor to assist the activities person in learning/teaching a line dance. Thankfully I wasn’t up there alone, Lee and a few others came to my rescue. All in all we had a fun evening.
Monday found us in Gustavia, St Barths (pronounced Barts). Although a very nice little island town, being French and being they use the Euro we found it very expensive. Most folks we spoke with said the same thing. We met up with a few other couples and had lunch alongside the marina. Seven beers, one coke and two pizzas ran us $61 Euro, which came close to $100 USD with tip!!!!
All in all a good day with the entire evening ahead. Plans this eve include a group dinner, five couples, topside for the Island Party.
The Island party was fun, lots of food and dance. Lee got so hot in port that when we returned to ship she had her hair cut. Short and cool!!!!
Tuesday found us on the island of St Lucia. We took a tour with a private little touring company Cosol tours. The owners brother, Yellow Bird, led our tour. Ten of us boarded a very nice air conditioned mini bus and headed out. The tour included unlimited cold drinks, and a local lunch which consisted of fried chicken, fired fish, Johnny Cakes, fritters, fruits and desserts. The chicken and fish had their own special dipping sauces, which included a local favorite, banana ketchup!!! Nope I didn’t try it.
We headed to I assume the other side of the island where we stopped at a beach nestled below the Piton Mountains. We observed the volcanoes of Sulpher Springs, climbed to fresh water falls where several of our group waded in the cold waters while others jumped in!!!! COLD!!!!! Yup you guessed it, I did not get in the water. On the way back Yellow Bird stopped for an afternoon snack of freshly baked bread and mild cheddar cheese, a local favorite, it was soooo good. The tour lasted about six hours and needless to say, a fun time was had by all.
Back on ship we chilled for a bit, showered and readied for dinner. We went to the buffet and then headed to the lounge for swing dance lessons, followed by the ships band tribute to Glen Miller. Then it was off to the casino to deposit our daily donation.
Wednesday: Dominica, first time here we opted to do a Caribbean Cooking tour. Got in a van and were driven maybe 30 minutes from the pier. Up, up, up, I mean like up into the mountains to our hosts home. Once you see the pictures you’ll understand the up up up part. We prepared a main course, a salad, and a dessert, along with a side dish and a drink. The main course included a fish dish of Marlin! The end result was fantastic.
Back on ship we basically bathed and headed for dinner. Ate again in Prime C and it was okay, my fault, I ordered a NY strip. Wasn’t the best, but the company was great!
Off to the casino. Still no luck. The casino was holding a ticket drawing. The casino floor manager handed us tickets at the last minute. Lee won a massage, drink vouchers, match play vouchers, a casino t-shirt, a bingo card and $50! A few minutes later my number was called. I got all the stuff Lee got except for the massage voucher, my voucher was for 50 minutes internet time. Yee-haw! Dropped our nickels and headed to bed.
Thursday found us in Antigua. From our balcony we could see the tenders, The sea was rough, the tenders bounced around like a rubber duck in a bath tub. We decided not to go ashore. We spent a leisurely day not doing much of anything. Played several trivia games and played on the Wii for the first time, we bowled, it was a lot of fun.
Off to dress for dinner. We all gathered in the buffet for another Island Party. One of the best dinners served. After we headed to the casino. On the way we stopped at the ship stores and received a raffle ticket for a drawing. Dumb luck, we won a $25 gift voucher!!! Spent a bit of time in the casino and headed for bed.
Friday we hit our last port of call, Virgin Gorda. We had breakfast aboard and headed for the tender. Off ship we stayed in the tender area. Only a few shops, but the girls managed to find a few items they just couldn’t live without. Headed back to ship, Lee had a 2 o’clock massage.
We met again for Wii bowling and again I was the champion!!! Stayed for the afternoon trivia and bingo, didn’t do well at either.
Met four other couples for dinner in the Discoveries dining room, we sat the Captain’s table, sans the Captain. Had an okay meal, the prime rib was delicious. Lots of “lack of attention to detail.” But the fellowship far outweighed the latter. Again off to the casino, opted in on the Roulette tournament, but did not do well at all. Went to our first show, not the best we’ve seen. Back in the casino I actually hit a $90 jackpot, woo-hoo.
Clocks go back an hour, an indication we are heading West for home!!!
Rough seas tonight due to a weather system that passed through earlier. A bit of rain, but no big storms. The seas were rough enough that the drawers in the vanity were opening and closing banging in each direction. Just one reason carrying a roll of packing tape is a good idea. I taped the drawers shut!!!
Saturday, only one more day to before we are on our way home to Arkansas. We’re really missing our cats and dog. Twelve days really seemed to be much longer, we are ready to be home.
This morning the ship staff sponsored a military veteran meeting and a Cruise Critic coffee. Both were very nice.
I can say that on this ship, it being so small, the ship’s staff including the Captain have been very visible and very personable. The staff were featured in a little function called “Waves.” Here the staff officers and many of the crew members were introduced along with the country they represented. Basically this was a farewell, thus “Waves,” they waved good-bye with hopes we would chose Azamara again. Immediately following “Waves” the Officers served a BBQ lunch on the pool deck.
Not much going on today, the ocean is pretty rough and the ship is really rocking. A lot of folks wearing those motion sickness patches behind their ears. You can really feel the ship moving. Sleeping last night was a bit rocky, figure tonight will be the same. A lot of vibration and a lot of rocking.
I did laundry while Lee played trivia, she came back with winnings, a couple of leather bookmarks and a couple of luggage tags. Woo-hoo!
Dinner in the buffet and then off to the casino and then to bed.
Sunday found us still rocking and rolling on the high sea. At some point we’ll pack. Luggage must be outside the door by 11p.m. Oscars tonight as well.
Last dinner onboard. We all, eight of us, gathered on the pool deck outside the buffet area and enjoyed a last dinner together. We shared champagne and wine and toasted the cruise. After dinner several of us hit the blackjack table, we all lost. We then settled down to watch the Oscars. The ship’s staff set up very nice finger food trays in the casino lounge area so folks could watch the Oscars and snack.
Oscars over, we headed to bed. Last night onboard:(
Monday morning we awoke alongside the pier. Off to breakfast, sat, chatted and said our good-byes. Always sad to have to leave, but there is always another cruise in the future!
All in all we had a great time. Were there negatives? Yes, but nothing so dramatic or disturbing that it affected our cruise. If you are expecting a five star cruise, you are going to be disappointed. If you are expecting a very quiet laid back cruise, with good food and good service, you’ll have a good time.
Will we cruise Azamara again? It could happen! Hope you enjoyed the review and if you have specific questions, ask away.

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Snow in Arkansas

2010-02-10T11:07:00.006-06:00

Well here we are sitting in the house looking at the snow and ice. Monday was surely an unexpected day. The snow came down and down and down. Now don't take me wrong I am in no way complaining. Heck the little we got here wouldn't amount to a small snow pile compared to what the East coast has gotten (and getting).

What amazes me are the number of people that have the "I can do it attitude." Now I am was born and raised in New England, so snow is nothing new to me. But, I know that if I am not equipped to venture out, the best place for me is at home.

I watched one gal trying to get up the street. We have slight incline to road that seems to go on forever! Here she is in a small compact car, light jacket on, no headgear, no gloves, no boats. Just sweats!!!!! Okay first off if you are going to challenge the elements you need to be prepared. So here she is full open throttle, going sideways and then no where!!!! So she gets out kicks a little snow away from the back tires and tries it again. I guess I watched for 20 minutes or so, she got maybe 200 feet, I got bored!!!!

Next day the roads (main) cleared a bit, but hey it's still like 27 degrees out there. Water freezes at 32!!!!! Oh and the southerners have no idea what is meant by "black" ice. So off in the ditch they go.

My travels have been limited to necessities only. You know things like run to Office Depot for a print cartridge, take the dog to the groomer etc; you get the picture:)

I can honestly say I am a very defensive driver. I drive 400 feet ahead of myself so I have time to react. These folks that are out there are absolutely whacko. No idea of safety, ice, or another car spinning out. It is very entertaining to watch. And the guys with big 4-wheel drive vehicles are the worst, and that's why we see a lot of 4-wheel drives off the side of the road. Really, in case you didn't know, 4-wheel drive vehicles cannot go everywhere and no they cannot do any better on ice than any other vehicle.

And you just have to love those people that clean off their car before they hit the road. Clear a 6"-8" strip across the windshield and off they go!!!! Not realizing that as soon as the interior of the vehicle warms up and melts the bottom layer of snow on the roof, the first time they hit the brakes they are blinded by the avalanche of snow coming off the roof!!!!! And they really do expect the windshield wipers to work!!!!!

Just gotta love it. Thank you Mother Nature for adding a touch of entertainment for us!!!

Christmas Cruise Aboard the Carnival Fantasy

2009-12-30T16:33:00.012-06:00

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This Christmas, just as last year, found us aboard a cruise ship. This year we chose the Carnival Fantasy. Our cruise was a bit special as we brought along Stan's mom and older sister, their Christmas gift from us.

Arriving at the Port of Mobile went without a hitch. The embarkation process was smooth and quick. Aboard ship around noon we went directly to the lunch buffet. Then we proceeded to our cabins. Our cabins were adjoining, first time we ever had adjoining cabins. The cabins were rather roomy as was the head (bathroom). Usually the heads are small closets with very little maneuver room. The rooms were equipped and laid out nicely, no complaints.

Surprisingly our luggage arrived within an hour of getting to the cabin. So we emptied our suitcases and awaited the mandatory life boat drill. We toted our life vests up to the muster station as we were always instructed to do so. We were the only ones there with vests!!! We were told life vests were not required and had we read the in cabin instructions we would have known this!

The weather in Mobile was cold and very overcast with a forecast calling for rain. So after the drill we headed to one of lounges, found a window, and settled down to watch our sail away. We were to sail around four in the afternoon. The time passed and were still alongside the pier. Five o'clock, six, six-thirty passed. Finally an announcement stating Mobile was under a severe weather alert and the Captain decided to wait out the storm. About six-forty the storm hit. Oh my gosh, the rain, wind, lightening, and thunder came with a fury. A tug pulled alongside the ship, bow pressing against the Fantasy at wide open throttle, holding the ship against the pier so the wind would not do damage! What a way to start a cruise. We finally sailed around eight p.m.

Christmas Eve aboard the ship was rather exciting. Lots of children running about; many adults in ridiculous holiday garb! Figured they knew they'd never see any of us again so what the heck.

The ship was decorated very nicely for the holiday, I'll post a link to photos at the end of the review. I did not take a bunch of photos, never even took pics of our cabin. Sorry!

We spent the first night exploring the ship. My sister wanted to particiapte in Karoke so we hung out to endure that!!! Actually she did rather well. We donated a few nickles to the casino and then finally around midnight headed for bed.

The ship was fairly easy to navigate, only a few decks were tricky. The dining rooms were very nice. We chose traditional sitting and did late dinner (8:15) in the Jubilee Dining Room. The menu was okay, nothing to knock your socks, but nothing to complain about either. Our server seemed overwhelmed and a few nights got our orders out of sync and they ended up being less than hot. Still nothing that one doesn't experience in a local retaurant from time to time.

Breakfast in the Celebration Dining Room was superb, as was lunch. The Lido deck buffet was rather difficult. Too many different venues. On the outside they served burgers and hot dogs as well as freshly prepared meats, i.e. ham, roast, chicken etc. By the time you got through the line and made your way inside to sit, the food was less than hot. Inside housed the salad bars, the ethnic buffets, pizzaria, desserts etc. Eggs/omlets/waffles/pancakes to order in the mornings were also offered here. Again, the food was good with a very nice menu to choose from. The wait staff were great. Coffee and juice carts being pushed around refilling your needs.

The cruise staff were terrific. The activities were great. We participated in several activities. We walked away with 100% genuine fake gold plated trophies worth "far less than one thousand dollars," along with several medallions. Mom won a rubber bracelet inscribed with "Carnival Funships." She was so proud. As we were disembarking, Lewis, one of the staff, yelled, "Lee come back and see us." An indication of how many activities we participated in.

Bingo was a bust, I think mom managed to get three numbers on her card.

The weather in Cozumel was great, probably mid to high seventies. We piered at the far away pier so a cab to town was necessary. The line was so long we opted to take a horse and buggy. My bad, I should have negotiated price prior to us getting on. When we got to the city dock and got off, I asked how much, ugh $40. No sense to argue, like I said my bad! Headed to Pancho's Backyard for lunch and then shopping. Mom hung in there very well, but by three she was getting tired so we made our way back to ship.

The ship was very clean and the entire very friendly. Disembarkation was a breeze, we did the self assist, we were in the car on the way out of the parking deck by eight-forty-five.

Worse part of the trip was Lee losing an earring that Santa gave her Christmas morning:(

All things considered it was a good cruise. The weather did not totally cooperate as our first day at sea was windy and cool with eight foot sea. Our sea day from Cozumel greeted us with terrible rain storms and six foot sea. Surprisingly the ship maintained a fairly smooth balance. Did not observe anyone really suffering from sea sickness, however bags were provided at every elevator. Probably a good idea.

Will we do this venue again? You betcha!!

Christmas Aboard the Fantasy Album

Thanksgiving aboard the Norwegian Spirit

2009-12-02T11:05:00.001-06:00

We opted to drive to New Orleans from Little Rock, Arkansas. An easy 8 hour drive. We spent the night in New Orleans. Got up Sunday morning and had breakfast at Mother’s Restaurant. Took our time, really, getting to the terminal.

Mr GPS brought us to the Erato Street terminal, however, brought us to the old terminal. No problem we had plenty of time. We followed the signs to the terminal. A few signs were confusing, but nonetheless we made it. It appeared there were two lots you could opt to park, an open lot to the right of the terminal and the parking deck. Not sure how much the open lot was. Prior to entering a security guard checked the vehicle to ensure it was safe, no hidden explosives etc!! The deck cost $112 for the seven day cruise. We had been told on the boards that the parking was a cash only affair. Turned out we could use a credit card.

Once in the parking deck we proceeded, we were stopped by a gentleman who informed us to drop our luggage, park on deck 4 or 5 and then take the elevator down to the second floor. One of the easiest drop offs we have done.

Off on the second floor we went through security, were given a number, one, and were directed to the waiting area. I’m thinking we were in the terminal by eleven a.m. We waited but a few minutes when our check-in number was called. We went up to the Lattitudes check-in desk and within probably three minutes were ready to go. Sign and sail cards in hand.

We waited another thirty minutes before they started boarding. Boarding went in accordance to the number you were holding. So we pretty much were the first ones to board. Lots of staff greeting you, however, no one told us what to do. So that could have been a bit confusing to first time cruisers. We just figured we’d head to lunch. So up to Raffles. Very clean and the food offered was very nice. The roast beef was delicious!!!!

After lunch we walked around and familiarized ourselves with the ship. Right at about two, we headed to our cabin deck. The doors were opened as we arrived so we proceeded to our cabin, 9122. Wow were we surprised. Excellent cabin. Nice balcony, bathroom was spacious and clean. Safe was left open in the locked position so we had to call the reception desk. Within minutes security arrived and reset the safe.

We figured we would put our valuables in the safe and head out to a lounge. A knock at the door? Hmm, guess it’s our cabin steward, nope it was our luggage!!!!! Our luggage arrived to the cabin around two-thirty. That is the quickest we have ever gotten our luggage. So we proceeded to unpack and put stuff away. Empty suitcases fit under the bed with room to spare.

The abandon ship exercise was held at four-thirty. We sailed shortly after.

We ate dinner at Windows, one of the two main dining rooms. The other is the Garden Room. Dinner was good, as were all the meals. Our wait staff was very personable. Food arrived hot and very good. The second night we ate in the Garden Room, sadly the service lacked the charm of sailing. And we felt a bit enclosed in the Garden Room, so that was the only meal, other than the Mystery Dinner, we ate there.

Windows is a much nicer, open area dining room. First day at sea we opted to actually get up early and go to Windows for breakfast. Breakfast was very disappointing. I ordered poached eggs which came out hard boiled. I also ordered corned beef hash, one of my favorite things to order on board. The hash was just that, diced up little pieces of meat, tossed with diced potato and I think celery. Needless to say, we did not do the main dining room for breakfast anymore.

Raffles probably has the best breakfast. Made to order eggs, perfect every time; Belgian waffles and wonderful French toast. Although busy, Raffles was always clean and very organized. One thing I did notice in Raffles and the main dining rooms, there were no bar personal trying to push drinks of the day or to take a dinner meal cocktail order. Our last night, we ate in Windows and ordered dinner cocktails from our waiter. So drinks were available on request.

The food we experienced was very good. The staff very professional and for the most part attentive.

The Blue Lagoon had the best wings and best burgers hands down. The fish and chips were pretty good as well. The Blue Lagoon operated 24/7, and was very conveniently located. Maybe too convenient. Those late night stops!!!!!! Walking back to our cabin we would walk through and yep, the aromas always got us. So at two in the morning, we’re sitting eating wings!!!!! Yum-O!

All the lounges were clean and the entertainment was good. Arwin and Emily, a duo, played at Michael’s Champagne Bar nightly and were fantastic. Fusion Wave, a band, played in the Galaxy most nights and were great. We were a bit disappointed with the Spirit Show Band, they played mostly Latin/Salsa, so dancing was limited.

The Quest and Second City were absolutely outstanding. There was a toga party we missed, a Hot White dance party, a Why Wait til New Year’s party which was fun. All the entertainment we saw was on par, not outstanding, but not bad.

The highlights for us were the Mystery Dinner and the Enchanted Dinner.

The Mystery Dinner: you gather in the Stardust theater for a briefing and an intro of the crime. You are broken into groups of eight and handed an information packet. Each player in the group becomes a character and you play that part. After a brief intro of all the players you are escorted to the dining room (Garden Room) for a special dinner (you can order off the regular menu if you choose, however you still pay your $20 per person). The leader of your group then opens scene one, follow the instructions, dine, have fun, through scene four. A pretty good time was had by all. And no, no one solved the crime!

Enchanted Dinner: $65 per person, wine is unlimited and the dinner absolutely awesome. The setting is in the art gallery. Tables are set in a very intimate layout, providing you a bit of romantic privacy. There were ten couples to participate, I doubt there is room for more then maybe twelve tables. So if you are interested sign up early. Some folks were dressed to the nines, most were in very nice resort casual. The wait staff were fantastic. The Executive Chef prepares this dinner himself. Ship staff, to include the Captain, pop in to greet you etc. Again, this is probably one of the best things we have done on any cruise. Think of an elegant restaurant at home, what you pay for a dinner which includes personal service, appetizers, salads, main course, dessert and after dinner cordials, and did I mention unlimited wine? $65 becomes moot!!!! Go and enjoy.

We were disappointed with the Lattitudes parties. The first party introduced the Captain and his staff. The drinks of course were passed around, the usual mimosa, red birds, champagne and I think wine. This was the first time that when I asked for a beer instead of all the sweet stuff, I was refused. They said I could buy a beer, but did not offer any substitutes to what was being served. At every repeaters party I have ever attended I have always been allowed beer. Oh well, no big deal, just don’t expect a substitute beverage. I think it is very nice that the cruise lines continue to do the repeaters party. The second party, which was for Silver and above, was held in the art gallery and I do not remember seeing any staff except for the Lattitudes liaisons and they were enthralled with two passengers. They spent the party with those two, never did mingle. So that was sorta of a bust. Paul the cruise director answered our questions. BTW for those of you that collect Lattitude pins, NCL has done away with the program. Paul told us to drop by and see one of the Lattitude folks and they probably could get us a pin. We did and we did get pins for the Spirit.

We were told there were over six hundred children aboard. Yikes!!! For the most part children were behaved. Some kids were absolutely rowdy, mis-mannered, and destructive.

We were walking up one stairwell where two little boys were wrestling with the banister fennel. Wrenching it back and forth, mom standing within a few feet of them, never said a word. Late night, maybe one in the morning, young kids, probably ten to twelve years old, jumping up on bar stools demanding a soft drink!!!

I don’t like to deprive anyone of having fun, but these kids were terribly out of control and at one in the morning, where are the parents? I think all cruise lines should institute a policy that after ten p.m. children under thirteen need to be accompanied by an adult. No exceptions.

I also think that when an event is labeled “adults only, eighteen years and older” anyone younger should be required to leave. And the rules should not be relaxed to appease an upset parent. Rules are rules, period.

The Mystery Dinner was labeled adults only, one group came in with three children, young children, the staff person informed them it was an adults only event. Probably after ten minutes of discussion, the staff person gave in and allowed them to stay. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

I had previously read on the boards that the disembarkation process in New Orleans was terrible. To be totally truthful I don’t see anything NCL could do to make the process any simpler. I think the New Orleans terminal personnel have the embarkation/disembarkation process down to a fine science.

I’m sure I missed a few things. I did not address the ports of call on purpose. Most of you have been to them and not much has changed. If you have a specific question feel free to ask.

Bottom line, the cruise was all we expected it to be and maybe a little more thanks to the Enchanted Dinner.

Alaskan Vacation

2009-08-07T16:42:00.070-05:00

I will tell you before you even start, this is lengthy!! I have included links (in blue) to points of interest and a link to our very condensed album titled "Alaska Adventure 2009" at the end of the blog.

We departed Little Rock on July 25th en route to Anchorage Alaska. We flew this time and arrived around 11 p.m. Alaska time. Slight baggage screw up, one bag made it, three did not!

Traveling with us are our best friends Ron and Lynn. Lee's brother, Pat and his wife Suzanne's, house is our base camp.

Monday was a lazy day for us. We walked and shopped the downtown area, explored Kincaid Park and Flattop Mountain. On Tuesday we headed for Homer to do some halibut fishing.

We lodged for two nights at The Beary Patch Bed & Breakfast. The first night we dined at The Homestead restaurant. Outstanding food and great atmosphere. The second night we dined at Cafe Cups. The food here was good. We all concurred that The Homestead was a bit better.

We had fishing reservations with Big Bear Charters. Captain Brandon and his deck hand Ty were the crew for the day. Weather wise the day was pretty lousy. We would have fished for Lingcod as well as halibut, but, the weather did not permit us into Lingcod water. So halibut it was. Lynn was the first to have a fish on, however, it ended up being a spiny dog shark!!!! Quite a few of these sharks were caught.

By days end we all caught our limit of two fish per person. The biggest fish being probably 40 - 60 pounders. If ya'll think this type of fishing is easy, it isn't. We fished in 200 feet of water with a 2 - 3 pound weight. Just pulling up line to check bait was tiring. Now add 20 - 30 pounds of combative fish. No easy task for any of us. However, everyone prevailed and by days end we were bushed!

No telling how many fish were actually caught as many were tossed back in because bigger fish could be had. Back at the dock, the fish were unloaded, washed and hung up for photos and then they were filleted. The end result was 114 pounds of fresh halibut. We had them flash frozen and shipped via FedEx back to Ron's and put in his freezer at home. FedEx was on time and fish made it without problem.

Many of the local folks suggested we eat at Crabbies. So we stopped there prior to heading back to Anchorage. Sadly, the food nor the atmosphere equalled the previous dining experiences. Crabbies ended up being a disappointment.

On the way out of Homer we stopped and visited the Alaska Islands and Oceans Visitor Center. A very educational experience.

Back in Anchorage for a day before we head to Talkeetna. We dropped the girls downtown to shop and we headed to view spawning salmon. Stopped first at Ship's Creek, saw a few fish and a few fisherman. We then headed to Campbell Park where the Alaska Game and Fish have a few viewing areas set up. We saw a few fish, but nothing to speak of. So Ron and I made our way to West Marine. Yeppers we visited the northern most West Marine Store, didn't buy anything, but hey we were there!!!!

We then headed into town to meet up with the girls. The girls had lunch at Sack's. One of those nice little foo foo kinda places girls like to go. Ron and I had reindeer sausage from a street vendor!!!! After lunch we headed to the Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson. Here the story of Alaska is told. Many many great exhibits and wonderful art.

Friday we headed to Talkeetna. Took our time getting started and really took our time getting to Talkeetna. Along the way we stopped in Palmer, walked through the local farmers market and had lunch at Vagabond Blue's. Then onward to Talkeetna. Well actually a little place named Sunshine where we stayed at the Fireweed Station Bed & Breakfast. I could ramble on for days about this place, check out the link and spare the rambling. Tom and Hobb's are host and hostess of this wonderful place. We brought fresh caught halibut for dinner and Tom prepared it. He is a fantastic cook. We spent Friday and Saturday evening here. After breakfast on Saturday we took a short hike to pick berries and see the Yak's. The Yak's are used to pack in camping supplies for hikers conquering Mt McKinley. The rest of Saturday was a downtown Talkeetna day. Talkeetna consists basically of one main street. We had lunch at Twister Creek a busy little place. Reindeer soup was a hit with us as were the huge burgers. One thing that can be said about Alaska, the meals are not skimpy!

Later on that evening we chartered Talkeetna Air Taxi for an aerial tour of Mt McKinley. What an absolutely awesome experience. The planes had not been able to land on the glaciers due to weather for several days or so. We were informed that the flight before us was successful at landing, as were we! Yep, the plane landed on the glacier. I guess I already used the word awesome, but I have to use it again. The glacier experience was beyond awesome!!!!! It was so cool walking out on the glacier and experiencing first hand what a crevasse looks like.

Upon returning to Talkeetna we met Pat, Suzanne, Tom and Hobb's at Mountain High Pizza for dinner. I guess we ordered dinner a few minutes after nine. Being that the sun stays up so long in Alaska it's hard to gauge the time. We had an early Sunday morning meeting time with the iFishAlaska folks some forty-five minutes from Talkeetna. We originally were to meet at five-thirty which was plenty early for us; the meeting time ended up being four-forty-five, yes a.m.! Here we are choking down pizza trying to finish up dinner so that we could get back to Fireweed and catch a few hours of sleep.

Second Week: Sunday morning alarms went off at three-thirty and we were on the road at four. We arrived at the Deshka River Landing in Willow on time and met with our fishing guide, Pat. We loaded our gear onto the boat and headed out. A very cool morning to say the least. We made our way up river to a hot spot, that turned out to be warm rather than hot. The limit for Silver Salmon is three per person. Ron and I caught our limit with Pat, Lee, and Lynn catching one each. Made our daily catch at nine, six fish short of a full limit. At any rate we all had a great time, saw a few eagles and lots of jumping fish. Filleted out, I venture to say our catch rendered probably 40 pounds or so of fresh Alaskan Silver Salmon! These were packed up in a fish box and carried home.

Very tiring drive home, but it was well worth it. Monday was a lazy day, well laid back day. We all decided we could do "nothing" at home. We ended up going to the Anchorage Zoo. Have to laugh, because we have been moose-less so far. When we got to the moose enclosure, we had to ask one of the workers to point out the moose!!!! We should have visited the zoo the first day here. The "bad moose karma" was finally broken. Pics of this trip are included in the Anchorage album.

Tuesday morning was a rise and shine early day as we were taking the train to Whittier and then taking a glacier sight seeing cruise. Both the train and the cruise turned out to be fantastic. Can't tell you how many glaciers we got to see, I think they said twenty-six. Along with the glaciers we saw eagles, otters and harbor seals. And we were fortunate to witness a glacier calving. Calving is when a piece of the glacier breaks away and falls into the ocean!

On our return train ride, we saw moose in the wild. First a cow and her calf, then a young moose that was on the track. The train probably followed this moose for a half mile or so before it jumped to safety. We also saw a big bull with a large rack of antlers. Also spotted a small group of Dall Sheep frolicking on the rocks.

Wednesday found us at the Aviation Museum where the history of Alaska aviation and bush pilots is displayed. Then we had a moment of sheer impulse. The museum is located on the shore of Lake Hood, the worlds largest float plane base. So yep you guessed it, we decided to take a float plane tour with Ellison Air. From the plane we saw moose, elk, bison, eagles, seals and Beluga whales(the little white amoeba looking things). How fun to take off from and land on water. Pics of this trip are included in the Anchorage album.

Thursday brought us to Alyeska Resort in Girdwood. There is a wonderful tram that takes you to the top of Alyeska Mountain. Sadly the clouds were so heavy that once on top we couldn't see anything. We had lunch with hopes the clouds would clear. No such luck, so that plan basically bombed.

From the resort we decided to head to the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. Here they have rescued animals living in a protected environment. More moose, elk, bison, black bear, caribou, and a few other species. Good weather and good experience.
Finally heading back to Anchorage. Already planning Friday's activities of last minute shopping, packing, returning the rental car and getting to the airport to catch a one-thirty a.m. Saturday morning flight. While at the conservation center Lee overheard someone saying there had been a fatal accident on Seward Highway and that the highway was closed. Not sure exactly where the accident was, we drove towards Anchorage. Needless to say we only got about fifteen miles when we came to stopped traffic. Lee's brother sent a text informing us the highway would be closed until five-thirty. Ron had already decided to turn around and go back to one of the creeks where we could park and view salmon and watch folks fish.

The real Alaskan adventure begins. As we watch the salmon and fishermen in Bird Creek, someone yells "bear!" Holy cow, yes a bear, doing some fishing of it's own. From the bridge we frantically snap pictures. The Ron decides to make a move off the bridge to get closer. I follow.
I guess I could go on and on about this encounter, but pictures are worth thousands of more words then I could possibly write. After returning to the bridge, a second bear appeared. As I watched the second bear, it all of a sudden jolted back into the foliage. Come to find out, Ron and Lynn had gone hiking and found themselves directly above the bear on a ridge. As Ron states, it was one of those "holy crap" moments!!!

Headed back to the bridge we encounter a wild squirrel!

I can tell you honestly that this days experience is probably the best wildlife adventure we have ever had!!!!

Friday we prepare to leave. The girls went off to do last minute shopping and to turn the car in. Ron and I stay home and relax.

After dinner at Carlo's Mexican restaurant, we head back to the house and pack our salmon. Then it's off to the airport to catch a 1:30 a.m. flight home. The flight long and uneventful. We arrive home in Little Rock around 4 p.m. Oh the comfort of sleeping in your own bed!!!!!!

Our album: Alaska Adventure 2009

Summer in Arkansas full bloom!!!

2009-07-14T08:55:00.002-05:00

Well here we are mid July with temperatures hitting the 100 mark. Even though we spend a lot of time at the lake, that does not offer any relief from the heat. This past weekend is evidence of that. The water temps are those that we normally experience in August. Jump off the boat into the water and it feels like you're taking a header into your bath water!!!!

At least we are getting a few showers now and then. Stormed last night with all the effects. Thunder, lightening and torrential rain!!!! The grass, flowers and weeds really loved it. The birds and squirrels must have enjoyed it as well, as they were raiding the bird feeders this morning. Opened the door to let the dog out and squirrels and birds scattered everywhere.

Am I complaining? Nope! Cuz in just a short few months Fall will be upon us followed by Old Man Winter! And we'll be wishing for summer once again!!!!

Are we never satisfied!

Summer Has Arrived

2009-06-23T08:30:00.003-05:00

And sadly in more than one way you can tell. Gas prices have shot up from just over $2.00 a gallon to $2.70. And of course it depends upon where you buy. Here in Little Rock regular ranges from $2.60 to $2.81. Plus is like $2.88 or so, which I have to use in accordance to my vehicle specs. No I don't own a go-fast performance car. I have a VW Passat Wagon and for some reason it requires the higher octane. The upside is great gas mileage, I average about 25mpg in the city and 31mpg+ on the open road!

Funny though. Went to Hot Springs yesterday and I got gas for $2.59 a gallon. That was at only one station. All the other stations were posting a $2.44 - $2.45 per gallon price. Plus at one station was $2.83.

I just don't understand why the prices go up, I guess it's because they can. The oil guru's know we are going to pay for it regardless. That fact was proven when gas hit the $4.00+ mark.

Go anywhere and you can smell the barbecue in the air. Backyard grills are running full speed ahead.

Pools are filled with happy screams of children and the commanding screams of parents, "don't do that," "no running in the pool area," "don't go in the deep end," and of course the panic scream of "wheres your sister?"

Traffic and shopping malls are horrid. It seems like every kid out of school has a car. Not sure whats worse, the kids behind wheels or school buses!

Temperatures climbing, morning lows are mid 70's. Highs getting to hit high 90's with heat indices over 100. Electric bills climbing due to the cooling of living and working spaces.

Another wonderful sign is the not so green grass. Why is it that weeds continue to grow no matter how dry it gets! Yeppers, all the rain we complained about in April and May have become a memory. With the hopes that we could get some of that rain back!

I remember a marquee at one of the local churches when I first came to Arkansas some fifteen years ago. The month was August, temps of high 90's, low 100's had been beating the state up for about two weeks. The marquee read, "don't pray for rain if you're going to complain about the mud!"

Funny!

Boating weather is upon us, the lake is getting warm, and soon taking a dip will have no more cooling effect then jumping in your bath water!!!!

Life is good. Staying cool is a must. Don't forget your outside friends. Birds could really use a bubbling bird bath. And don't forget your furry friends. Be sure to have cool water for your cats and dogs and to provide a shelter for them to get out of the direct sunlight.

Stay safe, stay cool and enjoy summer, before you know it, it'll be gone!!!!

Royal Caribbean Voyager of the Seas

2009-04-13T15:49:00.030-05:00

Our trip began on April 3, 2009. We departed Little Rock, Arkansas en route to Galveston, Texas. Although the ship did not sail until the 5th, we decided to go in a few days early and enjoy the sites of Galveston.

Needless to say Ike did a pretty good number on Galveston Island. Destruction everywhere. The Strand, was almost a ghost town. However, Galveston has done a pretty good job at rebuilding in such a short time. The Seawall side, Gulf side, was a bit more active the channel side. All the little souvenir shops that once were filled with tourists, are no longer. Some of the stilts they were built on were there, but that's pretty much it. The Flagship Hotel, one of Galveston's landmarks stood skeleton-like on her now destroyed pier. Holes in the structure allowed a clear view through the hotel. The bridge access is no longer. She sits cold, abandoned and lifeless upon her pier that not too long ago was bustling with customers.

However bad, it was no where near the destruction of the Great Hurricane of September 1900.

We enjoyed our stay. I would be remiss if I did not give credit to the Comfort Suites located on 89th Street. Friendly, clean and very accessible. Highly recommend this hotel.

Sunday morning found us at Lighthouse parking on 29th Street. We reserved and paid via the Internet, for the week it cost $50 for secure parking. We parked, they put our luggage on a bus and drove us to the terminal. Our bags were picked up by porters and we were directed inside. Being Platinum members of the Crown and Anchor Club, we spent absolutely 5 minutes at check-in. Then directed to an elite, maybe not the right word, but heck it fits, waiting area. My DW (darling wife) ran off to the restroom. By the time she got back we were allowed to board. Wow, on the ship at 11:30'ish.

We made our way to the Windjammer dining room, as our cabin would not be ready until 1p.m. We had lunch, and a very nice lunch to say the least. After lunch we took a stroll around the ship. Found a nice little lounge, The Aquarium Bar, where we met Oana, pronounced "wanna." She was very pleasant and took very good care of us each time we visited the lounge.

One o'clock the cabin is ready! We scurried up to Deck 6 and found our cabin, 6634. It was a very nice cabin with a balcony. We have found that on our longer cruises, 7 days plus, the balcony really adds space and doesn't give you that closed in feeling.

We met Dale our cabin steward. Very nice gentleman and throughout the cruise he kept us very neat and provided all we asked.

The dining room the first evening did go quite as planned. Arriving for dinner at 8 p.m. we found that our table for eight, already had seven seated. The folks seemed friendly, and our then to be waiter did offer to "add" another chair. Not! A bit upset, I requested the head waiter. Hey, I was not going to add another chair to an already crowded table. The head waiter, Erwin, took immediate care of us and seated us a new table. For sake of privacy and all the laws and acts that could apply, I will not mention names or make up fake ones. Seated was a young couple, husband, expectant wife and, husbands mom. Very delightful folks. Our wait staff included Vincent, our waiter, and Dimitri, the assistant waiter. I must mention Roderick. He was the dining room bar staff. This guy was good. Each night he brought a cold beer for me within minutes of us being seated.

The couple and mom informed us they would not be at formal night because they failed to bring proper attire. I really have to give them credit for upholding the dining room dress code, as many others were flagrantly dressed. But then I guess it really is all about them.

So formal comes. We report to our table knowing we would be lone diners. Our wait staff did their thing and as we were enjoying appetizers, Erwin, the head waiter, appears with a couple in tow and seats them!!!!!! That's cool, we always enjoy company. But what will happen the following night. Remember we were seated at that table to an already full table. Erwin assured us the would add leaf to the table and there would be plenty of room. There was.

The added couple, both Texans, dating, were absolutely charming. It was her first cruise, his fourth or fifth. They got stuck in a little intimate alcove in the dining room. She expressed her desire to be seated in the main room and she was accommodated.

Dinners were great, maybe a few were only good, but for the most part great. This trip we did not eat breakfast in the main dining room at all. And only ate one or two lunches which were by my standard, okay. The best lunch we experienced was the special lunch for Platinum, Diamond and Diamond Plus members. As we understand it, the Voyager is the only ship that does this lunch. It was great. We were seated with Simon, the ships inventory officer. He was very polite and very interactive. Wine was served, your choice, red or white. Followed by appetizers, salads, soups and main course. We both enjoyed the grilled halibut.

I have probably gotten ahead of myself a bit so I will attempt to catch up. The casino was not kind to us. Although my DW experienced a few nice pay-offs, I can say that maybe next time we should just write RCL a check for the casino and cut our losses early. But then what would be the fun of that. My best experience was the roulette table. Started with $20 and walked off with like $110. That went back to the three card poker table, ugh!!!!

Casino bar staff was horrible, except for Gary. He befriended us the very first day in the Aquarium Lounge and I can honestly say he took great care of us. Whether he saw my wife or me, he always asked where the other was, so he could bring us what we wanted.

Entertainment was good. The ice show, not as good as we experienced on the Mariner of the Seas, none-the-less, pretty spectacular when you consider the jumps and lifts they do on a moving ship!

BMW, a three piece band that was touted as Ballroom Dance music. Well, yes, I guess ballroom music, as they did Cha Cha's and Tango's and Rumba's, as well as Swing, Waltz and a few others we had no idea about. The songs they sang, well lets just say they did not have a great command of the English language, so those songs were lacking. For the most what they played was good, not great, but good. However, every song was too long. I think they did the looooong version, which made dancing a challenge. No dancer wants to leave the floor because they are tired!!!!! We'd dance one song and have to sit out the next three just to catch our breathe! The bar staff during BMW's sets were actually non existent. We just never got to any of the other venues so I cannot comment.

Derek Lewis in the Pig and Whistle, oh my gosh. This guy was great. He touted a "5 minute party" and boy did he bring it. He got folks up to sing karaoke and just never belittled them. Heck they got me up to sing and no I was not drunk!!!! Derek just had a way about him. His tee shirts read, "Adult Day Care (at night)." One of his CD's was titled "Live at the Seven Eleven." He had the place laughing so hard. He is a must on your agenda.

We are not big tour people, but this trip the DW wanted to do some things we hadn't done before. So she booked the Mexican Cuisine Tour in Cozumel. Chef Luis was outstanding. Best part, you get to eat what you cook. We did an appetizer, an entree and a dessert. And being it a Mexican affair you know the margaritas were flowing freely, as was the cervesa!!!!!!!! Great tour if you like to cook (or drink.)

In Roatan we did the Dolphin Encounter at Anthony Key. A bit different from the usual "swimming with the dolphins" kinda thing. Here, it was a very structured encounter. Told how to stand in the water, when to pet, etc. But it was so very educational. They told us about "dolphins." Their structure, capabilities, diet, habits etc. We really enjoyed this tour, well worth the dollars. Not many folks can say they've been kissed by a dolphin!!!

Oh gosh, I forgot to mention Johnny Rockets!!!! A++++++, is all I can say. The staff fantastic, the service outstanding and their little entertainment was marvelous.

And here is a late thought, how in the world could have forgotten this. The Mystery Dinner in Portofino's. The night began with champagne in the High Notes lounge. The actors/actresses were introduced. The show began. Omigosh, never laughed so hard. The players were fantastic and the meal 6 stars. Don't want to say too much, so as not to spoil your adventure!!!! Yes there was an additional charge of $49.95 per person, but it was absolutely worth every dime!!!!!!!

We chose to use the Express Disembarkation. Only glitch here was too many people in one place trying to get out. Lighthouse Parking picked us up at the terminal and returned us to the car. All in all, we were off the ship and in our car heading for home by 8:30 Sunday morning.

The only two complaints I have, one of which RCCL really had no control over and one they did. First, too many rowdy children. Let me quickly define rowdy. Running and rough housing in the dining room; actually wrestling in the stairwells; and then the ones that were waiting for elevators either on the top or bottom decks. They'd run in and push all the buttons before the doors closed and ran out ad had a laughing fit, thinking this was funny. My question, where the hell were the parents?????

Second complaint, and this seems to be one of my ongoing complaints with all cruise lines. Why post a dress code if it is not going to be enforced? Appalling dress in the dining room, adults and children included. Formal night, saw one gent walk in with a cotton shirt unbuttoned to mid-chest, with jeans, but he did have a coat on! Too many folks, young, old, male, or female, with tee shirts, shorts, flip flops etc. I fault the ship personnel. If you're gonna put a sign, with a dress code listed, at the front of your door, by gosh you better have someone there enforcing the code. On the same line. Dining starts at a designated time, and I believe the doors close for that seating 30 minutes after if begins. I did see dining room staff close the doors. However, again no one was there to enforce it. So you had folks walking in 45 minutes to an hour late and they got seated and served. Not right, period.

If they are not going to enforce the policies set forth, then remove the policies and let everyone wear what they will and show up when they want.

All in all it was a great voyage and a good time was had by the two of us.

If you have any specific questions please drop me an email or post a comment.

Thanks for taking the time to read this lengthy review.

Link to pics: this should lead you to all 10 albums for the Voyager 4/5/09 Click Here

Cruising the Carnival Holiday for the Christmas holiday

2008-12-31T06:09:00.003-06:00

This year for Christmas we did something a bit different than normal. My wife booked a four day cruise on the Carnival Holiday. A short jaunt to Cozumel Mexico and back. Sailing out of the Port of Mobile Alabama it was within driving distance which for us was a plus.

Christmas Eve day we headed out for Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Figured we'd spend the night there and drive in to Mobile on Christmas morning. A short hour and a half drive to Mobile we took our time waking and readying to head out. Leaving the hotel around 9:30 a.m. we figured we'd take our time driving and would still get to the port quite early. Early is always good! As we leave Hattiesburg I program the GPS for 201 S Water Street, Mobile, Alabama and push "Go." Hmmm, GPS shows an ETA of 11:10 a.m. Easy drive to the port, and the GPS came through, led us right to the port. Yippiee!!!!!

So we pull up behind the other cars in line to the parking deck. Hmmm, there is a police car, lights flashing, blocking the entrance to the deck. One by one the cars advance, one by one the cars are sent away. Behind me several other cars pull up. By the time we got to the police car, the policeman waves his hand and makes an announcement on his cars PA speaker. "If you are here for the cruise, follow me." So we proceed to follow him. He leads us to the civic center and waves us to proceed into the parking lot. Once in the lot, several police personnel are directing traffic to park. They announce that terminal personnel will be on the way to open the center. By now, there are probably a hundred cars in the lot and more coming. People milling about, some playing catch football, some just standing around chatting. So what the heck is going on?

Ahhh, the ship is late returning to port. Seems the Port Authority has closed the port to all traffic due to dense fog. Not that evident from our view point.

Finally after about 30 minutes the cruise personnel arrive with civic center personnel in tow. The doors are opened and we are directed to the restrooms and then asked to have a seat in the auditorium for an important announcement. People still milling around, some very upset, some absolutely uncalled for arrogant, but for the most part folks were calm. A female wearing a red terminal jacket came in and started to tell us the deal. While she was talking with us, she received a phone call. A lot of, "uh huh; oh; okay; I understand; alright; and finally keep me posted, talk with you in a bit." She announces to the crowd that the ship has been given the okay to proceed to port, however ETA was 4:30 p.m. The crowd groans!!!

She proceeds to tell us what was going to happen. A bit confusing as she told everyone they would have to proceed to the terminal to drop off baggage and pay for parking. Box lunches would be ordered and everyone would be processed in at the civic center. She spoke of 80 parking spots left on the parking deck and another 100or so spots outside the terminal being available. We could go over there and park and buses would be there to bring everyone back to the center. Other option was to proceed to the terminal drop off bags, pay for parking, and return with your car and leave your car in the civic center lot. If you'd like to go get something to eat and come back thats fine as well. You did read the part where this is Christmas Day! Nothing is open. One restaurant in the, I think Regency Hotel, is open. Thats it!

My wife and I decide to go ahead and proceed to the terminal and get all that stuff done and then walk back to the civic center, probably only a walk of a few blocks. We get back to the terminal area, take our place in line and slowly creep forward. Pretty smooth operation. As we get up to the terminal we are stopped to wait until all the cars in front are cleared from the terminal baggage area. Our turn comes, we are directed forward. Porters are there, I stop, hand the guy our bag (we only had one bag) and a tip and we are waved forward. Then we are stopped, told to back up and that we would be parking outside. So we wait, not long. Then we are directed to proceed to the parking deck. We pay our $60 parking fee and proceed to the 4th level. Figure we can leave our carry-on stuff in the car and when we return to the terminal I can go up and get it. We proceed to the elevators, go to level one. Here we are greeted by a very nice uniformed lady. She asks if we are ready to go into the terminal. We explain what we were told about returning to the civic center. She tells us no. If we are ready to proceed we can go into the terminal and process in. So back up to the car, get all the carry-on stuff and proceed back to level one. She directs us in, and the processing went very smooth. We are directed to a seating area and told that our sign and sail cards would be available as soon as the ship arrived. We were also told that box lunches would be arriving for each passenger, that never happened.

The terminal filled rapidily. The few vending machines were emptied quickly. No drinks, no food, no nothing! So we wait. Lots of folks complaining and stating that Carnival better do something, or offer reimbursement because of the delay. I turned to a couple of guys that were behind me and told them it wasn't Carnival's fault. The port was closed, nothing the cruise line could do about that. Still Carnival was being blamed for the weather. Finally the ship goes by. Seems like it took an hour to turn around and get back to the terminal.

Here is where things got pretty whacky!!!!

As soon as the ship was secured to the pier, sandwiches arrived. They were placed at the far end of the terminal. Yup, you guessed it, we were at the opposite end. By the time I got in line, no sandwiches were left. Many folks were grabbing handfulls of sammies to bring back to family and friends. I waited and waited, but never got lucky enough to get a sammie. Sign and sail cards were handed out. People started to disembark. Time passes. People starting to get restless. Afterall most of us have been in the terminal for 5 hours or more. Finally comes the announcement that we were ready to board. All of us in the seated area were told we'd be first to board. That never happened! The terminal personnel lost control at this point. Basically people in the terminal shifted to the lines that were being let on. So it was quite, no, very disorganized.

Finally aboard at 7 p.m.'ish, everyone was directed straight to one of the dining rooms. Open seating and not neccesarily your assigned dining room. Cabins would not be ready until 8 p.m. Dinner went okay and was quite good. During dinner they announced the cabins were ready. Luggage was delivered very quickly and a letter from the captain delivered to each cabin. Due to the delay and the still dense fog the ship stores and casino would not open until 8 a.m. the following morning. Oh well, time to explore the ship and early to bed. Also received a letter explaining that $36 per person had been applied to our sign and sail onboard credit for the fuel surcharge refund and an additional $15 per person applied for lunch meal reimbursement. We felt that to be a very nice gesture.

Our cabin, U155, was very nice. Even being an older ship, the cabin was much larger then some of the newer ships we've been on. Plenty of closet/drawer space etc. Luggage fit in the closet with no problem. The beds, probably the most comfortable bed we've had on a cruise ship. Carnival is rather proud of their bedding as they offer it for sale online! Bathrobes were provided for our use. And rather nice bathrobes at that. Life boat drill postponed until 11 a.m. Friday morning.

A little rough making our way to Cozumel. I warrant that in part to the speed trying to make up time and rough water. Not really bad, however, the little white bags were placed at elevators and other spots throughout the ship.

The ship overall is in great shape for being as old and worn as she is. Personnel were constantly cleaning, touching up paint etc. Cannot complain at all about the ships condition. All of the staff we encountered were friendly. Always smiling, always offering help.

Dining was great. Anyone that complains about the dining options and/or food are those that are not satisfied at home either. Our only complaint was the breakfast in the main dining room. It was in a word "bad." Waffles, toast, eggs were cold and the hash browns were, well I'm not sure they were even cooked, at any rate they too were cold and lousy. The Wharf and Grill on Deck 10 was great. Pizza 24/7 along with made to order calzones and caesar salads. There was such a diverse selection of foods available. Thumbs up! Late night buffets were so-so. Nothing great, but nothing bad.

Entertainment was not top of the line, but it was good and well performed. The comedian, well, in my opinion wasn't that great, but you know humor is funny that way!

XOP playing in the Tahiti lounge was good, but too loud for such a small lounge. They billed themselves as "music you grew up with."

Timmy the guitar player was good. And the piano player in Rick's lounge was absolutely great! Two nights they had Big Band dance music played by the ships band in the Americana Lounge. My only criticism here is that this is an adult function. A few kids were acting fools on the dance stage while we were trying to dance. I think someone from the activity staff should have escorted the kids off the stage. I personally asked two girls to leave the stage as they were a hazard to those trying to dance. They left, but not before they shot me a few dirty looks.

Not sure how many children there were aboard, but for the most part all were well behaved. A few runners through crowded decks, a few that did not understand "inside" voice, but other than that well behaved. Teens, hmmmm, I have to fault the ships staff. Several teens gambling, more drinking, however, still well behaved. My take, teen drinking and gambling is wrong, but not my kids and if the parents are okay with it thats fine.

Okay I think I have covered all bases. Now for disembarkation. We opted to participate in the self assist program. You carry all your luggage etc off the ship with you. We were told that we would begin to disembark around 8:30 a.m. So we set our alarm for 7, figured we'd have time for a leisurely cup of coffee and maybe a small bite of breakfast. Not so. By 7:15 they were announcing by deck for self assist participants to begin to make their way to deck 5. We were off the ship, in our car, driving out of the terminal at 7:53 a.m. The easiest, most organized disembark we've ever done.

Overall impression of the Holiday, outstanding. This being only my second Carnival cruise out of seventeen, with terrible impressions of Carnival after my first sailing on the Celebration. This ship and crew has changed my impression of Carnival and I am sure we will sail with Carnival in the future. We are looking forward to the Fantasy moving to Mobile.

I still maintain the worst day at sea is still better then the best day on land!!!!! Happy sailing!

The Big Drive to Alaska

2008-10-01T07:11:00.007-05:00

Well we made the trip, however, not without problems. Nothing serious or life shattering.

It started on Tuesday morning September 9th, arrived Anchorage Wednesday September 17th.

On the road about an hour when I looked up from the back seat and said, “Weren’t we supposed to turn in Conway?”

Oops, they, my wife Lee and brother-in-law Pat were so wrapped up in conversation that they missed the exit. So now we are some 30+ miles beyond our first exit. Okay, maybe from here all will go well.

First night was spent in a Platt City, MO Comfort Inn only 400 miles from home! Of course the day included stopping at a Russell Stover Chocolate outlet, yum-o! Woke up had breakfast and hit the road by 10:00 a.m. enroute to Anchorage Alaska.

Day two: The day was pretty good, weather fine; I’m driving, yee-haa! Ran into a little weather late in the day, but nothing too bad. Wanted to spend the night in Fargo, ND, I mean like doesn’t everyone want to stay in Fargo!!!! If you don’t understand this, you haven’t seen the movie “Fargo.”

Anyway, we ended up driving an additional 60 miles or so to Grand Forks making a day of 652 miles. Oh, why didn’t we stay in Fargo? Well they were having a Big Iron Farm Show, who knew! Guess this is a BIG attraction as all the hotels, motels etc. were booked. The Big Iron Farm Show connects over 800 agricultural exhibitors and some 70,000 attendees for the purpose of advancing agriculture!!!!

One neat part of the day was stopping in Elk Point, SD at a place called “Cody’s Homestead.” A neat little rustic restaurant with easy on and off access. We were greeted and seated by none other than Cody himself. Dressed in a white chef’s coat he handed us menus and proceeded to tell us his suggestions. How can you go wrong, the chef himself telling you his best!!!!! Was it the best food in the world, no, but the hominess made up for any flaws. And how many people do you know that have had the dining experience of Cody’s Homestead!

Day three: Onward to Canada. Got to the Canadian border and stopped at customs. After several questions and producing our documentation we were directed to pull over in one of the inspection stalls. After a few minutes of waiting, we were approached by two young Canadian Borders Guards, both dressed neatly and wearing flak jackets (body armor). They asked for our documentation and asked us to please step out the vehicle and directed us to a waiting area away from the car. They then proceeded to search the car. They inspected door panels, the glove box, under seats and dash. They removed our luggage from inside the car and the trunk. They went through everything and did a pretty good job at repacking. When they were satisfied we weren’t terrorists or drug smugglers, they directed us inside to Canadian Immigration!!!! More questions, took our documentation and politely told us to have a seat. Several minutes later, we were finally cleared and on our way!!!!
Not sure why we had to go through all that, maybe it was due to our crossing on 9-11; or was it because my brother-in-law hadn’t shaved; or maybe the combination of one female and two males! Who knows! Probably took the better part of an hour, maybe a bit more, to finally be on our way. Of course my lovely wife found all this customs stuff to be “so exciting” and wanted to take pictures!!! Ugh! A quick stop at the Canadian Welcome Center and we were on our way. Destination today was Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Crap, how far is a kilometer? Well we found Saskatoon to be some 600+ miles away and it was already close to noon. On to Winnipeg where we stopped for lunch. Back on the road creeping along at 100KPH, that’s like 62 MPH. No speeding in Canada, they don’t mess around and there is no allowance over the speed limit. So at this point 600 miles seems like days of driving. We opted to stop in Yorkton for the night. Not a bad little place, a lot more impressive than Winnipeg. Ate at a place called Harvest Pizza Family Restaurant and Licensed dining room! Hmm, licensed? Found out that meant they had a full bar. Yorkton had a casino as well, The Painted Hand, not Vegas, but not bad. I was fascinated with the 7 cent slot machines. Never did figure out how they paid. Lee sat at a Texas Hold’em table. And had she remembered the song by Kenny Rogers she would have done well. Oh yeah you know that song, …… know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em…..! Yep, hind sight usually leaves your money at the table!!!!!!
My days here are now running together. I cannot remember if it was day two or three that the “open door” alarm started dinging. I think it was day four or five that my brother-in-law reached over and turned the radio off and said “listen.” Okay, for what! No ding!!! Yee-haa! However, that was short lived, 10 miles down the road and the ding was back. In Dawson Creek my BIL was bound and determined to fix it, success. Well for a whole day anyway! So for the remainder of the trip that quaint ding ding ding chimed. One would have thought that after 3 or 4 days the damn thing would have burned out!

Day four: On to Alaska. Made Saskatoon for lunch. A little Greek place named Stella’s, was our choice. Nothing to write home about. The burgers were okay. This place had a casino and bar, I just told Lee not to look right!!!! Then on to Edmonton. Stayed in a really nice Comfort Inn. Lee and her brother went to a place called Characters for dinner. I opted out of dinner and I think I may have missed the best dining experience on the road. But I was beat and needed the quiet and rest.

Day five: Dawson Creek. Kind of a short driving day only 360 miles. We opted to stop here because of time. It was approaching the 5 or 6 o’clock hour and we wanted to experience the Kodak moment at mile marker zero of the Alaskan Highway! Lee’s brother opted out of dinner so he could do laundry. Lee and I went to a place named Solas. A restaurant connected to the Super 8 motel, don’t you know we were excited!!! The place was packed and the food was really great. Our fun was our little waitress. We ordered “top shelf” margaritas on the rocks no ice! She had no idea! Yep she was blonde!!!!! Lee went through the litany of what a top shelf margarita consisted of. Our little waitress’ response was “no flavor?” Poor Lee fell victim to this little ditzy blonde’s lack of bar skills. I interrupted and asked “what flavors do you have?” A smile came over her as if to say, ahh, now you are talking my language. So she rattled off the usual, lime, mango, strawberry, hmm there was a fourth and I can’t remember it. So I said to her that we wanted lime flavored margaritas with either Grand Marnier or Countreau, on the rocks no salt. Her little eyes glistened. Back she came, proud as a proverbial peacock. Popped our drinks down and asked us to taste them. Lee looked at her and said, “On the rocks!” Poor girl, wilted like a roasted flower. “I forgot that part!” Finally she got it right, returned with our on the rocks margaritas. They really weren’t bad, however, we really think she forgot the tequila!!!!!! Lee ordered wine!
Done with dinner, we headed to a little souvenir shop. This is where we noticed a headlight was out. Met Pat when we got back and we all walked over to the Wal-Mart, right across the street from the hotel, to buy a new one. Pat changed it out in the morning before we left. This was our day sans the ding ding ding. Originally our plan was to spend night six at Fort St John.

Day Six: Headlight changed, ding ding ding fixed we drive out of Dawson Creek. Decided against staying at Fort St John as that would have made for a very short day of driving. We really did want to eventually make it to Anchorage. Lee played tour guide and hotel reservationist! So we stop in Fort St John, no cell service, so bold little Lee walks into the hotel we made reservations with and asked to use the phone! She called the Northern Rockies Lodge in Muncho Lake , British Columbia some 430+ miles from Dawson Creek. They had room so she booked us. Hung up and cancelled our reservations in Fort St John.
The Northern Rockies Lodge, what an amazing place. A huge log structure, gorgeous décor and a wonderful restaurant. Probably the niftiest place we stayed. Google it to find out more.

Day seven: A great breakfast at the lodge. A misty dreary day. Packed up the car, Lee’s turn to drive, the ding is back! Just a few miles down the road and we met up with some mountain goats. Onward. Several more miles down the road and from the back seat Lee’s brother yells, “Buffalo, buffalo, buffalo.” To our right in a small ravine was a herd of buffalo. Probably 40 or so. Lee stops the car and we walk back to the herd. Snapping pictures and watching them as they protect the young. Lee was worried about them charging us!!!! Silly girl!
Lee I think had the worse conditions to drive through. The road from Muncho Lake to Whitehorse had much to be desired. Gravel and potholes and rain and fog. I think she was driving when we hit Destruction Bay as well. Miles of following the pilot car through the construction areas.
Stopped at Watson Lake for lunch. I have to admit Lee has done a great job finding us places to lay our heads and to satisfy our palates. The Chinese place we stopped at was packed and it was owned by an oriental woman. How could we go wrong! You guessed it, we went wrong. Maybe we were just not used of the way the locals like stuff cooked, or not cooked! Pat ordered sweet and sour pork; Lee ordered a chicken something dish; and I got chicken chow mein. We ended up eating the noodles and veggies. The sweet and sour pork came out drenched in a sauce, nothing worse than soggy crispy fried stuff. The chow mein was served with ramen noodles and raw, well maybe not raw, but under cooked chicken; and Lee’s dish was equally as gross. Our suggestion and recommendation is to bypass Watson Lake. Take a bite out of the beef jerky you brought and continue to drive!
Arrived Whitehorse some 422+ miles down the road. I know it looks like our driving days were short, miles wise yes, road wise no. Many of those miles were driven at 50mph or less. Yukon Territory!!!! Woo-hoo! Whitehorse was a nice town We spent the night in a West Mark Inn. We ate at a little Italian place called G&T Steakhouse & Pizza; Mediterranean, Italian, Seafood, smoked BBQ Ribs and Chicken! Not quite the restaurant marquis one would expect in the Yukon Territory. The restaurant has been in the family for twenty-five years. The food was great and the portions very large. Tummies full we headed back to the hotel.

Day eight: Breakfast at the West Mark Inn restaurant. Nothing to write home about, but it was breakfast. Next stop Tok, Alaska. Tok was only 390 miles down the road, but we knew we couldn’t make it to Anchorage 710 miles away and there really wasn’t much between Tok and Anchorage. Tok proved to be an experience. We stayed at Young’s motel and ate at Eddy’s restaurant, both an experience. The motel basically catered to hunters, fisherman, and road construction workers. The restaurant on the other hand appeared to attract all the above as well as the locals. Our morning waitress was a transplant from somewhere in the lower 48. She came to Tok to attend I think, the University of Alaska Tok Centre!!!! Our questions here were, first, how in the hell does one find such a remote place to attend school and second, what in the hell possesses a young person to want to attend such a school! Population around 1300 in the area of Tok; population of Fairbanks roughly 83,000; population Anchorage roughly 262,000; damn right I’m picking Tok!!!!!
I have to address Young’s motel. No amenities at all. Two beds, a TV with no more than 5 channels, a bathroom, a couple of lights and that’s it. Poor Lee had to dry her hair next to the TV because there were no outlets in the bathroom. So she used the TV screen as her mirror. I was so proud of her!

Day nine: Onward to final destination Anchorage. Oh did I mention at this point, the ding was still with us; brake light is out; and now the engine is missing! Clogged injector, fouled plug who knows. Nope we’re not stopping and do you think there might be, I mean even a remote chance, that Tok has a Volvo dealer!!!!!! NOT!
So Anchorage is our next real stop. Between Tok and Anchorage we stopped at a few places to eat and use the restrooms. Finally Anchorage and the Mangy Moose Bed & Breakfast. Pat and his wife are renting a little apartment here and we will be staying in the Royal Alaskan room.
The Mangy Moose B&B is run by Sally Imdieke and her 7 year old daughter Patricia. We cannot say enough about this place. Sally was the most gracious hostess. Funny how you meet strangers and they immediately feel like family. I could probably write volumns about Sally and her daughter and the Mangy Moose, but I won’t. I will, however, suggest and recommend that if you are ever in Anchorage and need a place to stay, the Mangy Moose is the place to stay. Sally makes a dynamite breakfast and keeps fresh coffee on all day.

Among the splendors of majestic mountains, free flowing water falls, and the beauty of snow capped mountain tops, we witnessed much animal life along the way. A lone Bald Eagle majestically perched upon a evergreen top in Canada; uncountable Hawks; Canadian Geese too many to fathom; herds of Wild Buffalo; a mother Caribou and her two babies; a small herd of Caribou; Elk; a small herd of Mountain Goats frolicking near the road; and distant sheep, possibly Mountain or Dahl Sheep spotting the mountain sides like cotton balls scattered about.

Highlights of Anchorage: The Army Navy Outlet Store had their yearly tent sale. Four days straight we went. The owner kinda befriended Lee. Seemed like each day we got a better deal. We bought shirts, coats, thermal undies, socks etc. Heck I got a Columbia Waterproof Parka for like $15, a Columbia shirt for $10. Lee got an HH, Henley and somebody, parka for $30. Even her brother Pat and Pat’s wife Suzanne found some good deals. I really think the owner was humoring us, "had to come all the way from Arkansas to find a good sale!!!!"

Ate at some really good restaurants and Lee took a fondness to Halibut. First time in our 12 years together that she actually ordered fish off the menu!
Took some nice sightseeing trips. Went to Girdwood and rode the Aleyeska Ski Resort Tram to the top of the mountain. Hiked up to Table Top mountain. Saw salmon in their spawn run at Campbell Creek. Saw Moose, Bison, Bears, Eagles and Elk at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. And finally Lee got to see a Moose; yep after we paid $15 at the conservation center, we were headed to dinner and a moose sauntered across the main roadway. Next day, our B&B hostess Sally comes running up the stairs after dropping Patricia at the bus stop, yelling “Lee, Stan moose, moose, moose.” A huge bull moose escorted Sally home! Very elusive, but we managed to get a couple of pictures. Wish I were an artist so I could paint the picture. Lee in her pink pajamas, wearing hiking boots, walking around the neighborhood trying to sneak a peek of this huge moose!!!!!

One thing Lee got to see that many folks never get to see and that is Denali. Denali meaning the Great One. Clear as a bell, covered in snow, standing against the blue sky, a picture few get to witness.

We went to Talkeetna a tiny remote little Alaskan town. Got some good pics by the river and had a great lunch at Mountain High Pizza Pie. Lee ordered a half Boca burger, it was the biggest half of anything we had ever seen.
At this point I know I am missing much. We had some great lunches and some great dinners. Oh gosh, almost forgot Granny B’s. Pat brought us here for lunch. Enjoyed a wonderful navy bean soup with a grilled ham and cheese sandwich. Lee enjoyed a half order of a Granny Nelson. Basically that was a cheeseburger without the bun! Let’s see, I’d describe it as a bed of lettuce topped with tomato, onion, burger and cheese. Went to a neat little Bistro, this is where Lee actually ordered Halibut. I was so proud of her. And she ate it all to boot!
We ate at the Moose’s Tooth, and the Bear Tooth, which is a sister restaurant of the Moose’s Tooth. Food was good in both, better at the Moose’s Tooth. Had King Crab at the Mining Company and were treated to a wonderful Italian dinner at Little Italy Restaurant. Oh and lunch at Sack’s, Snow City Café and Kaladi Brother’s. I cannot forget Café Savannah, a little tapas restaurant, awesome food. Needless to say I have missed listing many places. I can say we did not ever go hungry!!!!

We flew home via Alaska Airlines and American. This is a trip that we actually packed to enable us not to check any baggage which was pretty cool. Only screw up was our landing in Chicago. I reached up into the overhead bin, grabbed my blue bag and Lee’s green bag, so I thought! Got all the way into the walkway when Lee said, “you grabbed the wrong bag.” Well it was green; I didn’t realize that someone had pushed our two bags apart so they could fit their bag in. No big deal, the guy that owned the bag came out, I gave him his bag, and one of the workers went and got ours. When we landed in Chicago, we ended up at Gate L something and had to make our way to gate G-11. Plenty of time. Then they announced we were to fly out of
G-5, so down to G-5. No sooner got there and sat down when they announced we would be flying out of G-9, due to “equipment” failure!!!! Sheesh you would have thought the folks at G-11 would have known the plane was broke at G-5!!!!!

Finally home! Home sweet home. Great adventure with plans to return in June or July to fish!!!

Here is the link to my photos: http://community.webshots.com/album/568579132KvLhhM

Annie Laurie

2008-04-15T07:59:00.010-05:00

Here she is a 2005 Sea Ray 320 Sundancer, powered by two 6.2L V-drive engines. We cruise exclusively on Lake Ouachita, Arkansas. A Corps of Engineers lake spanning some 40,000 acres at normal level of 568 feet, the lake touts right at 1,000 miles of shore line, with numerous islands and niches to enjoy. The lake is also noted as one of the cleanest lakes in the US.

We upgraded from a 1994 Rinker Fiesta Vee 265, Basic Needs. She was exactly that, a basic little starter cruiser. She lacked many of the necessary amenities like heat and air, a generator and room! The Annie Laurie provides us all we need to spend a day or a long weekend on the lake.

We named her after my wife's mom. We lost her Halloween day. We are also going to document her. So the name will be "Annie Laurie" Port of El Dorado, Arkansas.

All the old folks got their start in El Dorado, and bought into Murphy Oil. Through the years it's been passed down, inherited etc. So we figured that we would honor her mom with giving our boat the name her daddy used to call her and pay tribute to where the $$ came from.

By the way, don't bother looking, there ain't no port in El Dorado, i think there is a river though.

This will be our first season with her and we look forward to spending many days and nights aboard her.