Key West 2020

No visit to Florida is complete without visiting my sister Barbara Sierra & her husband Luis.  Luis is a fabulous cook and they're both wonderful hosts.  Luis served peccadillo, a Cuban dish made with ground beef, onion, pepper, sangria, raisins and olives over rice, with sides of plantains, fried bananas (sort of).  Yum!  before lunch my niece Jennifer shared invaluable information on where to dine in Key West and I took notes. 

Okay.  Now we can go to Key West.  We got the boat out of Ft. Meyers early Tuesday morning, January 7, for the 4 hour trip.  Upon arrival good friends Buck & Claudia picked us up at the terminal and we quickly shared our list of things we wanted to do while there - all the restaurants we got from Jennifer!

  Our first stop - Blue Heaven.  And it was!  Gorgeous weather allowed us to be out

Nothing symbolizes Key West for me like a rooster, and they were plentiful.  They are beautiful, proud, cocky (yes, I meant that) and know how to strut their stuff, big time!  This is the best rooster pic I've ever taken, for sure.

Lynn, Claudia & Buck scouring the menu.  I settled on a lobster benny (big yum!) and a Key West lager.

Yep, it was mighty tasty!

It appears the rooster has been doing his job.  These little biddies made my day complete.

This was my first visit to a dessert restaurant, Better Than Sex.  It's the most sensuous place I've ever experienced.  The ambience, the food,,,,well, you just have to go and see for yourself.

This green heron was spotted by on a nature walk at the Blue Hole on Wednesday morning. 

Of course there was a gator in the pond.  I'm still fascinated by these prehistoric creatures. 

Claudia saw one Key deer on the nature trail, but in a nearby subdivision we saw this big daddy buck, so named by the neighbor whose yard he was visiting.  He was a beauty for sure.

Yeah, it was hard to find but well worth it.  Our wonderful guide and chauffeur, Buck, knew the place.  Their specialty - pizza!  No, I had conch chowder and ceviche. instead.

This fellow came right up to the car looking for a handout. No, we didn't give him one but we sure enjoyed his presence. 

I call this one "buck face".

 The best buck pic I've ever taken.  Now, just imagine this as a fawn - the size of our late Tinkerbell!  That's right.  They weigh 2-4 pounds at birth.  That still blows my mind to think about it.                

Our visit to the Turtle Rescue facility was very moving and interesting.  These folks do wonderful work to save as many of these creatures as they can.  Blessings for you all. 

The "iguana dude" surveying his domain at the Turtle Rescue place.

When I came to Key West 10 years ago in my rv, the Hog Fish Grill was a frequent hangout.  It was close by so I would scoot down there on the Vespa and have a sandwich.  That was the first time I'd even heard of hog fish but I became an instant fan.  It was good to be back.

Quite a creation! 

When I was here last my pony tail was hardly a nub.  Now it's full length and they let me in the front door!

Claudia is sampling Buck's mango drink.  Okay - give it back now.

Houseboats were all along the pier here.  Some were very pretty;  others, not so much.

Then there was a dragon in garden keeping watch.

Lynn's new hat. 

We just had to go into this beautiful church to rest and meditate for a little while. 

Our last stop on the food tour was Pepe's for "the best Key Lime pie".  Lots of places say this, but Jennifer said this really was.  I concur!  It was splendid!  My mouth is watering as I type this...

At the docks for tarpon feeding time.  This one is about 3 feet long.  No, he isn't after the pelican. 

We we're back on the boat at 5 and headed home.  Thanks for a wonderful experience to Buck and Claudia Goodreau and to Jennifer for being a great trip advisor. 

AVL Beer Week

Asheville Beer Week began last Friday and so far we've been to 3 events.  That's right, three.  The first was a tap takeover of historical English ales at Zebulon Artisan Ales in Weaverville on Saturday. While there we ran into some folks from Sun n Fun, Sarasota, FL.  The beer was truly outstanding.  Sorry, no pics as I forgot my camera.  Yesterday we went to Sierra Nevada for Spring-toberfest with traditional oompah music, German food and a free mug with the first round of their great Oktoberfest beer.  And today we enjoyed Beer Flavors 101 with Cliff Mori at Barley's Tap Room.  What a treat!

Cliff did an excellent job as he is a very fine speaker:  knowledgeable, animated, enthusiastic and responsive to his audience.  We learned so much that it's hard to know where to begin.
   First off, I earned 2 tickets by volunteering for the Asheville Brewer's Alliance to work at a soccer game checking id's and pouring beer.  And it just happened to be pouring rain, very cold and windy.  It actually snowed in the higher elevations that night!
     He started with the basics:  beer is made from water, malted barley, yeast and hops.  Asheville is so popular with brewers because the water here is mostly free of minerals.  In fact, most local brewers use tap water from the City of Asheville.

Cliff went on to explain how flavors are influenced by malted barley.  He gave us some to sample along with beer to compare to.  Wow!  My taste buds did somersaults!  He also gave me a new way of tasting:  hold nose, take a sip, slosh around mouth, swallow, release nose and exhale.  It was called back something and the flavor explosion was amazing.

Hops are flowers that are grown once a year and are a vital ingredient.  The plants grow to 20' high and like the northern latitudes and dry climates best.  IPA's are usually "dry hopped" which adds flavor without adding bitterness.  And they are the most popular style of beer in the US right now.   We sampled a Highland Brewing IPA which was excellent!
   In 2015 there were 32 breweries in Western North Carolina and today there are 68.  Kendra Penland, the executive director of the AVL Brewers' Alliance will have more than a handful if this trend continues.  I regret that none of my pictures of her were good enough to post.  My compliments to her and Cliff for a great workshop and wonderful addition to Beer Week 2017!  Thank you!

The Spring Concerts

We went to Forest, VA on May 11 for a 5 day visit to attend the band concerts for grandsons Patrick and Houston.  In addition, we also celebrated Mother's Day with a very fine dinner, visited Thomas Jefferson's summer home in Poplar Forest, had lunch with Enka High School class mate Bobbie Lewis Gallo and played golf at Forest Golf Course.  Whew!  What a week!

Patrick has decided to end his band career at this time to devote himself to other pursuits (swimming, boy scouts and pre-college electives).

So this was his last hoorah.  Or is it?

On Friday we went to Poplar Forest to see Jefferson's "summer home".  Although it was a rainy day, we enjoyed the house very much.  It's an octagon designed by him, of course.  It was as fascinating as the man!

Our hosts during this time were daughter Barbara and her husband, Trey.  As always they were warmly welcoming, fine cooks and tolerant of our weirdnesses.  Is that a word?  Now it is!

On Mother's Day we attended church with the Crowder clan and were inspired by a fine message and songs, as usual.  Afterward there were photo ops with some of the mothers of the day with children.

We then went to Westminster Canterbury, aka "the home", where we were treated to a wonderful lunch by Linda and Houston Crowder.  Thank you so much!  It was outstanding!

On Monday we had lunch with Enka High classmate Bobbie Lewis Gallo and her hubby, Frank, at a favorite restaurant in Lynchburg, the Farm Basket.  The time flew by as we thoroughly enjoyed lively conversation and good food.  It was a gorgeous day!  Hope to see you again sooner rather than later!

On Tuesday we went to Houston's concert and it was truly outstanding.  The highlight was George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue with Jeanne Backofen Craig on the piano.  She is world class and happens to be a band mom, too.  Unfortunately, I didn't get a single good photo that evening.  But I did share the music on facebook.

We never go far without our trusty companion, Tinkerbell.  She thinks Forest is her second home as she gets to play with Oreo, Patrick's guinea pig, and many of her favorite peeps when she isn't sunning herself on the deck.  Life is good!  Oh yeah!

Christmas Surprise

Anyone who knows me well knows how much I love Bell's scotch.  It remains my most favorite of all whiskeys, hands down.  I was introduced to it by the late Ted Hall, a business associate and friend from the UK, during trips to Toronto.  Later I enjoyed it in London pubs whenever I traveled there.

The only time I find it now is when we travel to Michigan and I cross the border to buy some.  Last time, in the spring, I was detained for 45 minutes returning to the US, just so I could pay $12 duty on 5, 750 ml bottles.  It was well worth the wait and the hassle by border guards.

Yesterday we had lunch at a new British pub here, Pete's Pies, and the owner came by to introduce himself.  He's a Brit, with the accent and good pub food to prove it, and we were discussing British pubs in general, and beers and Scotch in particular.  When I mentioned Bell's his face lit up and he went on to tell me where and how it was made to make it so good.

During the conversation Lynn mentioned that the Bell's box was still under the bed in the trailer and there might be a bottle left in it.  "No, that couldn't be", I said .  A friend had brought me 2 fifths from Canada in early fall and they were long gone.  There was just no way I could keep a big bottle for that long.  But I wondered....

Upon returning home we went straight to the trailer and lo and behold!  There it was!  A huge bottle of nectar from the Gods!  I was so excited I nearly wet my britches!

When I brought it into the house, I poured a small amount in a snifter and just sniffed it for a long time.  Finally I took a wee sip, swirled it around with my tongue and finally let it slide down.  My oh my!  Surely one of the best sips of Scotch I've ever tasted!

So, it was as if Santa came early, the Gods smiled upon me, I outsmarted myself again, or any one of a number of explanations.  Whatever, it's an even Merrier Christmas to me!  Oh yeah!

Searching for Peace

Today I swore off political commentary for a while in order to search for some peace of mind.  So I hopped on the Burgman and headed for Davidson River only to get caught in another rain storm, my second in as many days.
   Last night at Isis Restaurant & Music Hall Lynn & I celebrated Myra Grant's birthday, enjoyed some excellent blue grass music and saw this splendid bottle of wine.  No, we didn't try it this time...but surely will have to in the future.  With a name like that, who could resist?

How did I wind up so lucky to be with 4 ladies and it wasn't even my birthday!  Yee ha!

Last week daughter Barbara and grandsons Houston and Patrick were here for an evening of pizza and looking at pictures of Barbara as a very young girl.  The reactions were priceless!  Love 'em!

Of course I had to stop at Looking Glass falls, which was crowded with swimmers on this day.

And finally at the Cradle of Forestry where we lived and worked for the past 3 years, a bunny munching out on sweet clover.  Oh yeah!  A brief search for peace and I found it, for a while.

We do, indeed, find what we seek...with our hearts.