CHARMING ST. AUGUSTINE, SO MUCH TO LOVE!

Monday, January 6, 2025
Fairfield Inn
St. Augustine, Florida
Sun, 74F
 

After a good night’s sleep, we were ready to tackle St. Augustine, the oldest city in the nation. Of course, there was a brief stop at Buc-ees---the smell of barbecued beef and fresh baked sweet rolls as you walk in is overwhelming to the senses. We did abstain, except for coffee.

If you have never been to a Buc-ees, you might not understand the fascination of a gas station with 120 gas pumps and a store that has everything under the sun from Valentine doodads to 20 kinds of fudge, t-shirts, and a bakery with scones. In fact, Buc-ees is known for its BBQ brisket sandwiches, pastrami Reubens, cinnamon rolls, kolache, Beaver nuggets, walls of jerky (Bohemian Garlic, Cherry Maple, Teriyaki, Korean Barbecue, Bacon, Steakhouse, Jalapeno, Pepper, and Sweet & Spicy).  By the way, put your orders in for the jerky, we will be at Buc-ees along the way at least two more times—I’m serious!

Ever onward to Bass Pro and Costco, and one of our favorite outlet malls with Tommy Bahama, Chicos, and Travel Pro.  A TK swimsuit, 2 Janie pair of jeans, and another piece of luggage later, we headed to historic St. Augustine, we definitely needed some culture!

 

Brand new Bass Pro Shop 

St. Augustine, Florida

St. Augustine is a treasure and even if it hyper-appeals to tourists, its charm is unmistakable. I’m grateful for a city that preserves its heritage.  We parked the truck and started walking the streets full of people enjoying the warm weather and boutique shops along the way.

 

Part of Flagler College

Revolutionary War connection

We walked and strolled and walked some more, so much so that we could not find our truck when we were ready to leave.  Since my Fitbit today registers 7.5 miles, I think we walked 3 of those miles looking for that darned white GMC.  After my feet said they were walking for hours, we finally found it, right where we parked it—what on earth   would we do if we couldn’t find it?  I need to be more observant—TK is very good at directions, but I don’t think either of us were paying much attention when we parked—boutiques and shops were calling to us.

In the meantime, we reached out to my friend Judy from Nebraska who now lives in St. Augustine and made plans for dinner, we had not seen her in two years. Her choice of Poppy’s, an Italian restaurant, was excellent, but the best part was seeing her again—we share a friendship of 58 years from when we first met at college in Aix-en-Provence, France. The halcyon years.

 

Janie and Judy at Poppy's

St. Augustine

Our friends Donna and Lawrence left Wisconsin this morning and encountered much snow in Illinois. Thank goodness they reached Tennessee for their first night. They experienced a “huge rock to the windshield” after they got past the snow, but it did not go through, and they have already made an insurance claim!  We are keeping track of D & L and will meet up with them on Wednesday. 

Donna and Lawrence driving through Illinois

on a snowy highway

January 6, 2025

TK’s Takes: It was a perfect day—the weather was great.  The Bass Pro Shop is brand new and they are still working on the exterior.

Aside to Ann: I’m glad we can still keep up because I haven’t walked as much as I should have since Great Britain!! Keep at it, Australia beckons!

IS EVERYONE HEADED SOUTH FOR THE WINTER??

Sunday, January 5, 2025
Fairfield Inn
Elkin, North Carolina to St. Augustine, Florida
Clouds and sun 62^oF

 

Elkin, North Carolina

23F Sunday morning

Driving today was much better road wise, dry and clear, with no snow. We do think that everyone from PA, OH, and MI is heading to Florida, and we mean EVERYONE.  South Carolina’s highway is only two lane going South and that is just not enough for all the drivers.  We think the travelers are either going south for the warmth or headed home after the holidays.

It was another 500 mile day, a lot for TK and somewhat a lot for a passenger.  We were originally going to drive my car so we could share the driving, but TK’s truck won out because of the weather, and he still won’t let me drive it. 

You won't see the truck this dirty very often

South Carolina rest stop

We elected not to eat until dinner and that caused some “hangries.”  That is probably enough said.  I don't think we will do that again.

Welcome to Georgia

TK smiling because Donna texted

I kept quiet with books. Yesterday I read Three Women Disappear, and today I am almost finished with The 5^th Horseman, both by James Patterson, et. al.  My brother gave me American Heroes for Christmas, a non-fiction by Patterson. That is his best book by far and I recommend it.  Patterson and others interviewed U.S. soldiers or their survivors who served in overseas conflicts—from World War II, Korea, and Vietnam to Iraq and Afghanistan. They are valiant stories of those who earned distinguished military medals, including the Medal of Honor. Every one of them insisted they did not act alone, and others deserved medals too.   I personally knew three of the Medal of Honor recipients featured in this book.

Welcome to Florida

Orange juice is always our choice!

St. Augustine

Gas at Buc-ees

We arrived in St. Augustine about 5:30 p.m. and headed straight to Ford’s Garage for a burger and sweet and tangy chicken—just what we needed.   Today the temperature ranged from 23F to 63F, from North Carolina to St. Augustine.

Ford Model A in Ford's Garage

St. Augustine, Florida

TK’s Takes: He mentioned that his friend called him Dr. Doom—watching the weather like he does. I wanted to say Dr. D to soften it a bit, but TK said Dr. Doom was a comic book hero. I will go with that.  He also said that this was the worst traffic ever on our trip south to Florida.  I can vouch for that.   He is very tired again tonight. 

Day 1 Read

Day 2 Read

Best book for Christmas!

SNOW AND ICE BEGONE! NORTH CAROLINA WARMS US!

Saturday, January 4, 2025

Fairfield Inn
Erie, Pennsylvania to Elkin, North Carolina
Snow much of the way, 32F

 

Skyline Drive, Erie

January 4, 2025

8:22 a.m.

Thankfully TK keeps good track of the weather, especially when he spied a winter storm that would push toward West Virginia and Virginia on Sunday, our original departure date.  I’m more of a “the weather is what the weather is” kind of gal.  Since we were already packed, we left Erie this morning at 8:22 a.m. with a temperature of 20⁰ F and snow flurries threatening more Lake Effect snow.

The roads finally improved around Mercer, with mostly dry roads from then on.  We still saw some snow on the fields as we passed through West Virginia into Virginia. 

Here we are, West Virginia!

We stopped for lunch and our traditional “TK made” delicious pita sandwiches stuffed with tuna at the Walmart parking lot in Flatwoods, WV.  We bypassed the Fiesta Outlet in Flatwoods this time, hard to do, but our dear daughters in law have enough Fiesta dinnerware to open a small store.

West Virginia

January 4, 2025

I opted for only one sandwich for lunch because I must lose 8 pounds by Thursday so I can fit into my artful leggings. I texted Friend Donna to make sure she brought hers—she replied that she did, mentioning that we better wear them early in the cruise before they truly do not fit. Our dear friends Donna and Lawrence (Wisconsin) and Gwenda and Colin (England) are joining us on this cruise, and we are excited to see them!

With TK’s skillful driving through the windy roads and hills of West Virginia, we arrived in Elkin, North Carolina, about 500 miles from Erie, by 5 p.m.

TK is tired from expertly handling the GMC Sierra, and with snowy roads, crossword puzzles, a James Patterson book, small towns, pit stops at Flying J and Pilot, hawks soaring in the sky, creeks, rivers, New River Bridge, some ice, drivers who are nailbitingly careless, and Casey Kasem’s top 100 of 1978, I am tired too.  [More credit is obviously due to TK!]

After corralling our luggage into our room at Fairfield Inn, we had dinner--the other pita/tuna sandwich!

Dear Readers, here we go again!!

 

 

GOOD BYE LAKE EFFECT SNOW, WE ARE CRUISING THE CARIBBEAN AGAIN!

January 3, 2025
Erie, Pennsylvania
Lake Effect Snow, 28F

As I write, we are again experiencing Lake Effect Snow, not quite as bad as Black Friday Snowmageddon when we couldn't leave the house for four days, but not fun. That is why we are leaving earlier than expected for our trip south. TK has planned our January Caribbean cruise on the Enchanted Princess and away we go!!

January 3, 2025

Snow Globe Competition

Erie, PA--72 inches of snow so far this winter!

Early on November 29, 2024--our back porch and steps
that lead up to our pool
Lake Effect snowstorm begins

December 1, 2024

The same porch and steps -- over 42 inches

December 1, 2024

Janie shovels!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with our precious family before the snow started---

Thanksgiving on West 27th Street, Erie!

After our great Christmas celebration with family, we turned to prepping and packing for our January trip.

Here is the rundown--

Saturday, January 4,  2025        Leave Erie, PA

Thursday, January 9, 2025        Board the Enchanted Princess with Donna and Lawrence from Wisconsin

                                                  and Gwenda and Colin from England! (Fort Lauderdale)

Friday, January 10, 2025           Beach Day at Princess Cays

Sunday, January 12, 2025          St. Thomas

Monday, January 13, 2025         St. Maarten

Tuesday, January 14, 2025         Antigua

Wednesday, January 15, 2025    St. Kitts

Friday, January 17, 2025            Grand Turk

Sunday, January 19, 2025            Fort Lauderdale and drive to Fort Myers

Tuesday, January 21, 2025           Tampa, Florida

Wednesday, January 22, 2025      Atlanta, Georgia

We will be home about January 24, 2025---We do love to travel!!

7 day outlook Sat-Fri, January 4-10, 2025

Snow and more snow

We are outta here!

   

GALVESTON TO PITTSBURGH AND BACK TO ERIE-HOME SWEET HOME! Answers to What Is This Dish!

Erie, Pennsylvania
Friday, November 8, 2024
Sun,  57F

I am sorry it took so long to finish the blog for our glorious 5 week adventure! We arrived in Galveston as expected on Sunday, October 27, but for some reason it took a long time just to get off the ship. Galveston was not organized, but we did find our luggage and headed for the airport bus that TK has scheduled. The bus was running about an hour behind schedule, but we finally left the port about 11 a.m. I had no idea the bus ride from from Galveston was about 4 hours to Houston. We had to stop at another airport and then on to Bush in Houston.    

Galveston port

Last view from our Regal stateroom, after 33 days!

Thank goodness for TSA pre-check, a great investment! TK had arranged for our stay in the United Air lounge, but that was very crowded. They provide soups, salad, cheese and crackers, brownies, trail mix, and a couple other things so that we ended up eating there.  

United Club/Houston Airport

We did not get into Pittsburgh until midnight and of course, TK who thinks of everything, had arranged a Hampton Inn for us near where our car was parked.  Wise move!

After picking up the truck, we straggled to the Hampton Inn and basically fell into our bed. 

On  Monday morning we made a quick stop at the Grove City Outlet Mall and then onto Erie.  At this time I did not realize that my cold had morphed into pneumonia and a sinus infection, confirmed on Tuesday after a visit to the Urgent Care (which I heartily recommend over the Emergency Room!) I had never had either of these illnessses before but I am so grateful that TK's cold did the right thing and went away (verified by his pulmonologist).  And I am thankful that this pneumonia thing was not as bad as it could have been because I had the pneumonia vaccine. 

Today, eleven days later, I do feel much better. Guess what TK is doing! Planning our next two cruises!  In January 2025, God Willing, we will be heading to the Caribbean with Donna and Lawrence and Colin and Gwenda aboard the Enchanted Princess.

In October 2025 we will be headed to the Mediterranean again about the new Sun Princess, again God Willing.  By the way, this cruise is longer than the one we were just on! 37 days!

So for those of you who have shared our travels with us this time and are anxiously waiting to see what this dish is, TK has the answer!

We had guesses contributed by Ann, Julie, Heidi, Brian, and Chris. The correct answer is MEATLOAF! 

Julie guessed correctly! Brian and Ann were close. Brian said meat wrapped in bacon, and Ann guessed filet mignon wrapped in bacon. Chris was creative, guessing if she was in a sweet mood, some weird attempt at a cupcake atop of layer of French vanilla pecan ice cream with a maple or cinnamon or both syrup. 

Thank you for coming along with us on this wonderful journey!!  Until January!

GALVESTON, HERE WE COME, ENGINE OR NO ENGINE

Regal Princess/At Sea  /Gulf of Mexico
Saturday, October 26, 2024
Cloudy, Cooler than yesterday

Fanai (India-hostess), Janie, Giri /Jr Waiter, and Komang/ Waiter

Giri and Komang are from Indonesia

Even though we are still at sea, something came up and just in case someone is watching cruise news and because this item did get national attention in some areas, the blog is back today.

I did not mention these previously because I did not want anyone to be worried.  I truly think everything is going to be fine and we will arrive in Galveston tomorrow as scheduled.

On September 30 we spent the day in the Port of Greenock, Scotland. Later that day, after leaving the port,  we were in our stateroom about 8:30 p.m.  We heard a loud sort of boom. Shortly after hearing that noise, the captain made an announcement that there had been a small fire in the engine room, the fire was out, and no one was hurt.   TK knew and I sensed there was no such thing as a fire in an engine room without consequences, but no one seemed concerned, so we put that out of our mind.   I did think a little bit about sailing the Atlantic for six days and hoped that all was well.

The captain of the Regal Princess is in charge of almost 5000 souls and I certainly count on him to make the best decision.  I base this trust on Captain Walter Rybka, who guided the tall ship U.S. Brig Niagara many times while I was aboard, sometimes as crew, sometimes as a teacher with my students.  He took that role very seriously and I totally believed in him, especially when we sailed the Atlantic Ocean up the Eastern Seaboard to Boston from Philadelphia.  I know I mention that sail often, but if you knew the perils we faced (e.g. sailing through the NY shipping lanes with 24 hours of fog, hitting a port buoy in the Delaware River in the middle of the night with a rookie pilot on board (with some damage to the ship), the  hurricane chasing us, and the VERY stormy night when the sails had to be taken in), you would know why I completely trusted Captain Rybka’s judgment and why those 8 days on the Niagara as crew made such an impact on me. 

Back to the story which I seem to be making a little dramatic.  On the evening of October 24, we were in our stateroom again, about 5 p.m., when the electricity went out, the water stopped running, and the elevators halted.  We were just about ready to go to dinner. Again, the captain made an announcement that they were working on restoring power, and we could proceed to dinner as usual. He cautioned us not to use the elevators.  The ship had alternate power, so the hallways and common rooms were lit.   I did feel sorry for those people with interior staterooms.  By 6:30 p.m. power was restored, water was running, and the elevators were working. 

Last night about 8 p.m. the captain made another announcement that the ship was canceling the next scheduled cruise out of Galveston on Sunday.  The ship needed repairs and would be out of service.  This decision has huge repercussions—first the current passengers are grateful that we made it across the Atlantic with the problems. About 100 current guests were scheduled on the next Regal cruise, and think about the 3500 passengers arriving in Galveston for their cruise with only 2 days notice that it was cancelled. And, the crew!   Flights, hotels, I cannot even think about it.

 Rumors are quite prevalent and many people are upset. Some say the ship is going into drydock.  The Regal was launched in 2014, and supposedly goes into drydock every two years as is the custom with most ships I have been told. Several crew members said they will be doing deep cleaning on the ship while it is under repair.

We have been on the Regal since September 24, and this is definitely the most eventful cruise we have been on—hurricanes, engine fire, and generator problem.  Tonight at dinner TK and I reflected on each port and how much we have enjoyed the itinerary and the crew members who have been so accommodating. 

https://cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/2024/10/princess-cancels-upcoming-cruise-onboard-regal-princess/

We did finish packing today and that went quite well. We stuffed everything into our luggage. When TK weighed mine, both were about 46 pounds. His were about that much too.

TK's Takes: He thinks he is becoming a germaphobe. Lots of coughing going on. 

TK has one more "Guess This Dish"

Guess what dish this is!

TK and Janie with Komang and Giri

Janie on formal night

Voice of the Ocean Competition

I like this event--we really get to vote!

Judges have swivel seats

TK's Luggage ready to go!

Janie's Luggage too!

Just as an aside, it probably wasn't a good idea to start reading Clive Cussler's Valhalla Rising,  a book about a luxury cruise liner that becomes a raging inferno and sinks mysteriously.  I finished reading all the books I brought with me, this book was dropped off at the ship's library, and Clive Cussler is a favorite author.   We will be safely in Galveston in about 9 hours.

Aside to Donna:  TK was happy that Mamma Mia was playing today!  Lawrence's favorite movie!

AT SEA AND A SHINY STAINLESS STEEL KITCHEN!

Regal Princess/At Sea 
Friday, October 25, 2024
Sun, Hot 80s

Princess photo of TK and Janie

 in Cork, Ireland

Right now I am hoping no one back home has mentioned they are arranging a visit to a mental hospital for someone who wrote half her blog yesterday about wandering around in a Caribbean town looking for a battery so she could safely bring 200 pounds of luggage back to Erie.  That is not something one should worry about when there is so much going on in the world.  

Sea days are notorious for reflection, sun, Gulf of Mexico stretching to the horizon, Zumba classes (yeah right), trivia games, bingo, more bingo, art auction, live music everywhere, afternoon tea, and so much more to do, to say nothing about eating.  Buffet (Horizon Court), dining room for lunch (Allegro), pizzeria, burger bar, gelato place, ice cream bar, International Café, so many choices. 

I did have a little bit of a melt down as we sauntered by the buffet. TK quickly abandoned me. WHO would put kale in a chicken pot pie??  Chicken pot pie is one of the very few things that I like at the buffet. But kale?  I cannot eat kale and for the life of me I cannot understand why anyone would put kale in such a perfect dish. Why?? The lady who witnessed this meltdown selected one pot pie right in front of me.

Enough of that—the highlight today was the Culinary Demonstration in the Princess Theater and then the Galley tour. The Executive Chef, from Bulgaria, and the Director of Restaurant Operations, from Romania, basically did a comedy routine as they demonstrated making a pesto (Trenette al Pesto Ligura), Shrimp fra Diavolo, and Black Forest cake.   Between the two men, they manage about 450 staff, almost half the crew on the Regal Princess

They both joked about each other’s country-both on the Black Sea.  The best joke was told by Enache Popescu, the Romanian. First Daniel Tanchev, the Bulgarian, mentioned that in his country they throw rice at the newlywed couple after the wedding ceremony for luck.  Enache said in Romania they send the children to gather stones before the wedding. After the ceremony everyone throws the stones at the mother-in-law.  He said he hasn’t seen his mother-in-law since his wedding.  I definitely have someone I can verify this with!!

After the dishes were made with much joking around, the audience was invited to the main kitchen.  This was an abbreviated tour compared to some we have had.  As always, the area is spotless, stainless steel as far as one can see.  The staff within view were very proud of their work, and rightly so.

Shiny, stainless steel kitchen!

Carved watermelon

Tonight is a formal night, so TK and I must prepare our fancy duds. Lobster and prime rib on the menu!

Note: A couple days ago we enjoyed lunch in the Allegro dining room with Barb and Bob (MI), Stacy and George (CA), the people who organized our Orkney Island tour.  We caught up with everything we all have been doing.  What pleasant people we meet!   Since they are veteran cruisers, we hope to see them again on another cruise!

I finally purchased the Princess photos I wanted—

TK and Janie in Belfast

TK and Janie in Liverpool

Tomorrow is packing day, and we will be cramming all that jewelry and woolen sweaters into 4 pieces of luggage, to say nothing about 5 Starbucks cups.  Sunday morning we will arrive in Galveston. Our flight back to Pittsburgh is late, so we are staying there for the night. Back in Erie Monday—we are ready to be home!

GRAND CAYMAN, GUY HARVEY, AND BATTERIES!

Regal Princess/Georgetown, Grand Cayman
Thursday, October 24, 2024
Sun, 86F

Welcome to the Cayman Islands!

Regal Princess looking regal in Grand Cayman

 Another beautiful day greeted us as we arrived in Grand Cayman. This is a tender port, so we hopped onto a boat to take us into Georgetown.  We needed a battery for TK’s luggage scale so we opted to walk about 1 ¼ miles to the nearest large grocery store, Kirk’s.  As we slogged along in the heat, along the shore, I wondered how soon one of us was going to cave and hail a taxi. 

The battery was a necessity because, well, because our luggage weight limit is 50# each and we are a little apprehensive about the outcome of our visiting so many ports and indulging ourselves with stuff, like jewelry.  Just kidding. Do you have any idea what a wool sweater weighs? And socks that say “feckin’ eedjit?”

After many steps in the heat and doubting that there really was a store with a battery, finally a large grocery/pharmacy store (comparable to our Wegman’s) appeared like a mirage.  With full on air conditioning!  TK said he didn’t care one way or the other how long it took to find a battery, he was staying right there.  I found a clerk who took me straight to batteries and Voila! there was the pot of gold so to speak. (I hesitated to say Holy Grail, I did not want to blaspheme).

Kirk Market and Pharmacy!
Not a Mirage

Kirk's

Charming old building on the main road to 

Georgetown

It has withstood many storms!

As we started trudging back to the main part of the town, TK perked me up with an offer to stop at Burger King for a soda. How many BKs overlook the Caribbean, I wonder?!  We probably spent an hour there and met two very social residents who wanted to know more about the ship and told us about their visits to the U.S. with their families.  That was a very nice respite from the heat and our hike.

Burger King!

Fully “re-charged,” battery in hand, hydrated, we hiked back to the shops. This is the tenth time that we have been to Grand Cayman. The most spectacular visit was when we swam with the stingrays / Stingray City, something Grand Cayman is famous for.  A boat took us to an area where the water was not over my head and very warm.  After we got out of the boat, the tour guide gave us each food for the sting rays and said to hold our hands like we were feeding a horse.   I was pretending to be a big girl and held my hand out with food when my brain realized, “These aren’t horses!”  But as soon as I spotted a photographer who was going to take my picture, I stepped right up! For the old Erie Fire Department Rescue Diver, this was “old hat.” He who has done scuba in Alaska, the Atlantic, and the Caribbean, and Lake Erie, of course.

Anyway, we sauntered along, walking in and out of souvenir shops. Our main goal was the Guy Harvey shop.    Born in Germany to a British officer and his wife, and raised in Jamaica, Harvey earned his Ph.D. in Fisheries Management and Fish Biology. A very talented artist who now lives in Grand Cayman, he depicted Ernest Hemingway's fishing story "The Old Man and the Sea" in a series of 44 original pen-and-ink drawings and displayed them at an exhibition in Jamaica. By 1988, Harvey was considered one of the world's top saltwater game fish artists, and his reputation has only grown since.   We purchased one of Guy Harvey’s acrylics a few years ago that depicts the yellow fin tuna that TK wrestled with in Mazatlán several years ago.  Harvey is dedicated to ocean conservation and marine science literacy.  https://guyharvey.com/

In front of the Guy Harvey shop

Looking down at Guy Harvey's shop

Anyway, we appreciate his art and his dedication to ocean conservation, and we always visit this shop. TK purchased a fab button-down shirt today.  For lunch we visited Guy Harvey’s Boathouse Grill, second floor overlooking the sea. Great breeze and great burger! 

Guy Harvey Boathouse Grill

Janie at Guy Harvey's Boathouse Grill

TK waiting for lunch

TK is paying the bill!

Sharkee's used to be Margaritaville

where we often had a cheeseburger

in paradise!

There was a little excitement today on the ship about an hour before dinner, while we were still in port preparing to leave—there was a power failure—no lights, no water (fortunately TK had just finished his shower), no elevators. This has never happened to us on a cruise ship, although TK said he experienced that on his Navy cruiser (I think that circumstance would be much worse on a warship, if anyone asked me).

We were informed that there would still be dinner, but not the elevators. That seemed unusual, but we walked down seven floors to the Symphony Dining Room and indeed, there was dinner, prime rib tonight. By the time dinner was over, the elevators were working.

This is the last port before Galveston, two more sea days.  I think we are ready to go home.

TK’s Takes: Another hot day. Found the batteries.