FOOTBALL SUNDAY AT SEA

At Sea

Sunday, October 26, 2014

Sunny, 80s

 

We got up early to get padded lounge chairs poolside Deck 15 midship/the movie screen area ---that’s the trick and at least we sit in ours. Grabbed a quick pastry and coffee to go and I was all set for hours. Finished Bad Love, on to A Painted House by John Grisham—set in cotton field country in Arkansas so far. I can read no matter what the distraction. This morning was loud loud rooting for football games in England as well as a very large group of talkative women waiting in line for the buffet. We have never seen such lines, but I think it because this group has seminars throughout the day with limited time to eat. 

 

By 1 p.m. the sun was almost fully on me and the Bears/Patriots game was starting so I got some pizza and returned to our room to pack.  For some reason, this task was not so difficult—maybe because Tim was not there????

 

Now I’m back in the Piazza on Deck 5 next to a window watching the ocean wave frothingly by and listening to guitar melodies by Toby Reilly. He has a sort of Bob Dylan sound.

 

I know football is the prime focus on West 27^th Street, along with good food. Not sure what’s happening in Kiantone—perhaps nature walks and football too. We miss our family and by Thursday I hope to see them all! The purpose of this October trip was perfect eyes and we accomplished that with lots of fun thrown in. We have had a good time, but we are ready for home. 

 

Tomorrow we are scheduled to disembark about 8:30 a.m. We will drive back to Fort Myers to stay with Tom and Carol one last night. I have an appointment with Dr. Pascucci on Tuesday morning for one last check up. Immediately after that we begin our trek home.

GRAND TURK DELIVERS SUNSHINE

Grand Turk Island, /Turks and Caicos

Saturday, October 25, 2014

Sunny, 86 F

 

Grand Turk is one of my favorite islands. We can walk off the ship right onto the inviting white sandy beach and palm tree area that borders the Caribbean. Just beyond the beaches, in sight of the Caribbean, is Margaritaville with swim up bars, large pool areas, plenty of palms, the restaurant area outside or in. I even know our favorite lounge chair location, shaded under a palm and an umbrella, just two can sit between the foliage, and Tim can step right into the water and sit on a ledge. Our private paradise. I could sit in this location for hours and hours, reading and observing. A disk jockey organizes games and Jimmy Buffet music floats through the air.   

 

We did interrupt our scene for cheeseburgers in paradise. The hostess was guiding us up two flights of stairs—I was thinking, ‘I don’t see any fans up there.’ When I asked, the hostess just smiled and led us to a private area overlooking the sandy beaches and palms, the ship in the background, with an oh so pleasant breeze. She knew what she was doing.

 

After many hours we returned to the ship for dinner for two in our dining room with Ariam from Mexico, our waitress almost every night.

 

Right now I am writing at a table in the International Café in the Piazza listening to live music (Team Rootberry), a variety. Very pleasant. Tim is wandering around.

 

TK’s Take: We did take a break from our paradise to look for beach glass, and found plenty of luscious green. Tim pointed out that he found most of it, despite my perfect eyes. J

 

RAINY DAY IN THE CAYS

Princess Cays, Eleuthra Islands, Bahamas

October 24, 2014

Rainy, 80s

 

Four days in a row of rain!! This is a first for us on a cruise!! There was no point disembarking onto Princess Cays—

 

We went to the dining room for breakfast—pool deck for lunch (cheeseburgers—no need to do that again). Spent the rest of the day reading (finished Liberty [lots of military/global/lost nuclear warheads/drama—rate it a 10] ----started Bad Love by Jonathan Kellerman, a psychological “thriller”)

 

I made the mistake of going to the port talk, why would I do that?? Only one port this cruise and I could do the port talks myself. It lasted 1 hour and 20 minutes breaking into our dinner time so we ended up eating in the buffet (we like tables for 2 –no politics—and it was too late to get one in the dining room. Well, the line was very long in the buffet and Tim was not happy about that either. 

 

On the happy side we made it to see the comedian, Troy Thirdgill—from Oregon. He said people on a cruise are always approaching him to ask questions about the ship, the cruise, and other matters. He said, “Folks, I’m the comedian, don’t ask me. I don’t know.”

Then he provided this scenario. “Let’s say some F-14s flew real low over the ship. People would come and ask him what was going on. Do you really think the captain of the ship sees F-14 fighter jets flying low over the ship and he says to his Chief Mate, ‘Go get the comedian, I need to ask him what we should do.’” That kind of humor is my favorite.

 

LAZY SEA DAY AND THEN HAZY FORT LAUDERDALE

LAZY AND HAZY

At Sea and then Port of Fort Lauderdale

Wednesday, October 22 and Thursday, October 23, 2014

Scattered showers, hazy, 80s F

 

WEDNESDAY was a very lazy day---I finished Cold Fire and started Liberty by Stephen Coonts (good old intrigue with a few nuclear warheads thrown in, a Rear Admiral Jake Grafton novel). No beach for us. I enjoy sitting in a well-lit, comfortable lounge overlooking the sea while reading. Sometimes I hear interesting conversations too.

 

We had this interesting information from the Galley:

There are two main galleys on this ship, as well as three dining rooms, an Italian restaurant (Sabatini’s), a steak restaurant (Crown Grill), an International Café (for complimentary coffee, pastries, sandwiches, and other desserts), two buffet courts, a burger/hot dog/sausage grill (poolside), a pizzeria (poolside), and even an ice cream bar. There are 7 bars/lounges on this ship. 

 

Shopping List:

Food purchased from all over the world—

Fish: average 17,000 fish per day (fresh catch)—3 butchers aboard for this

Meat/daily average: 1400 pounds poultry; 1700 lbs. beef; 1400 lbs. pork/pork products; 300 lbs. veal; 200 lbs. lamb-----five butchers, 3 assistants.

Garde Manger (cold kitchen): average amount served daily:  salads—1600 lbs; shrimps---400 lbs.; mayonnaise---1300 gallons; sandwiches made---1500 each kind.

Eleven crew members work in this area.

Soups, Pastas, Vegetables/Daily: pasta---500 lbs; potatoes cooked---2700 pounds; vegetables cooked—2500 lbs; soups---550 gallons. 

Thirteen members of the galley crew work in this area.

Pastry Shop/Bakery/made from scratch daily: sweet rolls, croissants, bread rolls, puff pastry, bread sticks, biscuits, pizza.  1500 pounds of flour used daily!!

Thirteen bakers work during the day, and four at night to prepare the sweets and pastries.

Average amount of pastries prepared daily: 6000; average amount of cakes and pies served daily: 300.

Fruit and Cheese pantry: average amount of butter used daily: 400 lbs; average amount of fresh fruits served daily: 6000 lbs.

Six members of the galley crew wash, slice, prepare, and arrange the fruit and cheese daily.

Coffee pantry: average amount of coffee consumed daily—470 gallons; average amount of coffee cream used daily---62 gallons; average amount of sugar used daily---400 lbs.

A team of three keeps the coffee and espresso machines working.

Dishwashing:  A total of fifty-seen people work continuously prewashing, sorting, and feeding the items in a constant stream into the dishwashing machines. Silverware is cleaned and polished throughout the night for a fine finish for the next day.

Average daily dishes washed: 70,000

Average daily glasses washed: 21,500

 

All of that information does not include the work that is done to feed the crew!! Around 1200 more people!!!

 

Those are amazing facts from material provided by the ship personnel.

 

CARIBBEAN PRINCESS FACTS:

Captain Giorgio Pomata

Cruise Director: Lee Childers

Length: 950 ft.

Beam: 118 ft.

Ship Delivered: 2004

Max Pax: 3740

Max Crew: 1160

Registry: Bermuda

Gross Tonnage: 112,894 tons

 

After turkey dinner and Baked Alaska on Wednesday, Tim and I went to the Movies Under the Stars—Tom Cruise in Edge of Tomorrow. Despite the rain, we were cozy and dry and warm under an overhang. Princess provides warm blankets and popcorn for watching the movies. The movie was a startling concept with spider-like aliens and one master alien. Science fiction is good, but this would not be my favorite.

 

Thursday--

We had breakfast in the buffet and then proceeded to the dining room at 10 a.m. for the quickest “passenger in transit” turnaround yet. All we had to do was walk off the ship, sit for about 15 minutes, and then walk back on the ship.

 

Tim is noticing a huge difference between the calm older passengers on the five day cruise and the somewhat younger “wilder” bunch walking onto the ship now. Oh boy….

Tim made a reservation for dinner at the Crown Grill steakhouse---as an anniversary treat—30 years in August 2014.  The first course was black prawns on a bed of chopped shrimp salad with an aioli/mayonnaise sauce—Excellent! For second course Tim had French onion soup and I enjoyed cauliflower soup. Our main course was ribeye steak with special salts, Himalayan (pink) and Hawaiian (black). I liked the pink the best, although the black salt had a delicate smoky flavor.  The steak was served with a baked potato. Tim also had asparagus, too.  To help us celebrate the staff served us a chocolate mousse which I tasted, but I really had a lemon meringue cheesecake almost as good as the Cheesecake Factory. Tim had a chocolate volcano cake.

 Ordinarily we do not go to the specialty restaurants because there is a cost and there is no need to do that, but Tim has all this onboard credit so he was looking for ways to spend it. Another Tommy Bahama silk shirt was also on his agenda.

We really did not do anything special this evening—just walked around for people watching.

 

 

RAINY COZUMEL

Cozumel, Mexico

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Rainy, 84 F

 

Even though it was sunny when we arrived at the island of Cozumel, it soon turned into lots and lots of rain with brief periods of scattered showers.  We caught a taxi ($10 for two including tip) to the downtown area’s farthest point. Uncharacteristically, Tim left his umbrella in his truck in Fort Lauderdale. I won’t write that this makes him a bit sullen because of the rain. I let him use mine. I don’t melt because I am not as sweet as he is. 

 

Anyway, I had planned purchases to make for daughters-in-law and friends at Los Cinco Soles. No t-shirts and towels here. The walk to back up the main street is interesting because shop vendors plead with people to enter their shops for a free item like earrings or a pendant. We have always been courteous and smiled “no thank you,” but they are persistent with a capital P.

 

Tonight: Showtime/Princess singers and dancers—Born to Be Wild!!

Born to Be Wild is new show for the Caribbean Princess and I really enjoyed it. A real pink Cadillac emerged from beneath the stage. Roads, city scape, and land scape scenes were projected onto a huge screen behind the Cadillac which really made it seem as if the car was moving. Two couples in the car sang and jumped out of the car occasionally to dance with other dancers. Amazing special effects!!

 

Note to R &B: it is really hard to make this story exciting when we lead fairly ordinary lives. J I’m sure you are wondering if our lives are so ordinary, why are the stories so long?????  Tee hee

Note to D, C, MRP, & HK, and EK: Even though my credit card was denied (see below) I got you something!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

 

TK’s Take: When the longshoremen were tethering the ship he remembered that they always had a pool on his Navy cruiser guessing which minute in the hour the first line would be thrown or the first anchor set.

 

MJ’s Take: At Los Cinco Soles my credit card was denied. I was unhappy (to put it mildly) because I had called Visa in September and told them when and where I would be traveling. TK had to pay for my purchases. When we got to Diamonds International I told them my story and they allowed me to call Visa—we could not find a call center to make a call and this is a good reason to really check about using our phones abroad. Anyway, Visa apologized and admitted that I had called them as I should have. They fixed the situation.  I have spent enough money at DI and I am glad that they were so accommodating despite the fact that I was not making any purchases today.

Note to self: Remember to carry more than one credit card off the ship, take more cash, have dollar bills (I like to tip the restroom ladies for clean bathrooms), and go to our Verizon store soon!!!

GUY HARVEY AND GRAND CAYMAN

Georgetown, Grand Cayman

Monday, October 20, 2014

Sunny, very humid, 86 F

 

We arrived in Georgetown this morning and used a tender to get ashore. The sea is calm and there is a little breeze, but it is very humid here. This circumstance definitely slows us down. Years ago in Grand Cayman we swam with the sting rays the size of card table tops on Stingray Bar. We really should do that again soon, but today we opted to amble along the shore in the town area. The population is about 55,000 people, with zero unemployment. According to Princess literature, the Cayman Islands are the most-hit region on earth for tropical storms, with the islands getting hit or brushed by a major event every 1.6 years. Average storm winds (not gusts) are 109 mph. In 2004 Hurricane Ivan had gusts of nearly 170 mph, damaging 95% of all buildings and causing nearly $2 billion in damage.

 

The bulk of our shopping here was at Guy Harvey’s along Harbour Drive. He is a noted scientist and artist and we love his shirts, hats, basically anything with his design.  We also had lunch on a balcony overlooking the harbor at Guy Harvey’s restaurant, cheeseburgers and fries, one of our favorite cruise pastimes!!

We are ready for dinner now---show. More later!

After dinner we went to the main production show, Caribbean Caliente, starring the Princess singers and dancers. The vibrant Mexican/Spanish songs provided some lively dancing.  Afterward Tim wanted to check on the Steelers game. As soon as I saw the score, something like 13-3 with the Steelers losing, I went back to the room to read. When Tim returned, he said I should have had a little more patience because the Steelers scored 3 touchdowns in two minutes (an exaggeration?) just after I left. I’m glad, but we don’t know if they won or not.

TK’s Take: Steelers scored 3 touchdowns in 2 minutes

MJ’s Take: Eating a cheeseburger on a balcony while gazing on the Caribbean is a wonderful way to spend lunch!

 

CARIBBEAN PRINCESS—ALL ABOARD!!

October 19, 2014

At Sea—Aboard Caribbean Princess

Sunny, 86 F

 

After two more days with Tim’s brother, we drove to Fort Lauderdale to meet the Caribbean Princess. On Thursday night before we left, we had a great dinner with DDIL Denise’s mother Cheryl and Dave at the beautiful Watermark in Naples. It is one of Cheryl’s favorite restaurants. Tim had pork chops and I enjoyed fried shrimp. Our conversation covered a lot of topics, especially Florida living. I admire their ability to recognize great properties. Their home in Estero is fabulous. 

 

On Friday we had lunch at Mel’s Diner with Mike and Maria B., dear “old” friends from Erie who spend October to April or so in Bonita Springs.   I loved hearing Tim reminisce with Mike about neighborhood escapades from his childhood. Maria was an ESD teacher and we have a lot in common!

 

Another Friday highlight was a trip to Cape Coral for the Oktoberfest with Jeff, Carmel, Carol, and Tim. The festival was much larger than ours in Erie, with multiple bands and many more food vendors.  We had weinerschnitzel, noodles, and red cabbage—my favorite. Friends Kevin (EFD) and Jan S.  joined us.

(Note: I am very glad we have a German festival in Erie—but this year it was very rainy and we couldn’t go. We did enjoy the Greek and Polish festivals in Erie though).

 

October 19, Saturday morning, we left Tom and Carol’s generous hospitality for Fort Lauderdale. The Caribbean Princess was waiting for us. Every time we board a ship we have to fill out a form stating we are not sick with certain symptoms, but this time the form added wording asking if passengers had recently traveled to Sierra Leone and two other African countries in the last 21 days and if passengers were exhibiting certain symptoms. Of course this is a reaction to the situation recently with the Carnival Magic out of Galveston, Texas.

 

We were able to talk to sons Randy and Brian before we left port and told them about the web cams we would pass by. We stood on the deck and waved like crazy but it is doubtful they saw us because they were all having fun at Randy and Coleen’s Halloween Party. J

 

Unusual for us, we sat with 6 other couples for dinner. I told Tim if the conversation turned to politics I would leave immediately, but it didn’t!!! The couples were from Montreal, Buffalo area, Kansas, and Florida. We talked about fishing, the Air Force (the young married couple was on leave), snow, and cruising. Prime rib tonight!

 

Saturday night’s show included comedian Darrell Joyce, who was very funny. He said NO man looks good in Speedos—always good for a laugh and so true. He also said if a lady cannot see all of herself in the mirror, then she probably does not qualify to wear a two piece. In fact, a three piece might not even be appropriate.

 

Sunday was a reading day by the pool. Cold Fire by Dean Koontz.  Tim said the water was cold.

We dressed for formal night and dined at a table for two. The Surf and Turf was filet mignon and shrimp-no lobster—so I opted for German pot roast.

 

We immediately changed clothes after dinner and went to the movie under the stars—Maleficent. I really wanted to see it with B1 (not sure B2 could), but since it was playing here, we watched. Tim and I both thought it was very well done. I loved the story line except for Aurora’s father.

 

After the movie, at 10:15, believe it or not, we went to the Princess Theater to see Comedian Darrell Joyce again. I think he is funny and he focused on husband / wife relationships tonight.

 

Football was on all day and I think the Broncos won.

FROM FOOTBALL TO CRUISING

Bonita Springs, Florida

October 11-16, 2014

90s, Sunny every day!

 

I am very grateful for family! We are very comfortable at Tom and Carol’s---our bedroom and bath are off the enclosed courtyard, separate from the main residence. The weather has been perfect, sunny and warm, with some humidity.

 

On Sunday we did Face time with our beautiful girls in Erie, all four. B2 and Coleen visited the Brian and Denise and B1 over Columbus Day weekend.    After that we went to Jeff and Carmel’s for football—both Pittsburgh and Buffalo lost. Tim’s nephew and his wife Pat and Brenda were at the Bills game. More importantly, Carmel fixed spaghetti and meatballs that were delicious!!! I know Denise was cooking up a storm too!

 

This week Tim went to Dr. Pascucci for a checkup and otherwise we spent time looking at various developments.  

 

Carol and Tom are great cooks and we had roast pork one day and roast beef another. I wish my cooking tasted that good! 

 

We are preparing for our cruise on the Caribbean Princess on Saturday.

 

Itinerary:

October 18, 2014:       Board the Caribbean Princess in Fort Lauderdale

October 19, 2014:       At Sea

October 20, 2014:       Georgetown, Grand Cayman

October 21, 2014:       Cozumel, Mexico

October 22, 2014:       At Sea

October 23, 2014:       Fort Lauderdale (back to back cruises)

October 24, 2014:       Princess Cays, Bahamas

October 25, 2014:       Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos

October 26, 2014:       At Sea

October 27, 2014:       Fort Lauderdale to Bonita Springs

October 28, 2014:       Final Check up with Dr. Pascucci/ 8:30 a.m. then off to ERIE, PA!

October 29, 2014:

October 30, 2014:       Hope to be home!!

 

 

 

A WONDERFUL WEEK FOR THE EYES!!

Bonita Springs, Florida

October 5-11, 2014

90s, Sunny every day!

 

On Saturday, the 4^th, we ended up at the Cheesecake Factory because Uno’s is closed in this area. But, we discovered the heavenly, heavenly lemon meringue cheesecake ---- unbelievably wonderfully great!!

 

Football at Jeff’s was fun, especially because the Buffalo Bills won their game at the last movements. Carmel fixed eggplant lasagna, pulled pork, tossed salad, potato pancakes, and much more. There was a houseful, with Tom, Carol, Carmel, Jeff, Tim’s nieces Alyssa and Christine, and Christine’s friend Stephen.

 

Monday, the 6^th, was the surgery on my left eye. I was nervous, but Dr. Pascucci and his nurses (R.N.s) at the surgery center were great and all went smoothly. By Tuesday, my left eye was 20/20! Wednesday’s surgery on my right eye went just as smoothly and by Thursday I could read without reading glasses!!! I feel blessed and certainly amazed!

 

Tom’s hip surgery went well too on Monday, and he is home now, feeling so much better.

 

Friday Tim and I took a ride around the area. We stopped at Indian Creek/Siesta Bay RV and Manufactured Home Communities in Fort Myers Beach to look around. We looked at three brand new homes, each two bedrooms/2 baths, fully furnished (with washer, dryer, all other appliances, too).  The kitchens were very attractive and the master baths were nice. The usual amenities are available, pools, tennis, pickle ball, bocce, and entertainment, etc.

The largest (Nautilus—20’ x 48’) was $75,000. One does not own the property so there is a fee, e.g. $607 to $881/month (each home we looked at had the same site fee).

 

The Dolphin was $71,900, sized 24’ x 36 and the Crown Conch was $72,900, sized 24’ x 36’.

 

Basically, all of the homes are small. The advantage here is that homeowners can rent their homes to vacationers, something most communities do not allow. Our salesman said that people get $3600/per month for their homes (allegedly)—after all this is Fort Myers Beach, a highly desirable area.

 

After we left the area, we really weighed the pros and cons. Truthfully, we like what we are doing, traveling all over!!

 

Today we are going to Tim’s grandniece Kennedy’s birthday party—her 6^th!

FORT MYERS, FLORIDA--

Bonita Springs, Florida
October 1-4, 2014
We arrived at Tim’s brother Tom’s home in the afternoon from Titusville. We will be staying here until October 18 while I have eye surgery. We have a separate area with a bedroom and bath, which leads to the courtyard pool area. It is so nice of Tom and Carol to offer us this residence.
On Thursday I met Dr. Stephen Pascucci and I have every confidence in him. Dr. Pascucci wrote the book on eye surgeries (actually, he co-authored the definitive text on Conductive Keratoplasty—the correction of astigmatism and the restoration of near vision following LASIK and intraocular lens surgeries).  www.bonitaeye.com
My surgeries are scheduled for next Monday and Wednesday. (October 6, 8). Our niece is the office manager for Dr. Pascucci and she is totally supportive of his work.
The weather is very warm—90s, and sunny. On Friday we drove to Fleamasters Flea Market, one of our favorite places to shop.
Today we will drive around the Naples, Florida area and stop for dinner at Uno Pizzeria and Grill!!
I’m going to enjoy the time I have to work on my grand uncle Archie Harvey’s story (World War I) and read the book friend H gave me, Seal of Honor: Operation Red Wings and the Life of Lt. Michael P. Murphy by Gary Williams.
I am very disappointed that I cannot upload photos to this blog.

PEARL FRYAR AND HIS TOPIARY GARDEN

Hilton Garden Inn
Titusville, Florida
September 30, 2014
As we traveled through country roads today from Rock Hill to Bishopville, South Carolina, we saw one real plantation home, 2 little deer in the road, and a very large dam structure which created a nice lake.  Two hours later we arrived at the home of Pearl Fryar, "star" of the documentary, A Man Named Pearl.




At first when he moved into the neighborhood, he was not accepted, but he used his artistic talents to create a fabulous topiary garden and won many garden club awards. The metal structures and fountains that grace the very large gardens display his talent further! He is a very humble man, and speaks around the country about his belief in people. Pearl has created scholarships to encourage young people without financial means to go beyond high school. We spent at least an hour in the gardens--I'm having difficulty uploading photos.




From the gardens we drove through Georgia and arrived in Titusville, Florida at 7 p.m. The cheapest gas was $3.03/gallon. Of course we stopped for our complimentary Florida orange juice at the visitor welcome center.


Our goal in Titusville was Dixie Crossroads, a favorite seafood restaurant! Red shrimp are in now and that is what Tim enjoyed. I had their fresh fried shrimp. Love their corn fritters dusted with powdered sugar!

ROCKIN IN ROCK HILL, SOUTH CAROLINA!

Hilton Garden Inn
650 Tinsley Way 29730
Rock Hill, SC




After 10 hours on the road we arrived in Rock Hill. The hotel is great-2 bed suite. After a short visit at the Flatwoods Fiesta outlet, we stopped at New River Gorge, West Virginia which has become a tradition.


Today's trip was not extraordinary--warm weather/70s--sunny. Light traffic until Charlotte, NC. We listened to a Greg Iles book, Blood Memory. Dinner at Chili's across from the hotel--very good!


MJ's Takes About TK: He makes great tuna fish sandwiches! And his driving was flawless today!

OUR FALL TRIP 2014!

On Monday we are leaving for Florida for several reasons--and of course one is to cruise! Our first stop will be Pearl Fryar's topiary garden in Bishopville, South Carolina. I saw him speak at Mercyhurst University a few years ago and have wanted to see his gardens ever since. He was featured in a documentary, A Man Named Pearl. Check out www.pearlfryar.com

THREADS OF FEELING

LEARN SOMETHING NEW IN WILLIAMSBURG! THREADS OF FEELING…

Monday, February 24, 2014
Williamsburg, Virginia
Sunny, 56 F

Excitement alert warning to Randy and Brian. We purchased our single day ticket for Colonial Williamsburg this morning for $25 per person, soon to be 43/per single day. We had a couple things in mind that we wanted to see and CW was not busy today. 

The Capitol—our own private tour. There we learned that our part of Pennsylvania was once part of Virginia, something we may have known before, but forgot.  We learned that Williamsburg’s population in the 18^th century was about 1800-2000 people and 52% were slaves.

The Charlton Coffee House---our own private tour.  In the mid-90s we saw the archeological dig here when the CW Foundation started researching and excavating a new site. Now there is a reconstructed coffee house on the site, not far from the Capitol. Virginian men in politics met here to discuss the topics of the day (1767 is being reenacted here). We had coffee today with 34 year old George Washington. He told us he had been to LeBoeuf and Fort Pitt in the north near where we liveJ.

Apothecary---we talked with Robin, the daughter of a Travelers Rest resident, who has worked at CW for 30 years!

Silversmith---now they have sterling silver beads for my bracelet!

King’s Arms Tavern—lunch!  I love eating as if it is 1775. Tim had fried chicken, I had a ham and cheese sandwich with homemade chips, and we shared excellent bread pudding. A violinist entertained.

Public Armoury Kitchen---this is where a blacksmith, a tinsmith, a carpenter, and other tradesmen worked together to make the ammunition and weapons for war. The kitchen was used for cooking meals for the tradesman and the manager of the armoury who lived onsite with his family.

John Greenhow---a city store that sells goods of the day, e.g. soaps, candles, pewter, games, toys, period clothing, etc. Always a favorite stop to look.

****Public Hospital and DeWitt Wallace Museum---First of all, I don’t like visiting the hospital for the insane for fear Tim will leave me. J J But, we had not seen it in a while and we visited quickly. Fortunately things have changed and people with mental illness are treated differently now.

THREADS OF FEELING at the museum.  This exhibit was so moving and heart rending, actually very difficult to view. 

According to the website, “The exhibition, which was originally curated and displayed at London’s Foundling museum in 2011, showcases fabrics never shown before which illustrate the moment of parting as mothers left their babies at the original Foundling Hospital.

In the cases of more than 4,000 babies left at the London Foundling Hospital between 1741 and 1760, a small object or token, usually a piece of fabric, was kept as an identifying record. The fabric was either provided by the mother or cut from the child’s clothing by the hospital's nurses. Attached to registration forms and bound up into ledgers, these pieces of fabric form the largest collection of everyday textiles surviving in Britain from the 18th Century. A selection of the textiles forms the focus of the Threads of Feeling exhibition, along with examples of the kinds of garments made from them, and the stories they tell us about individual babies, their mothers and their lives.

Visitors to the Colonial Williamsburg Museum in Virginia, USA, now have a chance to view this moving collection as the exhibition remains in situ until March 2014.  This will be the last time these objects can be exhibited for the foreseeable future, because natural dyes fade if exposed to light for too long. Two years on display is considered the maximum exposure that is safe.
The process of giving over a baby to the hospital was anonymous. It was a form of adoption, whereby the hospital became the infant’s parent and its previous identity was effaced. The mother’s name was not recorded, but many left personal notes or letters exhorting the hospital to care for their child. The pieces of fabric in the ledgers were kept, with the expectation that they could be used to identify the child if it was returned to its mother. In reality, very few of the children were ever reclaimed.”

Actually information in the exhibit noted that there were over 16,000 babies left in this hospital and only 152 children were reclaimed by their mother. Reading the notes that the mothers left with their babies really tore at my heart—there were so many circumstances, economics, unwed, the mother died. Actually the hospital still exists today, as an orphanage.

 

I just cannot imagine a mother having to leave her child like this. The heartbreaking circumstances that would lead to giving up a child.  The last act of leaving a token, like a piece of cloth or a note, or some token. I asked the Colonial Williamsburg curator if there were any records indicating how these children grew up and had families and did she know of anyone to trace their family back to a foundling baby. She said that the babies, with new names and christened, stayed with a wet nurse until they were 5 or 6 years old. Then they returned to the London Foundling Hospital and School for school and then to learn a trade. She said a CW employee has traced his family back to a foundling who learned a trade, came to America, and had a family.

 See http://www.threadsoffeeling.com/ 

That exhibit ended our day at CW. We went to dinner at Uno Chicago Grill (aside to Friend H—do you remember the one in Denver?) I love their deep dish pizza!

Today was cooler, still wearing sandals! We are thinking about whether we will stay an extra day because of the weather.

TK’s Take: we got a call today from the owner of the Park Model in TRR—she ended up selling it today to her neighbor’s daughter. We knew she had first dibs, but the owner was not sure she could get financing. Oh well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

WILLIAMSBURG, A FAVORITE STOP!

WILLIAMSBURG, A FAVORITE STOP!

Hampton Inn, Williamsburg, Virginia
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Partly cloudy, 72 F

We meandered to Williamsburg in about 5  1/2 hours. The roads were free of traffic congestion and we made a few stops. Now when we come to Williamsburg we are reminded of our great family visit several years ago when we all went to Great Wolf Lodge, Colonial Williamsburg, and other favorite places around here.

For dinner we went to Captain George’s Seafood restaurant. The cost has gone up to $31/per person, but on Sundays it is $27. Tim loves the snow crab legs (the Captain serves 1 million pounds of crab legs per year in 4 restaurants). I like the lightly breaded fried shrimp (125,000 pounds per year) and the scallops (300,000 pounds per year). This restaurant gets great reviews on Trip Advisor.

We spent some time in the large Yankee Candle shop and the Premium Outlets. I even scored a TB swim suit for 70% off, in my favorite style.

Today may be the last day for capris and just a top. The rest of the week will be cooler in Virginia, and we sure know it will be in Pennsylvania. Tomorrow will still be a good day for outdoor activities in Colonial Williamsburg and Jamestown.

NORTH, HERE WE COME!

NORTH, HERE WE COME!

Hampton Inn, Fayetteville, North Carolina
Sunny, 70s F

After another quick look at the Breckinridge Park Model home, we said our goodbyes to Scorchy and Mary Lou and off we went about 8:30 a.m.  We took a detour to a showroom for RVs and other park homes along Rt. 301 just to do a little research. We already found out that our friends in Charleston were in California and the Pearl Fryar Topiary Garden in Bishopville was only open till 4 p.m. on Saturday, closed on Sunday, so this would be a travel day.

We used Randy’s new travel app, Waze, and it showed us how to avoid big traffic logjams along the Interstates. Bravely we got off the highway twice and took the new bypass route Waze suggested. One time we could even see traffic completely stopped for 5 miles on I-95 while we traveled parallel to it.

By 7 p.m. we stopped in Fayetteville for the night. It is so amazing to travel now with cell phones, GPS, and apps like Hilton, Marriott, Trip Advisor, Gas Buddy, and Waze, and more. With two phones I can look up something on one and call on the other.

We are about 4 ½ hours from Williamsburg, our destination tomorrow. Coleen texted me a photo of B2 at her first gymnastics practice meet (so professional looking), Friend M texted me about the weather in Erie, Friend MJ told me about her impending trip to Florida, and all suggested we either stay in Florida or delay our return! By the time we get to Erie on Wednesday if all goes well, it will be single digit temperature. Oh no! The upside: we see our family and friends again!!!!!!!

I kept forgetting to mention that while we were in the Dade City area we saw whole orchards of oranges being razed---there is a mite invading the trees and destroying the citrus farming.

GARAGE SALES AND HOMES FOR SALE! STAY TUNED!

GARAGE SALES AND HOMES FOR SALE

TRR, Dade City, Florida
Friday, February 21, 2014
Cloudy, rainy, 81 F’

Excitement alert / caution for Randy and Brian. J This blog is going to be about more fun and foodJ. Early this morning we headed to the Garden Club booth for coffee before we set off through the community to see all the garage sales. Next door neighbor Gene (retired FF from Michigan) loaned us his golf cart. I only bought books, but it was a good opportunity to meet a lot of the people who live here, full and part time, and see the various residences.  There is a good mix of northeastern U.S. residents and 14% Canadian.

We jotted phone numbers down for some homes in the “TRR Villages,” where there are manufactured homes.  Soon enough we were looking at three homes. The first one (2007) was quite large, with tiled floors, 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, beautiful kitchen, two living rooms, laundry room, a Florida room, large lanai, and two very nice workshops, which I would use for my study, about 2000 sq. ft. Priced at $120,000, including a golf cart. At TRR one owns the home and land, pays taxes ($800 for Florida residents, $1,600 for non-residents), plus $3000 yearly park fee, plus insurance. Scorchy said to offer $80,000. The size was perfect, but the lot abutted others with less privacy than our house in Pennsylvania---although the houses are well-spaced and not on top of one another. 

House #2 was much older and smaller and would need a lot of work. Mary Lou said to have floors inspected because they often need replacing.  It had two bedrooms and two baths, smaller kitchen, laundry, separate dining room, large Florida room/lanai, living room, and a small workshop area. $80,000. The lots in the TRR Villages are valued at $35,000-$40,000, although there are no lots available anymore. This lot was much more private.

House #3 was older too, 1977. Two bedrooms, two baths, nice kitchen, huge living room, huge Florida room, laundry, small lanai, and workshop, but to get to the Florida room and the lanai, one had to go through a bedroom. The nicest thing about this house was the lot—backed up to a creek and trees, with deer included. $89,000.

All three houses had RV hookups, too.

In the past 5 years we have looked at a lot of places, from southern Georgia to Estero, Florida. We have many friends and family who live in Florida full or part time. Some live in condos—high condo fees which increase yearly, living very close to others; gated communities---high yearly fees (we have seen up to $800/month—no land ownership); manufactured home communities—high yearly fees and one owns only the home, not the land (up to $800/month). Some have golf courses, most have activity centers/pools. I have to say the best deal seems to be here at TRR where one owns a share and has a vote in the community. Mary Lou said that about 1000 people live in TRR, full or part time. There is an emergency services department too, as well as a post office. She also said that RV parks are being bought up and turned into subdivisions. When a community becomes non-solvent and that happens, an entrepreneur buys it and raises fees. Some have gone bankrupt. TRR is solvent. 

If we ever did buy, we sure would know to find one where we owned the home and the land. Since we have our almost maintenance free house in Pennsylvania, we sure do not want a second home that needs lots of maintenance either! Another option is just buying a home like we do in Erie, but if we only stayed there 2-3 months, we would worry about which neighborhood, security, and so on.

The other thing we are noticing is that people ARE buying in Florida again!

After such a busy morning, we drove to Zephyrhills for dinner, another great restaurant, Sunrise Eatery. Since it is our last day in Florida, I opted for shrimp, which came with a very tasty authentic Greek salad. Tim had a variety of seafood-shrimp, fish, and clams.  Even at 2 p.m. there was a line for this restaurant (we did not really eat breakfast or lunch, as usual, so we have early dinner and a snack about 6 or 7).

Now we are preparing to leave Dade City tomorrow morning to head to Bishopville, South Carolina and the Pearl Fryar Topiary Garden.

Last night we got to “Facetime” with B1 and Denise, a real treat!! We miss our family! While they were cozy in their house, we were sitting outdoors in shorts talking to them at 9:30 p.m.!

Update: OK, maybe a change of plans: While we were having strawberry shortcake at Mary Lou’s, we looked at the TR Times and saw two “Park Models” for sale. We made some calls and went to see them. A Park Model is a sort of transition between an RV and a home.

Park Model #1 was a 2011, very neat and clean, tasteful colors, electric kitchen, one bedroom, one bath, full kitchen, living area, study area, screened in porch, and a shed. $60,000, no golf cart, no TR Share. No washer and dryer.

Park Model #2 was a 2007, very neat and clean, tasteful colors, gas kitchen, one bedroom, one bath, full kitchen, living area, study area, screened in porch, and a shed. $28,000, includes newer golf cart, new washer and dryer, and a TR Share ($2700+---this is what I mentioned before, one has to have a share in the park to live here). Owners (from Maine) told us they leave the air on in the summer while they are gone and the electricity cost is $20/month. That prevents moisture and other problems.

 And so here we are, will we stay another day and take another look? We saw the sites at night. Could we live in a smaller space for 2-3 months a year? They are bigger than a balcony stateroom on a cruise ship. Stay tuned.