Sunshine-n-Wine

What is a year without a second trip out to wine country?  Honestly, this was an add-on trip for me as the hubs actually scheduled this for work.  We brought another couple with us so I could have some travel buddies - bonus that it was also an early birthday trip for one of them.  Too bad it rained the ENTIRE time so no great photo opportunities.  I love this area in the Fall, so at the very least, I was able to enjoy the brilliant leaf colors. I don't blog non-travel related things so I want to add a note here.  I started a very part-time gig (like no more than 10 hours per week) at my local wine and liquor store.  We are reviewing current inventory and looking to revamp our offerings, so I turned this into a quasi work trip for me.  I'll be sure to tag the ones that were more of an industry visit as they may not fully represent a normal experience. Also, the COVID visit to Willamette required two new things (to me): reservations and proof-of-vaccina...

  Rutherford Hill Having a milestone birthday in 2020 is a bitch!  We had two cruises cancelled this year due to COVID-19, so when it came time to figure out how to replace my birthday cruise in October, we chose Napa.  Because... duh.  We visited many repeat wineries where we are wine club members so I will not re-iterate those again; rather, I will add the new-to-us ones in this blog post. For those who haven't travelled here since COVID-19 started, here's a couple things that were different on this trip: All tastings were by appointment only, no more than 6 to a group All tastings were conducted outside with no tours It was HOT but the smoke from the Glass Fire was gone Restaurants were still at 25% indoor capacity, with almost all offering takeout or outdoor seating Masks required all the time except when sitting for a tasting and eating In Lodi, all tastings were done in a flight format.  VERY different than what we have seen anywhere in wine country, thank...

I was very interested to see how this cruise line compares to Carnival.  I knew that we could carry on as much alcohol as we wanted, so for the first cruise yet, the rum rummers remained neatly tucked into the "cruise box."  I had also heard that the food is amazing, and that the private island is beautiful.  I love Coco Cay (RC's island) and Half Moon Cay (Carnival's island), so I was really looking forward to experiencing Castaway Cay. I couldn't help compare this ship to Royal and Carnival's 3-day cruise ships so I'm breaking my usual format to throw in some comparison tidbits. Parking We parked at the garage at port, which is different for us.  There were a couple of check points before even getting to the luggage and passenger drop-off point.  Drop off was easy, but it did take a while to get parked and walk back to the terminal.  The walk back to the car after the cruise was pretty nice though.  No shuttling back to the parking lot. We split...

The River Street Inn - a nice example of the riverfront architecture. Hotel Fairfield Inn Savannah Midtown - We stayed in this hotel one night and decided to book another hotel for Saturday night.  It was a little bit rundown and not very convenient to get to the historic part of downtown  The price savings did not make it worth staying for a second night. Savannah Residence Inn Downtown/Historic District - Switching to this hotel was a much better option for us. 1) It was more convenient and within walking distance of many more things.  It is right next door to one of the Visitor Centers. 2) The fare-free DOT public transportation passes right by. 3) If you can find parking on the street (we got lucky with a spot in front), there is no need to pay for the valet parking. 4) The hotel is in much better shape with more amentities than the Fairfield.  I wish it hadn't been pouring outside Saturday night because I really wanted to relax with a glass of wine by t...

I really wanted to take my mom on her first cruise, and I chose this 4-night out of Port Canaveral because I thought it would be a good place to start for her. Date: October 3rd - 7th Home Port: Port Canaveral Parking: Park Port Canaveral (at the Radisson) $7.95/day + tax (free shuttle) Price: $520 total incl taxes - Porthole cabin R23 Ports of Call: Nassau, Half Moon Cay (private island) Embarkation Day Recommend making a parking reservation at Park Port Canaveral . Easy, cheap, convenient, and quick. They have shuttles running pretty much non-stop and nice staff. Check-in and boarding was smooth and the fastest yet!  Food Your typical Carnival fare.  The Lido deck buffett area is small, but there are still enough choices to find something to eat.  I was surprised to find out that Elegant night was the evening as Nassau (port from 12-8).  Needless to say, dinner wasn't all that crowded. Dessert suggestion on Elegant night - order Che...

The hubs travels often for work, and it was great to finally have the chance to join him over Labor Day weekend plus visit my cousin at the same time.  Here's a rundown of our weekend  - we ate a lot and the rest was family time for me so not much touristy stuff. Hotel Crown Plaza Metro - W Madison & Halstead - Hubs always stays here when he has to go to his corporate office, and it really is in a great location.  My favorite things about it?  It's close to Greektown, right off the highway, is convenient to CTA buses, and is within walking distance of Union Station.  Restaurants Amarit Thai & Pan Asian Cuisine  - Good food, reasonable prices.  600 S. Dearborn Blokes and Birds - Such a neat little pub-style restaurant just south of Wrigley Field.  I had the lamb sandwich, which was just OK.  Hubs got shepherd's pie - lamb-based.  Very good!  The service was fantastic!  We got there abo...

The Breeze ports in Miami and does several different itineries.  We chose an 8-day, which included Curacao, La Romana, Grand Turk, and Aruba. Parking in Miami Premier Cruise Parking ( premiercruisepark@bellsouth.net ), 1415 NE 2nd Ave. Parking Garage $8 per day, including tax.  Free shuttle to port.  The wait for the arrival of the shuttle at the parking garage going to port can be a little long, but it's worth it to us.  We've used this garage twice and will use it again.  I believe that it is better to prepay so you don't have to do it there. The Food The steakhouse is very much the same as any of the other Carnival steakhouses, but still very good. We also ate dinner in Cucina del Capitano - excellent food and service!  Highly recommend!  We also made use of Guy Fieri's Burgers several times - hello yumminess!  Tandoor Indian cuisine (aft pool location) and Blue Iguana burritos were also amazing.  We did not starve on this trip! ...

Just returned from our second trip to San Fran so we didn't do as much of the touristy stuff.  I'd also like to note that I am wearing a boot right now for a stress fracture and will write a bit about my experience being slightly physically impaired in this very hilly, very busy city. To start, the boot was rough.  Along with hills, some of the sidewalks dip down toward the street - no big deal if you aren't wearing something that holds your ankle straight.  Walking across the street and over the street car lines was trickier than I thought it would be due to lack of ground feel and ability to balance.  I was up and down street cars and buses, and people are pretty patient when they see that someone is injured.  I will say, though, that the city's attitude isn't overly gracious for those who are slightly handicapped.  Not mean, just not overly nice about having to go slow.  I also don't remember more than one or two people actually getting up to give...

We spent four days in Napa as part of trip to California.  Before reading through reviews, here is a list of general tips: Don't plan to visit more than 4 or 5 wineries in a day. If you can, download the eConcierges app on your droid or iPhone.  There are a lot of 2 for 1 tasting discounts (they are denoted "2:1" on my reviews below).  Split the tastings between two people if possible.  If you taste by yourself, you risk getting too drunk too fast and not being able to continue to other wineries.  For our 2 for 1's, we split them with another couple so four people tasted for the price of one.  Great deal financially and very wise. Take snacks and water with you.  Remember that protein (like a burger) is the best thing you can eat! Wine country is very casual - so jeans will probably be the nicest item of clothing you really need unless you are planning some really upscale jaunts. Hotel Villa Murialdo Vacation Rental - Unit D - 2BR, 2BA ...