A Parrothead's Journal

All Good Things Come to an End

2009-09-19T21:13:00.005-05:00

Lori kindly gave me the opportunity to post the last blog for this trip. . . .

Well first we must thank our wonderful friend, Kathryn, for sharing her family cabin with us. Yes, Kathryn, we did take a look at your family photo albums and we do think you were quite the catch in your 70's auburn pant suit. The chance to cook comfort foods, warm ourselves by a nightly fire, hear the bubbling brook, wake up to the birds chatting busily, and feel the filtered sun through the giant redwoods truly restored our spirits. Not to mention we were 2 1/2 minutes from the ocean and endless breathtaking vistas.

After a breakfast of mac & cheese (after all, who am I to let cheese go to waste?) and some time spent cleaning etc, we finally said a sad goodbye to "our" home.

We then drove to San Jose with Cynthia (the GPS unit) as our trusty guide. It only took us about an hour and 15 minutes. We had wanted to do the scenic drive to San Jose thru the mountains, but Kathryn had kindly warned us the beauty would come at the cost of twisty, winding roads and our stomachs just weren't up to that challenge. Just another excuse of why we need to come back. . . . In San Jose, we were going to explore the city, but with the knowledge that we would soon be back to reality, we suddenly felt quite tired. As soon as Amy saw the pool, though, she perked right up. It must be noted the temp in San Jose was 20 degrees warmer than the average temp in Carmel, so Amy was quite eager to soak up some warmth.

While Amy was basking in the sun, Lori opted to return our rental car, so that we wouldn't have to worry about this later. This took a bit longer than expected, so Lori was quite happy to climb into bed and relax a bit before supper.

We then walked to a local restaurant, the Sonoma Chicken Coop, or as Lori likes to call it, the Sonoma Chicken Co-op. Amy tried another local beer - Anchor Mist, I think, out of San Fran. With our bellys' full and a 6 am flight tomorrow, we will be heading to bed shortly.

So if you see us this winter, our eyes glazed over as we stare into space, we will be "California Dreaming on Such a Winter's Day" Until next time California.

Signing off, Lewis & Clark

Finally Learning How to Relax

2009-09-19T15:33:00.005-05:00

We decided that Friday was to be our “relaxing” day. We slept in, lounged about the cabin and didn’t leave until after 12:30. Talk about rebels. We then went to the Mission San Carlos Borromeo Del Rio Carmel which is located in Carmel-By-The-Sea.

It is a beautiful Spanish mission with lovely architecture and gorgeous gardens. We wandered about, absorbing the serenity - missions can be so peaceful. We also learned a bit of history. The intrepid explorers almost fall asleep in the courtyard, lulled by the sound of the fountain and the warm California sun.

Is it siesta time yet?

After the Mission, we needed to run a few errands and we decided to explore a bit of the area. We ended up at the Barnyard shopping complex. We wandered around surrounded by a busload of French tourists. We soon realized that we were hungry and we found a Mexican restaurant. We thought it tied in nicely after visiting the Mission. Amy ordered a new beer which we can’t pronounce but we love. Lori (designated driver) ordered pineapple juice. We feasted on semi-authentic Mexican food and by the end Lori was stuffed but very very happy. Amy was happy due to the beer she had.

We (Lori) waddled back to our car and headed to Safeway to blog. The usual Wi-Fi guys were there and we spent an enjoyable 90 minutes posting our blog. Apparently, uploading video takes forever using their Internet connection. Blog post finally completed, we head back to the cabin to begin cleaning and preparing for our departure on Saturday :( As we drive home, we notice that the visibility over the ocean seems endless and it should be a beautiful sunset. We arrive at the cabin and frantically begin cleaning, laundry and packing. Soon it is almost time for the sun to set, so we head down the canyon road on foot. We set up camp next to the cow pasture and begin documenting the sunset. Amy’s camera again stops working so it is up to Lori’s little Nikon to document the event.

We then walk back to the cabin where we continue to clean and pack. It is amazing how much of a mess you can make in just 6 days. We start our usual fire and Amy prepares dinner for herself. She is attempting to finish the food we purchased. Lori is still stuffed from lunch and can only manage a beer - we had 2 left and Amy can’t drink both of them. Soon it is bed time and our California adventure is quickly coming to an end.

Garrapata

2009-09-18T17:53:00.028-05:00

As we have driven back and forth to the cabin, we have been passing Garrapata State Park. We finally were able to fit it into our busy schedule on Thursday. We awoke, packed up and headed out. As we reached Highway 1 at the end of our road, we first noticed the clouds. The Charlie Brown cloud that follows us in Wisconsin had finally made it to California. He was upset we hadn’t told him of our travel plans. We parked our car and headed out into the mist. The first sign we see warns us of loose rocks and steep cliffs.

Maybe a loose rock will knock some sense into us!

Undaunted (or just plain crazy) the intrepid explorers walk toward the sound of the ocean. The path is a bit obscured but we will be careful.

Where did the ocean go?

We finally see a bit of sun and we run toward it.

I see sun - follow me Lori!

The scenery is of course spectacular. The wind is a bit rough and the temperature has dropped but Amy puts on her winter, sorry spring/fall coat, and we enjoy the wonderful views.

We found the ocean again!

We continue to explore the cliff edge, following each and every turn to make sure we see everything. Suddenly, we come upon a path that appears to lead down to a sandy cove. The intrepid explorers carefully make their way down. Lori uses the “slide on your butt” technique. Amy has a more dignified walk upright approach. Our persistence pays off and we find ourselves once again in a beautiful sheltered cove with a lovely sandy beach. Lori is as happy as a clam.

I'm as happy as a clam - halfway to Hawaii!

Amy is more adventurous and wants to enjoy the sand between her toes. After all, she is on a beach. Shoes off, she heads into the water.

It's beautiful - I just can't feel my feet!

Please notice the combination of bare feet and fleece. We spend time exploring the cove before reluctantly leaving -but not before having a kelp ball fight!! A first for the blog – VIDEO!. Please enjoy the excellent cinematography.

We finally climbed out of the cove taking a different path that looked much easier. Well, actually no. It was much more difficult. However, the scrambling on our knees (just Lori) was worth it. In the cove just south of the one we had been playing in, we finally found a wild sea otter. He was a very industrious sea otter, continuously diving, eating and grooming. We quickly whip out our cameras, both still and video and spend another 30 minutes documenting the every move of this lovely ocean creature. Now Amy is as happy as a clam. We actually see a second sea otter but he stays farther out.

At last - the elusive wild sea otter!

We finally continue on our hike and suddenly Lori’s cell phone rings. We are on the backside of a mountain, a few feet away from the ocean, and apparently we now have service. It is a text message from Kathryn giving us advice on how to build a fire. Lori of course replies - it is the polite thing to do and we continue on our hike. Several more scenic outlooks, followed by a hike up the side of a mountain, we return to our car. It was at that point that Lori found the box with maps for the park. It might have helped us a few hours before but a box with “Maps” on it was too obvious for us. We need someone in a Yogi Bear hat and green vest to give us a map. Reviewing the map, we head off in search of Garrapata beach to eat our picnic lunch. We quickly find it and head down to the beach. The view was spectacular and we quickly finished our PBJ, grape, chip and cookie lunch. It was then we realized it was only 2 pm. We usually hike until much later. We decide to return to Monterey in hopes of seeing a sea lion. We have heard them, taken pictures of them from very far away, but we hope to get closer at Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey.

We easily find our way to the Wharf. We park and we can once again hear the sea lions. We make our way over to the end of the wharf and we find two floating in the bay and a few on a deck under a building.

Much bigger than dots in the distance.

We quickly whip out cameras and begin snapping and filming. Once again Amy’s camera doesn’t work. It only happens at Monterey Bay. What’s up with that? We continue to walk around the wharf finding a few seals and sea otters but we can still hear a cacophony of sea lions in the distance. And then we see it. At the end of a rock formation in the bay are sea lion dots – we are now experts at finding sea lion dots in the distance. However, this time, we think we can get closer. We begin walking towards it finding lots of seals basking in the sun.

That better be your flipper I feel!

We only stop momentarily; our quest is the sea lion dots. Then finally we find them, hundreds of sea lions sleeping, sneezing, drooling, barking, fighting and whatever else they do at the end of a pier. Amy is the happiest a clam has ever been.

We will never settle for dots in the distance again!

Amy spends several minutes attempting to talk one into returning home with her. He ignores her.

So Lori, how much extra room do you have in your suitcase?

They have a fence at the end of the wharf to keep Amy away from the sea lions. Several hours later, Lori drags Amy away from the sea lions. (Hint for Christmas – Amy wants a sea lion). This obsession explains her choice of dogs – really big, brown, furry and drooly. Amy believes she connected with a large sea lion she named Louie. Louie might disagree. We stop at the wharf shops looking for tacky souvenirs. Once again, Lori is foiled and Amy needs to buy another suitcase for all the fleeces & sweatshirts she's purchasing.

We head home, first stopping at Safeway to pick up a few things, say hi to the Wi-Fi crew and post our blog. Unfortunately, it takes forever to upload an image. We miss the sunset and don’t get back to our cabin until late. Amy quickly starts dinner (spaghetti) while Lori gathers tinder and starts yet another fire. We use lots of paper (Kathryn) and we get the fire started but we can’t seem to keep it burning for more than a few hours. Lori learned at Girl Scouts how to start a fire, they never taught her how to maintain the fire. We then finish our second course (sour cream mashed potatoes) and it’s time for bed. Tomorrow we plan on relaxing and visiting the Mission in Carmel.

Lewis & Clark signing off.

Smelly Dirty People

2009-09-17T20:48:00.013-05:00

Today was to be Wash Wednesday but we encountered a few issues which we will detail later in our blog. The plan for Wednesday was to visit Point Lobos State Preserve followed by visiting Garrapata State Park. We arrived at Point Lobos just after 10 am and headed for the Sea Lion Rocks. As we exited our car, we could hear the bark of sea lions. We quickly bundled up and headed out. The wind off the ocean was exhilarating and the scenery of course was beautiful. We climbed down stairs, hiked over strange rock formations until we were at Sea Lion Cove. And there they were, hundreds of sea lions barking and basking in the sun on the appropriately named Sea Lion Rocks which were way far away. We took lots of pictures and hopefully the blobs we saw will actually show up on the picture.

Look - sea lion dots!

We then started to hike toward the tide pools when we noticed a cute little harbor seal in a small cove very close to us. Well, we started snapping pictures at a frenzied rate. Imagine our delight when we notice another seal. Cameras, both still and video, continued to frantically document the cute little seals (now 2). Suddenly, we realized a third seal is already on a rock sunning itself. It was quickly followed by two more. Then, the drama begins. Little seal number 4, wanted to get up on the rock with the other harbor seals. But try and try as he might, he just couldn’t make it. Video cameras in hand, we shouted encouragement each time a wave came in. “Now” we yelled, “you can do it number 4” as we continued to snap pictures and record video. Flash forward 45 minutes – Number 4 as we call him, finally pulled himself out of the ocean onto the rock. “Whoo Hoo” we yelled, and continued to take pictures and video.

Seal #4 is the fourth seal from the right.

It was then that we noticed several other seals in the small cove, playing in the surf and jumping on the rock. Number 4 should take lessons from Number 5. He got up on the rock in one try. We said goodbye to the cute little seals and headed to the tide pools.
On our way to the tide pools we passed several rocks that had more seals on them but being blind, we didn’t notice them until someone else points them out or we notice them taking pictures. Apparently, there are a lot of harbor seals at Point Lobos. Finally we make it to the tide pools. We climbed down bizarre rock formations looking for small pools of water hoping they hold trapped sea life waiting desperately for the tide to return. We didn’t find any starfish or sea urchin but we both found lots of crabs. Bigger red crabs and little bitty hermit crabs.

Big Crabs

Little Crabs - hiding in the sea shells.

The two intrepid explorers (Lori & Amy – it is our blog after all so we can be intrepid explorers), never ones to take the easy way, decided to climb down to an area that was difficult to reach and free of pesky tourists. In this desolate and dangerous crevice, we encountered the magnificent Kelp Ball Sea.

The Magnificent Kelp Ball Sea

Since we are the first explorers to find it, we get to name it. Lori foolishly goes first and touches the icky kelp balls. A thought occurs to her, “how about I toss one at Amy?” So begins the first ever kelp ball fight. We invented it – we get to name it. Amy is stranded on a ledge across from Lori, separated by the Kelp Ball Sea. Lori attempts to help Amy cross the sea by tossing her a very long piece of kelp rope. Unfortunately, the lasso didn’t make it to Amy and she had to scramble down the jagged rocks unaided.

Try to catch it when I throw it Amy!

We explored the area, name the largest rock Lewis & Clark Mountain – again we can name anything we discover. We continue to explore the coast, climbing up and down rocks, scrambling through crevices, hoping to find trapped sea life.

Suddenly, we discover we are hungry – it is almost 2 pm. We walk back to the parking area. It takes us about 20 minutes. Hiking is a lot faster when you stick to the path and don’t take a picture every 3 minutes. We forgot to mention that Lori lost the map. It must have happened during the harbor seal rock climbing drama. You remember, number 4 couldn’t get up. Lori purchased another map and we were able to find a picnic area. We selected Whaler’s Cove where we enjoyed our usual scrumptious lunch of PBJ sandwiches, grapes, chips and a cookie. While eating lunch, Lori notices that Amy’s ears are red. Amy says “not as red as your nose”. Lori’s nose isn’t that red, it is just reflecting Amy’s ears. Lunch finished, the intrepid explorers press on. We now have a map and we know where we are going. Yeah, right.

Where did we park the car?

We start on a simple trail around a few coves. We end up back where we originally started in the morning. Not too bad but our car is parked at Whaler’s Cover. We take another trail to double back. We don’t. We find ourselves even farther from the car. We take another path and by some miracle end up close to the car. By now Lori is hobbling (sore toes) and Amy’s ears and nose are about to erupt into flames. Needless to say, we are done for the day and we will not be visiting Garrapata State Park.

We head back to the cabin where we plan on enjoying hot showers followed by a lovely dinner of potatoes, sweet corn and spaghetti and then the evening’s entertainment – laundry. Upon entering the cabin, we realize we don’t have any power. We can’t call anyone because the phones are cordless and they need power. We can’t use our cell phones because we don’t have any service. Like any intrepid explorer would do, we head back to town and electricity.

Upon entering Safeway, our safe haven, we notice that the quick wash up job we did in the dark with cold water – well we missed a few spots. We say hi to Wi-Fi friends we have made and quickly post our Monterey trip on the blog. It’s only 5:30 – what to do now? We decide to have Chinese food in town. We read the menu and decide on frozen yogurt at the Yogurt Heaven instead. It is now 6 pm. What to do? We head to CVS to pick up batteries for the flashlights and candles. Once there, we realize we don’t know what size batteries we need and they only candles they have are small scented votive candles. We head back to the cabin to prepare for a rustic evening. Upon arriving, we decide to visit our neighbor Laura who is also the caretaker. She graciously gives us her flashlight and tells us that they say the power will be restored by 2 am.

Back to the cabin, we light candles and start our daily fire. We had picked up tinder for the fire and while building it we realized we had gathered up a hanger. Only Amy could blindly, randomly collect a wire hanger with the rest of her sticks and never realize it. (Amy thinks Lori planted it.) (Lori knows Amy picked it up, she also attempted to pick up the water line.) Fire started, we eat anything that doesn’t need to be cooked. After a refreshing dinner of bananas and one cookie, we attempt to entertain ourselves by telling stores and pretending to be living in the Little House on the Prairie. Amy is kicked out of the Little House when she can’t bring in more firewood because she has just lotioned her hands. Lori is kicked out because she can’t keep a fire going.

As we sit in extremely low light of the glowing, not burning logs, we realize we have one thing going for us. The scented candles are masking our smelly dirty kelpie body odor. And with Wednesday our scheduled laundry day, we both are a little short on clean clothes. Did we forget to mention that the hot water heater uses electricity? That means no hot showers for you! When we are at the depths of our despair (9 pm) suddenly the power comes on. Yippee!!! Amy quickly makes herself some spaghetti and we both enjoy a beer. All is well in our world. Tomorrow, clean clothes!!!!

Monterey

2009-09-16T19:11:00.014-05:00

Look - we got canned at Cannery Row!

Tuesday we went to Monterey on a mission to visit the Aquarium and find the adorable sea otter. Thanks to Cynthia (GPS) unit we easily found the public parking ramp. On our way to the aquarium, we were quickly distracted by all the tourist shops selling fudge, magnets, sea otter apparel and everything they could print, paint or embroider Monterey Bay on. $100 later we finally made it to the Aquarium. The Aquarium is fabulous!

Awwwww!!!!

First stop is the sea otter exhibit. Those guys are the cutest wet furballs in the entire Pacific Ocean. Amy has always been fascinated by the sea otter. In fact, she found out she sleeps just like one – one her back with her hands and flippers tucked up. An hour later, we decided to check out the rest of the Aquarium.

Look Mom - Harry Otter!!!

We viewed giant squid, a kelp forest, murre birds diving for food among giant fish and assorted other aquatic life that we could actually see because they provided magnifying glasses. We enjoyed the interactive displays where we touched sea urchin, star fish and whatever else was in the exhibit. The current “special” exhibition is the secret life of sea horses. Well, their life is not so secret after viewing the exhibition. They are adorable and the male actually carries the babies and gives birth. After the excitement of the sea horses, we head to view the jellyfish. They were spectacular. We tried to identify the species that stung Amy in the Cayman Islands. We selected the coolest one.

Purple Stripe Jellyfish

It is called purple stripe of something with purple in it. What, we never said we were marine biologists.

Happy as a clam - again, why are clams happy?

After the Aquarium, we had lunch at the Monterey Crepe Shoppe. It was lovely, all warm cheese, avocado and tomato. Fortified, we head off to the wharf to find more sea life. We find a parking spot and head to the beach. It was a lovely walk but we decided on the way back to take the recreational trail that runs parallel to the beach. Lori’s ankles decide to stop working and we spend some time on a park bench. After the rest, we continue on our quest to find more sea life but at a much slower pace. (Note to Lori – pick up a pair of orthopedic walking shoes). We finally make it to the wharf where to our delight we see sea otters. They are diving and eating and then diving and eating, right in front of us. Well, in the ocean about 30 yards away. We quickly pull out cameras and start clicking away. Well Lori starts clicking with her small digital camera – Amy’s fabulous camera with the zoom lens suddenly decides not to work. Lori shot her pictures blind – in the bright sun you can see what is being displayed on the LCD screen. Amy was able to record them on video but they are much more active in the wild than in a display at the Aquarium. We continued to walk the wharf (Lori hobbles instead of walking) to find more sea life. We find a sea lion floating near a boat but he/she won’t cooperate and pose for pictures. We also are amazed to see a ton of jelly fish visibly swimming in the ocean right next to the pier. On the other side of the wharf we hear barking and are just in time to see a sea lion dive into the ocean and swim toward a boat that was tossing fish scraps into the water. A plethora of pelicans also joined in the buffet. We continued on hoping to find a sea lion sunbathing and we did determine where they were. Unfortunately, Lori’s feet were unable to make the journey in the time span allowed – we only had 20 minutes left on our parking ticket. We vow to return another day with a working camera and working feet.

Cynthia helps us find our way back to Carmel but she likes to recalculate and suddenly she wants me to turn left instead of right and it made for an interesting drive home. We did determine we are about 20 minutes from a California Pizza Kitchen restaurant – good to know. We are now experienced drivers on Highway 1 and we are able to negotiate the rush hour traffic easily and find our way back to our second home in Carmel – Safeway. Lori visits the CVS pharmacy to pick up an ace bandage and more memory cards – we seem to be taking more pictures than usual. We find a spot at Safeway where they have free WiFi in their Starbucks. After we post our blog we head home for grilled cheese and tater tots. Amy is the cook and Lori is the firestarter. We return to the traditional methods of paper, tinder and wood and no more of those fancy firestarters from Duraflame. Fire going, Lori takes a little white pill to take away the pain in her ankles. Magically the food appears and during dinner we view our pictures and video. We again realize we need to take a photography class. But that is the beauty of digital photography, you can take thousands of pictures and only keep the ones you like and delete the others. We take care of our night chore of recharging all of our equipment in preparation of the next day’s adventure. Fire out, we go to sleep dreaming of sea otters.

Holy Guacamole!!!

2009-09-15T19:02:00.009-05:00

Home Sweet Home

Go get yourself a drink and go to the bathroom – this is going to be a long one. It is Monday night and we are sore, tired, cold (just Amy) but very very happy. Sunday we drove from San Jose to our lovely cabin. Kathryn gave us directions but we relied on Cynthia, Lori’s new GPS unit. She quickly took control of the car and we stayed right as directed for 80 plus miles. As a result, we didn’t follow the scenic route over the mountains, instead we went through the valley. On the bright side, we went through the artichoke capital of the world. We found home for the week but Cynthia had us turn into the cabin just before our cabin. She was so close. We unpacked, made our beds up quickly and explored the area. We designated the upper cabin as the time out cabin and if you are naughty that is where you are spending the night. We then went back to Carmel to purchase food and provisions (aka beer) for the week. We easily found Safeway and filled our cart with wholesome food (wink wink). The highlights of Safeway are that they have Alaskan Amber beer, guava jelly, and these extremely delicious chocolate chewies which are like brownie batter suspended. It’s like magic. Lori also found her favorite Maui onion chips. We did pick up bread, butter, pasta, cheese and more cheese, fruit, diet coke and sierra mist, and a few other items to make our tummies happy. Lori signed up for a super saver card and we saved $23.28. We loaded up the car and headed back to the cabin. Dinner was delicious. Amy prepared her world famous asparagus and three cheese ravioli with a lovely marina sauce. At least that is what I thought we ate under the three pounds of grated parmesan cheese. Note to Mr. & Mrs. Martin – we need to plan a cheese intervention for Amy when we get back. We ate al fresco (outside) enjoying the beauty and the lack of mosquitoes. Can you believe it Mrs. Martin? No mosquitoes!!!! Nightfall soon arrived and we went inside the cabin. What to do? Raised on TV and addicted to the Internet we stood dumbfounded in the middle of the cabin trying to find something to do. Here is a list of our activities; we perused all the books in the library and picked a few to read, we started a fire and actually kept it going, we cursed ourselves for forgetting marshmallows at Safeway and we ate more cookies. Did I mention that they are delicious?
Look Mom - fire!!

Now it’s 8:00 pm (10:00 pm to you Midwesterners). What else can we do? Amy spent an hour in the game cupboard looking at the games and deciding what we would be playing. Our choices are Yahtzee, Time the Game, checkers, chess, scrabble and Jenga. I know, we are quite the party animals. Amy wisely left Twister in the cupboard. As we have said many times, that is how rumors get started. It’s now 8:30 pm. We now understand why the Amish have such large families. Without a quilt to sew or butter to churn, what else is there to do? We then checked out the video collection. Among the many possible choices we found Lori’s favorite movie that she hasn’t seen in over 25 years – Strange Brew. Take off you hosers. Eh! Can you believe that Amy has never seen it! It is timeless though Amy is probably thinking Lori had a really boring time during the 80’s if this was her favorite movie. Time for bed. Lori sleeps comfortably with a down comforter in the master suite while Amy piles on several comforters in the kids room. Oh, forgot to mention it started to rain and we couldn’t figure out what was knocking on the skylights. Amy thought corn was popping and I thought really big leaves were falling from the trees. Slight problem, no popcorn in microwave and we are surrounded by conifers. They don’t drop leaves. On that note, the two Einsteins turn in. End of Sunday!!!!!

Monday, we awake early but neither of us are sure if the noises we hear are the other person so we creep around very quietly for an hour. We finally run into each other in the kitchen and the day can officially begin. Amy starts breakfast by making pancakes. Lori gets the newspaper dressed in her Spongebob pajama pants and lovely moose socks. Standard uniform when staying at a cabin. The pancakes were delicious with the guava jelly purchased on sale at Safeway. Dishes washed, plans are made. We decided to head south to Big Sur. We then realize we need to shower and dress. 45 minutes later we pack up our car, exit our little private road, and turn left on Highway 1 (we normally turn right). The drive is actually not that many miles, however, we stop at every vista possible.
Holy Guacamole - this place is beautiful!

After several hours of ohhhing and ahhhing and Holy Guacamoling we make it to our first stop Andrew Molera State Park. Now we are not sure how to pronounce it, I prefer to make it rhyme with cholera. It took us several attempts but we finally got on the trail. First Lori forgot her diet coke which necessitated an immediate return to the vehicle. We then tried to unlock the wrong car. Guess how many white rental cars are in California? Answer – lots. We then took the wrong trail. We finally got under way and had a lovely hike. We found big leaf maples, California ground squirrels, lizards, lizards, lizards, and of course the ever present poison oak. Amy likes to point it out and try to touch it. Naughty Amy! We passed through several eucalyptus groves. This prompted a fierce debate. Amy believes they smell like Vick’s vapor rub. Lori says it smells more like eucalyptus and Amy needs to get a new perfume. (hint for Christmas as long as it doesn’t smell like vick’s or icy hot) . We agreed to disagree. Continuing on, we hiked toward the lookout (officially Molera Point). Again, ohhing and ahhing ensued and we meet our first surfer dude.
"I hate when my wetsuit creeps up on me"

He is about 65 and he can no longer stand up when he surfs, he kneels. However, since Lori can’t get up without help from the ground and Amy is constantly in knots, he kicks our butts. We hike down from the Point and we are faced with a decision. Do we walk back 2 miles and take another trail to the beach or do we wade across the Big Sur River to the beach? Amy decides to be the brave one and tries it first. “No problem Lori come on over!” Amy yells. Lori takes off her boots and socks, rolls up her pants and sticks her feet into the freezing water of the Big Sur River. “Yikes!” replies Lori. Amy says “did I mention I can’t feel my toes”. Lori says “ah, NO”. Lori secretly wonders what all the Vick’s vapor rub fumes have done to her friend but now is not the time. Pressing on, the intrepid duo reach the Pacific Ocean. Look Mom - big kelp ball!

We didn’t find any seashells but lots kelp and purple sand which Lori got stuck on her sunglass clipons when she dropped them in the sand. Time for lunch. We head back to the car because we forgot to bring our lunch with us. We had packed a lovely picnic lunch consisting of grapes, chips, cookies and the main course almond butter and guava jelly sandwiches. We prepare to eat and Lori takes off her sunglass clipons to reveal Groucho Marx eye brows . Apparently, the purple sand has magnetic qualities and it stuck to the clipons and also stuck to her face. Hilarity ensues. We finish lunch and head back on the road South. We stop and take a plethora of pictures and also get a bit queasy on the winding, curvy, up and downs, twisting, turning, etc…..road that is Highway 1 through Big Sur. We stop at another state park looking for the gigantic redwoods.
Look Mom - big tree!!

We want to see the Jurassic trees, the ones that have been around for a very long time. Unfortunately, as we are deciding on our hike, we find out that the trail is closed due to fires and mudslides in 2008. Luckily, we were able to find a few near the parking area and photos were taken. Back on the road for more stomach churning driving to the next state park. Our goal is Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. We finally make it and it was worth the drive. The scenery is spectacular and it has a waterfall. Another hundred photos and it is time to return to the cabin. With dreams of mac & cheese, we jump into the car and speed up the coast. The trip back flies. Apparently, if you don’t stop every 5 minutes to take pictures, you can quickly get to where you are going. However, we remember that we didn’t pick up firewood at the Safeway on Sunday. We bypass the cabin and head back into Carmel. While at the Safeway we also picked up more guava jelly. Amy heads off in search of firewood. Asking an employee, we find out that firewood is in Aisle 9 next to the school supplies. We pick up a box of wood (seasoned) and a firestarter. We head back to the cabin where Amy whips up mac & cheese (Mrs. Martin’s recipe thank you very much) and Lori is in charge of ambiance. Englebert Humperdink is on the iPod, beers are quickly opened and Lori reads the instructions on the firestarter and tries to start the fire. The firestarter guarantees it will start a fire. Firestarter my a@@. We tried and tried and tried but no fire. Just glowing logs. Duraflame will hear about this! $%#$#@#$#$%%^#@ The logs are still glowing. We then try to download our pictures and view them. We both need to take a photography class. And we are running out of space on every available medium because we are taking so many pictures. Hard drives, jump drives and memory cards are full. Tomorrow’s plan is to find more memory for more pictures!!! Depending on our pain level in the a.m., we may spend the day in Monterey. Lori is excited because they have a used book store! So, dear readers, we are off to bed, where we should have been over an hour ago. Did I mention that damn firestarter didn’t start? Sorry, gotta let it go. Lewis & Clark signing off.

Finally Made It!

(Amy's footnote: Can you tell Lori was a bit inebriated when she wrote this? And I thought she just talked more when she's drunk - as if that was possible. Now I know this also translates to the blog. No more beers for Lori when she is blogging.)

California Here We Come

2009-09-13T00:06:00.012-05:00

Well faithful readers, it is day one on Amy & Lori's California adventure. As usual, the day was filled with fun and excitement. It started out with the Highway 47 ramp being closed when I went to pick up Amy. We then took JJ to bypass the traffic on 41 and to get to the airport on time. We made it but our 12:05 flight didn't leave until after 1:00 because President Obama was in Minneapolis and Air Force One commandered the airport. We finally took off and were about to land when the President decided to leave early and we were put in a holding pattern and flew around and around and around and around and around and around the airport. We were about to fly to Eau Claire to refuel when suddenly we were allowed to land. We headed to our favorite Chinese restaurant where we had some lovely noodles and rangoon. We were then off to explore the airport. First stop was visiting Norwegian Land. Amy looks good as a blonde but I could use a shave.We have officially changed our names to Lars and Helga. We want to fit in. Uff Da!

Amy and I then signed up for flight lessons. We did have a few hours to spare. We quickly earned our diplomas and were put to work right away.

Amy was assigned a quick flight to St. Paul and I was to help her taxi. It didn't work so well.

We then ran into a giant moose. Amy was dignified and I got a little too friendly.

Our flight took off on time and we finally made it to San Jose. We got our rental car and tried to find our hotel. It took us a few tries but we found it. Because we are on vacation, we are staying up until midnight and sleeping in. (Midnight Wisconsin time, not midnight California time) Well, dear readers, it is late and we have a lot of adventures awaiting us. Tomorrow we attempt to make it to the cabin. Our plan is to stop at any sign that says pie or whale or fudge or chocolate or beer. We may not make it there for a few days. Wish us luck!

Cruise Photos

2009-02-23T15:06:00.029-06:00

Amy's daily cruise wear

Look Miami!

First foot picture of the cruise

Can you believe we stayed up until 10 pm?

Smooth sailing to Mexico!

Our first towel animal

Corona commercial feet

Siesta time - what is up with the skirt?

Does this hat make me look fat?

Mas mudslido, por favor!

Look - two foot pina coladas!

Sunbathing Amy style!

We love you Mr Hot Chocolate Machine - please come home with us!
Meeting the locals

Shark? What shark?

Look more 2 foot pina coladas - we love the Caribbean!

Making new friends

No problem Mon!

Local beach wear

Farewell Cabin 1049

Day 7 - Last Day at Sea

2009-02-21T12:33:00.004-06:00

We begin our last day at sea by sleeping in. We awake around 8 and head for the breakfast buffet. Because we slept in, we had a limited selection of deck chairs available to us. We found two on the starboard side of the ship. Unfortunately, they were open because they were beneath the ship's funnel and we were soon in shade. We read and napped and soon it was time for the lunch buffet. I went down early to get a table because the buffet of the day was CHOCOLATE. I quickly made two trips to the chocolate buffet and then decided that I should eat some regular food to help balance out the sugar overload. Amy then joined me and while she was eating her regular food lunch I was on trips 3 and 4 to the chocolate buffet. I then rested and waited for Amy to catch up. I had one more piece of chocolate sushi and Amy had a final rice pudding.

We returned to the sun deck to discover it was now the shade deck. I tried to nap but it was too cold without the sun. I returned to the cabin for my afternoon nap and Amy stayed on deck wearing her sweatshirt and scooting her deck chair as close as she could to the sunny area. I tried to nap but the heathen children in the next cabin made that impossible. Amy joined me in the cabin and I went on a walk searching for a sunny resting place and Amy took a nap in the cabin. We have become addicted to the buffet/nap cycle. We eat, then sleep, then eat again, then sleep, over and over and over. How are we going to cope in the real world if we have to stay awake during the day and prepare our own food? What a barbaric concept!!! Amy awoke and was able to make it to the chocolate buffet before it closed at 3 for a final chocolate snack. I found Amy in the dining area finishing her chocolate snack. I continued to search the ship for an appropriate resting area and I finally found it. It was on the third deck and it was sunny, quiet (no music blaring) and very few people. Unfortunately, it was 5:20 pm and the sun would be setting in an hour and the buffet would be opening at 6pm. Amy and I found each other and we headed for the buffet. After eating, we stumbled back to the cabin to rest and decide what to do with the rest of the evening. After a short nap, we went to pick up Amy's underwater pictures she had developed. I am amazed that I actually was able to get her in the pictures I took while snorkeling in Grand Cayman. It is very difficult taking pictures when both the subject and photographer are bobbing in the ocean, breathing through a tube and their masks are fogging up.

We returned to the cabin where we packed in preparation of disembarking the ship on Saturday. Packing and paper work complete, Amy ordered from room service and I went to the buffet to pick up our dessert and a diet coke from the bar. We set up an early wake up call and fell asleep. All too soon it will be morning and back to the real world. :(

Ahoy Mateys!

2009-02-19T17:57:00.000-06:00

Day 4 – Grand Cayman Island, British West Indies
We once again selected a shore excursion that involved snorkeling. I just can’t wear my new suit enough. We got up early, had a quick breakfast and then waited for our tender. Grand Cayman Island doesn’t allow cruise ships to dock because of the reef. Instead, you board smaller boats called tenders and they take you to the dock. We waited for our tender and soon we were off to the Island. We walked with the other snorkelers to our snorkel spot and it was just 5 minutes from the dock. The mask we received was better than the mask we used in Cozumel but the life vest gave us major wedgies. As you entered the water, you came face to face with a school of tarpin. They are huge, around 4 feet and look like very very very big minnows. They told us not to worry, they don’t have teeth. However, they feed them chicken to keep them in the area, so apparently they are meat eaters. We swam out and the fish were incredible. They have a nice reef and lots of fish. We could only identify the parrot fish and there were several different types of parrot fish. The other fish are currently unnamed, we hope to find a fish book or chart to help identify them. Amy purchased fish food and we were very popular with the fishies. My bag was quickly emptied and I was surrounded by tropical fish. One actually tried to take the bag from my hand. As I wrestled with a tropical fish, I laughed and water got into my breathing tube. Amy fed her fish and we hope some of the photos turn out. I was taking them and we are bobbing in the ocean and we can’t see because we have to wear contacts, not our glasses so we will probably have 71 pictures of blurry blue water. We snorkeled for about 90 minutes which is a record for us. Amy gets cold very quickly in the water and my feet cramp up – we are quite the pair. We dried off, changed and hit Georgetown.

We decide to have lunch and get an outside table on the second floor of breezes where we order coconut shrimp. As we are waiting for our food Amy asks me if there are jelly fish around the Island. Apparently, while snorkeling, she felt a sharp sting on her hand. She shook it, came up for air but since we are both nearly blind, didn’t see anything. Her hand stings and it has several blister like thingies. I told Amy about the Friends episode where Monica was stung by a jelly fish and Chandler urinated on it to stop the stinging. We both agreed that since it was on her hand, she could do it herself. We also decided to save the home remedy if we were unable to find actual medicine to help with the stinging. We finished lunch (coconut shrimp) and we went to a local pharmacy and asked what to do about stings from jellyfish and the pharmacist recommended Benadryl. Fortunately we had some on the ship. We then decided to ice her hand so off we went to Margaritaville. We ordered the largest pina colada they had, a lovely 24 inches of frozen delight, and quickly iced Amy’s hand and my internal organs. When we left, we were no longer feeling any pain or the heat.

Our last task on Cayman was to order duty free alcohol. Task complete, we made a few purchases and returned to the ship. The buffet was French and we enjoyed a lovely potato and eggplant tart with a plethora of unusual salads and a steaming cup of hot chocolate. We love the instant hot chocolate machine and are trying to devise a way of getting one home. We then went on deck and found empty deck chairs to enjoy the sun and catch a last glimpse of the island. I am, of course, a lovely shade of pink and Amy is browning quicker than a Pillsbury crescent roll in a 400 degree oven. Soon we were underway, heading to Jamaica. We then did our daily tasks on ship, checking out the sales, mailing postcards and checking the dining room menu. We also decided to try our luck in the casino. I lost $5 but Amy immediately won $25. She quickly cashed out and we followed our tradition to have a good beer after winning in a casino. We decided since we were on a cruise, we should have a tropical drink. We quickly downed 2 Yellow Birds and headed for our nightly buffet. We returned to our cabin to nap – however, on the way we noticed that Kung Fu Panda was playing on the widescreen on the Lido Deck. We went back to our cabin to put on warmer clothes so that we could enjoy the movie. We returned just in time for the next showing and enjoyed the movie under the stars. After the movie, we went back to the buffet for a hot chocolate and a dessert. I had a lovely hot chocolate cake and Amy had tiramisu. We then stumbled back to our cabin, tired and full. We realized that we did more in one day than we do in months at home; snorkeling, shopping, lunch at a restaurant, Happy Hour at Margaritaville, sunbathing, reading for pleasure, eating in a restaurant for dinner, gambling, shopping on board, another Happy Hour, going to a movie and a final nightcap. Tired but happy, we go to bed.

Day 6 – Jamaica
We didn’t select any excursions for Jamaica. We decided to sleep in and have a relaxing day in Jamaica, check out the beach and pick up a t-shirt at Margaritaville. Relaxing is not quite the word for Jamaica. We actually started to count how many times we were approached on the sidewalk for a taxi ride. We just wanted to go to the craft market and then Margaritaville. When we finally made it to the craft market, we went down one aisle and quickly down another and back on the street. We turned around and headed back to the cruise ship area. 10 more offers for a taxi ride to “the falls” we finally made it to the Island Shopping Center where Margaritaville is located. We found a table and ordered 2 Island drinks. Feeling adventurous, we decided to order some local food. We decided on a jerk chicken pizza. Well, we quickly realize that we have a very low spiciness tolerance. We quickly downed our Island drinks and were asking for water. (6 hours later, we are still feeling the effects of the pizza)

I went to finish my shopping, I needed a few things. Amy stayed to enjoy the beach. As I walked off the beach, I noticed that the inside of my foot hurt. Apparently something bit me on the beach. If I develop a strange rash or a high fever, remember I was bit by something on a beach in Ochos Rios, Jamaica. I found what I needed and returned to the beach. Amy decided to go into the water and I decided to order a pina colada. Apparently, when your order a pina colada, they give you an additional shot of rum. I soon was not feeling the bite on my foot and I was seeing 6 foot green parrots. Luckily Amy also saw the large green parrot, so I wasn’t suffering from heat stroke. All too soon it was time to return to the ship and we made our way to the dock. We were only approached 3 times for a taxi and once to braid our hair. One nice gentleman wanted to jump into our bags and return home with us. Unfortunately, we didn’t have any room available due to the duty-free rum and the t-shirts we have been purchasing from Margaritaville. Back on board, we quickly eat something in an attempt to extinquish the fire in our intestines. We found empty deck chairs and enjoyed the sun as we left Jamaica on our back to Miami L. Tonight is “Cruise Elegant”. We are on our way to mail our last postcards and check out the menu. Unless it is fabulous, we will be heading to the buffet. I am not putting on a skirt for anything less than crème brulee. ***We decided not to dress up and instead headed to the buffet for hot chocolate and a sandwich.

Viva Mexico!

2009-02-17T18:08:00.003-06:00

***Important Notice - we are having difficulty uploading pictures. It may just be a text blog until the damn satellite works properly.*****

Oh, where to begin? As we left off on Sunday, we were preparing for the Captain’s Dinner. We skipped the pre-dinner party, preferring our shorts and tank tops to dresses. We finally dressed and went to dinner. We had two appetizers which consisted of stuffed mushrooms and roasted pumpkin soup - yummy. The main entrée was lobster and shrimp. We were so full we skipped dessert. However, on our way back we stopped for our nightly cup of hot chocolate and I noticed on the buffet they had molten chocolate cake. Never one to pass chocolate by, I brought one back to the cabin. It was very good – a double yummy!!!

We also received our first towel creation in our station. It was an adorable elephant.

We then gathered any necessary items for our big day in Cozumel. We set up an early wakeup call and placed an order with room service for our breakfast. We then went to sleep, dreaming of coral reefs and sombreros.

Monday – Cozumel
5:30 am arrived long before we wanted it to. We quickly prepared for our big day in Cozumel. My issue of the morning was my new swimsuit. It was tight where I didn’t want it to be tight and it has a skirt. What is up with skirts on swimsuits? Suits on, sunscreen applied, bags packed, breakfast finished we head to Deck 0 where we can leave the ship and find our catamaran. We quickly get to the deck and find the Fury already loaded with people. Another cruise ship docked before us and they were able to get on the catamaran first. We found a spot near the back of the catamaran and we were quickly off. During the short trip to the snorkeling area we were instructed on what to do and various hand signals to alert staff if we needed assistance or if we were okay. Floaties and masks on we dive into the ocean!! Ok, it was more like a herd of slow moving buffalo trying to get down steps while wearing flippers. Finally in the water it was wonderful. There was a plethora of brightly colored fish swimming around us as well as the 120 other snorkelers. Amy was able to indentify me by my brightly colored swim bottom and I could recognize her by her brightly colored top. We didn’t swallow too much salt water and we didn’t get hit by any of the other snorkelers. A man did tickle my leg – he said he thought I was his wife because we both had the same underwater camera. Totally different suits but the same camera – I can see how he mixed us up. We took several pictures with our underwater cameras and hope at least a few turn out. Too soon it was back on the catamaran for a sail to our private beach. During the trip to the beach we were served complimentary margaritas, beer and soda. Amy actually tried the beer. It was a little ‘stinky’ for me. Amy tried the beer because she was freezing. Again, 0% body fat does have its disadvantages. Her suit was wet and the breeze as we sailed along was contributing to her hypothermia.

She moved into the sun and drank beer in an attempt to warm up. Luckily we soon arrived at the beach where we laid in the sun and warmed up. We could have taken out a sea kayak or rode horses or took a parasail trip but we enjoy sitting in the sun and doing nothing. It is a skill worth perfecting.

All too soon it was back on the catamaran to return to the cruise ship. We quickly went to our cabin, changed clothes and hit the buffet. It was Indian food day and I didn’t want to miss it. We had lovely samosas, rice, salads and lentil fritters. Amy actually ate more than I did. Stomachs full we are ready to head to downtown Cozumel.

We catch a taxi and are dropped off in the middle of tacky tourist town. Everywhere we went, we are accosted by salespersons. Look at my stuff, come into my store, etc…..we did stop in a few looking for a hat for Amy’s pink scalp, a sweatshirt and sweatpants to help keep her warm in the 80 degree weather, a cover-up for myself to hide my pink skin and of course the pirate paraphernalia. We were sadly disappointed – no hats except sombreros, no sweatshirts, no decent cover-ups and only pirate t-shirts. I have several pirate t-shirts from previous cruises. What I need is additional pirate paraphernalia; hats, wind chimes, jewelry, underwear, etc….anything but t-shirts. Do you think Amy’s wearing just a bit too much sunscreen? Maybe that’s a strategy for when the overbearing sales people grab her arm – they’ll slide right off!

We decide to make our trek to Margaritaville. Don’t tell Amy but I booked this trip because at each stop there is a Margaritaville. We arrived very hot or should I say I was very hot – Amy was in temperature heaven. In an attempt to avoid the salesman, we had crossed the street and walked along the ocean front in the full sun. I quickly found several t-shirts and as a bonus, I received a free hat. Apparently when you spend over 1,000 pesos you get a free hat. I am not sure what the conversion rate of pesos to dollars is due to my heat stroke. In an effort to cool down, we decided to enjoy a cold beverage on the back deck. My first drink was a Miami Vice and Amy had a Kahlua boat drink. Luckily I received the necessary medical attention I needed in time and I soon recovered. In an effort to prevent additional heat related issues I ordered another drink – a mudslide! I loved the drink - it did save my life!

Now that the crisis had been averted, we began to enjoy our brief sojourn in Cozumel. Taking advantage of the fact we were in another country, we used as much as we could of our limited Spanish vocabulary. I’m sure the wait staff enjoyed our culture sensitivity. No longer feeling hot (or any pain), we jumped in a taxi that returned us to the cruise ship dock where we visited the fake Mexican village and bought tacky and cheap souvenirs for our friends and family back home. We finished shopping in 15 minutes and headed for the ship. Unfortunately, I was feeling hot again so we had to stop at Fat Tuesdays where we each purchased a 2 foot pina colada. Again, it was for medical necessity.

Once again, the heavenly concoction of ice and rum helps lower my internal temperature. It also lowers our IQ. We are soon befriended by a German tourist. We know even less of German than Spanish but we try to communicate. After a few minutes he leaves because he has to return to the ship to eat. What he actually does is move two tables away from us and try to pick up the two girls wearing bikinis. Lucky for him we are now in a very good mood. We decided to continue shopping. Amy finds a lovely hat and I pick up a pair of maracas. Amy has one and I have the other. If we ever get separated, we use them to find each other. We then begin the quest for a Speedy Gonzales t-shirt. We had seen one earlier but didn’t buy it. Now we really want it. Amy the philosopher says “if it was meant to be, we will find it”. We then meet some lovely locals who help us with our Spanish. Apparently muy humerouso isn’t Spanish for very funny. We learned it is muy grasiosa or something like that. I called Amy muy grasiosa and they agreed. We then continued the quest and we found the t-shirt. Amy’s is orange, mine is black. The only color they had in adult sizes is black. So Amy’s t-shirt is……yep, she can fit in a nina shirt. I, of course, needed a grande. Quest completed, we then head to the ship. It seemed very far away but we made it.

We ate at a buffet but we don't remember what we had to eat. We then went back to the cabin and ordered grilled cheese sandwiches. Amy was asleep when they arrived. We quickly ate them and fell asleep. Thankfully Tuesday is a relaxing day at sea, we will be able to recover from our Mexican Fiesta. Wednesday we plan on snorkeling near Grand Cayman followed by another visit to Margaritaville and the duty free rum shop. Until then Dear Readers, adios from the dos amigos. See we did learn some Spanish on this trip.

Photo Montage of Day 1 & 2

2009-02-15T17:33:00.009-06:00

Notice the high quality of the pictures. Apparently the photography classes paid off. Can you say Shrek and Cousin It? Amy can certainly position her subjects and I click at the most opportune moments. Amazing that National Geographic hasn't offered us a job in their photo journalism department.

The Adventure Begins

2009-02-15T17:25:00.001-06:00

Okay Dear Readers – sorry that we haven’t posted sooner but we have been very busy. The flight from Appleton to Minneapolis was delayed but luckily we had a 3.5 hour connection. We had a lovely dinner at the airport in Minneapolis and boarded our flight to Miami. I had a terrible headache so I took a little white pill and then slept most of the way. Amy did something; I’ll have to ask her how the flight was. We landed in Miami where local time was 11:30 pm and the temperature was ….drum roll please….77 degrees. Hotel was conveniently located and they give you cookies. Small glitch, even though I confirmed on Thursday our room, they stuck us in a smoking room with one king size bed. This is how rumors start. We slept in, enjoying our time away from animals. We spent part of the morning lost in the Miami International Market. It was adjacent to our hotel and I was looking for a swim cover-up. What we found was store after store after store of bling. We could never live in Miami, we are too bland.

We then checked out and took a lovely taxi ride to the Port. Our taxi driver knew a few shortcuts and didn’t believe in lane markers. We arrived safely (phew!) and quickly made our way through security, picked up our cabin keys and ditched the omnipresent photographers. We quickly made our way to our first buffet – ITALIAN!!! We enjoyed a lovely eggplant tart and miscellaneous salads with pesto, etc…..did I mention I had ice cream first? It was then followed by my first pina colada. Amy enjoyed lemonade and huddled in her sweatshirt. Amy’s new name is Huhnuk Hunukaa Clucknauka which translates to “girl who wears sweatshirt on cruise”. We then found our closet, I mean cabin, and unpacked. Then we took part in the mandatory life boat drill. We looked fab in our safety gear and in the event of an emergency we are set. We then explored the ship and after a few hours were able to find our cabin again. The shops have a delightful combination of tanzanite and pirate paraphernalia. Guess what I am buying? Amy will be purchasing the sweatshirt, sweatpants and windbreaker. Hopefully she won’t be wearing her winter coat, which she packed.

We had dinner reservations at 8:15 and decided to try a pre-dinner martini. It was a wonderful chocolate martini but as Amy and I soon discovered, we are “frugal” drunks. It only takes one drink and we are swaying on our feet and unfortunately it wasn’t because we were on a cruise ship. One good thing about the drink is that it warmed us up quite quickly. We made it to the dining room where we managed to stay awake and between us we may have said 20 words. It is Valentine’s Day, a Saturday night, we are on a cruise and what are we doing? Yawning and holding our heads so they don’t drop and hit the table. Shrimp cocktail was our appetizer and then we had an Indian Vegetarian dinner and Pan Seared Tilapia. Guess who had the vegetarian dinner? Yes it was me. Amy had the fish. Doesn’t she know that fish swim around in their own giant toilet? I learned that as a child and it has served me well since. Dessert was a chocolate decadence creation with hearts galore. They even gave all the women a red carnation. We then stumbled back to the cabin where we foolishly attempted to blog. Needless to say it didn’t work and we quickly went to bed. Oh I forgot, Amy was still cold so we turned the AC off, the heat up, put an extra blanket on her bed and she even put on her robe provided by the cruise ship to warm up. Funny! If only I wasn’t tipsy I would have taken a picture. Day 1 of Amy & Lori’s cruise is complete.

Day 2.
Amy awakes early and explores the ship in jeans and a sweatshirt. She strategically saves 2 chairs for us near the pool with a perfect view for the hairy chest contest at 1:30. Too bad I shaved for the cruise, I might have been a contender. I was awoken by kids stomping and screaming in the hallway. We had a lovely breakfast on the deck. The croissants aren’t as buttery as past cruises. We are currently reading, and enjoying the sun. Amy actually went back to the cabin and changed into shorts. The sun is warm, the skies clear and the water a deep blue. Like is good.

We continued baking in the sun. Amy actually warmed up enough to change into her bikini. Our stomachs alerted us to the fact it had been 3 hours since our last meal. Quelle horror!!! We quickly scampered to the buffet, and as they were just opening, we were first in line. Today’s buffet was a Caribbean theme. Yumo!!! Fried plantains, fritters with squid (yucko but Amy ate one), fabulous salads with wasabi, pickled squash, noodles with mung paste, fried dumplings, etc…….we are sampling quite the variety of foods on this cruise. Don’t worry, for the non-adventurous foodies out there, you can always get a hamburger or pizza. Dessert was fabulous, some sort of cheesecake and a strawberry thingy. Stomachs happy, we return to the oven (deck) to continue our baking. Amy has a lovely mocha shade going on. I am as pink as a lobster, even with 50 SPF sunscreen. We then watched part of the Hairiest Chest contest but soon realized it was an indication that the moral fabric of our society was unraveling before our very eyes. I feel asleep and Amy continued to bake, she is almost thawed out. A few more days and she will be room temperature.

We then decided to book our excursion for Cozumel. After much discussion and research, we are going on the Deluxe Sail, Swim & Beach Party. We board a catamaran, snorkel in the Gulf somewhere off Cozumel, we then go to “one of the finest beaches on the Yucatan peninsula” where we will enjoy complimentary cold beers and margaritas. Dos Coronas por favor!!! We then will return to the dock, where we will visit local shops and purchase much needed prate paraphernalia for Jimmy Buffett and of course, 3 foot sombreros to match our 3 foot pina coladas. We hope to be on board when the ship sails at 10 pm for Grand Cayman. We returned to the deck to continue the thawing process and it was so warm we ordered our first lava flow. They didn’t know what a lava flow was but they improvised quite nicely. One ice cream headache later, we were relaxed and enjoying the waning sun. They also had the Daytona 500 on the jumbotron. Go Jeff!!!! The sun disappeared from our location, and in the shade Amy began to stiffen with cold.

We are now in our cabin, blogging obviously, but we will be preparing for the Captain’s Dinner. Apparently it is a big deal. My question is, who is driving during the party? We have been on board for a little over 24 hours and we have had more fun and done more stuff than we do in months on the mainland. Stay tuned readers for our next blog. It won’t be until Tuesday because Monday is booked solid with sun, water, fish, beach, alcohol, shopping, pirates (ARRRRGHH), sombreros, sunburn, salty hair and strange people staring at us. Like they never saw a Godzilla and a hobbit covered in sand, wearing sombreros, saying ‘arrrgh mateys” as they stumble to a cruise ship. It happens every week in the Caribbean. Enjoy the photos, we are sure there will be plenty more of this quality. Adios from Dos Amigos somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico!!

Finally!!!!!

2009-02-13T07:38:00.002-06:00

It is finally February 13th and we will be flying to Miami via Minneapolis this afternoon. It seems like forever since we booked the cruise but this week has been frantic trying to finish school, pack, shop and of course, work. Good news is that I found a swimsuit. Bad news is that I found a swimsuit. Never fear, no swimsuit pictures will appear on this blog. Crazy last minute preparations are underway and soon Amy and I will once again be on another adventure. However, we are so tired it may just be pictures of each us napping - on the deck, on the beach, at dinner, while snorkeling. Yes, while snorkeling - it could happen! We are very very very very very tired. Did I mention we are tired? Hopefully a few days of relaxation, sun and tradewinds will revive us so we can begin our quest for the perfect pirate t-shirt. Arrrrrrrr Mateys!!!!!!

Amy & Lori's Next Adventure

2009-01-27T15:59:00.004-06:00

Greetings from the frozen tundra!! It was a balmy 4 degrees below zero this morning. Again, I ask myself, why did my ancestors travel thousands of miles from a cold dark European location to a colder, darker American location? My black RAV is white with all the salt residue and despite the numerous humidifiers I have at home and work, I am slowly turning into Snake Woman. But enough of my whining about hypothermia - Amy and I are gearing up for our next adventure!!!!!! We will be cruising the Caribbean, enjoying the warm weather and cold blended drinks. My only concern is that we spontaneously combust when our pale skin is liberated from the multiple layers we have been wearing and is exposed directly to sunshine. Well, I actually have another concern - I may not be able to fit into any of my summer clothing. Visit often for pictures of me in a muumuu. Countdown to cruise is 17 days, one long flight and one short taxi ride to the Miami port.

Memories of Alaska

2008-06-21T18:22:00.008-05:00

As we reflect on the days we have spent in Alaska, a kaleidoscope of images flow through our memories. Eagles flying over the crystal waters, Amy's finger with her unique crab bite, crazy deer, a plethora of seafood, aching muscles, incredible scenery, delicious food, moose hats, moose socks, rain gear, rain, sunshine, mountains, beer...the list goes on and on and on. And of course the people we met; Aunt Alice, Mike, Dustin, David, Mary, Jack and all the other wonderful people we met and created memories with - they made the trip a truly remarkable experience. Then of course, our home sweet home in Petersburg, the wonderful, fabulous, cozy, quaint Sugar Shack where we spent 9 relaxing days. Alaska said goodbye to us with a gorgeous sunset on our last evening. But it isn't goodbye but "au revoir" because we are definitely coming back to Alaska! We hope you have enjoyed our blog - we sure did. We have included a few pictures that didn't make the initial cut. We would like to share them with you now. Later Gators!

Crab Attack - Amy's finger after crab encounter.

Friday night in downtown Petersburg. Heidi is along to protect us.

Sugar Shack at sunset on our last night.

Panning for gold with a Badger hat. Note to self - hats don't work.

Moose scat - now if we can just find the original owner.

At Last - the Elusive MOOSE!

2008-06-20T14:25:00.004-05:00

We finally saw our moose. Well, Amy actually saw it. I was heeding nature's call after a few beers. Luckily, Amy had her camera and was able to get this picture. I can't wait until we get back and enlarge it so we can see more detail. Good work Amy. Who says she is blind without her glasses? We also had a small party for the deer in the neighborhood. Everyone was getting along fine until Patsy crashed the party. She herded all the deer together and then chased them out of the yard. Amy and I were in the middle of the stampede and a bit bewildered by the events. I would post a picture but they are all blurred - don't know how that happened.

A New Convert!

2008-06-20T14:21:00.003-05:00

As many of you know, my favorite pastime is drinking beer on my porch in my underwear. Amy has seen the error of her ways (drinking beer with her pants on) and has joined the club. We did have to make some concessions to the weather, notice the hats, sweatshirts and boots. Or in Amy's case, moose slippers. We were partaking of an exceptional local beer from the Alaska Brewery - a lovely amber. They also have an IPA, a stout and seasonal flavors. Gotta go, we have a 24 pack to finish by Saturday.

New Furry Friends

2008-06-20T14:16:00.004-05:00

On our way into the harbor, we encountered the Dangerous Sea Lion. Don't be fooled by their calm demeanor! They are resting before they swarm the harbor, trying to steal fish and biting the butts of local fishermen. True Story! Word of advice, don't put any bait in your pockets.

Pop goes the Shrimp Head

2008-06-20T13:58:00.007-05:00

Here is Amy with her new friend. She wasn't friends very long. While I was assisting the Captain in guiding our boat, Amy and Mike were 'popping' the heads off the shrimp. The shrimp are of various sizes. The largest are called spotted and you leave their heads on and place them in a container. They remind Amy of lobsters. The spotted shrimp are the most expensive and only experienced shrimpers are allowed to pop their heads - sorry Amy. The pink and the small striped shrimp are given to the locals with their heads on. The larger striped shrimp are decapitated and these are the shrimp that are sold on the dock. The striped shrimp are actually vegetarians. Again, who knew? They eat kelp. The others will eat just about anything. The nets pick up all sorts of stuff, from the shrimp obviously, but also flounder, skaters which are like sting rays, red snappers that have bulging eyes from the pressure change, large pieces of coral, crabs, large barnacles, starfish, and bullheads (see picture below). They have even pulled up a kayak from the bottom. If you lose anything in the ocean, buy a shrimp boat and begin dragging the bottom. We picked up an iceberg (from the Le Conte Glacier) to keep the shrimp chilled. Most convenient - saved us a trip to the local 7-11. Our sorting table full, we head back to harbor. Amy once again shines in her new position of killing seafood. The job pays quite well. If the Controller thing doesn't work out, she has a bright future on a ship in Alaska. Again, who knew she was capable? Note to self - keep on her good side.

Shrimp Happens!

2008-06-20T13:54:00.004-05:00

Even with our limited knowledge of shrimping (all learned from watching the movie Forrest Gump) we found shrimp. This is the shrimp we caught during our first drag. They don't look anything like they do in the store. Apparently, shrimp have heads. Who knew? Amy says they are "fiesty suckers". They jump around and are hard to hang on to. Amy and Mike donned their "shrimping gear" to help out while I returned to the Captain's chair to help guide our vessel to our next shrimping location. Plus someone had to keep an eye out for icebergs - literally.

I Know Everything There is to Know about Shrimpin'

2008-06-20T13:46:00.004-05:00

Here I am, the Shrimp Boat Captain that I have always dreamed of being. I am checking the waters for shrimp. Unfortunately, they are not found on the surface. Bubba never mentioned that. We needed to be on board the shrimp boat by 4 am. We didn't get a chance to take a shower but the shrimp didn't seem to mind. We enjoyed the quiet time on the water before we hauled in our first catch.

The eagles were diving for herring and the water was as smooth as glass. We didn't see any whales, apparently they don't like herring. Who knew? We have several more hours before we haul in the nets. I need to go below and study the charts or whatever a shrimp boat captain does.

The Day After - OUCH!

2008-06-20T13:41:00.004-05:00

This is how we would like to remember our trip up Petersburg Mountain. What we would like to forget is the pain we have been enduring since. On Wednesday, Amy and I walked like we had a stick placed in a sensitive area. We were the entertainment for the family. We used the day as our relaxing day and tried to catch up on reading while we were downing ibuprofen and cursing the fact I left my vicodin at home. Lesson learned - flat landers need to incorporate more vertical slopes when working out.

Stand back Sir Edmund Hillary

2008-06-17T21:56:00.007-05:00

Sir Edmund Hillary was the first man to climb Mount Everest. Back to our blog. We gleefully (see picture) prepare for our ascent of Petersburg Mountain. The mountain is located across the narrows on Kupernauf Island. We are guessing on the spelling of Kupernauf.

(See picture of mountain from boat dock - we are hiking to the summit covered by clouds). After the boat ride, we begin by walking 3 miles to the trail head. We have the option of taking the skiff to the trail head but once again, tides are a factor and we decide to walk. Soon we are at the trail head. We start our ascent and soon we are peeling off our layers. I ran out of layers to peel off within 30 minutes. It was quite warm in the woods. New hobby - naked mountain climbing. Luckily, reason prevailed and we continued up. It was a difficult trail. At times, we passed mountain goats taking a break on the climb up. More than once I asked if this was the trail - and it was. Soon we were in agonizing pain - okay that was just me. Again did I mention mountain goats taking a break?

Amy has waited 23 years to hike this mountain and I am not going to let her down. I continue to put one foot in front of the other and soon I am walking out the door......sorry, flashback to a Christmas special. The boys and Mike, sure footed Alaskans, bound up the trail as Amy and I slowly crawl - okay again just me. We met some young Forest Service workers that are working on a new trail to the top of the mountain. At one time I asked why do they need a new trail. I now know, they really do need a new trail. In fact they just need a trail. Dustin was my trusty sherpa, carrying my pack up the mountain. Only downside was my water was in the pack. Thankfully, they stopped every so often and we would catch up and get some water. When I thought I couldn't go another foot, we suddenly begin to see snow. We are almost there....I think I can, I think I can, I think I can. Another hundred steps straight up and we are there - well apparently almost there. Amy and I rejoice that we have reached the top of the mountain. Mike informs us that no, we have an additional vertical ascent before we reach the summit (see picture) One small problem, there is so much snow, we can barely find the trail and the cable that is used for the final vertical climb is not visible. Darn, we can't go any further. I am so upset!!! Well, more like relieved. We have a quick snack and the boys begin sliding down the snow. Thinking this is an ingenious way to get down the mountain, Amy and I give it a try. (See lovely starfish picture below - I'm the one with the moose hat) Unfortunately, we run out of snow and we now have snow up our pants and our sleeves. However, a wet butt will come in handy when we reach the middle of the descent - see peeling of layers story above. We return to the trail and begin our descent. I thought it was painful going up - going down is no picnic either. It actually hurts more. Our legs are fatigued from the ascent and the trail looks even more challenging from above. I actually slide on my butt many times because I couldn't find a good foothold and when I thought I found one, it moved and I ended up sliding on my butt again. Mike and the boys are of course miles ahead of us. We know we have to get down this mountain so we begin our one step at a time program. What seems like forever passes when we finally reach the trail the Forest Service workers are constructing. They graciously allow us to use the new trail they have been working on instead of returning on the old trail we used for our ascent. It was amazing, log stairs, flat boards connecting the log stairs and then steps with actual rocks and not mud in between. It was like being upgraded from coach to Super Duper First Class. It literally saved my life. We continued down the mountain, still at a slow pace because all of our muscles were rebelling against us. I talked my knees into continuing the journey and they reluctantly accepted. Amy and I were never happier in our lives than when we reached the trail head again and only had 3 miles of glorious flat hiking left. We kept plodding on and finally, 45 minutes later, we arrive back where we started. While putting all our layers back on, I notice information about the trail and the hike. According to the US Forest Service, the hike up Petersburg Mountain is rated MOST DIFFICULT! Enough said. Note to self - always check difficulty rating of proposed hike!!! With aching muscles, we roll into the skiff, and return to Petersburg. Our chauffer, Aunt Alice, meets us at the harbor and whisks us to her home. The next 15 minutes are spent trying to get our boots off. We then make the wise decision to blog instead of returning to the Sugar Shack where a jacuzzi tub awaits us along with a cold Alaskan Amber. Seeing the error of our ways, BYE!

Awwwww

2008-06-17T21:41:00.003-05:00

We awake early on Tuesday in preparation of our ascent of the Petersburg Mountain. But first, check out Bambi. Isn't he/she adorable? Amy found the fawn while doing some yard work at the Sugar Shack. Patsy once again was in the yard, eating the flora when Amy found the fauna. Joke for all you botany geeks.