20th Anniversary Trip to Europe

Trip Overview: European River Cruise - June 2018

This write-up is only one year late...  Writing it is like re-living the trip, so I'm not a bit sorry for the delay. 

To celebrate our twentieth wedding anniversary, a little early, we travelled to central Europe for a week's cruise down the Danube river.  We flew into Budapest, Hungary on June 1, 2018.  The minor transportation difficulties for the first bit of the trip were really the only frustrations.  A river cruise was an easy and pleasant way to see a new part of the world.  Having a room that travels with you is a major convenience.  If you had far-flung places that you were committed to seeing, it might not be the best way to travel because you need to be on the boat when it moves to the next city.  We were up for anything and just wanted to have a good time and foreign adventure.  We travelled on a boat called "The A" on cruise line U by Uniworld from Budapest, Hungary to Regensberg, Germany on a 7 day cruise.  The people we travelled with and the local guides on the boat made the trip so enjoyable.

Our cabin was tiny but very nice.  The boat itself was small, with only two levels with a central hall and a row of rooms on each side.  The dining room was on the lower level and above that was the lounge.  There was a roof-top deck over the length of the boat with plenty of comfortable seating the umbrellas.  There was also a small gym, free laundry, and coffee machine bar.  The decor was intentionally very modern and not ornate.  Black and white throughout. 

Actual airplane food - a complete meal

Day 1 - Budapest, Hungary
The cruise sent a very nice driver to take us from the airport to the boat.  We flew overnight and arrived at the boat about 11 am, so the previous week's cruise wasn't actually done.  We knew it would be a good week because the people departing had clearly had fun.  We enjoyed an excellent brunch on the boat.  Brunch and dinner were the only meals served with the cruise, and they were always fantastic.  We checked out bicycles from the boat and followed the crowd of people streaming over the bridge.  Where was everyone walking to?  It turns out that we were docked right next to a long, narrow island in the river which was the home to a park similar to Central Park.  There were beautiful formal gardens, a small zoo, a theatre, Olympic size swimming stadium, and a thermal bath.  The people were there for a sports festival with all kinds of activities available for anyone to try.  Brian did a tight rope and outdoor bowling.  We tried badminton, terribly.  There were drummers performing, signers, and vendors of all kinds.  At a large fountain, American top-40 music blared and people sunbathed.  In another area, families scurried around geo-caching.  We enjoyed every bit of this experience and it was a highlight of the trip.  Exploring this large and very active park by bike was just perfect.  At the end of the island, another bridge crossed the river.  We passed a clay tennis court with people actually playing, so that was another novel sport observed.  The wind picked up and we had to ride through a sand-storm to get back, but that added to the adventure.

There was an orientation over happy hour.  Dinner included paprika fish soup and Stephanie cake, both delicious.  The first planned activity of the week was a group walk through the central city.  Our guide took us to "ruin" bars where we enjoyed crazy decor and cheap Hungarian beer.  It was a fun way to meet some of our fellow travelers and see the city.

Day 2 - Budapest, Hungary
We slept late recovering from jet lag, and enjoyed the excellent brunch.  We skipped the planned walking tour since we had received a basic orientation the night before.  We took the subway system, which had helpful signs in English, to the House of Terror museum.  The museum was dedicated to the dark time in Hungarian history where they were first occupied by the Nazis and then by the Russians.  The house itself had been headquarters for the occupying leadership with torture rooms in the basement.  It was pretty dark and not that enjoyable, but we learned a lot about the recent history of the area.  Returning by the metro, we found an Aldi store and did some grocery shopping.  Cheese, sausage, and excellent fresh bread made for a great lunch which we munched on by the river looking at the boat.

That afternoon we walked across the Liberty bridge to St. Gellert Thermal Bath and Swimming Pools.  This was another highlight of the trip.  Budapest is famous for thermal baths and there was a swanky one right by the boat.  On the advice of some of our new friends from the boat, we paid for a cabana, or private changing room.  All areas were very ornate with blue tile on the walls, mosaics, and skylights.  We only sampled a few of the things to do there and still had a great time.  There were two very large hot tubs at 38 and 40 C.  There was also a steam room, which Brian enjoyed but Stephanie felt panicky in.  We both enjoyed the large sauna with three rooms getting progressively hotter.  A small pool at 19 C was a shocking change from the hot pools and rooms.  All the guests wore swim suits in the areas we were in, so was similar to visiting a public pool at home.

Day 3 - Monday - Bratislava, Slovenia
After a quick breakfast with Kelly and Mark, we joined the tour group for a walking tour of Bratislava with Mic.  This is an medieval city that was once the capital of the Austro-Hungarian empire.  The old city center is closed to cars and has beautiful cobblestone streets.  We visited St. Martin's cathedral and stopped at a cafe for a cold drink on a hot day.  Next was a walk up to the castle, closed, but a very impressive structure with fantastic views.  Coming down from the castle, we left the tourist area and explored the modern city a bit.  The destination was the Blue Church, although it was also closed.  Monday is a tough day for tourists.  The National Gallery was right next to our boat.  While it was closed, the cafe was open.  This was the best meal of our trip by far.  We had an amazing vegetarian meal, very fancy at a very reasonable price.  We hit up a small grocery for drinks and snacks, ran into Ed and Liz and returned to the boat.

We docked in Vienna late that evening.  Brian and I joined the walking tour which basically just showed you how to take the subway to a fun bar scene.  From there we took the subway to the Ferris Wheel.  It was in an amusement park which was already shut down, but we made the last trip of the day on the Wheel.  The cars were big enough for maybe twenty people and a small group from London shared the car with us.  We had no idea what we were looking at since we'd just arrived, but it was a romantic adventure.

Day 4 - Vienna, Austria
We started the day with a special walking tour with Dieter.  (Pronounced like Peter with a D)  For walking tours, the boat provided little handsets with ear buds so you can hear the guide.  Dieter helped us navigate the subway, which was useful for our stay in Vienna. In the central city, we walked past the Opera House, the Winter Palace, a statue about the plague, and an enormous cathedral.  Dieter had pointed out the oldest cafe in Austria and we came back after the tour for sacre cake and coffee.  It was amazing.  The cafe had a history of catering for the royal family, and fanciful candy sculptures were on display.  On the lower floor you could see the bakers at work.

We intended to visit the art museum, but the entire area was closed for a state visit from Vladamire Putin.  Instead, we took the subway across town to see Hunderwasser Village (meh) and the museum dedicated to the same artist down the street (awesome).  This was a very modern art museum with wavy floors and trees growing throughout to simulate nature.  While we didn't understand it all, we enjoyed the art work very much and especially enjoyed the photography.  The museum had a lovely courtyard cafe and we relaxed with a  Radler (lemonade beer) before heading back to the ship.

We had an early dinner and then joined the bus tour of the summer palace on the outskirts of town.  Our group was there after the public tours, so no crowds.  This is a Hapsburg palace and is probably very similar to every other palace in Europe.  It was designed to impress, but it is disturbing to see the excess of the royalty.  This is especially true when we learn how little this place was actually used.  Visiting a palace is something to do once and doesn't need to be repeated.  The grounds were by far the most enjoyable part.

Day 5 - Durnstein, Austria
The day started for Stephanie with yoga on the roof.  The boat stopped mid-morning at the small town of Durnstein, in the Wachau Valley.  We took the short walking tour offered by the boat and hiked up the castle ruins.  This is supposedly the castle where Richard the Lionheart was held captive during the crusades.  It was an adventure and absolutely lovely view of the green valley below.  Many of our friends from the boat also took the hike, so that aded to the fun.  There were hiking trails all around.  Apparently, you can hike or bike from town to town in Austria.  In the small village, we stopped into a wine tasting room and enjoyed the local wine, Gruner Veltliner.  There were dozens of wineries in the area.  The last activity in Durstein was a quick wade into the Danube river off the beachy shore.

Brian went for a message in the afternoon.  In the evening, we rode the boat through the beautiful Wachau Valley and saw castles and churches along the side.  We arrived in Melk and took a bus tour of the Abby.  This is not what we expected.  It was unbelievably ornate.  Back on the boat, we had a fabulous dinner except for goulash on white pants!  The evening ended with fun karaoke in the lounge.

Day 6 - Wachau Valley and Passau, Germany
The boat offered a morning bike tour for the adventurous.  The boat stopped, let anyone interested off with bikes, and continued on.  Brian did this 18 mile tour with a group from the boat.  The guide was apparently Brian's long lost cousin, Lars.  The certainly look a lot alike.  Stephanie stayed on the boat and enjoyed a massage.  We arrived in Passau after noon and met up with the bike group.  In a small cafe we had awesome german lunch of white sausage for Brian and cold cheese & meat plate for Stephanie.  A word for the wise - the large lightly colored piece that's slimy to the touch is butter, not cheese!

In the afternoon, we took a paddle tour with the group.  We rode bikes to the Passau Kayak Club with a couple of local guides.  The were 10 people from the boat plus the 2 guides in one giant canoe on the Danube river.  This was super fun!  We also had a chance to single kayak and stand-up paddle board.  It was so enjoyable to try an activity done by the locals and we were overrun by school kids learning to kayak at the end.  We also saw mothers with young kids playing on the beachy shore and shared the river with majestic swans.  We learned that the colorful houses in town have a meaning.  Before reading was common, a tradesperson would advertise by painting their house a certain color.  For instance, a baker's house may always be blue in a region.  This town is full of brightly painted houses. 


After the boating, we rode bikes back up the hill to town.  There was a sign by the side of the road and stairs going up the mountain.  With the help of Google translate, we figured out that this was the way to get to a fortress at the top.  About that time, Brian and Amy from the boat walked up.  We joined them for the hike and were rewarded with a fantastic view.  There was a restaurant at the top where we all had a good German beer and some snacks. 

Back at the boat, we had a fantastic dinner.  The evening entertainment was a Beer mixology class where we learned that a Diesel is beer + coke and a Radler is beer + sprite.  We also learned the critical skill of opening one beer bottle with another one or a soda bottle.  Apparently, it's a point of pride in Bavaria to open up a pint of beer without an opener.   

This was followed by a silent disco where everyone was given blue-tooth headphones.  There were three different channels of dance music at the same time, and it was fun to dance with people doing their own thing.  This is a great offering for dancing on a small boat where noise would otherwise be a problem.

Day 7 - Staubing, Germany
Stephanie started the day with exercise on the roof.  We walked with the group into the small city.  There was an open air market and some shops in a pedestrian zone.  This stop might have been designed to show us what life is like in a medium sized town.  We bought some souvenirs, and stopped in a gas station to by some beer.  Walking back to the boat, we ran into Mark and Kelly, who were coming up the hill away from the ship.  They were taking the train to Regensburg rather than ride the boat all afternoon.  What a great idea! We ran to the boat, grabbed a picnic lunch from the brunch buffet, and told the steward that we'd see them in Regensburg.  Then we made our way to the train station too.  We had to wait an hour for the next train and took a 20 minute train ride.  This saved us six hours of sailing on the boat.  While we waited, we enjoyed watching the school children head home on a Friday afternoon.  There were hordes of kids getting on buses and trains, all without adults.  It was quite a contrast to our culture.

Regensburg has another giant, gothic cathedral and medieval pedestrian zone.  We were trilled to find a restaurant called Dean and David, which is basically like Panera at home.  It was nice to have a light salad.  We got to the history museum just 45 minutes before closing at 4, which had the upside of half price admission of 2 euro.  We had time to see the Roman items which were found in the area from the days when this was a Roman outpost.  We also saw a family who was celebrating a wedding the museum courtyard.  The groom's side was clearly Baviarian with lederhosen.  The bride's side was African in traditional dress.

From here we walked across the river and found a park where the locals were swimming and sunbathing.  Teenagers were jumping off a pedestrian bridge into the river like crazy teenagers.  Apparently, partying in public parks is completely normal.  When the boat finally arrived, we changed into swim suits and grabbed bikes to join the fun.  On our bike ride, we saw a large tent with tons of people wearing lederhosen and derndl.  Inside the tent, people sat at long tables and waitresses carried platters and beer steins.  We tried to join the party but learned that it was a corporate event.  Bummer!  We were almost super cool.  We settled for a very pleasant time by the river were we sat and drank more Radlers and swam.  The water was cold and really swift.  This was our last night on the ship.  We had dinner with a nice group.  Sharing meals and tours with our fellow travelers was a great bonus for the cruise.

Day 8 - Munich, Germany
A van picked us up at 7 am to take us to Munich.  It was about an hour drive and we were joined by Kiwi and Riannah from Australia and the two sisters from Canada.  We rode on the Autobahn and that was a fun experience even if we weren't driving.  We had reserved a hotel at the airport where we dropped off our bags and then took the train into the central city.  We bought fabulous sandwiches from a bakery in the metro.  While munching our sandwiches at the base of the ornate and enormous New Town Hall the giant Rathaus-Glockenspeil gave us a show.  Knights joisted and Bavarian men danced in the mechanical display. It was very crowded in the main square and we were lucky to catch this event that only happens twice daily.

We took the metro and walked to the art museum.  The building itself was really beautiful.  The collection was pretty limited but there were lots of Reubens and a da Vinci.  We enjoyed a fancy piece of cake in the cafe then walked past the palace.  We entered the famous Hofbrouhaus but it was hot and crowded.  Instead, we had a traditional Bavarian meal at a nondescript restaurant next door that was very good.  In the subway station we bought some beer and sausage for later and took the 45 minute train ride back to the hotel.  There was apparently a big music festival happening next to the hotel, but we were too exhausted to check it out.  Instead, we enjoyed our very nice and spacious hotel room, watched the BBC, had our snacks, and went to bed early.

Day 9 - Travel home
This was just a travel day from Munich to Philadelphia to Dallas.  What a fabulous trip!  The picture below is of a group of folks from our boat.  It was on a tour that we didn't join, but I like to think that they were toasting us in the picture.

San Francisco 2013 - 15th Anniversary Trip

September 25-29, 2013 

Wednesday - We flew Virgin America airlines super early, took the BART train into the city and dropped our bags at the apartment. Our first stop was to buy gifts for the kids, and then we had lunch at a European style cafe where the guy at the counter had to stop speaking Italian to take our order. We encountered people from other countries throughout the trip. We rode BART to Union Square and walked plenty of big hills to get to the Cable Car Museum. This was an interesting destination. We planned to ride the Cable Car from here, but we gave up after waiting 15 minutes. We were pretty tired by this point given the early start. We took a muni bus to the apartment (very impressed with Brian's bus navigation skills), and had a nap. We used Yelp to find a recommended place for dinner:Tuba, a Turkish restaurant. A word about our lodgings. The only advanced planning we did was arrange lodging. We used vrbo.com to rent a flat in Noe Valley and it was fantastic. A one bedroom apartment with great decor, a wonderful deck with full city view, breakfast basics, and wine. 

Thursday - 15th Anniversary! Took bus to financial district, but gave up on riding a historic street car to Fisherman's Warf. Instead we walked to Coit Tower at Telegraph Hill. It was an impressive walk up tons of stairs from warf level to the highest point around. Once at the tower, we took an elevator to the top for great views of the city and bay. On the walk down, we found a nice spot in someone's driveway garden for our traditional anniversary self portrait. Next we walked a few blocks to Chinatown for lunch. The place ranked highly on Yelp, which seemed to indicate that it wasn't the full far west experience. Food was good though. Next we went to a tea tasting which was really fun. We also went to a bakery for custard tarts. Next stop was the Fortune Cookie Factory which was just a tiny room with a few people operating a machine that made what looked like pressed pancakes. A woman stuffed and folded the cookies by hand while still hot. From there we finally a rode cable car to the end of the line just for the experience. Picked up the bus back to the apartment. Brian found another Yelp recommendation for dinner. In the Mission District, about a 20 minute walk, we had a 5 course fixed menu dinner at an old restaurant that some hot shot chef had taken. The place had not been changed at all so the run-down sixties dump was kitschy. They still used the same sign and the main entrance was gated over, so you entered on the side. We felt very in the know. The food was not super delicious but it was a fun experience to see what crazy stuff was put in front of you next.  A sample course - quail three ways: hard boiled egg, roasted breast, fried leg.  The words used by the waiter to describe it were much fancier, of course.

Friday - mid-week travel day. We said goodbye to the Little Yellow House and rode the BART back to the airport to pick up a rental car. After an hour wait in the line, we finally hit the road and drove north through town across the Golden Gate bridge. Just across the bridge we stopped in Sausalito for a late lunch at a diner that served Danish food. Interesting! I had a meatball sandwich that was topped with red cabbage, beats, and sweet pickled cucumbers. Sounds weird, but it was delicious! We drove on to Point Reyes Station, hit the grocery store, and went on to the Carriage House where we were staying. Had goat cheese and crackers for dinner, watched a movie, and went to bed early. Not a very exciting day. The airport/car rental experience really wore us out. 

Saturday - Point Reyes National Seashore. Fantastic day filled with short hikes to cool sights! It was a short drive from our apartment to the PRNS. We first did a quick hike near the visitor center that had a simulated Indian village that was very enlightening. Next we went on a ranger led hike that went over the San Andreas fault and discussed the earthquake of 1906. We saw the spot where a fence was displaced 16 feet. (the wooden fence was not original, of course, but it was still a cool illustration.) Drove back to town and had brick fired pizza with local beer for lunch, then hung out in the garden at our place for a little while. Next we drove to the point to check out the lighthouse. It was a long walk down and we were rewarded with fantastic views of the ocean and a ranger talk about the lighthouse. Next we drove to the area where you can look down across the cliffs at elephant seals. Then we drove to the top of the peninsula to the elk reserve section of the park. By now it was about an hour and a half from sunset. We saw a couple of elk families on the ridge hike. Then we did the beach hike. We were hoping to catch the sunset from the beach, but I think we just missed it. There were lots of clouds, so it may not have been very good anyway. We trekked across the deep, soft sand and stood in the freezing water for a minute. Then we made it back to the car, drove home in the dense fog, and had left overs for diner.  Yeah for staying at a place with a full kitchen! 

Sunday - got up at 5am so we would have time for a little more sightseeing before heading home. We drove to Muir woods just north of San Francisco where you can walk through stands of redwood trees. They are amazingly huge! This is a popular tourist spot with good reason. We're glad we made the stop and that we got there at opening time before the crowds. From Muir Woods, we crossed the Golden Gate bridge, had lunch at Mel's Diner in the city, and made our way to the airport.

Devil's Den 2011

Our 2011 Family Vacation was to Devil's Den State Park in northwestern Arkansas for July 4th week.

Duration, timing and travel time:

We drove there on Monday and came home on Friday and that was plenty of time for this trip. It's about 7 hours drive time including rest and lunch stops. July is too deep into the

summer to vacation in Arkansas!! Hot, hot, hot!

Accommodations:

We stayed in a cabin that was built during the depression by the CCC. We made the reservation in mid-April and it was literally the last cabin available in an Arkansas state park for the whole summer. The rate was very reasonable at around $100/night. It was a studio, so smaller than we would have liked, but we managed by pitching our 2 man tent in the living room each night. That made a place for Sophie to sleep without the worry of her falling off the futon couch or getting up in the middle of the night with her feeding tube. The look and feel of the cabin was really cozy and everything was very comfortable. The kitchen was fully equipped, and there was a picnic table outside with a grill. The cabin was on a hill and was near other cabins but still private. This was not really roughing it as the cabin had AC, satellite TV, DVD player, and some sort of game system. It also had an impressive fireplace that was closed for the summer.

What to do:

This park has some really nice hiking trails. They weren't as challenging as Petit Jean, but there easily were enough shaded trails to hike a few hours for three days.

On Tuesday we did the Devil's Den trail and saw three interesting animals of note. We scared a dear sleeping near the river and got to see her run right past us. We also saw a cool tiny brown frog and an armadillo. It's fun to share these experiences with Sophie since she's pretty interested in animals.

Wednesday was our longest hike. We packed a lunch and did a 4 mile loop trail that was moderately interesting. Sophie went tee tee in the great outdoors for the first time. We sang lots of songs while hiking and got Sophie involved with the singing. She seemed to enjoy the responsibility of the 'boom boom boom' in Alice the Camel, but it did take alot of prompting. Brian and I got chiggers on this hike, so that's unfortunate.

We enjoyed a fun and informative Ranger led hike on Thursday morning to Yellow Rock. The views were great and we met some interesting people. We learned about the caves in the park which are more crevices that true caves. There's a large bat population in the park, and all of the caves were closed to protect the bats from a fungus that is killing bats in other parts of the country. We heard that the caves used to be fun to tour. They've been closed for years and may be closed for a long time to come.

Every late afternoon included time at the swimming pool. The park has a large play pool with two slides that Brian and I enjoyed. Sophie liked the wide steps that spanned the width of the pool. Since they allowed floaties in the pool, Sophie had some independence. She's very comfortable with the water but not swimming yet. The pool also had a sprinkler area that was a good diversion. This pic is of the edge of the small sprinkler area and doesn't show the sprinkler. The actual pool was pretty large but we didn't get a picture.

Sophie also enjoyed the luxury of satellite TV and watched Nick Jr for an hour or so in the heat of the day. There was also a very nice playground an easy walk from the cabin that we visited most evenings. The park is in a valley with a small river running through it. A portion was dammed off and canoes and paddle boats were available for rent. The open part of the river was really small due to some flood damage earlier this year. We did a short trip in a paddle boat which wasn't too exciting but did make for a cute picture.

The park also has a small store, snack-bar type restaurant for breakfast and lunch which we didn't visit, and laundry facilities.

Other points

Always travel with antihistamines. I had an allergy attach mid-week that made me pretty miserable for a day or so. We had to make a trip into town to buy medicine, an hour's round trip ride.

No cell phone coverage, but there was free wi-fi in the main visitor area near the pool and store.

July is too late! This trip would be better in early June before it gets so hot.

Plan trips to Arkansas sooner to ensure better cabin selection. We got really lucky this year. Try making a reservation by December.

Photos. Grand Bahama 2010

Bahamas 2010

Bahamas Log

Destination -ocean reef yacht club.  Freeport, Grand Bahama.  Staying at the timeshare we won at the Pathways fundraising auction.  Sophie stayed with grandparents.

Saturday November 27, 2010
Day one was pretty much spent just getting here and resting.  The taxi picked us up at 4:15 am.  Since we couldn't start packing until after 10pm, we didn't get much sleep.  Brian and I are both nursing  a cold, so our focus for this trip is rest.  We'll have six full days with no travel.

Travel was uneventful.  Had an hour layover in Atlanta.  We rented a car for the week from a local place in the airport, got a map, and headed out to drive on the left side of the road.  Hit up a local grocery store first thing since it was on the was to the timeshare.  Sawyers grocery was really packed with locals.  This was about 1pm on Saturday and I've rarely been someplace so busy.  This is what I picture black Friday shopping to be like if I ever went.

Sunday november 28
We both slept well last night. Barely had woken up when we got our reminder call about the orientation at 10:30. We thought at least we would get free food. It was just sweetbreads, but at least we got plenty of hot tea, which helped our throats. It was somewhat informative, but mostly a bunch of sales pitches. One we liked though was a guy named shammy who does nature tours.  So we booked a kayak trip through the mangrove swamps with him for Tuesday. $79 each and includes lunch at a local restaurant, time on a secluded beach and transportation and gear.  

Then we were going to go to the rand nature preserve in Freeport, but it was closed today (plus they have guided tours on Thursday, so we'll go then. Instead we decided to drive over to port lucaya and check out the marketplace. 

The Port Lucaya marketplace is supposed to be the most happening place on the island, but it was pretty subdued.  A lot of the stores were closed since it was Sunday and not many visitors.  We still managed to spend most of the day there.  Had a great lunch.  Brian had fish and chips which is somewhat local since this used to be a british colony.  Stephanie had jerk pork with peas and rice.  The rice dish was more like Louisiana red bens and rice.  The whole thing was spicy and delicious.  

About half the stores are jewelry stores which was fine with us because we'd like to do some Christmas shopping for our mothers.  Scoped out a few nice pieces, bought some sunscreen, then hung out at a bar.  At the bar we met a couple from Ohio who raved about the fabulous tours they've been on.  Turns out they used the same tour guide, so now were really looking forward to Tuesday's tour.  

At this point it's sprinkling at little and late in the afternoon.  We stopped at a liquor store to supply the condo then changed into swim suits.  Really shouldn't spend much more than 24 hours in the Bahamas without seeing the beach.  Walked through the resort across  the street and enjoyed the beautiful beach.  The water was a little cold and the air temperature was only in the low 70s, so we didn't swim.  The sand is soft, fluffy, and clean.  

Went back to the condo, relaxed, went to the resort pool and hot tub, snacked, watched tv, and went to bed.  Great day.

Monday november 29, 2010

Had breakfast in the condo and drove east to lucaya national park. It is a slow boring drive through thin pine trees and palm bushes. There are lots of unfinished houses on the island.  They are all cinderblock construction, due to the hurricane building standards. The park facility itself was just a small gravel parking lot right off the road, a low cement building and some toilets. The fee was only $3, plus we had $1 off coupons, so $4 total. There is an upper nature trail thawt is a 10 minute loop,  with 2 sinkhole caves you can walk down into.  Those were really neat. Especially the first one, as it had fish in it and trees growing up out through the top. 

Then we crossed the street for the southern half of the park. This is a trail through the mangrove swash, up through the wooded side of the dunes (where we saw a giant land crab), and to the fluffy beach. The tide was in, so the beach was small, but it was still very beautiful. This was gold rock beach, named for the rock jutting out of the ocean just offshore.  We swam for almost an hour.  The waves were pretty small, but it was still fun and warm as the sun was out most of the time.  Then we ate sandwiches on a bench on the dunes and watched 3 little shore birds peck around in the washed up seaweed, which was not near as gross as the stuff back home, but just lime long thin leaves. 

After that we thought about stopping to eat out East somewhere. We drove 7 miles further to the town of High Rock. We didn't stop to eat there, but it was a neat little town. 

We got back just in time for the hotel's "Monday night madness". We went because it was 2 free drinks and free food.  The host was playing goofy games with people and teaching them line dances. We sat with some canadiens.   They have been coming here every year since 1981!  Robert also told us about how to drive down to the closest beach.  It seems we missed the mass introduction of everyone, but were okay with that.  

After that we came back to the room and stephanie watched legally blonde 2 while Brian snoozed and read some of his book. 

Tuesday November 30, 2010

It rained a lot last night.  Just as we had gotten up and were getting ready to go on our kayaking trip, shammy called and asked if we could reschedule for Friday because of the weather.  He said we could still go out and he had ponchos, but he thought we probably would not have a good experience. We reluctantly agreed. 

The Rand nature center promoted a free guided nature walk at 10:30 on Tuesdays, so we went to that.  Turns out the guided aspect of the tour was just showing you where the trail started.  As that was pretty obvious, we were disappointed in the tour.  But not disappointed in the place.  It was a nice arboretum. There was a pleasant pond were we watched turtles, fish, and birds.  They had a rescued an injured hawk, parrot, and some peacocks on display as well.

Lunch at Geneva's on East Mall Drive was wonderful.  Easily the best food we've has here yet.  Stephanie had baked lamb with peas and rice, plantains, and Cole slaw.  Brian had BBQ pork ribs with peas and rice, potato salad, and Cole slaw.  Not incredibly different from food at home, but wonderfully prepared and reasonably priced.  Thanks, fodors, for the recommendation.

We went to the international bizarre, which is supposed to be a newly renovated shopping area.  Hugely disappointed.  There are very few stores open and they're mostly sad.  The place is kind of like six flags in that each area is built in the style of a different continent. 
We did find a natural food store open and bought a local spice packet for Marion.

We rested in the afternoon, and had leftover pork chops for dinner.  The highlight of the day was Salsa dance lessons at the casino bar.  There was only one other couple at the lesson, but we had a great time.  There was instruction for about an hour with Gregory.  Then he played music for another hour.  It was fun because the atmosphere was like going to a real club, but there was no pressure to do everything right all the time.  

Wednesday December 1, 2010

Snorkel day.  We rented equipment from the hotel which was kind of an ordeal and not much less expensive than renting on the beach as it turns out.  Then we jumped in the car and headed west to paradise cove for the best off beach snorkeling on the island.  We paid a small fee for entrance onto the beach and rented some lounge chairs.  Then we headed out.  It was a fairly long swim to get to the first reef. There were some cool fish.  Stephanie was seriously hampered since she doesn't have contact lenses.  Mainly, Stephanie just saw jelly fish.  There were huge schools of them.  Also, felt jelly fish stings.  The water was a little rough and we tried to make sure we were together but it was difficult to see.  These things combined made for a pretty stressful excursion.  

Next Stephanie sat in a lounge chair and read while Brian snorkeled again.  This time he went out farther and knew how to avoid the jelly fish.  He saw lots of cool things including a huge manta ray.  By the time he returned it was very windy, cloudy, and cool.  We packed up and drove to the western tip of the island before heading back to the timeshare.  Most interesting observation was conch fishing.  There were huge piles of the shells on the seashore near some villages.  We also found the conch shell dump with shells piled 10 feet high.

Fixed pasta in the room, and went to the hotel restaurant for conch fritters and beer.  There was a beach fish fry on Wednesday that's supposed to be fun, but it was actually a little cool and windy.  Brian wasn't up for eating fish with head intact, so we just relaxed in the room for the night.

Thursday December 2, 2010
The goal for today was to do xmas shopping and sit on the beach and drink fruity drinks.  We also went to movie night.  We went back to lucaya marketplace and the jewelry stores.  We looked at larimar for Jereane and pink conch earrrings & pendant for Stephanie. Brian tried to negotiate a better price,, but the lady wasn't budging.  Then we looked at the place that sells troll beads. This would be a gift for Marion.  We finally decided on an arrangement, but it was more beads and more money than we wanted to spend, so we decided to go eat lunch and try again later. Had a nice lunch at a mediterranean cafe where we had fresh veggies and no peas and rice.  It was a nice change.  In the end we bought the jewelry pieces with little success at negotiating, but were really happy with them.  in the afternoon we visited tiano beach.  We finally had fruity drinks, but it was really just for the sake of it.  It was a little chilly but still nice.  For dinner we had ziti in the condo and enjoyed watching a movie with the other guests.  It was Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.  It's a Swedish film based on the popular book, dubbed into English.  Excellent mystery, thriller.

Friday December 3
Shamee picked us up for the kayaking tour with Calabash Ecotourism at 9am.  On the way to Dover Sound on the northern part of the island, he shared a lot of natural history of the archipelago.  This was a great tour.  He taught us the basics of kayaking, which is very easy.  We shared a two person kayak while Shamee had a single.  The trip was through a mangrove swashland.  It was much more open than I envisioned with the trees only rising a foot or two above the water.  We followed Shamee through the swamp for about half an hour, then the path led us into the open ocean.  This was much more exciting, but harder work.  It made us appreciate returning to the swamp to finish the tour.  
     The time in the swashland was probably the most relaxing aspect of our vacation.  It was warm, the wind was calm, and the scenery was really beautiful.  We saw some great blue herons and sandpipers flying through.  Not much need to paddle.  We were sorry for that part of the tour to end.
     Shamee next drove to Banana Beach for lunch at a beachside cafe.  Stephanie tried a conch burger.  Not something she'll be ordering again, but worth a try.  Brian stuck with a regular burger.  This beach is really fantastic.  It was low tide and you could see exposed sandbars curving around the beach.  We took a walk after lunch and found some small conch shells in the water, complete with the slimy critters inside.  This was the end of the tour and Shamee too us back to the condo.
   We decided we should make one more beach run before the end of the trip, so we walked to Coral beach from the condo.  It was cloudy and really too cold to go in, so we shivered on the beach for awhile and then wen in the resort hot tub.  
     Friday night was the best food and nightlife of the week.  There were more locals out and it's always more fun to go someplace that's not empty.  We drove to Port Lucaya (2miles) and had dinner at Agava. It's a trendy Latin fusion place and we both had really excellent seafood dishes complete with tasty sauces, steamed veggies and fried plantains.  The atmosphere was calming, if pretty similar to home, and the service was great.  Then we went to the casino.  Brian played craps for an hour or two while Stephanie sat at the bar and enjoyed watching karaoke night.  Brian walked away ahead $5 after tips, which didn't cover Stephanie's drinks.  Not bad for an evening's entrainment.

Saturday December 4
Time to go home.  Brian has been under the weather since the day before Thanksgiving and he's not feeling great.  We stopped at Thompsons family market near the resort.  We were in search of more ginger tea to take a gifts.  The didn't have it, but the place was so charming that we walked the small store. Wish we had found this place earlier.  If we wanted to open a market, it would be just like this.  High quality specialty foods, produce, a small meat counter, and a deli/bakery.  We bought some salami and fresh croissants for sandwiches and a strudel just because it looked good.  We filled the car up with 4.28 gas.  200 miles for the week.  Before going to the airport we stopped at Sawyers grocery again to get the tea.  This was a risky move after the crowds last Saturday.  Not quite as bad this go around and we made it to the airport in plenty of time.
     The grand bahama airport is very easy and relaxed.  Unfortunately, the salami was snagged in customs.