New York City with my Sisters, May 2010

Time for a Sisters Trip so off we went to New York City!

Wednesday, May 5th, 2010. We arrived at Newark Airport at 5:15pm. Carol and I flew together and Ruth met us there. Our flights were about the same time so once we landed and headed to baggage we called Ruth, and she came over from her terminal. We went outside to beautiful, sunny warm weather in the 70s. A nice change from Seattle and Minneapolis weather. We took a taxi, during rush hour, through the Lincoln Tunnel and arrived at our hotel in Times Square about 7:00 pm. Our hotel, the Hilton Garden Inn was in a great location on 8th Avenue between 48th and 49th. We faced 8th Avenue, which was much quieter than facing 7th Avenue and the heart of everything in Times Square. We had dinner reservations for 7:30 so we checked in, freshened up a little and walked over to the Eatery which is on 53rd. The food was good, large portions and attractive with great reviews. After dinner we walked along 53rd to 7th Avenue then south on 7th to see all the lights and buildings in Times Square. Last week was the attempted bombing on 7th and 45th so there was a lot of police presence. Although I had been to NYC twice before, it was still awesome to see all the lights and magnificent buildings. Neither Ruth nor Carol had been and they were impressed. Until you have seen it you just don’t know what to expect. After walking as far as 45th street we headed back up to our hotel for the night.

Thursday, May 6th, 2010 We got up and headed over to the Hop On – Hop Off tour bus and scheduled the All Loops Tour which gave us 4 routes, including Uptown, Downtown, Brooklyn and NYC at Night tour. We had 48 hrs to use our tickets so we got on the Uptown bus and road up through Central Park West, past the Dakota where John Lennon was shot, and past St John’s Cathedral, then up through Harlem then down Central Park East. We got off the tour at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met). We all wanted to see the museum so we went in for a few hours. One thing we learned was that all the public museums have a “recommended” entry fee however you can pay whatever you want, or nothing at all. We paid $10 each rather than $20 because we didn’t plan to stay long. After the museum we walked into Central Park. The weather was still beautiful as we walked by the Belvedere Castle, the Bow Bridge, and back around to the Bethesda Terrace Fountain, which was being renovated. We left Central Park and took a taxi over to Serendipity for lunch. Since it was 2pm we had beat the lunch crowd so we didn’t have to wait at all. It is a fun, eclectic restaurant with great desserts, including Frozen Hot Chocolate, one of Oprah’s favorite things. Lunch was good and the Frozen Hot Chocolate lived up to its reputation. After we left Serendipity we walked back to 5th Avenue and stopped at Trump Tower which is beautiful inside, and Radio City Music Hall, then on to Rockefeller Center. We stopped at the plaza and saw all the flags around the area where there is ice skating in the winter and outdoor restaurants in the summer. We walked back through Times Square and to our hotel to rest for awhile before going out again. That evening we had reservations to see Jersey Boys at the August Wilson Theatre. Carol made arrangements through a friend to have a backstage tour beforehand so we arrived at the stage door entrance as planned at 7pm. Our tour was interesting with our guide showing us how the sets are changed so quickly, where the actors get ready and just how all the choreography works so well together. After our tour we found our seats on the balcony level. The theatre is small enough that any seat was probably good. The show told the story of Frankie Valle and was a lot of fun with familiar music from the 50s and 60s. After the show we stopped at Thalia for dinner, which was close to our hotel. The food and drinks were good.


Friday, May 7th. We left our hotel about 8:00 and walked over to Rockefeller Center hoping to go to the Top of the Rock, and also arrange a studio tour. Once we got our tickets we had to wait in line to see which studio tour we would be taking. They had nothing available until 5pm! We had other plans so we knew that wouldn’t work, so we exchanged the tickets for one for me on Sunday and Ruth and Carol decided they would rather go to the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) while I was at the studio tour. So we went to the Top of the Rock to see the view and take pictures, and then walked over to where they were still filming the Today Show. People usually line up as early as 5am for the 7am start, but by 9 or so they start leaving, especially if there is not a special guest. We found a place to stand close to the front row as Al Roker, Matt Lauer and Natalie Morales were doing their stints. Ruth actually shook hands with Al and I shook hands with Natalie. Later we found out that I was on the live broadcast, but the other shots we were in were edited out. We left the area and walked back over to 8th street and got on the Hop On- Hop Off Downtown loop. It really is a fun way to learn a little about the city, take a break from walking and see some things you may otherwise not see. It took us past the Flat Iron district, Soho, Greenwich Village, Chinatown, Ground Zero and Wall Street. We got off at South Street Seaport where we transferred to the Brooklyn loop tour. Once we were over the Manhattan Bridge we stopped at Brooklyn Bridge Park so we all could take pictures of lower Manhattan. We got back on and continued our tour through Brooklyn. We stopped at a Pizzaria and everyone got out and got a piece of pizza, then back on the bus for the rest of the tour. At the last stop we got off the bus and walked over the Brooklyn Bridge. What an awesome sight! The walk was fun, the weather was nice and it felt good to walk the bridge. On the Manhattan side we walked through Wall Street area, and over to Lupa for dinner. Lupa is one of 5 restaurants in Manhattan owned by Mario Batali who was raised in the Seattle area and has his own show on the Food Network. It was an excellent choice and we all enjoyed our meal. After dinner we took a taxi back to our hotel. By then it was 10:30 and we had a very busy, yet fulfilling day.


Saturday May 8th, 2010 We got up early and rode the subway to the Ace Hotel. We had read about the little coffee shop next to the hotel that served Stumptown Coffee and it suggested sitting and drinking it in the lobby of the Ace Hotel. The hotel is beautiful with rich, dark décor with the feel of a wonderful, old library. After our coffee we got back on the subway and took it to the end which was the Port Authority pier where the Stanton Island Ferry departs. We walked over to Battery Park and got in line to go to the Statue of Liberty / Ellis Island. It started to rain and the wind was blowing but it was warm. We had brought umbrellas and jackets with hoods just in case so we were ready. We rode the ferry over and walked around the Park taking pictures. The museum had at least an hour wait so we decided that we wanted to spend more time at Ellis Island so we got back in line to take the next ferry. Ellis Island was incredible, to walk in the footsteps of our ancestors as they came to this country, and to see what they went through to be here. We didn’t stay and do any research since you can do it online, however we were able to watch one of the films and go through all the rooms. It was incredible. After we left Ellis Island we rode the subway up to Union Square and had lunch at the Republic, a Vietnamese restaurant. It was a small restaurant with unusual décor, but the food was great. Ruth and Carol both had Vietnamese sandwiches and salads, and I had a bowl of soup, similar to pho. After lunch we took the subway up to Grand Central Station. We didn’t stay long but I wanted Ruth and Carol to see Grand Central. By then we were tired of walking so we decided to take the subway shuttle back to Times Square then walked to our hotel to rest before dinner. Once we were in Times Square we heard that the Stanton Island Ferry had rammed the dock and several people were injured. We had been there in the morning about 9:30 when we were going over to Liberty and Ellis Island, but we hadn’t seen or heard any commotion. That evening we took a taxi down to the Chelsea area and went to the Red Cat for dinner. We had reservations but we were a little early so we went next door to the Drunken Horse for wine and cheese first. Dinner was wonderful – After dinner we went back to our hotel by 9pm. I think it was catching up to us!

Sunday morning we got packed and took our bags down to the bell hop, then walked over to Rockefeller Center. We stopped and had a bagel and coffee at one of the shops along the way. Ruth and Carol left me at Rockefeller Center and went up to the MOMA and I went to NBC to go on a studio tour. They showed us where the nightly news is filmed, Jimmy Fallon’s studio and where Saturday Night Live is filmed. I enjoyed the tour and Ruth and Carol said that the Museum was interesting. We met up afterward and took a taxi over to Grand Central Station again and had lunch at Zocala. Ruth tried their Cuban sandwich and said it was very good, I had a bowl of Tortilla Soup and Carol had a salad which also looked good. The food was plentiful and good. Afterward we rode the subway back to Times Square for our final time before heading to the airport. As we were walking through Times Square we saw the Naked Cowboy… what would a trip to NYC be without running into the Naked Cowboy! We walked back to our hotel for our ride to the airport. It was sad to leave- I love NY! Once again – my mantra, I will be back!

To see more pictures from this trip, click below.

Mazatlan, February 2010

Since I began this blog a month ago I have been working on re-creating our trips from the past using journals, notes and pictures from those trips. I finally have caught up and this is the first trip that will be recorded shortly after we returned. I decided against daily updates, although I did make notes everyday so I could remember things that we did.

Mazatlan. Home of the 3rd largest Carnaval (Mardi Gras) celebration in the world, following Rio and New Orleans. When we decided to come to Mazatlan again for our annual trip, I checked into the dates of Carnaval so we could avoid this annual celebration. Since our plan was to stay in downtown Mazatlan for 5 days prior to moving to our timeshare, I wanted to be sure that we booked our downtown stay at least the week prior to Carnaval. No problem. We scheduled the hotel and timeshare and got our airline tickets scheduled in August. In December we discovered that we were booked during Carnaval, not the week before. Not sure what happened but obviously I looked at the dates wrong. Oh, well, we are going to make the best of it.

Tuesday, February 9th. This trip started out typical of our daily life. Are we just too busy? Not organized enough? We had a list of things to remember- sunglasses, swimsuits, passports, etc. All the things you might not think of when leaving a rainy, winter in Seattle with a destination of sunny, hot Mexico. So what did we forget? As we were on our way to the airport at 5:30 am, Doug realized that he didn’t have his phone. It was in his hand as we walked out the door, but he stepped back inside to check on one more thing and set it down. So now, he noticed he didn’t have it. We were on Shuttle Express with someone else headed for their flight so we could hardly turn around. So, we got to the airport, got checked in and he headed back in a taxi to retrieve his phone. $78 cab fare later he was back with his phone and enough time to check in. Hope this isn’t a sign of things to come!

We arrived in Mazatlan about 3:15pm (Central Time) and by the time we reached our hotel it was about 5pm. The weather was warm, about 80, but it was a little cloudy. We checked in the La Siesta hotel which is right on Olas Altas in downtown Mazatlan. Our 3rd floor room looked out to the ocean and the boardwalk right across the street from the hotel. We had a balcony with 2 chairs and the room was nice with 2 queen beds, a desk and chair and wireless access. The hotel had a inside courtyard, a pool and was connected to the Shrimp Bucket restaurant.

About 4 blocks behind the hotel is Plaza Machado which is a beautiful park like setting with restaurants surrounding the plaza. After we got checked into our room we walked down to the plaza and had a great dinner at Pedro and Lola’s.

We got up Wednesday morning to cloudy weather, but it was warm. We ate breakfast at the Shrimp Bucket then walked over to the malecon (boardwalk). It is so nice to walk in the morning before it gets too warm. The malecon has several statues and there are quite a few people walking, taking in the sites. We walked about 3 miles or so, resting along the way. We stopped to watch the cliff divers. After waiting quite awhile we figured out that they have a “showman” that is there for the sole purpose of gathering a crowd. He taunts the crowd by putting his arms out like he’s going to dive, as several others below collect money from the crowd. Finally, someone else climbs the tower and is the one who jumps. We walked up past the fisherman’s statue where all the early morning boats come in and they are selling fresh fish. You can buy fresh fish and take it to a restaurant across the street and they will cook it for you. Once we got back from our walk we spent time at the hotel for the afternoon, just relaxing. Doug caught up on some email and I spent time at the pool – which was not heated. It was refreshing anyway, and I enjoyed the downtime with my book. We ate dinner that night at a great little restaurant a couple blocks from the hotel, La Cueva del Leon, Cocina Mexicana.

Thursday was the first day of Carnaval. We really did not know what to expect. All around were signs of things happening. Obviously Pacifica Beer was a sponsor (they have a brewery in town). There was a stage being set up right next to the hotel, and there were gates and barricades set up on all the street entrances to the area. The hotel gave us wristbands to wear so we got get back in if we ventured outside of the area. We decided to head for the Golden Zone for awhile during the day. The Golden Zone is at the north end of the 12 mile long malecon. It has a lot of the big hotels on the beachfront, and lots of shops and restaurants. It is where the tourists go, and where the cruise ships bring their tourists for a day of shopping and dining.

We had a late breakfast at Panama which is a chain restaurant /bakery. The food and service were good. After we ate breakfast we walked around the area. We stopped at Joe’s Oyster Bar which overlooks the ocean, then we rode the bus back downtown. By then it was about 3:30 and there was a band practicing on the stage, and more and more vendors were bringing their carts down the street and setting things up. After relaxing for awhile we had dinner at the Shrimp Bucket, and decided to settle in to see what the night would bring. As the evening went on more and more people started coming. Around 8pm the band was playing and a large crowd was gathering. As we walked the area we saw that there were at least 6 more stages set up in the 12 block area. There were food booths, entertainers, candy, toys and trinkets, masks, etc. It was fun to people watch. At 9pm there were fireworks and the crowd was continuing to get thicker. We decided to head to our room and watch from the balcony. The music went on until 1pm – I’m glad I brought earplugs which helped a lot to drown out some of the noise.

On Friday we got up to quiet streets (and clean streets). It was hard to believe that last night was the beginning of a huge party. We walked over to Machado Plaza and had breakfast at La Tromoya then walked over to the city market. Mazatlan has a huge city market with many meat and produce vendors, as well as craft vendors. We walked to the Cathedral and the plaza nearby. We came back to the hotel to rest and swim. Once again as the day went on more and more people started coming to the area, and the bands started playing. We decided to walk back to Machado Plaza to see what kinds of things were happening. Although it was outside the gates, there were vendors, entertainers and lots of people. We walked down one of the side streets and went to Te Amo Lucy’s (I love Lucy’s) for dinner. It’s a fun little restaurant with I love Lucy videos playing and all kinds of little ornamental things hanging from the ceiling. American Tony and his Mexican wife Lucy are the owners. The food is great and it is usually busy. When we got back to our hotel around 9pm there were a lot of people in the area and all the stages had performers. We watched from our balcony as more and more people came to the area. They partied in the street until about 3am. Once again I was thankful for the earplugs.

Saturday morning we got coffee at Looney Beans which is a few blocks from the hotel. Great coffee which is grown in Mexico in the state of Chiapas. With our coffee we walked up the malecon to fisherman’s statue, then took one of the pulmonias to the Golden Zone again. After lunch at Gringo Lingo we walked up the main road and took a bus back downtown. When we got back to the hotel area there was a lot of action with more and more people coming into the area and vendors getting set up for the evening. That evening we walked from one end to the other of the main street, stopping to listen to the bands and buying dinner from the street vendors. It was fun to be part of the action and watch people. We never saw anyone acting unruly… there were families with kids, couples old and young and everyone was having a good time. At 11pm we were back on our balcony to watch the fireworks show, which lasted about 45 minutes. That evening the music and the street dancing went on until about 5am.

On Sunday morning we got up and packed to get ready to move over to our timeshare at the Mayan Palace which is at the north end of Mazatlan in an area called Cerritos. We walked around the area one more time, got coffee from Looney Beans again and we both commented on how clean the streets were, just a few short hours after the all night party ended.

We took a pulmonia to the Mayan Palace and arrived there about 1:30. Doug’s Dad Cal had planned to meet us at the hotel as he was going to spend the week with us. He actually had been in the area for a week visiting with friends in Tecapan which is south of Mazatlan. He showed up shortly after we arrived at the Mayan. We were not able to check in so we left our baggage with the bellboy and looked around the resort. We sat by the pool and had lunch then we took a bus over to the Mega Foods to pick up some food for meals for the week. Once we got back to the hotel we were able to check into our room which had a great view of the ocean and the pool. That evening we ate dinner at the hotel.

I was really looking forward to resting at this hotel and spending time by the pool. When we were downtown our intent was to spend time checking out the sites, enjoying early morning walks, etc, but once we moved to the Mayan I wanted to enjoy the pool, and spend some time reading. We spent the day Monday at the hotel. That evening Cal wasn’t feeling well so we walked across the street to a little taco stand and got him some tacos then Doug and I headed to the Golden Zone for dinner at Gus Gus, which was great.

On Tuesday we got up to an overcast day so we decided to take Cal to the Golden Zone. He has a little trouble getting around and walks with a cane so we planned to walk slow and stop and rest now and then. After awhile we decided to walk to Joe’s Oyster Bar which overlooks the ocean. We asked Cal if he would like that and we planned to walk the 3 or 4 blocks slowly and take our time. We stopped to rest several times and when we were about 30 ft from the entrance Cal stopped again to rest. I pointed to the sign and told him we were almost there and he told us to go ahead and he would catch up. Doug and I got to the restaurant, ordered drinks and waited for Cal. After several minutes we were still waiting so I went back to the street to get Cal and he was nowhere in sight. I walked back to the restaurant and Doug went to look and also could not find him. We waited several minutes then left to try to find him. We walked around the area for awhile then rode the bus back to the hotel figuring that he would be there. There was no sign of Cal. He finally showed up several hours later and said that he had walked several blocks to the end of the road and waited for us for over an hour. That evening we rode the bus back to the downtown area to experience Fat Tuesday, the last night of Carnaval. We got off the bus near Machado Plaza and walked slowly enjoying the entertainment in the area. We ended up walking to the main street and ate dinner at la Copa de Leche which was really good. Afterward we walked outside the main gates and took a pulmonia back to the hotel.

Wednesday was rainy in the morning so we rode the bus again town to the City Market. Once we came home in the afternoon the weather was nicer so I spent time by the pool. That evening we went to dinner at Senor Frogs.

On Thursday morning we got up early and rode the bus to the Golden Zone and went to the Vineyard Church. We volunteered to make sandwiches and fill water bottles along with other volunteers. Once we were done several of us boarded 2 of the church buses to go the city dump where the church has a ministry to feed the “workers” at the dump. Basically they are there to salvage anything they can to sell to support their families. On our way to the dump they drove through several poor parts of town where the church has set up “feeding” centers. Many of the “colonias” (neighborhoods) have dirt roads and due to the rain the day before one of the buses got stuck the mud. After trying to get it unstuck they finally moved the sandwiches and water to the other bus and we continued our journey to the dump. They called for assistance getting the bus out of the mud. Once we got to the dump we spent time handing out the food and visiting with the workers. They are so poor and they spend 10-12 hours every day salvaging things. After we left the dump we stopped and fed the children of the workers. The experience really puts our lives full of material things into perspective. We all went away feeling good that we were able to help.

After we got back to the church we went next door to the Taco restaurant which is called Taco Time (not the chain) and had lunch. We walked around a few of the stores in the area and Cal bought a Viking hat which he had seen earlier in the week. That evening Doug and I ate dinner at the hotel then watched several people singing karaoke in the hotel bar.

On Friday it was really sunny for the first time since we got here. I wanted to spend the day relaxing by the pool so Doug went downtown on his own and I went to the pool. Cal came down after awhile, but then he decided to ride the bus to the end of the line and site see without having to walk around. That evening we rode the bus to the end of the road past our hotel and had a great dinner at The Last Drop. Friday nights are “all you can eat ribs” so Cal and Doug enjoyed and I had a great hamburger.

Saturday was beautiful again so I stayed around the hotel during the day then we planned to go to the Golden Zone to Pancho’s for dinner. It is right on the beach and has great food. We got there about 6 and had to wait at least an hour for a table. There was entertainment on the beach (fire dancers) and a mariachi band stopping at the tables. We had a good time.

On Sunday we got up and packed to get ready to check out. It is always hard to leave. We had a good time, the weather was somewhat ok, especially the last few days. Carnaval turned out to be a good experience. Cal had a good time too, even though he had a little trouble getting around.

Next year we are hoping to go to Puerto Vallarta. We’ll be back in a couple years to Mazatlan.

Leavenworth, December 2009

Last year when we went to Leavenworth for the annual tree lighting we booked again for this year. We planned to stay two nights at the Enzian Inn the weekend of December 4th and 5th. We left about 9:30 or so and stopped on the summit for a late breakfast. We arrived in town around 1pm. The roads were clear and bare, not at all like the last two years when we had so much snow. Both Snoqualmie and Blewett passes were fine and once we got to Leavenworth they didn’t have any snow either. The Enzian Inn is on the main highway, right across from the main part of town. Once we got things settled in our room, we bundled up to go over to the village shops. We browsed for a few hours then watched some of the festivities in the Park. St Nick comes to town, there are choirs singing, and usually other entertainment. There were not a lot of people yet, but from experience we knew there would be a lot the next day. After awhile we stopped at Ducks and Drakes for a bite to eat, and then went back to our hotel. Once again there was a piano player and they played and sang Christmas carols. The hotel is so festive with their tree, the apple cider smell and the roasted almonds and pecans. I went swimming for awhile and we turned in early. On Saturday we got up and had a nice breakfast, which comes with the room. During breakfast the owner of the hotel played the alphorn, which is a daily tradition. After breakfast we had booked a sleigh ride, however, there was no snow! No problem, they also offer carriage rides so that is what we did instead. Even though it wasn’t snowing, it was still cold so we bundled up and they had wool blankets for us. They took us through the fields on an hour ride. Afterward we had hot cocoa and cookies in the tent. There were quite a few people there and no one seemed disappointed that there wasn’t any snow. We headed back to town and over to the village. More and more people were starting to come. Since this is a festive town at this time of year there are tour buses that bring people in just for the 5 hrs or so of festivities. During this time you cannot even get into some of the shops! We browsed around for awhile then at about 4:30 we joined others in the main plaza for the entertainment. Several choirs sang carols, the town officials addressed the crowd, and the count down began for the lights to come on. It started to snow just as they were getting ready to turn the lights on. All of a sudden the lights of the whole town came on beginning with the trees, then the village storefronts. It was fun to see, and really has a way of getting you in the Christmas spirit. After the lighting we went to the Soup Cellar for an early dinner. We had never been there but it was really good. After dinner we took our time and walked back to our hotel for another restful evening of swimming, and relaxing. In the morning there was 3-4 inches of fresh snow, but the hotel staff indicated that the passes were clear and dry. We had chains with us just in case. We left the area about 11:00 and were home by 1:30 or so. We booked again for next year, but we are both thinking we might pass on it. There is only so much you can see, and 3 years in a row now should be enough for awhile. Of course, we may change our mind next year.

To see more pictures click below:

San Francisco, November 2009

Alaska Airlines had an awesome special- $49 each way to San Francisco so we decided to take as quick trip. Just 2 nights, but still a chance to get away. We booked the Wharf. We flew down on Thurs afternoon the 12th arriving about 2pm. They were able to give us our room so we got that taken care of then headed down to the wharf. The weather was really nice, didn’t even need a jacket. We walked down to Pier 39 and looked around at the shops and watched all the seals on the docks.We were told they would be closing off the area in a couple of months so there would not be anymore seals in the future. It’s fun to watch so I’m sure there will be some people that will miss it, us included.
Later we took a walk back to Fisherman’s Wharf. They have a new museum which is an old fashioned penny arcade. It had all kinds of old, mechanical machines that are still in working order. It was fun to take some quarters and play them. There was one that was hilarious with a lady that was laughing hysterically- it got everyone around laughing too. Around 5pm we met up with one of Doug's business clients at Hooter's. We had a bite to eat with him and talked business for awhile, then we left to walk around. As we were walking we were given tickets to a free comedy club right at the pier so we went to it. It was a place for stand-ups to practice and get a start. Some were funny, but nothing spectacular. I guess you can’t expect much for free. After the show we walked back to the hotel and sat in the lounge for awhile. We had been given a gift certificate for drinks and appetizers so we each ordered a drink and got plate of different things to try. We enjoyed relaxing, and unwinding. On Friday we rode the cable car up to Union Square, and from there we took a bus to Golden Gate Park. Once we got there we walked over to the California Academy of Sciences, which was new since the last time we were here. It had wonderful exhibits and we were there a couple hours checking it out. There is a planetarium, aquarium, natural museum of history and a 3D theatre. After we got back we walked down to the waterfront again and ate dinner at Nicks and had dinner. We’ve been there before and it was good, and we enjoyed it again this time. Afterward we went to Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum. It had been years since I’d been there so it was fun to see all the things they have added or changed. There are a lot of not-so-believable things, but it’s still fun to see what people come up with. In the morning we had time for a quick breakfast, then checked out and headed to the airport. Another quick trip – but definitely fun and a chance to get away from hustle and bustle, and rainy Seattle.

For more pictures, click below.

Las Vegas, October 2009

Doug’s annual conference this year was being held in Las Vegas. They were trying to cut down on expenses for people (not quite NY, Miami or San Francisco) so they booked rooms at the Golden Nugget in Downtown Vegas, rather than the Strip.

We have been to Vegas several times so it actually sounded good to be in the downtown area, away from the strip. I wanted to go for the rest and relaxation and was glad to know that there was a nice pool at the Golden Nugget. In fact, they had just remodeled it the year before and it included a waterslide that went through a shark tank. This I gotta see!

Doug flew down on Tuesday the 6th and got registered for his conference, then I came down on the afternoon of the 8th. Kaycie and Brad were also down in Vegas with some friends so we made arrangements to meet them for dinner in the Downtown area. Brad had not been to Vegas in several years and had not seen the Fremont Experience, so we thought we would stay in the area. We ate dinner at one of the hotels that had an all you can eat steak buffet. After dinner we did a little gambling and headed out to watch the show. The main plaza between all the hotels/casinos in downtown is closed to traffic and is covered by an arched roof. In the evening there is a laser, light show on the ceiling running the whole length which is about 4 blocks. There is a new show every hour. It’s a fun experience.

On Friday while Doug was at his conference I spent several hours at the pool, and just relaxing in the area. Once he was done around 5pm we headed over to the strip to meet Brad and Kaycie for dinner at Margaritaville. They got our name in, knowing we would probably be waiting awhile. Once we got there they called us within a few minutes. We had a good dinner but they put us upstairs, away from all the action. They had monitors so we could see the main room, but it wasn’t quite as fun as being there.

After dinner we headed to the Bellagio to see the 10pm showing of Cirque du Soleil “O”. We have seen several of the shows, but not this one. It was impressive how the stage performances were done since most of the show is done around water, diving into water, etc. The stage floor elevated so everything was choreographed perfectly to get the right effect. It wasn’t our favorite among the ones we have seen, but it was good. After the show we walked around the strip a little before we went back to our hotel.

On Saturday we stayed around the hotel, went swimming, gambled a little in the area, then in the evening we had made arrangements to meet the kids over at the Rio for dinner buffet. We started out by taking the city bus, however after an hour we still had not gotten very far so we got at Caesar’s and walked over to the Paris and waited in line to take the free shuttle that goes over to the Rio. Even that took about 45 more minutes. We finally got there and the kids had been waiting in line for quite some time to get into the buffet. That took quite awhile too. We finally made it and got seated. The buffet was huge! They had international stations so we had our choice of Chinese, Mexican, Thai, American, Italian, and tons more. The guys really enjoyed going back over and over. Not sure where they were putting it! After dinner we walked around the strip again since we were in the area.
After the show we spent a little time on the strip before we headed back to our hotel for the night. In the morning we got up and packed to come home.

Mazatlan, February 2009

Although we love Puerto Vallarta, I convinced Doug to take our annual Mexico trip in Mazatlan this year. We started planning last summer and made arrangements to stay at the Mayan Palace through our timeshare. As usual, we wanted to stay for several days in the heart of Old Town to get a feel for the town before we moved to our condo. I started looking online, and also through Frommer’s and we settled on La Siesta Hotel, which has an ocean view right on the main street of Old Town. We got it booked and started planning. We flew into town on Wednesday, February 11th (our anniversary). The airport is about 45 minutes from town so our taxi ride gave us a chance to see the town. Our driver didn’t speak much English, and we don’t speak much Spanish so we weren’t able to communicate too much. We were able to communicate where we were going so that was no problem. We got to the hotel about 5pm. We liked it right away. It was right across from the ocean, had a restaurant next door (the Shrimp Bucket) and had a nice courtyard inside. There was even an espresso stand in the lobby which our plush timeshare doesn’t have. Our room was nice, on the 2nd floor with a balcony so we had a great view of the ocean, the boardwalk and the action below. Once we got checked in we walked across to the boardwalk and started walking north along the boardwalk (malecon). Mazatlan’s boardwalk is 12 miles long, with some statues and different things to see along the way. There is one place where there are cliff divers during the day and another where all the fishing boats come in. You can buy fresh fish and take it across the street to one of the restaurants and they will cook it for you. Just north of our hotel on the right is a hill called Ice Box Hill with houses on the top with beautiful views of the ocean. As we walked it started getting dark so we had a good view of the sunset. We ate dinner at the Shrimp Bucket that evening. The next day we had arranged another timeshare tour of the Mayan Palace to look at our options of upgrading to another week or a bigger unit. They sent someone to pick us up at our hotel and take us to the Mayan which was across town about 15 miles north. Once we got there they gave us a tour of the area, and we had a buffet breakfast. After breakfast they talked to us about the options. For now it was not a good option for us, so we declined and took our incentive which was $200 in cash, and a city tour which we booked for Monday. They gave us a taxi ride back to our hotel. We spent some time just relaxing at the hotel before we took a walk around our hotel. A few blocks behind it is the Plaza Machado where there is a park in the middle of the square, and several restaurants, shops, and the Teatro Angela Peralta theatre. There is a cathedral a few blocks north of the Plaza Machado and we walked around that and over to the City Market which has all the local crafts and vegetables and meat. That evening we had dinner at one of the restaurants in Plaza Machado. Friday and Saturday we walked each morning along the boardwalk up to where the fishing boats come in. One morning we had breakfast at the restaurant next door to the hotel which was not very good. The other morning we had a wonderful breakfast at in Machado Square. Both days we headed over to the Golden Zone after resting during the day and relaxing by the pool at the hotel. Doug had work to do and the hotel had wireless so he was able to do it right there. To get to the Golden Zone we took a pulmonia. Although there are taxis in Mazatlan, most people rely on the pulmonias which is an open vehicle that looks like a golf cart. We found that some are privately owned so you have to be careful when you stop one. We rode in one that had no speedometer, no mirrors, etc. Most are very safe, although the drivers do tend to dart in and out of traffic a lot. The Golden Zone is where there are most of the bigger hotels, lots of restaurants and a lot of the shops. We stopped at Joe’s Oyster Bar for drinks one of the evenings which is right on the beach. On Saturday evening we went to a Mexican Fiesta which was at the Playa Mazatlan in the Golden Zone. That is always fun with all you can eat buffet and lots of fun entertainment. On Sunday it was time to leave old town and move to the Mayan Palace. We arranged a ride on a Pulmonia and got over there about 1pm. We were able to get checked in. The Mayan bought the Sea Garden hotels several years ago and there used to be just the Sea Garden option for our timeshare, however the year before they had built the new building on the property so we stayed there. We didn’t look inside the Sea Garden units but we were told that they were smaller, all of them 2 bedroom but a lot older without all the comforts of the new building. Our room was one bedroom, but it was roomy and nice, with a sofa bed in the living room if we wanted to bring someone else with us. It was only a little further from the pools, and it had an ocean view. I was anxious to go down to the pool so we stayed around the hotel the rest of the day and ate dinner at the restaurant that evening. In the morning on Monday we had planned our City Tour so our driver picked us up at the hotel. After picking up others he headed into the Golden Zone then took us to several other spots along the way. We were not impressed with the tour at all, or our guide. Afterward we offered to stay in the Golden Zone so he let us leave the bus there. As we got off the bus we talked to a couple of gals that were on the bus with us and they were also expressing what they thought about the tour. They told us if we really wanted to get an authentic tour we could go to the Vineyard Church and volunteer to help make sandwiches and then plan to go with them on a tour to deliver them. They showed us where the church was so we went to find out more about it. We made arrangements to do that on Thursday. Next to the church is a taco place that has wonderful, cheap tacos. We sat and visited with the gals we met on the tour, had a great lunch with them then headed back to our hotel for the afternoon. That evening we came back to the Golden Zone and had dinner at Panama Bakery and Restaurant which is right on the main boulevard. Tuesday we went on a tour that took us to Concordia and Copala. On the way we stopped at the village of Malpica at a tile factory and watched them making the tiles, then went over to a house which had bakery in the back. We brought a tile home from there that we bought for $2.00, and we were able to have a piece of hot bread. In Concordia there are several furniture stores. Then in Copala we had lunch at Daniel’s which was really good and included with our tour. They are famous for their banana coconut pie which we couldn’t pass up. Wednesday we stayed at the hotel most of the day and just relaxed, rested by the pool, etc. Doug was doing some work so it gave him time to catch up on things. Then Thursday we got up early, had breakfast at the hotel, then headed down to the Vineyard Church to volunteer our help. We made sandwiches along with a few others, and filled water bottles with purified water. Afterward we got on a bus and our driver gave us a tour of the area on our way to the city dump. We went through several residential areas but as we got farther away from the beach area we saw how some of the Mexican’s really live. Even the police officers which are among the higher paying people, live in little, tiny houses. The neighborhoods rising up had small two bedroom houses and it is normal to move in and as you can then add on, usually up with another floor. Our destination was to go to the city dump and give sandwiches, fruit and water to the people that make their living to support their families by salvaging what they can from the dump. They are not searching for food however, but anything else they can sell. The city dump trucks come in anytime day or night so there are always people (mostly men) salvaging things. They know that the Vineyard bus will be there on Thursdays so when they saw us they came over. We each took the bags and handed it to them and said “Jesus loves you” in Spanish to them. They were so grateful to have this little bit of food and you could see that they really appreciated it. It was a moving experience. After we left the dump site we drove through the village where most of the workers lived in little shanties made with cardboard sides, tarps, etc. It was sad to see. We drove by the school that was breaking for lunch and there was a line of kids waiting for our bus to come. We got out and gave them each lunch also. We stopped by a house where a little boy with cerebral palsy was not able to come out with the other kids. His mom brought him out and we gave them lunch also. Of all the things we did on our trip, this by far was the most rewarding and we vowed to do it again. That evening we had dinner at the hotel. On Friday we went on a Tequila Tour. The tour company picked us up at the hotel and we stopped at the little town of La Noria first. There we went into a leather factory where we watched them making belts, shoes and purses. From there we headed to the distillery and watched them making the tequila. After we left the distillery (with a bottle of tequila to bring home) we stopped at a restaurant for lunch. Once we got back to the hotel we spent the rest of the afternoon resting, swimming, etc. The next morning we went to Valentino’s restaurant for breakfast. It is at the north end of the boardwalk, right on the edge of the Golden Zone. There is such a pretty view of the town from there, but they are no longer open for dinner which is a shame. The location is great, the food and the atmosphere were too. We sat outside on the balcony and looking down at the rocks we saw several mariachi singers that were being filmed for some kind of event. After breakfast we went back to the hotel to rest and relax on our last day in town. That evening we headed back to the Golden Zone and went to Carnaval (Mardi Gras) had started on Thursday and we were curious to see all the festivities. When our taxi was about 1 mile from the entrance gates we chose to get out because it was just so crowded. We walked the rest of the way and made it to the gates. There were so many people, and a lot were acting crazy, but it was fun to see. There was a long line to get inside the gates so we decided to head back to our hotel. On Sunday we got up and had to start getting ready to leave. Another trip comes to an end. Darn- I don’t want to go home!

If you would like to see more pictures from this trip click below.

Leavenworth, December 2008

Last year when we went to Leavenworth for the annual Christmas Lighting ceremony we booked our hotel for this year. Normally you must do this a year in advance as it is a busy time, with lots of tourists in town.

Leavenworth is a small Bavarian themed village in the Cascades. During the year they have many festivals including Maifest, Autumn Leaf Festival, Oktoberfest as well as the Christmas Lighting Festival. The Christmas Festival is every weekend in December up until Christmas.

There has been a lot of snow in Seattle this year and it has been very cold. Doug and I both were concerned about the passes and were considering canceling, or finding another means to get to Leavenworth. We contacted Amtrak and decided to go on the bus through Amtrak. It would get us to town about noon on Friday, and we would leave at 9am on Sunday.


We got downtown Seattle early Friday morning and boarded the bus. The weather was snowing and threatening even more. We were glad to have someone else do the driving for us. It was a pretty ride going over the Cascades with all the snow. We went across Steven’s Pass rather than Blewett Pass. We got into town as expected around noon, and walked the 3 blocks or so and checked into the Enzian Inn, where we had stayed last year.
Once we got our things into our room we walked across the street to the main part of town. There was a lot of snow, but it was sunny. We shopped a little then stopped at We joined others in the lobby for caroling with the pianist, and then I went swimming before we turned in for the night. In the morning we had breakfast at the hotel, which is included. Of course there was the ceremony of the owner waking up the town with the Alphorn, as is the custom every morning. There was fresh snow and it really is pretty to see the mountains and hills around the town covered in snow.

After breakfast we headed back over to the town square and as the day went on there were more and more people coming into town. Several tour companies have bus trips to Leavenworth just for the day so it can become very crowded. Then we received a call from Amtrak that due to the weather there would be no buses on Sunday. We called our hotel to make sure we would be able to stay an additional night, which was no problem.

At 4:30 the actually Lighting Ceremony starts with several choirs in the Gazebo, welcoming of St Nick, and a speech by one of the town leaders. Finally at 5:30 they count down and suddenly all the lights in town come on, one by one. It is fun to watch the town light up.

After the ceremony we headed over to Fest Hall which is the town hall. They were doing a reenactment of the story of Christmas, hosted by one of the churches in town. After the play, we went to Gustav’s for dinner, then back to the hotel for more caroling and swimming.

On Sunday morning we had breakfast then went over to the town; however a lot of the stores open late so it was pretty quiet. Also, the festivities are scheduled for Friday and Saturday so there wasn’t much going on. We headed back and I was able to swim and relax so we spent most of the day resting. We had dinner next door at Kristall’s, and then settled in early. Monday morning the hotel staff offered to drive us the several blocks down to the bus stop so we wouldn’t have to drag our suitcases in the snow. It was still quite cold. The bus came late and there was a lot of confusion over who was riding since they had to double up on the trips and take several people from the day before. We didn’t have a problem however, so we were able to get a seat. We were home by 3pm, and saw that Seattle also had gotten a lot of snow.

While we were in Leavenworth we booked for next year. Hopefully there won’t be as much snow!