Silversea Water Cooler: Welcome! Part Five

[jillyf]

4 hours ago, QueSeraSera said:

Backyard crape myrtle under ice

 

 

Our crepe myrtle today. It has been in for 3 years.  Other streets have pink which I prefer but streetscape important. 

[mysty]

6 minutes ago, jillyf said:

Our crepe myrtle today. It has been in for 3 years.  Other streets have pink which I prefer but streetscape important. 

 

Gorgeous Jill!  Love the landscaping!

[jillyf]

Thanks Mysty.  I live in a retirement village and all streetscape is looked after by village gardeners. 
We can plant what we want in our back garden. 

[mysty]

2 minutes ago, jillyf said:

Thanks Mysty.  I live in a retirement village and all streetscape is looked after by village gardeners. 
We can plant what we want in our back garden. 

Your back garden is awesome!  Love the screens!  What a gorgeous spot to linger! 

[zqtchas]

[QueSeraSera]

About Iowa - my Mom was born/raised there, so we took our summer vacations at our Dutch Grandma's house in a small Iowa town childhood thru teenage years.  Aunts uncles, and cousins I still remember well.  Friendly neighbors too.

Still had to laugh at your post Chas!  There's a lot of truth to it.

My cousin and I, regardless of what we were doing otherwise, would ride our bikes top speed down to the railroad crossing if we heard the distant whistle of a train so we could watch it pass through town.  Long time ago, simpler times...

Edited February 15, 2021 by QueSeraSera
spelling

[zqtchas]

[Reef Knot]

I first heard of Iowa through the books of Bill Bryson. " I come from Des Moines somebody had to"

Great travel books, memoirs and non fiction.

The Thunderbolt kid, about growing up in Iowa was very funny and of course his "Notes from a small island" detailing his first travels around the UK. 

He also has a way to dumb down complicated subjects to make them enjoyable and easy to understand

The body and a short History of nearly everything

[Tothesunset]

Somewhere in Iowa on the road to Des Moines we happened on a roadside family restaurant offering all you can eat breakfast for something like $10. This was 4 years ago. Expecting a Denny's or Shoney's style buffet of overcooked grease and sugar we stopped anyway on the grounds that a. We were hungry and b. Weren't sure there was anywhere else between there and Des Moines other than grain elevators. 

 

Well, it was rather splendid. Proper tables and chairs, gingham tablecloths, a menu and table service. Plus the waitress was a USAF brat who had spent much of her youth in Suffolk. They even served proper food. This made Iowa something of a highlight of our mid-west road trip. And it's not often you'll hear that phrase. 

[Fletcher]

12 minutes ago, Tothesunset said:

This made Iowa something of a highlight of our mid-west road trip. And it's not often you'll hear that phrase. 

 

I can relate to this - our road trips across the USA often took in less touristy areas, such as Iowa, Nebraska and the Dakotas.  We always fancied Kansas, Oklahoma and north Texas . . . 

[Tothesunset]

2 minutes ago, Fletcher said:

 

I can relate to this - our road trips across the USA often took in less touristy areas, such as Iowa, Nebraska and the Dakotas.  We always fancied Kansas, Oklahoma and north Texas . . . 

That particular trip started in Chicago and took in Wisconsin, the Dakotas, Nebraska and Iowa. We try to avoid Interstates, although that's difficult in the sparsely populated States, and try to eat and stay away from the tourist traps. 

 

Maybe our best road trip was to the Deep South about 15 years ago. Don't ask me why but small town Alabama, Georgia, Lousiana etc just seem so American. I know that sounds daft but you know what I mean. 

 

I'm fact, of all the road trips we've done in the USA we've never been disappointed with our choices whether staying in a fairly basic log cabin in the Smokies or eating breakfast next to Cuba Gooding Jr (who is a lovely man, by the way) in the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills. 

 

I can well understand why the USA has such a low proportion of its population holding passports - there's enough to experience without leaving the country. 

 

Finally, I always thought we Irish were open, welcoming and generous to strangers until realising that, when it comes to hospitality, the US is hard to beat. 

[Fletcher]

2 hours ago, Tothesunset said:

That particular trip started in Chicago and took in Wisconsin, the Dakotas, Nebraska and Iowa. We try to avoid Interstates, although that's difficult in the sparsely populated States, and try to eat and stay away from the tourist traps. 

 

Many of our US road trips were based around movies and historical events.  Starting in Denver we headed north for Little Big Horn, Devil's Tower and Glacier National Park to visit sights connected with Heaven's Gate and The Shining.  Driving through the backroads of Nebraska and South Dakota was an eye-opener.  Then we did Dallas to Tucson, partly for a book I was writing, and also to see the real Alamo and the one John Wayne built in Bracketville, and also endless miles of saguaro cactus.  We've also done a John Ford trip and then Atlanta around the Deep South where the highlight was a stay at The Cloister on Sea Island.

 

Those were fabulous trips, up there with the best cruises.  The only problem for us was finding places to stay in the remoter areas, though a mix of B&Bs and Best Western Motels, did the trick.  A bigger problem was finding places to eat as I have an allergy to junk food chains.  The same problems also arose to a great extent on our Australian road trips.

[Tothesunset]

I've got to say, and I mean this with the greatest fondness and respect for our American cousins, that, generally speaking, trying to eat even a little bit healthily while on the road is a tall order indeed. About the only veg you see is the pallid tomato in the burger bun. 

 

I'm being a little unkind because there are some excellent restaurants and many different cuisines but, by and large, cheap eating is slow suicide. 

Edited February 15, 2021 by Tothesunset

[mysty]

Greetings Coolers!

 

Today's funny.....

 

 

Have a great safe fun day all!

[Lois R]

Good morning coolers, last night was the start of the wonderful show on CNN about Italy........

"Searching For Italy with Stanley Tucci" Part 1......he was in Naples and around The Amalfi

Coast........it was really interesting and the food, history, even the tomato groves..........I want

to go back to Italy again!!! Limoncello anyone?😃

[zqtchas]

[zqtchas]

[Lois R]

8 hours ago, Tothesunset said:

Somewhere in Iowa on the road to Des Moines we happened on a roadside family restaurant offering all you can eat breakfast for something like $10. This was 4 years ago. Expecting a Denny's or Shoney's style buffet of overcooked grease and sugar we stopped anyway on the grounds that a. We were hungry and b. Weren't sure there was anywhere else between there and Des Moines other than grain elevators. 

 

Well, it was rather splendid. Proper tables and chairs, gingham tablecloths, a menu and table service. Plus the waitress was a USAF brat who had spent much of her youth in Suffolk. They even served proper food. This made Iowa something of a highlight of our mid-west road trip. And it's not often you'll hear that phrase. 

We have a lot of those "family owned places" around the country......many are what they call

"Diners" (mostly up in the Northeast part of the states).  Glad you had such a good experience🙂

[Lois R]

7 hours ago, Tothesunset said:

That particular trip started in Chicago and took in Wisconsin, the Dakotas, Nebraska and Iowa. We try to avoid Interstates, although that's difficult in the sparsely populated States, and try to eat and stay away from the tourist traps. 

 

Maybe our best road trip was to the Deep South about 15 years ago. Don't ask me why but small town Alabama, Georgia, Lousiana etc just seem so American. I know that sounds daft but you know what I mean. 

 

I'm fact, of all the road trips we've done in the USA we've never been disappointed with our choices whether staying in a fairly basic log cabin in the Smokies or eating breakfast next to Cuba Gooding Jr (who is a lovely man, by the way) in the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills. 

 

I can well understand why the USA has such a low proportion of its population holding passports - there's enough to experience without leaving the country. 

 

Finally, I always thought we Irish were open, welcoming and generous to strangers until realising that, when it comes to hospitality, the US is hard to beat. 

That is such a nice thing to hear (especially in these times)-----so I want to say thank you.🙂

(The last line, especially).

[Host Jazzbeau]

4 hours ago, Tothesunset said:

I've got to say, and I mean this with the greatest fondness and respect for our American cousins, that, generally speaking, trying to eat even a little bit healthily while on the road is a tall order indeed. About the only veg you see is the pallid tomato in the burger bun. 

 

I'm being a little unkind because there are some excellent restaurants and many different cuisines but, by and large, cheap eating is slow suicide. 

 

The southern 'meat and three' cheap restaurants can be as healthy as you want.  You can choose three vegetables – it doesn't have to be mashed potatoes, French fries and mac and cheese!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meat_and_three

[TLCOhio]

2 hours ago, Lois R said:

Good morning coolers, last night was the start of the wonderful show on CNN about Italy........"Searching For Italy with Stanley Tucci" Part 1......he was in Naples and around The Amalfi Coast........it was really interesting and the food, history, even the tomato groves..........I want to go back to Italy again!!!  Limoncello anyone?😃

 

YES! YES!!  Great post/sharing by Lois.  Super love Italy and want to go back as soon as possible.  Did watch and totally enjoyed the first episode of Stanley Tucci in Italy on CNN.  Wonderful that he was visiting and exploring in and around Naples.  Not sure I liked the segment that featured much about how they were catching and cooking the wild rabbit.  I enjoy meat, but that part was a little too much for me personally.  Looking forward to seeing more of these CNN segments as this famed actor (who speaks Italian) was adventuring around and in charming, historic and tasty Italy. 

 

Any others see this program and/or ready to head back to Italy?

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

 

Barcelona/Med: June 2011, with stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Great visuals with key highlights, tips, etc. Live/blog now at 252,938 views.

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

From June 2011, here are a couple of visual samples from dining high above the Amalfi Coast, being inside a cute shop in one of the hillside towns, etc. Great memories from these areas of Italy.:

(Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!)

 

[TLCOhio]

Getting ready for the big, BIG snow storm to hit us later tonight.  Saying now that we will get 6-8" of snow in Central Ohio.  Winter is still with us BIG TIME!!  And moving towards the NE.  

 

Wish that I had my private jet in order to zip down to down for better weather??!!

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

 

 

 

Are you ready to take this below test that gives away as to your age and memories of past history?:

[silkismom]

Yes, I'm older than dirt. The bakery in Larry's hometown still had the table-side jukeboxes when we were there 2 years ago.

[FlyingScotSailors]

1 hour ago, TLCOhio said:

Any others see this program and/or ready to head back to Italy?

We too waited in anticipation to view "Tucci in Italy".  We were quite disappointed with the origins of pizza segment.  It appeared to us, the pizza was fried and looked like a calzone but true calzones are baked.  Their reasoning for the frying, as explained in the episode last evening, was it would kill bacteria at a time when viruses where having their heyday.  Pizza ovens temperatures are much hotter than oil used for frying.  We believe the reports that the original pizzas were flatbreads with perhaps olive oil, a few herbs and baked in ovens.

 

Earlier in the show, he mentioned his wife died.  Later seeing his wife took us by surprise. We eventually found out this was his second wife!

 

While the shots of the Amalfi Coast were beautiful, overall, we did not find this show as interesting, informative, and inspiring as other similar shows, such as Anthony Bourdain.  For a truly wonderful country touring food series, we strongly suggest watching "Somebody, feed Phil". 

 

While we are not "ready to head back to Italy", we hope to be able to take the  "Food & Wines of Piedmont, Liguria, & Veneto with Cinque Terre" tour we had booked for last Fall.

 

 

[Stumblefoot]

11 hours ago, Fletcher said:

We always fancied Kansas, Oklahoma and north Texas . . . 

Why?