On the Road Again!

Day three – Friday October 5, 2018

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

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Good Morning!    The alarm went off for us today at 7 AM  Central Time, but shortly after we got out of bed, we crossed into Colorado, and Mountain time!  As the sun started to make its presence known, we were near Granada and the weather app told us it was 47 degrees.  The compass app on my phone says we’re at 3000 plus feet, so we are heading upward.  Here’s a look out our window this morning.

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We went to breakfast about 7:30, and again, a full Dining Car and kitchen made all the difference!  Take a look at our breakfast choices, what I had (sorry…started eating before I took a pic) and it’s all included in our fare!

As we were at breakfast our weather changed from foggy to clear and sunny…it was very nice!  

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The Observation Car

B3DFC104-FA8C-4675-B482-5E90E3AEEADEAfter breakfast, we explored a bit.  We checked out the Observation Car, and both agreed that the view from our bedroom is just as good.  The seating in the Observation Car isn’t as comfortable as in our bedroom, and as we observed yesterday, Coach passengers took up the majority of seats.  Then we went down the stairs to check out the Cafe Lounge, as we keep hearing announcements from the Cafe Attendant Brittany about all she sells there.  The Lounge is an area with about 5 tables, and Brittany sells snacks, breakfast, lunch, and dinner as well as drinks and things like playing cards.  Looked to us like a “fast food” version of the Dining Car for Coach passengers who don’t want to pay Dining car prices for meals.  On the way back to our room, every seat on the Observation level of the car was full, mainly by Coach folks.  

Shortly after we got back to our bedroom, our Car Attendant Pinky came by to change it back into the day mode.  We planned showers for this morning, and Susie asked her a couple of questions about how it worked.  Pinky suggested we check out the shower on the lower level, which she said was more like home, where our’s in the room version is RV like.  We did, and she was correct, so as I write this, Susie is down using it!  Depending on how it works out for her, I may do the same thing!!  It worked out just fine…don’t we smell and look better!!  Hell, I even shaved!   

The rest of the morning was spent traveling in some beautiful country as Colorado and then New Mexico glided by our picture window.  We’re at much higher elevation now, just passing Raton Tunnel with a sign saying we were at 7,588 feet, the highest point of the Santa Fe!  From what I read just now via Google, BNSF who owns the tracks through the pass, has pretty much abandoned freight service there due to the excessive grade, so it’s mostly AMTRAK’s Trains #3 and #4, the East and Westbound versions of the Southwest Chief, that are its exclusively daily users.  Here’s a picture I found of the Chief exiting the tunnel.

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Susie took some great pictures of the passing scenery, and here are some for your enjoyment!

We’re now moving along at 80 mph (I opened Waze and it told me), relaxing in our bedroom, reading, snoozing, and waiting for our 1 PM lunch reservation. 

LUNCH…first let me admit I forgot to take any pictures. Sorry. Then let me tell you we had the pleasure of sitting with this couple who sat across from us at breakfast.  This morning, both Susie and I thought he was the most obnoxious a-hole we’d heard during our train riding the last couple of days, saying the stupidest things to the couple they were sitting with.  Happy to say, he was not an ass at lunch.  Then we get back and realize he and his wife are in bedroom B…right next to us!  Oh well, they’re getting off in Albuquerque.  Oh, and what did Susie and I have for lunch?  Two very tasty bacon cheese burgers!  

Speaking about our table mates getting off at Albuquerque, they told us they are headed to the Albuquerque International Ballon Festival, which runs from tomorrow to October 14th. I think it’s the 48th year for this festival, and its a pretty big deal.  

Perhaps because of that, our train is full to capacity, and everybody we talk to, or overhear  talking to their table mates at a meal, seems to be heading to Albuquerque!   We get there later this afternoon, and perhaps it will be just the two of us from Albuquerque to Los Angeles!  I also think it’s fun to spell Albuquerque! (And think about the song”Albuquerque, is a Turkey,” which our kids learned from their elementary school music teacher, Marianne Craven….a wonderful teacher and friend!)

We enjoyed the afternoon, played a game of 5000, had some vodka, and even visited Brittany in the Cafe Car, because we used up all our brought vodka. It was a nice afternoon and early evening.  Through it all, we  enjoyed the beauty of America, just outside our picture window.  Enjoy what we saw!

Dinner tonight was wonderful!  The train is empty, so it really was nice in the Dining Car.  Tables for two all over the place, not crazy busy and much quieter, and we got to interact with the staff. So nice!  Susie and I had a garden salad with ranch dressing, butternut squash risotto with chicken, a Creme brûlée’s parfait, and a nice bottle of Chardonnay.  Here are our dinner pics from today….okay, so we ate almost everything before I remembered pics.  Sorry!

 

 

After dinner, we came back to the bedroom, had the rest of our Brittany Vodka, and played another game of 5000.  Susie won tonight and I won this afternoon!   We’re tied 2 games each on the train!  

As the train made a “smoke stop” in Flagstaff, Arizona, Susie and I decided to take in a little air, and saw several familiar folks getting off the train.

A quiet and early night, as we’ll be up early to prepare for our arrival in Union Station, Los Angeles, having completed the first leg in our trek to the Kenny and Christopher Wedding Festivities!  Looking forward to seeing our boys tomorrow!

PS…Happy Birthday Dad!  He would have been 108 today and has been gone for close to 35 years.  

Day Two – Thursday October 4, 2018

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / 5 Comments

SORRY FOR THE LATE POSTING DUE TO LIMITED SERVICE

D4648BFB-94A7-4090-BE74-EBF9318BC863Good morning from the Capital Limited!  It’s 8:45 AM, Eastern Time as I write this from the couch in Room E in car 2900, as our room has been turned back into its daytime version.  According to the schedule, we should be about an hour from Chicago, with scheduled arrival there at 8:45 Central Time. Phil our car attendant, however, just announced that our arrival time will be more like 11 to 11:30 due to delays during the night.  Frankly, this is a good situation for us, as we probably won’t be able to board the Southwest Chief till about 2:15, and we’d much rather be sitting on the train, than in a station waiting room.  The view is much better from here!!  

Before I continue with today, let’s give you an idea of our sleeping arrangements last night.

Thanks Babe…as always, I owe you!  

An update…we just stopped at Waterloo, Indiana, where the schedule had us at 6:36 AM.  We stopped at 9:26, fully 2 hours and 50 minutes behind schedule. It’s scheduled to be about 3 hours and 10 minutes from Waterloo to Chicago, so if we don’t lose anymore time, we should make Chicago just before noon Central time. 

A brief look at the reason for these delays as I understand them.  Once you leave the Northeast Corridor, Amtrak doesn’t own the tracks the trains ride on.  Back when America was giving up on rail travel, and Amtrak was formed, most of America’s rail roads kept their freight operations going, because that was still profitable.  Fully 97% of the tracks Amtrak trains run on ARE NOT owned by Amtrak, because those tracks, and the freight trains running on them, are owned  by the lines or their heirs that gave up passenger service in the 20th Century.  So, the freight running on these lines, takes precedence over Amtrak and it’s schedules, which may necessitate an Amtrak train pulling onto a siding and waiting while a freight train rumbles past. This happened to us several times last night, and you know how long freight trains can be!  

Because the Capital Limited lacks a Dining Car, the included breakfast this morning was a box breakfast in the Sleeper Lounge. A yogurt parfait, a muffin, some fresh fruit, and a hot tea.  We heard some grumbling, but we didn’t have a problem with it, but we are looking forward to the Southwest Chief having a Dining Car AND kitchen!  Stay tuned for real meals!  Oh, another item…some folks are just so cheap!  There was a couple across from us this morning who apparently didn’t like the breakfast, and who did they take it out on?  Why the young lady working the lounge!  “Tip for that breakfast?  No way”.  Glad we’re not “those people” and never have been!  

An update….we just arrived at Chicago’s Union Station!   It’s 12 Noon Central time,  and we were scheduled to be here at 8:45 AM.    Here’s some views as we headed into the station.

We’re now in the Amtrak’s Metropolitan Club in Union Station, and it was a zoo, till they just announced two trains!  Folks are crazy.  When they put out some snacks (cheese and some veggies), you’d have thought most folks hadn’t eaten in months!!  It’s much quieter now!  This place is brand new and beautiful.  Here’s what we’ve got now. 

Talk to you next from Train 3…the Southwest Chief!

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So welcome to Room C of Car 330, on the Southwest Chief.  The room is exactly like what we had last night, but Susie and I think this train is newer.  Life will be easier today as we know what to expect, but we may miss Phil, last night’s Sleeping Car Attendant. We had not an auspicious start, as the door to our car was closed, and we had to stand and wait for somebody to show up!   We’ll see how things go, but we already asked her about wash cloths and hand towels and she said, “they’re there”…they’re not!  Fingers crossed for the next 2 nights on the train!  

At 2:47 they announced, “close all access doors” and just after 2:50 we chugged out of Union Station.  We’ve already made our first stop at Naperville, Illinois.  Quick, extra credit if you can name one of the movies, Naperville and an Amtrak train played a supporting part in?  I can think of two off hand.  Leave it in the comment section below for a grand prize!  (FYI…the “Grand Prize” is just my gratitude for reading this far!)

The Dining Car Steward has already come around and we have a dinner reservation tonight at 6:30, and we’re looking forward to see what kind of meals an Amtrak Dining Car can dish out.  Here a layout of the Dining Car if you’re interested.  

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Susie has already found the ice (and the wash cloths) but we’ve yet to “officially” meet our Sleeping Car Attendant, but we are ready to enjoy the next 40+ hours on Amtrak’s Southwest Chief!  Cheers!!!

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Now it’s just time to relax, and watch America pass by our picture window!  

Okay..I just went and got more ice, and had a very nice conversation with our Car Attendant.  Her name is Pinky, and she’s worked for Amtrak for 40 years. She lives in LA 2 blocks from the station, and her Dad lives in Chicago.  She works one week on and one week off, so twice a month she’s with her Dad overnight.  I think everything’s going to be fine, different, but fine!  

Right around 6:30, we crossed the Mississippi River, leaving Illinois and entering Iowa.  The sun was just going down, and I don’t think beautiful is an adequate description!

Shortly after that, we got called to the Dining Car for our 6:30 reservation!  We’d been looking forward to this, and if tonight’s meal was any indication, we won’t be disappointed!  Amazing what you can do with a real kitchen and a real Dining Car.  Last night’s meal was ok, but nowhere near tonight’s standard!  I said to Susie, that back in January when I booked this trip, the Capital Limited had a Dining Car.  They took the car away in the Spring to save money, but never sent me any money back!  I don’t think we got what we paid for!

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And as to dinner?  We started with a glass of nicely chilled Pino Grigio, and both chose for our entree the Land and Sea.  A perfectly cooked NY Strip Steak, accompanied by a Crab, Shrimp, and Scallop Cake, with string beans and a baked potato!  It was very good!  And then to top it off, a taste of Greek Yogurt Cheesecake.  Take a look!

Then it was back to our bedroom for a round of 5000 and a perfectly chilled glass of Titos Vodka.  Pretty soon Pinky will turn our day room into a night room, and our second night on the road (the RAIL road) will begin!   

Here’s Susie in the hall outside Bedroom C.

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So far, we are having a great time!  Since leaving Chicago, the views have been great. When the sun comes up tomorrow morning, we should be in Colorado (At least that’s where we’re scheduled to be)  and the view should be getting even better!  We know train travel isn’t for everybody, but so far, we’re really enjoying our trip!  We should see some spectacular sights tomorrow and can’t wait to share them!

See you on day 3!

Day One – Wednesday October 3, 2018

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

 

We started this morning when the alarm went off at 5:30 AM!  Well, Susie started the day then.  I, however, answered the call of nature at about 4;30, so my day started a little earlier!  We showered, dressed, took care of all we had to do, and by 7AM, we were saying goodbye to Ocean City and heading to the Atlantic City Expressway and Philadelphia.  A little after 8:30 we pulled up to Pacifico Airport parking, checked in, and ordered our Uber to 30th Street Station.  Besides a bit of rush hour traffic, combined with some road construction, our trek from the shore to the train station was relatively painless. We had a great Uber driver, got a cheap fare, and then I over tipped, but it was all good in the end!  We were early getting to 30th Street Station, but like when we fly, we like being early!   Besides, this was a whole new experience for us, so we wanted to have enough time to get the lay of the land. Train number 141, the Northeast Regional to Washington, DC’s Union Station was a few minutes late, but when it did arrive, in no time we were situated in our Business Class seats and ready to start our journey.  As I write this, we are just outside of Baltimore, looking forward to changing trains in Washington, and starting our first sleeper leg of the trip.  As I said before, this is all new to us, so it’s more learning as you go along, rather than knowing what you’re doing. 

If WiFi on the Capital Limited from Washington DC to Chicago is as good as this first leg’s WiFi, I’ll continue our tale of Day One this evening.  Hope to see you then!

 

Writing now from the Acela Lounge at Washington’s Union Station.  As sleeper passengers, we are considered “First Class” passengers for the rest of our trip.  After getting off train 141, we walked the entire length of the platform to get into Union Station  and into a madhouse!  Union Station is Amtrak’s headquarters with annual ridership of just under 5 million passengers a year, as well as servicing commuter rail service through the Washington metro area.  We finally found a sign for the Acela Lounge and checked in.  It was quieter, more comfortable, provided a nice bathroom, and complementary snacks and sodas. After getting Susie settled, I struck out to check one of our bags.  As there will be limited room in our bedroom the next 3 nights, Susie packed in such a way that we’d only need one of our two bags for this leg of the trip. Following excellent directions from one of the club attendants, I found the baggage check counter.  I thought I might have to pick up the bag tomorrow in Chicago, but the young lady told me the next time we’d see the blue bag would be a Saturday in LA!   Perfect!

It’s now 3:15, and at about 3:30 they will call our train in the lounge, and we will be off on our next leg, Train #29, the Capital Limited!   See you all there!

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Well, here we are!  In Bedroom E in Car #2900 of the Capital Limited, headed to Chicago.  There’s no WiFi on the train, so this may have to be posted after we get to Chicago in the morning.   The train left right on time, but since we’ve got about 4 hours between trains tomorrow, late isn’t a problem for us.  Car 2900 is a Double Decker Superliner, with 4 Roomettes on the lower level, along with communal showers and bathrooms.  On the upper level, there are an additional 10 Roomettes as well as 5 Bedrooms, one of which is ours.  It’s not huge, but looks like it will be comfortable for our trip.  

Here’s some photos of Bedroom E, and it’s occupants!  

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We’re waiting for our sleeping car attendant Phil to come and take our dinner order, and find out when we’d like him to convert the room from day to night.  We are enjoying it immensely, and loving our picture window on the world!  

So, to update you, Phil just came and spoke to us. Our dinner is at 6:30, and because Amtrak recently took the Dining Car off the Capital Limited, we need to go to the next car, and pick up our meal.  We’re both having Beef Short Ribs and Titos Vodka.  Oh hell, just give us the vodka!

Take a look at our choices…

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We are the second car of the train, and the Cafe Car is one back from us, and the Observation Car is two back.  Susie and I just discussed it, and we will probably not bother with the Observation Car on this leg, and probably use it a limited amount on the next leg.  That’s because we’ve got our own picture window and privacy, while the folks in Coach don’t.  If they are a couple, they’re jammed into two seats, with less room than we had this morning.  If they’re a single, they’re sitting with someone they don’t know, and may be on the aisle. The Observation Car gives them their own seat, and a big private window.  Everything we’ve read about these trains, says that there is great competition with the Coach folks, for the seats in the Observation Car, so let them have them!

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We went down and picked up our meal, came back and set it up in our room, and enjoyed dinner as we watched the countryside go by our window!

A rousing card game of 5000, and now we’re relaxing, listening to the train travel trough little towns, and across farmland.  Phil will be in soon to turn our bedroom into it’s nighttime mode, and hopefully the lullaby of the rails will send us off to dream land!

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Good night…clickity clack…..

All Aboard

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / 4 Comments

A number of years ago, when our kids Billy, Krissi and Kenny were much younger, I wrote a series of three children’s stories that starred our 3 kids.  The first was called Three Kids and a Bone, and was about them finding a dinosaur bone in our backyard.  The second was called Three kids on the Boardwalk, and involved adventures on the Ocean City Boardwalk.  The third was called, Three Kids and a Train Ride, and for this, I pulled from my memories of riding the rails as a young kid with my folks.  

For over 40 years, my Mom and Dad were members of the Metropolitan Opera Chorus, and every year the Met went on a Spring Tour across the country.  In later years, they did it by air, but when I was a kid, trains were still in vogue as a means of transportation, especially for moving a group as large as the Metropolitan Opera.  So for Three Kids and a Train Ride, I pulled from my memories of those years and from my experience traveling on the 20th Century from New York to Chicago to visit my Mom’s Mom and Dad. 

Unfortunately, the stories were never published, and only got to be enjoyed by the 3 kids they were written about.  It was so long ago, that instead of being written on a computer, they were the product of an old Royal portable typewriter, that had belonged to my Mom and Dad, but if you’d like to see how my version of train travel differs from today’s reality, click on the link below and you can read Three Kids on a Train Ride!

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So, perhaps because I wrote this story so long ago, or because of the way the allure of rail travel has been portrayed in movies, like Alfred Hitchcocks’ North by Northwest, or the movie Silver Streak, or even the James Bond movie Live and Let Die, Susie has always wanted to take an overnight train.  She’s been jealous of the memories I have, and wants her own, and to check off another Bucket List item, we’re going to make it happen.

On this Wednesday morning, we’ll leave Ocean City and drive to the City of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  There, after parking the car at the airport lot, we’ll take an Uber to 30th Street Station and at 11:11, board the Northeast Regional, sit in 2 Business Class seats and relax till we get to Washington, DC.  Later that day, we’ll board the Capital Limited, for our first overnight in an Amtrak Bedroom, in Car 2900, Room E., and travel through the night and arrive in Chicago, Illinois the next morning at Union Station.  That afternoon, we will board the Southwest Chief and travel in Room C of Car 330, where we’ll spend 2 nights as we travel to Los Angeles, California!

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img_0878The Southwest Chief is the Amtrak successor to the famous Santa Fe Super Chief.  It was dubbed the “Train of the Stars” because of the celebrities it carried between Chicago and Los Angeles in the days before air travel.  The route takes the train through some of the most beautiful scenery the United States has to offer, and it will be right outside our bedroom window.  

img_0877Speaking of the bedroom, let me give you an idea of what our accommodations will be between Washington, DC and Chicago, and then between Chicago and Union Station, Los Angeles.  Although not huge, our bedrooms will be set in the daytime with a long couch, easy chair, a table by the window, and our own bathroom with a sink, shower, and toilet.  At night, the room will be changed into a bedroom with an upper and lower bunk (haven’t worked that out yet), but still with that gorgeous view right out the window!

And what about meals you ask?  Why we get three meals a day in the Dining Car included in our fare.  Speaking about fare, it’s costing us about $1500 for the trip from Philadelphia to Los Angeles.  We think its very reasonable for what we’re getting!

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img_0884We really can’t wait to experience everything we can on our three days to LA.  From our room, to the dining car, to the observation lounge, to the view out the windows…and let’s not forget the “clickity clack” of the rails. We are looking forward to it all.  

We’ve had this trip booked for months, and it seems to excite everyone we tell about it.  We’re excited of course by the journey, but also about what’s at the end of our trip,  Kenny and Christopher’s Wedding in Lake Tahoe, California!  Stay tuned for updates along the way!

Talk about New Adventures……

 

Sunday, March 4th, 2018

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / 1 Comment

As I warned you might happen the other day, you didn’t get a post yesterday, so here it is!

We woke to a pretty, if chillier day than we were used to, at the Hampton Inn in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina. The temperature was in the 30s when we got out of bed, so we knew that the socks and sneakers were destined to make a return. Our toes were not happy campers! It was the last day of our trip (Day 24), and now that a great trip was almost over, we were looking to get home!

Speaking of the trip being over, we’ve come to the conclusion, that when a trip is over, a trip is over, and nothing you do can change that fact. Something clicks off in your head, and your desire to do any more sightseeing, or make unnecessary stops, is just gone. To be honest, in our original plans, we had two more hotels reserved, and stops at several Atlantic Ocean Island points, but on reflection, we just wanted to get home, so we changed those plans and were looking forward to being home tonight, rather than mid-week.

As we talked about in Saturday’s blog, one stop that we did plan to make, was in response to a text we got on Saturday from Paula and Jerry Mikowicz, Krissi’s boyfriend Mike’s folks. They live in Columbia, Maryland, and wondered if we might like to make a stop off to have lunch with them on our way up I-95. They were supposed to be in New York this weekend, visiting with Mike and Krissi, but the nor’easter on Friday canceled those plans. We had a very nice lunch at Clyde’s on the Lake in Columbia, and enjoyed the conversation we had with Paula and Jerry.

(Lunch Picture – As you can guess, there should be a picture of the 4 of us having a very nice lunch in Clydes, but as we often seem to do, we forgot to take a picture of the food, of each other, or to have the waitress take a picture of the four of us. We are bad at remembering that)

We traveled a total of 391 miles yesterday, staying on I-95 until we crossed the Delaware Memorial Bridge and joined the New Jersey Turnpike. Traffic wasn’t bad, except for a construction delay approaching Washington, DC. We lost about a 1/2 hour there, causing us to meet up with Paula and Jerry just in time for our 1:30 reservation. Speaking about the delay, why is it that so many morons on the road just increase the traffic delay, because they don’t read or follow signs? A big digital sign, more than a mile before we lost the right lane said, “RIGHT LANE CLOSED AHEAD”, but still there were people in that lane right up until the last minute, making the rest of us stop, so that they had someplace to drive! Don’t get me started!!!

Again yesterday, we saw a number of utility trucks heading north on I-95. Saw in the news this morning that there are still a lot of areas without power, so know our friends from the south will be a welcome sight in many neighborhoods!

Once we’re on the New Jersey Turnpike, it’s an easy trip up to Exit 3, where we join Route 168 for a few miles (and a cheap WAWA Gas Station) to get to the Atlantic City Expressway. In less than an hour from there, we transition to the Garden State Parkway, and made the short ride down to Exit 30, and home. A brief stop at the Acme on 8th Street to get some half and half for the morning, and we were backing into our driveway.

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We unloaded the trunk into the garage, had a nice relay going up the stairs with our stuff (really could have used Disney’s Boardwalk Resort’s Bell Staff), and we were home!! In case you’re wondering, no Chinese take-out after our lunch in Maryland, but it was good to be home, changed into comfy clothes (or PJs), and started hitting some DVRed shows we’d missed (NCIS and NCIS New Orleans). As great a trip as it was, we are happy to be home!

Susie and I were talking over some highlights of the trip yesterday in the car, and we will probably have a recap post for you this week, but know that we loved just about everywhere we went, everyone we met, and everything we experienced. It was indeed a great trip!

See you soon….

Guilty Pleasures

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / 1 Comment

We got up and left the hotel in Darien, Georgia at 9:05 this morning, without partaking in the free breakfast. We did that because this is a scheduled day of “Guilty Pleasures”…food wise that is!

Our plan was to drive for about 3 hours, and get to Florence, South Carolina a little after 12 noon. A perfect time to partake in Guilty Pleasure #1…lunch at Arbys!

Unfortunately, the nearest Arby’s to us in Ocean City, is down in Cape May Courthouse on Route 9, and it’s someplace we’ve never eaten. Easier to partake when we are on the road, and find one right off an exit of I-95. We’ve decided that if we leave the cheese off the roast beef sandwich, it’s a lot easier to eat! Lets just say, we enjoyed it!

A lot of I-95 was two lanes today, which although more scenic, is kind of a pain if you run into slow drivers who roadblock the left lane, or trucks passing slower trucks.

We did a total of 426 miles today, one of our two long days of driving till we are home in Ocean City. Since I slept 8 1/2 hours last night (according to my FitBit), I had no problem driving a good hour and a half out of the hotel this morning. Susie and I have always shared driving, switching pretty much every hour to hour and a half, and it works great for us. We think that, combined with all the weekends we did the Mineola to Ocean City and back trip, make driving in the car relatively easy for us. We did however lose at least a half hour because of horrible traffic. We stopped and then crawled for miles because they are re-building the bridge over the Great Pee Dee River. It seems to me, that when we went to Florida last year, the same thing happened on the southbound side. Oh well, the Great Pee Dee River didn’t look like some place you’d like to walk across!

825C067C-31B5-4A3B-B13D-A58187C4D138We’ve seen in the news, and via friends on Facebook, that the recent Nor’easter (and no…it doesn’t have a name! The Weather Channel is not who names storms! Stupid hype!) did some major damage in many areas, and that many are still without power, and will be for days. We were, therefore not surprised when we passed close to 3 dozen utility trucks heading north. We saw trucks from 3 or 4 companies, some in caravans, some all alone, but all heading north on I-95.

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We saw something else today, we haven’t seen in about 3 weeks….the Sonata’s temperature display reading in the 50s! Yikes!! Goodbye 70s and 80s, and good-bye to our shorts and capris! We did however compromise…Winter Pants with Summer Shoes!

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So, now that we are safely in the Hampton Inn in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, it’s time for guilty pleasure #2 of the day, and it’s right across the parking lot!

Sorry, we don’t eat here often, in fact, the last time was 3+ weeks ago, when we were in Roanoke Rapids, and had our first dinner of our trip, in this exact Cracker Barrel. Call it book ends, if you will, but it’s one of our Guilty Pleasures, that we try to do a couple of times, when we are on the road. Tonight’s special was Chicken and Rice, which we had. Add a couple of iced teas, some vegetables (Susie had corn and fried okra and I had their delicious green beans and fried okra) and their biscuits, and it’s dinner for under $30! Who knows when we will be dining with them again????

While we were eating, Susie saw a number of utility trucks go by the restaurant. Here are just a few that are our neighbors tonight!

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This is the last night of our trip, and therefore our last night in a hotel, as tomorrow night we will be sleeping in our own bed at 854 Pennlyn Place. No Innkeepers Club (I believe that’s Susie), no bartenders (that would be me), and no fancy meal (Chinese Take Out??). Google maps says we’ve got about 380 miles to home tomorrow, but we have a detour to make. We will be stopping in Columbia, Maryland, and have lunch with Krissi’s boyfriend Mike’s parents, Paula and Jerry. We haven’t seen them since we were guests at their house for Hanukkah, and we’re looking forward to seeing them, but looking forward to getting home too! It’s been a great trip, but hell, now that it’s cold, we’d rather be in Ocean City… sitting by the fireplace, catching up on some TV shows. (We rarely turn on TV while on vacation!) Of course, we will have to unpack, do laundry, and go food shopping, but no rush…hell, we are retired!

You may not hear from us tomorrow, but rest assured, we will get back to you and wrap up what has been for us, a wonderful trip to Summer!

Have a good night!

 

On The Road, Again

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

On the Road Again…..Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, …

“On the road again
Goin’ places that I’ve never been
Seein’ things that I may never see again
And I can’t wait to get on the road again
Here we go, on the road again
Like a band of Gypsies we go down the highway
We’re the best of friends
Insisting that the world keep turnin’ our way”

This morning was our last in Walt Disney World, for this trip, and as we have had several days before, we had a very nice breakfast in the Innkeepers Club.

We enjoyed several breakfasts and even dinners in the club, and although there was an up charge to stay in a Club Level room, when you figure what we spent on meals at Port Orleans last year, and even more, the incredible service you get, we didn’t really care about the price. Such nice people in the club and all over the Boardwalk, made our stay, as Disney would like you to say, Magical!

We called the Bell Desk, and Amil was dispatched to help us with the bags, and it was time for us to say goodbye to cottage #1210, our home for the past 5 nights. It was a great stay, and we’d love to come back!

By the time we got to the hotel entrance, the Sonata had been brought up (we swear it’s cleaner than it was when we used it to go to the ballgame Wednesday…did they wash it?), and within a few minutes the trunk was packed, and we were on our way. As the Disney Gas station is just across the street from the Boardwalk entrance, we decided to top off the tank. Good thing we did!

After I finished pumping gas, Susie handed me our Magic Bands and asked me to tuck them someplace in the trunk. When I couldn’t open the trunk by just pushing the button, I realized something. I didn’t have the Sonata’s smart key in my pocket!! Glad we were right across the street!
As we were just driving up to the hotel, we got a phone call telling us we’d left our keys. I just pulled up, and a young man was at my window with my key fob. Just another example of how they do things right at Disney! Do we really have to leave???

Leaving for the second time in 10 minutes, we followed the GPS, and shortly were off WDW property, and on I-4 headed east. Some really difficult construction happening going through Orlando (when isn’t it), and because of that, traffic, but soon we were moving along. Within no time, we were making the transition to I-95, our “home road” for the next 3 days.

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It wasn’t long before we were approaching the Georgia border, and had to say goodbye to Florida. Twenty wonderful days of summer, but now it’s time to put our shorts and flip flops away, hopefully only till May. We’re stopping again tonight in Darien, Georgia, and Susie just looked at the Weather Channel, and it calls for 50 degrees tomorrow at 9 AM. I fear that the denim shorts are done for, and will be replaced with the long jeans and perhaps the flip flops will be replaced with socks (???) and sneakers in the morning! I hate it, but we did have a lovely preview of The Summer of 2018, and living at the beach, we can hardly wait for it!!

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So I guess you know why we’re in Darien tonight. If you’ve read the last 3+ weeks of this blog, you will remember Darien as the spot for our annual fried shrimp stop, and this trip, we are hitting it while traveling both south AND north. We are such pigs!

Last time we were at B&J Steaks and Seafood, it was Saturday, and we waited an hour and a half to get a table. Since it’s a Friday, we were afraid we’d have a similar wait, so we decided to head over there a little before 5, and it was perfect. Maybe 10 minutes, and we had a table! If you remember back 20 days, we had a grand plan to try the fried chicken this time, which we’ve heard is as good as the shrimp. Well, we couldn’t pass on the shrimp, since we know it will be at least next year before we pass through Darien again, so yes, two half pound fried shrimp baskets, please. Susie did have a good idea though, and we traded the french fries for cole slaw!

After dinner, we filled up the car with gas, and now we’re back in our room and the sun’s not even down. We did grab the jeans and sweatshirts out of the car, but Susie and I are both going to try to continue with our summer footwear…flip flops for me and Birkenstocks for her. Wish us luck!

Darien is a real one horse town (and somebody borrowed the horse), so we will hit the hay early, hopefully have a good night, and tomorrow morning, we’ll get up, head out, and be on the road again!!

Welcome to Walt Disney World

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

So, just about exactly 2 years ago, on our first visit to WDW after I retired, I said the following in our blog:

“So, as we say good-bye to our second full day at Walt Disney World, I have to admit that I am conflicted. On one hand, I have a strong hatred towards Disney/ABC, because 8 years ago, CEO Bob Iger (himself a product of the American Broadcasting Company), decided that ABC Radio was not a core business of the Disney Company. That started a chain of events that saw WABC and all the ABC O&O radio stations, as well as the ABC Radio Network, being sold to Citadel Broadcasting. After spending 2.7 Billion Dollars for us, Citadel ultimately went bankrupt, which then saw Cumulus Media “merging” with the bankrupt Citadel. That meant we now worked for Cumulus, a company run by two brothers who ultimately burdened Cumulus with so much debt, that the stock dropped to pennies, and is now in jeopardy of being delisted by the stock exchange. Can you say history being repeated? So, the last 8 years have not been kind to WABC, many of the people who were a part of our work family, and my personal sanity.

Now on the other hand, 8 years ago, when Disney decided to send the ABC Radio stations into oblivion, I had worked for the company long enough that I was able to “retire”. That meant that although I would continue to work for WABC for 8 more years, I was able to start collecting my ABC/NABET pension, and was considered on the books as an official Disney Retiree.

And what does that mean, you may ask. Well, it means that as a Disney Retiree, Susie and I have a lifetime Main Gate Pass.. That means that we can get 4 people into any of the parks around the world for free! Yes, I said for free! It also means that we can reserve a room at a Disney property for half off the going rate.  But wait, I’m not done yet…as they like to say on infomercials. Then there are the discounts. At present, we get 35% off merchandise, which makes ridiculously priced Disney items reasonable (like a $49.99 sweat shirt really being $35) and 20% off food items at many restaurants. Sweet deal, huh?”

So, now with 2 years of reflection, you know what? I just tell everybody that I retired after 40 years at ABC!  Citadel, who?  Cumulus?  You mean the cloud?

Well here we are again in WDW, for the third year in a row.  Five nights in a Boardwalk garden room, with Club Level access, at a 50% Castmember discount!

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Club Level means that we have access to the Innkeepers Club, for breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks, and snacks, plus access to the concierge staff for anything we need.

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Innkeepers Club Lounge

Had a great dinner tonight in Trattoria al Forno, with a great waitress Andrea!

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Walked the Boardwalk a bit….

And ended the night at the Belle Vue Lounge with a couple of drinks!

See you tomorrow!

Heading North Again

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

After a fabulous night at the Pier House, this morning it was time to end our brief visit to Key West. Did I mention yesterday that we had a martini at the beach bar, two bottles of Prosecco with dinner, then two martinis each at the Beach Bar, then Susie had a To-Go Key Lime Colada, and then we finished the night with a vodka at the hotel? Just checking.

The sun was shining, (we were a little cloudy), but it was very windy when we left Key West this morning. It was hard to drive with the windows open, because the cross winds kept trying to have us switch places in the car, so unfortunately, we drove in air conditioned comfort. Traffic was better today going north than it had been heading south on Saturday, and that was good. For the most part, the drive is filled with incredible colors and interesting sites, and is by no means boring.

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We enjoyed our Saturday lunch so much at the Islamorada Fish Company, that we once again decided to stop. As luck would have it, we were given the same table as we had Saturday! Same table, different wait-person, and different meal. Our waiter today was a bit of a pip. Now, we’ve been in many restaurants over the last couple of weeks, and have noticed how much the people working in them hustle. This guy could not multi-task at all, and hustle wasn’t in his vocabulary!

 

The rest of the trip north was uneventful, till we got to Miami Beach. Figured, how could we pass through the area without going through Miami Beach? Let’s just say, that it has changed an awful lot since I vacationed there with my folks, back in the 1960s and 70s! South Beach is alive today, and filled with sites and more modes of dress than you can imagine!

As we got a little farther north, things calmed down, and there were some familiar old names mixed in with the very new residents!

One reason for all the traffic, we discovered, was it was the last day of the Miami Yacht Show on Collins Avenue! Big boats and big bucks, we’re sure!

When I was a kid, we stayed at the Stratosphere Motel at 95th Street and Collins Avenue, in the Surfside section of Miami Beach. Let’s just say that the Stratosphere is gone, but there still is the Surfside Post Office there, but little else I remember! Susie and I were there once, the first year we were married, so we did share that together. Will have more discussions about that in a couple of days with my cousin Jeanne, who vacationed there with us, when we were all kids!

We drove north to Hollywood, and checked into the Double Tree Resort on Hollywood Beach. A really nice hotel, and after vegging for a bit, we headed down to the pool bar. What a beautiful pool, a great tiki bar, and on the intracoastal waterway!! Another perfect night with our bartender Kalford!! We had several wonderful drinks, enjoyed our conversations with Kalford, and met a couple of nice ladies, Tammy and Layna. Great conversation with people we’ve never met before. One of the things we love about vacationing!!

Back in our room, perhaps a vodka on the balcony watching the ocean, and then bed! Life is good!!!

A Rainy Day in Key West

/ Sue and Frank D'Elia / Leave a comment

So, they all can’t be perfect, and today it was the weather that threw us a curve! When we got up about 8:00 this morning, the temperature was in the 70s, but the weather forecast said that it was a cloudy 70 degrees. It also called for sporadic rain, but as we were sitting around getting ourselves collected this morning, the sun came out, so we hoped that was a good omen!

We were very relaxed this morning, as both of us had a good night’s sleep, and were in no hurry to start our day. Then I re-read the check in information, and realized that breakfast didn’t stop at 11, but rather 10, and it was about 9:30 already. Not wanting to get there for the last dregs of breakfast, we decided to get into the car, and drive around a bit, and see what we could see, and then look for a place for a late breakfast/early lunch, so that’s what we did.

We started out with the windows and sun roof open, but soon we were getting rained on. It was not real rain, more of a heavy mist (what we call “misting”), but enough that we had to use the windshield wipers. Our first task was to find the local Wells Fargo bank to take some money out of the ATM. That task completed, our plan was to look for parking somewhere around Mallory Square, and spend a couple of hours wandering the streets and taking the Conch Tour Train through town. The rain was on and off, but we still figured we’d be able to get through the day. Guess where we ended up parking? At Mr. Buffett’s Margaritaville Resort and Marina. Having just recently opened, we considered staying there, till we did a dummy booking, and saw what the price was going to be. Let’s just say, that only the most well off Parrot Heads will be partaking from it’s hospitality. We went in the lobby, and figured we’d look around, but the lobby really just consisted of a check-in desk. Oh well, we had a place for the car, and now we were on foot.

 

Right next door is the Museum of Art and History at the Custom House, with some interesting and large works of art in the courtyard.

 

We checked out a couple of tourist shops, but as we all know, we already own too much stuff, so no purchases were made. It was about 11:15, and the rain was still falling, so we thought we’d look for someplace to get a little something to eat. We spotted the Red Fish, Blue Fish restaurant, and decided to see if they were open. There were people inside, and indeed they were serving lunch, so in we went. We had an order of incredible Conch Fritters, then Susie had a Chicken Sandwich, and I had a Shrimp Po-Boy Sandwich. We both agreed we should have stopped with the fritters! Oh well, we were out of the rain, and had something in our stomachs!

 

We pulled out our phones, and looked at the weather forecast, and even the radar, and it looked like the weather was going to improve. The radar showed the storm pulling out of the area by 1 PM. We had hopes for better weather as we walked over to the office for the Conch Train. The train in the station was full, but the signboard said the next one would leave at about 12:15. It was getting brighter by the minute, and we both decided to give it a try. I bought us a couple of tickets, and when the next train pulled in, we jumped on board.

 

Launched in 1958, the train is about an hour plus tour in and around the old and new city of Key West. It passes lots of sights, and there is a narration conducted by the “Engineer” as you go around town, which brings up a question….why the hell do people take a tour that costs this much (our two Senior tickets me almost $60), and then proceed to talk through the entire tour! Here is a picture of the three loudmouths that talked, laughed, and even took phone calls through the tour!

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These three couldn’t shut up till  they got off the tram!!

So we were about a third of the way through the tour, when the weather forecast proved wrong, and the heavens opened! Did we get wet? Yes, but it’s warm and wet, so not the end of the world. We enjoyed the sights we saw, and at one point, the 3 talkers got off, so we could hear the narration better!

 

One of the sights you pass on the tour is the Southernmost Point Buoy that you always see in pictures. Hard to believe that there was a block long line of folks (maybe 75?) waiting to be able to take their picture by the buoy. I don’t know if this is an out growth of the “selfie craze” or what, but it’s a trend we’ve noticed happening more and more lately. People will wait in line for anything!

 

One thing that was obvious during the tour, is that the city is crazy! As quiet as the city was when we started out this morning, it was hopping now. Every bar was overflowing, and the sidewalks and shops were full of people! Bad planning on our part, in that this is President’s Day Weekend, but also there are 3 cruise ships in town. Key West is apparently a big cruise port, and with 3 ships in today, thousands more tourists were eating, drinking, shopping, and spending money. Key West is, after all, a tourist town!

So after getting off the train, and still being a little wet, we decided to get the car, and go back to the hotel for a bit. A drink, a shower, and getting ready for our 6 PM dinner reservation at One Duval at the Pier House Resort and Spa.

After getting ready for dinner, we took an Uber for $9.00 to the Pier House. We had a 6 o’clock reservation for dinner at One Duval, but first stopped at the Beach Bar for a Martini. After enjoying that, with a wonderful view, it was time for dinner.

 

Then we moved up to One Duval, and what can we say, other than the fact that it was the absolute best dinner we have had on this trip!!! A great setting, wonderful food, and a great server!!! Take a look at these pictures of the setting, the sunset, and our meal, and see if you can raise a doubt! It was awesome!!!

 

After a great dinner with our server Linda, (from Latvia) we moved back to the Beach Bar with bartender Merri! Some great conversation with other patrons (one of which had gone to high school with Merri in Massachusetts, and just wandered into the bar), a couple of more Martinis, and then Susie got Key Lime Colada to go! It was the perfect end to a perfect night!

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Honestly, we are not folks to hang at Sloppy Joes, and drink out of plastic cups, and hope that the guy next to us doesn’t puke on us! The Beach Bar at the Pier House was the perfect venue to end our night!!!

Then a $10 Uber trip home with Jorge, ended a perfect night!!! This is our version of Key West, and honestly, we loved it! It was one of our best nights of this trip. We’ve had several great nights, and this was in the top 5!! Thanks Key West!!!!

See you tomorrow when we head north again!! Hope your Sunday night was half as good as ours!!!