All posts by Linda

Charleston, South Carolina!

Linda in Site News

After we left Washington and endured bumper-to-bumper traffic to Richmond, we stayed the night there so Ron could watch the baseball finals and we then headed for Charleston, SC the next morning.

The hotel we had made arrangements to stay in, the La Quinta in North Charleston, had no rooms ready to check into when we stopped by at 4:00 so we drove into Charleston to do some sightseeing and have dinner.

Ron as read most of the books that Pat Conroy has written and I recently read my first book of his, Beach Music, which I enjoyed tremendously. Pat Conroy is perhaps best known for Prince of Tides, but, as a graduate of The Citadel in Charleston, many of his books, like My Winning Season, Lords of Discipline, Broad Street and The Great Santini talk to experiences, both positive and negative, at The Citadel. We located The Citadel and drove and walked the campus and visited the basketball auditorium, tennis courts and other features of this famous military school. Reading Pat Conroy’s work will be more meaningful for me in future and Ron now has a vivid picture of the scenes and stories he’s already enjoyed.

We drove around Charleston, parked and walked along the waterfront to take in the beauty of the mansions situated there. The architecture and preservations of homes and historic buildings throughout the city is incredibly impressive.

We headed downtown and walked the main streets looking for a recommended restaurant named FIG (Food is Good). As impressive as their menu looked, they had a significant line-up, so we headed across the street and had some great food at Sticky Fingers BBQ. Definitely NOT for vegetarians, this restaurant turned out some fine southern barbecue, tremendous Sweet Potato Casserole and a fabulous homemade coleslaw. They’ve served their food to a massive list of celebrities and we can now appreciate why. The food and service were great. While at the restaurant, we called the hotel and our room STILL wasn’t ready and it was now 8:30 at night.

We had dropped by the historic Francis Marion Hotel to admire the architecture and to see if the musicians on the second floor (visible from the street) were perhaps playing some jazz that we could enjoy. An exceptional young man working at the hotel who had just moved from Vermont, Seanan Keleher, asked where we were staying and we told him that the hotel that we had booked earlier in the day through Expedia did not have our room ready when we dropped by at approximately 4:00 this afternoon, nor at 8:30 this evening when we called to check on it. He said that he had one room left and offered to work with the hotel we’d booked and with Expedia to have our money refunded and to arrange for us to stay at the Francis Marion Hotel instead. It took almost a half hour on the phone with various people, but he made it happen. We couldn’t have been more delighted. Seanan went above and beyond any normal expectations of service. It was a real pleasure to stay in this beautiful hotel, built in 1928, with such a magnificent view of this amazing city.

The next morning, we set off to take in as much of the city as we could possibly fit in and took a narrated carriage ride through historic Charleston. Before we left the city, we grabbed a quick lunch at a local Irish pub and enjoyed their version of an “Irish Quesadilla” – corned beef, sauerkraut and Swiss cheese cooked in a quesadilla with a side of sautéed spinach. Great idea to replicate for St. Patrick’s Day!

Washington, DC

Linda in Site News

We headed to Washington, DC when we left Baltimore. We weren’t in a great hurry to visit Washington until we were sure that the government workers were back to work and everything was open again after the sequester and closures. The time we waited was worthwhile as two days before we wouldn’t have been able to access many of the buildings, memorials or even public bathrooms.

It’s quite thrilling to see the capital buildings, even from a distance. We caught sight of the Capital Dome far away on Washington Avenue and it really is an impressive sight. Ron had been once before but it was my first visit.

We parked next to a public park quite far from the capital buildings and were greeted and serenaded with a song from Steve, one of the homeless men that spent their days there. Ron gave him some money to watch our car and he played his jazz rendition of Stormy Weather on his old trumpet to thank us. He and his friends couldn’t have been nicer and we were trusting that they really would watch our vehicle while we were touring the sights.

The White House, House of Representatives and the House of the Senate were very impressive. Despite all of the divisiveness and conflict that the government has endured as of late, you can’t help but be awed and inspired by the US capital – considered historically the most powerful nation in the world.

We walked for miles that day and were moved tremendously by the World War II Memorial and, more impactfully, by the Vietnam War Memorial. There was a contingency of elderly servicemen and their families/caregivers that were taking them through the memorials and it was a very emotional experience to watch. For us, reading the names of the tens of thousands of men who gave their lives senselessly in the Vietnam War and knowing that Ron could have been one of them was very moving, to say the least.

The Washington Monument was encased with scaffolding and undergoing repair, but the National Botanical Garden, National Mall and all of the other monuments, parks and memorials were open and very impressive. The weather that day was perfect which only added to our experience.

We were delighted to find our car exactly as we had left it even though Steve and his friends had left the park. We can only hope that the money we gave him went towards food and/or shelter and helped him in some way. Ron jokingly said that he hoped that Steve and his friends bought and enjoyed a nice bottle of California red wine on us – whatever! One more opportunity to be very grateful for what we have and the life we lead.

Baltimore, Maryland

Linda in Site News

Ron and I like to take different routes across America every trip or whenever we can. This year we decided to head south down the east coast and drove south to Baltimore, Maryland through Brooklyn and Staten Island, New York, and a short section of Delaware.

We were hoping to see some of the colors of autumn in the northeast, but summer is holding on tight this year and everything is green and lush still with just a touch of color starting to appear.

While Ron is driving, I get on my iPhone and shop for where we’re going to stay every night once we’ve determined where it is we’re going to stop. It can be a bit of a gamble as we’re trying to keep the expenses down, but not compromise the safety or cleanliness of where we’re staying.

By sheer luck, we found a fabulous place to stay in Baltimore called the Lord Baltimore Hotel. Built in 1928, the hotel is undergoing a major facelift. The bones of the hotel are historic and regal and we’re certain that the new private hotel group that has acquired it will bring it back to its original beauty and elegance. Our room was large and very comfortable; tremendous value for the renovation discount price that we paid.

The bellman, Allan, very dapper in vest and stylish fedora, was very helpful and gave us some great leads on what to see and recommended restaurants while we were in Baltimore. We walked around the harbor and marina and were delighted to be entertained with a parade of large sailing vessels from all over the world, entering and circling the marina announcing their arrival and participation in the regatta with cannon fire.

We stopped for a glass of wine in a restaurant with an upstairs balcony to watch the parade of ships and the setting of the sun. Nestled in Chesapeake Bay, Baltimore is a beautiful city with lots of history that has been well documented and proudly celebrated by its citizens. After the sun set, we continued our walk and found ourselves in a huge Barnes and Noble Bookstore housed in a four-story historic brick building. Books are a huge weakness for both of us, but we kept our purchases to a minimum as our little convertible is already MORE than full.

Ron has a wonderful nose for finding great restaurants. That night was no exception and we decided to sit up at the bar at Phillips Seafood for dinner. We ordered a Crab Cake Salad (fresh greens, tomato, corn and asparagus and topped with a classic crab cake) and a half-pound order of snow crab legs served with drawn butter and a side of sautéed baby spinach with lemon, sea salt and butter. Although we rarely select white wine, Ron selected a bottle of 2012 Matua Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand and it was a perfect choice. The word “matua” means head of the family in the Maori language and this crisp, clean and slightly citric wine is New Zealand’s first ever Sauvignon Blanc. As they say on their label, it would be delicious in the hot sunshine and pair beautifully with anything that comes from the sea. We highly recommend it.

Everything was delicious, but the crab cake was absolutely outstanding. Phillips have created their own blend of seasonings which accentuates and compliments the abundance of crab meat in this house specialty. Their famous Seafood Seasoning contains celery salt, pepper, mustard, allspice, pimento, cloves, bay leaves, mace, cardamom, ginger, cinnamon and paprika – a wonderful blend to complement seafood or to use in a crab and potato/corn on the cob boil (order online from their website http://www.phillipsfoods.com/retail-products and check out their other recipes as well). They have Shirley Phillips’ Maryland Style Crab Cake recipe on the back of the spice can and I can’t wait to try it once we get to Cabo:

1 egg
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/8 tsp. dry mustard
1 tbsp. mayonnaise
½ tsp. lemon juice
1 ½ tsp. mustard
1 ½ tsp. melted butter
½ tsp. parsley flakes
½ tsp. Phillips Seafood Seasoning
¼ cup bread crumbs
8 oz. crab meat

Combine all ingredients except crab meat. Fold in crab meat. Shape into cakes and pan fry.

We had such a great meal that first night in Baltimore, we came back on our second night to again sit at the bar and share some great conversation with our bartenders, Doug, with his velvety southern accent from North Carolina, and Gary, a Baltimore native. We enjoyed the Crab Cake Salad once again after a full day of touring the city and the phenomenal National Aquarium – truly world class.

Baltimore is a great city that delighted and surprised us. We look forward to visiting there again soon.

The Best Omelet Ever at The Hampton Maid!

Linda in Site News

Twice a year, Ron and I have the great privilege of traveling from Cabo San Lucas to Southampton, New York and then back again. (over 5,100 miles each way). I joined him in early October this year so that we could do a little touring and exploring before we hit the long road back to Mexico.

We took our car in for servicing one morning before we left to ensure that it was road worthy and ready for the long trip and walked to a well-known restaurant in Hampton Bays for breakfast while the car was being worked on. The Hampton Maid, established in the year I was born, offers lodging, a great little gift ship and a restaurant that only serves breakfast (www.hamptonmaid.com). When you serve breakfast that is this good, you only need to be open for this meal every day!

The staff was very friendly and the service was excellent. Looking around the room, it was apparent that the restaurant was enjoyed by lodging guests, locals reading the latest Dan’s Paper or the morning’s New York Times, and people meeting for business. Our waitress delivered a carafe of coffee to the table while we considered the menu and the specials that she described for us. Ron chose Eggs Benedict and I ordered their featured omelet and we decided to share a side dish of corned beef hash. The food was prepared and served to us quickly; beautifully plated and presented on warmed plates. Ron’s dish was very good and the beef hash was home made and delicious. The omelet, however, was truly outstanding – without question the very best omelet either of us had ever tasted. The omelet itself was the lightest and fluffiest I’ve ever had and they flavored it with very thin julienne slices of ham, Brie, and a locally grown Honey Crisp apple. It was not only visually colorful and appealing, but the combination of sweet and savory flavors was a delightful surprise. This omelet was so good that we stopped to pass along our kudos and compliments to the chef and his team.

When we’re back in the Hamptons next summer, we’ll definitely return to The Hampton Maid for another fabulous omelet, hunt for Honey Crisp apples and try to recreate that delicious omelet all year long until we’re back to enjoy the very best once again at The Hampton Maid.

Peppering with Paprika!

Linda in Site News

Paprika is a spice made from the grinding of dried peppers. In many European languages, the word paprika refers to bell peppers themselves. The seasoning is used in many cuisines to add color and flavor to dishes. Paprika can range from mild to hot and flavors also vary from country to country (my personal favorite is smoked paprika).

Paprika is produced in a number of places including Hungary, Spain and California and is used as an ingredient in a broad variety of dishes throughout the world. Paprika is primarily used to season and color rices, stews, and soups (such as Hungarian goulash), and in the preparation of sausages as an ingredient that is mixed with meat and other spices. In North America, paprika is frequently sprinkled on foods as a garnish, but the flavor is more effectively produced by heating it gently in oil.

Capsicum peppers used for paprika are unusually rich in vitamin C (contains more than is found in lemon juice by weight) and other antioxidants (about ten percent of the level found in acai berries).