Inns and Jam

If you're looking for a nice, secluded inn in New Hampshire, may I recommend:

I stayed here with family after a wedding, and it was a lovely old farmhouse. The attached barn has been converted into another wing of the inn, and the contrast between the thick wood paneling in the television room (no, there are no televisions in the guest rooms...this was surprisingly nice) and the light, floral wallpaper in the guests' hallway gives one a strange sense of calm.

Old-fashioned latches are also a lovely touch. But they don't carry an affected air; instead, you get the sense that they are there to do only what they were made to do- latch!

Many of the items have been re-used in interesting ways. This schoolhouse desk/chair was in the bathroom. My sister used it as a place to put her makeup, but the picture of a desk in the loo was quaint and more than a little funny. 

And let's not forget the rooms that remind me of my grandparents (if my grandparents had owned a little farmhouse)- and also a little of Anne of Green Gables:

(probably my favourite kind of wall paper)

(Tavern named after one of the innkeeper's dogs)

(in the television room)

In addition to being friendly and cooking insanely good food for all meals, the Innkeeper and his wife make their own jam! I bought some strawberry rhubarb (which is delicious), and my mom got raspberry and green tomato. The jam is also low on sugar in case that is a concern (it always is for us).

Few Words

On a recent roadtrip, we had to stop for the loo. There was nothing decent around, so we had to go to a sketchy gas station. But it seems as though, dodgy as it was, this gas station has seen its share of weary travelers. 


They even made up a fancy sign to direct one to the loo: 

Congratulations!

Best wishes to my dear twin on her wedding!!! It was a lovely day; thank you for letting me share it with you both.

Miami

Last week, I spent a few days in Miami for work purposes. The work part itself was long and sometime unrelenting, but I managed to get out a bit for lovely dinners with co-workers and a bit of drooling over the posh hotels and restaurants in and around South Beach.

(The walkway to the pool at the Loews Hotel)

I had some lovely views from the boardwalk outside the hotel. It was enough to take away the stress and backaches from work and make me believe (just for a second) that I was on vacation.

On the last night in town, we ladies had a lovely seafood dinner down on South Beach. The street we walked down struck me as a mezclada of a more modern vibe and the old, art deco Miami years that you grow up hearing about. Live (and lively!) Cuban music drifted down the street from a restaurant's front porch. It almost seemed as though Lucy and Ricky could be coming around the corner at any moment.

Dear Pre-Teen Girl on my Flight to Miami,

1.) Just because you aren't sitting next to your dad, doesn't mean you can treat your airplane seat like a tiny rave. I have rarely seen a child over the age of 10 bounce and bop around in their seat like a Mexican jumping bean, and I feel that you're getting a bit too old for that. Also, if you spill your soda on me, the gloves are coming off.


2.) When your pre-teen friend/seat companion tells you that you're being annoying, she isn't being cheeky or cute. You are being annoying. To people of ALL ages.


3.) It's rude to make comments on how many text messages people (ie: me) are getting when I can turn my phone on again.


4.) You really shouldn't touch people you don't know. Personal space, child. Personal. Space.


5.) Repeatedly shouting "excuse me" in the face of the (sleeping) person on the aisle seat simply because you have to go ask your dad a question about where you're gonna eat when you get off the plane is rude. Seriously rude. You should be caged and fed bananas.


And the moral of the story is, you should sit next to your children on the plane. I would've gladly given up my seat so this dad could've sat with his obnoxious child. Although, I wouldn't be surprised if he was avoiding her too....

Fancy Desserts

How do you feel about fancy desserts? Do you prefer them to an everyday dessert (such as oreos or a cupcake that isn't shaped like a duck)?

(some kind of butter pastry in Toronto)

(Yes, those are candied walnuts)

Sometimes it's difficult to guess if a traditional dessert will be just as good when it's made by a fancy chef. After having THE BEST sticky toffee pudding at Loch Fyne in Oxford, I was hesitant about trying this Canadian version at Canoe in Toronto. The waiter was quite adamant that it would be the best pudding I would ever have. Sadly, it was only okay. That square of ice cream you see is passionfruit....it just didn't mix well with the toffee and the brandy on the bottom cake layer.  I think if you're going to really do a good sticky toffee pudding, you have to fully commit to (embrace, if you will) the chocolate and toffee flavours. 

(posh sticky toffee pudding)

So the moral of the story is:


England wins!

Quoile Castle

No matter how many castles I see, I always love to see more. Is this a symptom of being born in America? On my recent trip to N. Ireland, my cousins took me to Quoile Castle. They've recently started restoring it, and soon you'll be able to actually go inside the tower. This thought really excited my 13 year old cousin Aaron who dreams of being a castle tour guide.

So maybe it's not my Americanness that makes me long for a good castle. Perhaps it's just something that runs in the family. We love us a good castle. Even half a castle:

(Quoile Castle, Downpatrick, County Down)

(My cousin Leah inspecting the garden) 

A lovely thing about this wee castle-ette is that they've dedicated the visitor center to teaching wee ones about the local wildlife and insect-life. It's done really well and is super interactive. You can watch the local fish in a wee tank, and there's a camera on a nest of birds (complete with a log of how they have grown). They even keep bees and have stuffed versions of the larger, potentially dangerous animals that live in the area. It was sweet to see the kids learning in such a hands on way.

(Looking out upon the gardens)

(In the river Quoile nearby...sadly there was no moat)

And I have to add a gratuitous photo of my wee cousin Lucas because he is adorable:

(Lucas!)

Scotland

Glasgow was my first trip to Scotland. And I really enjoyed it. Actually, I was bummed that I didn't schedule another day there as I found out more and more things to do once I got settled. It is always such a tricky thing to decide how long is long enough in a place you've never visited before. 

I was also confronted with some funny moments. I always think that a country's stereotypes (both good and bad) are blown out of proportion by those of us who are foreigners. Example one: haggis. I expected it to be around, but I honestly was shocked at how prevalent it was! My first night there, I ate at the restaurant across from my guesthouse, and they had at least two haggis dishes on the menu...not to mention this sign out front:

Example two: bagpipers. I know they exist and are probably more common in Scotland, but I was surprised when I could hear bagpipe music as I walked down the street. The bagpipers in the photo below were practicing in Kelvingrove Park, and I was pleasantly surprised to find them. They sounded amazing!

(bagpipers in Kelvingrove Park, Glasgow)

Example three: you can't understand what people are saying. For the most part, people in the service industry are fine, but I really had to pay attention to my bus tour guide. Don't get me wrong: I thought the accent was fantastic! But there were  definitely times when I didn't get what he was saying at first. However, it did make it easier to understand some of my cousins in N. Ireland!

(Glasgow Bus Tour: The Grand Old Lady)

(Myself on the bus tour)

(steep stairs to my room in the guesthouse)

(Kelvingrove art gallery and museum)

All in all, I really want to go back to Glasgow. People told me it was dirty and gross and not to be surprised if I saw sewage in the streets. But I enjoyed myself (and didn't see any sewage, thank God!).

Oxford Town

The other week, I was in Oxford for work. Though I'd lived in Cheltenham for 6 months during uni, I never got to Oxford. But I have to say that it was kind of nice going now instead; mainly because I never could have afforded to stay at the posh Randolph Hotel on a student's budget (or on my current budget, for that matter). We were even there at the same time as a big delegation from the Malaysian government. At first I thought it was a celebrity....sorry but politics isn't as exciting to me as the possibility of sharing a hotel with the Queen or Julia Roberts.

(High Street)

(side street in the early evening)

I loved how everyone cycled around the town. Bikes were chained up along every available fence space, light post, and gate.It was so bike friendly, and I think if I was going to stay longer, I would've rented a bike and explored the parks and more of the wee side roads. Next time, right?

(some people weren't too enthusiastic about the cycles, tho)

(cycles)

On our second night there, all of us Americans walked to Loch Fyne Seafood Restaurant in the posh neighbourhood called Jericho. In addition to the fab seafood, I was able to try sticky toffee pudding--Kate Middleton's favourite dessert! I had tried to have it before in the States, but the waiter came out after I ordered it and said they'd actually discontinued it because too many people said it was gross. Clearly something must've been lost in translation because when I had it in England, it was beyond amazing. I don't eat many sweets, but I could've had seconds of this one!!


Still more proof that Princess Catherine has good taste in just about everything.

(Sticky Toffee Pudding!)

(Thanks for the suggestion, Kate!)

I love England.

Blog Jealousy

While I was in the UK, I was thinking about this blog. I would've loved to keep it up, but between the jet lag, work, and the fact that I was trying to see as much of the UK as possible, I just couldn't focus on the blog. And it made me think about all the other blogs I follow. They are so good at keeping up with their blogs whilst traveling. I think they are my heroes because it really takes dedication to keep up with writing and uploading photos and such when you aren't at home.

But I think that if you can't keep up with a blog, you can at least record the things you want to write about later. And keeping a travel journal is something I've really been trying to do when I go to new and far away places. I did pretty well on this latest trip, and I found that I end up going into insane detail about my trips in the journal. It's time consuming and tiring, but I think that someday I'll be glad I did it.

All that to say this: expect some UK photos and tales in the coming days. :-)

St. Louis, Louis

I got back from a trip to St. Louis on Sunday night (late, late on Sunday night). I was in town for a few days to visit my goddaughter Adrienne, her brother Ethan, and her parents Dan and Miya.

However, when my cousin Dan tried to take me to the top of the Arch, we found a sad little sold out sign waiting for us. I was under the impression that to get to the top of the arch, one took an elevator, but this is not the case. Instead, they put five people in a little pod thing so it can tilt as it goes round the bend of the arch. Maybe it was a good thing it was sold out....I can fight my fear of heights, but my fear of tiny spaces is much worse. 

(At the base of the Arch, looking straight up)

Instead we went to the St. Louis Zoo (so clean! And the animal habitats seem so much nicer than what I remember from my childhood trips to the zoo), flew kites in the park, and had the perfect weather to be outside. It was so nice to visit them all and see where they live.

(watching the camels)

(Ethan and myself on the merry-go-round)

(Ethan flies a kite while wearing his cool hat)

(Ethan avec kite)

(Smiles!)