Crazytown and Traffic

So, yes...whew, I'm caught up on my posts for now. I'm currently in, as one of my co-workers coined it, Crazytown aka Boston. What timing to be here after their win in the World Series! One of my friends was here in Boston this past weekend and left this morning. She stayed downtown and said it was crazy outside where she was at with about 30 police officers standing nearby for crowd control after the win.

As for me, I'm staying a bit north of Boston and well, I have my own entertainment...there is a flutist that was practicing earlier tonight across the hall and not too long ago some man was belting an opera song in the hallway...yes, I am serious.

And in regards to the infamous Boston traffic, I have arrived at a tentative opinion that Boston drivers are no more crazy than drivers at home it just seems worse because there are 10 times more people out here on the road. How am I surviving you ask? I found the local classical station and turn it up to soothe my nerves, grip the steering wheel, and travail the entire time I'm driving.

Mapquest

So, no particular city prompted me to post this but, I have a love-hate relationship with Mapquest. You can't live with it and you can't live without it. I've had so many incorrect directions due to Mapquest or at least directions that take me around town in a far complicated manner than necessary. It's almost like you trust the directions but based on previous experience with Mapquest you second guess the directions at the same time. And apparently it's not just Mapquest as I've now been in the car with 2 different friends with GPS and not much better luck at a higher out-of-pocket expense.

There is really only one show I keep up with on TV. STAY WITH ME...this still has to do with travel!! =) Due to the popularity of The Office among my team members at work, I got hooked (proof of adult peer pressure?). It's one of those shows so insanely dumb its hilarious. I don't own a TV so, I go to the gym and work out during the show (Yes, I go to workout at other times as well!). One episode this season had me in stiches due to my own pain with navigating to incompetent tools. Michael and Dwight were driving down a road and the GPS indicated they should turn right. Michael began to turn right while Dwight yelled at him that the GPS meant to turn at the approaching stop sign not right at that moment since there was a fence surrounding a lake off to the right. Michael ever so obedient to the GPS ignored Dwight and plunged right into the lake. Okay, maybe you would have had to watch it to find it funny...

But, one tip I would like to offer on Mapquest that I have found immensely helpful for Mapquest directions...ignore street names if possible. Use exit #'s, hwy #'s, etc. but, street names will drive you insane due to Mapquest assigning 4 names to a street of which you will only see one name, if even that.

My San Antonio Stroll

Oh wow! I love, Love, LOVE San Antonio! I could totally live there!! There is so much to do and the Riverwalk is fantabulous!!

I was glad my pater pop (aka-my father) was able to join me for the weekend. Weeks of traveling alone has its advantages and disadvantages and I was certainly ready for some company. He flew into San Antonio and I drove in from my meeting in Austin.

When I got in town we headed to the Alamo...it seems odd that it is smack dab downtown surrounded by highrises. There was an interesting monument nearby (see slideshow) and upon closer observation I noticed someone decided one of the men needed facial hair (a moustache to be exact). The picture didn't pick it up so well.

Then, we moseyed around and came across a double museum, The Buckhorn Musuem and The Texas Ranger Museum. We went into the Texas Ranger Museum which was interesting. There was a replica of the car Bonnie and Clyde were captured in and stories of various Rangers including a Ranger by the last name of Walker...presumably the real Walker, Texas Ranger? I had my dad pose in front of the Buckhorn Museum door because he was born in Buckhorn, Missouri (podunk, boothill Missouri town). It was funny when the ticket guy asked where we were from and my dad responded with "Buckhorn". They just kinda looked at him and said, "Huh?" Another interesting sidenote...the entryway ceiling had antlers hanging down (see slideshow).

Then we headed down to the Riverfront for dinner and a riverboat cruise. We went to the Saltgrass Steakhouse on the Riverfront because I had talked so much about the steak I had at the Saltgrass in Austin. I must say our cruise operator was HILARIOUS and after overhearing other operators give tours as they went down the river, I am assured we had the best.

On Saturday, we headed to the El Mercado/Market Square/Farmer's Market and window shopped. Yes, Miss Piggy went to the Market (see the slideshow). We had lunch at Mi Tierra in Market Square on recommendation from a local. It was great food and decor.

In the afternoon we headed to visit the 4 missions (San Jose, Concepcion, San Juan, Espada). San Jose and Concepcion are the two to visit if you are in a crunch for time. San Juan and Espada are kinda farther out and there is less to see and do. It figures that my camera batteries would die with no replacements at the best of the missions (San Jose) so, I had to resort to my camera phone (which explains the poorer quality of pics). I managed to find a Walmart before we headed to the other missions. We took a tour with a park ranger around San Jose (since the missions are National Parks). The tour was quite informative and interesting regarding the conversion of the natives to Catholicism and Spanish culture. Either I have forgotten what I learned in school about the missions or I slept through it.

That evening we headed back to the Riverwalk to catch a show at the Aztec on the River (a large screen renovated silent movie theatre with a Wurlitzer organ) and to eat dinner since we heard there was going to be a Day of the Dead (a Mexican holiday that I thoroughly remember learning about in school...whew...I'm glad I remember something!!!) coffin parade down the river. We made sure to get a great table overlooking the Riverwalk during dinner at the Lone Star Cafe (delicious dinner) yet, the parade was pathetic. It ended up only being a couple of barges. We watched Adrenaline Rush at the Aztec on the River which was a movie highlighting people obsessed with extreme sports (skydiving and freefalling off cliffs). I still want to paraglide...

Anyway, that summed up a great weekend in San Antonio. I definitely want to go back. I didn't even have time for the King William Historic District or Southtown which I hear are cool parts of the city.

One last sidenote...I booked the Best Western Sunset Station on Hotels.com for our stay in San Antonio. This was a superb selection due to proximity to a trolley that takes you all around downtown San Antonio for $3.75 a day (with unlimited hop on/off privileges) and the clean, renovated rooms. The cost and service of the hotel was excellent as well. HOWEVER, all that said...bring some earplugs. Seriously, I can sleep through just about anything...I live next to airfield of an international airport and by railroad tracks. But, between the trains and motorcycles outside the hotel it was insanely loud!!! I slept better the second night though. Amazingly enough, even with that in consideration, I would still go back to that hotel.

Austin...yawn!

After a week in Austin, I must say the city is seriously lacking in tourist attractions. After sharing the same sentiment with some locals, I found that I am not alone in that conclusion. Okay, let me restate my sentiment...unless you are into the art gallery, nightclub and/or bar scene (of which I am not)...there isn't alot to do in Austin.

I managed to visit the Bernard's church (New Life) as soon as I flew into town. I've always wanted to visit since I've heard so many good things about their church. It was nice to see the Bernards again. I also had dinner at the house of some of friends (UGST graduates) one night. It was great to spend some time with them.

I also walked and took some trolleys around downtown Austin including a tour of the Texas State Capitol. I wish I would have had my camera out in time...when I first arrived in front of the Capitol a rugged man stood out front with a huge cardboard sign marked with expletives about Bush and Republicans. He stood smiling and waving at the passing traffic (the Capitol is smack dab downtown). Apparently he was ushered away by police before I was able to get back for the picture. It was kind of humorous to me...not that I agree or disagree with him...but, you just gotta love free speech.

Now, I have this thing for interesting, useless facts...so humor me as I share a few I picked up during my State Capitol tour.

1. LBJ did not hold any state offices. He went straight to the federal level.
2. There are four presidents tied to Texas
   
   -Eisenhower-who was born in TX but, actually claims Kansas since it was his childhood home
   -LBJ
   -And the Bushs'-the Bushs' are from New England however, as Texans like to say..."They got to Texas as soon as they could."
3. The offices of governor and lieutenant governor in TX can be bi-partisan since they are on separate tickets.
4. And the humdinger of them all...when Lady Liberty was replaced (due to wear and tear) on top of the Capitol in the 80's, there wasn't anything big enough to put it up (SHOCK! Something not big enough in Texas???). So, they called on the Mississippi Coast Guard to help them by bringing a helicopter to put the Lady up. Now, the problem with this was that Texas law requires anyone working on the Capitol grounds must be a Texas resident at least six months prior (We all knew Texans were arrogant anyway, right?). Long story short, they granted the Mississippi Coast Guard honorary citizenship in order to get the job done.

After that, I decided against going to the Texas History Museum mainly because there was an admission charge. I mean seriously folks, if I want to hear how great Texas is I can just ask a Texan for free instead of paying for a museum about Texas, Texas, Texas. One wonders if they are so superb to the rest of the states why didn't they just stay their own country? =)

I didn't get to see the bats leaving the bridge at dusk (which is a big tourist attraction in Austin...this should be an indicator at the level of entertainment in town) due to previous dinner plans. However, I did see the big, rotating bat that they have located by the bridge to indicate the spot.

Food for Thought:

• Saltgrass Steak House-had a delicious steak and shrimp plate...the baked potato and onion straws were mediocre but, the steak was worth it all!! Apparently this is a TX chain as it was in San Antonio as well.
• Marakesh Cafe and Grille-this place made me feel "at home" (with food from the Middle East)...located on South Congress in downtown Austin. Nice cafe atmosphere, good and reasonably priced food from the Middle East...what more could you ask for???
• County Line-This is apparently a TX chain specializing in BBQ...it was also in San Antonio...sorry folks, maybe it was what I ordered (Smoked Peppered Pork Sirloin) but, I really wasn't impressed. What was cool though-the restaurant was right on the lake with LARGE fish and turtles swimming right up to the dock due to people throwing food out for them. Also, while we were eating the staff got on the microphone to honor soldiers who had come in to eat...they were going to be deployed soon to Iraq. The entire restaurant stood up and clapped for them. It was a proud American moment.
• Earl Campbell's Sports Bar-I hit this place in the airport as I was heading out of town...pretty good hot dog. I got the Ann Campbell (chili, melted cheddar, and onion topping). Mmmm!

Although I typically avoid discussing work items in my blog, I did want to state that the meeting I attended in Austin was full of some great people and I had a blast. They were a creative and energized group.

My San Antonio Stroll pics

Austin, TX pics

Speaking on Spokane

Egads...where has time gone? Two states later I'm getting around to posting on Spokane.

It was a gorgeous time of year to be there with the leaves changing colors. Fall is my FAVORITE time of year. The cool breeze, the vibrant colors, the smell of burning leaves...ahh!!

The hotel I stayed at was right on the riverfront with a trail that led to Riverfront Park. Spokane is a great weekend destination (a week would be way too much time unless you plan to spend some time in the great outdoors nearby). The majority of my time was spent downtown however, I did venture out for a drive to Idaho (a 30-45 minute drive). Coeur d'Alene is the closest big city after you cross the Idaho line. The lake there attracts alot of tourism from what it sounds like yet, I heard some interesting comments from locals about how toxic the lake has become unbeknownst to the general public. I have a pic of the lake in my slide show below. It is beautiful...amazing how something so toxic can look so beautiful.

Food highlights:

• Frank's Diner-I had lunch here (see pics in slideshow) one day. Very cool place...the oldest railroad car converted to a diner in the state of Washington (there are many of them around). It was a diner in Seattle for about 60 years and then moved to Spokane about 12-13 years ago. The little booths were all full so, I sat at the bar and watched them cook the food. I heard at breakfast time the line is out the door as it is a big local spot. I had the Monte Cristo sandwich (which happens to be my favorite sandwich). Normally, the Monte Cristo is a deep fried sandwich served with raspberry or strawberry jam/jelly. This diner had a slight variation with the sandwich being served on French Toast and a side of syrup. Still was very good. Also had a huckleberry shake which was yummy. Huckleberry is a big thing out west. I saw lots of food items with huckleberry in Montana as well.
• Soulful Soups-This cafe was SUPERB!! It was a tiny little cafe in downtown Spokane with a variety of homemade soups made fresh daily and yummy beer bread. Normally, I have to slather butter all over bread...the beer bread there was so yummy I could have had a loaf without butter! I've tasted other beer bread that wasn't quite as delicious so, apparently there was more than just beer that made the difference in their bread...hmm....vodka? lol Who knows? I had their Taco Soup with sour cream and shredded cheese on top. Sooooo good! They are only open for lunch but, if you are ever in the area you MUST go there!
• Ripples on the River restaurant-I ate dinner here the night I arrived in town due to the late hour. Not so great...there are plenty of better options around.
• The Onion-this is a local restaurant that has been around for years. I think there is one other one...both locations are in Spokane. I had a delicious burger and fries here. The service was great as well.
• Sawtooth Grill-I ate at this restaurant inside the River Park Square Mall (not a very exciting mall). The burger and fries I had there were decent but, not worth writing much about it. The atmosphere was cool with a lodge feel to it and the service was good.
• Dutch Brothers Coffee-this is a chain that is prominent in the western part of the U.S. however, I was not familiar with it so, I decided to try one of their lattes which was pretty good.

Attraction highlights:

• Spokane's Finch Arboretum-I must say that I often find the best spots purely by mistake. I was trying to get my bearings of the area when I first arrived and stumbled upon this place. A couple of my favorite fall pictures in my Spokane slideshow are from this arboretum. It is 65 acres of beautiful scenery. Unfortunately, didn't spend much time there...just enough time to snag few great pics.
• Riverfront Park-a definite must is to take the trail through Spokane and see this park which includes the Clock Tower, Pavilion, Looff Carousel (a historic carousel), Bloomsday Sculptures, a garbage eating metal goat (you push a button to vacuum up the garbage from your hand), a huge Radio Flyer wagon for kids (or adults for that matter since it was so big) to climb on and then slide down the handle, and the gondolas that take you over Spokane Falls (which unfortunately were only open on the weekends so, I wasn't able to go). There is an IMAX theatre but, it didn't really interest me compared to other IMAX theatres. The trail also takes you through several scenic spots including an Inspiration Point, an old bridge, the Willie Wiley Rock (say that ten times fast), a couple of old totem poles, and the Upper and Lower Spokane Falls.

A couple of interesting items:

• I spotted an old firehouse that had been converted into a dentist office. They were taking full advantage of this for their marketing. There was an old fire truck out front with a banner saying "The Old Firehouse Dentist Office" (see slideshow). I wonder if kids beg their parents to go to THAT dentist?
• Another cool item...while I was driving the interstate into Idaho I noticed the interstate signs had George Washington's head as the image for the interstate graphic (where it would normally be an outline of the state you were in...see slideshow). I guess that's the advantage of living in a state with the same name as a historic president.
• I was also impressed that there weren't a zillion casinos around like I failed to mention about Montana. Bozeman, MT had casinos like they were fast food joints. They were everywhere...stand alones, inside gas stations, inside restaurants, and on and on.

All in all...Spokane is one of those cities you should visit at least once but, you don't need to spend more than a weekend. I actually think it would be a great location for a General Conference due to the close proximity of restaurants, attractions, and hotels to the convention center.

Spokane, WA pics

Head for the mountains of...

err....Montana. Did you think I was going to say Busch? =)

Okay, I'm long overdue to post the highlights of my Montana trip...

My co-worker (who I will refer to as "B" from here on out to preserve her privacy) and I flew into Bozeman on Sunday afternoon last week. My first observation was, "Wow, I forgot what it is like in a regional airport." I think the last time I was in one was when I flew to be in a friend's wedding in Louisiana. I think it was the Lafayette airport?? It only had one gate and looked like a garage. Bozeman, however, was a bustling airport with FIVE gates! WHOA! and woe was me when I had to drag my luggage down a flight of stairs. Yep, that's right! No escalator in this metropolitan airport. Other than that the airport was quite nice. Very rustic and appropriately decked out in wood and animal sculptures.

As we were standing in line to get our rental car, the people in front of us asked the rental clerk, "Where is the closest liquor store?" Aghast at their audacity, I muttered under my breath to B, "Don't drink and drive." Apparently I must whisper like a freight train as they started chuckling and turned around saying, "Yea, we know it is weird to ask a rental car clerk where the nearest liquor store is but, really we don't drink and drive." Did I really say that out loud??? Make note to self: whisper quieter.

The drive from Bozeman to Big Sky (where we stayed) was GORGEOUS! We had to drive through a canyon to get to Big Sky and every bit of the drive was pure, untouched natural beauty. The view was like living inside a 12 month nature calendar...perfect and pristine. I had a great view of the mountains from the window in my room. Montana is just another piece of evidence that God's handiwork is certainly unparalleled. (Did I mention that there were also some cowboys in the locale that fit into that category?) Texans always say they're in God's country...sorry, I've been all over Texas and Montana has ya'll beat by a long shot.

Now before I go any further, let me explain the cute, pink pigs in my pictures. My employer has various items to promote our services. One of them is a cute, pink piggy bank that is a stress ball. B and I decided to make the pig our department mascot. We asked our co-workers to each take a pig on their various meetings across the U.S. AND take a picture with the pig to document the pig's travels. Later, when we have all returned from our journeys we plan to make a photo collage titled, "This little piggy went to..." Somehow, I think that B and I have enjoyed traveling with our pigs more than our colleagues but, the verdict is still out. Anyway, be on the look out for Miss Piggy in my upcoming travel pics. Who said pigs couldn't fly?

Finding food in Big Sky made me relate somewhat to the pioneers...most restaurants didn't open until 5 p.m. and some were closed because it was still off season. (Big Sky is skiing country.) We ended up finding a restaurant in one of the villages (Allgood's...which happened to have a sign that read "It's All Good" in their restaurant) to eat our lunch. I had a smothered green chili burger...not bad...interesting how they added sour cream on top. Later, we ate at the Thai restaurant in the same village (can't recall the restaurant's name) and I ordered their Pad Thai. You know...it was okay. I mean what do you expect in the boonies of Montana AND it was the off season? But, wow...it made me miss my Simply Thai in St. Louis. Did I mention it was the off season??? The owner of the Thai restaurant felt the need to explain numerous times to us in our brief carry-out interaction that business was slow because of the off season.

Monday we headed back into Bozeman (which was about a 45 minute drive) and checked out the town. It's a cute and quaint western town. We checked out the thrift shop named "Sacks of Bozeman" and some other shops. We were moseying around town because we were SUPPOSED to go paragliding on Monday. Long story short, we attempted to go just about every day we were there but, didn't get to go due to rain one day and severe crosswinds the other days. Was so totally bummed...I was psyched about getting to paraglide. So, we headed back to the lodge to eat dinner at the restaurant onsite due to the weather, windy roads, and slim pickings on eateries. I was adament on having wild game while I was in Montana and ordered wild boar. YUM...tasted like a good, tender steak! The lodge restaurant has won various awards for their food however, B and I had a nice chuckle since I ordered boar and she ordered the bison plate yet, the plate presentation was almost identical. The food was great...it just didn't seem like much creativity had gone into making the plates appear distinctively different. We mused whether or not the chefs back in the kitchen used their experience at the lodge restaurant to build up their resume before applying for the big ski resort restaurants.

Tuesday we headed to Billings (a 3 hour drive one way) for some work research which took most of the day between the drive and the visit. We headed back into Bozeman in hopes of paragliding but, again the weather was uncooperative. We ate dinner at Montana Ale Works before we headed back to Big Sky. The food was good...I ordered Bison Meatloaf.

Wednesday we went to Yellowstone National Park! The west entrance visitors center is in the small town of West Yellowstone, MT. There were painted bulls (see slide show below) everywhere that reminded me of Jerusalem. In Jerusalem (and other parts of Israel for that matter since I recall seeing one in Tel Aviv) you will find elaborate statues of lions (symbolic for the Lion of Judah).

Not too long after you pass through the west entrance of Yellowstone you actually enter Wyoming. Yellowstone was great...we sighted buffalo, elk, and deer. I've always wanted to see Old Faithful so, that was definitely a highlight. Old Faithful was not so faithful though as it was 10 minutes late. The Morning Glory pool was an incredible sight with its rainbow of colors. We walked one of the designated trails (about 3 miles) around various geysers and pools. Thankfully, we had great weather until we headed out of the gift shop to our car and it started snowing and raining...perfect timing!

Wednesday night we headed back to the lodge for dinner due to the weather again. I went for the wild pheasant which was delicious. Yup, tasted like chicken! =)

Thursday and Friday were filled with work activities so, not much exciting to note there. Friday morning, I failed to look out the window before I left my room so, I was shocked as I opened the door to see a winter wonderland! Fortunately, I had packed adequately for the weather. We went from 30 degrees and snow Friday morning back to 90 degrees that evening in St. Louis! Before we left though, we had all the meeting attendees pose with us and our pigs (see slide show). Then we made sure to capture Louie and Miss Piggy playing in the snow together.

Louie (B's pig) is heading off to the beaches of FL next week without Miss Piggy. Miss Piggy and I head off next to the great state of Washington. We are happy for Louie and B...the mountain air has a way of affecting one's speech. We hope that B's onset of symptoms dissipate in a warmer climate. =) We will certainly miss the whiplash and sudden photo op stops alongside the road every 5 seconds. I am glad I was able to tag along with B...I mean after all...who would warn her to get back in the car and drive as traffic quickly approached from behind during her photo ops?? =) I frequently reminded her of the crosses alongside the highway and my desire to see my 30th birthday.

Oh yea, if you read my San Francisco post, you might remember me bragging on T-Mobile? Well, apparently I spoke to soon...service is available in the Pacific Ocean but, not so much in the mountains of Montana folks. B and I discovered a pattern though. She has a different carrier and whenever one cell service was roaming the other was not and vice versa...go figure.

All in all...I don't consider myself an outdoorsy girl and never thought I would care one way or the other but, I definitely want to go back to visit (NOT live in) Montana.

Montana pics