Denver Dalliance (food photos!)

Friday 1/14-Monday 1/17: Food, Family, Art

Mr. E and I headed to Denver for the MLK, Jr. holiday long weekend. We were originally planning to be there on Thursday evening and work remotely on Friday to have some extra time, but then United cancelled our original late afternoon flight, so the only workable alternative was early afternoon on Friday. Grrr.

We got upgraded to First Class for our outbound flight, and I definitely enjoyed the offering of champagne now that the food and beverage options have been at least somewhat restored. The rental car process was surprisingly swift, and even with making a quick stop at Safeway to pick up some supplies on our way to the hotel, we arrived at the Warwick Denver around 5:30pm. I unpacked in our corner suite while Mr. E went out to get some wine, brown liquor, and sweet treats.

I did my daily yoga practice and a little recon to remind myself of how to get to the pool, and then we headed down to Gattara for cocktails. We had received vouchers for two drinks per day from the Front Desk, and I tried the Busso  (raspberries, gin, lime juice, fresh basil), which was both colorful and delicious.

 (don't look now, but there's a cat surveilling our beverages!!!)

We shared an order of the amazing grilled octopus while sipping our drinks and took another order of octopus to-go along with a pizza for Mr. E. I had sushi from Safeway for my in-room dinner, and I wrapped up the evening with popcorn and several of the French macarons from D Bar that Mr. E had procured earlier.

My Saturday morning workout was Zumba + yoga + short swim in heated outdoor rooftoop pool. Brr! The pool was definitely not as toasty as it has been in the past, and I was quite chilled by the time I returned to the suite. We decided to try a new spot for brunch and walked the few blocks to Exile Kitchen, formerly known as Sassafras (hence the leaf design on the coffee mugs, which we didn't figure out until much later). We lucked out with our timing and were able to grab two seats at the bar rather than waiting 20+ minutes for a table. Of course we couldn't resist starting off with a plate of shared beignets to accompany our Americanos and fresh orange juice. Then for me, fried green tomato benedict with grilled cornbread and fruit. For Mr. E, pot roast benedict with roast carrots over potato casserole. Yummy, different, and quite filling!

We explored a bit more of the area south of the Capitol to find second coffee, which was unfortunately not successful due to the very acidic (sour for our palates) roast on the beans. Then a bit of time to relax at the hotel before heading off to the Denver Museum of Science & Nature to meet up with A, F, and C. We had a wonderful time roaming around several of the exhibitions and watching the kids get close-up with many of the hands-on exhibits, including the special guitar exhibition that provided an opportunity to strum different types of instruments, including a left-hand guitar that was a great fit for F.

Just over two hours was plenty at the museum, and we then went to A's house to meet up with R, who had taken care of picking up our takeout dinner at the nearby Sawa Sushi. We ate in the basement TV area while watching one of the [many] NFL play-off games. Then A and I had some time to chat upstairs while F challenged Mr. E to a game of chess and then all of the boys had a turn with a group play on their new arcade game. Mr. E and I took our leave of the family around 6:30pm so that we could have some time on our own to wind down at the hotel for the evening. We made a return visit to Gattara to use another drink voucher, and this time I tried the Angora with vodka, St. Germain, lime cordial, and white cranberry juice. Very refreshing! 

My Sunday morning was just Zumba and yoga in the room, as the pool was for some reason not open at the correct time when I tried to do another short swim. Since we had 11am tickets for the Whistler to Cassat exhibit at the Denver Art Museum, we had breakfast at Dozens, just a couple of blocks away. We decided to share the veggie benny and a side of fruit along with a press pot of coffee and a cinnamon chip scone that tasted very much like the coffee cake I used to make from a Bisquick recipe. All was tasty, and even the somewhat acidic coffee was palatable once we had the sweetness of the scone to balance it out. With a little extra time before our museum entry, we found a kiosk Starbucks about half a mile away for second coffee.

When we got to the museum, we stowed our heavy coats and my little backpack purse in a locker so that we could stroll unencumbered through the exhibit. I took advantage of the free audio guide and enjoyed listening to some of the curatorial explanations and insights as we walked through the various galleries. One of the other reasons I had wanted to visit the museum was to see the new building, and we had time to go up to the top level to check out the views and some of the western art before our 1pm lunch reservation at the new restaurant, The Ponti. Our table for two was right by the window looking out over the street, so we had a lovely view as we enjoyed our tasty lunch of salad of brussels two ways (shared) with salmon on top (me), trout ravigote (Mr. E), and dukkha roasted carrots (shared). I accompanied my meal with a glass of sparkling rose, while Mr. E enjoyed some Earl Grey tea.

On our way back to the hotel, we of course had to make a detour to bid hello to Blue Bear at the Convention Center.

The weather was quite cooperative for our entire visit, sunny and not too cold except for the first morning. So nice to walk around in enjoyable wintry weather and explore some different parts of the downtown area!

The rest of Sunday was spent relaxing at the hotel. Mr. E fit in a workout while I read at the bar with a glass of sparkling rose. (That cat just keeps staring at me!)

I used our final drink voucher for a glass of red wine to take up to the room. We ordered takeout for dinner from Steuben's, which can now absolutely lay claim to having the Best. Kids. Meal. Ever. My PB&J order from the Kids Menu included carrot sticks, cucumbers, edamame, fruit, steamed broccoli, lemonade, and a chocolate chip cookie. All for just $8.00!!! And the sandwich was huge -- I decided to save it for the next morning for an on-the-go breakfast and made do with the veggies and some other leftover crackers and cheese spread from the United snack box for dinner.

I was able to fit in a Zumba workout on Monday morning before we left for the airport around 9am for our 11:30am flight. My PB&J was about 60% thick bread, so I nibbled off the good bits and ended up tossing the rest (too bad I couldn't find any birds to share it with!). At the airport, Mr. E hit up McDonalds for his breakfast while I set off on the trek to find the only open Starbucks in the United terminal. Not only did I secure a Pike Place for Mr. E but also an egg and cheese protein box for me for lunch during the flight, which I rounded out with a veggie snack box from one of the airport stores. No upgrade for our return flight, unfortunately, and we had the Exit row that doesn't recline, which wasn't the most comfortable despite the extra leg room. But I did enjoy some wine thanks to Mr. E's status, and we arrived in Sac almost on time despite some departure delays.

Miss Calypso welcomed us home with her usual dulcet tones, as we spent the rest of the afternoon unpacking and getting organized for the work week.

Next up... ???

First Night in Boston

Wednesday 12/28-Saturday 1/1: Ferry, Art, Food, Fireworks

Mr. E and I opted for Boston for our NYE festivities this year. We haven't visited the city for quite some time, probably since the fall of 2010, so we were looking forward to (re)discovering various parts. Thanks to United points, we were able to book First Class for the cross-country flights, which made the journey much more comfortable and enjoyable. A bit of a delay in SMF on our way to ORD + a long taxi + a gate change for the connecting flight = running through the airport with our bags. But we made it! Late night arrival at BOS with a first attempt at a taxi, but seeing the line and no waiting cabs, we pivoted to Lyft and got even more steps since the pick-up spot is in the Central Parking lot. 

We stayed at the Residence Inn Boston Harbor Tudor Wharf (longest hotel name ever!!!), which is on the north side of the harbor in Charlestown, and area we knew only from walking the Freedom Trail years ago. And it ended up being a great choice of neighborhood! Relatively close to the airport, and from our suite on the 8th floor, we caught glimpses of several local landmarks: Bunker Hill Monument, masts of the USS Constitution, airport control tower, and lots of boats in the harbor.

Given our late night arrival, we slept in a bit on Thursday morning but managed to make it to the buffet breakfast before the 9:30am clean-up time. Then we found the local Sorelle Cafe for second coffee, which we enjoyed as we strolled along the harbor walk towards the USS Constitution and the other piers, where we caught the Charlestown Ferry (part of the T public transit system) over to Long Wharf near the Aquarium. We of course had to greet the frolicking harbor seals in their aquarium entryway habitat! Then we wandered along the Greenway towards the North End and found Thinking Cup Coffee cafe for our lunch spot (tofu bahn mi for Mr. E, veggie quiche for me + some sweet treats for later).

We also strolled through Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market, making a stop at It's Sugar for me. Then about 20 minutes on the T Green Line to our destination for the afternoon, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, which is one of my favorite art locales and one of the museums with reciprocal benefits thanks to our Crocker membership here in Sacto. After our tour through all three floors of the museum, we caught the T back to North Station, where we discovered a Star Market by TD Garden that allowed us to pick up some wine and snacks. Our suite had a full kitchen, including plates, silverware, glassware, pots and pans, and cooking utensils, so it was very convenient for having some provisions in the room.

Dinner was at Pier 6 overlooking the harbor and with a great view of the Zakim Bridge and downtown. Despite the chilly weather, I couldn't resist ordering the Endless Summer cocktail (grapefruit), which was divine. Mr. E enjoyed a beer first and then a cocktail with his burger, and I accompanied my fresh oysters and delicious scallops with a glass of sparkling rose. Chocolate bread pudding to go for Mr. E's dessert, but I had the sweet treats from our lunch stop back in the room do didn't need anything else.

The next day, I took a chance on the hotel pool to swim laps and had the entire place to myself for my workout. Lovely!

I grabbed some stuff from the buffet to take up to the room for breakfast. Our morning appointment was at the ICA (Institute of Contemporary Art), so we took the ferry again and walked south along the Greenway, making a stop at Starbucks for coffee and food for Mr. E.  We got to the ICA just after it opened, which was perfect timing for our 10am tickets. Luckily, the museum offers lockers, so we could store our umbrellas and winter coats and even my little backpack purse rather than needing to tote everything around the galleries.

The primary exhibition areas are all on the fourth floor, which is reached via a big glass elevator in the middle of the building. That level also offers a great lookout view over the harbor in the part of the museum that extends out over the rest of the building.

The different exhibitions definitely offered an eclectic and thought-provoking assortment of different types of art, from photography to painting to sculpture to installations.

We had made plans to meet with my aunt and uncle for lunch at Nisa's Thai Restaurant in Canton Center, so we caught the T green line to the purple commuter rail line for that slightly longer journey. Given the train schedule, we only had about 75 minutes to spend during our visit, but that still gave us time to catch up with family and enjoy our meal. Once we got back to Boston and procured some food at Star Market for later, we repeated our walk along the pedestrian pathway on top of the locks that run alongside the Zakim bridge at the water level, which was a really fun way to travel rather than being up higher on the side of the North Washington Street bridge, which was the closest driving route to our hotel. Dinner and a movie in the hotel room to finish up the day.

The next day was December 31st, which is host to a number of free activities of various kinds in central downtown Boston locations. This celebration is known as First Night, and I have attended a few times over the years, which is one of the reasons we chose Boston for our NYE site this year, as I wanted to share the experience with Mr. E. Due to ongoing COVID conditions, the offerings were very streamed down and all outside, but we still enjoyed a few musical performances, including the Boston Saxophone Quartet and singer Maddi Ryan. 

We also had a wonderful time exploring the Boston Public Library and stumbled across the amazing Tea Room, which will definitely be on our to-do list for the next visit! However, despite the fact that they did have room for us in the 1pm seating, we had already purchased tickets for Matrix: Resurrections at 2:30pm, so we couldn't really manage to fit in both activities. We headed off towards the Boston Common for the AMC theatre, making a quick stop at a nearby Starbucks for some food since we hadn't had any lunch (buffet breakfast in room again for me after second morning swim, coffee and breakfast sandwich from Sorelle for Mr. E).

The movie wrapped up around 5:20pm, so we walked back to Copley Square for the opening remarks and 6pm parade. We grabbed an elevated spot on top of some stairs about halfway to the Boston Common, which gave us a fabulous view of the parade once it started up. When all of the official participants had passed by, the route became a public procession as spectators filed in to follow the parade to the Boston Common for the 7pm fireworks. We stopped along the way at Parish Cafe for a cocktail rather than waiting 30+ minutes for the fireworks to begin. Our seats at the bar had a great view out the big windows overlooking the street, so we could see everyone walking along.

When we finished our drinks, we walked to the Public Garden and arrived at a perfect time, just as the fireworks were starting.We had a great view since we were a couple of blocks from the origin site, at the intersection of Newbury Street and the Public Garden. This was also ideal for walking to our dinner destination, Sonsie, where we had 7:45pm reservations. We arrived a little early and were able to be seated at a table in the cafe right by the window out to the street, which was perfect since the restaurant quickly started to fill up. Service was a little slow, but we still had a wonderful meal, starting with fresh oysters, sides of roasted cauliflower and roasted brussels sprouts to share, a Margherita pizza for Mr. E, and Nantucket bay scallops for me. By the time we finished the light rain had tapered off, so we caught the T (free after 8pm on NYE) back to North Station for a final evening promenade to our hotel.

Originally, our return flight on Saturday 1/1 was scheduled for the afternoon through Chicago, but we had learned on Thursday evening that the flight was cancelled. Mr. E was able to re-book us on a flight through Denver instead, but it left much earlier at 7:30am. Luckily, we hadn't scheduled anything for New Year's Day at that point, so we could make the change pretty easily. I got the number for a local livery service from the helpful Front Desk staff, and our drive was at the hotel 15 minutes early for our 6am pick-up time. Snow in Denver caused delays, as we sat on the runway for nearly 40 minutes, but our outbound flight was also delayed, so we didn't have to run through the airport this time around, and I even had time to buy a book to tide me over since I was almost finished with my third and final library book by then. 

The benefit to the travel change was arriving home in the mid-afternoon on Saturday rather than late at night, so we could get laundry and chores done that day, giving us all of Sunday to relax before going back to work on Monday. Well, Mr. E had Monday off, but I had to work!

Happy New Year to all! Best wishes for a healthy 2022 that is full of joyful moments, gratitude, awe, inspiration, challenges, and love.

Holiday Time in Texas

Thursday 12/16-Sunday 12/26: San Antonio & Austin

I spent an extended time in Texas for the holiday this year, leaving Sac on the afternoon of Thursday 12/16 in order to have an extra weekend with family. Friday was a day off to spend with Mom to get some tasks and chores done, and then dinner with J and crew at their house, where I was staying. 

We headed off in two cars on Saturday 12/18 for an overnight trip to San Antonio to enjoy the holiday festivities. I picked up Mom at her place, and we met up with the rest of the family at the the Riverwalk Plaza Hotel. We had booked two suites, so Mom and I could share one, and J and the boys had their own space one floor directly above us (we waved to each other from the balconies!). 

Unfortunately, the forecast was incorrect about rain stopping by noon, so we had to figure out some alternate plans for lunch and activities, especially since our rooms weren't ready yet. We waited for a bit in the large lobby area near the over-sized games and grabbed drinks at the little cafe as we explored our options. We decided on a trip to the Sea Life Aquarium nearby, thinking we could get lunch at the restaurant there. However, J had actually called the aquarium in Houston by mistake when inquiring about dining options. Oops! Luckily, there was a small food court at the mall that provided adequate offerings for everyone.

The aquarium itself was somewhat small but still fun and not too crowded. Once we completed our tour, we procured some treats at It's Sugar in the food court before returning to the hotel, where we were able to get into our rooms to unpack. Then we set off on foot to explore the Riverwalk path, with The Alamo as our destination. J had reserved tickets to go inside the church at the site, and luckily we could still get access even though our ticket time was earlier in the day. We had just enough time to explore the historic site and get some souvenirs before the gift shop closed!

Our next appointment was at 6pm for Christmas caroling on a decorated river boat that we had all to ourselves. Since we were a bit early, J and I made a stop at Zushi Sushi for to-go adult beverages to take with us. The tour along the river was a blast, especially once we entered the area with more shops and restaurants and people, many of whom took pictures or waved as our brightly-lit boat passed by. So fun! Due to the high winds, our driver had a slight mishap under one bridge, causing a ball decoration to get sheared off the column at the front of the boat. C spotted the ball stuck behind the boat, and B was able to rescue it and return it to the driver, who placed it back on the column as if nothing had happened!

We hadn't made any dinner plans so ended up hanging out in the hotel lobby by the big magnetic Scrabble board, which was host to an awesome game:

B took care of ordering to-go food from the hotel restaurant, and the staff brought everything out to the lobby for us, which was quite considerate. J was able to get M to sleep in his carriage so was able to be part of the group as well.

On Sunday morning, J and crew had to leave early to get back to Austin in time for the holiday pageant at church. Mom and I didn't have any particular schedule, so I got breakfast for us at Starbucks before we went to the San Antonio Museum of Art, where my Crocker membership gave us access to free tickets. The building is the former Lone Star Brewery, so even the structure itself is quite interesting! We had a lovely time exploring almost all of the exhibits and made a few purchases at the gift shop before we departed for the return drive to Austin.

J, B, and I worked from their house for most of the week, with Mr. E joining us on Wednesday 12/22. We all did our own thing during the day but were able to meet up for dinner in the evening. Monday was a tofu and veggie stir fry (me), Wednesday was DIY pizza with store-bought crust (me), Thursday was a dinner party with chicken Marsala, fish tacos, sesame soy green beans, and Texas-style baked beans (Mr. E), and Friday was our usual Christmas Eve offering of a standing rib roast, salmon, shrimp cocktail, green veggies (asparagus and broccolini this year) and roast potatoes (Mr. E). Mom stayed over at the house on Christmas Eve and Christmas night so that the whole family could be together for the holiday.

We had a leisurely Christmas morning, with cinnamon rolls for breakfast and then the gifts opening. The weather had gotten much warmer, so J and B heated up the pool and we were able to enjoy some swimming and hot tub time in the afternoon. Also a nice walk to the amenity center with the dogs for some outdoor play. Other time was spent reading and playing games, including my teaching C how to play cribbage and Mr. E defeating C in Othello!

Mr. E's flight was a bit earlier than mine on Sunday 12/26, so I dropped him off at the airport and then had a little more time to spend at the house. J and M took me to the airport in the early afternoon, and then Caly welcomed Mr. E and me home with some vociferous meowing and aggressive snuggling. Happy Holidays!