expect the unexpected

originally, the plan was the camp two nights in texas to break up the drive and allow enough time to check out white sands and make it to santa fe for an evening or two.  from there, it was an easy drive to the grand canyon and we could camp in arizona for a couple days before heading to california. as we got closer to the first campsite, the rain started coming down, the sun began to set, and the temperature was dropping.  setting up a tent in those conditions made for an undesirable experience.

after some thought and debate, we decided to just keep driving through the evening and pull off at a rest stop for the night.  having perfected the art of sleeping in the car, it was easy to get things set up comfortably.  everyone slept well and was ready to drive to white sands to check it all out.

unexpectedly mind-blowing!  the detour off ten was very bland and unassuming.

the dunes where white as snow!

taking inspiration from the seafari girls of nantucket, we rented a saucer to sled down the dunes.

driving through new mexico was mesmerizing, and we actually missed the highway change for white sands...the navigator was focusing more on the scenery and less on the map!  the whole white sands adventure took longer than expected and was totally worth it.  with the sun getting ready to set and knowing that camping in new mexico was iffy, we needed to, once again, come up with a new plan.  we agreed to skip santa fe and the grand canyon, making a the new goal of landing in arizona for the evening.  

over the summer, we had an enjoyable conversation with a man at the bar of pi pizzaria.  he had traveled the world as a skydive instructor and told us that if we were near eloy, az, it would be a great place for a first time jump.  about half an hour north of tuscon, eloy is skydive arizona.  boasting the largest drop zone in the world, we made the move and signed up for the next morning.

arriving at 8:00 a.m, we embarked on one of our most adventurous, adrenaline filled experiences!  by 9:30, we were suited up, given brief, easy instructions, and loaded onto a plane full of the national skydiving team.  the plane zooms up to an elevation of 13,500 feet, the door slides open, and out you go...

(please be kind...these pictures were taken from the videos we purchased!)

exhilarating rush and highly recommended to all!

straight out of a western...

 

  gorgeous cotton fields on their way to harvest.

after that adrenaline boost, california, here we come!

don't mess with texas

a last minute call to a vrbo (vacation rentals by owner) proved to fruitful and we secured an apartment in austin for a discounted rate, and because of the affordability we stayed an extra night.  once we crossed over into texas, austin was still about 2 and 1/2 hours away.  we drove through houston around 11:00 p.m. with huge pickups passing left and right.  finding a rest stop at rest about an hour south of austin, we pulled off to hit the hay.

up and at'em early after a really good night's sleep in the car (we now have it down to a science), we were ready to take the city on!  using the localscope app, we were able to find this tasty, on tx 71, breakfast burrito and bbq joint, fitties.  

 

 a sausage, egg, and cheese biscuit,

 

 


breakfast burrito with bacon, egg, 
and cheese, 





 


and the marty (spicy shredded beef with potatoes, beans, and cheese burrito...it's texas, why wouldn't ya?!?) made for a most fantastic way to get the morning started.

 

a place for the whole family!

needing to stock up on provisions, tofu tollbooth led us to wheatsville food coop.  the market was big enough without being overwhelming and offered an array of local and organic choices.  here we found kosmic kombucha growlers, (most interesting flavor:  cherry nugent-organic kombucha, organic black cherry juice, organic maple & chocolate) buddha’s brew, local gruyere and sharp cheddar, farm fresh eggs, yogurt, and all the fixings for dinner in.

the apartment is southwest of downtown just a short walk to zilcker park, home to barton springs and the disc golf course.  sunday funday began after getting settled.  went on a long walk in the park to get our bearings, escher was taking it in and enjoying all the sights, smells, and trees.

even a little tree climbing!

it was awesome getting to take advntage of the kitchen and we made dinner.  a nice clean piece of meat, with local sautéed mushrooms and onions,  organic artichokes (gorgeous shape and color) with a homemade mayonnaise, gruyere, sunflower sprouts and lemon juice dipping sauce, and a local sunflower sprout salad with a spicy carrot and radish slaw.  the living room was so comfy with big windows with great view, it's called "the treehouse".  everyone was glad to have the space to spread out and get a good night’s rest and watch the football playoffs.

game time beverages:  local brew and a becker malbec (with a splash of cherry nugent kombucha and rhubarb bitters...yum!)

next morning marked a first bikram yoga experience for emily.   there was a bit of hesitation at first, however, by the end, it was easy to gain an understanding and appreciation for the instruction and flow of the class.  after that, we checked out the disc golf course.  it was easy to navigate with short fareways and the dog enjoyed the walk.  

an under the tree shot by pete...

    

emily jumped in for the first 9 holes.

 
barton springs is an underground, spring-fed pool about three acres big.  the water is an average of 68 degrees year round and is very refreshing.

free this time of year, we took advantage of the beautiful day and went for a dip.  on both sides grassy hills slow toward the water and offer a perfect place to sit back and dry off.

ready to celebrate the day, we headed northwest of downtown to contigo, a modernly rustic restaurant with yummy happy hour deals.  it's totally worth the crunchy green beans, discounted craft beers and refreshing cocktails.

an assortment of olive marinated in citrus fennel seed oil, meatballs (made from contigo ranch meat) with homemade pasta and arugala, and the crunchy green beans with a chipotle aioli.

these little purplish-green ones were super tasty!

in the mood for tasting a lot of what austin had to offer, we went next to barley swine for some small plates.  first up, the gulf shrimp, hominy, chorizo, citrus marinated cabbage, 

next the pork belly with carrots, lavender, pumpkin seeds,

rounding out the savories with braised beef, coffee, barbequed beans, potato, radish.  desert was so inviting that we couldn't even stop to get a picture!  it was a pumpkin cheese cake with wattle seed, pistachio, and rum caramel.  boom.  done.

after dinner it was all about walking down sixth street to wonder and take in the sounds.  it was so cool to walk into a bar, no cover, listen to the music and decide to stay or go.

goodnight austin.  (view from apartment balacony)

lots of dog walks, thrift shopping, and regrouping took place over the rest of our time in austin.

the morning we left, we started the day off with fresh squeezed juice, stopped at boggy creek farm where, the husband and wife, farmers are at the stand there to answer questions, talk about what is available, and how to cook with it.  grabbed some more produce, eggs and homemade english muffs for the road.

just south of austin is lockhart, texas bbq capital.  there are four restaurants to choose from, all boasting the best.  we decided on going to the oldest joint, black's bbq.  both of us downed two huge plates of meat.  pete had brisket and short ribs and emily had spare ribs and jalepino cheddar sausage, each one coming with a plethora of sides to choose from.  thank goodness for the juice that morning!  made a quick stop at kreuz market to see what it was all about, bought some breakfast sausage and will definitely try this bbq joint next. 

driving 290 w out of austin is stop-and-go, however, quite pleasant visually.  it takes you past farms of sheep and cattle grazing, through texas wine country, and two small towns, johnson city and fredericksburg, worth some further exploration in the future.  fourteen miles outside of johnson city is the lbj state park, offering everything from trails and wildlife to education and history.  this was a great last stop on our lone star state adventure!

armed with food provisions and inspiration

the open road took us through florida and into alabama for an overnight at florala state park.   a very small campground, the park surrounds a lake and campers set up along the edge.  

the site with the best view happened to be occupied by an interesting couple who have been living at the campground for the past two months.  they were very helpful in getting our fire started and shared their success behind camping for the past two months:  a 12 person tent for 2 with a 32 in screen television, DVD player, microwave and freezer.  outside of the tent was a slender rectangle tent with a shower and toilet.  they were a wealth of knowledge about the area, specifically the campground and the happenings around it.  they informed us that the dollar store sells beer, bringing beer from another state on Sunday would result in a find AND they'll take your beer, and lastly, that often times one could see the planes flying up from "pepsi-cola".  pretty sure she meant pensacola...we were grateful for their help with the fire!

 
with the fire roaring, it was time to get cooking.  keeping it simple, we made a soup with cauliflower and sorrel, from the audobon community market, and finished off some quinoa casserole leftovers. after enjoying the candlelit meal and cleaning up, it was time to get some rest for a quick stop in new orleans the following day.





who needs a fast food drive-thru or convenient store?  it is so much more efficient and delicious to travel with a few basic ingredients!  utilizing some of the treats tony sent us with, our breakfast on-the-go consisted of tupelo honey peanut butter from the audobon community market and big wheel plant city strawberry preserves on fresh german multi-grain bread.  absolutely delicious, healthy, and mindful of the environment!












here's another one of our  in-car snacks:  crackers, hummus (made from scratch and brought from home), with some womanchego from the ct farmer's market





using an app called "localscope", we were able to find a quaint coffee shop in the outskirts of mobile, al and made a much needed coffee stop.  the latte was okay...it's hard being spoiled by amber at the green!

the decision to stop in new orleans for lunch was a last minute one and after some input we decided to start at acme oyster house (another "place to see before you die").  

we started with 1/2 a dozen oysters on the half shell...

and finished with the char-grilled, as recommended by the server.  we washed it down with the local abita amber. 

after the snack, we took the dog on a walk through louis armstrong park near the french quarter.

the next stop was the napoleon house bar and cafe.  the pims cup was perfections and the muffaletta outstanding!  the waiters are traditionally clad with tuxedo shirts and ties and are pleasantly accommodating.

in search of an internet connection to do some blog posting, we checked in with every cafe we could, only to find that there was no access anywhere!  thoroughly disappointed by the lack of wi-fi in the new orleans cafe scene we walked to cafe du monde in hopes of a beignet.  the line juice bar long and we were itching to hit the road, so we decided to wait until we make another trip back!


with the sun setting, we maneuvered our way out of the city in hopes of making it to texas...

it's good to be "home" -a pete perspective

"hello everybody, pete here"

it's been a while since we have been to indialantic, fl, which is where my mother and her husband dennis live.  i have to say that it was great to get back to the old stomping grounds.

after a three hour drive south from st. augustine, we got to wayne ave in indialantic.  we were greeted with hugs and kisses as we toted our luggage and escher into the house.  we were glad to be off the road.  mom had a chicken and wild rice soup brewing so our bellies were glad too. as our bellies would be for the remainder of the stay!  mom and dennis were our gourmet hosts... we all enjoyed many great meals. dennis's great pasta casserole, and moms guiness meatballs were among the highlights.

guiness meatballs, cheddar chive mashed potatoes, and sauteed cabbage

tinker, tailer, soldier spy was the first order of business on our first day.  we went to oaks cinema ten where we enjoyed the fantastic film. anything "focus films" puts out is fantastic. Go See It!

 view of the mossy oaks in the cinema parking lot

after the movie, my friends at Optique Unique were very accommodating.  they all stayed a little late to help me get some new specs, along with some great tips for western travel.  thank you dr. thomas for making us stop in new orleans (we'll blog about that stop later).

we were also glad see all our friends back home. urcan, booger, snoop, alex, don, roof, and sarah just a few as the list would be never ending.  we also got to see sarah, dennis's daugter and her husband brett and their little baby graham.

escher loved graham, because graham would let escher lick the food off his face.

the next day i wanted to take a dip in the pool, which is a must every visit home.  i under estimated the temp though and it was so cold it took my breath away.  shortly after the "i was in the pool!" "i was in the pool!" (seinfeld), we went up to the boardwalk and got BIZARRO'S, new york style pizza...

with slices the size of you face.

next we went to wickham park where there is a pretty cool disc golf course.  the course itself is very forgiving with many wide open fairways.

there are twenty-two holes, with last, a par three over water, a favorite.

indialantic is about an hour and a half away from orlando, home of universal studios and islands of adventure.  the wizarding world of harry potter, which was under construction the last time we were there, is now open and operating.  what more would two huge harry potter fans want?!  and then there's icing on the cake...our friend leah is working in orlando for big wheel provisions, the brain child of one of her culinary inspirations, tony adams.   she invited us to the audubon park community market where the bw food truck was serving up some the most flavorful, fresh, and local eats every tasted.  check out the schmorgasboard...literally!

the schmorgasboard open-faced sandwich special

 

the cheesy tots

and the brussel sprouts were among a few of the delicious menu items we were treated to!

the next morning, adrenaline is pumping.  leah joined us at are hotel across the street from the park and we hopped on the shuttle, arriving before the park opens.  we already had our tickets, so we booked it back to harry potter's wizarding world.  walking through the arch welcoming you to hogsmeade took our breath away.  the construction of everything is magical and you really feel like you are inside the books.

with a wait of only 10 minutes, the three of us jumped in line for "the forbidden journey" which has been given a lot of hype.

winding through maze of bars to get to where it starts, the riders get to walk through some memorable areas of hogswart which build up the anticipation.  the ride seats four in a booth style car, with individual seats and harnesses.  once you're in there's no turning back, and POOF, you're sent up the chimney with floo powder!  bits and pieces of the ride were well thought out, however, overall, the simulation was dark and blurry and the effects were under par.  with everyone in agreement, we were happy that we only waited for 10 minutes!  our highlights were the spiderman ride and the rip ride rocket.  emily overcame some fears by going on the jurassic park ride and keeping her eyes open on the spiderman ride.

windblown from a ride, leah and emily rocked some "dallas" hair.

leaving the park, we met up with tony at lee and rick's oyster bar.  this place looks like a total dive yet is an oyster lover's dream on the inside.  belly up to the turquoise bar, place your order, and sit back while your server shucks each oyster right in front of you!

we stayed the evening with leah and tony.  not feeling so great, it was nice to save the drive home for the morning.  tony made us an amazing meal of...

skate wing, farro, corn and tomato salsa, pea shoots, yellow foot mushrooms, and spinach.  

 on top of the amazing hospitality, he sent us home with a huge goodie bag of big wheel treats!

escher was happy to be able to run around in the yard,

rest in the sun, and tease the neighbor's dog, marley, through the fence.

for our last day in indialantic we wanted to take a bike tour of the town.  our friends dan and alex let us borrow their bikes for the trek.

the weather that day was ideal for a cruise. seventy five degrees with a light wind from the north. we rode along the indian river stopping at various points to check out the scenery.

 

then we rode a quarter mile east to the atlantic ocean.  indialantic is a barrier island sandwiched by   the river to the west with a small stretch of land  to the ocean on the east. not much wave action that day, though it was nice to walk on the warm sand. as the day was coming to an end we returned the bikes and concluded our tour.