Beverly Hills

Another trip, another chance to visit an old friend. This week I am in southern California so I reached out to a childhood friend of mine, Terri Yenko.  She lives in Studio City with her husband, Howie and they too are empty-nesters. We met for dinner on the outdoor patio at Xian on N. Canon Drive (right around the corner from Rodeo) which is a Chinese restaurant managed by Cece who is Terri's neighbor.  The food was fabulous and it was so wonderful to see these old friends!

While in town, I stayed at the Beverly Hilton which is close to all the shops on glitzy Rodeo Drive. In the mornings, I walked through the tree-lined neighborhoods of Beverly Hills, not looking for celebrities, but simply to stretch my legs and to enjoy the beautiful architecture and landscaping in this posh neighborhood. The afternoon was spent swimming laps and lounging at the famous pool back at the Hilton.

A must stop for anybody visiting Los Angeles is The Getty Center. (See my earlier blog about Madrid and the top ten art museums in the world and how this makes my list complete. Top Ten Art Museums in the World) The Getty sits on a hill with views of LA and the Pacific. Designed by Richard Meier, the campus consists of the museum, a research institute, conservation institute and is home to the Getty Foundation named for its benefactor, oilman John Paul Getty. The gardens and landscaping are as lovely as the works of art within. I saw an exhibit on tapestries by Rubens, then got lost wandering through the collection of paintings by Rembrandt, Picasso, Monet, and Renoir to name a few.  A real treat was the self-portrait of a laughing Rembrandt.

Boulder, Colorado

A long weekend in Boulder is always great fun. Southwest Airlines has a direct flight from Pittsburgh to Denver that gets us there in less than 3 hours, then a 30 minute drive up to Boulder. This is my fourth trip, and each trip I was greeted by beautiful blue skies. It has been two months since I gave my son a goodbye hug at the dorms at CU-Boulder. I couldn't wait to see him and hear all about his freshman year of college.

Pearl Street

After stopping at his dorm, we did the usual shopping for necessities. Dinner that night, of course, was on picturesque Pearl Street.  If you have never been there, Pearl Street is the old Main Street in this former gold-mining town and it remains a center of activity in its present state as a pedestrian mall full of shops and restaurants.  We love all of the outdoor seating and dinner that night was at an Italian restaurant that we frequent often called Pasta Jay's.  The food is always good and we were happy to be joined by Lincoln's friend, Jake, who loved our "stack up your cellphone and don't touch  or you buy dinner" rule.

Dinner at Pasta Jay's

The next day we were joined by the Devlins and Casey's JCU friend, Taylor. While Lincoln was in class, the rest of us took a hike up into the Flatirons. You can park at the Chautauqua Park (of the same roots as the one in Chautauqua, NY) and stop at the rangers' cabin for maps. We were lucky that it was 80° and clear that day.  We may not have made it to the peak, but we were high enough for amazing views of downtown Boulder and the campus.

We all agreed the hike earned us an "eat whatever you want" meal.  Lunch was at the Dushanbe Tea House. It sits along Boulder Creek and has outdoor dining for these glorious sunny days. This place has more than tea, with an international menu with interesting entrées.

Saturday afternoon meant football. We hosted a tailgate party for Lincoln's friends and our old friend, Jacob Clinton aka "Jake the baseball player". It wouldn't be Colorado football without Ralphie the buffalo leading the charge. Colorado made a fourth quarter comeback, but lost in overtime.  Still, it was a wonderful weekend with family and special friends... and you never get tired of looking at those mountains!

The Florida Keys

My brother-in-law and his wife, David and Karen Key, live in Tampa, Florida. We spent a weekend in the Florida Keys with these Florida Keys.  After meeting them at the Ft. Lauderdale airport, we took a road trip south…..the way to Key West. (Refer to my blog on Florida State Parks to hear about our stops along the way.)

First, we made a quick stop at Publix to stock our condo with food and beverages, then we rented bicycles because we were told they are the easiest way to get around the island. Each morning we took long rides into town and around the tourist attractions. We were certain that by the end of the weekend we had biked through every neighborhood on the island. (We had the sore butts to remind us.)

The islands in the Keys are linked by Highway One, with Key West being the southernmost point in the U.S. and consequently being home to mile-marker zero on the highway. Other local sights include the Hemingway home and an air force base that treated us to a free air show one afternoon while lounging on the beach.

Between us two couples we had much to celebrate: three of us turned fifty, one 25^th wedding anniversary just passed and one is months away, both of our sons graduated from high school this year, and David and Karen welcomed the addition of a new granddaughter to their family. These events were all wrapped up into one fabulous dinner on Saturday night at Louie's Backyard. www.LouiesBackyard.com
  

Other must try places on the island include, among others: Sloppy Joe's for the live music, Kermit's for the Key Lime Pie, Mallory Square at sunset, the Green Parrot for Happy Hour, and Duval Street for shopping and people watching after dark.

Kermit's Key Lime Pie

Mallory Square

Florida State Parks

Florida has an extensive state park system and I was fortunate to visit three of them during my most recent trip.

BAHIA HONDA STATE PARK:

Bahia Honda State Park is the most tropical of the three. It is unique because of its abundant, fine-sand beaches. The clear blue water was perfect for swimming and snorkeling. A large stingray swam around us as kids with snorkel gear tried to catch it. The sea life, white sand and plants made you feel like you were in the Caribbean. If you want to stay a little longer, the park also offers three cabins on stilts for lodging together with the marina and campground areas.

JOHN PENNEKAMP STATE PARK:

John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park is the first undersea state park in the United States. The park was created to protect the only living coral reef in the continental United States and draws visitors who snorkel, scuba dive or take glass bottom boat tours. We took the 2 hour snorkel trip which was perfect. I wish I had an underwater camera to show you what I found on the coral reef, but let me tell you the colors and beauty of the sea life that I saw were more beautiful than the most valuable art I've seen hanging in any museum. The highlight of the day, however, was bumping into Nikki Pruss, a W & J grad that works here as a dive master and is an old acquaintance of ours. Talk about a small world.

FORT ZACHARY TAYLOR STATE PARK:

Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park is located on Key West and includes one of the nicest beaches on the island. We spent a few hours there swimming and sunbathing. Like all the state parks, they offer a full concession, showers and changing room. At $2.50 per person, it is a bargain for a day's outing.

Steelers Bars

I have been on the road now for seven weeks and love the travel. During my time away from home I have tried many new experiences, but one of my favorite, old pastimes has been hard live without…Steelers football. That is why I began my quest to find a Steelers bar wherever we were staying on game day. (Anybody who knows me can attest that it is live football and not the beer that is the attraction.)
If you search the internet, you can find several lists of Steelers bars. The list I like is  Top Ten Steelers Bars

SAN FRANCISCO:
 

Giordano's in San Francisco is located in an Italian neighborhood known as North Beach. Look for the Stinking Rose restaurant and the bar is a few doorways to the left. If you are hungry for a Primanti's-style sandwich, you are in luck. Try the Capicola since this spicy Italian ham is fresh from the nearby Italian deli.

MYRTLE BEACH:

Oscar's in Myrtle Beach has an eclectic collection of toys and Disney collectibles to entertain you along with the numerous televisions streaming live sports. You can't miss Oscar's on Highway 17 in North Myrtle… just look for their sign with the giant hamburger on top. If it's a nice day, the outdoor patio is a great spot to sit and watch the game since they have several TVs mounted outside.

DALLAS:

Malarkey's Tavern in Dallas is number five on the list for good reason: the staff. Owner Mike Quinn, a Greensburg native, gave us some history of the bar and told us about all the hoopla in his parking lot when the Super Bowl was in Dallas. The establishment used to be an Italian restaurant and the pizza oven remains, so don't hesitate to order one if you don't want the typical bar food. Angela was a dynamo behind the bar that day. After educating us on the archaic liquor laws and taking our ID, credit cards and our signed consent forms, she hustled behind that bar all afternoon. Check them out at www.malarkeystavern.com


KEY WEST:

In South Florida, there is no place better than Shanna Key (no relation), an Irish Pub and sports bar in Key West. Barry the owner has never been to Pittsburgh but is a fan of Steelers Nation. He stopped for a photo with us and then we did a shot of Irish whiskey together. (Another one of my firsts.) The waitstaff also introduced me to a book Always a Home Game written by two Steelers fans who spent 140 days on the road visiting Steelers bars all over the country and documenting the experience.

LOS ANGELES:
I arrived in LA on a Monday afternoon and my husband surprised me with a stop at Gabe's Sports Bar before we checked into our hotel.  Since the Steelers were not playing, we couldn't find a Steelers fan anywhere near the bar which had more Halloween decorations than Steelers memorabilia.  The bar is an unassuming place and is strictly a bar, with no food service.  We questioned the bartender who was very kind, but admitted she doesn't work on game days, but explained that a food truck cooks polish food outside the bar for the games.  This place may be on someone else's top five list, but not mine.

 
ST. LOUIS:

St. Louis doesn't have a Steelers bar, it has a Steelers Fan Club.  Like all of Steelers Nation, these folks travel and this season's bar of choice is Helen Fitzgerald's.  We arrived early, and it is a good thing that we did because this place packs in the fans by kickoff.  We were greeted by the regulars and the club's president. We quickly filled out a club membership form and received their version of our free Terrible Towels.  Of course, we ran into someone we knew.... an old friend from Washington, PA.  But isn't that why we go to Steelers bars in the first place?  Because you can find a friend in any Steelers bar in the world.

ROME:

Of course my all-time favorite Steelers bar is La Boticella in Rome, just because YOU ARE IN ROME!  If you are lucky enough to get there, tell Giovanni that Casey's mom says "Hi".