Over the Kitchen Counter: Angie's Place for Cooking and Crafts

Shipping Up to Boston

**NOTE: GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED**

We recently enjoyed an amazing dream-trip to Boston.  While I had visited this charming city as a kid, my DH (who is THE ultimate Red Sox fan) had never been.  It was a whirlwind trip for a long-weekend and was very baseball-heavy.  Highlights included a tour of Fenway Park, 2 awesome games (they won!), and touring the city on Segways!  (When I took the training and got on the machine I thought I didn't like it and would never be able to control the 2-wheeled-no brakes-controlled by the slight shifts in your weight through your feet vehicle, but after a short time it truly becomes intuitive and you're a pro!)  It was so fun!  We didn't have a lot of time for shopping (quick visit to The Paper Source and Michaels) or even for searching out some unique restaurants...but we did experience lunch at Boston Sail Loft - very fresh fish 'n chips and excellent draft Samuel Adams beer!  Also, a hot-dog/pulled pork buffet never tasted better than after a meet'n'greet with an MLB player (Jed Lowrie) and trying on $13,000 Championship diamond rings!  (A little big for me!)

While baseball was something I enjoyed but was not passionate about, I think I have been converted into a true fan.  The magic of Fenway is undeniable and upon my return I have realized how special our time there was.  I can't wait to go back and experience it all again!  There is so much tradition and history involved in watching a Red Sox game and a union with the crowd, the team, and the City that over-takes your spirit.  Travel in general is something I love and I always end up emotionally connected to the places I visit!

While I didn't have a lot of time for craft shopping, I grabbed this very cute pack from Deja Views: 10 Things Pocket.  It is a pocket filled with 10 numbered tags (there are different themes) and can be used in scrapbooking or cards.  I thought it was a super idea and the Ten Things I love about Travel was perfectly fitting.  I picked up an extra one to give away to one of you loyal readers.  Just leave a comment on this post telling me which city is your favourite place to visit and why.  I will draw a winner randomly from the comments on Friday.  I know I will easily be able to fill out 10 reasons I love to travel!!!!

Vacation Share

 
 For this year's Disney World vacation we chose to stay at the beautiful Animal Kingdom Lodge.  Themed after an African safari resort, there are animals roaming in the Savannah surrounding the hotel.  It was quite lovely to look out from one of the viewing areas and see graceful giraffe and striped zebras grazing.  We had a busy and tiring week, making sure to visit all the parks and rides we enjoy, while allowing time for relaxing by the pool and eating at our favourite restaurants.  Since we delighted in the foods we had last year, we pretty much duplicated our meals this time.  One new dessert was a luscious Mango Pie.  Similar in texture and composition to a key lime pie, it had an exotic mango flavour and was something I may just have to work on trying to make at home.

We also extended our trip to include a visit to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal's Islands of Adventure.  I was quite excited to experience it first-hand.  My number one priority (after conquering the Forbidden Journey ride) was drinking "butter beer".  Being such an extremely impressionable person, I have coveted a pint of the sweet and creamy beverage since first reading about it in the Harry Potter books.  It was yummy!  Difficult to describe - the closest thing is a thick cream soda with a creamy head on it - we definitely enjoyed the experience...very satisfying.  The whole Hogsmeade village was wonderfully re-created and, other than the horrifying turn on the Dragon Challenge (a mother's guilty promise to a son with neither a sister nor father who dared give it a go), we had a very happy visit to this personified land from our literary imagination.

My daughter had to purchase a wand from Ollivander's shop (an over-priced piece of plastic, yes...but nicely made and beautifully presented...and magical to her) and we came home with three extra friends (stuffed animals: Scabbers, Buckbeak, and Harry's owl, Hedwig)...and a very expensive
chocolate frog.  But for myself, I indulged and bought the only 'crafty' thing I could find: the Hogwarts Wax & Seal kit.  It's fun to apply a wax seal to my envelopes and the seal looks very royal!  Here it is (the kit came with a gold stick of wax and a black stick). Remember you can click on any photo to see it larger.  Thanks for sharing these tid-bits from my holiday and have a wonderful Sunday!

 
 

Vegas 2010

 Another fabulous trip to Vegas and the shows, hotels, and sights were amazing...but of course, for me, it's all about the food!  Breakfast each morning at the Terrace Pointe Cafe in the Wynn Las Vegas was a great start to the day: I don't know how they do it but the coffee served is by far the best I've ever tasted.  Fresh squeezed orange juice just makes you feel alive, the pancakes are incredible (although impossible to finish - one is huge, three is just ridiculous!), the sausages and bacon are cooked to perfection, and the seasonal berries with creme fraiche are delectable (albeit expensive at $15 a small bowl!).

Trevi, a lovely Italian restaurant at the centre of the Forum Shops in Caesars, was scrumptious for the second year in a row and the bottle of Malbec wine from Argentina was a great accompaniment.  We couldn't resist visiting Vic & Anthony's in the Golden Nugget casino (in the Freemont Street area) again as well...hey, when we find something we like we are loyal customers and are always eager to return!).  Fantastic service and superb food, all wrapped up in the perfect atmosphere and ambiance.  Plus, they served the biggest baked potato I have ever seen!

We made a couple of new discoveries and enjoyed them so much we are adding them to the list for next year - and they pretty much book-end the dining experience spectrum: Johnny Rockets burgers and Sinatra's fine dining at the Encore Resort.  Johnny Rockets is an old-fashioned hamburger restaurant and soda fountain.  We loved the large, thick malted-milkshakes and the burgers with rings were a real treat.  Once again, great service and excellent food - a lower price on the menu is just a happy bonus!

Sinatra's at the Encore Resort was a pleasure from start to finish.  You can't really ask for much more from a restaurant of this calibre and it was a privilege and delight to enjoy a dining experience there.  An incredible wine selection and the most delicious pennette I've ever tried (Italian sausage ragu, with bell peppers, tomato and fresh basil), plus a creamy vanilla bean panna cotta for dessert, made for a first-class meal and a wonderful evening.

We had a terrific little getaway in Vegas and seeing Viva Elvis in the new Aria resort was very satisfying after a year of anticipation.  It was an excellent Cirque-de-Soleil show combined with the life story of Elvis - catching a satin scarf drifting from the heavens was an exciting finale.  I can also highly recommend the Donny & Marie show at the Flamingo.  Sure, it's pure 70s cheese but I have never seen two people work harder to entertain.  After 40+ years in the business, this brother/sister duo is still such fun and truly very talented.  The singing and dancing were impressive and the small theatre (apparently the last of its kind on the strip) offers a very intimate experience with the performers.  Shaking Marie's hand was a highlight of the trip and just a surreal encounter for someone who grew up watching the Osmonds and thought Tiger Beat posters were actual wallpaper in my sister's room.

So there you have it: another trip based on food and experiences...and for me, that's what travel is all about!

Vegas Vid

Catching Up

Wow, I can't believe how traveling even a few time zones can mess with your energy levels.  I am usually on the go all day but I have definitely noticed a lack of pep these past couple days!  The kids are going to be home from school for summer vacation in a few days which is going to interfere with my ability to get things done uninterrupted so I'm feeling the crunch to catch up on what I need to do now!

I'm working on a little montage of Vegas to share, it's probably not much different than the others out there on youtube but it will be a good reminder for me of such a great trip.  It was pretty interesting to note the contrast of the ritz, glamour, and opulence of the new resorts and casinos on the strip with the less extravagant "old" Downtown and the areas in between the two.  So conflicting to people-watch and see the extreme wealth on one side and the battered and suffering on the other.  We saw one gentleman laying down chipS at the $1,000 minimum blackjack table in the morning and then a down-on-his luck wheelchair-bound man in the Gulch who had open wounds on his leg (which did not look good) asking for change.

Vacation for me is not about relaxing and lying by the pool.  I love travel for the experience and my curiosity and yearn to learn has me wanting to explore and see everything.  I especially enjoy seeing for myself things I have read about, researching and studying every aspect.  I had a chance to visit the Titanic exhibit, which was fascinating.  I have already been to Nova Scotia where many of the victims are buried and artifacts are displayed but in Las Vegas they have a huge hunk of the Titanic's hull, The Big Piece, which was incredible to see.  Weighing an amazing 15 tons it measures more than 26 feet long.

Bodies was another exhibit that was pretty incredible.  With views of the human anatomy, displayed by bodily system (skeletal, respiratory, circulatory, reproductive, etc.) through the dissection of real, donated bodies, it was a fascinating (and kind of nauseating) window into the workings of us all.

I experienced so much of what there is to do and see in Las Vegas and there was plenty more but we ran out of time.  I was able to sample a hamburger at an In 'n Out Burger  (being an East-Coast Canadian this chain was one I'd only read about, such as the stars visiting it after the Oscars)(it wasn't bad and the whole frenzied experience was pretty cool), tasted a deep-friend twinkie and oreo at one of the Glitter Gulch casinos (one bite of each was more than enough!) and also dined at one of the top restaurants in downtown, Vic and Anthony's in the Golden Nugget.  This luxurious steakhouse oozed elegance and Rat-Pack history   and the wine was fabulous!

So it doesn't matter if the bill is $10 or $100, I enjoy it all!  And that special anniversary celebration?  Yes, we got remarried by Elvis at one of the little Vegas Chapels...how's that for a taste of Vegas?!