Sealicious

the leaves were on fire

Last weekend was an amazing one to spend in New Hampshire. It was unseasonably warm, but sunny and clear, and no one was complaining. Our campsite was located right off the Kancamangus highway. You could spend a day or two exploring all of the little overlooks and hikes located right off that highway. Jeff and I cooked an amazing mac and cheese dinner in our new cast iron dutch oven, and were relieved that everyone else liked it too.

We took it  easy and just went on a few mellow hikes around lakes and ponds. The sun lit up the green, orange, and red leaves, and warmed the ground so everywhere you went smelled like smokey leaves and pine needles. There were so many "tourists" around (like us) but it made me happy seeing everyone enjoy the White Mountain National Forest.

 

        

                                              

 

 

scenes from the weekend

This weekend, Jeff and his sister and I took an impromptu trip up to Portsmouth, NH to see his dad. His father and stepmom normally live in San Diego but were visiting family in New Hampshire for the week.

We got a room at a Motel 6 (superclassy, I know) and explored Portsmouth.

 On Sunday, we went to a Mother's Day brunch at one of the best breakfast places I've ever been to, The Friendly Toast. It was super kitschy and fun inside with lots of vintage paraphanelia to look at. The menu was extensive and offered lots of vegetarian and local ingredients. I opted for an eggs benedict with avocado on top of their homemade chile cornmeal bread. It was awesome!

We returned home Sunday afternoon and celebrated Mother's Day and Jeff's birthday at his mom's house. My niece played her first Hungry Hungry Hippos game, and got lots of rides in the swing.  The adults enjoyed lots of lounging on the porch in the nice spring weather.

 

 

 

Portland and San Diego

My 10-day trip to the West Coast was amazing. I saw so many incredible sights, spent quality time with lots of close friends, and ate and drank the most delicious food and drink.

If I was a city, I'd be Portland. I had high expectations (from all the blogs I read!) about how beautiful, and cool, and tasty, and ecofriendly everything is there. I was still blown away. The first day we went to Cannon Beach, the second day we drove up through the Columbia River Gorge, stopping at several waterfalls. On our last day, we hung out in downtown Portland (and its outskirts), and I bought way too much of that famous Stumptown Coffee.

 
* Jam Cafe - we had an AMAZING breakfast and I ordered a biscuit just so I could try the pear-chai and mango-jalapeno jams.

 

 

* Cannon Beach

 

 
*Ecola State Park

 

 

*Ecola State Park

 

 

 

 

 

 
*Columbia River Gorge as seen from the Vista House

 

 

 

 

 

 
*Multnomah Falls

 

 

I felt a little guilty flying directly from one vacation to another, but it was pretty awesome. I went to San Diego to attend the 2011 International Sea Turtle Symposium. I met up with a bunch of friends from grad school, some of whom I hadn't seen in a year or more. I don't have many photos because I was attending so many talks while I was there, but I have a few from the hotel that hosted the conference. It was the Town and Country Resort in San Diego. I think alot of guests thought the hotel was outdated, but I loved how retro it was! The entire resort was covered in mature rose gardens and had sort of swinging 60's /English Country vibe.

 
*I was swooning over the California coastline as I flew south, especially when I could see kelp beds

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I should be packing . . .

not blogging, but I realized I forgot to mention that this space will be even quieter than normal over the next week and a half.

I'm headed to Portland Oregon, and San Diego, CA.

I've never been to Portland, I have a feeling I'm going to fall in love with it and never want to leave. I've read about so many amazing shops, restaurants and farms in that town, but because the purpose of my visit is to see a dear friend, and I'll only be there for a few days, I've refrained from making any lists of must-see places. I know she'll show me some amazing stuff.

I somehow managed to extend my mini-vacation into a "working vacation" and will fly from Portland to San Diego to attend the International Sea Turtle Symposium.  It's an amazing conference, and I can't wait to catch up with some friends from graduate school.

I'm sure I'll have a gazillion photos to share when I return.

 

 

missing a Florida I've never met

Today I came across a website profiling now-defunct roadside tourist attractions in Florida. I found this website through a Vintage Postcard blogpost on the Miami Rare-bird farm, intending to bookmark it for future reference.

Too bad, it's no longer there.

These unique destinations definitely appeal to my love of anything vintage and kitschy. How can one not be intrigued by places like, 

Xanadu: Home of the Future

 

The Cypress Knee Museum

 

Or, the Waltzing Waters Aquarama?

 

While some of these attractions may have been ill-advised (I don't really agree with training marine mammals for entertainment and exotic species have escaped from some of the wild animal parks) I can't help but feel a little sad I'll never get to experience these unique gems in person.

*all photos are courtesy of LostParks.com