Where 2 From Here?

We left Salt Lake City at six this AM and I worked on my computer for the entire three hour flight to Atlanta.
All was fine.
I'm working on an album of our barn and made some great progress. Here's the cover .. as a sneak preview

Once in Atlanta, we headed to the Delta lounge to pass the time until our flight at 7:30 tonight to Rome. It's a long layover and I thought I could get a lot accomplished on the album.

Well, guess again. I couldn't see the pointer on my screen. No matter where I scrolled I couldn't see the pointer or click on the screen to do anything. AH .. PANIC! I tried to troubleshoot using my phone without success. My big concern is that to come back into the US we have to have our monitored Covid Test (Yes, that's still required .... even though you don't need it if you're not a citizen and you come into the States by car, bus or on foot! I wonder why our government wants to pick on the Airline industry and all those potential travel dollars that could be helping our economy. UGH!! Anyhow, without a working computer that could be a problem to do the test and have it monitored online.

So, thank heavens I hac ordered Dell support when I got my new computer! Without it, this would have been a very costly day. I spent literally hours on the phone with tech support. And, as you can see, I was able to get the laptop working again. I wonder how someone can do IT work all day long and actually enjoy it. Good thing somebody does!! As I said, when they work they're great .. and thanks to Tech Support a disaster was averted.

We're on our way... we get to Rome at 11 AM on Friday. I'll be trying to catch some ZZZZ on the flight as opposed to working on my computer. There's an 8 hour time difference between home and there so it's a long day by the time we land. But I'll be in touch ....from Tuscany

I just read one of the most appropriate sayings I've come across about Travel ...

"If you're happy, travel to celebrate" ... I'm so happy to have our FREEDOM back to go where we want, when we want, without government contraints.

If you're sad, travel to forget"...Today we remember those who fought so we could be free, I'm sure there are many sad families whose loved ones gave their lives so we could live in AMERICA .. home of the brave - land of the FREE - let's not forget their sacrifices!

"If nothing is happening, travel to make something happen"

Well, something's happening next week!! We're escaping the snowy weather of Wyoming in late June/early July, and we're headed on a trip that's been postponed for two years. Can't wait to see and taste Tuscany... Hope you'll join us on the long-awaited adventure. Italy, Here we Come!

Hej translates to "Hi" in Danish ... and Hej Hej translates to "Bye". That's pretty much what our time spent in Denmark was like - we disembarked from the Voyager of the Seas and caught a taxi to the Marriott near the old village. We dropped our bags and headed out for a stroll around the town. The weather was cold and dismal yet we saw swimmers taking a dip in what had to be a pretty frigid water canal just outside from our hotel.

[/left]We walked past the Glyptotek - art museum and posed for a photo with the lion out front, the past the famous Tivoli Gardens - the oldest amusement park in the world. It wasn't open so we just got a little peak through the fence of the gardens and park within. Next stop, the souvenir shop where Beka bought her patch, I got a bell for my bike, Eric got a "Copenhagen" hoodie and we bought a Viking souvenir for Jason.

[left]We continued through the old streets of Copenhagen, admiring the architecture, stopping in the village square to enjoy a coffee, a Viking-size Carlsburg beer and hot chocolate. Afterwards, we stopped in front of the shoe store so Beka could compare what they had in stock to what they have at Itzin Shoe store where she works in Burlington, WI. Nothing beats the Danish that can be found in Denmark - Just take a glance at these mouth-watering delights!'

Speaking of food - I know, not again! Well, it is the last day of the Food Fest in Coastal Europe so for lunch we visited the Barr (means Barley in Danish) Restaurant which had rave reviews online. It did not disappoint. The menu was a little challenging but we were assisted by our waiter and dove into these unusual comfort classics from across the North Sea. Dining at Barr is akin to a gastronomic bear hug!

Jeff started out with the Beef tartare, his favorite European appetizer. Meanwhile we all munched on the white bread with beer mash, rye bread and butter. Eric ordered the Plaice (fish) sandwich, Beka got the Shrimp (little did she know it would come with heads on!) on toasted bread with dill, lemon and a soft boiled egg, She also tried the white asparagus with dried ham and crispy fjord shrimps. I had the best dish of all! It was Barr's pepper roast beef served with caramelized onions, pickled beetroot, shaved horseradish and a fried egg. Unbeatable. We tried the wine suggested by our server which was alright but nothing to write home about.

Who needs to eat dinner after such a fulfilling lunch. We went to bed early, got up at 5am to be at the airport by 7 for our morning flight from Copenhagen to Amsterdam.

Little did we know what our day had in store for us. All flights were delayed in Amsterdam due to weather which meant of flight from there to Detroit was also delayed. Beka just made it to her connection in Detroit at 5:10PM. We waited in the lounge for our 8 PM flight to Salt Lake which didn't get there until 10 PM. Talk about a L O N G day! So tired of sitting!! But all in all it was a great trip. Lots of interesting food as you've seen here. Good to be home but can't wait until the next adventure. Hiking in Tuscany in June

After two days at sea we were really ready to get off the boat and explore another country. (Besides Beka needs another patch for her collection!) Due to all the hassles we experienced boarding the ship in Barcelona, Royal Caribbean gave us vouchers for a canal tour. So after a nice breakfast in the dining room, we disembarked from the ship, met our guide and climbed about the boat that took us through the canals of Amsterdam. These boats are low and sleek so they can navigate under the many bridges that cross the canals.

Here's a map of the canals of Amsterdam. The "X" marks the spot where the Royal Caribbean ship "Voyager" was docked. Our captain of the canal boat did an awesome job of navigating the bridges, some of which were extremely narrow, and she had to make some interesting maneuvers to turn some sharp corners with such a long boat.

There were house boats lining the edges of the canal everywhere. Some in much need of repair and others that were well maintained, decorated with flower boxes overflowing with tulips and other varieties of flowers.

You'll notice how all of the houses are very narrow. That's because they pay taxes based on the footage on the street.The wider houses of the wealthy are easily multi-million dollar houses. You can also see the beam that extends from the upper floor of the houses. Because they are so narrow, it would be difficult to carry large items up the narrow stairway so the beam is used to hoist items up from the outside. We also passed what are known as the "Dancing Houses" (upper right). Because Amsterdam is built on pilings, sometimes with age they begin to fail and the houses start to tilt. It costs a lot to fix the problem, so I guess they just hope the neighboring house will help to hold the structure upright.

We also floated past some very modern buildings - the green one was shaped like the bow of a boat, the white building is fondly called "the chair" and we also passed this replica of an old Dutch vessel.

Rabeka got her patch from the Netherlands after we left the canal boat. Then we were off to enjoy a quick bite to eat before heading to our next destination - The Heineken Experience! I bet you didn't know that Mrs. Heineken is the wealthiest woman in the world. We toured the original factory where this beer industry giant began to brew their product.

The original bottle did not have the red star on it that you see today. It was added to the label after Heineken earned the award at the Paris world fair. The tour itself was an interactive experience. At one point we were like the beer bottle going through the manufacturing process of being filled and capped off during the thrill ride. It ended with our chance to drink a couple of Heineken's best. My favorite was the newly launched

One thing we will always remember about our day in Amsterdam is the incredible number of bicyclists. They have a lane right next to the sidewalk reserved for bikes so you really need to look carefully before crossing the street - not so much for the cars but for the bicycles. Eric says "No wonder you don't see very many fat people in the Netherlands. Everybody is getting a lot of exercise." Our tour guide said they're the happiest people in the world. Maybe so.

Due to inclement weather in Lisbon, Portugal we were forced to make a detour so our ship took us to Vigo, Spain instead. We will miss not seeing the coach museum and eating the outstanding pastries but such is life when Mother Nature decides to kick up a storm. It was windy and chilly in Vigo. We spent the first part of the morning looking for a place to exchange our US dollars into Euros. First we were sent to the post office which was rather interesting in comparison to ours in the states - no luck there, but the locals were very friendly and suggested we head to the bank. We went to ING bank but they didn't carry any cash, only online transactions. So we gave up. Hopefully credit cards and US dollars will work for now.

We walked past a park with beautiful flowers, interesting lampposts and some very old buildings whose façade was maintained in front of the now new construction behind it.

We are, after all, on a Food Tour of European Cuisine, so when I found out we would not be going to Lisbon and we would miss our Mystery Food Tour, I searched for possible alternatives in Vigo. We'd already experienced Spanish Tapas so I chose to do a little something different. This time we sought out Casa Marco, an award winning Michelin restaurant. We walked quite a ways to get to the restaurant but enjoyed the sights along the way. And heaven only knows we could use the exercise after everything we've been eating.

The staff was extremely helpful and we enjoyed the elaborate traditional cuisine of Spain. As an appetizer, we decided on a mushroom dish and scallops. Both were exceptional. In fact, I think these melt-in-your-mouth scallops were the best we've ever had - even beat the ones from the Bay of Fundy.

For entrees, Eric chose the Branzino and Beka and I had the Veal (we should have shared one!)

Beka also chose the best dessert - Milk chocolate Brownie with Bulgarian Yogurt... ummm.

Afterwards we took a shorter route back to the ship, just in time as it started to rain. All in all, we made the best of Vigo with our choices.