LOVING IT BECAUSE:

1) Every dark blue helicopter lettered, “United States of America”, flying to and from the direction of the White House could be my favorite prez…Shalom, Mensch. Welcome back from Israel. Peace out! (and Hag Sameah to everybody else re: Pesach and Easter);

2) The fantastic FREE museums and zoo. Each of which has tons of FREE performances, events, lectures and gorgeous architecture (even this stairway at the Smithsonian Natural History museum seems inspired by Escher).

The National Portrait Gallery is stunning. We loved this painted portrait of Special Olympics Founder: Eunice Kennedy-Shriver . We hope someday to see the works of our portraitist friend, Paul Feinberg, hanging here too. ”  We also appreciated, “Wisdom”, the sculpture of Gertrude Stein as a Buddha used as our feature image.

The Renwick (American Craft Museum) had weird and great stuff, especially sculptures made of improbable substances…we are guessing that the marble pillow wouldn’t be so comfortable. The Indian Art Museum had the most amazing cafeteria (‘Mitsitam’) …choosing  between different tribal foods with upscale treatments, we settled for bison loin, wild rice and watercress salad, roasted sunchokes with a wild cherry/pine nut chutney. We saw the executive chef in the kitchen with Chef Rock, the 2009 winner of the Hell’s Kitchen competition. Our sous chef said he got “ink” last week when he was photographed in the kitchen with Martha Stewart, eg. not your usual food court;

3) The First Ladies Gown Exhibit: Poor Lady Bird Johnson…to be featured for the duration in a bright yellow, floor length 3/4 sleeved heavy brocaded gown with thick mink cuffs and a high Nehru collar, looking like Big Bird with a bouffant ‘do. Further insult, to be posed between the tres chic Grace Coolidge in her sleeveless flapper’s drop waist black silk and velvet dress, and Jackie Kennedy in her elegant ivory flowing silk sheath. I hope Lady Bird just didn’t give a fig what the public thought because she was preoccupied with tree planting …or else got that shmata off the rack at a deep discount!  We got a private, docent-led, guided tour in our friend Ed’s specialty areas in the Smithsonian American History Museum: ‘The American Presidency’, and ‘American Wars’ providing us with the best presidential quote of all time (Harry Truman): “I fired him because he wouldn’t respect the authority of the President. That’s the answer to that. I didn’t fire him because he was a dumb son of a bitch, although he was, but that’s not against the law for generals. If it was, half to three-quarters of them would be in jail.” Plain speaking, indeed;

4) The Peacock Room at the Freer…crepuscular, like his ‘Nocturnes’, James McNeill Whistler’s sumptuously designed dining room, later filled with Freer’s Asian ceramics, is somber and moody until the third Thursday of each month, when the shutters are opened and the bright rich glazes are visible for a day;

5) The Supreme Court was a happenin’ spot this week as the oral arguments progressed on two gay marriage cases. Other than a few ignorant and mean-spirited messages alleging that ‘AIDS is caused by the sin of homosexuality’, most of the sitters represented the country…about 80 percent supporting gay marriage. We of course enjoyed chatting with the camera crew who had the latest dirt, fresh from the mouths of the sketch artists who had been in the courtroom. Of course, the Court will take it under submission so we won’t have a ruling for months….fingers crossed until then!;

6) People from all over the world, especially kids on school trips, are running all over the Metro, the museums, the monuments, the food courts, and near the Embassies in Georgetown. I wonder if I was ever that twitchy and screechy in Middle School? They do know how to have a good time…and shop! We especially loved the kid who climbed into FDR’s lap and wouldn’t leave even with his parents yelling at him. An older woman in a wheel chair, a victim of Polio herself, advocated for him to enjoy the best seat in the City;

7) We got no Monarchy, but we gotta’ cool crenelated castle;

8) Monkey Puzzle Trees and 141 varieties of roses, make the National Botanic Garden the oldest in the Nation;

9) We will miss the Cherry Blossom Festival originally scheduled for March 20th, now delayed to April 7th, and probably just beginning to bud even then, as it remains freezing at night and with 2 inches of snow on the ground two days ago. Fortunately, retailer Macy’s opened their Cherry Tree and Japanese Garden display yesterday so we can have a taste (live trees, fake backdrop) of what will occur around the Tidal Basin in several weeks: 3,750 trees in bloom; and

10) Walkability score is very high as Washington is small, flat, dense, well served with transportation, public trails, canals and creeks, ethnic food and interesting neighborhoods. Yep, we could live here surrounded by neighbors obsessed with politics and awakening to the Washington Post on our stoop daily! Now that is a newspaper!

We always wonder how welcome we will be when visiting family members whose homes have been “volunteered” by other family members. This is especially true when you last saw them in ballroom dancing class in Middle School. However, we learned quickly that those “Stanton Boys”, Sal’s cousins and their families, have adopted their ancestors’ Southern Hospitality Roots and will pull out all the stops to be welcoming hosts. Food, drink, dogs to play with, and meals with other family members and neighbors nourished us during the snow flurries and cold temperatures. I know I could never be so warm and inviting the week before I put my house on the market, while still working every day, and recovering from a half marathon the day before! Geez Louise! Don and Annie could make us feel like slackers…if we weren’t so darn happy to be goofing off here. Check out the feature image: our view from the front porch overlooking the cove and sailboats…. In addition, Annie taught us to roast our coffee in her primo roaster while Steven listens for the 1st and 2nd “Crack”.

In the historic district, we are 3 blocks from the town center and the U.S. Naval Academy. We are enjoying hunting out the “chicken sculpture” public art, 7 of them but no one can explain the significance of this trend in the city…

…and the public murals tucked alongside the little neighborhood pedestrian alleyways.

The Capital is right here also as are a lot of gorgeous sailboats, still bundled up for the winter. We watched 4500 midshipmen drill for 15 minutes as they amass before heading into the dining hall after morning classes. The brass and drum corps were really rockin’ and the renditions of the navy anthem, ‘Anchors Aweigh’, gave us goosebumps. The original banner, ‘Don’t give up the ship’ was ordered preserved by President George Washington in 1812 and it hangs at the USNA, tattered and torn but a popular naval battle cry today.

An hour away is the Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge. Too early for the rush migration and with snow flurries on the wind, we have it all to ourselves. Tubby’s Point is a peninsula of wild grasses surrounded on three sides with water, and terminating in a duck blind for invisible bird watching.

We saw five Whistling Swans that overwinter here, and lots of Ospreys and nests up close. The sky was dramatic, but lowering quickly and the rain finally drove us back to our rig. The little historic town of Chestertown 13 miles away, has a great bakery EarthGrain, founded by a 23 year old award winning baker. With hazelnut mochas and gorgeous brioches, scones, cookies, coffee cakes, quiches, and breads, we warm up for our drive “home” to our family in Annapolis.

We returned home to perfectly roasted potatoes thanks to Bernardo, our Brazilian family chef, and a killer (garlicky!) Caesar Salad and roasted chicken thanks to Cousin Don. After 3 bottles of red wine, we challenge ourselves with a group activity: trying to balance a tower of little carved wooden animals from Oaxaca,  Mexico. Of course, only the pregnant one, sober Elizabeth, is steady handed enough to accomplish the task.

We finally explored the North Carolina cities of Chapel Hill/Durham, spending a few days just walking and wandering as our water pump on the van failed there. This outdoor area pictured in front of the Co-op Market in Carrboro (an appealing neighborhood next to Chapel Hill) was the only place that seemed to invite the community to come and play during this very dead week of Spring Break.   We loved seeing posters advertising small local bands plastered everywhere, but none of the venues featured any live music the week we were there, and some of the restaurants had very reduced hours (with no advance notice), making us wonder if they primarily cater  to students. Yes, the Duke campus in Durham is nice, and the Gothic Cathedral on the hill is terrific. Known as the “Research Triangle”, employing smart and educated people from all over the world, this rich cultural diversity was not evident, and the towns seemed provincial and unsophisticated. So many people love this area, perhaps Chapel Hill and Durham really shine in other seasons and we just missed it.

No one told us to go to Charlotte, NC which surprised us as we found it so lively. Rich with a great Tango community, dramatic skyscraper night lighting, we were happy to find a jumping downtown evening bar/club/live music scene, with people spilling out of many downtown venues, even mid-week. Also, we found our “Cheers”, a friendly affordable neighborhood  bar/restaurant  (Eddie’s Place) showcasing the charm and generosity of Ben, of the the Sophisticated Signature Cocktail Concoction. Most of the staff has been there as long as he has (12 years) and they clearly enjoy the ambience and clientele as much as the many patrons who were greeted by name.

We appreciate cities that can sustain a cultural base through every season, offering at least 9 full-season theatre companies, national performers and touring companies, James Beard awarded young chefs, and featuring more local artists than the very boring, “Resort Art” (art marketed solely to tourists, the same art available in Carmel, CA as in Durham, NC). We love cities where the locals outnumber the tourists and are out enjoying their city at all hours. Not all medium sized cities in the South have the location and panache like New Orleans, St. Augustine FL, and Charleston SC with a waterfront, high walkability score, great food, great small theatre and live music venues, and historic architecture. These three are favorites; we know we will return as our experiences there linger on our minds and in our bellies.

Spring Break at RPI brought Jacob to Boston to meet with his mom for a family vacation. Irish eyes are smiling for St. Paddy’s Day.

Pick a designated driver and join the silliness. Belt out a song….

…Chug some green Guinness, or an Irish Coffee if there is still snow on the ground like Boston… and wear your green…or get pinched!

We wonder how much of our bias toward Charleston as a wonderful city to visit and perhaps to reside, is influenced by getting to hang out for two weeks with my delightful pal and cousin Ed, on Seabrook Island. South Carolina went from drought conditions before the month of February with only 2 inches of rain for the season, to 5 inches of rain over average season rainfall by the end of February.  Ed’s house is such a wonderful place to be pinned down with wintery weather.  Here is our view from the “tree house”, when we awaken in the morning with intense birdsong right outside the window.

We eat breakfast, read the Wall Street Journal (Saturday rocks!), drink coffee and gaze out at the marsh and creeks extending from here out to the ocean as you can see in the featured image. Lety likes to hang out with Ed as he is a writer that works at the kitchen table; she keeps a close watch on the critters in the marsh and creek, perhaps hoping to see rogue dolphins that swim up from the ocean on occasion. The marsh grass Spartina is prevalent on the Atlantic Coast from Canada to Northern Argentina. It changes color with the seasons and looks like the tall grass prairie in the Flint Hills of Kansas…and just as flat.

Flat is great though for relaxing bike rides through the shady, canopied lanes to Spinnaker Beach where the Coastal Bottlenose Dolphin reside. We saw one today, leaping out of the water and landing with a splash, part of their fishing behaviors. The Dolphins here also have another unique way to fish that is not found anywhere else in the world, strand fishing. They work as a team driving the mullet to shore with sufficient speed so that the fish hit the shallows and flip out of the water onto the sand. The dolphins roll up out of the water and onto the sand to catch and eat them. Smart critters!

Ed is the family genealogist and historian. He has compiled notebooks on our grandparents and great grandparents including their sports awards (my grandfather held the national college record for the mile) and their letters…and these folks really wrote letters. In our speedy e-mail world, perhaps we have lost some depth to our communications, trading for efficiency. It is just so wonderful to visit distant family, and leave with deep and enduring friendship established. It just requires having sufficient time and place to chat for hours about our lives, our families, our travels and our dreams, to share some dirty jokes and limericks, and add in some political discussion. We chat while preparing food together, eating at Ed’s favorite “Cheap and Cheerfuls” (ethnic, hole-in-the-wall restaurants), going to the movies, visiting his sassy girlfriend Linda, a popular Charleston actor, just chatting our way to greater closeness….always a pleasure in a new friendship, but extra sweet with a family member.

It helps that we all love to cook…and eat. The new Sunset Magazine came yesterday and we had a “Palio Meal”, that would be hunter-gatherer foods like….meat and potatoes! We cooked a Vietnamese inspired meal with roasted sweet potato, brussel sprouts and pork roast infused with lime, chile, honey, garlic, ginger, fish sauce and cilantro. Yummmm! The 2002 Dry Creek Petite Syrah was syrupy and rich with legs as long as Tina Turner’s! Tonight we will cook the asparagus and shrimp recipe from a Sunset Magazine feature on a Vietnamese Restaurant in Seattle called Monsoon.

We talk a lot about  Ed’s deceased mother Alice, and my 84 year old mom Diane, their close friendship over their entire lives, and appreciate our common ancestry, especially its’ roots in cooking and eating.

Approaching the end of our first 6 month of travel, we left Florida, appreciative of the abundant wildlife, warm springs, cuban food, and friends and family we got to see during 6 weeks of travel in this large state. We also left with colds, fatigue, and briefly, with a loss of enthusiasm for travel. We realized this as we ran through St. Augustine and Savannah without any real savoring of the museums and history, taking few photos, and failing to chat up the locals as we usually do. We weren’t savoring much of anything except the food. It was clearly time to …just…stop…moving. We rented an affordable room for a week near Hilton Head Island, in an airbnb.com house on a golf course, with a tennis court and pool across the street, and a movie theatre and restaurants within walking distance. It included 4 hours of plein air watercolor instruction by the artist/owner Gert Palmer (her work featured) and use of her studio. Our plan: no driving for a week.

 It then rained non-stop for 3 days, forcing us to stay in the cozy house, sleeping late, reading, watching movies, drinking tea, playing with Lety, taking hot baths, and….not driving. Often, the simplest things provide the greatest pleasure. Happy Valentine’s Day, all ya’ll!

“You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than dreaming”. -Dr. Seuss

This is how to plan a small city: fill it with art and culture so it entertains like a big city, preserve the past, and keep it walkable. Most importantly, assign a full block every 2-3 blocks to a park covered with large oaks providing deep shade, fountains, seating, and amateur musicians.

Surround these 21 parks with gorgeous old homes (many open for tours or used as museums), build the Telfair Museum in 3 parts for antiquities and modern art, and offer a day a month (lucky it fell on our one day in Savannah) when all museums are free.

Add to that the “Central Market” with blocks of live music and outdoor dining, and a thriving waterfront….and you have a nearly perfect small city. The fact that it is also walkable and friendly makes it…a magnet for mannerly tourists of course!

Although there is suburban and industrial sprawl at the edges, the city’s historic district is pristine. We of course had to eat at ‘The Lady and Sons’, the Paula Deen restaurant, murmuring in our thickest drawls, “C’mon, Ya’ll, It’s time to eat!”, the signature TV welcome by the ‘Queen of Southern Cooking’. It provided a well-priced, delicious hot table, offering black-eyed peas in porcine pot licker, collard greens, and the lightest, tastiest fried chicken we have ever had, truly. Lots of other sides provided that legendary southern starch. Unfortunately, my desire for shrimp n’ grits, and hot biscuits slathered with butter and jam went unquenched as no menu items were available on Sunday. Still, it was the highest quality, hot table ‘Meat n’ Three’ we have had in the South…and that is saying a lot, especially as it was only a little more expensive than less generous hot table restaurants set in small cinder block houses throughout the rural South.

…and the desserts…..I just bet this is one of the primary causes for ‘The Queen’ to become diabetic:

“Ooey-Gooey Chocolate Chip Butter Cake”, the consistency of a warm butterscotch brownie, but chewier and more buttery with strands of bittersweet chocolate punctuating the sweetness. Perhaps the Peach Cobbler and the Banana Creme Pie were unremarkable, or maybe they just suffered by comparison with this signature dessert. My mother is a great cook, watches Paula Deen’s cooking show on TV and encouraged us to visit her restaurant. So Ma..could you whip up a pan of this for us…with a side of  insulin, please?

Leaving Mount Dora, we ambled north through the Ocala Forrest, happy to finally have found a campground in Florida with room for us. Unfortunately, we found out why it was relatively empty when a scary, roaring monster sound made Lety crawl under the front seat and made us flinch, even during daylight hours. We learned from the ranger, who said it terrified her as well until she came to understand the source of the sounds:bombing and strafing practice at the nearby military training ground. We would have figured it out when the equivalent of the Blue Angels started doing maneuvers atop the canopy of the hammock (forest) overhead. I recalled the thrill of those same screaming jet sounds when I was working in a skyscraper in San Francisco, and could see the Blue Angels at eye level. That screeching sound is just a horrible intrusion when you are swimming in a warm freshwater spring, letting your mind happily wander. Between the humidity, mosquitoes (we should have had a clue when the ranger told us the vending machines there dispensed insect repellant), and the intrusive military presence, we were happy to leave after one night to try another spring. Little did we know it would be our last Florida freshwater swim.

Our last Florida warmspring, Salt Spring, was high-walled all around except the opening into a jet ski, speed boater’s paradise; it was not the “small pond in the wilderness”, conducive to lazy wanderings of the mind, so we left without a swim, for the drive to St. Augustine.

St. Augustine, the oldest European settlement in the continental USA, changed hands several times since Ponce de Leon visited, followed by 22 other Spanish missions. The Brits invaded (thus the lovely masonry Fort to repel them) and ultimately colonized it as a British Colony. The USA deeded it back to Spain after the Revolutionary War in appreciation for Spanish assistance fighting the Brits. Ultimately, we took it back, but the Spanish Colonial architecture is dominant, and very well preserved. Lots of live music and tapas were available in the bars and restaurants, where they allow smoking (Aaaargh!) so…we didn’t drink and dine there, but instead enjoyed the Freedom Trail, following the footsteps of Andrew Young who was struck down after just a few steps at this spot in a civil rights march here.

We found St. Augustine, rich in architecture and tourism, comparable to a more sober Key West, with the emphasis on weddings, romance, and retail. We preferred St. Augustine Beach for the excellent Tango class with Honey Burton, followed by a Practica. No signs were barring dogs from the beach, so we had the great pleasure of watching Lety acting like a greyhound, streaking around the beach with the other dogs, right in front of the beachside Tango class. Sweet! For sure, dogs are granted immediate entry to heaven for their generous natures.

Also part of the Freedom Trail, right in front of our Tango class was the place of, “Wade Ins” in 1964 at what had been a beach reserved for “Whites Only”. Images broadcast internationally of peaceful demonstrators being brutally attacked for walking onto the beach, was one of the events that provided the motivation to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

We said, “Adios, Florida..Hasta La Vista, Baby!” after leaving Amelia Island. It reminded us of Captiva and Sanibel Islands with fewer tourists and more high end resorts (Ritz Carlton…$3500/day). Even the federal post office, above, was inviting.We only stopped for a coffee at Fernandina Beach, and a walk, but decided it would nonetheless be a super nice place to anchor off.

We wonder more often now, which places we might like living off the hook on a sailboat. Unfortunately, hurricane season is long (May 15 to November 15) and given the heat and humidity, we wouldn’t likely be anywhere near our “home” if she was hit by a tropical cyclone/ weather bomb/hurricane during the season. So we head north to Savannah, GA with no nautical plans, just dreams.

Having driven across miles of Tropicana’s orange groves, one area in flower, scenting the air deliciously, we joined the local’s joke, “climbing Mount Dora”. Sitting 174 feet above the five lakes, it is one of the “high points” of Florida for many reasons. A one hundred year old village with well-maintained victorian homes and a host of artists, it is remarkably like Mendocino, CA, albeit with seaplanes taking off and landing on the lakefront.

Our favorite gallery: The Painter’s Daughter: Sumptuous! Fascinating! Gorgeous! Natalie Lovejoy, the owner of this gallery, should be staging for ‘Architectural Digest..With Flair’. Unique window styling pulled us in. Then we went from room to room, wanting to touch everything, and take photos of unique sculptures, home display, clothing art, all displayed with such verve; every surface was treated with a detailed eye.

No photos were allowed (that killed me….) other than her gorgeous hair (and self-portrait?) We encourage you to check out her blog coming soon, and visit her boutique: www.paintersdaughter.com. Throughout Florida, artists and merchants have told us that they make their annual income from the “High Season” residents, and then wait out the sleepy and hot, humid summers with reduced hours until the snowbirds arrive once again next winter, we hope in throngs to 331 Donnelly Street.

There was a large, well-respected, annual Art Festival here a week ago, but like many festivals we have ‘just missed’, we were happy to wander the village without the crowds. We spent a really nice day here eating and browsing, with lots of shady curbside parking, parks for Lety to run free, and time to chat with locals. Festivals make that pace impossible, and we are more often than not, happy to miss the crowds.