Highlights of our Midwest Roadtrip Vacation
June 3 – 9, 2005
Here’s what we did on our summer vacation.
Friday, June 3
Drove into Lexington, KY, for a weekend getaway alone. No computers, except for Joe’s Treo 650, which posted additional photos to this blog (see lower right of this page). Stayed two nights at Gratz Park Inn. Romantic. Nice old building, restored at some point. Lexington has enough charm and class for a stop-off, indeed, and a return visit. We recommend.
Annabelle’s for dinner: Lemon Chicken, Fried Green Tomatoes (Sheryl always remembers what she eats, from years ago…)
Natasha’s afterwards for coffee and dessert. What was Joe thinking drinking Turkish coffee at 11:00 pm?
End of Day: Look, cable in the hotel! Sci-Fi Channel! How long will this Turkish Coffee stay in Joe’s system?
Saturday, June 4
Drove through the bluegrass countryside, stopping at the Wallace Station for lunch. Try the chicken salad. 3854 Old Frankfurt Pike.
Arrived a Woodford Reserve Distillery, Versailles. More interesting than we expected! 50 percent chemistry, 50 percent love of booze. Though we both couldn’t finish our end-of-tour samples — we appreciated the process more than the product. Woodford produces a special premium brand of bourbon in much smaller batches than say, Jack Daniels, which isn’t bourbon, by the way. Photo above is of tour guide standing next to 7500-gallon vat of sour mash, which they allow you to dip your finger in to try. Not bad, but still needs to grow a few years!
For dinner, Sheryl’s Birthday Diner at A La Lucie. Holy vache, we loved that blend of French meets southern cooking. Seafood lasagna, mmmm. Too tired (languid?) to check out any area music shows, so spent last stop at old-style Kentucky Theater for “Cinderella Man.”
Sunday, June 5
Filled up tank at 2:05 pm. On way to St. Louis to visit Joe’s brother Jon. Met his new, charming girlfriend at Taste of Clayton. Enjoyed beers and largest collection of self-serving paraphernalia at Blueberry Hill. Observed drunken guitar player at final stop-off for night.
Monday, June 6
Crap! Museums in St. Louis are closed on Monday. Oh well. Visited Star Clipper Comics and thoroughly toured around Clayton some more, window shopping and trading jokes with Jon. Stopped to see “Madagascar” for gits and shiggles, but should have seen “Layer Cake” instead, had we been able to wait another hour for showtime.
Dinner at Eleven Eleven Mississippi: Seafood Risotto, RARE Ahi Tuna on Red Potatoes and Hearts of Romaine. Fell asleep watching Jon’s copy of new classic indie film “An American Astronaut” on DVD.
Tuesday, June 7
Llywelyn’s Pub for lunch before saying goodbye. Jon’s girl leaves for Thailand later in week. We hope he goes to visit her, get away from work for a spell.
Arrive at Aunt Sue and Grandma Evelyn’s place (Sheryl’s stepgrandmother). A ball of energy and charm is she. Sue has us all pitching in on shishkabob for dinner, takes us on a tour of Decatur (including seeing where Sheryl’s parents, and other relations, used to live), then finishes us off with a caramel chocolate cake for Sheryl’s birthday. “How long have you been married?”
Wednesday, June 8
Filled up tank at 12:39. Met up with Richard and Laura in Chicago. We are thankful that their air conditioner is powered by a jet engine. We definitely overpacked, this trip. Met up with Elaine and daughter Emma at the Green at Grant Park for dinner outside. Rain holds up and we make a stop at Rotofugi, a “designer toy store and gallery,” and Atomic Cafe. See photos lower right. Evening ends with accompanying Richard walking Ernie, the most earnest dog in the world, then watching SCTV reruns on DVD.
Thursday, June 9
We recommend LT’s Grill for brunch. Drive home is quiet. Our afternoon at the Dairy Queen, we later find out, results in not enough money for the final toll on the turnpike. We are issued our first ever Turnpike I.O.U., which is paid promptly when we arrive home!
Arrive home at 7:30 pm, EST. Not enough energy to drive to Pittsburgh to see the Pixies for our last stop. Drat! Kitties are glad to see us, but Dusty has urinated everywhere. Welcome home!
