Category Archives: Uncategorized

September 15, 2020 · 11:20 pm

Hildebrant farm market, Bismarck capitol, Sue the cow – driving across North Dakota

We loaded up on bagel & lox and cold brisket sandwiches from BernBaums and excellent Minnesota Apples (sweet tango and zestor) from hildebrant farm market in Fargo before setting off on our drive west for 4.5 hours to Medora. Made for some fine dining along Interstate 94. Not too much to see en route except for nice rural scenery— vast fields of sunflowers, wheat, soybeans and corn and the occasional farm dwelling. We stopped in Bismarck to see the North Dakota State Capitol which was remarkably unlovely — looks like a tall grey institutional apartment building.

West Fargo

En route we passed an enormous cow named Sue on a hilltop and could have seen an enormous bull if we pulled into another town. A handy brochure from the Fargo visitors Centor to.d us what to look for. I really wanted a free “Save the Best for Last” t-shirt, the clever State tourism campaign but this isn’t our last of 50 states to visit (I now have 3 remaining – Alaska, North Carolina, and Kentucky.)

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September 13, 2020 · 10:53 pm

BernBaum’s, Red River trail, Zandbroz, in Fargo, Hjemkomst center’s Stave Church & Viking ship in Moorhead

Beautiful day in Fargo, a little cool for biking but bright clear sky and off we went toward the river, passing pretty old Island Park (which did not appear to be an island) and then reaching the Red River trail, which we took south past, hugging the narrow river most of the time, gliding through green parks with willow trees, a few nice homes, cool old bridges. We rode down to I-94 and Lindenwood Park, (near Roger Maris drive, which the baseball fan among us appreciated. Maris, a Yankees outfielder, grew up in Fargo.) I think we could have gone further south on the Moorhead side. We are spoiled by excellent trail info in Polk County.

Lunch was at BernBaum’s the fantastic local Nordic-Jewish deli (a pleasant surprise) which has a great menu with old favorites (very good chewy bagel with not too salty lox) and updates on old classics (a cold brisket sandwich to die for, on toasted rye with pickled this n’ that), plus the best little homemade rugelach. I will be back to stock up before we drive west tomorrow. The deli also had local cheeses and salume. Wish we had such a place in Des Moines. Reminded me of Russ & Daughters in NYC. We passed an Orthodox Jewish man walking on the bike trail so I gather there’s a customer base here. (One of the few people I know from Fargo is Jewish.)

We picnicked by the river downtown where there are gentle rapids — perfect minus the bees, one of whigh dive-bombed into our can of locally-made hard cider (Terra cider). We rode more, this time north on trails on the Fargo and Moorhead side. The river bends so often that I forgot which side we were on at times. Very pretty and easy ride.

Downtown Fargo was very quiet on a Sunday (and a Saturday night). We peeked into the fantastic Hotel Donaldson, which looks like a remarkable place…my favorite combination of old restored architecture and contemporary art. The restaurant and bar looked very cool. Closed temporarily, I think, due to a Covid issue. Next trip. We also popped into Zandbroz, a huge store full of lovely things: part independent book store, vintage store, paperie and giftshop.

We also visited the Hjemkomst center in Moorhead, touring a Stave church much like the ones we saw in Norway and a remarkable massive wood Viking ship that was built by a local teacher. After his death, four of his kids and a handful of others sailed the ship all the way to Bergen where the king of Norway greeted them. Wow! We also enjoyed an exhibit of contemporary quilts from artists all over the world.

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August 19, 2020 · 4:16 am

this story…so true

Shhh! We’re Heading Off on Vacation
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/14/travel/virus-secret-vacations.html?referringSource=articleShare

Sent from my iPad

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April 18, 2020 · 11:00 pm

Social-isolating at Pammel State Park – Madison County, Iowa

It was easy to keep our distance from other people at Pammel State Park, a pretty 40-minute drive southwest of Des Moines in Madison County (as in “Bridges of…”), because there weren’t many people there. Which is why we picked it as our destination – the first after a month of staying very close to home during the pandemic lock down. Nice to have a change of scenery. The park is small, a wooden expanse with a cool 1920’s CCC wood and stone lodge and modest hiking trails. The coolest part was fording the Middle River in our SUV, paralleling a small dam. Driving through the gentle rush of water was the only way to get across. Not the best-marked park but friends advised us to cross the river to the quietest hiking trails near the lodge. It almost felt like a normal spring day except the public bathrooms were closed, as were the shops along the lovely square by the old stone courthouse in Winterset, the county seat.

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March 7, 2020 · 9:04 pm

Jon and vinnys (on fairfax), rodeo drive, larchmont village – Los Angeles

My brother has a knack for finding hidden gem restaurants in urban neighborhoods and I am pleased to see that this continues from his New York days into this latest Los Angeles chapter, which is how I ended up eating at a small hole-in-the-wall called Jon & Vinny’s in what we think is West Hollywood. I had to wait 45 minutes but it was worth it. I ended up sitting at a small counter facing the very busy chefs and the wood fired oven where all pizzas and other hearty fare were moved around.

I ended up getting a salad with a slightly spicy Calabrian dressing and toasted bread crumbs on each leaf…delicious and some perfectly grilled bread that had more flavor than I expected. I would love to return with companions so we could share a pasta, pizza, meatball or dessert. Next trip.

I also walked down Rodeo Drive, for the heck of it, since I hadn’t been to Beverly Hills in decades and then to the original farmers market (near Jon & Vinnys) and then to Larchmont Village for a quick walk around and some ice cream at salt & straw. Today we are lying low but made a quick visit to the farmers market in Burbank. It never gets old seeing fresh oranges, grapefruits, kale, avocados and artichokes this time of year. Also took my darling niece Lucy to the local Donut Prince – her choice – and was surprised to see Californians dining on donuts at 4 p.m. on a Sunday.

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March 6, 2020 · 3:05 pm

Out the door/Ferry building, ferry to Oakland, jack London Square , Teracotta warrior chinese – San Francisco

More glorious weather (which is not helping drought conditions…). Susan and I rode the MUNI (N Judah line) to Embarcadero and wandered around the food stalls at the Ferry Building. Ate the best Vietnamese food I’ve had since visiting Vietnam last fall at the take out counter for the famous Slanted Door restaurant. (Out the Door) where we got excellent noodles with big pieces of chewy bbqed pork and moist rice with goodies (egg, sausage, veg) inside wrapped in a banana leaf. We ate on a rustic bench overlooking the ferry docks.

We rode the ferry across the bay and under the Bay Bridge to Jack London Square in Oakland. Fantastic views of San Fran from the water. We wandered a bit around downtown Oakland…good used bookstore run by the public library, a few interesting shops and then ferried back. Dinner was at Terracotta Warrior, a few blocks from Susan and Eric in the sunset. Northern Chinese food with strange items (for Chinese food) including lamb, tomatoes and what seemed like spaetzle (small dumplings) in the soup but may have been pita. Ended the night in the hot tub. Perfect!

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March 5, 2020 · 6:13 pm

Java Beach Cafe, Mary’s consignment 24th Noe Valley, biked along Great Pacific highway past Lake Merced, a Mano/hays valley , Cable Car – San Francisco

Susan and I rode bikes along the ocean where the highway was conveniently closed due to drifting sand. Near Lake Merced we ended up stopping for lunch at laid back Java Beach Cafe, where it was a perfect day to eat outside.

Dinner was excellent at A Mano, a northern Italian place in Hays Valley. Excellent pasta (bucatini ametriana, with pancetta and cheese; puttanesca with shrimp) and chocolate mousse/pudding. I returned to hays valley today, wandered around on another spectacular to the mission, stopping for lunch at Tartine, then to the water which I realized I was craving. I wanted someplace distinctly San Fran. So I ended up on the cablecar from Fisherman’s Wharf, past Union Square and other places I haven’t been in years. Kind of pricey ($8 one way) but Great views and atmospherics.

In the eve, I went with Susan to her pottery class in a pretty old building in Golden Gate Park.

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March 2, 2020 · 6:00 am

San Tung/Chinese food, Harvey Milk terminal, marijuana dispensary, Lands End, Kishu mandarin oranges/farmers market— San Francisco

Always great to be back in San Francisco, which I have loved since my mother took me here for my 16th birthday (awhile ago). Newer reason to love it — my friend Susan has been here for decades. Her neighborhood, the Sunset, was hopping last night as we walked past Asian shops to a great neighborhood Chinese restaurant San Tung packed with big families and smaller clusters of young people lucky enough to live in this gorgeous city.

I grew up with Chinese food but rarely find it now, especially good Chinese food. My kids’ version of Chinese food is Thai or Vietnamese. This was very good Chinese good – crispy fried chicken wings (who knew?), fresh mu shu pork (which I haven’t had in years) and perfectly stir fried green beans) The place is also known for it fresh noodles, (next time)

I am sorry I can’t post photos (technical difficulties) especially of all the lush green vegetation and colorful flowers – purple, orange, red – here and there. Welcome change from brown muddy Iowa.

We stopped in at the neighborhood marijuana dispensary— the smell of pot lingers on the sidewalks , here and there. It’s very clinical looking, more like a sleek pharmacy then a head shop. Samples in antiseptic jars on shiny white counters and iPads with interactive displays that showcase products with cold soulless names. This is not your grandma’s Mary Jane, weed, pot. Kind of sucks the hippie character out of the act of getting high. Guess that’s the point. Make it professional, medicinal, acceptable.

I also was blown away by the new Harvey Milk Terminal that I stepped into after deplaning. Awe-inspiring, bright, airy, sleek, white, trendy furniture, bold art work and wall installation with what looks like wood bits of old barn, a poignant display of photos and texts about Harvey Milk, whose 1978 assignation I remember hearing on the news in college.

Sunday we went to a farmers market full of gorgeous fruit and veg and flowers. Discovery: tiny kishu mandarin oranges smaller than a satsuma and even sweeter.

We hiked along the coast on a spectacular afternoon with lush vegetation and the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance, thru the fancy sea cliff neighborhood, stopping to tour a $12 million house for sale (it was an open house so we walked right in…) we walked past baker beach and into the presidio and Richmond areas. A six mile walk, as it turns out.

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February 25, 2020 · 8:33 pm

Pho 515 – Des Moines

I worry that eating in Vietnam may forever have spoiled me and that no Vietnamese restaurant in the U.S. will have anything near the great food we had. So far, that’s been true. I’ve visited two Vietnamese restaurants in Des Moines and both fell far short of Vietnam. But maybe that’s too high a standard.

Pho 515 is in a corner of a huge Asian supermarket on Des Moines’ near north side and I’ve meant to go there for ages. Finally made it and at lunch the place was packed, mostly with Asian diners. My crispy pork with turned out to be large moist chunks of pork with an almost burnt orange crispy rind that was very crunchy. The dish itself was bland but the quality was good. A friend had a pho with supposed crab cakes but we never figured out if/what they were. It did have some tasty tofu. I’ll definitely give the place another try — there was a great selection of banh mi sandwiches. (Pho 515, bills itself as the “ONLY Artisan Style Banh Mi bakery in Iowa.”) I also want to do some wandering around the supermarket which looked full of interesting things!

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January 23, 2020 · 2:15 pm

Blanco, Luckinbach, Fredericksburg, Johnson City — Texas Hill Country

Finally got back here about 10 years after my first visit on a tour bus, visiting farms (a peach farm, lavender farm, winery) with some Iowa farmers. This time I had a rental car so I could zip off to fairly out of the way places on roads with names like Farm to Market, although not as many places as I wanted to hit. Need more than one day for that. Next trip I’d like to go to: Gruene, Comfort, Welfare, llano.

Blanco was almost my favorite because it seemed like a normal place almost, with more ranchers than tourists. I did stop at the gift shop next to the Rosebud Cafe where I found good local pottery to buy as gifts and expensive Mexican embroidery. The town square reminded me of Winterset, Iowa, with its limestone courthouse, but the Texas courthouse is smaller… It too has been a movie set (True Grit) as has the Winterset courthouse (Bridges of Madison County).

I kept making wrong turns to get to “downtown” Luckinbach but finally realized it was on “the Luckinbach Loop” and looked like a western movie set with a big parking lot and an old (authentic) post office. Inside the post office is a rustic gift shop and cozy bar in the back where two old guys with a hearty sense of humor were playing a mean guitar and banjo. Very versatile, they played “hillbilly disco” and even some bluegrass-ish Motown. They happily entertained a handful of people who had wandered in and sat on wooden benches in the little bar. The dance hall and beer garden, adjacent, looked like they’d be great fun for hearing live music. Love that there’s music all over Austin and environs (Austin bills itself as the live music capital…I guess Nashville and Memphis have other billing.) Also was live music at the airport now where we are sitting on mock bleachers in a mock food truck courtyard listening to a four piece band ( not the real Asleep at the Wheel, as the sign above them says.) (p.s. our flight ended up being cancelled just as we were boarding: mechanical issue. Now we have to stay overnight in Dallas. And leave for Dsm early. Hoping we get there tonight.)

Fredericksburg was too touristed and German for me, but there were lots of shops and German restaurants in old stone buildings along the long flat main drag. I ate a brat loaded with sauerkraut at the old German Bakery. I prefer the more grilled brats in Madison, Wisconsin.

I made a quick drive though the LBJ ranch in Stonewall and visited his reconstructed birthplace. His gravestone is across the road. The place is vast — 2000 acres. Unfortunately the Texas White House, LBJ’s House, is closed due to structural issues. That would have been cool. I really liked visiting Truman’s Winter White House in Key West.

I also drove past Johnson’s boyhood home in Johnson City, so named for generations of his ancestors that lived and ranched there.

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