Christmas, 2022: Edible Parts

The edible Christmas traditions now include: baking and decoration, the eggnog tasting, the cheese fondue, Christmas brunch, the meat/seafood fondue, the cheese and charcuterie board, a grand salad, and finally the chocolate fondue. Then several days' leftovers....

Cookie decoration underway

Some cookies were injured in the process

Eggnog tasting...southern eggnog... 

Interestingly, the consensus winners were the store-boughts, not
the specialty gourmet types

Cheese fondue

Xmas brunch (note fine china, same as used by
QEII)

Star Baker swirl on Vicki's poteca

Meat and seafood fondue

Rachel and Rebecca assembling the cheese and
charcuterie

Design by Rachel

Google Earth view

Grand salad (on Boxing Day)

And finally, the chocolate fondue

Christmas, 2022: Inedible Parts

As students of this blog know, our Christmas celebrations feature a variety of family traditions. As they have evolved, most of these traditions concern food and meals. So many, in fact, that I have divided this year's coverage into the edible and inedible parts. In any case, this year's Xmas edition took place at Rebecca and Jeremy's new place, in Cary, NC, joined by our other daughter, Rachel, from DC, and Vicki and me, passing through. And, of course, grand-daughter Penelope, ever the star of the show.

Exploring the lights on main street in Cary

Interestingly, I thought, the merchants of Cary line
the main street with trees decorated to exhibit their
wares...quite well done, and, amazingly, intact
night after night 

Christmas morning, with the star of the show,
ready to go

Stockings, stuffed and ready to be handed out

Excited and grateful with every present

Jeremy and Rebecca

Moi, and Rachel

Bookwomen, Penelope and Vicki; actually, all
the women in our family are bookwomen

On Tybee Island

Former in-laws Joey and Jodi reside in Indianapolis but have taken to wintering on Tybee Island, on the ocean a few miles from Savannah. They had invited us to visit and so we took them up, enjoying good company, food and drink, as well as probably stretching the limits of their patience, trying to learn their favorite game, mah jongg. Makes chess look straightforward. Tybee is a very laid-back, fun place, especially when the hordes of tourists are gone, and we were able to see some of that ambience as well.

At the annual parade of decorated Christmas golf-carts

Dozens of them

And then the bicycles

Seven flags over Tybee...wait, aren't there supposed to be eight?

Us at a Tybee sunset

Part of the shrimp fleet with seasonal decor

With our hosts...thanks Jodi and Joey

Return To Savannah

We were in Savannah last spring, exploring a bit, and very much liked what we saw, as posted here, and here. Having sold our North American camper last summer we are thinking ever more about settling down a bit, finding a home base, though still traveling. Savannah has risen to the top of our list--Old World feel, walkability, demographics, climate, etc.--and we wanted to look a bit deeper, despite its being many months before we envisage actually moving. Anyhow, we spent nearly a week in Savannah, researching, looking around, looking especially at a variety of apartments in the city's historic center. Despite being on assignment, we did take some time for fun, with the resulting pix to document our visit. Think of them as out-takes.

Among the historic, literary, artistic sites and signage

I have an inordinate interest--inordinate considering being prone
to seasickness and suffering from Mal de Debarquement Syndrome--in
seafaring, ships, and such, and the Savannah River and port, one of
the largest on the east coast, could provide many opportunities for ship-
spotting

Bridge tucked in between the hundreds (thousands?) of containers

Big ship

So there we were, walking down River Street,
and noticing this very odd scene in the middle of
the most touristy area

Also some 30s cars and trucks (down the street)

Huh?

Of course we had wondered into a movie set--a feature called
Origin, partially set in Germany...

Tell-tale sign...we were impressed

Art Deco and Deco Echo found all over the historic district

Also a good sense of humor

Art Deco church

Dinner one night at Leopold's

Many interesting Indie shoppes

Interesting first-floor interior of the Savannah College of Art and
Design bookstore

Decor in a restaurant we liked

Ever more Deco

Featuring air-conditioned waitresses

More humor

All this among a variety of apartment visits

Interim Update #1,272

So it's two months later and, as scheduled, we are in New Zealand, on the Pacific coast of the North Island (well, actually, the Firth of Thames), camped at Tapapakanga Regional Park, perhaps an hour's drive east of Auckland. We got to New Zealand Friday morning, the 30th of December (after a 15 hour flight from Dallas and probably 25 hours total in transit), picked up our Jucy Chaser camper, and spent the next few days getting organized and outfitted while camping at the Pine Harbour Marina, near Beachlands. 

There is much to recount from the past two months, but only a few blog posts, since not much of our time was spent really traveling. After our week with college friends Tawana and Wes in Arkansas, we flew to Knoxville for a week with Vicki's sister and her husband Norm. After that, we were three weeks in DC, visiting daughter Rachel, then house- and pet-sitting for her while she did a trip to London. After DC, we rented a car and drove to Cary, NC, where other daughter Rebecca and her family have re-located, and spent a week or so there, visiting, and working at our newer storage unit nearby.

Travel, of a sort, resumed when we drove to Savannah for a week's reconnaissance. We had spent some time there in the preceding spring, thinking about a place to finally settle, and wanted to give it another look. Former in-laws Joey and Jodi were wintering on nearby Tybee Island, so we spent a few days with them, eating and drinking well, and learning some mah jongg, before returning to Cary for the holidays. We departed for New Zealand on December 28. The story picks up in the next few posts...

Our next New Zealand camper, a Jucy Chaser, which I have
tentatively dubbed Le Truc Vert; self-contained, if not spacious, 
wet bath, galley, miniscule fridge...which Vicki booked nearly
a year ago for the hyper-screaming deal of $26/day, a price 
probably not to be seen until the next pandemic/recession

Intermission...

 

Interim Update #1,271

On October 28th Austrian Airlines and Lufthansa and United flew us to Frankfurt, then Chicago, then Fayetteville, Arkansas, for a week visiting life-long friends Tawana and Wes. We're back in the States! Relaxing and catching up with some of our best family and friends. From here, we'll return to Knoxville, then to DC, and eventually to Cary, NC, for Christmas. And then to Auckland for three months in New Zealand with its warmth and hospitality. 

Awaiting the train to Flughafen Wien

Breakfast of champions at the Vienna airport lounge

With Wes and Tawana in Fayetteville

Sam Walton's pick-up at the northwest Arkansas airport; next time,
Tawana, let's do the Walmart Museum for sure