APtravelnews-January 25th, Frederick, MD.-“Bob and Barb on the Road Again-When we left our S. Florida home on the way to Frederick, MD to visit our sons new Market Street Fusion Restaurant, we again calculated that the half-way point for some rest, relaxation before heading another 500-miles was our favorite stopover; Florence, S. Carolina-this was not our first stopover there. Florence has one of the very best tourism representative in the Florence Convention and Visitors Bureau in the person of Holly Beaumier. She told us that the very new Home 2 Suites by Hilton would be a great place for us to visit as they are very pet friendly, and Terry our “Critter” who loves and is loved by everyone he meets along with us, would be comfortable there. And we were! Dinner was a wonderful experience as well! We ate at Victors in downtown Florence, an area totally being revitalized into all manner of shops and restaurant locations. Victors was in Hotel Florence and the fare was quite excellent-this was no off the highway fast food joint! Barb and I along with Holly and her associate enjoyed fish and various seafood and meat dishes. We topped our dinner off with wonderful desserts with a few excellent quite home-made cheesecake offerings-very memorable all the way around!
“Modern and pretty” was our reaction when first entering our dog friendly hotel. Our suite was “sweet” and very comfortable bed too!Breakfast had egg sandwiches and whole grain delicious waffles. The coffee tasted like “coffee!”
Appetizing foreplay! Victors scallops wrapped in bacon on “grits from the Gods” was spectacular!The filet on a rice pillow surrounded by tasty grilled shrimp and scallops “gave me a “buzz.” It was “Oh, so good!” Barb and our table mates also fared very nicely with fish, chicken and a N.Y.strip steak.
www.visitflo.com
A Victors cheesecake to remember!Over dessert. Barb and the fine ladies from Florence relaxed with some of the best desserts in the South!
Note***Look for upcoming articles on Florence, showcasing “dog-friendly kayaking, a museum for all ages, the Florence Hotel story, equestrian events and a whole lot more!!!!!
APtravelnews-Bob & Barb “On The Road Again in Punta Gorda-December 27th,–Our visit to Punta Gorda visit included an excellent annual holiday musical extravaganza. The Charlotte Choralepresented a concert at the new Charlotte Performing Arts Center, built since the area was slammed by hurricanes almost 10 years ago. The theme was “Images of the Season.”The facility was acoustically as perfect as modern technology can muster. On some Christmas songs, the entire sold-out audience was asked to join in and sing along. The festiveness of the event was very catching! For information go: www.thecpac.net
When the afternoon concert was over we walked to dinner at The Perfect Caperwww.theperfectcaper.com we dined at the award- winning restaurant that featured a menu with Asian-Fusion accented French and American flavors. The culinary artist is a four-time James Beard Foundation Best Chef in the South nominee. Chef Jeanie Roland , who with her husband James Roland have a second restaurant in Westerly, Rhode Island called Ella’s Fine Food & Drink. The seafood, steaks and chops were outstanding along with the service as well. Our entire trip to Punta Gorda was marked by excellent dining, terrific holiday tableaus and outdoor adventures that included deep sea fishing and terrestrial wildlife watching as well!
Fishermen’s Village has the best candy and chocolate shop, ever! The Village was all dressed up in their holiday lights and “festive” is the word! We loved it!
APtravelnews-Dec. 19th,-Bob and Barb writing from Fishermen’s Village, Punta Gorda, FL.–Its really hard to say anything else then; Barb and I really loved this place. So many animated and excited folks-from children to old timers really having a ball, looking at the lighting, meeting Santa, tasting chocolates, buying gifts, visiting a real Military Museum with hero Veterans talking about past wars and their recollections and through it all; friendly shop-keepers and visitors! We ate seafoods, destroyed sumptious desserts, a few cocktails and after dinner libations as well. We stopped to listen to chorals of the season, popped into the Village Fish Market (www.village-fish-market.com) for the aforementioned seafoods such as the ubiquitous shrimp done many ways, crab cakes, scallops, fish dishes, delicious’ too! Our dinner was hosted by owner Sue Randall.
We ended off the evening with a Christmas Canal Cruise through Punta Gorda’s canals with the Kingfisher Fleets excursion boat loaded with all kinds of appetizers-we sure do travel on our stomachs too! www.kingfisherfleet.com Stay tuned! Much more coming of our trip to Punta Gorda! Go for some great info: www.CharlotteHarborTravel.com
Scallops and very tasty side dishes we all love! Fabulous meals all around!The Military Museum had wonderful Veterans who we stand with anytime of the year, described the realities of their times in past war theaters!The way it used to be. Local Indians coming in to trade in the “Islands” depicted in this giant mural at Fishermen’s Village! The old mingled nicely with the new!The whole town and dozens of waterfront homes seen on a Kingfisher Charter, all decked out in Christmas Lights WOW’d everyone in the Holiday frame of mind!Tasting goodies at the Simply Sweet, A Confectionary Cafe’. Homemade fudge, flavored popcorn, a great sweet note that we experienced and will not forget! https.//facebook.com/simplysweetaconfectionarycafe
THEY BOTH FLY. ONE GLIDES AND ONE HELICOPTERS! EACH AMAZING IN THEIR OWN RIGHT!
APtravelnews-Book Reviews—November 20th, Port St Lucie, FL.—From Correspondent Bob Epstein, Book Reviews—When I received the following two books from the Princeton University Press, Princeton and Oxford, I knew just from the cover on in, they would make fine educational and enjoyable reads!
“The Amazing World of Flyingfish” by Steve N.G. Howell was an edifying and exciting read. Having an extensive knowledge of offshore fishing myself, and always amazed when a school of flyingfish took off spooked by my moving boat, or by predators such as billfish, dolphin fish and raiding tuna, this fine, 45-page book describes in photography and true researched words of knowledge, by someone even more detailed and excited by these marvels of nature, only enhanced my enthusiasm more when before reading this book, the little bit I did know, blended with my new education of just how incredible these small fish are. In all the oceans, seas and waterways of the world, only Exocoetus volitans named by Carolus Linnaeus in 1758, truly fly, well actually glide, and truly zoom over the waves and ocean swells to escape from being eaten.
Early Mediterranean sailors actually thought that “Exocoetus” meaning; “sleeping outside” in Greek, from the belief that these flyingfish left the oceans to sleep on shore at night. The amazing facts about these fish are embodied in this “little big book of knowledge” about them, and the fascination they have been for airplane designers, to cooks in Barbados that serve them up as the specialty of the Island Nation. There are 90 images, all interesting in their depictions of this, and a few other images of amazing sea creatures.
PAGES OF INFORMATION AND 90 GREAT IMAGES!
The book sells for $12.95 Check it out @: press.princeton.edu or Google the name: “The Amazing World of Flyingfish.
TO BE OR NOT TO BE! THEY ARE IN TROUBLE, RESPECT THE WORLDS BEE’S!
The second book is about The Bee; A Natural History by Noah Wilson-Rich. “To be or not to be, that is the question” and when Shakespeare penned that question in centuries past, I know he did not have the honey bee in mind, but today because of the terrific threat to the Bee’s existence all over the world, this eminently important insect, that gives you the very fruits of the vine and tree, (BIBLICAL: “THE LAND OF MILK & HONEY”), the flowers of the field and forest and so much more is in great danger of disappearing altogether.
“Earth is home to 20,000 bee species, ranging from flourescent-colored orchid bees and sweat bees, to flower-nesting squash bees and leaf-cutter bees. This book is the most accessible source of information about bee species, written for non-scientists by some of the world’s leading bee experts and researchers. Beautiful art- work compliments and clarifies the text, which is kept brief enough to cover as much information as possible, while keeping general readers engaged. If you eat food (ha) you need to know about bees. This little critter pollinates fruit, veggies and seed crops that we humans need and rely on to survive. Bees are dying at an alarming rate. Understanding the complex interactions between bees and agriculture, environment, and humans influences how we address food supply questions, agricultural economics, and development in the U.S. and elsewhere in the world!” Just remember too, no bees, no flowers! The book has 224 pages, in hardcover it is 8 x 9, and costs $27.95. Check out Google with The Bee A Natural History by Noah Wilson-Rich, with contributions from Kelly Allin, Norman Carreck & Andrea Quigley.
