Memories of Messina Hof
Penned on Monday the 28th of December, 2009 from Bryan, Texas | Comments Off
Christina relived some college memories today by taking Damien to Messina Hof – a winery she and her friends visited regularly during their time at Aggieland.
We enjoyed tasting a number of different wines, chatting with the owners (one of them grew up just down the street from our place in New Jersey!) and lunch in the wine bar.
What a relaxing and tasty day to spend a day!
White Christmas!
Penned on Friday the 25th of December, 2009 from Fort Worth, Texas | Comments Off
Living in New Jersey we’re used to seeing snow now, but we really didn’t expect this!
Texas is experiencing their first white Christmas in decades and we’re here to see it.
Detours
Penned on Thursday the 24th of December, 2009 from Fort Worth, Texas | Comments Off
This afternoon we flew to Fort Worth for Christmas. It took longer than usual to get here because of unusually heavy snow.
The snow at the airport was heavy enough to close all but one of the runways, restricting the facility to just 35 landings per hour. We didn’t have enough fuel to circle until our turn came so a quick trip to Austin was in order. After refueling we were able to rejoin the queue, and eventually reached our destination a couple of hours late.
Long Beautiful Hair
Penned on Saturday the 5th of December, 2009 from New York, New York | Comments Off
This afternoon we went into Broadway to watch the musical, Hair, with some of Christina’s work friends.
To say it was interesting would be an understatement! We were enthralled at some parts and shocked at others, but we won’t discuss it here in case somebody else wants to see it.
The ending was very appropriate because it started snowing outside at the same time it started inside!
After the performance we all went to dinner at a Spanish restaurant, where Christina was surprised by birthday gifts from her friends. It was a great night!
Cold!
Penned on Wednesday the 25th of November, 2009 from Fort Worth, Texas | 1 response
Last night we flew down to Fort Worth for the Thanksgiving weekend.
This morning there was ice on the car windscreen. Why is it colder here than it is at home?
A pair of coconuts
Penned on Friday the 20th of November, 2009 from Lucaya, Grand Bahama Island | Comments Off
After breakfast this morning, we said farewell to all of our new friends, found our hotel and took the first real showers in over a week.
Then it was time to relax and explore the village of Port Lucaya.
After spending the entire week on a boat, we weren’t used to walking more than 50 feet at once so we stopped for a rest and a well-earned drink!
Damien decided to try a coconut daquiri, while Christina enjoyed a Bahama Mama. Being in the Caribbean means that both obviously included rum, and were served in coconuts!
Land lubbers again
Penned on Friday the 20th of November, 2009 from Lucaya, Grand Bahama Island | Comments Off
We arrived back on dry land again this morning…so we’re safe and didn’t get eaten by the sharks or any other marine animals. We’re enjoying a night in Port Lucaya now.
SS Sapona
Penned on Wednesday the 18th of November, 2009 from Bimini Islands | Comments Off
One of the dives we did today was on the wreck of the SS Sapona, which ran aground near the Bimini Islands during a hurricane in 1926.
What made this ship interesting is that it was made of concrete because steel was in such short supply during World War I.
Apparently an entire fleet of concrete ships was made, but it was soon discovered that it was impossible to make them watertight when damage was repaired. They discovered that before this one ran aground, so it was left there to be used as target practice during World War II, and later enjoyed by people like us.
We were able to swim through a large hole in the port side and explore the wide open hull with the hundreds of fish that have made the Sapona their home over the years.
Gone Diving
Penned on Friday the 13th of November, 2009 from Fort Lauderdale, Florida | 3 responses
We’re currently sitting in the terminal at the Fort Lauderdale airport waiting for our flight to the Bahamas. We’ll be out of contact for the next week while we spend as much time under the water as we can!
Joining the Colbert Nation
Penned on Thursday the 5th of November, 2009 from New York, New York | Comments Off
Tonight we were part of the audience for the taping of The Colbert Report (pronounced Colber Repor), a satirical news show that airs on the Comedy Channel.
Along with our friend Bruce, we arrived a couple of hours early to secure our place in the line. Eventually, we were given numbers and sent through security to wait for some more time while they finished rehearsal.
Once we got into the studio, everything went smoothly. Damien traded barbs with the warm-up comedian a couple of times after he asked if there were people there from other countries. Then Stephen Colbert joined us out-of-character to answer a few questions from the audience to “humanise himself in our eyes”. The actual taping of the episode mostly happened in just one take – there were a couple of points that had to be repeated because Colbert couldn’t keep a straight face during the delivery. The whole thing probably took about an hour to record.
Once we got home to watch it, we were surprised and excited to see ourselves featured prominently in the opening shot of the audience. You can view the full episode here.