The truth about Artificial Intelligence (AI) writers, they are not real, at least not in the sense of living, breathing sentient beings. AI writers are like the psychopaths of the AI realm and humans created them. The articles written by AI try to emote what their algorithms “think” they want the human to hear. They are really good at matching what they “see and hear” around them but, the true emotional feel of an article is missing. The words are there…and they all sound “right” but in my opinion they miss the soul of the person who should have authored them. AI hasn’t ever been to a real place and felt the sun on its face, the cool wind, wrapped with the moisture of the crashing waves softly caressing its skin. AI will never really know the human sensation of these moments. It’s more than the feeling of your skin and how your brain interprets those feelings, but the deep emotional, guttural feel and textural memories wrapped in to that moment. AI can not truly know, in a moment, how a person feels and then expresses those feelings. AI can, however, make a really good deductive guess based upon programming and inputs.
Wyllie Beach, Kauai Island 2023 by Analiese Kennedy
When I was in my high school creative writing class, I remember really struggling with my second to last writing assignment. I could never score above a “B” and most of my scores were in the “C” range, which was incredibly frustrating. Everyone who read my work always proclaimed “wow! This is so amazing!”. Maybe they were just being nice? For this second to last assignment, I really wanted an “A”, so I did a lot of reading and found a piece that I basically plagiarized. I thought to myself, that there is no way my instructor would know this author and at the time we didn’t have the internet for them to check. So, I took the piece and word smithed it a bit to make it “my own” and turned it in. This should have been an easy “A”. My instructor returned it to me with an “F”. She knew I didn’t write it. She knew it wasn’t mine.
I was super pissed and went to her, I was sure she had it out for me. I asked her how and why did she give me an “F”? She said because she knew it wasn’t my writing…my words. I said, how on earth could she possibly know. And she said because after almost an entire semester of reading my writing and hearing me speak, she knew that could not be my work. I asked her why I couldn’t earn an “A” in her class, everyone else thought my work was so fabulous. And she said,
“I didn’t give you B’s and C’s because your work was bad. In fact, the opposite, you are a fantastic writer, but the work you turn in could be so much better if you really worked to your full potential. For anyone else, your pieces would easily be A’s, because that is the best that THEY could do. I know you have so much more in you. What you turned in was a B or a C, for YOU. So, work harder, find the words you want to use, give me your emotion, let me feel your soul for just a moment as I read your work and that will earn you your “A”.”
I was dumb struck by her honesty and with one more assignment to turn in for our final grade, I knew I what I had to do.
If you are a writer reading this and contemplating using AI, I recommend you use it as a tool but don’t let it replace your voice, your true emotion. I don’t care if it’s about food, traveling, your kids, house decorating, or whatever crazy shit you want to write about. Keep it human and let me feel your soul.
Anini Beach, Kauai Island 2023 by Analiese Kennedy
It’s 6 September 2022, the day before our planned summit of Mt. Katahdin, and finish of our 2022 through hike. 2200+ miles of hiking and learning.
We are HERE!! I am currently waiting for Jake to arrive/hike in to the Katahdin stream campsite. We are in Lean to number 8, right next to the stream. Thanks to a fellow through hiker and our friend “Chirp”, we were able to buy a couple of her reserved days!! There is a brand new privy next door to us, a fire ring and a picnic table. The air around here is full of electricity. You can feel the hum of anticipation from the hikers getting ready to finish their AT NOBO Journey!
Katahdin Stream Campground
I just met another support wife in the lean to next to us. Her name is “Scooter” and her husband is “Dreamer”. Dreamer completed a Thru hike in 2006 and is now completing a final section hike for his second go round of the AT! She says he told her, “he’s done with hiking!” She laughed and said, “we’ll see. He always says that after these long days…”.
Lean toCamp areaPicnic table
For us it has taken just over 5-months to complete. 5-months and 10-days to be exact. I know in speaking with my husband, that it is a bittersweet ending. And if you would have asked me just a week ago, i would have said “i can’t wait to finish this fucking thing and go home!” But the truth is, I’m a little sad. It’s like a “little death” to be finished. I might think differently tomorrow as I’m hiking up the Hunt Trail with Jake…but in this moment of reflection it has been one hell of an adventure. Something we did all on our own, together, helping each other along the way.
I was Chief Logistics Officer and Jake was the Field Specialist for “our” NOBO AT Thru-hike. Both jobs are equally important to get us over the finish line. I know people who have not done this or any other long distance hike won’t understand it, but hiking 15-20 miles daily, EVERY day is a tremendous effort. You aren’t just hiking. You are carrying a 30-lb backpack, setting up and breaking down camp every day. Having to plan for supplies. And in our case, daily meet up points which proves very challenging at times. I will address this now, my husband rarely “slack packed”. He could have every day with the exception of a few areas that required multi-days without meet ups. I will discuss that later.
But here I am, soon to be “we are”, almost to the finish. I had many doubts along the way. Not doubts about finishing, but doubts about why we, he… I am doing this. My “I” started as “for him”. I wanted to ensure my husband realized his goal and was able to finish, and I wanted to be there with him. Wanted to see his face, hold his hand and give him a hug!
What started as casual meet ups along the way for resupply, turned in to daily meet ups for dinner, breakfast and sometimes a quick trail lunch with an ice cold coke! Reflecting back, as I sit at the campsite, it’s mostly fond memories but, there were dark days of resentment, disappointment, and fear. I laugh as i think about hikers i have met along the way that said they wanted to get away from life and just have a “time out” for themselves. Life does not give time outs. The AT is a microcosm of life. It’s full of beauty, love, accomplishments, amazing people, and it’s full of disappointment, resentment, fear, hunger, coldness, injury, sickness and even death…all of those “things” that make us feel. All of those “things” that make us uniquely human.
A gentle chill captures my attention and snaps me out of my recollective meditation. Looking up from the picnic table, i see my husband down the trail. A smile flashes across his face and as he raises his trekking poles, a familiar warmth fills my heart. I am so gosh darn proud of this man! I feel so lucky to be able to be here right now. Tomorrow is our summit day. But for now, I’m going to put down my pen and give my guy a big hug!
Warming up together!His finish card 😃Tenting inside the car with LunoRelaxing the night before our summit hike ❤️
*note: if you are planning to support a long distance hiker, i highly recommend the Luno car mattress!
Exiting the ship in Gijon (pronounced Hee-hawn), there was a local dance troupe and band playing traditional local music.
Dance Troupe with our family
Dancers in action
It was amazing to be greeted and welcomed with smiling locals who are happy to have us here!
The local military police administered a temperature test and a squirt of hand sanitizer before our walk to the bus and then another squirt of sanitizer just before boarding, and then we were on the way! They definitely were not cutting corners regarding Covid safety.
Our tour guide explained that, the beaches in Gijon are small and nestled in tiny coves throughout the area. Mountains surround Gijon, and are the largest in the area, w/ many over 2000 feet above sea level. The weather is very temperate all year long and today was no exception.
The day started as overcast, with a little fog on the horizon, and very pleasant temperatures.
The itinerary today is a walking tour with coffee and local treats in Gijon, then another walking tour in Aviles for tapas and cider. Should be interesting and I will try to keep my expectations in check.
Starting in Gijon, we were able to check out local architecture and street art. What an absolutely beautiful place to build a photography or model portfolio!
I highly recommend bringing your “good” camera to capture some canvas/wall worthy shots.
After walking through this stunning, artsy district we stopped for the strongest coffee I’ve ever had and some donuts at a local market. My only complaint is the space they had our group squeezed in to was not really adequate for our group size.
It was almost like this place was an after thought on the tour plan or our guide forgot to make reservations ahead of time. Many in our group did not get what they ordered, so I was thankful that my coffee and pastries arrived!
Then we boarded the bus and headed to Aviles. It was about a 30-minute drive and after that coffee, I was certainly ready for the Tapas!
First off, Aviles, Spain is a magical place filled with gorgeous artwork, architecture, and glorious FOOD.
Secondly, it is a very scenic area that is Celtic as opposed to Mediterranean, Spain. I find it very interesting that so many areas in Spain are Celtic in nature. To learn more about this fascinating history of Celtic Iberian culture, I highly recommend reading this article from Celtic Life International.
We had Tapas at a local and somewhat famous cider house named Tierra Astur. This place is absolutely amazing and I highly recommend. There is a fabulously stocked market at the front of the restaurant where you can pick up snacks for a picnic later.
Once inside, past the market we were whisked upstairs to the main dining area. Everything about this place screams relaxed man cave artsy, as evidenced by the photos below.
Take note though, the cider here is NOT a typical American or English cider. It actually tastes more like apple cider vinegar. The unique pouring is what gives it the effervescence or bubbles.
There is a moderate amount of alcohol in the cider, so be careful, it does sneak up on you and can cause you to have a really fun time!
The real pour
The fun pour!
After the Tapas and a few ciders, we took a stroll around the neighborhood. It was pretty quiet due to Covid still surging in this area at the time (October 2021) but, we were able to check out the street art, which is magnificent!
To note (for photographers), the colors in this area are just phenomenal. All pictures posted here are straight from the camera with no retouches or filters. It’s like “golden hour” all day long! I also found the street art to be downright textural in nature.
This was an incredible shore excursion that I felt gave us a taste of cultural immersion. I look forward to our next adventure in this area!
*Disclaimer: I may have mixed up a couple of photos between Gijon and Aviles. The Cider was strong and my notes got less reliable towards the end of the day!
Just like a mother, it’s difficult to have “favorites”. Here are a few of my garden babies, blooming in all their glory. I don’t have a very large space to garden in, approximately 250 Square feet in my back “yard”. It’s actually more of a patio with small strips of space to garden in, but we have made the most with what we have and my garden “friends” come back every year to play!
Each year, the performance they put on is a little more spectacular. Like a seasoned dance troupe, working together in seamless unison to put on the best show possible.
We all look for our happy place. For me, happiness is amongst the flowers. As we get ready to embark upon Thanksgiving, I give thanks to the flowers for filling my garden with happiness. No judging, always listening, effortlessly giving of their beauty and love.
Follow Along My Flashback to Our Long Weekend Hiking the Appalachian Trail, Maryland Section in Summer of 2014!
Everything I needed to learn about myself, I learned on the Appalachian Trail. We had just gotten married in June of 2014 and after all the stress of planning our wedding, I was eager to get out in to nature and reconnect with our primal selves. I wish I could be pissed at someone other than myself, but unfortunately I am the one who not only chose the Appalachian Trail for a weekend “adventure” with my new husband, but I also chose the exact route. Forget the fact that I inexplicably turned in to a complete bitch about 3 hours before we were scheduled to leave AND that I was trying to be mad at him for not helping to plan or pack…and that in spite of the fact that I knew approximately 2 weeks prior that we were going to hike around 30 miles in 2.5 days, but still chose to NOT get myself in hiking shape. Yeah, this is our story…
Friday Night, Day 1:
No maps in hand, we started our journey at about 8:30PM, headlamps in place and properly primed with tallboys of Bud Light. On a side-note: “Big 40’s” (40 ounce can beers) are definitely going to make my “must have” packing list for hiking next time! Our packs were probably in the 35 lb (editorial: we think they were actually closer to 50 lbs) range with all sorts of crap that made perfect sense at the time, but as I would find out later, you don’t need a whole lot of stuff to “survive” for 2.5 days.
Apparently we hiked about 10 miles (editorial: after talking it over, we think it may have been more like 4-miles) the first night. Starting at 8:30PM and stopping to make camp at about 12:30AM. The route was relatively flat, minimal rocks and well marked. Our feet were fresh and we (mainly me) were feeling no pain..thanks to the tallboys :-) We had really good daylight until around 9:30PM, then the headlamps were switched on. I whistled, I sang and planned what I would cook once we stopped to camp. I couldn’t be any happier and the next day, I barely remembered the ENTIRE trek! Other than some sort of reflective dots that someone spent a lot of time attaching to the leaves of trees along the path. So pretty….
Base Camp, night 1:
Well, it took us four hours, but we finally decided to make camp right off the main trail. We have no idea if we blazed past the first shelter or are just short of said shelter, but it is time to stop. Everything is SO wet, we are having a difficult time lighting a fire. Thankfully we have a couple of sterno packs, so after lighting one we built our fire around it and before we knew it, we had a full on, raging fire! It was after I pulled out the bag of wine = four bottles of wine, that I realized #1, no wonder the pack is so friggen heavy, we need to drink this stuff. #2, What the hell are we going to put it in to drink?! After searching through the cook kit, I found 1 pink plastic coffee cup and 1 pink bowl. PERFECT for our box wine :-) About 2 bottles later (who’s counting), I don’t think I EVER cooked anything but, I had certainly found my happy place!
Approximately 3AM – Cut to sleep.
I don’t know what time it is but I stumbled out of the tent, probably barefoot, and dropped drawer off the nearest log. Not really sure where the “F” I am, but I am pretty sure I will have a tick in my ass crack after this. Oh well, back to bed.
7:30AM-ISH. WHAT THE F*&! DID I DO LAST NIGHT?! AND WHERE THE HECK AM I?! Jeezus, Apparently 40 ounces of strawbeerita and a bottle or so of cabernet (from a box), isn’t such a great idea. Ugh. Husband is looking pretty good though and I am feeling frisky… hmmm, what the hell was that noise?! Oh.My.God. We are camped basically on the friggen trail! A group of hikers just skipped by, with their beards and trekking poles. Oh well, I guess it is time to break camp and get a move on.
Saturday, Day 2 on the Appalachian Trail:
Next time I will ditch the food, and pack more alcoholic beverage. Hiking without booze is harmful to my mental health! Hopefully we can make some good distance today. Trying for the Ed Garvey shelter but not really sure where we are now, so we will have to play it by ear. We think it might be about 16 miles or so.
08:40 am. FINALLY on the trail again. Whew! Made some campfire sausage for breakfast and some instant Starbucks mocha. Thanks Jason and Nora for leaving this crap when you visited a couple of years ago! Not sure if my brain would have kick-started this morning without it. It tastes like shit and literally gave me the shivers as it went down, but what the heck, it’s coffee.
08:55. Oh, THERE is the camp ground we were looking for last night. Nice. Only 15 minutes of flat trail and we would have gotten here. A sign would have been nice. Or maybe it’s a different camp ground. Who knows… I’d like to go with the theory that in our drunken hiking glory, we blazed passed the original camp ground at 2 miles and went on for an additional 8 miles before we finally collapsed with lack of additional alcohol consumption. Off we go.
It’s about 10AM, and I’m actually feeling pretty good. Jake is pacing ahead of me and is a little too happy for my liking. I can’t believe how unseasonably cool it is for summer. I’ve only produced about 1/2 gallon of sweat so far, way less than my usual bucket or two. So maybe we need to jog a bit…Oh yay…we’re jogging.
11:30AM We just passed over I70 on the footbridge and a couple of cars honked. I gave them the peace sign and then realized that they probably think we are “through” hikers and are giving us props. Chumps. Or maybe we ARE technically “through” hikers…After all, we ARE hiking through Maryland, and that should count for something! Anyway, it was pretty cool and I can imagine what real AT hikers must feel like when they cross this bridge and realize that they only have 1000 or so miles to go. Honestly, that would suck. (editorial after our through hike in 2022: hahahahaha… I had no idea how much!!)
12:30PM. We have walked through about 6 neighborhoods now. It’s kind of weird, traipsing through someone’s backyard. Although, I told Jake that if we lived on the AT, I would absolutely have a water spout with a sign that says, “fill it up and keep movin on”. Or maybe it’s because we are almost out of water and I might be panicking a bit. Well, panic is a strong word…I am concerned, but pretty sure we won’t die of dehydration for at least another 24 hours.
A little after 1PM. We just made it to the Washington Monument. I had no idea that there was a Washington Monument outside of DC. It’s not very impressive, so we do the “Griswald” and get back on the trail.
Five minutes later I SEE WATER! Yay!! Crisis averted. I wash my face off, drink about a gallon of water and fill up my camel back.
I try to talk Jake in to a little rest but he is still adamant about making it to the Garvey shelter tonight. So I humor him and keep walking. But I AM pouting. My feet hurt.
1:30 PM. My feet hurt. and I am beginning to walk like an old lady with hip replacement. I think he slipped the remaining bag wine in my backpack. Bastard. He wants to me to feel pain. Whatever. It’s like an extra 2 lbs. I can do it.
2PM. My feet really hurt and my hip and my shoulder. Why my shoulder? I don’t even know. It’s not like I am walking on my hands. Probably the God damned wine bag with its 2 lbs of unnecessary weight! Jake keeps giving me looks like I am the hunchback of Notre Dame. Okay, so I might be hobbling like a cripple. Jeezus, I think I have blisters inside my toes! Or a couple of ticks have managed to wedge themselves in there. Who the hell knows? I am pretty sure I have a colony in my ass crack from lastnight. Can I die from ticks in my ass? What if they managed to find a way in to my actual body. Actually I think I read that they don’t like wet places… but they do drink blood, so that probably doesn’t make sense? I need some wine to take the edge off. Shit. He’s looking at me again. This time smiling and shaking his head. Is he friggen laughing at me?! Let’s see who’s laughing when I polish off the wine later. I smile and nod my head…nothing to see here!
2:07PM. Okay, this sucks. My feet really hurt. My knees are now throbbing. Forget the Garvey Shelter, at the next shelter we are stopping.
2:30-ish. No shelter yet. He better stop with the looks and head shaking. Punk. I’m hungry.
2:50-sh. Hallelujah!!!! It’s a shelter!! Whoop, whoop!!! Jake is looking at me like I am crazy. Then he asks me, “are you sure you want to stay here, it’s kind of early.” I give him the look. This is a look famously honed by my Mexican Great-grandmother. All 3 foot, 7 inches of her. But that look could have you shaking in your boots. That, AND she rolled her own cigarettes and drank black coffee with whiskey. She was a bad ass. Anyway. We are stopping….AFTER we hike another .35 miles to the actual shelter. These A.T. through hikers are fucking Masochists.
Rocky Run Shelter.
Wow. Texas needs to take some notes from the East. Truly unbelievable the way shelters are built here. It is basically an open faced log cabin. Complete with wooden porch, full sized picnic table and a cute wrought iron rocking type chair. I have no idea if there is water, but I don’t really care right now. I throw my stuff on the porch and roll out my sleeping bag. Such a nice breeze rolling over the porch, rolling over me.. naptime.
I wake up to the noise of thunder off in the distance. The breeze has picked up and it feels really nice right now. My feet are truly not happy and I can barely walk. I must look like some sort of freak when I attempt to walk. Oh well. Gonna try and start a fire in the pit so I can cook up some dinner.
Total luck. There are still smoldering embers in the pit and the fire started right up!
Dinner. Ha!! I feel better now. I know his pack was equally heavy. I hid the massive potatoes and corn in his pack :-) I totally forgot about that!! I giggle a little bit, then I do feel bad. Poor sweety, I do love him very much and even though he doesn’t complain, I know he has to be hurting too. I know because he hasn’t complained about not leaving the shelter… I have an awesome treat in store for us, of a massive filet mignon, baked potatoes and roasted corn for dinner. Plus we have dehydrated meals in case we are still hungry. Hey man, a lady has to eat! But first, I need some of that wine. I pour us a couple of “glasses” in to our pink containers and get started on dinner.
We probably ate one of the best steaks I have had in years! Too bad I only had one for us to share. Looks like we might be on our own here tonight. Oh darn…spoke too soon.
Through Hiker #1: The Austrian.
Ova is his trail name. Not sure why he chose a trail name that sounds strangely egg-ie and quite frankly, I probably wouldn’t understand his reasoning anyway (due to the really heavy accent), but Ova seems like an interesting fella. First of all, my husband has never met a stranger. He can talk it up with darn near anyone. Case in point, the Austrian. This guy can barely speak English and he is having a hard time understanding. But Jake is just talking away…
What the hell are they talking about, who knows! But Jake manages to throw in a couple of obligatory laughs, grunts and head nods and the “men” seem to be communicating. Whatever, hopefully he doesn’t talk to me. I’m not drunk enough to fake accent talk.
I do understand some bits and pieces. Ova is in his 60’s. His wife, “love of his life”, is back home. He is on the trip of his lifetime (walking the AT), but he won’t be able to complete the entire through hike in one trip. So he started at the half way point and is hiking about 1/3rd of the trail before he has to head back to Austria. He has 1 month of sabbatical. His wife is nervous about him being alone, but mostly he has really enjoyed the trip. He mainly subsists off of snickers, granola and this amazing smelling coffee. Wait…Wait… is that sports they are talking about?!! What the heck?! Sports, really??? The guy can BARELY speak English. And I mean barely, and Jake is managing to bond over sports! Men are truly amazing.
Through Hiker #2: Trail name, Unknown.
And then there was the odd through hiker with friend companion, section hiker. I call his companion, Chef, since he is really focused on cooking. This dude hiked in two (not one, but two) ice chests full of meat and drink. Lucky for him, there is still a lot of fire from my earlier cooking venture, so he gets started. Steaks, pulled pork, sausages and hot dogs. I still get a confused look on my face when I think about it.
Through Hiker #3: Trail name, Giggles” (Villanova Grad). This guy was really cool. Apparently his dad completed one of the first through hikes of the AT in the fastest time. Needless to say, this kid has something to prove and wants to complete the AT too. The bonus is, he has some really funny stories of hook-ups on the trail.
Through Hiker #4: Hiker Girl with Giggles. She didn’t really say much, but I am pretty sure she and Giggles had a hook up at some point and he was trying to eloquently lose her. (*looking at this from a 2022 perspective, there is a good chance they are married now!)
Other Hikers: The drunk frat boys. Not sure these guys can qualify as actual “hikers”, but they did manage to park their car at the closest trail head and hike in about .8 miles with a couple of cases of beer. So they get an honorable mention!
Sunday, Day 3 on the Appalachian Trail.
0600: Breakfast. Ova is making more of his famous coffee. This stuff is magical. I wonder if it is laced with something “special”. Hmmm, whatever. I feel great today and can’t wait to hit the trail for our last 12 or 16 miles. We still aren’t exactly sure yet, but we are hoping to finish by 5pm.
Sometime in the middle of the day. OOHHH!! Deer! Although, I am not sure if this deer is amused by us or wants to eat our faces?
7-ish PM: We made it! It was a long, LONG day and we managed to cover a ridiculous amount of miles to finish. It’s crazy how you think you are literally in the middle of nowhere and miles away from where you started. Then you get to your end car, and drive to your start car…and it takes less than 20-minutes to get there. 2.5 days, lost in the forest and you were 20-minutes drive time from vehicles. We basically hiked for 26 hours and covered 30-ish miles of terrain, which retrospectively isn’t all that bad for a couple of weekend “warriors”.
Lessons Learned:
There is a whole lot that you can live without.
Your mind can truly dictate your survival
You can smile and be happy or frown and bring everyone down. Either way it takes one step in front of the other in order to make progress.
Strangely, when you run on a rocky path, you are less likely to trip.
Just because I hurt, doesn’t mean I can’t keep moving forward.
Without pain, there is nothing interesting to write about.
A little post through hike editorial here: Although this particular trip was completed in 2014, my husband and I have reviewed these notes together and after completing a through hike of the Appalachian trail this year (2022), we both agree that these lessons hold up today! I do find it incredibly humorous to read my thoughts from 8-years ago and see how much perspective is changed after full trail immersion for close to half a year. We had no maps, no GPS, no cell coverage and just went for it! Night hiking turned out to be one of our favorite ways to hike the trail when we started. Now after seeing the terrain in the daylight, I wonder how the hell we survived those days! I guess there are more than physical trail angels present on the Appalachian Trail.
It’s been a little over a year (28 September 2021) and this dinner is still on my mind. This was a special wine pairing dinner curated by Oceania and it was absolutely fabulous! Other than a late start time, we left the boat at 7PM, the overall experience was wonderful. For this winemaker, they primarily grow Cabernet grapes, along with Merlot and Petit Verdot. The vineyard is located in the Margaux appellation area near Cantenac.
The soil in this area is primarily gravel and clay, which is why the flavors are so layered with a velvety smooth texture. This Bordeaux will blow your mind!
The Vat room
We started our visit in the Vat room. This is the first step to aging. I love that they used the skins from the grapes to “paint” the barrels! Another bit of knowledge I learned today, is that they are only permitted to use the barrels up to three times. After that, they must either replace them, or they can have them refurbished by the original makers. Typically if refurbishing, the winemaker will offer finished barrels to the winemaking staff first. Any remaining barrels they will sell to the public. Oftentimes, people use these “finished” barrels to make furniture.
Capacity is around 300 barrels. That’s ALOT of wine!
Gorgeous
There is my husband, up front with the guide! Thank goodness he is so attentive, he helps to fill in my knowledge gaps from not paying close enough attention. I get distracted by all the beautiful wine.
Pretty bottles 😍
Our guide stated that we should be on the look out for 2009/2010 Bordeaux vintages and that 2020 could also be a good vintage. He stated that the 2013 is usually a good vintage for the white Bordeaux.
Custom Entryway and DoorsPrivate Tasting Room
After the tour, we were led to the dining room. It was a lovely, intimate area and we were greeted with passed appetizers with a wine pairing.
I barely had time to take a picture and enjoy the flavors before we were whisked in to the dining area to be seated.
Dining area
Unfortunately, we were unable to be seated with our family, but we took the opportunity to make some new friends.
Each wine was lovingly poured and thoroughly explained for the course pairings. All in all, it was two hours of incredible food and wine!
Amazing menuRouget Tart Grilled DuckCheese PlateFruit Cake with Mango Sauce
Afterwards, we were allowed to purchase bottles from the vineyard shop. We bought a couple of bottles for the ship and had a full case mailed home.
Our bus made it back to the ship just before midnight and wow, we were all completely wiped out!
A huge shout out to Oceania for organizing this awesome shore excursion. It is definitely one that will not be forgotten! I highly recommend touring the Chateau Kirwan estate, they offer more than wine with their perfume workshops!
Last year (October 2021) we took an epic family adventure to Europe. Have you heard of Santiago, Spain? It was one of the stops along our Oceania cruise.
Travel Map
Xulio (Shu-lee-o) was our tour guide. The locals speak Castilian Spanish and Galletian (mix of Spanish and Portuguese). The most common trees in this area are oak and chestnut. Driving from the port to Santiago is about 1.5 hours. We pass through what appears to be old growth forests with very tall trees. A lot of pine varieties. This makes sense with the high humidity, a lot of fog and overcast weather.
Most tourism in this area is centered around gastronomy. The Galletian lamb are world renowned for meat flavor due to the high salt content in the grasses they eat. The seafood is known for being diverse and fabulous. Most plentiful (and consumed) shellfish are the barnacles (how are these prepared?) around Santiago. Clams and lobsters are well known. Lobsters and rice is a typical dish. The dish has a lot of sauce and liquid made from cooking the lobster, almost like soup. The best known culinary dish is the octopus. You submerge in boiling water three times and then cook to your desire. They prepare with boiled potatoes and then parts of octopus on top. With bit of paprika and olive oil. Very simple. 😋😋 i found an awesome recipe here: https://www.bascofinefoods.com/spanish-recipes/pulpo-a-la-gallega/
The Galletian culture is very closely connected to the Irish Celtic culture. 🍀🌈. You can really feel the Irish roots with the street bagpipes!
Bagpipes in Santiago
Xulio, further explained that there is a traditional tale of apparitions dressed in white clothes walking through the forest and they visit the home of the next person to die. 😳 If you ask me, that sounds like the plot of a horror movie!
Inside the cathedral Caught a rand pic of bride on the way to be married!Rooftop viewsInside the cathedral catacombs
The tour guide told us about a hiking pilgrimage called The Comino Trail that brings almost 300k people per year to Santiago de Compostella. The sign that the pilgrims follow is the yellow shell which looks like the sunset shell from Kauai. This shell is the symbol of the pilgrimage path, similar to a blaze on the AT. The Comino was named as a cultural path in Europe. I definitely want to come back and walk the entire Comino at some point in the next few years!
The “newlyweds”
Interestingly, while we were standing in the plaza several groups of pilgrims were finishing their journey!! It was so very inspiring, with bells ringing and people shouting, even in the torrential rain!
Although deeply rooted in Catholicism, the Galletian culture believes in Witches, goblins and faeries. Very much adopted from their magical Celtic beliefs.
Lunch was at the oldest hotel in the “World” (as proclaimed by our tour guide), Hostal de Reis Católicos.
Front of HotelAmazing tile workGorgeous restaurant inside the hotelFabulous lunch wine!Pea soup to die forFrittata PheasantFrozen custardOur family!
Lunch was a solid five star event! I had no real expectations coming in to it. Maybe a sandwich and some soup, but this was a culinary adventure! Do Spanish people eat like this every day?!
After lunch we had time to walk around the village and do a little shopping. The streets are super quaint and the shops are plentiful.
Recap: we really like Spain…a lot. France was beautiful and “edgey”. Whereas, the people of Spain are very welcoming and warm to interact with; way more relaxed in tone and approach to tours. I highly recommend this town and definitely lunch. Next time we will stay in the hotel we had lunch at!
I’m from Texas and descended from Mexican roots (on my Mother’s father’s side). San Antonio is my home town. It’s in south Texas, surprisingly diverse, and deeply rooted in a type of fusion cuisine that you can only find there. It’s this multi cultural exposure that has truly inspired my tastes for all things taco.
My slogan. 🥳
Today, after listening to my husband complain that “we have nothing…” to eat (show of hands, how many of you have this happen all the time?! 🤣), I perused the fridge and found a package of minced chicken meat and a few other random items, so i decided to throw together a kind of chicken larb with lettuce cups. About half way through cooking I found a package of fresh corn tortillas I had forgotten about, so I pushed the lettuce aside and crisped up some tortillas. *BAM*! Delish!!
Chicken Larb taco
This recipe takes about 15-minutes. From fridge to mouth!
Ingredients:
◦ 1/2 lb ground chicken per person
◦ 1/2 vidalia onion thinly sliced
◦ 4 cloves fresh garlic smashed and diced
◦ Two fresh jalapeños thinly sliced in rounds
◦ 1 fresh lime
◦ 1/2 cup freshly chopped cilantro (I used cilantro for this) or mint
◦ 1/2 cup Finely shredded cabbage
◦ 2 Tbsp fresh grated ginger
◦ 2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
◦ 1 Tbsp sriracha
◦ 2 Tbsp chili powder
◦ 3 tsp kosher sea salt
◦ 2 Tbsp soy sauce
◦ Olive oil for sauté
◦ Fresh lettuce for cups
◦ Fresh white corn tortillas
Mix 2/3 of the onion with the cabbage and squeeze 1/2 of the lime into it. Sprinkle 2 tsp of the salt and mix together well. Set aside to marinate.
Onion, cabbage with lime and salt
Sauté the remaining onion, garlic, sliced jalapeños and ginger in olive oil and a pinch of the sea salt. Sauté until translucent and fragrant. It should smell amazing by now!!
Add the minced chicken and chili powder to the sautéed veggies. Break apart and cook for about 5-minutes stirring frequently.
Chicken mixture
Add the liquids; vinegar, soy sauce and sriracha to the chicken mixture and stir together. Turn to low and let simmer for 5-mins. Stir, then add the chopped cilantro and mix together. Cover and simmer for 3-5 more minutes. Then stir and turn off the heat. Let the cooked mixture set while you pan warm the tortillas! Also, IF you have sesame oil, I highly recommend using about 1tsp in the meat mixture. Add it after you turn the heat off as a finishing oil. It really pumps up the flavor!
My trick to warm corn tortillas (I prefer the texture of white corn) is to put a small amount of olive oil in a non stick skillet (I use spray olive oil). Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt to the pan as it heats up. Wait until the salt starts to bubble in the oil. Place your corn tortillas in the pan and let it sit for about 1-minute. Then, using the handle, vigorously move the tortillas around by shaking the pan back and forth. This takes about 20-seconds. Then flip the tortilla over and repeat. 1-minute sit… then shuffle for 20 seconds and flip! It should be a little crispy and browned on both sides. Watch the below video for easy directions on this step!
Browning the corn tortilla
Serve the meat mixture with tortillas and/or lettuce cups. Use the lime onion/cabbage mixture as a garnish!
Lettuce for servingSqueeze of lime!Taco with meat on the side!
You can also serve with shredded carrots. I sometimes add water chestnuts (canned and chopped). This adds as awesome crunch.
You can also serve this with cooked ramen noodles…add some chopped peanuts and fresh chopped mint or chopped cilantro with a little lime on the side. 😋
The Food Guru: Food, Travel, Photography = Life 