2019 Christmas in Indy

 This Christmas will be remembered for: 

SECURITY! C & C somehow got the idea they would be security. Several people were arrested and put into bedroom jail. Then, the next day they showed up in matching t-shirts with Security name tags. It was hilarious. (It does strike me that it is a privilege to laugh and joke about being arrested as it is not a death sentence for us.) 

We also had a great time visiting Connor Prairie and introducing the kids to joy of light up accessories. 

We ended the week with a trip to the Fuel game. 

Frozen Monopoly was played A LOT. 

12.8.19 Norwegian Encore Caribbean Cruise

After spending the day with Marisa's family at Disney World, we drove halfway to the Fairfield Inn and Suites in West Palm Beach. In the morning, we headed down to pick up my parents and board the Norwegian Encore - the newest ship in Norwegian's fleet. We stayed in a Haven Spa Suite. We were surprised to see the improvements that Norwegian made in the design since the Getaway. The suite was much bigger and had a walk - in closet. 

We had a lot of fun all week with the concierge Adrian. I left him little notes on napkins each evening. He liked sneaking up on me and scaring me. One time, he even found us when we were filming the ship tour all the way down in the lower decks of the ship. This is also the cruise where my Dad ended up locked in the bathroom. Poor guy. 

Some favorite moments onboard were Choir of Man. This musical is terrific. It is set in a pub so they let you come up on stage and have a beer before the show. We loved it so much that we went twice. 

For activities onboard, we loved Onda the Italian restaurant and went twice to Ocean Blue. We tried to do the Escape Box activity, but failed miserably. Mostly we enjoyed the beautiful Observation Lounge with our favorite bartender Lovely. 

For the ports of call, we stopped in St Thomas We took the cable car up to the top and enjoyed the views. 

In Tortola, we took a boat ride over to Soggy Dollar and enjoyed a great day on the beach. We found a nice shaded table and enjoyed the views and some cocktails. You have get a painkiller - right?

12.6.19 - 12.8.19 Wine Riffs and Disney World

 

I love it when we can stack trips together.  Marisa's family was headed to Disney World the weekend of Disney 6th. The Hard Rock was hosting one of their Wine Riffs dinners on December 6th. We were departing on the Norwegian Encore from Miami on December 8th so we pulled it all together. 

The Wine Riffs dinner was great. They always do such a nice job. Sadly, we didn't win a bottle of wine this year. 

Meeting Marisa's family at Disney World was a real treat. L is the perfect age for the wonder and fun of meeting all the characters and trying the rides. 

Reflections on the Australia 2019 Trip

This trip went really well. It was a good length because we concentrated our time in Melbourne and Tasmania.
 
Some things that worked well:

• Starting the road trip in Launceston. This really helped get used to driving on the other side of the road. The easy pace of life and no traffic was great for both driving and navigating.
• The mix of accommodations. We did two nights in a cheap hotel, five nights in an apartment, 2 nights in a fancy lodge, 3 nights in an apartment hotel, and 3 nights in a well-located Marriott. Having access to a washer or a washer and dryer for half the trip really helped keep our suitcases small and light.
• We did one big  excursion per location. This helped us see a lot, but also have relaxed days the other days. Most days we didn't leave our accommodations until 11 am or noon.
• Melbourne: Great Ocean Road
• Launceston: Bay of Fires tour
• Frecyinet: Oyster Farm experience
• Hobert: Tasman Island cruise and Port Arthur.
• Exchange money in advance - We estimated we'd need about US$100 per day in cash. We were right and it worked out really well.
• I recently applied for a new Chase credit card with no foreign transaction fees and the "tap" feature where you just tap it to the machine to pay. That worked really well.

Things we'd do differently:

• Pick the best flight not the best deal. We decided to fly to Australia because we got a deal alert. That started the wheels turning. It ended up that this meant two stops each way. Next time, we'll look at all the flight options and then decide what's the best value.
• Fly Economy - We upgraded our seats to Economy Plus. I'm not sure the extra leg room was worth the price. Planes with a Premium Economy cabin are a much better value.
• No apartment rental. We much preferred staying in an apartment hotel to renting an individual apartment.

Next Trip Down Under
 On our next trip, we'd like to explore the Brisbane area and potentially add on a trip to Christmas Island, Fiji and  cruise around New Zealand to see fjords. We could also easily go back to Launceston, Tasmania and spend more time exploring Cradle Mountain and the Tamar Valley wine region.

11.23.19 Exploring Fitzroy Neighborhood

Today we decided to do what I like to call a bartender scavenger hunt. We start at a cool bar and then ask the bartender for a recommendation for the next bar. It's pretty fun.

We had a late start since it was a working morning. We headed Cutler & Co for a fancy lunch. It was delicious. You got three entrees (appetizers), a main course, dessert, and three glasses of wine for $135.

We then headed down the street. We found a cute coffee shop called Gabriel, but it didn't have the right vibe.

Then, we found Rooks. It was a perfect start. The bartenders were friendly. The drinks were good.

 

Rooks recommended Shady Lady. Shady Lady wasn't quite open yet so we went to the Irish bar next door. That was a treat. Frankie, the bartender, was from Dublin. She told us all about the regular customers who are all from Ireland and how this pub had become their home away from home. I also go to introduce Glenn to a gin I really liked in Ireland: Gunpowder. If you happen to be in Melbourne on a Sunday night, this is a great spot for Irish music.

 

Shady Lady opened. The Rooks bartender was right. They have a great cocktail list. We had Earl Grey Tom Collins. The bartender was really sweet. We talked a lot about travel. We also tried their signature tequila shot that came with a shot of juice made from mint and jalapeno and a few other ingredients. It's delicious.

 

 

She recommended the Black Pearl since it's consistently ranked one of the best cocktail bars in Australia. It was really fun. They keg some of their cocktails. I haven't seen that before. The bartenders were so fun!

 

 

They recommended the Standard Hotel for an old school Australia vibe, Bar Frankie because of it's all Australia menu and Above Beyond for a small speakeasy type bar. We made it to Standard and called it a night. The Standard had an old fashioned dark bar with lots of taxidermy and old timer regulars on the inside and a lovely beer garden on the outside.

 

 

11.22.19 Travel Day - 11.23.19 Glenn's Day of Fun

November 22nd was a travel day. We headed from Hobart to Melbourne. When we got to Melbourne, we checked in and then headed to a rooftop bar and restaurant. We had a couple drinks upstairs and then had dinner downstairs at Bomba. It was unremarkable except for an excellent corn on the cob.

November 23rd was Glenn's Day of Fun. Glenn does a great job figuring out a fun day of stops. We had a late start around noon since it was a working morning. We visited all different bars and restaurants.

Lunch was a traditional pub lunch at Elephant and Wheelbarrow.

 Then we headed up to Good Heavens rooftop bar.

 

 This was my favorite rooftop bar of all the ones we visited. It was open air, had a great cocktail list, and look at this wallpaper:

 

 Next stop was AER - it's advertised as a rooftop bar, but really more enclosed. It had a special - a carafe of cocktail for $20.00. That was a steal. The Australian Dollar exchanges at about $0.70 to the US Dollar, but the prices here are about 30% higher so it all evens out.

 
We made an impromptu stop at Mountain Magic. I had a good time watching the prep chef make spring rolls and the kitchen staff all joke around.

Then we headed to Harley House This place is terrific. The food was fantastic. The wine, beer and cocktails list is fun. Definitely a must visit.

 
These scallops were terrific. One of the best balanced dishes I've had.

 

 Glenn remembered some people from the Long Lunch at Cromy recommended Eau de Vivre. The entrance is a nondescript door and it has some flair cocktails. The cocktails were decent. It's a lot of hype, but still worth a visit.

 
 We ended the day at the Noodle Night Market - an outdoor food festival. I had soufflé pancakes and something called a Puffle. It was fun to see so many people out enjoying the good food and weather.

11.21. 19 Day of Fun in Hobart

This was a working morning so we headed out around 11 am.

First stop: Franklin Park. It was 80 degrees. Don't worry it dropped down to 60 degrees by the end of the day.

 

 Then we headed to the Tasmania Museum and Art Gallery. It was a bit eclectic. I was uncomfortable with the amount of taxidermy. The best exhibit was an artist who each day drew a native Australian animal and then erased it. The pile of erasure shavings on the floor reminded me of the elaborate sand sculptures that Buddhist monks create and then blow away.
 

 

For lunch, we went to McHugo's. I'll let Glenn cover that one. The bartender was very friendly and enjoyed chatting about beer with us.  She was the first person who asked us about Trump.

 

We went to Lark Distillery for a whiskey and gin tasting. I love the gin scene here. So many choices. I also tried to help the staff rearrange the furniture design. That was less successful.

 

 

 At lunch, we decided on a whim to head to MONA - The Museum of Old and New. They have a ferry you can ride from downtown.

 
Of course, we upgraded to the "Posh Pit' VIP area for some snacks and wine. The 20 minute ride was very comfortable.

 
I really don't know how to describe MONA. It's wonderful and imaginative. It's like a Modern Art Museum combined with really interesting bars and restaurants combined with unique experiences.

 

 This is one of the walk through displays. We also walked into an exhibit that ended in a small room connected to the outside so we could talk to people walking by, but no one could see each other. One display even recreated the digestive system. It poops at 2 pm every day.

 

 Here's Glenn outside the Wine and Beer Tasting Bar with a Moo Brew tasting.

 

We took the ferry back and then headed to a Chinese restaurant for dinner. 

11.20.19 Cruise of Tasman Island and visit to Port Arthur

It's time for another all day tour! Even though we "hired" (rented) a car, we still booked a couple all day tours to give Glenn a break from driving. Plus we learn more on the tours.

This tour took us down the coast. We had great views of Mount Wellington and the coast line. We stopped for morning tea at the Port Arthur Lavender Farm. The scones were delicious. So delicious that Glenn packed away two in his pockets. If he starts carrying around Tupperware, I'll be staging an intervention.

 

Then it was time to board our boat:

 

 





 

After lots of warnings about strong winds, bumps, required seatbelts, and the distribution of ginger tablets to prevent seasickness, we were off. It was super windy and bumpy and so much fun.

 

It was incredible to see the cliffs from the water. We learned how the cliffs with horizontal lines were formed as sediment pilled up and then was under pressure from glaciers.

 

 

The cliffs with the vertical lines were formed by magna pushing up to the Earth's cruise and is some of the hardest material in the world.

 

 

 

We also  had a little wildlife viewing. It was fun to watch the seals play in the water.

 

 

The big adventure of the day was when a fellow boat captain discovered a super pod of dolphins. Our Captain estimated that over 1,000 dolphins were in the water around us. They swam right next to the boat and jumped around. It was incredible:

 

 







We also circumnavigated Tasman Island.

At one time, three families lived here. To get to the their home, they'd pull up their boat to a rocky cliff. A rope and basket was lowered. They'd climb into the basket and then be lifted up. Once up there, they'd sit on a seat attached to a track and then they'd ride up the mountain backwards pulled by a wench. I don't think I'd leave.

After the boat tour, we headed to the Port Arthur historic site. Glenn's scone came in handy.

This was a convict site where prisoners from England who had reoffended were held. They would do hard labor clearing timber. The site is huge and we only got a peek. It's very grim to know that English committed genocide to clear this land of the native people. Then, they sent people convicted of crimes of poverty - usually stealing food - to work here for years. If the convicts survived the boat journey, they'd be sentenced to hard labor. Once they completed their sentence, they'd have to find a job to pay their way back to England.

 

We headed back to Hobart. We visited Preachers Beer Bar where extra seating is available in a bus.

 

 

 

We had a lovely time at The Whaler. The bartenders were so friendly. We  loved chatting about beer and gin with them.