MSC Yacht Club Part 6

 We disembarked this morning from the MSC Seashore at PCV. One of the easiest processes in over 100 cruises.  Left our cabin at 7:15 and were in our transfer at 7:40.  It helps that most cruise terminals now have facial recognition for passport holders. You just approach the kiosk, it scans your face and you're done. 

We had a nice last dinner onboard. It was the Italian dinner they'd been promising since the first night.  We had buffalo mozzarella, beef carpaccio, seafood misto and lasagna Bolognese.  The lasagna didn't disappoint!!  Finished it with some coffee ice cream with chocolate sauce.

 

We're now on our way to MCO to catch a 10:55 flight to IND. They have small shuttles which only cost $20/person.  I checked Lyft and it would have been $100 plus gratuity. Great deal and they left every ten minutes. We should be back in our apartment by 2:30. 

MSC Yacht Club Part 5

 We stayed on the ship while we were docked in Cozumel.  

Enjoyed a nice lunch in the YC dining room.  Even though I've been limiting my consumption of red meat, I had to see how their signature burger was. Very tasty with crispy, salty fries and onion rings. And a stracciatella sundae with caramel.

 For dinner we both had the Asian dumpling sampler, some tasty butter chicken and shared a pappardelle pasta that had a wonderful duck ragout. Cheese for dessert.  We've gotten a cheese plate a few times on this cruise and they have offered crackers. The first time we laughed when it included some sad, stale saltines. Then we got them the second time.  And last night we thought for sure they had just run out of regular crackers and we'd finally get a regular cracker.  Not a chance.  We each got three sad, stale saltines. 

 We finished off the night in what some Yacht Club guests have called "Gen Pop", referring to the low security area of prisons.  We went outside the wall of the Yacht Club and saw a terrific jazz quartet in the Brooklyn Cafe.  After a cocktail in the Top Sail Lounge it was time to head back to the cabin.

MSC Yacht Club Part 4

 Yesterday we had a great excursion to visit the seven color lagoon in Bacalar. The lagoon is only about a meter deep so no real swimming. In the sunshine you can apparently see multiple colors.  We had a slightly overcast day so we'll have to come back another time to test the theory.  It was beautiful and a very popular spot for pontoon boats.

On Tuesday and Wednesday nights I ordered poorly in the dining room. Even something that should have been easy to make such as a Caesar salad was disappointing. So tonight I asked if they had a simple Bolognese, one of my favorite sauces. It wasn't on the menu.  At least not the adults menu.  They said of course they did!!  It was on the children's menu!! And I was presented with one of the best Bolognese dishes I've ever had. Really delicious and satisfying. 

 They had an exclusive Yacht Club deck party last night on Deck 20 which was so fun!!  Food, drinks and a DJ!! Lots of like dancing.  And the DJ played one of Angie's favorite songs: Mr Brightside!!

 

MSC Yacht Club Part 3

 

We had a fun tea reception to start the day. The Officers welcomed us. 

 Lunch at Kaito was very good. They had an option for an "all you care to eat in forty five minutes" sushi for $39/person but that didn't include any non-sushi dishes which we wanted to try. So instead we went with the a la carte option.  The Tempura Udon was tasty although I don't understand why they put the freshly fried crispy tempura directly into the broth. The soba noodle stir fry with chicken was tasty as well as the Chuukara Maguro Temaki. I love the hand rolls compared to Futomaki.   We still took a few plates off the conveyor belt. We had a great meal and it was less than if we had chosen the "all you care to enjoy" option.  

After lunch we had some gelato.  Can you say you've sailed MSC and not had gelato? There are at least three spots for gelato on this ship which makes sense since it's an Italian based company. 

We enjoyed the evening show. 

MSC Yacht Club Part 2

 

Yesterday we finally managed to go to the "dark side" and explore outside  of the Yacht Club!!  They have lots of lounges, coffee shops, shops and five specialty restaurants!! They have an arcade with a Formula One and rafting simulator!! Plus five pools including Pirate's Cove which is an enclosed waterfall park. For lunch we ordered the famous MSC Style pizza from room service.  

Many say MSC has the best pizza at sea.  My current best is Princess closely followed by Virgin Voyages.  MSC is definitely in the top three and possibly surpasses Princess. Great dough, sauce and toppings.  I'll of course need to try more to provide a proper ranking.

After lunch we needed a mandatory rest period.  I took a two hour nap. We then got ready for dinner and headed to the Top Sail Lounge which is the bar in the Yacht Club for a pre-dinner cocktail.  Delicious Zacapa Old Fashioned!!   Dinner highlights were some savory and garlicky escargot, a blue cheese souffle and fettuccine with a mushroom sauce. After dinner we headed to Le Cabaret Rouge which is a nightclub on the MSC Seashore.

 They had a rotation of three different acts.  Each act had a set and then the next act performed .  Then rinse and repeat.   They had a great band playing crowd favorites including Pat Benatar and Adele. Then there was an acrobatic duo who did some juggling and enhanced baton twirling. And there was also a passionate violinist.  A really tear show and somewhat of a throwback to the old days of cruise entertainment. We also went to see an all female band perform a tribute to The Beatles.  Then it was back to the cabin.

MSC Seashore Yacht Club Part 1

 

Yesterday we boarded a cruise ship on a cruise line we've never sailed before.   We're trying out the MSC Yacht Club experience for seven nights.  A great lunch and dinner onboard  yesterday in the Yacht Club restaurant.  Highlight were freshly made tortellini with a creamy walnut sauce and a wonderful clam risotto.  We also saw the production show The Journey in the main theater. 

 Today we arrived at Ocean Cay which is their private island for an overnight stay. 

 We had a couple of hours at the beach.  Angie took a dip in the turquoise blue water.   Then it was time for lunch. We had crab salad and charred octopus for starters. For mains we shared a perfectly medium rare burger, grilled mahi mahi and a lobster roll.  The mahi mahi was our favorite.  It came with a sweet potato and pineapple salsa.  Who knew those flavors would go so well together?

After a mandatory rest period, we headed to dinner at the Yacht Club restaurant. It was a very good menu tonight. Hard to choose so our waiter recommended multiple starters and one main as starters!!  Maryland Crab Cake, Lobster Ravioli and Pumpkin Risotto along with spring rolls.  The risotto was again the winner of the starters. Creamy and savory. With some deliciously crispy sausage for more flavor and crunch. Mains were pork tenderloin and grilled sea bass. Both very good. And I did have dessert. Some refreshing passion fruit sorbet. 

 We went to the Yacht Club lounge for an after dinner drink and to listen to the piano player. They have a large selection of bar snacks to choose from including a rotation of potato chips or crisps as they refer to them in the UK.  Yesterday was salt and vinegar and BBQ.  Today is honey mustard.  We're sitting outside where there is a nice breeze and the sounds of crickets. Real?  Piped in?  Not sure yet.

Epcot Day 2

 

We headed to Epcot at 11 AM. We once again used Lyft to take us to the Boardwalk and we walked from there.   There were a few snacks we wanted to have today. First was escargot from France. I remember this from the very first time I went to the Food and Wine festival many, many years ago.  It's changed a bit since I last had it.  It used to be three smaller brioche buns, each with escargot in a garlicky sauce.  Now it is a single, somewhat larger brioche with multiple escargot and sauce.  We liked it but thought the prior version was better. Next was an Impossible slider with Montreal seasoning. This had some great flavor and was delicious.  

It was much warmer today than on Friday so we desperately needed some air conditioning.   Good thing WDW has some indoor rides!!   We headed over to The Land. There was a posted twenty five minute wait for Livin' With The Land so we got in line.  It ended up only being ten minutes!!  They've made some good changes to the rise, mostly in the greenhouses.   Next we got in line for one of Angie's favorites: Soarin!!  This had a posted sixty five minute wait.  But it was going to be an air conditioned wait!!   We got lucky as we got near to where they stage you for the attraction.  They were asking for single riders so we took them up on the opportunity!!  Saved us at least ten minutes. Great ride as usual and you could "smell the smells".  If you know you know. 

Next it was lunchtime at Space 220. As it sounds, this is a circus themed restaurant.  Just kidding.  It's of course space themed.  No spoilers.   The restaurant space and how you get there is very well done. And a great meal of burrata, tuna tartare, roasted brined chicken and shrimp pad Thai.

At 2:46, I got notification that it was time for my virtual queue on Cosmic Rewind!!   We finished lunch at 3:30 and I headed there.  It's an interesting pre-show. As with most rides of that nature, you're being brought in to see or test something.  And then something goes terribly wrong!!  How will we get back?  Who will help us?  I think you know. It's a well done inside coaster. Similar to Aerosmith's Rock and Roller coaster except there are no inversions.  Instead of inversions, your car spins many times to capture the action around you. So if you don't like spinning, this won't be the attraction for you.  It's a high speed version of Cobra's Curse at Busch Gardens Tampa.  We ended the night back at the resort with snacks and music. 

 

Epcot Food and Wine Fest

 We arrived at Epcot about 10:30 and got right into the snacking game with some pumpkin ravioli, Duck Bao Bun and Raclette!!  Then lunch at Spice Road Table, one of my favorites.  Hummus fries, spicy shrimp and fried cauliflower. Hard to pick a favorite but I'd have to go with the cauliflower. It perfectly fried and tossed in an orangy sauce similar to what they use on Genera Tsos Chicken.  Then we experienced the Remy ride. It's a tamer version of the Spiderman ride at Universal Islands of Adventure.  

After lunch, we headed to Brew-Wing which was at the Odyssey venue.  They had it set up a Muppet Labs, featuring frequent video segments from Beaker and Dr Benson Honeydew. 

The food and beverages were all "experiments".   We had a beverage flight of 3 Daughters Pickle Seltzer, Keel Farms Elderberry Serrano Cider and Coppertail Brewing Smoked Lager.  All really good.  The pickle seltzer was my favorite. Also tried some peanut butter and jelly wings which reminded me of the childhood classic sandwich. 

 After our snack and libations, it was time for some live music. We saw Bodh'aktan perform a short set of what I'd call Celtic and Canadian rock at the Canada pavilion.  Then we headed to the UK and saw an English rock tribute band.  Both entertaining.  We then boarded the Friendship boat to the Swan hotel for our dinner at Mediterranean restaurant Amare. 

We started with the most delicious octopus we had ever eaten.  And we have had it many times over our travels.  This has been sous vied and then slightly grilled. It was buttery tender like the best Maine lobster tail!!  For mains we had sea bass filets and a romesco chicken.  The sea bass had been wrapped in parchment paper with kale, olives, potato, garlic and other herbs and then roasted.  Served with an optional beurre Blanc sauce!!  Certainly one of the best pieces of fish I've ever had. The chicken was also tasty with both breast and thigh on top of the spicy romesco. What a great dinner. I highly recommend this place. It's located in the relatively new Disney Swan Reserve hotel. They have an interesting wine list as well as over fifty bourbons!!

After dinner we took a Lyft back to Port Orleans. If your budget allows, I suggest using ride shares at WDW. Especially if your hotel has multiple bus stops like Port Orleans Riverside and Caribbean Beach. While the buses can be convenient, the multiple stops delay your leaving the resort and returning. 

Disney World Adventure Part 1

 

We made it to Florida!!  First non-stop Southwest flight of the day from IND to MCO. Took off on time and surprisingly a smooth flight.  We made it over to Port Orleans Riverside by 11 and our room was ready!!

Delicious lunch at Wine Bar George of creamy chipotle hummus, meatballs over cheesy, creamy polenta and black mussels in an onion broth with crispy chipotle!! 

  And of course some wonderful wines from their list of 132!!  I went with a  Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand.  Angie had a Cabernet Franc Rose. We went to Jock Lindsey's for a cocktail, Boathouse for some oysters and Morimoto Asia for dinner. 

Morimoto has some delicious highballs.  Light and refreshing. We tried The Forbidden and The Forsaken.  Both very good with our starters of lemongrass chicken dumplings and BBQ ribs.  Great use of the lemongrass in the dumplings.  Not overpowering.  And those ribs.   I think they were first braised until tender and then flash fried to add some crunch.  Then tossed in a sticky sauce.   I think they are the best pork ribs I have ever had.  We each had a delicious ramen bowl for our main. Angie had the short rib and I went with duck.

 The weather is typical Florida humid.   Just a bit of a breeze.  Rained on the ride share from the airport but no rain at the moment. 

Salt Lake City Part 2

 

The National Parks tour has come to an end!!  Yesterday we took a Lyft up to Great Salt Lake State Park.  We met up with our boat captain and took a short cruise out to the middle of the lake. And then we floated. 

No one really swims in the lake. And it's really salty! The lake is divided into two parts. The North Arm and the South Arm. We were in the South Arm which is about 15% salt. The North Arm is almost 30%!!  Compare that to your average ocean which is about 3%. Or saline solution which is 1%.  Floating was easy. You just had to avoid the urge to tread water. Once  we got out and dried off, we both had a salty crust.  But it was a great experience.  The lake only has one marina for private boats. There are no fish that live in the lake so any boating is really just for pleasure.

After lunch we took a Lyft back to the hotel to clean up. Angie then took care of some work items.  We then headed to the BeerHive for lunch. 

They have an impressive twenty four beers on tap plus 300 more in bottles and cans.  Some really good ones.  I loved the Blackberry Sour from Kiitos Brewing.  And we were able to order lunch from the Vietnamese restaurant next door. Some great wings and a delicious Banh mi sandwich. After lunch we headed back to the hotel for a mandatory rest period. 

Dinner was at Squatters which features many beers from Salt Lake Brewing. We had a great starter of creamy artichoke dip and mains of Mac and cheese and turkey and Swiss burger. Both so tasty!!  Extra points for having a hand made party. Typically restaurants use preformed frozen turkey patty. 

Overall, it was a wonderful trip! Definitely the best way for us to see the national parks. 

Salt Lake City Night Part 1

 

We started the day with a quick walk around the nature preserve at the Rustic Inn. We could definitely spend more time here. 

We made it to Salt Lake City yesterday afternoon after a fun stop in Afton, Wyoming to see the world's largest antler arch. 

  There was a farewell dinner with our group of 45 at the hotel. Some good grilled salmon. Afterwards we had a drink in the hotel bar with some of the friends we made. There were two other couples from Indiana. One from nearby Noblesville.

Today we slept in late. First time being able to do that over the last eleven nights. We had a late breakfast at the hotel and then walked ten minutes to the Tabernacle. They had a recital with an organist playing that massive pipe organ. 

Afterwards, we needed some lunch so we walked about fifteen minutes to Red Rock Brewing. 

Some tasty beers. My favorite was the Passion Fruit Gose. Angie has a delicious Oatmeal Stout. Angie had a shrimp salad and I had a salmon salad.  Both very good.

It was then time to head to the museum. This was a bit further away so we used a Lyft. The Natural History museum is very impressive.  Certainly has to be the largest collection of dinosaur bones in North America. Probably the world. Really amazing. 

And they are always discovering new ones. Other interesting exhibits as well including all about the Native People.  One of the most interesting parts was many parts of the museum focused on global warming, climate change and renewal energy such as wind and solar. Utah is about as "red" as a state can get. And you'll hear the leaders of the Republican party claim global warming and climate change is a hoax. Yet it's prominently featured in the museum. And many buildings in the downtown area have solar panels.  After our visit, we needed a mandatory rest period at the hotel.  We had some good Thai food for dinner.  

Jackson Wyoming Night 2 / Rafting on the Snake River

 This morning we had an rafting excursion on the Snake River. We met in the lobby of the hotel at 8:30 and were seated in our raft by 9:15. It was such a peaceful thirteen miles and two and a half hours down the Snake River. We mostly saw birds unless you count the dogs being walked.

Several eagles and some wild ducks that walked in water. We were dropped off at the hotel about Noon. We headed to the cabin to drop off our stuff and find a place for lunch. Our rafting guide had recommended Still West Brewing. This was about a twenty minute walk down Cache Street, just at the base of Snow King Mountain. Some delicious beers. My favorite was Cosmic Nebula which is a hazy IPA. Angie enjoyed a black bean burger with truffle fries and I had n Fried Idaho Trout sandwich. Both excellent.

We then walked back toward the hotel, stopping at the visitor center for the National Elk Refuge. They have a huge area where the elk, prong horn deer, mule deer and other wildlife use when they migrate down from the mountains in the fall.  

They haven't started that process yet.  We then headed back to the cabin for a mandatory rest period. Then, we hit a couple of the local watering holes. Million Dollar Cowboy Bar and Silver Dollar Bar. The latter has fancy saloon doors!!   Had a nice meal at Gather which is a place with small and large plates meant for sharing.  We had crispy Brussels Sprouts, pork buns and Mediterranean burrata. The Brussels were good but couldn't beat the ones we had in Cody at Trailhead.

Jackson, Wyoming Night 1

 

Today we had a later start than usual. Luggage had to be outside our room by 8:30 and our departure was at 10 AM.  We took advantage of the time to walking the trails to more geysers. It was amazing seeing all the steam. 

We traversed away from Yellowstone and soon entered Grand Teton National Park. Even seeing it in person, it looks like a painting.  We had a great lunch at the Jackson Lake Lodge. They had an outdoor bar that had amazing views.  

 I think no matter what you ordered, it would taste good. Angie had a grilled chicken sandwich and I had the chicken green Chile nachos.

At 4 PM we arrived at the Rustic Inn, our home for the next two nights. Each room is it's own cabin, along with a porch with two Adirondack chairs.

  Today was also laundry day.  We had hoped to do it at the last two hotels but neither had that amenity. They had many open machines here so as soon as our luggage arrived, I went to the machines.  

For dinner, we walked down to Snake River Brewing. They have a good selection of beers.  My favorite was the Le Serpente Cerise which was a cherry sour. We also had our dinner. Angie has a great pizza with spicy sausage. I had a mixed green salad with candied walnuts and gorgonzola along with Elk Bolognese.  The Bolognese was so tasty. I was afraid it might be dry but it wasn't.  Great flavors from the elk in a lighter sauce than I'm used to in a Bolognese.   

Old Faithful, Yellowstone National Park

 

Yesterday we made our way from Mammoth Hot Springs to the Old Faithful Inn. Along the way we stopped at some scenic view points including one area that had all kinds of thermal pools. The most interesting was the one that is called the Painter's Pot. Amazing to see bubbling mud!!  

We were soon at the resort.  Our resort was directly at Old Faithful and there were so many people gathered.  At the front desk they have a schedule of the estimated eruptions of the geysers.  

 We figured that it would be a good time to grab lunch before the crowds descended. It was a great idea!!  We had some local beers, burgers and wings. All staples of Yellowstone National Park!!We explored the visitor center and listened to a ranger talk. We decided to take a stroll around the Geyser Point. On our way we happened to catch Old Faithful irrupting. Lots of oohs and aahs from the large crowd gathered. 

We made our way to the Geyser Point trail. It was so fascinating to see all these smaller geysers and pools. In my mind I thought there was just Old Faithful, and that's it. Old Faithful is interesting to see, and you should see it.  But if you don't take at least some time to walk around to see the others, you're really missing out. After the walk we had a mandatory rest period in our room.

Our tour director has made us reservations at the hotel restaurant and we headed there at 6:45. We both had the most amazing wedge salads as starters!  This was both halves of a small head of iceberg!!   In addition to a creamy blue cheese dressing, it came with some nice additions of pickled onion, pickled crunchy sweet peppers, sundried tomato and of course some bacon.

Angie enjoyed the trout for her main and I had some tasty fried chicken which was accompanied by cheese grits and a tasty vinegar slaw with sweet peppers.   After dinner we headed to the mezzanine and enjoyed some local bourbon while we saw a nighttime viewing of Old Faithful.   

Mammoth Springs, Yellowstone National Park

 

Yesterday we decided to change things up and have breakfast outside the hotel.  The included breakfasts have all been buffets with mostly the same items.  Angie found a place called The Station which was a converted gas station which has delicious crepes.  After breakfast we headed back to the hotel for our 7:50 departure. We were headed to the Buffalo Bill Cody Center.   

What a fascinating place. It's five museums in one!!  In addition to a museum about the life of William F Cody, there is also a firearms museum, a natural History museum, an Indian Lands museum and a western art gallery.  We had two hours to explore and did the best we could. We both thought the natural history museum was the best part. Focused on the geology and wildlife of the area. If you are interested in firearms, they have a collection of over 7000!!  So many!!

After the museum we started the trek towards Yellowstone. 

 We'd be using the Northwest entrance so would be making a brief stop in Cooke City Montana. This town (officially an incorporated community) is literally only a few blocks long and has ~75 residents.  It's about as "small town" as you can get without being a ghost town.  We had some pizza from Trailhead Grill that we brought with us and that was our lunch as we sat near the mountains. We also visited the general store which had an old fashioned cash register!!  And no stop in a mining town would be complete without visiting the saloon for some liquid refreshment. 

Soon we entered the park.  I had no idea how massive this park is. Over two million acres and covering three states. We arrived at the hotel and before we got our keys we took a short stroll on the boardwalk to what is known as the terraces.  These are calcium formations from the hot underwater springs.

We received our keys and luggage and headed to the beautiful Map Room prior to our dinner. They have a wooden map using wood from all over the world. 

Dinner highlights were a wonderfully smoky trout dip and mushroom tortellini. After dinner we returned to find about twenty elk just grazing for their dinner out front of the hotel.   

Cody, Wyoming

 Yesterday was the equivalent of a day of scenic sailing on a cruise.  We left the Spearfish Canyon Lodge at 8:30 on our way to our final destination of Cody, Wyoming and the Holiday Inn. Along the way we cut through the Bighorn Mountains getting as high as an elevation of 9000 feet!  It was so interesting to see the landscape change from plains to beautiful mountains and then desert. We had about twelve moose sightings along the way plus plenty of pronghorn and mule deer. And of course cattle!!  We had a few rest stops and one of them was Burgess Junction which had a display showing the geologic change this area went through. Because the layers of the earth "folded", the rock layers on top are actually older than what is on the bottom. The exact opposite of what you would expect.  

We made it to the hotel about 4:30. We were handed our keys and waited in our room for our bags to be delivered. About 4:45 this arrived. We had a brief mandatory rest period and then headed to dinner. Tonight wasn't a group dinner. We'd be hitting the town on our own!  I had looked up the Trailhead restaurant as we were driving through the mountains. It had a great menu.  We had the most amazing fried Brussels Sprouts with a bourbon honey molasses gastrique and garnished with pistachios and brinoised apples!  So good!!  Also some tasty chicken wings with espresso BBQ sauce and a pork green chili soup.  And two pizzas. One was Fungi topped with arugula and the other was Bandiera which had roasted garlic, salami and pesto!   Why two pizzas?  Our tour guide said that the lunch options today will be limited.  So now we have our lunch.

After dinner we also checked out a brewery called Pat O'Hara's and had a delicious sour beer called Violet Delights.