Hurricane Irene- West Hartford

Hurricane Irene passed through late last night/early this morning. By the time it hit us I don't think it was even a tropical depression. We got approximately 7.5 inches of rain and it was pretty windy(30-40mph) for a sustained amount of time. We were certainly ready with lots of water, batteries, tub full of water, taped windows.... but luckily Irene didn't live up to it's hype, at least in West Hartford, CT. Below are some pics from today!

Our kitty Rambo and his hideout for the hurricane

Hubby surveying the damage.

Weekend in Newport

Newport, RI. According to my husband it's the best place on earth. I have been to Newport a couple of times before but always off-season (when it's freezing cold).  When we saw Newport wine fest tickets on sale for half off back in April we jumped at the idea. We booked ourselves a cute bed and breakfast (Fair Street Inn, 28 Fair St., Newport, RI 08240- http://www.fairstreetnewport.com/ ) that is located in the heart of Newport. (see pics below) The bed and breakfast itself was OK. For $200 bucks a night we were still in a small room with a communal bathroom. Based on the tasty (free) breakfast and the FANTASTIC location we would certainly stay here again.

 We arrived in Newport on Saturday morning with enough time to check out some shops and a local bar before we headed over to the Wine Fest. http://www.newportwinefest.com/ We were at the afternoon session, along with hundreds of others who had also bought the half off vouchers on-line. Subsequently we had to wait in two different lines for nearly an hour just to check in. The festival was COMPLETELY oversold and you could barely walk in one of the tents. We did enjoy the beverages(whiskey, vodka, beer, wine) and food vendors that were there. Overall, it was fun but we wouldn't return. (see pics of the wine fest below).

Hubby was happy with his Free Peroni Hat! :-)

After the wine fest we walked around people and did some ridiculously fun people watching :-) For dinner we went to a super cute Mexican restaurant that we had been wanting to try since we were here earlier in the year. Perro Salado(http://perrosalado.com/) is in an old house with tons of charm. Usually there is a pretty long wait but we came a little later and lucked out with an inconspicuous two top. For a drink I had a watermelon margarita.. it was surprisingly refreshing and didn't have an overpowering watermelon taste. For an appetizer we had the avocado fries which were AMAZING! The waitress recommended these and we are so glad she did. For dinner I had the pork carnitas tostada which was simply seasoned and soooo good. (see pic below) Overall, the food, ambiance, and drink were GREAT!

On Sunday we woke up, went to the beach, and did the famous cliff walk. (see pics below) The beach was beautiful and water warm. The cliff walk was absolutely gorgeous, although quite hot as the sun was beaming down. In the end, we ended up a little burnt :-), but thoroughly satisfied with our weekend getaway to Newport.

Vacation Memory: Barcelo Maya Palace, Riviera Maya Mexico

Hello! I was just reminiscing about our semi recent vacation to Mexico and thought I would share those memories with you. We stayed at Barcelo Maya Palace in Riviera Maya and were blown away by the hotel property. (shown below)

Overall, the food was great, the drinks were plentiful, and the weather was gorgeous! We went with two other couples which was a perfect group size for any outing. Six of the seven days we lounged on the beach, read, drank, slept... you know the normal vacation activities :-)

On one of the days mid week we went on an excursion (that we solicited through the hotel)  to the jungle for zip-lining, cave snorkeling, and repelling. This is HIGHLY recommended. We all enjoyed ourselves and it was well worth it. In the afternoon that same day we traveled into Playa Del Carmen. My husband is too cheap to take a normal taxi so we walked outside our hotel and waved down the town taxi. (they are usually over-sized vans that take all the locals from town to town for work) We honestly felt very safe doing this and only had to pay 2 bucks per person. We walked around the town, shopped, and stopped at some local bars. People from our group were solicited from locals for drugs, prostitues but as long as you ignore them there was nothing to worry about :-) (below are pics from the day in the jungle and the city)

We really had a blast on this vacation. All inclusive resorts are great to get the rest and relaxation that you need. On the last day the girls got a message which was truly a great end to the vacation (and reasonably priced). Any additional information about the hotel can be found at http://www.barcelo.com/BarceloHotels/en-GB/Hotels/Mexico/MayanRiviera/MayaPalace/Home.htm. I've also posted some other favorites from the vaca! Enjoy!

Joey's Pizza in West Hartford- Enthusiastic Review

Hey guys! Tonight I checked out a new restaurant in West Hartford and was thoroughly impressed. Joey's Pizza is located on 353 Park rd. in West Hartford and moved into the old Barb's pizza location. At a first glance it looks like they took full advantage of the small location and added more seating without feeling too cramped. The decor is contemporary and comfortable.

Classic thin crust pizza is their specialty and it sure was amazing. For a starter I had the (menu recommended) eggplant fries and they were Delish!!(FYI, they are HUGE portions, we ordered the large for 2 people and would have been fine with the small) For dinner I had the BBQ Chicken pizza(see picture below) and it did not disappoint. It had chicken, bacon, sweet onions, bbq sauce, and two cheeses(cheddar was one) for the perfect combination. The crust was thin and had just the right crispness. The service throughout (from William) was great as well.

Overall I would give this place a 4 out of 5 just because i haven't tried enough to give them that last star. I am certainly looking forward to return! I've posted the address/phone number below for anyone wanting to try!

Joey's Pizza
353 Park Road
West Hartford, CT 06119-1918

(860) 523-5639

www.joeyspizzapie.com 

Some of my Favorites

Kauai

Kauai

Paris

San Francisco

St. Lucia

Tortola

Newport

Bear Mountain

Riviera Maya

Riviera Maya

Washington, D.C

Chicago

Chicago

Over the years I have been to quite a few interesting places. To get started with this new chapter, I have posted some of my most recent favorites above. Enjoy!