Hiiiiii guys!
Goodness! I feel like there's a lot to talk about...We've been on the road, like many of you, and just came in last night. The number of crumbs on my kitchen floor is astounding...like a giant army waiting to attack my toes. I'm not sure how that happens so quickly. Before I annihilate them with the best vacuum ever (I'm obsessed with my new "for all floor-types" shark), I thought I'd share some pics and stories with you from the weekend. Every now and then, I'll try to hide in Mac's suitcase and spend time with him while he does his thing. Normally, I'm not successful...but it worked this time! He was busy for much of the time, but I was thankful to just be with him. We also got to catch up with several friends and we got to sleep late two mornings in a row (cue angelic music). 'Scuse the iPhone pics, but for once, I wasn't required to lug around everything we own...so I traveled light and it was awesome.
We hopped on the plane and headed to Philly, where FINALLY I got to see for myself which cheesesteak is worthy of a food network special. If you're unfamiliar with Geno's and Pat's...think of it in terms of pizza and New York. These two rivals directly face each other from opposite corners of a four way stop, both claiming to have the best philly cheesesteak in the world. First up, Geno's. Here it is, in all it's glory...simple, a bit neon, overpriced (because they can), and a line so long, it blocked traffic.
These guys were serious. They didn't have time to play, but this dude went the extra mile and grinned.
Geno's delivered. The sandwich (steak, all the way, with cheese whiz...yes I said cheese whiz) was going to be hard to beat. We inhaled it and took our Geno's cup across the street to Pat's...which, typically would be a felony of sorts, but what did we know...we're from Georgia.
I have to say...Geno's sandwich was better by a long shot, but Pat's was more fun. They spiced things up with humor, which scored them a few extra points from me. In case you add this to your bucket list, make sure to study this sign ahead of time. If you want to eat, you have to order correctly.
I ordered mine 'wit' it all...I guess my Philly-talk was good enough, because he took the cash and I got the goods.
I could've eaten three more, but we had to move on down the road to Montgomery County (PA).
We drove about 20 minutes into the 'burbs to a gorgeous little town and made our way into the countryside. Everything was lush and green and quiet...I kept thinking we were in England. We stayed with our friend Meredith at her farm house, and had a great time cooking out with her and her business partner (the two of them and Mac have worked alongside each other for the last seven or so years).
Meredith and Eric are professional chefs, so we knew it'd be delish...and we were right. They started things out with fresh oysters (okay, fresh everything...it was pretty great). I love being around people
who create recipes and make food for a living. I'm not a chef, but I like to think like a chef...so it's fun
for me to observe and listen and steal a few tips from my professional friends whenever I can.
This next picture is dark and blurry...and I'm fairly certain that the sounds coming out of that guitar sounded like a cat in heat, but come on. A good looking guy with a guitar...that should be shown. We can pretend that the music was billboard quality.
Sunday morning, we had an amazing market-fresh breakfast (bacon, eggs, coffee, freshly squeezed OJ, the works...) and then took a refreshing hike thru this enchanted forest (sorry...maybe Pixar is taking a toll on me). It was great to get out of nuts-ville and enjoy the calm, centering, peaceful woods. I'd like to have this in my back-yard.
Fast forward past the 'boring work stuff' and on to Monday night...we hopped on a train in Philly and
landed at Penn Station in Manhattan! I feel so accomplished for convincing four of our busy friends (and Mac) to meet in the city for Derek Jeter night. Funny- they're all professional chefs too. I'm a little shocked and very happy that it actually happened. It's seems like the thrown together, not really sure what's going on, random things are always the most fun memories.
I loved this personal moment of a police officer with his two boys...my favorite snapshot of the trip.
Monday morning, Mac had a meeting, I hadda' pack, and we hadda' plane to catch. Could not WAIT to see these kiddos...though, they didn't miss us too much. There were batman treasures, Elsa everything, and whatever else they dreamed of; They can't wait to go back to "Big Papa's." He's living up to his name.
The next four pictures are included, just because I thought they were pretty amazing. Here's a view from above the clouds, the rainbow that welcomed us back to GA, and the best ending to a long weekend ever...DQ.
Now for this nasty floor...off to clean!
No comments:
Post a Comment