Personal Chef on Call ~ Chez Michael

October 8, 2014 by Candi Licence 4 Comments

Michael’s Shrimp burgers with Remoulade sauce

Shrimp burgers with remoulade sauce, Zucchini Fritters, Scallops with Shiitake Mushrooms and Tortellinis, Shrimp in Clay Pot, grilled Salmon over tossed salad … I could go on and on about the fabulous gourmet meals that I have had the complete pleasure to savor recently. You might think that I’m talking about the great restaurants we’ve been going to and the fabulous meals they serve, but you’d be wrong. These are all meals Chez Michael has created and served in the last month.

Scallops with a garlic, Skitake mushroom sauce, served over tortellinis

Scallops with a garlic, Shiitake mushroom sauce, served over tortellinis

Michael has always been a fabulous chef, but retirement has really brought out his skill and creativity. Even though he has often worked 70+ hours a week he could always pull together a tremendous meal. Now, with the pressure of everyday work gone, Michael has more time to think about meals, what he would like to cook and has more time for preparation if he wants to try something time-consuming and/or complex.

And I am the lucky recipient of his gourmet mastery.

Michael rarely, if ever, follows a recipe. If he is thinking about a dish he hasn’t made before, he might check the web and read three or four different versions of something new and then he creates his own masterpiece. I have to admit though, it makes it tough to eat a better meal when we go out – we almost always eat better at home (unless we are eating at The Paper Canoe, a Duck restaurant that I will write about in another post – And then it’s a tie for quality and eating there just expands Michael’s ideas for interesting, flavorful meals.)

I joyfully take on the assistant role – chopping, organizing, cleaning, making salad and setting the table, plus manning the kitchen stove if part of the meal entails grilling. Michael is a master griller and everything comes off the grill perfectly – every time; something I’ve never mastered. The two things that just blow me away are steaks and seafood. How can they be perfect EVERY time? It’s gotten to the point that it is very hard for me to order grilled seafood in a restaurant because I know I’ll be disappointed.

Michael’s magical Salmon. His secret is to cook it with the skin down on foil and if he flips it, he separates the skin so the fish is essentially poached. It is out of this world.

When we got to the Outer Banks, there was no outdoor gas grill. This was a major issue for us as Michael grills probably 4 to 5 times per week. We made an agreement to split the cost to buy one with the owner and we need to remove it when we leave. It’s too much of a liability for him here – where the wind is so strong and renters could be negligent. A previous renter had the former grill in an enclosed space under the house and didn’t turn off the gas. One spark and the whole house could have gone up in flames, YIKES! No wonder there wasn’t a grill here when we arrived.

Michael’s Shrimp in a clay pot had the most delicious sauce seasoned with lemon grass and fresh ginger over rice vermicelli noodles

Michael’s most recent creation was Shrimp in clay pot. It was so good, we bought more ingredients so he can make it again in the near future. After each meal, we talk about what could have been improved. Often, this is a very tough conversation. Michael is so good at making wonderful meals it’s hard to think of any improvements. Often it’s a case of a slight change in seasoning, or in this case, all the recipes he researched said to leave the Shrimp shells on and we decided we’d like the dish better if they were taken off before serving.

If you want a gourmet meal, stop by where ever we are living and Michael will demonstrate his magic and we’ll have a wonderful meal together. Mangia! Salut! Cheers! – YUM!

sunday night - Salmon Salad, candles, a good bottle of wine and the BEST Chef as fabulous company.

Sunday night dinner – Salmon Salad, candles, a good bottle of wine and the BEST Chef as fabulous company. Lucky me!

An Enchanted Sanctuary ~ Elizabethan Gardens

October 5, 2014 by Candi Licence 4 Comments

Enrapt I sat in the quiet hour and found my soul in the heart of a flower.

A pathway enticing you to walk deeper into the garden

There is so much treasure and serenity to be found in a beautiful garden. Walking along formal walkways or informal foot paths, there are beautiful discoveries to be had – left and right, up and down. A well planned garden conceals and then reveals its delights around every corner and The Elizabethan Gardens is a stellar example of lush, quiet beauty. Because Michael loves flowers and photography, I always look for special gardens as we travel.

These beautiful 15 foot gates originally hung at the French Embassy in Washington DC

The Elizabethan Gardens were originally planned to be a two acre garden site created to memorialize Sir Walter Raleigh’s English colonists of Roanoke Island whose settlement mysteriously disappeared and became known as the “Lost Colony”, 20 years before the permanent settlements of Jamestown and Plymouth Rock were established. The North Carolina Garden Club began designing the garden in the early 1950’s and they planned to represent a colonial garden typical of the 1850’s. With the help of the renowned landscape architectural firm, Innocenti & Webel, they were able to secure a fantastic gift of statuary including an ancient Italian fountain and pool with balustrade, wellhead, sundial, birdbaths, stone steps and benches, dating back beyond the time of Queen Elizabeth I. As a result of this gift, the original colonial garden concept was expanded to become a more elaborate design and to incorporate a much larger parcel of land.

One of many beautiful fountains that grace the gardens

The designer, Richard Webel, used the statuary to “create a garden Elizabethan in spirit and style but adapted to the present. Built on ten acres of indigenous growth, the gardens are the imaginative concept of an Elizabethan pleasure garden. Construction actually began on the historic date of June 2, 1953, the date Queen Elizabeth II was crowned Queen of England. The Gardens were formally opened August 18, 1960, on the 373rd anniversary of the birth of Virginia Dare, the first child born in America of English parentage. ”

The lovely gatehouse serves as the entranceway to the gardens

The gorgeous grounds begin at the beautiful gatehouse that has a flagstone floor and hand-hewn beams. It was constructed to resemble a 16th century orangery, a building designed to protect orange trees during the harsh European winters. Just outside the gatehouse is a large courtyard with a formal Shakespearean herb garden.

Another view of the gatehouse that was designed to resemble an Orangerie

Another view of the gatehouse that was designed to resemble an Orangery

From here you can take a number of paths, some bricked or paved and others covered in soft pine needles, to see a magnificent statue of Queen Elizabeth the First who reined during this time; a 16th century historically accurate gazebo overlooking the sound; a statue of Virginia Dare, the first English child born in the new world; and an exquisite sunken garden with a fountain, formal plantings and many beautiful Crepe Myrtle trees. The sunken garden is framed by hollies that are trained to form beautiful arches that provide delightful glimpses of the garden’s interior and draw you into the garden with its large fountain.

This sculpture depicts what Virginia Dare might have looked like if she had grown to adulthood

Queen Elizabeth the first, holding a rose which was the symbol of the House of Tudor

Close up detail of Queen Elizabeth’s skirt

There is also a natural woodland garden, a formal rose garden and an extensive camellia collection that has 125 different species. There are HUGE Magnolia trees and a majestic Live Oak tree that is over 430 years old and was alive when the first colonists landed in Roanoke. There is also a very large, “great lawn” surrounded by trees and shrubs. During Elizabethan times, having a great lawn was a measure of wealth – only the truly rich could have land lie idle. All these gardens are connected by beautiful tree covered, canopied walkways that draw you further and further into the garden’s delights.

The gazebo, with a Norfolk reed thatch roof, overlooks the Roanoke Sound

One very special building is an authentic reproduction of a 16th century gazebo that was built using period tools and techniques. The hand-hewn oak posts and beams were locked together – no modern nails we used in this structure. The gazebo is topped with an authentic thatch roof. The Norfolk reed, brought over from Norfolk England, is considered by many thatchers as the finest roofing material and when an expert constructs with these materials, roofs are expected to last 60 to 70 years (!) as long as the ridge is replaced every 10-15 years. The gazebo is delightful to look at and is nestled into lovely woods that open up to overlook the Roanoke Sound.

We spoke to one of the garden’s caretakers who has worked at the garden for over 12 years. Her love of the garden was clearly evident in her conversation about the types of plants grown in the gardens and their bloom cycles. The gardens are designed to have color all year round. Spring and Summer have the most variety of blooms and are probably the showiest times. Fall is beautiful because it is so mild in North Carolina and the annuals are still blooming nicely while the grasses turn lovely shades of brown.

Camellias beginning to bud

Winter is special because all the Camellias, also called the Rose of Winter, are in bloom. The staff was starting to prep for a fall harvest festival with lots of activities for kids on the Great Lawn. This will be followed by Nights of Lights in December when the garden will be draped in twinkle lights which should be stunning.

Here is a sample of some of the plants that are in bloom now:

If you are ever in this area and like gardens and plants, the Elizabethan Gardens is a must visit excursion. (It is also located near the sweet town of Manteo – lots of lovely shops and restaurants on the Roanoke Sound.)

NOTES:

1. Information about this garden came from the Elizabethan Gardens website. Italicized text in quotes was pasted verbatim from the site.

2. Unfortunately, I could not find an author reference to the quote I saw at the garden on a plaque dedicated to Marie Perry Odom, Chairman of the Garden from 1974-1997 – Enrapt I sat in the quiet hour and found my soul in the heart of a flower. If anyone has any information, please let me know so I can update this post. Thank you.

Chasing the Light ~ Shooting the Bodie Lighthouse at Daybreak

September 23, 2014 by Candi Licence 10 Comments

Up at 5:00 AM so Michael could shoot an Outer Banks lighthouse at first light. Those of you who know me well will either be impressed or astonished, but yes it’s true, I was up at 5:00 AM – voluntarily. Michael packed his cameras, I packed water and the dog, plus my pillow – just in case (yeah right!). We pulled out of the driveway at 5:30. Michael drove and I napped until we arrived at the Bodie (pronounced body) lighthouse about 30 minutes before sunrise.

The spectacular pre dawn light was a perfect backdrop

The sky was just beginning to lighten and Michael took some fabulous shots of the lighthouse in silhouette with the sky just beginning to show color. It was so peaceful and beautiful. We then hiked out on a boardwalk and up to a platform so Michael could catch the light as it lit the lighthouse. It was an extraordinarily beautiful dawn, mostly clear with some clouds for interest and color contrast.

The gorgeous colors reflecting over the marsh

The Bodie Lighthouse is just south of Nags Head at the start of Hatteras. It is at the edge of a beautiful marsh area, so the setting is spectacular and a photographer’s dream – beautiful scenery and nothing obstructing the views. We stayed until the sun rose over the low laying cloud cover and then a little bit more to see how the golden color would wash the lighthouse.

The Bodie lighthouse in the soft, early morning light. Note the black and white horizontal stripes

Michael got some beautiful shots of the lighthouse, the marsh and, of course, the sky as it turned from deep orange to pink and then blue.

Each lighthouse has different markings so sailors can identify it from far away and know where they are in relation to the shoreline. The Bodie lighthouse has black and white horizontal stripes.

This is the Hatteras lighthouse. Note that this lighthouse has diagonal stripes to distinguish it from the Bodie lighthouse

We jumped back in the car and continued south. This time I drove and Michael rested his eyes as we continued to head towards Hatteras village at the end of this Outer Banks peninsula. We were on a scouting trip to see the Hatteras lighthouse. We knew that it would be too light by the time we arrived – you really want early morning or late afternoon soft light to get the most detail, but we often check out a site on one trip and then go back to photograph on another trip once we know which direction the light needs to be in to get the best shot.

This is the popular Hatteras Lighthouse keepers house. Many people came to visit this lighthouse, particularly on Sundays.

We arrived at the Hatteras lighthouse just before 9:00 AM and Michael took a couple of test shots. Mick and I walked around the deserted park looking for other places for Michael to shoot. Michael liked the look of the original lighthouse keepers house. Before automation, keepers had to live on site so they could service the lighthouse every two hours to keep it running – kind of like having a new baby! It has been widely reported that this was a very lonely existence, but this house had a plaque that said the Hatteras lighthouse was very popular with the locals who came by often, especially on Sundays, to visit and escape the inland heat.

Ten minutes later, cars started coming into the lot and a small tour bus arrived. This was exciting for Mick because so many people had Irish Setters when they were kids so they had to come over to give pets. Others are on vacation and missing their dogs, so they needed to come over as well and tell him how beautiful he is. Mick has such a hard life!

Surfing the waves with a kite looked really cool – AND you could get the wind to pull you back out again rather than fight the big waves like regular surfers have to do

After the lighthouse, we headed to the beach because there was a Kite Surfing contest going on. We didn’t see any actual judging but there were lots of kite surfers out in the rough water practicing. I learned that the kites are inflated on the front ridge (which is what keeps them rigid in the wind) and got to see how the kite attached to your body with a body harness so the surfer is holding on only to steer the kite. Men and women, both young and older were flying across the waves. It was very cool. After Michael got some pics, we headed on to the end of Hatteras island.

The stunning marsh grasses that surround the Bodie lighthouse. This was taken shortly after sunrise.

The stunning marsh grasses that surround the Bodie lighthouse, taken shortly after sunrise.

Hatteras Village is a small and sweet village and it looked like they had a good museum commemorating all the ship wrecks in this area which is known as the ‘Graveyard of the Atlantic’ because of all the ships that went down off the coast of the Outer Banks. We didn’t go in because we had Mick with us, maybe another trip. We did have an early lunch of good shrimp burgers at a local deli right next to all the charter fishing boats. Not a lot of activity going on off-season, but still great so see all the big boats. From here, we started to drive home – and it wasn’t even noon yet! What a great morning.

One more beautiful picture of the sun as it peaked over the low cloud cover

One more beautiful picture of the sun as it peeked over the low cloud cover

Learning to Fly ~ The Wright Brothers in Kitty Hawk

September 10, 2014 by Candi Licence Leave a Comment

Everybody probably knows of the Wright Brothers and has heard of their historic first flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, but if you are like me, that’s about the full extent of my knowledge so it was interesting to tour the Wright brother’s museum and memorial. Like many others, Wilbur and Orville Wright had a fascination with the theory that a person could fly with the help of machinery. The Wright brothers lived in Dayton, Ohio and owned a bicycle shop while thinking about human flight as a hobby and later as an obession.

The Wright Brothers Museum houses exact replicas of the final glider and first powered airplane – Even the building has a cool design.

In 1899, they contacted the Smithsonian Institution for literature about the progress of manned flight and realized that they had as much chance as anyone to solve the riddle of human flight. This encouraged them to deeply immerse themselves in the goal of being the first to create a flying machine. They were natural scientists and they developed and then tested their own theories of what it would take to be successful. First, they needed to solve the three key principle of maintaining flight: Lift (generating an upward force greater than the weight of the plane), Thrust (propelling the plane forward) and Control (stabilizing and directing the plane’s flight). Many others were also working on “flying machines” but no one had mastered these three elements in a predictable, controllable way. Most people were counting on the design alone to make flight successful. The Wright brothers took an unconventional approach and thought the pilot should control the plane.

The Wright Brothers monument, atop Kill Devil Hill, the sand dune where they launched their gliders, perfecting lift, thrust and control. By the time the monument was built, the dune had moved 450 feet so they needed to move it back and stabilize it!

The Wright brothers spent from 1899 to 1902 inventing and perfecting a glider including creating an innovative wing design. This included designing a wind tunnel to test their theories and to be able to produce their own data rather than relying on other people’s calculations. They chose Kill Devil Hill in Kitty Hawk as their real world testing ground for their theories because of its isolation with high dunes, strong winds and sand for soft landings. In 1902, they set up shop in Kitty Hawk and made 1,000 glider flights as they retooled and perfected their design and finally they had their first working airplane. At this point it was still considered a glider because it relied on wind for power and floated downhill for flight. The next step would be to develop a motorized version that would not have to rely on wind and gliding down a dune to operate.

A closer look at the Wright brothers monument

The criteria for true “flight” (versus gliding) were 1) the machine needed to leave the ground under its own power, 2) move forward, under control, without losing speed and 3) land on a point as high as that from which it started. The Wright brothers couldn’t find a suitable light weight, gas-powered engine so they created their own engine design. They also had to design the propellers – previously the only propellers were used for boats and were not suited for air. They used their wind tunnel to invent and create the first effective airplane propeller. Today’s propellers still use the design they created. Finally, on December 14th, 1903 they were ready to make their first attempt at powered, manned flight. Their plane had a 40 foot wing span and weighed 605 lbs. Wilbur won the coin toss to be the first to fly but over steered and the plane stalled, fell to earth and needed repairs before it could fly again.

The exact replica of the original airplane that Wilbur and Orville flew on December 17th, 1903.

Three days later, on December 17th, 1903 Orville laid on the lower part of the wing, manned the controls and flew for 120 feet before landing in the sand. He controlled the plane by using a stick shift to control the climb and descent of the plane, his hips were used to move a cradle that warped the wings and swung the vertical tail. There was also a lever that controlled the gas flow. Obviously, the skill of the pilot was just as important as their innovative design features. They flew three more times that day, gaining distance and air time with each flight as they adjusted how they controlled the plane. The last flight lasted 59 seconds and the plane traveled 852 feet, a huge breakthrough achievement. After the fourth flight, the high winds flipped the plane, caused significant damage and ended their experiment for that year. This was a truly historic day and the birth of aviation. Now just over 100 years later, air travel is commonplace; as is sophisticated space exploration. What tremendous progress over that relatively short period of time.

A portion of the Portrait Gallery that celebrates all the “firsts” in flight from earliest flight through the space age heroes. Michael captured me looking at Amelia Earhart’s portrait.

The museum has an exact reproduction of the last glider they built as well as a full-sized model of the first powered plane. It also has a beautiful gallery of portraits of key people who have made significant contributions to flight, all the way to present time. You can walk to the top of Kill Devil Hill to see the Wright Brothers Monument celebrating the glider trials and walk the flight paths of the first four powered flights. They have also reconstructed the 1903 hangar and the Wright brothers workshop and living quarters. I liked that they had a ladder to the rafters and burlap slings that look like hammocks that they slept in. It looked very comfortable, efficient and cool.

I loved the outdoor sculpture because you could walk right up to it and really get a feel for what it must have been like. This is Orville controlling the plane as it takes off for the first ever successful manned flight under power.

There is also an outdoor bronze sculpture of the plane with Orville laying on the wing, Wilbur running along side (having just released holding the wing tip to steady it during take off), plus statues of a few local men who helped get the plane situated and one who acted as the photographer to record the historic moment when the plane first took off. This was my favorite part of the exhibit. Even though it wasn’t made of the authentic materials, you could walk right up to the plane or statues and really get a feel for what it might have felt like to either be on the plane or close by as it made its first flight.

It was amazing to learn about all the theories and specialized designs that the Wright brothers created to fulfill their dream of manned flight. They are a testament to the American spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation. Now Michael wants to go hang gliding!

Here’s a picture of the whole plane with Wilbur running along side. What a thrill for both of them at the moment of success!

NOTE: All information is courtesy of the Wright Brothers National Memorial brochure, National Park Service. Any inaccuracies are mine alone.

Creating Home, Again ~ Arriving in the Outer Banks

September 5, 2014 by Candi Licence 8 Comments

After 5 days of traveling, we arrived in Duck, North Carolina. Duck is a charming town just north of Kitty Hawk and is one of the newer residential areas on the Outer Banks. The roads are curvy and tree-lined with beautiful Live Oak trees. They are called Live Oaks because they keep their leaves all year round and they have lovely twisted trunks that form great shapes. The downtown area is quaint looking with delightful shops that entice you to want to stroll in. I know I will spend a few days poking around the shops.

Jessica’s Dune

We arrived on a Sunday around 3:00 PM and the traffic was fine until we got near Duck and then it came to a slow crawl due to the evidently never-ending changeover traffic that happens each summer weekend. This would have been great for leisurely looking around, but we had been on the road for a long time and would have rather sped by the town to arrive at our new home.

We’re close to both the Sound and the Ocean

About 5 miles and 45 minutes later, we arrived at Jessica’s Dune, a large house, high up on a hill – one house from the sound and about 12 houses from the ocean. Our original plan was to take a quick look at the house, get a storage space, unload storable items and then go back and unload the items we wanted in the house. The only problem with this plan was that we were tired and just wanted to stay at the house. However, this meant that most everything we wanted for the house was neatly packed in the front of the truck – behind the items to store and, therefore, was difficult to get to. We had stopped as we went through Duck and got some grocery essentials so dinner was all set. We opted to just unload the suitcases that we traveled with and call it a night. Next time we travel, we’ll rethink how we load the truck and load all essentials near the back for quick and easy access.

The comfortable living room

Jessica’s Dune is a 3 level house with most of the living quarters on levels 2 and 3 to take advantage of the view and wow is there a great one. The living room and part of the wrap around deck face west and have a commanding view of the sound and sunset. I’m really looking forward to seeing lots of fabulous sunsets from the deck. We had a house on Cape Cod for a several years that had a similar west view over water and I really loved how easy it was to see beautiful sunsets almost every day. The west deck also has an outdoor hot tub which I expect we will use almost every night. Can’t wait to try it out.

Sunset from our deck – It doesn’t get any better than this!

The kitchen, dining room and screened porch are also on this level. The deck is so large that we can easily have both our hammocks set up as well as plenty of sitting room – heaven. There’s a gas fireplace in the living room which should be lovely once it cools down and fall arrives. The 3rd floor has three bedrooms – a master bedroom suite, a queen bedroom and a bunk room with 4 twin beds. The first level, formerly a garage, has been closed in and has a pool table, bar area and general game room area. We’ve set up all Michael’s photography shelving on this level as well as all the boxes we need to sort through to sell off their contents. This is great because they are out-of-the-way and we don’t have to drag them up one or two sets of stairs.

After staying in our adorable conch cottage in Key West, Jessica’s Dune feels like a mansion. The house has a nice open layout on the main floor and the deck which wraps around three sides of the house provides ample outside space with some part always in the shade, some part always sheltered from the wind so you can really get the exact experience you want. The kitchen is large enough for both Michael and me to work together easily which is also nice. Mick has even figured out how not to be underfoot every second. Jessica’s Dune has more of a rental house feel and we are using more of our household goods here but is still comfortable and will be very workable.

The next couple of days will entail securing storage, unloading the truck, and settling in. Living in Florida means mostly no stairs so being here where we will be going up and downstairs multiple times everyday will be an adjustment and good exercise for me. (I’m going to keep telling myself that as I’m lugging up boxes.) This should be a good incentive to think about what items are really important and what we can get rid of! Can’t wait to complete the move in so we can begin exploring and having fun.

The gorgeous Outer Banks Atlantic beach – just a short walk from our house

Farewell Key West ~ C & M “On the Move”

August 25, 2014 by Candi Licence Leave a Comment

A small number of the moving boxes

Two weeks ago we began packing up our belongings in Key West to get ready for our move to the Outer Banks. For Michael, this entailed disassembling the shelving for his photography equipment, packing up all his cameras, lights, stands, computer, printers, paper, props, etc. and then packing up our hammocks and stands. For me, it was disassembling the kitchen and bathroom and packing up jewelry making supplies. For both of us – packing clothes and putting everything back in the same places as they were when we arrived and doing a general cleaning. Tuesday is garbage pick up so we emptied the refrigerator Monday night except for some breakfast food. Since everything was packed and cleaned, we planned to eat out for lunch and dinner on Tuesday.

the sign that facilitated our easy move

On Tuesday, we loaded the U-Haul with the help of a man Michael hired. Michael had arranged with the town to mark the two parking spaces in front of our house as tow zones for Tuesday so we could park the truck right in front as we loaded. On a really small street like ours, this was essential and gave us peace of mind. If the parking spots had been taken, the truck would have blocked the entire road in both directions and we would have been frantically trying to load everything fast or hiking boxes a block or more – not a good thing. It took about 3.5 hours to load the house contents, drive to the storage unit, add in what was stored there and get back to the house to park the truck until morning. The saved parking spaces worked really well and this idea will be added to our list of traveling tips that I am compiling. We spent the remainder of the day doing final organization; having a great lunch at the Blossom Cafe and saying good-bye to the owners, Shannon and Jose; taking Mick for a last dog park romp and then going out for a final dinner at The New York Pasta Garden – good, easy meals with staff who have become friends. I’m really going to miss Jose’s Cajun delights and the great Italian food at NY Pasta Garden.

Black Cat relaxing into the long ride

Wednesday morning, we captured our cat before she left for the day and wrestled her into the cat carrier. We headed to U-Haul to add the car carrier, got the car loaded and headed on our way with the thought that we’d grab breakfast on the road. It’s easy to forget how hard it is to find a truck-pulling-a-car-carrier friendly location that you can pull straight into and then out of without having to turn around UNTIL you get on the road and try to find one (gas is hard enough). Note to self: Feed the husband before embarking or bring good food along in case there are no easy places to stop. This will definitely go on the list!

We drove from Key West to a Holiday Inn about 150 miles out of JAX the first day. Criteria for the hotel: 1) pet friendly 2) able to pull into parking lot easily, have plenty of room to park and the ability to leave without having to do a 26 point turn and 3) a good on site restaurant so we don’t have to drive the truck with car carrier to another location and figure out parking (are you seeing a pattern here?). FYI – if you haven’t checked out Holiday Inns for a number of years, we were very pleasantly surprised. The hotel was lovely, had good-sized, nicely furnished rooms, great bedding and a good enough restaurant (and a great parking lot). I would definitely stay with this chain again.

Our goal for the Outer Banks is to shed enough stuff so we can fill a smaller trailer and pull it with our car. I think this is doable. The houses we have rented are much more fully furnished and accessorized that we expected so we can sell or give away another whole level of stuff. We started this in Key West but the house was pretty small and didn’t lend itself to a lot of clutter while we opened up boxes and consolidated or jettisoned items. We’ve got 4 big boxes of paperwork to review and scan plus another 4 big boxes of old photos that will be scanned – that will be 8 less HEAVY boxes to load up. We will also be getting rid of small appliances, dishes and clothes as well as putting a few more “good” things in long term storage that we want to keep but aren’t worth moving from place to place. We had also packed up all of our large sized cleaning products when we left JAX which filled 4 boxes – everything we don’t use in this second move will go and we will just buy small sizes going forward.

Travel Day 2 got us to JAX early enough in the day that we could go to our long term storage and take out the boxes of photos to be scanned, a bicycle and a few other items we’ll be selling and putting in some items we will no longer travel with and then rented a car to do a day and half of errands and appointments. While we were in JAX we visited our UPS store (our mailing address) to pick up last week’s mail and packages, both of us went to the dentist for a cleaning, Mick had a Vet appointment, we did a little shopping and I got a facial from my favorite esthetician Kim at Bella Skincare Studio(heaven!). We went to dinner with our friend and Michael’s photographer buddy, Holly Gordon, at India’s restaurant and had a great meal and dinner conversation. We were now ready to depart early Saturday (after breakfast) and drive 2/3’s of the way to the Outer Banks.

Good travel buddies

Good drive on Saturday. Each time, once we get started, we let Black Cat out of the carrier (which she hates to be in) and let her roam around. Mostly she either lies on top of our laps or on Mick (believe it or not) and sometimes he lies his head right on her! They are good buddies and great travel companions. Mick has always been a great car dog, this trip was much easier for our cat than last time. She is really becoming a road warrior.

Mick is always ready to ride shotgun

We stayed at another Holiday Inn – right distance, easy on/off of the highway plus the 3 criteria for staying – pet friendly, large parking lot, restaurant on site. This hotel was really large and looked fairly empty so we parked along one side. When we walked Mick in the early evening we were in for a huge surprise. There was a family reunion happening – 400 people converged on the hotel and every parking spot of the side of the hotel was taken. Michael had maybe 1 foot on either end of the truck to try and maneuver out – YUCK! As we were discussing what we were going to do, I noticed 4 young men talking by one of the hotel doors. We walked up to them and I asked if they knew who owned either of the cars parked next to the truck. They did and the driver was just coming out of another door. They yelled to him and he came a pulled out which gave Michael enough room to get the truck out. YEAH! We pulled way around back, and pulled out saw horses to block the closest parking spots so it would be easy to get out in the morning.

When we left early the next morning all those cars were still parked so we would have been in a real pickle. New note to self: make sure to have a way to block off spots around the truck to we don’t get blocked in. Hopefully the lists I’m compiling will help others travel more easily and joyfully.

Next stop: Duck, North Carolina – a small town on the Outer Banks, just north of Kitty Hawk.

The Square Grouper ~ And Other Fish Tails

July 26, 2014 by Candi Licence Leave a Comment

The Square Grouper Logo, tagline ” my favorite joint”

The Square Grouper – highly desirable in some circles, very profitable and oops, illegal. A Square Grouper is a tongue-in-check name for the bales of marijuana that sometimes wash up on shore in the Keys after they have been dumped off drug running boats when authorities get too close. It is also the name of a lower keys restaurant and long time institution.

We were ready for a road trip and had heard about a great restaurant on Cudjoe Key, Mile 22.5 Oceanside, so one fine day we jumped in the car for a ride. Most Keys locations don’t have a regular address, they give their mile marker number as their address. Mile 100 is in Key Largo, the first key from the mainland and Mile 0 is in Key West. Since most keys are so skinny, getting the mile marker number and then “Oceanside” or “Bay/Gulf” side is enough description to find almost any place. It’s also a very convenient way to know how far away places are.

We pulled into a pretty non descript building and I was surprised when we got inside. People had touted The Square Grouper Bar and Grill as having an old keys feeling so I was expecting a somewhat run down or ramshackle type setting. Instead, the interior was sleek and modern. Maybe they were talking about the menu? Nope, delicious looking but trendy. Prices could be old keys – very reasonable for great food.

The industrial exterior conceals a surprisingly upscale and attractive interior

We were there for lunch and it was hard to decide what to order ~ so many dishes looked great, so we decided to only purchase appetizers so we could sample more options. We started off with Yellowfin Tuna and Avocado Eggrolls with a great dipping sauce. These were crispy and wonderful. We also scarfed down some yummy flash fried conch with a Ponzu sauce drizzled with wasabi. These were followed by Island Shrimp Cakes with a Banana Pepper Aioli sauce which were also fabulous.

Island Shrimp Cakes, Yellowfin Tuna and Avocado Eggrolls and flash fried Conch on right

White chocolate, toasted coconut, almond cheesecake, Oh My!

But the best part was dessert. They were serving a white chocolate, toasted coconut, almond cheese cake. I generally would never get dessert for lunch, I don’t even usually get dessert with dinner and I’ll almost never order cheesecake after growing up in New York where, in my opinion, they make the best cheesecake in the world. This looked to wonderful too pass up and boy am I glad I didn’t. Michael and I split a piece and it was dense and creamy like New York cheesecake plus it had all the wonderful additional flavors that blended really well. I’m still thinking about it days later …..

Just down the road, we stopped at Low Keys Fisheries, a seafood retail store, that was recommended to us. One of the surprises about Key West is how hard it is to buy fresh fish. All the restaurants have it, of course, but the grocery stores’ fish look pretty poor and so do the seafood markets. All I can figure is that so many people have boats and they catch fish for themselves so there isn’t a big market to purchase fresh fish. We asked around the charter boats but they don’t sell the fish they catch. Mr. Chapman’s brother, Eugene, catches a lot of fish and will sell his extra which is wonderful, but he mostly catches snapper so not much variety.

A good variety of great looking fish

Low Key Fisheries is an exception (as long as you want to travel 20 miles to buy fish). The store had a nice variety of fish and everything looked great. We bought some Key West Pinks (shrimp) and some lovely looking Salmon. Chef Michael did his fish magic the next two nights and prepared feasts. I love having a personal chef!

Tantalizing Tapas ~ Santiago’s Bodega

July 21, 2014 by Candi Licence 2 Comments

Until this dinner, we haven’t been overly impressed with the food in Key West. I think Michael and I both came down with the expectation of finding lots of restaurants with fabulous food. We have eaten good food here but we have spent a fair amount of money in some places and didn’t think the quality of the food justified the high price. Santiago’s Bodega, a tapas style restaurant, exceeded all our expectations and can be rated a solid 10.

The beautiful full moon outside Santiago’s Bodega

Santiago’s Bodega is off the main drag, on Petronia Street, just past Mr. Chapman’s house. We had reservations for 9:30 PM because we were dining after our full moon sunset cruise. The restaurant was still hopping. As we were shown to our table, I could see great meals being delivered left and right. We had a lovely table in the corner so it was quite intimate and we could still see the bustle of the rest of the restaurant. Michael ordered a lovely bottle of wine and it was fairly priced for a change. Wine in Key West restaurants generally is very expensive. I know you will always pay more but often it’s 4 times what you could buy on your own which means you are paying $80 for a $20 bottle of wine!

The lovely interior of Santiago’s Beodega

Alan, our server, was personable and guided us through the extensive menu. We decide on 6 dishes to share – Beef Tenderloin, mini rack of Lamb (encrusted with mustard, thyme and pecans), Shrimp and Chorizo, Spanakopita (Spinach, Feta and onion in Phyllo), a Scallop special and beef short ribs with a cherry hoisin glaze. EVERYTHING was wonderful and we had a hard time deciding what we liked best. Michael voted for the short ribs, I honestly couldn’t decide, I could just narrow it down to 4 items. I love that problem. Lighting in the restaurant was fairly dark so Michael was not able to snap any pictures of the food but, believe me, the plates looked as good as they tasted.

I’d love to go back to this restaurant again before we leave and the big question will be – should we try the other mouth watering items on the menu or enjoy the great dished we have already tasted? We’ll have to see …… I’m sure the short ribs at least, as we both loved them.

Doesn’t Get Any Better Than This ~ Moonrise/Sunset Sailing

July 18, 2014 by Candi Licence 4 Comments

A perfect sunset and a perfect sail

At the Pier House one evening, we watched numerous boats depart for sunset tours. We knew we wanted to do a sunset sail while we were in Key West, the decision was when to go and on what boat. Because of the beautiful full moonrise in June, I also checked to see if there was a way to coordinate seeing the July moonrise while we were on the sunset tour. BINGO! We lucked out. On July 11th, the moon was scheduled to rise at 7:36PM and the sun was scheduled to set at 8:19PM.

Our boat, the High Tide

As you might guess, there are a large number of options but after researching, I found Sunset Sail Key West who have a lovely, small boat named High Tide that only takes 6 passengers. It was a little more expensive but sounded so much more intimate than the larger boats that take anywhere for 40 to 80 people. Also, the big boats come back by 8:30, just minutes after the sun drops below the horizon in July and Sunset Sail Key West sails until 9:00 which would give us lots of time to enjoy the changing colors as the twilight appears. I booked our seats and prayed for great weather. The evening was perfect; blue sky with some lovely clouds, but a clear horizon and little haze.

The drama of this sunset kept getting better and better

We got to the harbor and it was a mad house. Lots of people loading onto lots of boats. The advantage of the large boats is you can wait to see if the night is going to be wonderful, book last minute and probably get a seat, and they were all packed full – with music blaring. We were in for a much different experience. High Tide is a sweet, small boat and as luck would have it, no one else had booked for the 11th so we were the only passengers.

First Mate, Joanne, looking east towards to moonrise

Joanne was the First Mate and had everything ship shape for the start of the tour and Steven was the Captain. We motored out of the harbor, the sails were raised and then Steven cut the engine – Ah, peace and quiet and we were off. Lucky for us, we had good wind so it was cool and we could cruise at a nice pace. This was the point when Steven told us the other big boats have a sail raised but they motor the whole trip. WOW, I didn’t realize that and I would have been really disappointed.

Steven, our fearless Captain

Steven has been a Captain for many years and he told us lots about Key West and sailing throughout the Caribbean. He pointed out a large ship that is a Boy Scout sailing camp where the boys get to live and sail for a week. They learn to do everything – rig, sail, cook and clean. He had been a Captain for a summer and really liked it. When we went by, the boys were swinging off the rigging into the water below and looking like they were having a blast.

As you can see, the sunset was fairly spectacular that night and the moonrise was like adding a cherry on top of a perfect evening. I don’t think there was any way the sail could have been more perfect. Perfect day, perfect boat, perfect crew and perfect husband. YUM!

‘Hunker Down’ with Bill Blue and Friends

July 3, 2014 by Candi Licence 2 Comments

Poster announcing the event

Bill Blue, a great Blues singer, songwriter and guitarist, started his show talking about how he was working in Boston in the 70’s, looking for gigs and got hooked up with a band that was created to tour with an up-and-coming female vocalist ~ according to Bill, one day he was picking tomatoes and the next day touring with Bonnie Raitt and BB King! He played with many great Blues musicians and then came down to the Keys in 1982 to chill out from touring and spent the next 30 years writing and playing his exceptional music here.

For Saturday’s show, A Farewell to the Arms, he gathered some of his favorite musicians together to play with him to commemorate the closing performance at The Studios of Key West historic Armory location.

Rocking the hall – photo by Michael Ruetz

There were 6 great musicians in addition to Bill, plus three backup singers. The stage was overflowing and exploded with fabulous sound right from the first song. Bill is a great story teller and his introductions to each song were engaging and insightful. Some of the members of the band recently recorded a new album with Bill, others were Key West locals. They were totally in synch with each other and gave each other plenty of time for solos to show off their great talent and then blended back into a united sound that rocked the hall. The venue was small and we had perfect seats to see all the band interaction which gave the evening an intimate feeling. Bill and the band walked around freely during the break and it was easy to speak to them and thank them for the great music.

The Studios of Key West is an artist’s workspace with a small performance hall for concerts, lectures, plays and dance; galleries for exhibitions, a sculpture garden and, most importantly, artist in residence studios where 35 artists are sponsored throughout the year to practice their craft and create art.

One of Laura McAloon’s wonderful metal sculptures

In addition to their personal work while in residence, they also may lead classes in their area of expertise. Things are relatively slow in the summer months, but there is a jam packed schedule throughout most of the year that is extensive in scope and breadth of subject matter (from funky and fun like Feathered Maskmaking in time for Fantasy Fest or Zombie Bike Decorating for the Annual Zombie Bike Ride – to the significant and serious like Pulitzer prize winner Ayad Akhtar’s lecture on the gap between East and West and the fevered logic of extremism or a Photography exhibit by Alexandra Dietz titled Changing Tides in Key West, a 5 month photographic tour of the island’s distinct subcultures and one-of-a-kind characters that inhabit this island – as well as more expected offerings in writing, painting, photography and unleashing creativity). I wanted to sign up for almost everything!

Bill's recently released album, Mojolation

Bill Blue recently released a new album, Mojolation

Bill’s new album released in October of 2013 is called Mojolation. Per the Classics du jour website, “Mojolation…is chock full of energy; raw, edgy guitars and funky horns power Bill’s unique blues growl. It’s music that’s at once fresh, yet captures the authentic spirit of old blues recordings. After thirty years as the elder statesman of music in Key West, Bill Blue crashes back into the international blues music scene with Mojolation, a record that is punchy, powerful, upbeat and exciting.” This perfectly captures the feeling of Saturday’s performance.

One of my favorite songs of the evening, Hunker Down, is about a hurricane that Bill and his family lived through. They stayed at their house thinking the hurricane would pass by far away and when they realized it was coming right at them it was too late to leave. Bill’s teenage daughter was especially upset by the howling wind and torrential rain so he decided they should write a song, right then and there, to keep their minds busy – Pretty Wild! (and a great song). I hope we get to see Bill again before we’re off to the Outer Banks in mid August.

For more info on Bill and to hear his music visit the Classics du jour website.

Candi and Michael ~ On The Move

Tales from Grenada and Beyond