TravelStream™ news feed for member chronometers on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/chronometers en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 25 Oct 2009 12:59:58 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1256473423/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1256473423/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1256473423/tpod.html Sun, 25 Oct 2009 12:59:58 -0400 This is Chris' and Melanie's log of our move to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

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Trondheim, Trondelag, Norway

Our first stop this day was Trondheim, Norway's first capital city and a trading post for thousands of years.  Apparently the first ever export of American goods to Europe took place here around 1000 AD.  After the capital moved to Bergen (1217), Trondheim became Norway's religious center (actually, pilgrims started coming to the shrine of St. Olav 200 years earlier). Nidaros Cathedral, built from 1070-1300ish, is the highlight of the town now, although there is also an excellent military museum next door as well.The rest of the day was spent in the Panorama lounge, watching the scenery go by. The next morning we were up early to be on deck as we crossed the Artic Circle.  The globe sculpture marks the crossing point.  We were scheduled to go on 2 different expeditions (Chris and Melanie on a rafting trip and Jim and Martha on a glacial expedition), both of which were cancelled due to stormy weather.  The boat also had to change its course.  Although we were originally supposed to go to the Lofoten Islands (which Melanie was especially looking forward to since her Norwegian friend had specifically recommended it), the seas were too rough and the boat continued up the coastline.   We stopped in Bodo, where we visited a modern cathedral (1956) and the surprisingly interesting Bodo Nordland Museum.  This museum contains exhibits of traditional Sami life and a huge collection of silver from over 1,000 years ago, among other things.  Bodo was heavily bombed in World War II (2/3 of the town's buildings were destroyed) so it has a very post-war feel to it.Thanks to the diverted course, we arrived in Stokmarknes, home to the Hurtigruten museum, at around 8pm instead of 1:00 am. As a consolation prize for the change in itinerary, the museum was open until 11pm.  It was actually a very interesting history of the Hurtigruten line and the way that it has grown and evolved over the years.  It even included a decommissioned boat from the early days when travel was, at the same time, more luxurious and more rough.Coming next:  Tromso and the most northern point in Europe 
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1256374518/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1256374518/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1256374518/tpod.html Sun, 25 Oct 2009 04:14:02 -0400 This is Chris' and Melanie's log of our move to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

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Geiranger, Western Fjords, Norway

Boarding the Hurtigruten&nbsp;ship is the beginning of the <i>real reason that we came to Norway. &nbsp;Chris' Mom and Melanie had always wanted to take the Hurtigruten Norwegian fjords cruise. &nbsp;Chris' Mom had a milestone birthday this year and it was also his parents' 50th wedding anniversary this year, so it seemed like a good occasion for Martha to finally see the fjords. &nbsp;Because of the time of year and the downturn in the travel industry they found a great deal on the cruise, so Melanie and Chris joined as well for the 7 day voyage from Bergen to Kirkenes.The Hurtigruten is not a big fancy cruise ship. &nbsp;It is a multi-purpose coastal ferry that serves the western coast of Norway. &nbsp;Local people use the ferry to get from town to town. &nbsp;It is a car ferry, a postal carrier, a freight carrier, a passenger ferry, and it has several rooms that people like us can rent for multi-day cruises. &nbsp;Some of the stops are as short as 10 minutes - just long enough to load passengers and freight, drop the mail and supplies for the village, and keep going. &nbsp;The boat makes stops all through the night, so it is virtually impossible to get off and see every port of call - unless you really don't want to sleep! &nbsp; We had a room near the back of the boat, which we learned really isn't ideal. &nbsp;The big engines make a lot of noise and vibrate when docking/undocking so that first night we were awoken several times with the noise and vibration. &nbsp;So, when the boat docked at 7am and we were awake anyway, we decided to run out and see whatever was available to see. &nbsp;It wasn't much - just a few buildings and a road - but we had our first port of call. &nbsp;It was also a good learning because we had misunderstood where the boarding time was posted and had to run for the boat before it left again!!Along with the quick 10 minute stops, there are some longer ones as well. &nbsp;It seems that the stopover time is proportional to the size of the town (and therefore probably the amount of freight to be loaded/unloaded). &nbsp;There is at least one stop of 3-4 hours every day and there are also site-seeing excursions organized by the cruise staff. &nbsp;There is no onboard entertainment other than watching the beautiful scenery go by. &nbsp;The internet sucks, so nobody bothers to be online either. &nbsp;Basically, it's an extraordinarily relaxing way to see some beautiful landscape. The first "real" stop was the town of Alesund, with 40,000 inhabitants. &nbsp;The town was leveled by fire in 1904 and was rebuilt in Art Nouveau style, much of which has been preserved. &nbsp;The 30 minutes stop was enough to see some of the buildings and take a quick run to a lookout point overlooking the port.From Alesund, we entered the Geiranger Fjord, a Unesco World Heritage site and commonly agreed to be the most beautiful fjord in Norway.&nbsp;The fjord is typically narrow, gracefully curving, and bordered with steep cliffs sporting slender waterfalls - even at this time of year. &nbsp;We can only imagine how the waterfalls must look during the spring thaw! &nbsp; From the town of Geiranger, at the end of the fjord, Chris' parents and Melanie boarded a smaller boat for a full day bus excursion. The bus first climbed to a lookout point with beautiful views, from where we could watch the Hurtigruten boat retreat up the fjord. &nbsp;We then drove across beautiful farmland, rising in elevation, and crossed a river (on ferry) toward the beginning of the "Troll" Highway (Trollstigen pass). &nbsp;Here we saw large, stark gray mountains which, by myth, are said to be giant trolls who turned to stone upon seeing sunlight. &nbsp;With some imagination one can make a troll profile of the smooth mountain peaks. &nbsp;The bus driver had to navigate 11 hairpin turns on the way down this pass. &nbsp;We were all glad to be passengers and not the driver! &nbsp;Again, thin, tall waterfalls were everywhere. &nbsp;And, thanks to the on-again/off-again rainy weather, we saw several rainbows as well.At the end of the day, the excursion met up with the boat in another town. &nbsp;The boat had kept sailing up the coast, making its deliveries and ferrying passengers, while many of us were exploring a bit of the land.Tomorrow's big stop: &nbsp;TrondheimP.S. &nbsp;Apologies to Norwegian purists for the Americanization of spellings throughout this series. &nbsp;We have no idea how to make the Norwegian letters (o with a slash, mini circle on top of the a, etc) on our keyboard.&nbsp;
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1255883586/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1255883586/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1255883586/tpod.html Sun, 18 Oct 2009 13:14:10 -0400 This is Chris' and Melanie's log of our move to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

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Bergen, Western Fjords, Norway

Hi again!After the fast boat ride, we arrived in Bergen around 8 p.m. &nbsp;Hotels in Bergen are incredibly expensive, (actually, everything in all of Norway is incredibly expensive!) so we found a 2 bedroom apartment in a residential area where we stayed for the evening. &nbsp;The apartment was up some very steep hills, but actually not very far from the waterfront once we figured out where we were and the best way to get down the hill. &nbsp; We went exploring and found a cute little restaurant for pancakes in the morning. &nbsp;Boy did they take a long time though. &nbsp;So long that Chris' dad had time to smoke his pipe!The waterfront area of Bergen, called the Bryggen, is a Unesco World Heritage Site. &nbsp;It is a very atmospheric area with wooden structures filled with shops and lots of little alleyways between them. &nbsp;Unfortunately, since we were there on Sunday the fish market was closed. &nbsp;We went to the Hanseatic Museum and enjoyed walking around the town. &nbsp;&nbsp; One of the unexpected treats was the &lt; Tourist Information Center! which had beautiful murals on the walls.In the late afternoon we boarded the Hurtgruten coastal ferry and started the journey that had brought us all to Norway. &nbsp;You'll learn more in the next entry....Melanie and Chris
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1253439308/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1253439308/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1253439308/tpod.html Sun, 18 Oct 2009 12:30:45 -0400 This is Chris' and Melanie's log of our move to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

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Oslo, Norway

Hi everybody!We flew in to Oslo on a Friday afternoon and met Chris' parents in preparation for a train trip through the forest to Myrdal from where we transferred to a small gauge railway to Flam and then a fast ferry down the longest fjord in Norway - the Sognefjord. During our afternoon in Oslo we walked down to the harbor from where we could take a ferry across the Oslo fjord to the&nbsp; Viking Ship Museum. &nbsp;The 3 Viking ships are the best preserved in the world. &nbsp;They were found in burial mounds and the museum contains many of the other items found in the mounds - such as sleds and ceremonial carts, textile goods and other items. The next day we took an 8 a.m. train through beautiful countryside to the very small town of Myrdal. &nbsp;From there we transferred to The Flåm Railway, one of the worlds steepest railway lines on normal gauge. &nbsp;It twisted and turned 2800 feet down to the small town of Flam, on the Sognefjord, stopping along the way for a quick photo opp, including a singing woman, at the&nbsp;Kjosfossen waterfall.The Sognefjord is the largest fjord in Norway and the 2nd longest in the world. &nbsp;The fast boat from Flam to Bergen took over 4 hours! &nbsp;And trust us, it was a fast boat! &nbsp;At first we had the bright idea that we should grab a spot outside, but once that boat got going it was really cold and windy. &nbsp; We quickly got inside seats and rotated between being outside enjoying the cold breeze and scenery and being inside enjoying the warmth. &nbsp;Along the way we saw lots of beautiful scenery and many little towns that are serviced by the boat. &nbsp;We also saw a glacier off in the distance. The low density of towns was impressive as was the tiny-ness of some of these "towns" (often just a group of houses). &nbsp;It was nothing compared to the remoteness we were to see later in the trip though.&nbsp;Coming next...BergenMelanie and Chris
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1254042636/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1254042636/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1254042636/tpod.html Sun, 27 Sep 2009 07:23:41 -0400 This is Chris' and Melanie's log of our move to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

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Scheveningen, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands

Hi everybody!Yesterday we went to a kite festival at the beach town of Scheveningen. &nbsp;It's just a few miles from The Hague, so we took the train to The Hague and then rode our bikes to the beach. &nbsp;Some of the kites were HUGE and many were multi-part .... there would be a lead kite WAAAAAYYY up high and then larger kites would be hooked onto the lead kite's string (really a rope) and would fly attached to that.&nbsp; <img class="yui-img" src="http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs270.snc1/9721_140005842794_623687794_2555242_2886961_n.jpg">Enjoy the pictures (click this link)!&nbsp;Melanie and Chris
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1242714000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1242714000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1242714000/tpod.html Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:07:42 -0400 This is Chris' and Melanie's log of our move to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

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Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

It has been awhile since we've updated you on our travels and living situation, so here's a year's worth of events in one quick recap!Last fall, Melanie accepted a job working for one of the companies that she had worked with in her old job. &nbsp;This has allowed us to remain in the Netherlands, which we have not regretted &nbsp;in the least.&nbsp; As we had been here for 5 years, we qualified for permanent residence (equivalent of a green card), and are free to work in the Netherlands and Europe without special company sponsorship. In brief, here are our adventures since last winter......From January through March, we moved the bulk of our household goods back to be stored in Chris' parents place near Baltimore, MD. &nbsp; It was somewhat of a challenge to pare our household here in Amsterdam down to just the basic necessities.&nbsp; After filling up 1/2 a 40 foot sea container (a typical 18 wheeler trailer), we realized we had quite a bit of stuff. &nbsp;And, you can't really tell that we moved that much either!What else have we been up to?&nbsp; Melanie traveled to Bangalore, India on business in October.&nbsp; This was a part of India she had not been to before and is known as the Silicon Valley of the country.&nbsp; Melanie found the people to be friendly and hard working.&nbsp; The sites were an interesting contrast to those we had seen in Northern India. &nbsp; Just before Xmas, we traveled to the Cologne, Germany Xmas market. <img class="yui-img" src="http://images.travelpod.com/users/chronometers/amsterdam.1242714000.colognex-germany-xmas-market.jpg" alt="Cologne, Germany Xmas market, Amsterdam, Netherlands">We spent the holidays in MD and OH, USA with family.&nbsp; At the beginning of April, just before Easter, we traveled to Verona, Italy where we met some friends and enjoyed the Italian wine show there. &nbsp;We went to Milan for a day then flew to the UK where we explored Bristol, the Costswolds and spent 5 days in London.&nbsp; We met friends in Brackley, UK and a friend from New York in London. &nbsp;<img class="yui-img" src="http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs035.snc1/3276_73242387794_623687794_1671346_5912669_n.jpg">Here is a picture of us in a stone circle located within the Costswolds: <img class="yui-img" src="http://images.travelpod.com/users/chronometers/amsterdam.1242714000.rollright-stonesx-uk.jpg" alt="Rollright Stones, UK, Amsterdam, Netherlands">April 30 was Queens Day in Holland.&nbsp; As usual, this was quite a celebration. &nbsp;<img class="yui-img" src="http://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs035.snc1/3276_76614562794_623687794_1718157_4011297_n.jpg">We went on a boat cruise around the canals of Amsterdam to celebrate a friend's Birthday in May.&nbsp; We also traveled to Berlin for a 4 day holiday weekend in May.&nbsp; This city always fascinates us with how much it is transformed every time we go back.&nbsp; We explored several neighborhoods we had not visited on previous trips.&nbsp; The city is very easy to get around on foot and by an excellent mass transit system.&nbsp; As luck would have it, we were there on the day that the 60th anniversary of Germany's constitution was being celebrated.&nbsp; We got to hear the Berliner Philharmonic perform Beethoven's 9th Symphony as part of the celebration next to the Brandenberg gate: <img class="yui-img" src="http://images.travelpod.com/users/chronometers/amsterdam.1242714000.chris-x-melanie-x-berlinxs-celebration.jpg" alt="Chris &amp; Melanie @ Berlin's celebration, Amsterdam, Netherlands">In the early summer, we were lucky to see John Mayall at a small venue of several hundred people near Amsterdam.<img class="yui-img" src="http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs013.snc1/4205_86325742794_623687794_1849463_2385977_n.jpg">We linked up with some American friends of ours in Ghent, Belgium for a arts festival. &nbsp;Ghent is one of the most scenic and mellow places in all of Europe. &nbsp;Our friend used to live in Amsterdam and moved to Brussels last year. &nbsp;They moved back to the US to Florida just a couple weeks ago. &nbsp;&nbsp;<img class="yui-img" src="http://images.travelpod.com/users/chronometers/amsterdam.1185808260.04x-medieval-ghent.jpg" alt="04. Medieval Ghent, Ghent and Lier, Belgium">Ghent photo link&nbsp;In mid-August, we had the chance to see David Byrne at a small venue here in Amsterdam.&nbsp; We had to wait in line for 30 minutes and ended up being in the 5th row center:<img class="yui-img" src="http://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs122.snc1/5250_110649012794_623687794_2209597_7412056_n.jpg"> Here are more David Byne photos.Last weekend we took a weekend trip to Paris, France, one of our favorite places to just wander around and enjoy the atmosphere. &nbsp;Later this week, we will be traveling to Oslo and will meet Chris' parents there. &nbsp;From there we are traveling across Norway via train and will be taking boat cruise up the west coast of Norway into the Artic Circle.&nbsp;An interesting article written by a fellow American expat here in Amsterdam recently appeared in the New York Times. It discusses the Dutch style of living and collectivist society. The article provides some interesting insight on some aspects that may be helpful in the US:NY Time Amsterdam article linkFinally, we'll be in Ohio and MD in October as well as at the holiday season and hope to be able to catch up with many of you then. <img class="yui-img" src="http://images.travelpod.com/users/chronometers/amsterdam.1242714000.afternoon-in-amsterdam.jpg" alt="Afternoon in Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands">
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1221426480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1221426480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1221426480/tpod.html Wed, 03 Jun 2009 06:18:11 -0400 This is Chris' and Melanie's log of our move to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

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Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Open Monument Day was pretty cool. We went into 4 buildings yesterday. The first was a church that I walk by on my way to the gym. It's normally open for services but not for tourists and looks like nothing from the outside but turns out to be BEAUTIFUL inside. There's also a very old corn measuring house across the walkway from the gym that was open today. On the outside it's a beautiful old building but it's never open. Turns out that it's the office of an organization that works to protect old buildings and neighborhoods. We learned how farmers used to bring their corn there to be measured and judged for quality. Then we went to a very old house (1520s) in the Red Light District that is now home to the Salvation Army (2 floors) and where a family lives on the upper floors. Finally, we went to the old weigh house which sit on an open area (plein) at the edge of the Red Light District, Chinatown, and a residential area. The building used to be part of Amsterdam's wall and was later a weigh house. Now there's a restaurant on the ground floor. For Monument Day the upper floors were open and we learned that 4 guilds used to occupy the tower. One floor was for the masons and it had beautiful stone and brick work on the walls and ceilings. The top floor was for the surgeons guild and had an anatomical dissection theater that Rembrandt had been commissioned to paint (the painting is now in a museum in The Hague). We had no idea these things were sitting above the restaurant! Tomorrow we'll go explore some more buildings.http://www.openmonumentendag.nl/paginas/38/english/summary
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1219269900/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1219269900/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1219269900/tpod.html Sun, 14 Sep 2008 04:43:59 -0400 This is Chris' and Melanie's log of our move to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

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Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands

Hi everybody!One of the stores here ran a special deal on Netherlands train day passes so we got a couple and took a day trip to the most southern tip of the Netherlands, Maastricht. We had been to Maastricht before (see February 28, 2004, entry) and knew that it was a vibrant, interesting city. It has a very international feel due to its position on the borders with Germany and Belgium. We spent the day wandering the streets, having a coffee or beer on the pretty squares, walking along the river and visiting their world class modern art museum. We also visited the Basilica of Saint Servatius and the Treasure-house Basilica of Our Lady. The Basilica of Saint Servatius was begun to house the grave of Saint Servatius who died in 384 AD and the treasury is filled with tapestries, relics, and other interesting religious art objects.Late in the afternoon we took the train back towards Amsterdam, stopping in Den Bosch. Den Bosch has more of a "university town" feel with lots of moderately priced restaurants and a real mix of old and new. It also has the only cathedral in the Netherlands. We enjoyed wandering around this town as well and admiring the cathedral. We found a terrific small restaurant for a very nice dinner and then took the train back to Amsterdam, arriving home after midnight. It had been a long time since we had taken a day trip to explore someplace in the Netherlands, so this was a very nice, relaxing and interesting trip for us.Chris and Melanie
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1220805300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1220805300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1220805300/tpod.html Sat, 13 Sep 2008 17:16:48 -0400 This is Chris' and Melanie's log of our move to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

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Zundert, Netherlands

Hi everybody,After the Belgian Beer Weekend, we went to Zundert, just before the Belgium border in the Netherlands, for their annual flower parade. Our friends, Rich and Joey, had learned about this in their travels and suggested that we go. The day started with heavy rain, but this is a parade that we were happy to have seen. Zundert is a very small town and we suspect that very few Americans have been here or have seen this parade. What an amazing find!The parade consists of floats more than 2 stories high and at least 2 truck beds long, all covered in flowers. The floats are powered by people pushing. They have amazing designs and even have an audio component. One float, of a statue covered in pigeons, cooed. Another, of a pack of wolves, growled. The largest and most exuberant float was accompanied by an African drum corp and also contained 5 stories of drummers! One float was led by a multi-story puppet, controlled by two puppeteers on top while another was automated with animals turning their heads and popping up on lifts to check for danger. The floats were beautiful and complex. Far more than we had expected! Between the floats were marching bands and flag corps. We were lucky that the rain mostly stopped for the parade and the day was simply drizzly and grey. Because of the weather we didn't really explore the other festivities in the town, but there was the normal fair food, small rides for children, and other activities that we could see. This town is also the birthplace of Vincent van Gogh, but we didn't see any attractions related to him.Check out the pictures in the photo gallery and I'm sure you'll agree this is quite an elaborate flower parade. On the parade website (click on the small British flag on the left for English) you can see overhead shots of the floats which give the full perspective of each one, as well as read about the history of the parade itself. To see the 2008 floats, click on "parade". The first page shows last year's floats.Enjoy the photos!Melanie and Chris
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1217926860/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1217926860/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chronometers/amsterdam/1217926860/tpod.html Sat, 13 Sep 2008 12:30:21 -0400 This is Chris' and Melanie's log of our move to Amsterdam, Netherlands.

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Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Hi everybody,You're probably curious what we've been up to since we arrived back in Amsterdam. However, there really isn't too much to report! We've really just been doing boring, day to day stuff. Chris continues to buy ABN AMRO gear in unimaginable quantities (at least it seems that way to Melanie as she surveys the 3rd floor inventory). Melanie continues to investigate career options while still awaiting formal approval of her residence permit. We've had several discussions about the timing of a move back to the U.S. - both for ourselves and for our "stuff" and we're doing a lot of "personal administration" type work. We are enjoying taking meals on the terrace when the weather cooperates and having time to visit our favorite brewery under a windmill periodically. We are looking forward to the Olympics, planning a few day trips by train within the Netherlands, going to London for several days at the end of the month, and, of course, looking forward to the annual Belgian Beer Weekend at the beginning of September.Oh, and we did have another Rick Steves sighting! We were having dinner at our favorite Italian restaurant with our visiting friends, MaryLou and Chris, when we saw Rick looking at a menu across the room. Chris caught his eye with a subtle wave and he came over and talked with us. We told him it was a great restaurant that he should NOT add to his book as we wanted to keep it for ourselves!So, that's what's happening here! We hope all is well in your worlds.Melanie and Chris
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