TT Chesapeake and Hollywood, FL

 We had been at TT Chesapeake for a few days when I flew to Ft. Lauderdale to watch the boys for a few days while Caryn and Jason flew to LA for a friend's wedding. WE had a great time (even with all the rain)--we got out for a bike/stroller ride and a swim in the pool almost every day, we baked and decorated Halloween cookies, and we made it to the ocean beach for a 10 minute romp in the waves. I figured to get to the beach while it wasn't raining so with the packing up and driving and parking and unpacking (about 50 minutes), the 10 minutes we got to spend before the dark clouds and lightning came in and the lifeguard called everyone out of the water wasn't too bad. At least the boys enjoyed it!

I got back to Richmond, VA and the hour drive back to the park and was greeted by Keith and Marie. While I was gone they had arrived and Mitch was busy playing pickleball and having some good get togethers with them and Jim and Marlene, and Deb and Bob.

Marie had made traditional PA Chicken Pot Pie (with homemade flat noodles) for my return and the four of us enjoyed a great dinner and and evening of Fast Track.

A good time in Pennsylvania

 Our stay at Thousand Trails Hershey kept us close enough to many places to stay busy. Of course we had to visit Hershey's Chocolate World and the Hershey Museum.

 The Pennsylvania countryside is gorgeous with its rolling hills and varied fields. We meandered the two lane highways past golden cornfields and soybeans, stopping to visit a couple of wineries. At every intersection there are old towns with quaint big old houses dating from the late 1700s.

 We toured the Yuengling Brewery in Pottstown, PA founded in 1829 by a German immigrant. It is the oldest brewery in America (the second oldest is Shell Brewery in New Ulm, MN--guess we'll have to go there some day) and is a fifth generation family business.

 The tour is free and you have to wear closed toed shoes--hence a room full of shoes at the start of the tour! (We wore ours there).

 Up the hill to the old brewery which is still used and inside we were amazed at the mixture of old and new. The stained glass ceiling was put in years ago to lessen the sunlight in the brewing room. It was carefully removed when they updated some brewing equipment and carefully replaced.

We also went down into the hand dug caves where the beer was aged (altogether we walked up and down about 200 steps).

 It was quite the production!

One of the best things about the tour was going with Keith and Marie! Afterwards we all had a chance to taste the brew!! Yum!

Try Yuengling's Premium Light!!

Maine

We're here in Maine for a few days and took a city tour of Portland through the touristy wharf area, to the beautiful old homes, across the bridge, and out to the Atlantic. The seascape was rugged and beautiful and I really liked this quaint lighthouse.

We caught up with friends that had spent time in the Maritime Provinces while we were in Quebec, found a little lobster shack and Mitch cooked lobster and corn on the cob. It was so much fun to spend time with everyone.

Good Bye, Quebec

It's time to say "See you down the road" and leave our tour guides, weather forecasters, cooks, and traveling companions. We have had a wonderful trip and have enjoyed every moment of our time in Quebec. There was so much to see and do: the land was beautiful and the people friendly. We will come back again! Merci, merci, merci!!!

poutine -- $6.75
a cruise of Saguenay fjord -- $126
friends like Francine and Gilles -- priceless

A day at Marie and HPs

We took a drive east along the Saguenay River and out into the country--seven miles north of the St. Lawrence River as the crow flies--to visit Marie and HP.  We had a wonderful dinner (the Quebequois call the afternoon meal dinner) and then walked to neighbor Francis' red deer farm where Francis gave us a personal tour and a ton of information.















Francis, Marie, and HP smoked some trout they had caught in their lakes and we had a little tasting of trout fresh out of the smoker...

and some red deer pate and smoked red deer. What a treat!

We look forward to seeing Marie and HP when we get to Florida!

Brayden, this picture is just for you! On our way home we went by a military base and they had all these planes and helicopters sitting outside. I thought you would love to see them!

How we spend our spare time

Although we are on the go, we don't spend a lot of the twelve hour days running. Now we have time to relax and enjoy some Fast Track. Francine and I usually let the guys win most of the time!








In our travels we have found many US brand places--Home Depot, Subway, McDonalds, and of course you can recognize the Colonel of KFC fame. Or do I mean PFK fame?

We do not speak French, but we have learned a lot about the language. PFK is Kentucky Fried Chicken in French--Poulet Frit Kentucky. First of all the adjectives come after the noun and for some reason they do not pronounce a consonant if it is the last letter of the word. And if the chicken in this case were female the second word would be frite and then you would pronounce the t!

The other night we went out to dinner at St. Hubert (did you say Hubert?). I thought we were going someplace called St. Oobay until we got there--Francine (don't pronounce the first n) said they never say h and the rt at the end are both consonants so leave them off (they do twist their tongue around to get a little rattle at the end). Now I know how they talk so fast--they don't say all the letters! And they do things with their tongues (I mean talking) that they must have learned at a very young age. Francine, forgive me for the liberties I just took in telling these two tales. I have so appreciated your patience at trying to teach me about your language.

Saguenay Fjord Cruise

We finally made it on a boat--this time to cruise the waters of the Saguenay Fjord aboard the Marjolaine II.













Francine said this would be the best day as the gray skies were going to turn blue.











As the boat cruised down the fjords for the seven and a half hour trip, the skies got bluer.












The high point of the trip (besides the picnic lunch we shared) was the statue of the Virgin Mary placed on the mountain as a thank you many many years ago. (Click on the picture to get a better look.)









The mountains simply fall into the water and continue down to depths of 200 feet.












The trip was delightful. In the afternoon a local musician played some jazz on his guitar as we began our way back to port.










The ice of winter helps to make the color at the bottom of the rocks, although the tide here is about 17 feet.


The entire trip displayed the beauty of this part of the Saguenay River and the land around it. We enjoyed the trip immensely.