Boy, Oh, Boise!

Wow, was my last blog post really on Thanksgiving? Time has just been flying by, and I've been keeping busy, especially what with gearing up for Christmas. I think I just finished up shopping Friday, and I have almost everything wrapped. Next week I need to start planning what I'll be baking for our family get-together.

Also, I've been out of town again. From late October through early December, I was popping out of town every couple of weeks. Our latest globe-trotting adventure took us to Boise, Idaho. My husband, Ken, and I get a kick out of Boise, and this is our third year visiting. You may remember that we went to Boise last year if you've been following this blog for a while. Ken first went to Boise in 2007 during an Air Force TDY to the Air National Guard unit there. He was so smitten with the town that he brought me out there the next year. I loved it, too, and we've been going back each year ever since. There's a lot more to Boise than folks think. People are usually surprised to discover that we vacation there. They usually assume we have family there, and they are surprised that we have no ties to Boise other than our love for it.

We usually go in early November, but decided to go in early December this year, hoping to see the town all festive and Christmas-y. It was, even more so than we had counted on. Before we left, we knew it would be cold. I bought a parka in anticipation of this (I had to order it online - you can't just walk into a store in Florida and buy a parka). We even expected that we might see some light snow. We got snow, but it was not light.

It was snowing when we landed at Boise International. By morning, seven inches of snow had fallen, and it kept right on snowing. The locals all said that this sort of snowfall was rare, particularly for this time of the year. The local newscasters were calling it "the worst snow storm in 20 years." My husband and I have always had a knack for showing up for "the worst ______ since ______."

Being a lifelong Floridian, I am unaccustomed to snow. We handled things pretty well, though - I had my parka, scarf, gloves, ear muffs, and storm hood. I even brought longjohns. I did not have proper shoes, though. Walking around on fresh, firmly-packed snow is not a problem - the problem enters the scenario when the snow begins to melt and turns into slushy, sludgy puddles. After sliding around in my beloved Skechers for a day and a half and sporting wet socks and jeans like a Southern tourist, I broke down and bought a pair of waterproof snow boots. And just to make me feel good about my purchase, it started snowing again a couple of days later. My boots weigh about ten pounds, but they sure get the job done.

Me and Ken at The Reef. (Thanks, Park!)

 When we visit Boise, we have our routine of things we like to do. We even have a few favorite watering holes there. Our time this trip was split between the Bittercreek Alehouse, The Reef, and Old Chicago (where we were also able to watch the Miami Dolphins lose to the Cleveland Browns on NFL Ticket). Favorite beers this trip? The Laughing Dog IPA and the Rogue Yellow Snow IPA. I like IPAs.

We didn't spend the whole trip drinking, though - that would make us alcoholics. We worked in some wholesome daytime activities, too.

We visited Boise State University our first day. I always feel a little bit funny just walking around college campuses, sightseeing, but on this particular day, classes were cancelled due to the snow. So things were quiet on campus. Also, we were heading to the Student Union, trying to get tickets to the BSU football game on Saturday, but the game was pretty much sold out.

We also visited the Boise Art Museum and the Idaho State Historical Museum at Julia Davis Park. The art museum featured lots of beautiful, striking pieces, as well as some works that I clearly didn't get. At the historical museum, we learned about the fishing, mining, fur-trapping, and lumber industries in 19th-century Idaho, as well as the Oregon Trail and the Lewis and Clark Expedition. I also learned that doing laundry in the 1800s was an epic nightmare.

Also on the agenda was an Idaho Steelheads hockey game. I'm not much of a hockey fan, but it is fun to go to a live game. And there's always a chance a big gnarly fight will break out on the ice, which the fans love. But I'll bet what would be even more fun is if we were actually present for a win. They played the Alaska Aces Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night while we were in Boise. The Steelheads won on Thursday and Saturday and lost on Friday. Guess which night we went. We have been to three Steelheads games and have yet to be there when they win. And they do win - just not when we're around.

Since we spent the previous day doing indoorsy things, it of course started snowing again on the day when we had outdoorsy things planned. Boise folks are a hardy bunch, though, and the show goes on come rain, snow, sleet, or hellfire. The Capital City Public Market was in full-swing despite the freezing temperatures and snow. I was glad to see one of my favorite Market vendors out there - the Timber Mountain Soap Company out of Meridian, ID. I bought some of Timber Mountain's cold-process soaps last year and just loved them and even though goodness knows I have plenty of my own soap at home, I still wanted some more. I picked up some Lavender Almond, Peppermint and Tea Tree, and Gardener's soap for myself, and Lavender Almond, Orange Patchouli, and Clove Eucalyptus for my mom and dad. We also picked up some white chocolate huckleberry bark, a huckleberry candle, and some huckleberry lip balms for my mom and dad at Taters on the Grove Plaza. (Huckleberry is Idaho's state fruit.)

Coati and "special holiday treat" (a banana).

 We visited Zoo Boise (not Boise Zoo) again, which we do every year. This time was a bit different, though, because the animals were getting their "special holiday treats" on this particular Saturday. We got to only actually see the coati get its holiday treat because we happened to be standing right there. The rest of the time we either couldn't find the animal or the gift-giving went off a few minutes too early for us to get ourselves there on time. For the most part, we pretty much just rolled up on empty cages housing a demolished holiday box.

And we finished our day with a Christmas symphony of tubas. They played jazzy renditions of many classic favorites, as well as one I had not heard before. Something about all Santa wants for Christmas is a tuba. The conductor told us that as a condition of our being present, we all needed to start wishing everyone a "Merry tuba Christmas" from now on. (But I probably won't. Shhh, don't tell.)

We always look forward to going to Boise, and I hope we get to go back next year, too. Everyone is so friendly and the vibe is totally relaxed. If you're looking for a laid-back, hip little college town with plenty of hospitality, personality, and fantastic beer, I highly recommend Boise.

Anyone out there been to Boise, or are you from there or the surrounding areas? Anyone gt some cool upcoming trips planned? Where are some of your favorite vacation spots, Wonder Turtle friends?

Road Trip: Orlando!

Last Friday, my dad, my mom, and I hopped in the Jeep and drove to Orlando, FL to spend Halloween weekend at Universal Studios, Walt Disney World, and Epcot. We rented a condo in Kissimmee, and my brother (Kyle) and his fiancée (Kristina) drove down from Atlanta to join us.

When I was little, we would usually go to Disney World at least once a year, but I had not been to Disney or Universal Studios in almost eleven years. It had been about 25 years since I had been to Epcot.

Saturday, we descended upon Universal Studios. We hit just about everything we wanted to at the park because the crowds were surprisingly light. I'm a fan of the thrill rides, and while
"Shrek 4-D" and the Animal Actors show were cool and all, I was ready for something a bit more intense. Boy, did I find it.

Early in the day, Kyle, Kristina, and I lined up to ride the Hollywood Rip Ride Rock It. This is a beast of a roller coaster. While we were all standing in line, we couldn't help but notice that the ride begins with you on your back, going straight up. Next comes a steep drop followed by a corkscrew loop. The rest of the ride features plenty of steep drops and twists and turns. I was a little apprehensive, but when I noticed all of the 8-year-olds boarding the ride, I figured that if they could do it, so could I. When you get into your seat, you have the option of choosing a song to play through your seat's speakers. I rode the Rip Ride twice. The first time, I was so busy making sure that my harness was actually secure that I missed my chance to choose a song. I don't even remember what song played. The second time, though, I was a bit more confident and chose The Beastie Boys' "Sabotage." Check out this video my dad shot - this is the car that Kyle, Kristina, and I were on. We're on the second and third rows of the front car.

It was a wild ride. As soon as we got off the coaster, Kyle and I tried to get my dad to go on it. It took us all day to convince him that he needed to do it, and he eventually did. Kyle and I rode it again later with Dad, and, fortunately, Dad really liked it and was glad he went. I would have felt really bad if he had hated it and thrown up everywhere.

The Revenge of the Mummy ride was also pretty cool. It's a bit Space Mountain-ish in the sense that it's a roller coaster in the dark. And The Simpsons Ride was awesome - it's a very convincing thrill-ride simulator. We're all big Simpsons fans anyway and rarely get through a day without making some sort of a Simpsons reference.

Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown, me, Kyle, Kristina, and the DeLorean

Characters from movies and TV also roam around the park, and I got to meet Bart Simpson and Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown from the "Back to the Future" movies.

We finished out the day at Margaritaville. We could have gone to Universal's Halloween Horror Nights, but opted to just enjoy the parks during the day instead.


Cinderella's castle at WDW

The next day (Halloween- boo!) was the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World. We hit most of the rides that we wanted to and visited some of them twice. The highlights for me at the Magic Kingdom are Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, and Splash Mountain. The Haunted Mansion and the Mad Tea Party rides are also favorites. (My mom and I were bummed, though, that the Mad Tea Party teacup ride was closed because they were doing some sort of maintenance on it. If you're not familiar with it, you sit in a big teacup, which rotates around a giant tea kettle. Inside your teacup is a wheel that you can turn to make your individual car spin around. I learned the hard way to never look up when your cup is spinning because you won't get your head back down until the ride stops.)

Thunder Mountain is a tame roller coaster compared to Space Mountain and the Rip Ride, and it is supposed to be like a runaway train on a Gold Rush-era train track. Space Mountain is a bit more intense - it's basically a roller coaster in the dark meant to simulate a wild ride in deep space. Of course, after the Rip Ride coaster at Universal, even Space Mountain seemed tame.

Then came Splash Mountain. Most of the ride is a gentle river cruise through Brer Rabbit-land. There is a big drop at the end, though, and that's the main attraction of the ride. Plus, there is the potential that you will get wet. Very wet. And get very wet we did.

Splash Mountain

My brother and I were in the front row of our car. The ride starts out by cruising past the eventual drop at the end. As a car drops, water cannons shoot a spray of water out for effect. The timing was impeccable as we passed by the cannons - we got nailed. I was looking in Kyle's direction when I saw a look of horror on his face. I braced myself for impact and then felt a sensation not unlike someone dumping a bucket of water over my head. We got soaked or, as Kyle put it, "destroyed." We laughed and laughed, though, and it was good that we had a sense of humor about it because we caught a tidal wave again at the big drop. All of the water came crashing over the front of the car, soaking us for a second time. By the end of the ride, Kyle was all disheveled and his hair was sticking up all crazy. I told him that he looked like Will Ferrell's Harry Caray character on "Saturday Night Live," which led him to do a spot-on impression. ("Hey ... if you were a potato ... would you eat yourself?")

Kyle and me, post-Splash Mountain

Thank goodness it was a warm day. We dried out pretty quickly, although I had a wet butt for about half the day. (All that sitting around at lunch and on the rides.)

Finally, we went to Epcot on Monday. Epcot doesn't have tons of thrill rides, but "Mission: SPACE" was pretty cool. It's a simulator meant to mimic a space mission to Mars. There's a mild version and an intense version option - Kyle and I immediately went for the intense option while everyone else tried out the mild version first. Later, we all went on the intense version together and the concensus was that the intense option is quite a bit different from the mild, g-force-wise. Basically, you're sitting in a giant centrifuge that spins around and creates the sensation of pulling g's during a vertical takeoff. The simulation also features some drops and thrashing around as you make your way to Mars. Very cool stuff.

Also neat was the "Soarin'" attraction, which simulates a hang-gliding adventure across California. You sit in a row of seats meant to look like a hang glider. You're picked up, feet dangling, and brought up to an IMAX screen. The seats move, making you feel like you're really flying. My dad flies a powered paraglider, so he especially enjoyed the ride.

We also visited "Ellen's Energy Adventure." The best part about it was the brief ride through a robotic dinosaur-land. Some sort of river-drinking dinosaur spit water right in my face, too. This was not a good trip for staying dry.

The Test Track ride was also fun. The premise of the ride is that you're in a car that is put through rigorous road-condition tests. It ends with a fast downhill ride meant to test its top speed.

And we spent some time walking around all of the different countries. We had a nice lunch at Mexico's San Angel Inn, which features an Aztec pyramid and a periodically-erupting volcano (and excellent Blood Orange margaritas).


San Angel Inn in "Mexico"

We didn't make it to the Imagination Pavillion with Figment the purple dragon. I remember that place being really cool when I was a kid, and I even had a Figment plush doll. I wonder if I would still think it's cool 25 years later?

And, no, I still haven't been inside the Epcot ball. I have no idea what's in there.

At the end of the third day, we were ready to head back to the condo and relax with a few brews. I brought Trivial Pursuit, and we played that until we were falling asleep sitting up.

The weekend was fast-paced but fun. I had been wanting to go back to Orlando for a while now, and I'm glad that we were all able to go. The crowds were lighter than usual, and the weather was nice although I wouldn't have cried if it had been a bit cooler. My mom was hoping for cooler weather, too, but we didn't quite time the cold fronts right. It was warm (mid-80s and sunny and dry), but at least it wasn't rainy or humid. And there were no illnesses, accidents, or major mishaps. Everyone made it through the trip healthy and happy, which is always a victory. I went on a skiing trip once about 12 or 13 years ago and it was a nightmare. Another travelmate and I fought the entire time, I crashed on the bunny hill and hurt both of my knees, and on top of everything another travelmate got food poisoning. Worst. Vacation. Ever.

All in all, we had a great time and I hope everyone enjoyed the trip as much as I did! (And in case you were wondering if Wally the Wonder Turtle came on this trip, here's a photo of him playing Trivial Pursuit with Eeyore.)

If you've been to Disney, Universal, or Epcot, what's your favorite atttraction, Wonder Turtle friends?

On the Road: Denver, CO!

Last week, things were kinda quiet at Wonder Turtle Soaps because I was away in Denver, Colorado. What a beautiful part of the country! And the trip was a very welcome respite from the harsh Florida summer, which actually had not even officially begun yet, according to the calendar. In a lot of ways, June is the worst month in Florida because it comes in strong, and I'm not used to the heat yet. Well, I'm never used to it, but by July and August, I'm slightly (slightly) more acclimated to the heat and humidity, although they're both still bad. June so far has brought high temperatures and high humidity with heat indexes in the triple-digits. Everyday, it's hot and muggy with a 50% chance of an afternoon cussing storm. Lots of folks here just loooooooooove the summer and wish it could be like this year-round. Uh-uh, not me. I'm a winter-lover. Winter in northwest Florida is awesome; summer is just something to get through. But I digress.

What was I talking about? Oh, right ... Denver!

My husband, Ken, was on a business TDY in Denver and when he was done working, he took a few days off and I flew out to join him. A few days before I arrived, it was actually sorta cold and rainy with temps in the 50s. Jacket weather, if you can believe it. By the time I landed, the skies were clear and the temperature was a dry 75 degrees.

Ahhhhhhhhh ...

The first order of business was to scope out the downtown area. We stuck close to 16th Street, also known as "The Mall" because it is a large, 16-block shopping district. Our hotel was downtown, and we were able to walk just about everywhere we wanted to go. Or we took the free shuttle that runs the length of the Mall.

The 16th Street Mall in Denver. A free shuttle runs through the Mall - you can see it approaching back there on the left. 

We walked a bit the first afternoon, finding our way around. One of the first things of interest I saw was this giant 40-foot tall blue bear peeking into the Colorado Convention Center. This is actually a piece of public artwork called "I See What You Mean" by Lawrence Argent. Cool, huh?

I landed late in the afternoon, and it was getting close to beer o'clock. I don't know if you guys know this, but I am a beer snob, and I love to sample regional brews. We didn't have to walk too long before we found an Old Chicago. Now, I know Old Chicago isn't very exotic, but they have a bunch of good beers on tap - and most of them are regional microbrews. We thought we'd find a pub with microbrews on every corner downtown, but that wasn't the case. The Falling Rock Taphouse has tons of great microbrews on tap, and we paid them a visit, too. I fell in love with a couple of new brews in Denver. One was Left Hand Brewing Co.'s "400 Pound Monkey" IPA (tastes great and it's fun to say, "Gimme one of them monkey beers!"). My favorite this trip, though, was probably the Green Flash Brewing Co.'s "West Coast IPA". Very hoppy, very grassy, and very yummy.

We didn't spend the whole trip drinking beer, though - that would make us alcoholics. No, our sessions of moderate, responsible drinking were spaced out by acceptable daytime activites, like hiking, going to the zoo, and looking at plastinated bodies.

Our first full day in Denver, we drove to nearby Idaho Springs for a 2-hour hike at Echo Lake, which is near Mt. Evans, which has North America's highest auto road with an elevation of more than 14,000 feet (and I have a blurry picture to prove it!).                                                                    

Echo Lake's elevation is about 10,600 feet. The mountains in the background were snow-capped, and this did not surprise me.

What did surprise me was that while we were hiking, we saw several patches of snow on the ground where we were. Can you believe it? Snow on the ground! In June! It was like being in Bizarro World.

The next day, we intended to go to the zoo, but we picked the one day of the year that they close early to prepare for their annual fundraiser. So, we headed to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science instead. We were planning to go there anyway because I really wanted to see the Body Worlds exhibition. I don't know if you've heard about Body Worlds, but real human bodies (provided by generous donors) are "plastinated," preserved, and displayed. It is really fascinating - how often do you get to see the inner workings of an actual body like that? The anchor of the exhibition was "The Story of the Heart" told through various displays that, again, were provided by donors. What most struck me was how complicated the human body is. It seems that there are millions of opportunities for something to go horribly wrong, yet most of us are born normal (well, normal enough) and have amazingly functional bodies for a good long while, if we're lucky.

 

Photos were frowned upon inside the museum, so we took some outside. Here I am with a grizzly bear statue. I'm not saluting - I'm shielding my eyes from the sun.

On our last full day in Denver, we finally made it to the Denver Zoo. Sadly, about half of my zoo pictures came out blurry. I was changing the settings on my camera from auto to flash-off and back again as we went inside and outside. I must have forgotten to change the setting back to auto at some point and didn't notice on my tiny camera screen that the photos were all blurred. Oh, well, there are some good ones in there, so I think we'll make do just fine.

This spider monkey was hilarious. He and one of his monkey buddies would periodically harass the anteater in the background. They'd grab the anteater's tail and run away over and over again until the anteater made a move toward them. It seemed like good fun and it certainly was amusing, but I felt bad for the anteater. At one point, I saw him standing on his hind legs at the back gate like he wanted someone, anyone, to let him out.

Okay, I have a thing for monkeys. Monkey beer, monkey monkeys ... what can I say, primates are fascinating. They are incredibly smart, strong, and perceptive. Here is a big beautiful gorilla, which is, of course, a great ape and not a monkey. This shot is through a thick pane of glass, so it's not super-awesome. This is probably the closest I'll ever get to a gorilla, though - just a few inches of plexiglass separated us, and he could not have been less interested in me ...

It's called "peacocking."

Look, Wonder Turtles! Not sure what kinds of turtles these are exactly. The one that's pushing the turtle climbing out of the pond back into the water looks like a slider turtle, though. Come on, man, help a turtle out!

We flew home the next morning. I wish we had had a couple more days there, but I guess we'll just have to go back! Thanks for a great week, Denver! 

We ♥ Boise!

Wally the Wonder Turtle and I LOOOOOOOVE Boise, Idaho! My husband's job sometimes takes him to the Boise Air National Guard, and after he's done working, Wally and I will fly out and meet him to spend a few days enjoying downtown Boise. We were there this past November and had hella fun.

And, believe me, Boise is sincerely fun.

What's in Boise?

Zoo Boise (not Boise Zoo):

Just look how much fun Wally is having with his new penguin friend!






And this penguin friend, too! (Vroom ...!)








The Qwest hockey arena:

Go Steelheads!

Here I am with Blue, the Idaho Steelheads' beloved mascot.
We ♥ Blue, too!






Smart squirrels:



This clever little fellow has it all figured out ... he has fresh food whenever he wants it courtesy of the capybara exhibit at Zoo Boise.






Stunning views:

Took this photo from the Friendship Bridge on the Greenbelt along the Boise River. Most mornings in Boise started with a jog along the Greenbelt.





And an awesome downtown district:

Plenty of views of the mountains (or "hills," as I'm told the locals call them).





And these are just things that I took pictures of. There's more. Boise is a hip little college town, so there are tons of groovy coffee shops, bookstores, record stores, and theaters. Boise State University has plenty of cultural offerings (I missed David Sedaris by one week! Aargh!), as does the Julia Davis Park with its art museum, Zoo Boise, and the Idaho State Historical Museum.

Boise also has GREAT beer. Tons of microbrews from the Pacific Northwest. My favorite hangout in Boise is the Bittercreek Alehouse (hey ya'll!). Seriously, I would live there if they'd let me. If you ever find yourself on 8th Street between Idaho and Bannock Streets, feeling thirsty and over 21, do yourself a favor and pop in there. They have more than three dozen taps of crazy good brews. The food is great, too. Most nights in Boise ended with a visit to the Bittercreek. (Don't worry, we drank responsibly.)

And Wally ♥s this giant lizard (I believe it is a komodo dragon, and, no, it is not real ... I think the pumpkin might be real, though.):

Can't wait to get back to see ya, Boise!

--Jenny



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