Vacation Recap and a Birdshark

 

America, y'all got it goin' on!!  We just returned from our Spring Break vacation.  Admittedly, our choice of holiday has changed over the years now we have children, but I defy anybody to go to Sandestin Resort, FL and not have a thoroughly enjoyable time.  Did I bring back some extra poundage?  Absolutely!  But it was totally worth it and hopefully my tan covers it up somewhat.  Coronas, Margaritas, Crab Legs, beignets and Pina Colada Cake featured heavily during our week, Shirley Temples for the kiddos :)

I won't bore you with every detail, but our vacation was easy, relaxing and fun.  You know, the way vacations are supposed to be!  We booked our condo through vrbo.com on a friend's recommendation and we were not disappointed.   The condo was spacious, clean and even had a Keurig so I could have my morning cup of tea :)  It was steps away from a huge outdoor pool with 2 hot tubs and just up the street from Baytowne Wharf with it's many restaurants, boardwalks, stores, ziplining - you name it, they have it.

 

We were surrounded by beautiful trees and gardens and you could see the beautiful bay.  It even came with a golf cart that enabled us to drive around the resort, to the beach and to and from the fabulous restaurants at Grand Boulevard just outside the resort itself.  As you can imagine, the kids loved it!   

There were golf courses, lakes and swimming pools everywhere and miles of bike/running paths.  You can fish in the bay or in any of the lakes, it was fantastic!  All very convenient yes, but also very beautifully landscaped so you didn't realize you were inside a resort.

We spent a lot of time on the beach which was perfect with white sand, clear blue sea AND THERE WAS A BAR RIGHT THERE!  The husband and me thoroughly enjoyed chilling on the beach chairs with ice cold Coronas & limes interspersed with footie games with the kiddos.  Bliss!  

 Cheers!!

There were even nice, clean toilets in a trailer just off the beach :)  People had coolers full of their own drinks and food - we'll definitely do this next time to save a bit of cash.  Americans are very organized on vacation with their own coolers & ice, chairs, music, you name it.  I love it!  But even if you don't bring your own, you can always get what you need for a fee which suited our unprepared selves.  Most folks had golf carts, so much easier to get around than with a car and so much easier to park too.   We watched dolphins in the ocean and saw the sun setting.   I miss it already.

Didn't manage a dolphin photo so this pelican will have to do :)

I did, however, have a wee scary moment.  I was nervous about sharks before we even arrived and was determined not to let the kiddos go deep in the ocean.  At first I wouldn't let them go in above their shins, but I eventually relented and let them go in up to their thighs.  They were jumping around in the water with lots of other people when I saw what looked like a fin further out and to their right.  Seriously, my heart was pounding.  I ran to them and brought them in whilst trying not to scare them and then realized that it was just a bird, or as the husband now calls it, a birdshark.  Pfffft.  The bloody thing's neck was long and it really looked like a fin from a distance.  Better safe than sorry I say!!  

 Birdshark survivors

Although we spent most of our time in the resort, we did have a nostalgic trip to Eglin Air Force Base for old time's sake.  The husband retired from the Air Force 2 years ago so we quite fancied revisiting the world of Sunday Brunch in the Officer's Club and a bit of cheap shopping in the BX (Base Exchange - a huge store) again.  It was fun but we can live without it I guess :)

We also visited The Crab Trap on the beach where we devoured 4lbs of crab legs, 2lbs of shrimp, a ton of hush puppies, potatoes and sweetcorn.  Delish!  There was a lovely beach there too where we spent the rest of the afternoon.  It was quieter than our resort beach and really relaxing but didn't have the Bar, so no Coronas this time. 
 

We met up with friends of ours from way back who now live close to Destin, which was great!  The menfolk went fishing for the day and brought back several red snapper fish.  Lucky for us, Tre prepared the fish, battered them up and made us the most delicious fish tacos - even the kiddos loved them :)  Thanks Sam, Tre and Mason for your amazing hospitality!  A few sparkling beverages were also enjoyed!

Anyway, we are lucky enough to live a mere 6 and a half hours away from Sandestin and have already booked our return trip.  This time we're taking my parents while they are over visiting from Scotland and we are renting a villa with a 6 person golf cart.  I know they'll love it too as long as the husband doesn't scare them too much with his cart driving skills, or maybe that's just me...  Now it's time to get back to running and Hot Yoga to lose the vacation lard before our next trip.  Happy Travels!

Food Glorious Food

We all love food (some of us more than others).  Here are some of my favorite and least favorite foods in the USA, in completely random order.  There's even a bonus list at the end, of foods that should be the same but are soooooo not.

THE OOOOH YES PLEASE LIST

Anything Mexican:  Mexican food is to Americans what Indian food is to Brits.  Not quite as awesome as a good ol' Ruby Murray (cockney rhyming slang for curry my American readers), Mexican food is spicy, comforting, cheesy, tasty and perfect when accompanied by a Corona or a frozen margarita.

Anything Barbecue:  At home, we chuck some bangers, burgers, chicken and sometimes steak on the bbq in between the rain showers.  Over here, it's an art form.  The husband spends hours at his smoker and grill, creating the perfect, tender piece of meat complete with it's own smoke ring.  He makes his own rubs, sauces and glazes.  I am a lucky girl :)  BBQ Restaurants are everywhere, our favorite is Martin's BBQ Joint in Nolensville.  We spend way too much time here. 

Biscuits:  Flaky, buttery, salty and delicious.  They look like Scottish scones but are completely different.  Best eaten with apple butter, honey or just plain old butter. 

All You Can Eat Crab Legs:  I'm not usually a fan of All You Can Eat places, but crab legs?  How can you refuse?  It's easy to eat yourself into a crab coma over here.  Back home, the crab, while delicious and probably fresher than you get here, is ridiculously expensive and comes in very small portions.  'MERICA!!!!

Pumpkin, Pecan or Sweet Potato Pie:  My absolute favorite dessert.  Or breakfast.  Or whenever.  I could eat one whole and feel no guilt, because the pleasure of eating such pies cancels out any bad feeling.  I had only ever eaten apple or rhubarb pie before I met the husband.  Thank you husband for introducing me to these wondrous things :) 

THE BLEGH, NO THANK YOU LIST


Catfish:  Have you seen a catfish?  Sucking up crap along the bottom of dirty rivers and lakes?  Exactly.  Nuff said. 

The American version of Italian food:  If it's smothered in mozzarella cheese, says parmeggiano at the end or has overcooked pasta involved, people here go crazy for it.  Having lived in Italy, I can safely say that nowhere did I eat anything that remotely resembles what's offered up as Italian food here.  People here call pasta 'noodles'!  Pasta is pasta, noodles are Chinese! 

Velveeta:  Okay, after a few beers, this stuff can actually taste pretty good when made into a dip.  But it's completely processed, so much so that it doesn't need to be stored in the refrigerator until it's been opened. It's supposed to be cheese!!!  It's not cheese!!!  For me, it's a texture thing but I also don't like food that tastes like plastic. 

Buffet food - especially Golden Corral:  Adults and children, swarming around a huge offering of foodstuffs, all touching things, putting them back sometimes and just breathing germs in the direction of the food.  I'm getting the heebie jeebies just thinking about it.  People rave about these buffets, but to me, it's just a big old germ fest.  Buffets here are all over the place, not so much at home!

THE BONUS LIST.  FOODS THAT SHOULD BE THE SAME BUT ARE SO NOT!


Beans:  At home, they are served in tomato sauce.  Delicious on top of toasted cheese, toast or just on their own.  A simple, low fat, comfort food.  Over here, they have pieces of bacon in them, they are sugary, and the sauce is kinda thick and syrupy.  So wrong on so many levels! 

Bacon:  You don't get back bacon in the States.  How I miss a proper bacon buttie!  Streaky bacon is okay, but sometimes you just don't want all that fat.  We get back and streaky at home, wonder why you don't get both over here?   

Chocolate:  We all know that chocolate over here tastes different from in the UK.  It is what it is.  What's really confusing though, is that some bars have the same name.  I got a shock when I bit into my first Milky Way in the States.  What's this caramel stuff?  Milky Ways are supposed to be light and fluffy!  Mars Bars are not the same either, so why the same name?  Ah the mysteries of the Universe :) 

Cereal:  Cereals here are definitely more sugary.  Who knows why!  On another note, E numbers are still legal over here but banned in the UK and Europe. 

Crisps:  Fancy a wee bag of crisps (known as chips over here) with your lunch?  First of all, good luck trying to find a 'wee' bag.  A huge bag is easy to find, but who can stop after just a few when there's a whole big bag, all open and inviting.  Maybe that's just me...!  Crisps here seem to be greasier and there's way less flavor options.  An exception to this is tortilla chips which are plentiful and taste-tastic :) I know Americans laugh at our UK crisp flavors, but man, I would kill for a wee bag of prawn cocktail or pickled onion crisps! 

There are, of course, a lot of other foods that I could ramble on about, but you'd be here all day.   Happy eating my friends and if you're in the UK, please go and have a bacon buttie with HP Sauce for me RIGHT NOW!!!