It worked out that November 11th, 11/11 (for those paying attention) fell on a weekend... so Phil decided to take us out to a little town called Mecungie just south of Allentown, PA in the beautiful Lehigh Valley. The weekend was supposed to be a quick romantic getaway in honor of our connection to the numbers 11 11... it's a long story, that some of you have already heard... it's too cheesy to recall here, and I don't want any of you to vomit before pressing on...
It worked out perfectly, because our new little nephew Elliot was born early Saturday morning, so this trip was going to put us within a short drive to Bryn Mawr to see the little man before heading back home.
We planned to leave after I finished work, so Phil was going to take the train out to Westfield and meet me there. Unfortunately, Phil managed to "misplace" his wallet somewhere between Penn Station, NY and Westfield... not a good start. So he bought himself a lovely little man servant from Bombay and I treated him to some Baja Fresh to try and get his head back in the game! By the time I arrived back at the car with all of the food, all of the important cards were cancelled and reordered, so we were ready to stuff our faces and hit the road.
Just before the Delaware river we made a quick turn north and tried to find the 4 Sisters Winery to say that we have at least tried a Jersey Winery. Well we had no directions, and a rough idea of where it was, which made it an oh so interesting experience trying to find it, particularly since the sun was setting. We put our faith in some young teenage hoodlum hanging out with his friend at a local liquor store, and found it exactly where he said it would be... see... don't judge a book by it's cover.
The 4 Sisters Winery was okay. We weren't dazzled by any of their offerings, but were happy to get a Jersey place under our belts. After the tasting we made our way to the cute little town of Mecungie and to our B&B, the Stone House Inn and Spa. The place is a gorgeous restored and modifed Colonial home with a personal residence in the front of the house, guest rooms in the back, and a spa downstairs. It was great. We set up camp in the Kitten Room... Phil's attempt to outgay the "Rose" room from the Finger Lakes Region.... the jury is still out on who won! The only unusual thing we found, was that for a place that touted a "one-with-nature, zen," kind of feel, there were a surprisingly large number of stuffed birds and animals on display! Definitely not Buddhists!
Some of the Winery recommendations.....
http://www.cloverhillwinery.com/
http://www.pinridge.com/
http://www.bluemountainwine.com/
http://www.vynecrest.com/
http://www.lehighvalleywinetrail.com/
To Be Continued......
Another glorious vacation in the desert with the Zipkins and family. When I first learned my parents were going to retire in Vegas, taking my 2nd home of Los Angeles away, I wasn't thrilled. I was skeptical, this is true, however I have learned to appreciate it. I know Shawn loves it because of the entertainment, the state parks and the mountains. We had a lovely visit with my Grandmother (& John) as well as my brother Scott & his new puppy (cutest dog ever). The highlight of our trip was a gift from my parents: 2 front row tickets to see Cirque du Soleil's production of "O" at the Bellagio Hotel accompanied by a dinner at Olives Restaurant. It was perfection to say the least. THANK YOU MOM & DAD!
