Rocky Mountain Christmas High

If you are a long time reader of my blog the poinsettia tree above might be a familiar sight that you see this time of the year.  Every December, Denver International Airport is beautifully decorated with poinsettias and they are a happy sight for me as I begin a long holiday visit with my children and grandchildren.

My husband and I love the Rocky Mountain views we see in Colorado, no matter what time of the year we visit, but we agree that they are especially beautiful when the high peaks are snow capped.  The weather was wonderful for our visit, with cool, not cold, crisp air and mainly bright blue skies.

My oldest grandson had a birthday while we were in Colorado and there was a face painter and a balloon artist at his dinosaur themed birthday party. His little brother had lots of fun watching all the party festivities. Look at the stegosaurus birthday cake that is in the upper left corner of the photo mosaic above.  What a special treat!

We all had lots of fun doing many more things together as a family in the past two weeks. In the mosaic above from top left to bottom right is: my daughter's Christmas tree, together for my daughter's first bridal dress fitting, my daughter and her fiance's three cats, my grandson pretending to be a fireman at the Denver Children's Museum, another birthday dinner at the very kitschy "Casa Bonita" theme restaurant in Lakewood, my son and daughter-in-law's dog, a tour of Hammonds Candy Factory, where candy canes are still made by hand, and the Colorado Governor's Residence Christmas tree! 

We had early family Christmas celebrations and saw the beautiful Denver City and County Building all lit up in its annual splendor for Christmas!

The beautiful life size Nativity scene on site.

When my husaband and I returned home this evening we saw an unusual, but quintessential NYC sight as we waited for our luggage in John F. Kennedy International Airport.  Do you see it?

Another view

Yes, it was a rather plump and totally content pigeon sitting next to the luggage carousel belt!  What a funny "welcome home" sight to see.  It cheered me up a little as leaving my family in Colorado is always bittersweet. I already miss them so much, but I'm grateful we were able to celebrate an early Christmas together. I hope you are also enjoying a wonderful holiday season!

I'm linking thsi post to Mosaic Monday, Our World Tuesday, Ruby Tuesday, and the Rednesday and Skywatch Friday blog events.  Thanks to all the blog hosts!

Solvang -- Danish Capital of California

Snuggled in the Santa Ynez Valley in Santa Barbara County, is the charming town of Solvang, which translates a "Sunny Meadows," and is known as the 'Danish Capital of California."  One of my husband's co-workers told us to make an effort to take a detour east from Santa Barbara to visit this town on our trip north to San Francisco along the Pacific Coast Highway. She knew that we'd enjoy its friendly, fairy tale appearance.

Solvang was founded in 1911 on almost 9,000 acres of the Rancho San Carlos de Jonata Mexican land grant, by a group of Danes who traveled west to establish a Danish colony far from the Midwestern winters. There is still a significant Danish population in Solvang, and a number of bakeries, restaurants, and merchants offering a taste of Denmark. The architecture of many of the facades and buildings reflects traditional Danish style.

 
There was so much to see and do there that I'm sorry we could only spend one afternoon walking around town.

On the top floor of this charming little book store called The Book Loft, located at 1680 Mission Drive, was the Hans Christian Anderson Museum.  Hans Christian Anderson was Denmark's most famous writer.  Although Andersen wrote travel journals, plays, novels, and poetry he is best know for his endearing children's Fairy Tales, which have been translated into more than 100 languages.

The Book Loft also contained a large collection of books about all the Scandinavian countries,  books in the various Scandinavian languages, as well as book in English, and a large selection of children's books.

The museum is devoted to presenting the author's life and works. Displays include models of Andersen's childhood home and of his The Princess and the Pea fairy tale.. The museum also contains hundreds of volumes of Andersen's works, including many illustrated first editions.

We also took some time to visit the Mission of Santa Ines located at 1760 Mission Drive in Solvang.  Santa Ines is the nineteenth of 21 missions established by Franciscan priests from 1769 to 1823.  It was founded on September 17, 1804 by Father Estévan Tapís. Santa Ines is the Spanish version of the name "Saint Agnes." Early English settlers changed the spelling to "Santa Inez" when naming the mountains surrounding the area. Saint Agnes was a Christian who was martyred for her faith in Rome in 304 AD. 

The interior of the church is beautiful and very decoratively painted. The statue of St. Agnes, dating from the 18th Century, is located in a niche above the main altar, and almost appeared to glow, as the soft afternoon light shone upon it.  The mission is still an active parish.

The historical museum at Santa Inés is one of the best in the mission chain. It contains an extensive display of Latin missals and handmade parchment music books, some far older than the mission and many magnificent works of art work, vestments, statuary, documents and mission  artifacts.

As with all the missions we visited on this trip, the gardens and cemetery of Santa Ines were lush and peaceful. We really enjoyed visiting this "Hidden Gem of the Missions," as it is also known.

Before we departed Solvang the next morning we stopped at Olsen's Danish Bakery for a Danish pastry and coffee.  There were so many delicious pastries to chose from that of course we had to have more than one!

We went back on the road, headed towards San Luis Obsipo.   I had to visit a fun location there that I read Susan Branch blog about ... I love Susan's cheerful  blog! I'll be sharing more about that in my blog post for Pink Saturday .. you won't want to miss it!

I'm linking this post to:

Mosaic Monday
Blue Monday
Ruby Tuesday
Our World Tuesday
Rednesday

Many thanks to all the blog hosts!

The 85th Feast of San Gennaro, Little Italy

The Annual Feast of San Gennaro is New York City’s longest-running, biggest and most revered religious outdoor festival in the United States. This is the 85th anniversary of the festival, which will be held Thursday, September 15, through Sunday, September 25, 2011, on the streets of the historic Little Italy neighborhood in lower Manhattan. This neighborhood served as the first home in America for hundreds of thousands of Italian immigrants who came here seeking to improve their lives, beginning in the early part of the 20th century.

Since 1996, the festival has been run by the "Figli di San Gennaro, Inc."(Children of San Gennaro), a not-for-profit community organization dedicated to keeping alive the spirit and faith of the early Italian immigrants.  San Gennaro is the Patron Saint of Naples, Italy. When newly arrived immigrants from Naples settled along Mulberry Street, in what would become the "Little Italy" section of New York City, they decided to continue a tradition they had followed in their hometown in Italy. That was to celebrate the day in 305 A.D. when Saint Gennaro was martyred for the faith.  Each year on September 19th,  a religious procession of the Statue of San Gennaro, winds along the length of Mulberry and Mott Streets, between Canal and Houston Streets. The procession begins after a celebratory Mass held at the Most Precious Blood Church on Mulberry Street, which is also the National Shrine of San Gennaro.

My husband and I went to the feast on Friday evening, and strolled the many blocks looking at all the food, rides, games, live music and local sights along with the rest of the large crowd. The feast is quite popular and attracts up to a million visitors of all ethnic groups over its eleven days.

The predominantly Italian food was in abundance and it was all very tempting!

There were all kinds of gelato, pastries, calzones, pizzas, pastas, stuffed clams, seafood salad, fried calamari, rice balls, sausage and peppers and onions, roasted pork, beef and chicken, sauteed broccoli rabe, biscotti, a nougat candy called torrone, and Zeppoles, which are fried dough sweetened with powdered sugar.

 More than 35 of Little Italy's most famous Italian restaurants provide outdoor dining facilities for the event. We decided to dine al fresco at one of my husband's many favorite restaurants in Little Italy.  I had linguine with a light tomato sauce yopped with shrimp and clams, and my husband had Veal Sorrentino, which is basically veal cutlets cooked with prosciutto, eggplant and mozzarella cheese.  Delicious!

 We stayed well into the late evening, enjoying all the festivities. 

According to the Feast of San Gennaro web site : "The continued growth of the Feast over the past ten years has enabled Figli di San Gennaro, Inc. to donate more than $1.6-million to worthy causes providing valuable services for children and education in the Little Italy community and beyond. At the conclusion of each annual Feast, sizeable donations are distributed to scores of worthy organizations in all five boroughs and the tri-state area to help the needy and the young. No other public festival donates more money to charity than does the Feast of San Gennaro."


  Below is a short video I took of one of the vendors at the feast, you can also watch it at this link.



The Feast of San Gennaro is a wonderful way to enjoy one of the old time ethnic neighborhoods of New York City and enjoy some delicious food and support a good cause.  We wouldn't miss it!

I'm adding this post to "Mosaic Monday" event on Mary's blog Little Red House, the new Our World Tuesday,  and "Rednesday" on Sue's blog It's A Very Cherry World. Thanks to the hosts!

Seeing Red in Denver

As I strolled around Denver, Colorado, last week, I saw quite a bit of the color red. In my last post I showed all the beautiful red flowers I saw in Alamo Placita Park.  I liked the idea of the red rentable bicycles you see in the photo above, that are called Denver B Cycles. Denver B-cycle is the first large-scale municipal bike sharing system in the United States. They are located in dozens of special bike stations (B-stations) in the downtown neighborhood, as well as the Cherry Creek and Denver University neighborhoods. For a modest charge, Denver B-cycle members can pick up one of the red bikes at any B-station and when finished riding they can drop it off at any B-station. It is a very healthy and environmentally friendly way to travel.

This beautiful red brick Capital Hill Mansion Bed and Breakfast is a national historically registered 1891 Romanesque Mansion located in the Capitol Hill Historic neighborhood of downtown Denver.  Built by Jeffery and Mary Keating, the Keating Mansion was one of the last Historic Homes of Denver built before the silver crash of 1893.

This former red brick church is now turned into a 2.3 million dollar luxury home. You can see a slide show of the house interior on this link.

 A bright red tartan kilt on a man I spied walking around the annual Taste of Colorado festival.

A red sculpture entitled "National Velvet" by John McEnroe, installed during a 2008 public arts program

Fred, one of my daughter's cats, in front of a red wall in her home.

My favorite reds of all were my two grandsons who were wearing red!

It was so much fun to see the boys again so soon, and I gave them lots of hugs, kisses and cuddles!

And now for the winner of the Bertolli sponsored give away from this post of set which consists of a coupon for a free Bertolli sauce product, a cavatelli maker, a cheese grater, a gnocchi board and a La Crueset Gratin dish.There were 93 comments--thank you to all who entered!  Random.org picked comment number 15. The winner is Ginny of the blog "Let Your Light Shine"!  Congratulations Ginny! 

I'm linking this post to the  weekly"Rednesday" event on Sue's blog It's A Very Cherry World. Thanks Sue! If you love the color red be sure to visit Sue's blog and see the links of all the participating blogs.

Flower Daze

My husband and I have been quite busy lately visiting florists and wedding flower showrooms trying to help our daughter decide what flowers and arrangements she and her fiance would like to have at their spring wedding ceremony and reception.  Since my daughter now lives across the country, it has to be done with the help of websites and photos and lots of telephone and e-mail conversations.  It's not the easiest way to get this feature of the wedding plans done, but I have had a lot of fun photographing pretty flowers along the way, as you can see in this collage of some that caught my eye.   Shades of purple are my daughter's color of choice, but I couldn't resist also taking photos of some of the autumn hues, as they are my favorite!

We've had so much rain the past week that my flower box impatiens flowers have all perked up!

I love how they flower all summer long and fill my yard with beautiful color.

Daylight is shortening, and the end of August fast approaches, but I know summer will not be over until the figs on my tree ripen. Maybe yet another week or so?   It is always an exciting time for us!

 What are you doing to enjoy these last weeks of summer?

"Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time."   ~John Lubbock


I'm linking with "Rednesday" on Sue's blog It's A Very Cherry World and  "Outdoor Wednesday" on Susan's Blog A Southern Daydreamer. Thanks for hosting each week!!

A Quick Trip to the Philly Italian Market

A friend recently wanted to visit her brother in a suburban Philadelphia hospital and asked if I would come along for the ride to keep her company.  She told me we'd stop at the famous Philadelphia 9th Street Italian Market for a quick lunch before heading home, so I was excited for a chance to see what that market was all about. I love visiting ethnic markets and in the past I've blogged about many different ethnic markets in Brooklyn, NY and also the Bronx's Arthur Ave Italian Market, so I was curious to see if the Philly Market would measure up to my expectations.

(All photos will enlarge for easier view of details if clicked on once, and then again when they re-open. After viewing use you back function to return to the post)

It certainly did! I learned Philadelphia’s Italian market was the oldest and largest working outdoor market in the United States.  Located in the heart of this historic Pennsylvania city for over one hundred years, the Italian Market is located on 9th Street and runs from Wharton Street to Fitzwater Street.  The market features bright colorful metal awnings which cover the sidewalks where vendors of fruit, vegetables, fish, and housewares, both inside and outside on wooden tables, and conduct business year round. Ground floor shops in traditional Philadelphia row houses line the street. Many owners still live above their shops.  The broad awnings across the sidewalks shield outside market shoppers from sun, rain and snow.

There is definitely a wonderful old world patina appearance to the storefronts and streets. The area continues to attract new immigrants, as there are now a number of Asian and Mexican run businesses which have joined the traditional Italian shops in the market. The market hours of operation are Tuesday through Saturday, 9 AM to 5 PM and Sunday 9AM to 2 PM.

We stopped at Paesano's, located at 1017 South 9th Street, for what they describe as a "Philly style sandwich with Italian inspiration." Click on the highlighted words to look at their unique sandwich menu!

Paesano's may be a small, casual counter service establishment, but they are famous for their home made lamb sausage and Sicilian style chick-pea pancakes. They have won numerous awards for being the Philly's best sandwich shop and for having the best "hoagie" in Philadelphia.  My friend and I both ordered their "Zawzeech" sandwich, which was made with a crusty Liscio bakery sesame seed bread, sweet Italian sausage, caramelized peppers and onions, sharp Provolone and pepperocinos.  It was a delicious and hearty meal!

We wanted to beat rush hour traffic back to New York, so we did not have too much time to shop in the market, but one place I had to see was the legendary Fante's Kitchen Wares Shop, located at 1006 South 9th Street.  It has been in the Italian Market since 1906, and is one of the United State's oldest and most distinguished resources for cook wares.  Julia Child, Emeril Lagasse, Jacques Pepin, Lydia Bastianich, and Guy Fieri are among the famous chefs who have shopped here.

It was jam packed with a full selection of cookware, cutlery and many thousands more quality products and kitchen utensils for both professional chefs and home cooks. I went into sensory overload just looking at every imaginable gadget, pasta maker, serving dish, bottle, baking pan, appliance, rolling pins, etc. I was so overwhelmed that I wanted to spend hours just looking around, and I couldn't decide on what to buy! I'm making a list so the next time I visit I will be prepared.  Fante's has an online catalog of just a small portion of their goods, but I think you will agree that if you can't find what you are looking for at Fante's, you can't find it anywhere else!

The Philadelphia Italian Market is definitely worth a visit as it is a fun shopping and dining experience!

I'm linking this post to "Outdoor Wednesday" on Susan's Blog A Southern Daydreamer

"Rednesday" on Sue's blog It's A Very Cherry World 

Foodie Friday on Michael's blog Designs by Gollum

Many thanks to all the hosts!