Spring Break 2021 - Time to Go Home

Friday, April 9, 2021

Dianne and Brenda drove us to the airport this morning. It was nice to have them with us for the hour-long ride. 

This vacation was sorely needed. The pandemic has kept us from traveling and Dale's family. We hadn't seen them in person for a year and a half. 

The dry air could be overwhelming, especially overnight, and I had some kind of allergic reaction to something in the air. Dianne said it may have been due to many of the trees flowering. 

However, seeing family and experiencing the pool and all the sunshine more than made up for any mild discomforts. Making tiki cocktails with John didn't hurt either. 

Spring Break 2021

Thursday, April 8, 2021

Leisurely and pleasant morning here in suburban Phoenix. 

Dale and I took a nice walk and were able to process what's going on health-wise with Brenda and Irv.

Errands with Brenda and Irv this morning. Needed to stop by the bank so Dale could sign some documents with them. Spent most of the afternoon at Brenda and Irv's place mostly to give John and Dianne some time to themselves. Harvey Ann is, and always has been, quite the character. I've never seen a cat sit like this before. 

Back at John and Dianne's for cocktail hour and dinner. John's favorite cocktail of the many we made the first night was the Painkiller. This was the drink we've had on subsequent nights. 

John grilled steak and hearts of romaine for dinner. It was all absolutely delicious. During dinner they talked about memories of their old neighborhood on Clay Street in Denver and the flood of '65. I love listening to these old stories. 

Spring Break 2021

Wednesday, April 7, 2021

Leisurly morning. Breakfast at the country club.

Dale and I did errands with Brenda and Irv starting at around 1:00 p.m. They had to pick up some tax forms, have Dale sign some papers at the bank, and also scout out a Domino's pizza place so Brenda could use her gift cards from Kelly. 

John and I made tiki drinks for cocktail hour. Irv had his Canadian Mist and Dale had wine. 

Dianne ordered the pizza and went to pick it up. She was able to use two of the three gift cards Brenda had. 

Spring Break 2021 - Cocktail Time/Pool Time/Dinner Time

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

Dale

Pool time with first round of drinks (The Painkiller). 

John with his pool noodle/tiki mug holder rest. 

Pool time with second round of tiki drinks (Mai Tai - John switched mugs on me). 

Irv with his Canadian Mist.

Dinner of lobster ravioli and Caesar salad. Muy delicioso.

Spring Break 2021 - First Round of Tiki Drinks

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

Ready to serve!

Spring Break 2021 - Tiki Mixology at John & Dianne's

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

John and Dianne had all the makings for concocting multiple tiki drinks. John pulled a half dozen or so tiki recipes from the internet that he thought would be manageable to make. We worked as a team and made Painkillers for everyone to sample. Dale actually had half a tiki cocktail, Dianne as well. Brenda and Irv sampled. John and I subsequently made some modified Mai Tais, Hurricanes, and Zombies for ourselves. I also created a tiki shot I'm calling a Stingray which is simply gold rum and cream of coconut.

 

Spring Break 2021 - Settling-In In Arizona

Tuesday, November 6, 2021

Nice morning at Brenda and Irv's place in Sun City West. Dianne followed Dale and me to the Phoenix airport so we could  drop of our rental car and then drive us back. After that we all went to Dianne and John's for lunch (John grilled hamburgers) and cocktails. It was so sweet that John and Dianne had gotten all the makings for a pretty extensive home tiki bar experience. 

Leaving Las Vegas

Monday, April 5, 2021

Hearty breakfast at America at New York, New York. Left Las Vegas at about 10:00 am and made it to Brenda and Irv's around 4:30 pm. Nice to see their new house in Sun City West. We sat and caught up in their lovely back yard and had brats for dinner. Above photo taken on the part of our drive through California. 

Easter Sunday - Sunset Park

 Sunday, April 4, 2021

After brunch at The Golden Tiki Dale and I stopped by Sunset Park to see the moai statue from the famous old Aku Aku polynesian restaurant and the famous old Stardust casino both of which were torn down and have been long gone. I believe the moai is one of the last relics of the Stardust and for some reason it was placed on this little island on a little pond in this beautiful public park. The park was full of many (mostly Hispanic) families gathered together to picnic and BBQ. It was quite moving especially since Las Vegas is feeling rather lonely today. Maybe it's because the city isn't operating at full capacity due to its beginning to open back up only recently. The consumption and excess of the city seemed particularly pronounced today probably because it's Easter Sunday and we're out of town and not attending a service. Whatever the reason, this walk in the park provided a lively festive atmosphere which really spoke to the theme of rebirth and renewal that is Easter. 

Easter Sunday - The Golden Tiki

Sunday, April 4, 2021

I made a reservation at the Golden Tiki for noon. We only had to wait a few minutes for our table to be ready. 

We had a nice spot in the back right across from this pirate. I wonder if it's supposed to be Captain William Tobias Faulkner from The Legend of the Golden Tiki the bar has written for itself. 

For brunch Dale ordered the Moa Moa waffle which was topped with fried chicken nuggets and maple syrup. I ordered the Pina Colada waffle which was topped with pineapple, coconut, whipped cream and came with a side of Dole Whip. We both really enjoyed them. To drink Dale had a non-alcoholic cocktail, the Ruby Rains, which contained ruby red grapefruit, cinnamon, ginger beer, and citrus. He quite liked it. I started with a Three Dots and a Dash, a tiki classic, and it was very well made. Oh, and we shared a shrimp cocktail. It was all perfect hangover food (especially after our drinking adventures yesterday). Asia, our server, was amazing. She took really good care of us and I thanked her for that. 

There was a DJ present spinning yacht rock type tunes from the late 70s and early 80s mostly. One of the songs on his playlist was Kiss You All Over by Exile. Dale and I had fun singing along with the chorus to this one because Dale, as a teen when the song originally came out, thought the lyric was 'I wanna kiss you on the lobe' rather than the actual title lyric. 

For my second drink I tried the Blue Lagoon which according to the menu it The Golden Tiki's version of the Blue Hawaii. I told Dale that my first tiki drink EVER was the Pearl Harbor which is in the same vein and the Blue Hawaii. A friend took me out for a drink back in college for my nineteenth birthday which was the legal drinking age back in the mid 80s. 

Easter Sunday - Rise and Shine

Sunday, April 4, 2021

Coffee on the balcony of the hotel.

Breakfast at the Avenue Cafe in the MGM casino. 

Nice long walk after breakfast. We headed to the MGM Grand lobby and then over to New York, New York.

Las Vegas - Frankie's Tiki Room

Saturday, April 3, 2021

Tonight we made a stop at Frankie's Tiki Room.

Dale got a beer and I got the Surf Dragon and of course I bought the mug. 

It's a pretty damn cool mug.

Above is a description of the Surf Dragon from Frankie's menu. It was most awesome. 

The bar wasn't crowded which was great because smoking is allowed. 

Service was attentive and friendly. 

Interesting that the dragon tiki mug photographed as green in the above photo...

...when it's actually and orangy-brown. 

We had a great time. Can't wait to go back. 

Above art by Big Toe.

First Trip in Ages

Saturday, April 3, 2021

Our first trip out of Minnesota/Wisconsin in a year and a half! Above is a photo I took from the plane as we left Minneapolis. Lake Harriet is in the foreground and Bde Maka Ska is beyond that. Downtown is in the upper right. 

Covid era snack pack on our Delta flight to Las Vegas. 

Checked into our room at the Signature. We're on the 35th floor in tower 2. In 2019 we were in tower 1. Nice view. 

Dinner at Marimoto located in the walkway between the Signature and the MGM Grand. Wow. Amazing food. We ordered the Sushi and Sashimi chef's choice/combo plate. Way too awesome for words. We had the Rock Shrimp Tempura for an appetizer. Also awesome.