Lake George

 

Location: Lake George, New York, USA
Address:  2 Canada Street
Date:  September 2010
Website:  tikiresort.com

  Lake George is located in the northern part of New York state. It is located beside the Adirondack Mountains. The area is a popular tourist destination to enjoy the mountains and steamboat rides on the lake. After falling in love with Maui, Hawaii, we visited Lake George for the Polynesian dinner show. If you can't make it to Hawaii then you might want to head to Lake George in New York state and visit the Tiki Resort.

   We enjoyed a dinner, a few drinks and the show. It featured Hawaiian dancers and drummers all the way from Schenectady.  One of us even got to participate. A few lucky dancers were chosen to shake their stuff based on the fruit shouted out by the band. "Coconut" to the right, "Pineapple" to the left and "Papaya" to the rear. By the time we were done we had danced up a fruit salad.

     We were only in Lake George for one night to catch the Tiki show. The next morning we decided to see what else was going on in town before heading to New York City. As we approached the waterfront this duck quacked out to us.

 

 

  Across the water at the pier we could see the Mohican and Minnie Ha Ha steamboats getting ready to take tourists out for a relaxing trip around the lake. We hear that in the fall, the colours are lovely.

    As we headed out of Lake George, we were in for one last treat. We noticed a giant Uncle Sam in a parking lot. We pulled over and went to check him out. This Uncle Sam is 38 feet tall. He was designed for an Ohio restaurant called fittingly, Uncle Sam's. He then stood outside of the state fairgrounds in Danbury, Connecticut until coming to Lake George to stand in the parking lot of the Magic Forest amusement park.

  Behind Uncle Sam we noticed someone else very special. It was Santa Claus! What more could you ask for in a town? A Tiki Resort and Santa are two of our favourite things.

  Sadly, Uncle Sam has returned once again to Danbury and Santa has disappeared. The Tiki Resort is still doing shows so that is more than enough reason to spend a day in Lake George.  Coconut!!

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Map of Our World
Tiki Resort , Minnie Ha Ha

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Post # 323

Gullfoss

Location: Iceland
Date: Sept 2015
Website: visiticeland.com

  The landscape of Iceland is unlike any other place in the world.  It is often referred to as the land of fire and ice. It has been formed by the power of nature. Volcanoes, glaciers and waterfalls have shaped it into what it is today. We visited one waterfall that is unlike any other in the world.

  Gullfoss translates to mean the Golden Waterfall. We are uncertain how it came to be named, but it is part of what tourists call the Golden Circle.  The Golden Circle of Iceland includes the geysirs of Haukadalur, Thingvellir National Park and the Gullfoss waterfall.

  The Olfusa river flows down to Gullfoss.  The water first flows over an 11 metre drop.

    The water then takes a turn and goes for another 21 metre drop into a canyon.

  Brave and properly dressed tourists can head along a pathway into the mist of Gullfoss to get an even closer look.

    Tourists can go right up to the edge of the falls and watch the water plummet into the earth. 

  The walls of the canyon where the Gullfoss water flows stand even taller than the falls themselves..

 

  Somewhere down under that cliff the river continues to flow.  So we have been told.

  Iceland in the winter is a dark cold place.  Days may often only have about 4 hours of daylight.  The band Echo & The Bunnymen chose to film the video for their song "The Cutter" at Gullfoss in the winter. The cover of their album Porcupine features the band in front of the falls.

   The Gullfoss waterfall left us amazed as to its beauty and shape and the mystery of where all that water goes.  Icleand never disappoints.  As we looked around from the road near Gullfoss we could see the Langjokul Glacier in the distance.  More adventure awaits.

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Map of Our World 

Gullfoss Waterfall

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Post # 322

Kelly & Ryan

Location: New York, New York, USA
Address:  77 W 66th St
Date: June 2017
Website:  kellyandryan.com

  LIVE with Kelly & Ryan is a morning talk show filmed at ABC studios in New York City.  The show has left the studio and travelled to Canada on three occassions.  Back in 1996 the show filmed from Niagara Falls, Ontario and the hosts were Regis Philbin and Kathy Lee Gifford.  In 2006, the show returned once more and this time Kelly Ripa joined Regis as a host. In 2017, the current hosts Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest filmed a pair of episodes and this time we were there.  Ryan Seacrest has announced that he will be leaving the show so we found ourselves looking back.

  We didn't actually have tickets to the show but we obtained ourselves a bird's eye view.  We had a room at the Sheraton Fallsview Hotel which overlooks the Oakes Garden Theatre where the taping of the show was to take place.

  The hotel also offers a great view to look across and admire the American and Horseshoe Falls.

     As we looked down from our balcony, we had a perfect view of the stage below.  The day before the taping we could watch the crews getting everything ready for the big day. The proximity to the Falls means that even if there is no rain in the forecast, you always have a chance of mist. The main desk on stage remained under a tarp for protection.

   Since we had arrived the day before, we were able to go down into the gardens and get a close up view of the stage. This is what it would be like to be one of the lucky audience members in attendance when the show went live.

  The audience members started to fill up the street at the bottom of Clifton Hill, waiting for their chance to enter the gardens.

  While the crowd squeezed into the gardens, we admired the beauty of Niagara Falls and were quite happy having our own private viewing area. It may have been way in the back, but we had an unobstructed view. 

 

   As show time approached we headed down to the hotel lobby.  Rumour had it that the stars themselves were in the hotel and getting ready to walk across to the Oakes Garden Theatre. Next thing we knew we had a front row seat as Kelly & Ryan were greeted to cheers from their fans.

  We headed back up to our private viewing suite.  We were just in time to catch the start of the show.

  Kelly & Ryan addressed the crowd of mostly Canadian fans.  It is only a short walk or drive across the Rainbow Bridge to get to New York state for any American fans in attendance.

  Kelly & Ryan sat at their big white desk. The desk was nice and dry after being protected under tarps waiting for the hosts to arrive. 

  To make the show even more Canadian, one of the guests was Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The highlight of his appearance seemed to be that he wore R2-D2 and C-3PO Star Wars socks.

  Since Kelly & Ryan had been nice enough to visit us in Canada, we decided to see more of them when we were in New York City. The show is filmed at ABC studios at West 67th Street and Columbus Ave. in Manhattan.

  If you follow West 67th Street into Central Park you will see a row of benches as you enter the park.  One of those is dedicated to Kelly Ripa.

      The bench congratulates Kelly Ripa for over 30 years with the Walt Disney Company which owns ABC. Kelly has been with LIVE for over 20 years and shows no signs of stopping. Her next co-host will be her husband Mark Consuelos.  If they choose to do another taping from Niagara Falls, we know where we will be watching from.

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Map of Our World
Kelly Ripa Bench , ABC Studios NYC
Oakes Garden Theatre

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Post # 321

The Old Tavern Of Psaras

 

Location: Athens, Greece
Address: Erotokritou 16, Plaka
Date: February 2023
Website: psaras-taverna.gr

    The Plaka is one of the oldest neighbourhoods in Athens, Greece.  It spreads out below the Acropolis from the North-East side like a maze.  We are sure that even right now, many a tourist is lost and trying to find their way through the Plaka.  If you are trying to drive a rental car and check into your hotel the streets of the Plaka can be quite frustrating.  The streets are narrow and winding and many are pedestrian only. If you are ready to take an evening stroll looking for great food and some souvenirs then the Plaka can be full of surprises.

      Around any corner could be a church or a monument. The Choragic Monument of Lysicrates above, dates from 334 BC and sits in a little square.

   In Plaka some streets are bustling and some appear deserted.  There is always the chance that coming around the corner is a bike, a taxi or a crowd of people.  We worked our way through the streets in order to find a special place for dinner.

  From the Acropolis you can look down on the red rooftops of the oldest buildings in Plaka.  Off in the distance is the highest point in Athens, Lycabettus Hill.  Near the front of the photo is Psaras Taverna which is the oldest continually operating tavern in all of Athens.

   Just in case you couldn't locate the restaurant in the previous photo, here is a close up view.  Now you should be able to find it. Using an aerial view is much easier than finding the restaurant back down on the ground.

    Psaras means fisherman in Greek so the name of the restaurant in English is the Old Fisherman's Tavern.  The restaurant has been operating since 1898.

 

     The restaurant has taken over several buildings and all of the stairs in the area.

 

     We were seated outside in a corner next to a heat lamp to keep us warm.  It was rather cool in Athens that week and it did actually snow only two days later. We appreciated being tucked in to enjoy our meal and the atmosphere.  We had a mushroom soup and a chicken gyro dinner.

  

   As we were finishing up our coffee we heard a woman speaking to the matre d'.  "Reservation for a rather large goup of kidney doctors please".  We took care of our bill and readied ourselves for the streets of Plaka.  Sure enough a line of people appeared from one of the walkways and snaked past us and up to an upper terrace seating area.  We didn't stay to count, but 165 sounds about right.

 

    As we made our way back through the streets of the Plaka we looked up at the Acropolis.  We would be back again in the Plaka the next day and end up dining at Diogenis (on the right in the photo above).  The Plaka is a great place to spend a day getting lost and seeing what you can find.

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Map of Our World
Psaras Taverna , Diogenis
Choragic Monument Of Lysicrates

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Post # 320

Thessaloniki Waterfront

Location: Thessaloniki, Greece
Address: Aristotelous Square
Date: August 2015
Website: thessaloniki.gr

    Thessaloniki is the second largest city in Greece.  It has a beautiful waterfront filled with interesting buildings and sculptures. When we visited we took a walk through the center of town towards Aristotelous Square and along the water.

   As you head towards the water you walk along a huge pedestrian plaza flanked by buildings on either side. As we neared the actual square we encountered a large group of pigeons and people selling balloons. The idea of the square was designed in 1918, but the majority was not built until the 1950s. In terms of Greek structures this square is just a baby. 

      The area is named after the Greek philosopher Aristotle. There is a statue of him seated at the edge of the square. Aristotle was born in 382 BC. That is over 2000 years before even the idea of the square.

  After walking through the square, you can walk along the waterfront where an assortment of restaurants await.

    One restaurant we visited was Agioli. It had planes, lanterns and deli meats all hanging from its ceiling. 

     After enjoying a meal or a drink you can continue along the waterfront towards the most recognizable structure in Thessaloniki.

     The White Tower stands over Thessaloniki's waterfront as it has since approximately 1535.  Greece regained control of the city and the tower from Ottoman rule and the tower still stands today.

    In front of the White Tower stands a statue dedicated to Nikolaos Votsis who was a famous Greek naval officer.

   If you wish to have your own adventures out on the sea there are tourist ships that will take you.  You can enjoy the view as well as a few drinks on a pirate ship.

     If you prefer you can also travel out on the sea in a replica of the Argo.  The Argo was a ship used in the story of Jason and the Argonauts on their quest to find the Golden Fleece.

   As we headed further along the waterfront we took one more look up at the White Tower.  You can see little openings where the soldiers would look out or launch their weapons from.  Today the tower is used as a museum to explain some of the history of the area.

   The next statue we encountered was of Alexander the Great.  Alexander was a king in Ancient Greece.  He was actually tutored by Aristotle when he was a young boy.

   Alexander The Great was great at battle and created a huge empire that stretched from Greece all the way to India.  He is depicted rearing up on his horse with sword in hand.

   A different work of art located next to Alexander is the National Resistance Memorial.  This memorial is dedicated to the Greek heroes who fought in World War II.

  An army of birds caught our eye as they marched over a grassy patch.  We moved closer to see who these vistors were.

  The birds in question were hooded crows.  They get their name from their black head.  They are found all across Europe and unlike their raven cousins they have grey and brownish feathers as well as black.

      A nearby statue represents another great Greek leader.  This is Konstantinos Karamanlis.  From 1955 to 1995 he was Prime Minister four times and President of Greece twice.

  Further along the waterfront was a piece of art not representing any great person but just for art's sake.

   The Umbrellas was created by sculptor Giorgios Zongolopoulos in 1997 and has become a popular photo spot along the water.

   As we looked up the street we noticed another strange tower in the distance.  This is OTE Tower and it opened in 1966. Unlike the White Tower, it was never involved in battle.  It does work as a communications tower and has a revolving restaurant inside. 

   The sun started to set as we headed back towards Aristotelous Square for dinner.  We found a nice spot on one of the balconies and enjoyed our meal as we waited for the show.

    Soon the sun started to set behind the industrial port section of the waterfront. The sky turned a bright orange as the sun slipped away.

   Soon the darkness had taken over and groups of people headed out to enjoy the nightlife. We realized we had spent the whole day exploring and admiring the sights around Thessaloniki's waterfront.  Not a bad way to spend a day.

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Map of Our World
White Tower Of Thessaloniki

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Post # 319