Day 2 in fabulous Columbus

Day 2 started out with a surprise.  I woke up and peeked out the windows and there was a blizzard going on.  We knew right away it was going to be a way different day than what we were used to.

The temperature at this time was about 10 degrees. 
Our first stop was for the breakfast downstairs in the lobby.  We feasted on OJ, coffee, bagels and made our game plan for the day.

Of course, you definitely have to stop and take a picture in a new city and it's snowing like crazy.  It was the wildest travelling weather we had been in yet.

Of course, Paul was quick to try and snap the pictures so that we could get on our way.  But this is a cute little "behind the scenes" look at myself trying to put my gloves back on for my big pictorial moment.

But a short moment later we got the money shot.  This picture sums up how fun it was to be experiencing this crazy weather.

The food show was being held in the Columbus Convention Center, which was just almost a block away from our hotel.  It was actually pretty fun to take the walk over there and back each day and a good way to BRIEFLY enjoy all the cold weather.  The Convention Center was HUGE.  It seriously was as long as 5-6 city blocks.  I have never seen so many meeting rooms in my life -- I don't even think the Las Vegas Convention Center is that big.  For some reason, Columbus must hold a lot of conventions......we're sure it's not because of their great weather.

Had to snap a picture to remember that we were here for learning how to be better and smarter pizza shop operators.  You always have to keep educating yourself so that you can continually try to do a better job.  And of course, to learn how to make more money.  Here's our fearless leader getting ready to spend from 11am-6:30pm locked up in this big building.

The first day here we each attended 3 seminars, talked to countless vendors, sampled numerous slices of cheese pizza, ate some really good ice cream, and learned how to make a few new specialty pizzas.  At the cocktail event, we sat with 2 couples who ran shops in West Virginia and Indiana.  It was fun sitting there and telling each other about our businesses and asking questions.  Always good to connect with people that are doing the same thing we are.

After our day, it was back to the hotel to take a little break and figure out something to do for the evening.  Searching on the internet yielded no results......so we decided to brave the elements and walk around and try to find some place to eat.

4 frozen blocks later it was just too darn cold and we headed back towards our hotel.  There was nothing open, there were no people on the street, and it was so freaking cold with the wind blowing.  We found a restaurant inside the hotel next door and decided this was where we were going to have to eat.  Thus, we had our first experience with Max & Erma's.

Nice restaurant, good food, and great service.  Plus it was warm and right next door from our hotel.  Due to the inclement weather, we were forced to go back to the room and entertain ourselves.  Which we did with reading, watching the Olympics, and getting a really good night's sleep.  Wow....we were actually relaxing on a trip away (that doesn't happen often).

A cold Day 2 is in the books.

Why on earth would we go to Columbus?

This is one of the things I look forward to in my life.

When I get the chance to sit down and totally relive a trip that we just took.  I know it might sound corny to you.....but travelling with Paul is like one of the things I enjoy most in the world.   We can go to the biggest of cities or the littlest of tourist places and still end up having a great time together.

This time it was a trip to Columbus, Ohio.  This destination was chosen just because we wanted to attend the National Pizza and Ice Cream Show.........and it just happened to be located in a city that has had it's share of winter.

It was an early morning start since we had to catch a 5:05 am flight.  That meant getting up at 2:30 am to get ready and get to the airport on time.  It actually was pretty easy since we didn't get hardly any sleep the night before.  Seems like we are always anxious and excited to go on a trip that we never sleep the night before.

Needless to say, the flight to Charlotte was extremely quiet.  Almost everyone on the plane was asleep, but me and the lady sitting one row behind me.  We both spent the entire 3 hour trip reading.  Although, we did invest in something that we've been meaning to try on every trip.  We got a set of these:

Must have worked good because Paul slept almost the entire way.  Our layover in Charlotte was only about 40 minutes and we had to change terminals.  By the time we hit the restroom and quickly hustled to the next terminal, we only had a few minutes before it was time to board. 

Our adventure at the Charlotte airport was having to walk out to the tarmac and climb steps to get up into the airplane.  Haven't done that for a few years!

The flight to Columbus was nice and smooth but when we landed at the airport there was absolutely no activity going on there.  There was not a single plane landed there......when we exited the plane, there was a line of people waiting to board it to head back to Charlotte.  Creepy being in an airport with the hustle and bustle of people.

Our next mission was to get our suitcases and call the hotel to come and pick us up.  This was our first chance to experience the weather of Columbus!

He looks so serious.  He has no idea what he has in store for him the next 4 days!

   It was so, so cold waiting there for the hotel shuttle!

This was where we waited for the shuttle to pick us up.

 

After getting picked up in a nice and warm van, we headed to the Red Roof Inn in downtown Columbus.  This is what it looks like in nice weather:

This is what it looked like when we got there:

We got there about 11:30am and they didn't have any rooms yet, so we headed over to High Street (where all the action is) and looked for someplace to eat lunch.  I have to mention that we thought we had one of the best rooms in the hotel.  They put us in a corner on the back side and it gave us windows on 2 sides of our room.  It was really fun in the morning watching what happens in everyday life in Columbus.  I had even more fun watching the commuters walk from their parking lots to their offices in all the snow!

This is some of the snow that we saw along the way.  The temperature at this time was 18 degrees.

We found a Greek Restaurant and feasted on yummy food.

Next stop was to head back to the hotel to see if they had a room ready for us yet.  We were so ready for a nap by this time......it had already been a long day.  We slept for a couple of hours and then got on the internet to try and find entertainment for a Saturday night in Columbus.

Our search for something for dinner took us to this place located on High Street:

Barley's Brew House.  What a good decision that was.  The place was packed, but after a short wait we had a quiet little booth and ordered some of their famous char grilled wings and the Polski platter.  We tried for the first time Sauerkraut Balls and Pierogies.  Paul loved both......I'm more a fan of the Pierogies than I was the balls.

After dinner our plan was to go to Shadowbox Live.....a live theater place.....and watch their featured show Foreplay.  It really wasn't a play, but a collection of skits like Saturday Night Live with a live band in between each sketch.  We had awesome seats and it was a great way to spend our first night in Columbus.

Here's a couple of pics (not taken by us) of the show.  It was funny, different, and entertaining.  We really did pick a great thing to do on our first night there.

Can't believe how much I had to write about only 1 day in the wild town of Columbus.  Stay tuned for the rest of the excitement...............

We're out of town....what are you do checking here?

I really have so much fun posting all these stupid photos while we are gone.

If you really are interested in seeing a real photo of where we are and what we are doing.....check our Facebook page.

In the meantime......you can imagine that this is us and what we are experiencing right now!

We'll see you next week!

Is everyone as crazy as us?

Seriously, we do not like cold weather. 

Why on earth are we going somewhere where the forecast is like this?

And another thing.....does it take everyone as long as it takes me to pack.  I seriously STRESS about packing major big time every time we go on a trip.  I lay every day of clothing out and go over and over and over in my head to make sure I have everything I need.  My wonderful husband always has to remind me that we're not travelling to some remote part of the world.  If we need something.....there's probably a store nearby where we can buy it.

 

I hate to forget something.

 

Oh and another thing.......we are going to have to get up at 2:30 tomorrow morning to catch our 5:00am flight.  What the heck were we thinking when we booked that early morning flight?  Oh yeah.....we were thinking what a cheap flight that was :-)

 

Watch for our photos of our exciting trip to Columbus, Ohio.

 

Oh by the way.....we're really kind of excited to go there and experience the weather.  It's something new and different and you know what thrill seekers we are!

 

Sampling new stuff again

Tried something new last night for dinner.  I took a pictorial tutorial along the way, just in case it was good and delicious and would want it again. 

Follow along as I make Mexican Sour Cream Rice:

First I had to boil a cup of rice in Chicken Broth.  I opted to use 1/2 of brown rice and a 1/2 cup white rice to make it a little healthier.  However, I've mixed the rice before and I never tell the difference between them.....so I think I'm just going to switch over to brown rice permanently.

 

Assemble all your ingredients: Monterrey Jack Cheese, Green Chiles, Cilantro, Sour Cream, Black Beans and Corn.  Also we threw in a couple of dashes of Emeril's.

 

Throw this creamy cluster of yumminess in a baking dish and throw some shredded cheese on top

Here's what it looked like piping hot from the oven

 

We served it up with some avocado slices on top and I whipped up a batch of jalapeno cornbread.

Our recommendations:  it was really good, although it would be even better if it was wrapped up in a tortilla or throw some chicken in it.  While we liked it and it tasted really good, we're not sure if it's something we'll want to make again.

Tale of the Travel Bags

A couple of years ago we had to replace our travel bag.  I wrote a big blog about it (you know how boring I can be sometimes).  Anyways, I loved that travel bag, but after carrying it around the last 2 years......it was starting to show some wear.  Here it is....you can probably see the tearing in it.

I can't tell you how important a travel bag is to us.  I don't carry a purse so it contains all the important stuff we need for our trip: Kindles, candy, medicine, Ipods, paper, pens, and all our other important travel documents.

Since we have a trip pending on our agenda....it was time for a new travel bag.  I headed out to Walmart yesterday and there was several options available.  I came home with this nice leather bag, but I really didn't feel much love for it.

Today, we went to The Container Store just to spend a little down time and walk up and down the aisles and all of a sudden the heavens opened and the angels started singing.  I found the PERFECT travel bag.

So now, I am returning the bag from Walmart.  The new bag is full of little pockets and compartments, durable and sturdy, and very cute.......love it!

Okay.....I know it's probably not that exciting to you......but it's really a big deal for us....so just play along OK?

Not feeling it today

After all the stuff that happened last night......I'm not feeling it today.

I don't want this post to turn into a rant about thugs, and how this city is being taken over by thugs, and how I just want to go and get them all.

Instead it should be about how thankful we are that no one was injured in the robbery last night.  Talk about what an awesome job our staff did keeping their heads cool and how great they handled things.

The money can always be replaced......but can our sense of security?

Something needs to be done about all this crime.