Where Are You?

I loved Geography class when I was a young lad at St. Leo's elementary school. I didn't travel outside of the state of New Jersey until I was a teenager, so reading about the rest of the country, and the world, fascinated me. Even today, I look forward to reading my National Geographic magazine each month (I've got every hardcopy since 1977, and the CD going back 115 years!). At this point you're probably saying: "Gee, get a life!". Oh, well.
Anyway, another quirk is that I wait for the postlady to bring my copy of Conde Nast Traveler magazine each month. The travel articles are great, but the highlight is their "Where Are You?" contest. You get several paragraphs of very vague clues, along with a picture of a site somewhere in the world. At that point, you then have to get very creative with your Googling skills. There is a monthly prize for one correct entrant, but the annual grand prize is the kicker. The winner gets an expense paid trip for two to one of the destinations from the previous year's contests. Destinations so far in Y2008 include Egypt, Madagascar, France, Austria, China, Finland, Chile, Shanghai, Finland, Reunion Island, and Spain (which I hope is November's answer!). I've been entering the contest since 1996, so maybe my time is coming! About 6,000 entries are received each month, so the odds aren't too outragious.

The website for the contest is: http://www.concierge.com/cntraveler/contestsquizzes/whereareyou .

Pictured here (photo courtesy Conde Nast Traveler, used without permission) is the December 2008 destination. Can you guess "Where Are You?" ?

Basilica of St. Lawrence

We love to visit big, beautiful churches. While in Asheville recently, we toured the Basilica of St. Lawrence. Completed in 1909, it has the largest freestanding elliptical dome in the country. The dome measures 58' by 82'. The main altar was very beautiful, along with the chapels on either side of the main altar. The stained glass windows were made in Munich, Germany, and they were impressive.

Fall Festival, with a Spanish Flavor

Kellie's school (where she teaches) had their fall festival recently. Each grade devised games for the children to participate in. Kellie developed the infamous 'toss the pingpong ball into the glass globe, and win a goldfish' game. It was the hit of the festival! She purchased 60 goldfish, and gave away 59 (one didn't make it). The children enjoyed all of the games at the festival. As the school is predominantly Hispanic, the parents were cooking and serving many Spanish foods and treats. As they say: a good time was had by all!

Visit to the Biltmore House

We had been to the Biltmore House in Asheville NC a couple times already, but we have always talked about touring the house during the holiday season. We took a 3-day trip for our anniversary (27th) in November, and spent the weekend in Asheville. The house was beautifully decorated for the Christmas season. We took the candlelight tour on Friday evening, and went back on Saturday, too. The 35' Christmas tree in the main dining room was spectacular. The entire first floor was filled with smaller Christmas trees, garland, poinsetias, and other decorations. We also visited the winery, and even coaxed Jamie (a lifelong teetotaler) into tasting some of the wines!

New Teacher!

Kellie graduated from Kennesaw State University this past May, with her BS degree in Elementary Education. She teaches 3rd grade Math, Science, and Social Studies in Cobb County, at the same school where she did her student teaching. She enjoys it very much, although some days are more challenging than others!

Sign of the (old) times!

We came across this motel while driving in the outskirts of San Antonio. Take a look at the features that this ritzy place has to offer! Swimming pool! Refrigerated air (is that AC?)! Television (no mention of HBO)! Telephones! All for only $25.95 (per day or hour?). What is a tejas?

Picnic at St. Matthew

St. Matthews had their annual picnic recently. The weather was perfect, everyone brought a dish (or two or three) to share, the Knights cooked hot dogs, burgers, and chicken, the kids had several 'jumpy' contraptions to play in, all commissions had info booths set-up, and there was even a pie eating contest. Everyone had a good time!