Category: TRAVEL

Rustica in Rockland… whoa baby!

On By Barbara StroudIn FOOD, TRAVELLeave a comment
Image: RusticaMaine.com

While in Maine we had several friends tell us of a wonderful Italian place to visit for dinner. FINALLY we got around to trying it and I swear we will be back each and every year we’re in Rockland! It was absolutely unreal! The pasta was TO. DIE. FOR. Specifically this one… via the Rustica website: 

Sausage and Broccoli Rabe ~ Penne with House made hot Italian sausage, broccoli rabe, caramelized onion and marinara.

The restaurant is kind of kitty corner from the Farnsworth Museum if you’re familiar with it… Check it out, give it a try!

Catch you back here tomorrow! If you get a chance visit my photo blog at http://almostdailypic.wordpress.com !

Top Pick: LL Bean Adventure Duffle

On By Barbara StroudIn TRAVELLeave a comment
Image: LLBean.com

It seems that I plug LL Bean quite a bit, but there are a few things from that store that really stand out. The LL Bean Adventure Duffle is one of those. In times where the airlines charge BOOCOO bucks for you to take luggage with you it’s time to go to extreme measures… no more wheels for us, they weigh too much, and whatever the luggage weighs you can deduct from the weight you can put IN it. One year we were stuffed to the gills in our suitcase and the zipper broke beyond repair, we were on our way to the airport and pulled into LL Bean and bought the LL Bean Adventure Duffle. AWESOME! We even had time for them to monogram it for us, ha ha… So now we both have a medium to carry on, note that it can’t be stuffed, but that’s nice, if it’s a little larger and you put stuff in it you can flatten it out to fit underneath the seat or in the overhead bin with ease. We also have the extra large duffle which is EXTRA LARGE… we don’t fill that too tight either and we haven’t gotten anywhere near our weight limit. Now… knowing that you have to carry this and not wheel it will make you pack a little lighter perhaps, but this is the ticket and we love it! AND if you want to add just a wee bit of weight you CAN get the Adventure duffle WITH WHEELS… Just wanted to share that with you!

I’ll catch you back here tomorrow… if you get a chance check out my photo blog at http://almostdailypic.wordpress.com !

Artist to watch… KEVIN BEERS…

On By Barbara StroudIn ART, Featured Artist, TRAVELLeave a comment
Image: GleasonFineArt.com

Our first trip to Monhegan was in  2006, we were having dinner one evening at the Island Inn and in walked Kevin Beers, it was his birthday and there was a group gathering for a celebratory dinner. We had seen Kevin paint all over Monhegan, he’s hard to miss. He’s just about the only one carrying a large canvas. He appears in the same location at the same time of day and turns out painting after painting of Monhegan. Of course he paints more than Monhegan, this guy CAN PAINT A TRUCK (among other things)! Kevin is a nice guy and a great artist, if you haven’t seen Kevin’s work, check it out, he’s at Gleason Fine Art, he’s also got his own website with links. Take a peek!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Artist to watch… Colin Page!

On By Barbara StroudIn ART, Featured Artist, THOUGHTS, TRAVEL6 Comments
ColinPagePaintings.com

My husband and I met Colin Page several years ago while we were in Port Clyde, Maine. He was set up not far from Monhegan Boat Line and he was painting the ice cream shop. I still remember that painting, the colors, the composition… wow, all were perfect! Colin is someone who can pull off painting something ordinary like a street with a stop sign and a telephone pole AND make it look stunning! Whenever my husband and I see the white light on the water from the sun or a picturesque intersection, we always say… “ahhhh, a Colin painting!” so true!

Colin was one of the guys in the cottage down from us, in the PAINTAPALOOZA group, (I know I keep saying this will be a future story… I need to do it don’t I?) – it was so exciting to see so much awesome artwork in one house by all these amazing artists!
Colin gets an A+++ for keeping his  website so updated! It cannot be easy to be an artist AND keep up a website, blog, etc. etc. You must check out his website AND his journal. Valuable information. This guy is good. We have a painting of his that we absolutely love, lobster boats and the white light from the sun. Simply amazing!
Colin is in several galleries, we’ve only been to DOWLING  WALSH, very nice! If you’re in Rockland, Maine sometime, check it out!
Don’t forget to take a peak at my photo blog… http://almostdailypic.wordpress.com
Catch you back here tomorrow!

Artist Charles Movalli, whoa!

On By Barbara StroudIn ART, Featured Artist, THOUGHTS, TRAVELLeave a comment
Image: BayviewGallery.com

Bayview Gallery has a wonderful collection of Charles Movalli’s work. I think his colors are fresh. I am drawn to his pallette.  What can I say, some people love other stuff, we love art. LOVE. IT. Me, being the aspiring (ok, so that’s stretching it) artist that I am really appreciates OTHER peoples art. It facinates me how they make it happen. There is nothing I would rather do than to watch someone paint. You know why? IT’S LIKE MAGIC! I will watch and be “in the zone” and I’M NOT EVEN THE ONE PAINTING! Ha ha… I watch carefully and I think, I TOO CAN DO THIS… but then to try… whoa… another story indeed. I’m not saying I’m bad, I’m just not good, but I need to paint more often, so… Someone out there, give me an assignment. My biggest hangup is WHAT to paint? I keep trying to find something easy enough and I end up spending all my time searching for WHAT and then TADA… time to make dinner… I think I need to master painting indoors before I can move the great outdoors. So with that being said… any takers? hee hee.

If you’re in Maine and are in Camden or Brunswick, stop by Bayview Gallery! This is a little blip about artist Charles Movalli from the Bayview Gallery website:
Holder of a PhD. in English, Gloucester painter Charles Movalli uses dramatic brushwork to capture the essence of a scene. A student of Emille Gruppe, Movalli has received more than fifty awards for his vibrant work.
 
Visit my photo blog at http://almostdailypic.wordpress.com – until tomorrow!

Paintapalooza Artist: Jeff Bonasia

On By Barbara StroudIn ART, Featured Artist, THOUGHTS, TRAVELLeave a comment
Image: Addisonart.com

YOU GONNA EAT THOSE FRIES? I would say this painting is aptly named, wouldn’t you? I simply love the light on this birds belly, it’s stoic look and how it’s really looking right at you. Kind of Wyeth’ish, don’t you think?

This doesn’t appear to be what he normally paints, but it just has so much character!
 
Years ago when vacationing in Maine we had rented a cottage. Down the street from our cottage was a large group of painters from all over the country. Real artists, the ones who do it all the time and are so good at it. The paintapalooza story is for another post, but it was a great group of talented guys.  Jeff Bonasia was one of the talented artists that week. He shows in several galleries, click on his name for a link to his website. This photo is from Addison Art Gallery in Orleans, MA.
 
If you get a chance, check out my photo blog at:
http://almostdailypic.wordpress.com
 
Until tomorrow…

Hey, you need a watchdog… an airfarewatchdog!

On By Barbara StroudIn TRAVEL2 Comments
Image via http://www.airfarewatchdog.com

I bend down and pull all the clothes out of the dryer and toss them on the bed, good grief, four loads… and no kids, crazy! I begin the folding process, hey, might as well turn on the TV I’m going to be here for a while… I turn it on just as someone was telling the audience about a website called www.airfarewatchdog.com, how you can enter your home airport as well as destinations you are interested in flying into and you’ll get an email every so often with the best possible deals. How did I not already know about this? I had JUST gotten tickets not a few days before that… hmmm. I signed up. I am a realistic person. Neither an optomist or a pessimist. I know when it’s too good to be true, but I also know there HAS to be a deal out there SOMEWHERE! Lets see what airfarewatchdog shows, does it really show any great deal? YES. IT. DOES! Some are unadvertised. Some are advertised, but all the information is included in the email. It’s a worthy few minutes to spend to save some bucks in the future. So if you haven’t heard of it before, check it out!

Don’t forget to check out my photoblog at http://almostdailypic.wordpress.com ! Until tomorrow…

The year of the staycation?!!

On By Barbara StroudIn THOUGHTS, TRAVEL1 Comment
CHARLIE AND BARBARA - FOLLY BEACH - APRIL 2010
What are you looking forward to this year? Infinite possibilities fill my brain… I’m looking forward to doing something different this year. After many years of big money vacations, packing for a few weeks, lugging everything on a plane and heading out… I think our plans are to have several “staycations”. I mean we do live in CHARLESTON! People love to spend their vacations here! So I’m thinking we will do the same! How nice it will be to not have to cram ourselves onto a plane, board the dog, and all the other “stuff” that goes along with taking a nice relaxing vacation, ha ha… Maybe a trip or two to Kiawah, Hilton Head, the beaches (I mean they ARE so close!) and just hanging out  by the pool in our own backyard! Now we’ll have to remember that we are on staycation, no cleaning and all that business… It can wait a few days! I’m looking forward to spending some time with Fred without him thinking about work and everything that needs to get done! Hear that Charlie? THE BEACH!! Woohoo!
What are you looking forward to this year? Until tomorrow…

An “Aha!” moment!

On By Barbara StroudIn THOUGHTS, TRAVELLeave a comment
Image via http://islandinnmonhegan.com/

Describe a recent Aha! moment… hmmmm. I guess it would be several years ago, leaving Charleston and vacationing on Monhegan Island in Maine. We stayed at the Island Inn (http://islandinnmonhegan.com) which is the larger building that you see in the photo (from their website). There are no shopping malls, no taxi’s, no telephones in your room, no TV or radio or any other distractions, including limited cell phone coverage and wi-fi in the inn’s common room when it’s available. Everything is centered around the weather. If conditions aren’t right the boat doesn’t run to get you to the island, bring groceries, mail, etc. If the wind is strong the phone may be out… It’s a different way of life that is SO MUCH BETTER even without all the STUFF. Stuff is precisely that… stuff. When you are in a place that is so beautiful and when everything around you is so peaceful THAT is what becomes so important. I encourage anyone who isn’t used to not having some of the modern-day pleasantries to try a vacation that relaxes your mind and recharges your soul. It’s amazing what you can do without and you don’t even notice! Until tomorrow…