Some of the photos that I took may also appear on her blog.
Saturday September 26
I
pick up Merle in Woodhaven and we get on the road around 8:45. “Clarise”, my GPS sends us through the
Holland Tunnel to I-80 to I-81 toward Ashland.
Our first stop is the Mineshaft Cafe right in the center
of Ashland. The cafe has several small dining areas and a large bar area. They have a collection of local historical
pictures and memorabilia on the walls including a picture of the statue in town
of the “monument to mothers” which is a large statue reproducing Whistler's
Mother.
Our
waitress, Cheyane, presents us with a rather extensive menu. I opt for Creamy Parmesan Wings, a small
salad and Maryland Crab soup. All very good and served hot. (except the salad
of course) There are special events
going on all the time. www.mineshaftcafe.com
For
some reason the GPS is not working and I begin to freak out. I definitely have become too reliable on technological devices but on
a road trip like this, it really is essential.
I assume I lost the CD card somehow and search all over to no
avail. Off we go without Clarise.
On
to the Pioneer Tunnel Coal Mine and Steam Train. We are running late now because of the GPS
fiasco so we opt to do only the train and not the mine tour. It is a small steam engine with open cars for
viewing. The train runs backwards for a
short distance to an open area to view the Mahanoy Mountains where one of the
trainmen gives the history of the train, the area, and the coal mining,
including the story of the fire under the town of Centralia. The ride is very bumpy along the narrow gauge
rail. At least the ride back to the
depot is going forward! www.pioneertunnel.com
Reading
RR Heritage Museum in Hamburg was next on the itinerary but there is no
time. We also have to miss the hawks
along Hawk Mountain Road and Rt 61. Off
we go to try to find our way to the bed and breakfast in Barto. Between some worthless map app on my phone
and calling the B&B several times we finally arrive at the Landhaven
Bed and Breakfast to the warm
welcome of Donna and Ed Land . Ed helps
us get to our rooms and then we have to rush off as we are now late for dinner
in Reading. Ed gives us a short cut into
Reading and we find our address with no problem.
Dinner
is at Judy's on Cherry. Because
we are late, Merle can not get to speak with chef-owner Judy Henry, but she
will be speaking on Merle's on-line radio show so be sure to see Merle's blog
site for details. The restaurant is not
handicapped accessible but Merle negotiates the stairs and we were seated near
the open kitchen where Judy is busy preparing the meals. Our waitress, Sarah, is knowledgeable about the menu and the
restaurant. The menu consists of many
seasonal items. We start off with fresh
baked Facoccia bread and olive oil. The
bread is thinner than normal Facoccia bread, more like a pita, which I enjoy
more then the thicker bread.
We shared a few of the menu items. Two that I requested were: “Cowboy Ciao Salad.” It is a
beautiful presentation of arugula, smoked salmon, bruschetta tomatoes,
couscous, toasted corn, nuts & dried fruit with a pesto buttermilk
dressing. Really light but tasty and
filling.
For dessert I have the vanilla
bean crème brulee which is also exceptional. Merle laughs every time I order creme brulee as it had become not just a running joke, but a running story that Merle loves to share. www.judysoncherry.com
Back
to the Landhaven B&B. We are
lucky. Tonight is one of the many
musical events that Donna and Ed do at Landhaven. A band called Frog Holler. They have a big following and the center
room is packed and the acoustics are amazing.
We catch the last forty minutes or so of the show and really enjoy
it. The B&B is fully occupied
tonight so I am in a bedroom on the third floor which is usually part of the
residence of Ed and Donna. The room is
cozy and comfortable and has its own bathroom.
Donna and Ed moved up to another room to accommodate me. Merle is on the first floor in a room made to
be handicapped accessible.
Sunday, September 27
The
best part of of staying at a B&B is
breakfast in the morning with the other people and hearing stories. And of course, the food. Breakfast is “Blintz Brunch Bake” which is basically a broken down cheese
blintz with toppings like apples, nuts, sour cream and syrup. A hearty way to start the day. The history of
the building is very interesting and Ed can tell you just about everything,
from its origin as a General Store built
in the center of the small town of Huffs Church in 1871, to their purchasing
and restoration of the building in 1997.
Each of the five rooms are named after the original General Store
proprietors. The room we heard the
concert in was added in 1910 and also houses Landhaven Antiques. The concerts are very popular and bring in
fans from all over the area.
Our
first stop is the National Center for Padre Pio. The Center promotes the life, virtues
and teachings of Padre Pio. Padre Pio
was an Italian priest who became famous for his stigmata, miracles, and
supernatural insights.
We
head to the Homewood Suites by Hilton in Wyomissing, a small town on the
outskirts of Reading. Pronounced
something more like “Why I'm missing?” more than the state of Wyoming. The suites are huge with a nice sized kitchen
area with full size fridge, large seating area, bedroom and bathroom. I real good way to save money on eating out
if you are staying a few days.
Since
we have tickets for a 2:00 show, we will not be able to get to the Colebrookdale Railroad in Boyertown,
which was on the original itinerary. So
I'm in Reading PA, and unless I get to play a game of Monopoly, I won't get to
see railroad stuff. I'll have to return
for another trip to see all the things we missed.
The
show is “Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris” at the Steel River Playhouse in
Pottstown. Jacques Brel was a Belgian
singer/songwriter and actor who died in 1978.
The revue is performed by a cast of seven, and includes twenty-four
songs, some of which became very popular as sung by other singers, including
“Seasons in the Sun”, “If You Go Away” , “Marieke” and “Carousel”. The original show was performed Off-Broadway
as a musical revue and is performed that way most times. This performance added a storyline, which is
set in a basement nightclub in London during the war, where the six characters
and a piano player take refuge and tell their stories through the songs. Not
having ever seen a performance, I really liked the idea. Read Merle's blog for her take on it, as she
has actually performed some of Jacques Brel.
www.steelriver.org.
We headed back to Homewood Suites
to chill out before dinner in Reading.
Dinner
is at Anthony's Trattoria in Reading. Another chef/owner, William Salvatore greets
us and seats us and Merle arranges for a selection of tastings. Our waitress, Mellissa has an exceptional
knowledge of the menu, which is no easy task.
The specials alone, which are on a separate sheet from the regular menu,
has over 25 selections of appetizers, salads, entrees and other specials. Mellissa gave us details and answered any
questions we had, while making arrangements with the chef for the
tastings. There are heart healthy
Mediterranean diet dishes, dishes created with the chefs own selections from
his two gardens, and a variety of interesting selections. Where to begin? I guess by saying that this is one of the
best restaurants I have ever eaten at with Merle on any of our trips. If you read the other blogs from my other
trips, you will note that I always mention the passion that the people we meet
have for their craft and, like Chef Judy, Chef Bill is no exception. We had the opportunity to talk to him after
the meal and you will be able to hear him on Merle's radio show as well. It turns out that Chef Judy from Judy's on
Cherry eats at the restaurant a few times a week and was actually at the bar
when we came in.
The chef had instructed Melissa
to pair several dishes with wine, but neither Merle nor are are big drinkers,
so we stopped after two. Every dish was
flavorful, fresh, with an appealing presentation. I could not tell you which my
favorite is because one was better then the next. www.anthonystrattoriareading.com
I could not even think of dessert
but Bill had Mellissa bring out the home made Chocolate cake and Canolli for
Merle to sample. (she has to do it as
that is her job.) We spend some more time talking to Melissa about school and
career and then head back to the hotel.
Monday September 28
Breakfast
is at Homewood Suites as they serve a nice array of selections every
morning. I opted for some oatmeal, and
one of those fresh made waffles. For
those of you that have used those individual waffle grills, you will agree that
it is one of the best inventions ever.
PA doesn't have the same real maple syrup as New England, but it was
still good. Other selections included
eggs, breakfast potatoes, sausage, cold cereal, fruit and bread and muffins.
Off
to Take2Alpacas in Mohnton.
Thank goodness Clarice was up and running again. I had no idea where we were or where we were
going. Len Smith greeted us and showed us around the
farm. They have 14 females and 6 male
alpacas that they care for and sheer and make and sell products. Alpacas are in the Camelid family and are
related to Llamas and camels. Once
imported from South America, the
majority of animals in the country now were born here. Contrary to what most people think, they will
not generally spit at you unless they are really pissed off or afraid. Some of the dying and weaving are done on the
premises and they sell other alpaca products as well which come from Peru. One of the newest products being sold are the
one of a kind scarves and shawls that are woven by Dylan, the youngest
son. He also serves as an all around
ranch hand helping around the farm. He
also happens to be autistic, but that doesn't stop him from learning new things
around the farm. He took up the weaving just last year and is
already producing incredible scarves.
For anyone who has ever seen a weaving loom, you know it is no simple
task. Oh yes, he also told us that
“with the combination of patterns, and colors and designs, that there are
literally a million different scarves that can be made.” Seeing how prolific Dylan is with his new
talent, I think he may be trying to set a record. You have to check out the
website www.take2alpacas.com and Facebook pages (Google hand woven scarves
by Dylan) to see some of Dylan's incredible work and find out more about
Take2Alpacas.
As part of the aim to revitalize downtown
Reading, with generous support from the community and state government, the renovations
were made and the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts created. Now, many other vacant building are being
renovated and new businesses are opening. You can see the changes as you walk
or drive around the downtown area.
This arts place spaces are massive. Merle took the artist studios in the main building and I headed to the glass and ceramic studios that encompass the other 5 buildings. There were two men blowing glass at the time, and the ceramic studio was setting up for a pottery method called “Raku.” In general, it is characterized by being hand shaped rather than thrown. In the traditional process, the fired raku piece is removed from the hot kiln and is allowed to cook in the open air. Most other types of pottery are loaded into a cold kiln where the firing proceeds slowly until the desired temperature is reached. The kiln is then shut off and allowed to cool enough to allow for the pieces to be removed using light gloves. Today, they were setting up several cooling tables outside behind the studio.
I
meet up with Merle to head up to The Pagoda. Entrance to the actual Pagoda itself is
only open on weekends, but it is worth the drive up just to see the Pagoda and
the views. High atop Mt Penn, the Pagoda overlooks the city and the surrounding
area. It's 7 stories high, 28 feet wide,
50 feet long and 620 feet above see level.
The Pagoda can be rented for various events and has a cafe and gift
shop. Access to the Pagoda itself is not
handicapped accessible. Merle has the 101 on this place. www.readingpagoda.com
A
visit to Pennsylvania would not be complete without a stop at one of the many Philly
Pretzel Factory shops to sample the fresh made soft salt pretzels. We stop in to one close by for an immediate
fix and will make another stop again before going home, to stock up on the
specially priced pretzels for 15 for $5.
(sidebar writing the blog: hang on a sec – I'll be right back. I'm back.
Had to go get one of the pretzels I froze. They reheat really well if you wrap them in
aluminum foil and then heat slowly in a toaster oven, not a microwave.).
We
head back to the Homewood Suites to rest up a bit. They have a “social” this evening which
includes complimentary light dinner food.
It varies depending on the night, and tonight is soup and salad which if
perfect as we will be heading out to see a show at Albright College at 7:00.
The
show is in the Memorial Chapel at the College and features a group called the Kinsey
Sicks. They are a four “man” drag
show. Someone is rolling over somewhere
now. The show is raunchy and funny. They bring up one of the students from the
audience and he is red faced and the
audience is hysterical. The group
are actually all extremely good singers and the performance very
professional. They have been touring
together since 1994 with a few changes in the group along the way. www.kinseysicks.com
Merle
has arranged to see the Clare Grill exhibit at the Freedman
Gallery. Merle will be interviewing the
artist on her internet radio show. See
Merle' blog for more details. Back
to the comfort of the Homewood suites.
Tuesday September 29
Breakfast at the hotel and then off to Reading
Public Museum. The grounds house the
museum, an arboretum and the Neag Planetarium. We will skip the planetarium
today. Scott, one of the curators is
showing us around the museum and has provided Merle with a wheelchair (and
pushing). The exhibits we see include
Italian Futurism, The Funnies, and Art in the Making along with the museums
regular collections. There are several
exhibits for children, including “Curious George”, “Be the Dinosaur”, and “Fat
Dogs & Coughing Kids.” I found this museum to be the perfect size and
diversity for me. I could spend time and
enjoy many of the exhibits and pass through quickly on others. Scott is a wealth of information. Next we head outside to tour the
Arboretum. Merle made arrangements for
one of the staff to drive us around in a
golf truck type of vehicle. Merle got
the front seat and I got the flat bed in the back. There is some color and bloom in the gardens,
but this is the type of thing you need to come back several times during the
seasons to get he full benefit. The
Arboretum is free and very accessible. www.readingpublicmuseum.org
Next
is lunch with Lisa Haggerty of tourism at Say Cheese. Very nice cafe style restaurant with
specialties of soups, salads, and sandwiches. In addition, the marketplace
sells fresh cheeses (obviously) and other specialty items. I have the Fresh fish with creamy Chipolte
sauce and Napa slaw on a toasted onion Brioche roll. The fish is Bronzini which is perfectly grilled and delicious. I share a few other things with Merle and try
the beverage of Sipp Mojo berry soda from the Eco Beverage Company in Chester
Springs. It is a perfect compliment to
the sandwich.
We do a pretzel pickup before heading home. The
drive back is long and tiring as it is raining on and off and by the time we
hit the City, we are in rush hour traffic.
What else is new?
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