Seal-(ed) With A Hershey Kiss

After enjoying our sabbatical in Florida it was definitely time to get back to playing music. We left the pristine beaches and the roar of motorcycles behind and headed north to Atlanta, Georgia. We had one last concert to play on our southern swing before venturing to the northeast. It seemed we had passed through Atlanta twenty times while crisscrossing the south this past month. We had a nice event in Atlanta; many of the people who attended had seen Alan before. We woke up that next morning which was a Saturday and left Georgia, we were scheduled to play next on that following Monday night north of Boston. This was one of those times where it was petal to the metal and piddle when you can, without much stopping.

Our journey north did take us to a couple of interesting sites that we managed to take in. The Pennsylvania Dutch country located west of Philadelphia is a throw back to a simpler time. The Amish still live in their traditional ways and it was fascinating to experience a glimpse into their rustic lifestyle. We stopped and enjoyed a fabulous dinner at an Amish style smorgasbord out side of Lancaster. Our waitress directed us to a scenic drive through the heart of Amish country. It was a Sunday afternoon and the streets were filled with families traveling by horse and buggy. Traditional Amish shops lined the neatly manicured streets where craftsman and artisans sell everything from hand made furniture to beautiful and intricate quilts.

No drive through eastern Pennsylvania would be complete without a stop at the famous Hershey chocolate factory. Those of you who know me, know that this was like finding salvation, great s*^, or hitting the lottery all at the same time. I wanted Al to leave me there and come pick me up in a few weeks. Imagine a land so filled with chocolate that they named the city after it……HEAVEN!!!!

I love New England, Al has a large following in this part of the country and gets here quite often, but I had only been here once in the last twenty years. We played back-to-back nights in Boston and Worcester which is pronounced (Wusster)…go figure. We wondered through Boston before our concert in Worcester and saw Fenway park and the Boston harbor. It was great to share a slice of that famous Fenway pizza sold just outside this historic ballpark which is home to the Boston Red Sox

With a day off after Worchester and our next concert only a ninety minute drive from Boston, Al asked me if there was anything in particular that I would like to see while in this area. I pulled out the map and jokingly said….”how about Cape Cod?” He said, it is expensive but see if you can find a deal on it. I have learned a great lesson on this trip about traveling in the off season. Cape Cod which is one of the most expensive places in New England to visit during the summer and fall can be a bargain in early May. I did my hotel and motel coupon search and found a charming hotel with a harbor view on the water in Hyannis for $65, far less than it would have cost to stay in Boston.

With bargain hotel reservations made we decided to drive to Cape Cod late at night after the concert. The next morning when I looked out our double sliding door I was so amazed with the area as the view of the boats in the harbor were spectacular. We decided to spend the day by taking the ferry over to Nantucket. Located twenty miles from the mainland Nantucket is an island filled with a rich history dating back over three hundred years. I must tell you that this place didn’t even seem real. The beauty and charm of the shops and houses are like something I have never seen. It felt magical and I can see why the rich and famous clamor to spend time here. For those looking for a residence on this island, a two bedroom nine hundred sq. foot house will set you back a mere 1.5 million or so.

Cobble stone streets are lined with beautiful trees and millions of daffodils which have been a part of the islands charm for over a century. Built around the whaling industry this unique village has many historical homes that have been kept in pristine condition. One wealthy woman imported four tons of daffodils bulbs to be planted on the island in the 1920’s Everywhere you look you see daffodils.

Al read an article about some remote beaches that required a four-wheel drive to see. He asked if I would like to rent a jeep and be the driver for an adventure to the end of the island…. “Duh” Little did I know what an experience we were in for. The man who rented us the jeep said because of the slow season we would probably have the beach to ourselves and that we may see some seals. The six mile stretch of beach leading to Great Point was a blast to drive on. The sand was soft and we bounced around and laughed our heads off as we made our way to the far reaches of Nantucket.

There are no houses out here, only a distant light house that sits at the end of the point where the sand meets the sea.

As we neared the lighthouse we were amazed to see a colony of nearly two hundred seals bathing on the beach and playing in the water. For almost two hours we were the only people in sight and in awe of these beautiful creatures. They seemed to grow more comfortable with us the longer we stayed, and soon I would find myself with camera in hand taking hundreds of pictures. As Al sat a couple hundred feet away with his own group of seals playing peek-a-boo with him, I began to get closer and closer as I could feel the seals trusting me and eventually I was able to get within a few feet of several of them. I was so blown away by this experience it felt spiritual as I felt honored to be in the midst of nature in its true form. One of the seals had a plastic bag stuck around his neck, he looks like he will be okay but there are big problems with plastic in the ocean endangering the wild life.

We finished up our magical day in Nantucket by checking out a couple of cool harbor bars before catching the ferry back to Hyannis around 9PM. It was a great day and if you ever get the chance to visit Cape Cod….do it! We did not have time to go to Martha’s Vineyard which would have been another ferry ride and a day excursion on its own...maybe next time!

After our event in Webster, Mass it was time to head toward our friends Doug and Nancy’s house in Brunswick, Maine for the weekend. We were planning a stop along the way to see our dear friend Linda Riley who lives in Manchester, New Hampshire, she invited us to stay the night at her house after the concert. We drove from Webster, Mass to New Hampshire and arrived around midnight. Al was invited to speak at an elementary school in Nashua on that Friday morning so we go up early to present Flat Stanley which had traveled with us as part of a school project for Taylor Martel (the daughter of a TCF friend).Taylor was surprised as her mom had arranged the visit from us….Al spoke to the class about traveling and asked all of them where each of their Stanley’s had traveled, the kids loved him and so did Taylor as we gave her a bag filled with chocolates from our visit to Hershey, PA…(I stole a couple before I gave Al the bag….don’t tell anybody).

Al and I love to go to Diners-Drive Ins, and Dives…you know the ones from the Television show on the Food Network? He has been to many of the restaurants featured on the show, and this spring we have been to 3 together including the Mad Greek and The Keg in Nevada…and BBQ King in Charlotte, North Carolina. Al just happened to mention to Linda Riley that he wanted all of us to go to lunch in Manchester after his elementary school gig before we head off to Maine. He told Linda that he had circled a place from a TV show and definitely wanted to eat there….the name of it is The Red Arrow Diner.
Linda just looked at Al and laughed when she told him ”Alan, the woman who owns the Red Arrow knows who you are, she loves your music! Linda (sitting next to Al) called and arranged for all of us to meet there for lunch…this place was terrific. The owner Carol Sheehan (standing behind) treated all of us (not just Al) like we were rock stars. She brought us whatever we wanted to try or sample, took us on tours of the kitchen, and even let Al play on the grill pretending he was Guy Fieri (the host of diners, Drive-ins and dives). She sent us on our way with a bag of their famous baked goodies as well as with coffee mugs, and of course a cap for Mr. Rock star himself. Carol is a bereaved mom too, she had been touched by Al’s music when she saw him perform in Oklahoma City last July. Her precious son Jesse (a huge Boston Red Sox fan) died in 2006. She is an amazing person. Many famous people visit the Red Arrow as it has won too many awards to mention. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Adam Sandler, and tons of other celebrities have their pictures on the walls. The Red Arrow puts plaques in its booths (they have only 4 booths) where celebrities and dignitaries have sat, Al sat where Ty Pennington had been. The Red Arrow is going to put a plaque there saying “Alan Pedersen” ate here…..oh brother, you would have thought he won a Grammy when they told him that!

Wow, what a week it had been….now it was time to drive 3 hours or so to Maine to see our wonderful friends. Nancy and Doug are two great people we have known for years. They used to live in Ft. Collins, Colorado and as many of you know I loved house-sitting for them at their awesome home on the lake. Al had never been to Maine, imagine that..in fact Maine was the last of the 48 states he had yet to visit.

We had some great times with Nancy and Doug, we drove to Portland to pick up fresh live Maine Lobster which Doug has mastered the art of preparing. We truly had a feast, we also drove to Booth Bay Harbor Maine, this is one beautiful place too. We enjoyed so much our time with our dear friends…we rested too….it was a great week. Well, time to go for now…next week we play in New York City, Maryland, Connecticut, and then we begin heading home…playing 3 events along the way….SEE YOU SOON! By the way, Big Al turns 50 on the 27th, Nancy made him an early birthday present, a made from scratch Cherry Pie...MMM

Beaches, Bikers, and Really BIG SHRIMP!

Ahhh, finally a few days off in one place. We left Tampa, Florida on Monday morning and planned to take a leisurely drive along the coast to Panama City where we had rented a condo for 4 nights. I had never seen the Gulf of Mexico in Florida and Al told me it would be spectacular...he wasn't kidding.
We stopped and had lunch at a really cute waterside cafe called surprisingly The Crab Shack in Tarpon Springs which was north of St. Petersburg. The coconut shrimp were great, I had a fish sandwich and Al had the French Onion Soup.

Our drive took us around the curve you see on the map which would be like the inside of the thumb of Florida. My gosh, you should see this place it is filled with thick and lush green trees and beautiful plant life. You see bear crossing signs, deer crossing signs, and the area is home of the Florida Manatee. Many small fishing towns dot the coast line as you move west along the Gulf, the highway we drove hugged the water and provided so many beautiful views.

We found a great produce stand along the way and loaded up on fresh fruit and vegetables as we had a kitchen in our condo and planned to make our own food, which is something we were looking forward to after too many restaurant meals. We arrived in Panama City fairly late and were pleasantly pleased with our condo, it sat across a two lane road from the beach, it was big and very well stocked with kitchen supplies and was very nice for the economic price we paid.

I woke up early Tuesday as sleepy head rested and walked over to the beach. Wow, the brilliant white sand on these beaches is stunning. I had coffee, read and relaxed for a bit before returning to the condo. This week was going to be a nice break as we planned to do some normal things that we rarely get to do when we travel. We went to a movie and then on a shopping mission to find fresh Gulf shrimp and seafood. We were directed to a place where the boats unload fish every morning which was about 10 miles from our condo. The selection was terrific, we loaded up on Huge fresh shrimp, crab legs, talapia, and some crab cakes & key-lime pie too.

We ate shrimp cocktail every night. One afternoon we went to the local dog track, we also sat on the beach nightly, one evening we saw one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen in my life.

We woke up Thursday morning to the sound of motorcycles, it appeared they were descending on Panama City...what was up?? Thundering groups of bikes came pouring into town. We bought a local paper and would soon learn that this was the first day of one of the biggest biker rallies in the south...nearly 65,000 bikers would be in town for the big event over the weekend....and our condo sat across the street from one of the 4 resorts hosting the event....oh my goodness, our lives could be in danger and our trip would surely be ruined..right?? WRONG!!! The fun was just beginning.

The bikers of today are more likely to be an attorney, doctor, or business owner who simply are escaping their everyday lives to enjoy the freedom and openness of the road on a Harley. As the bikers began showing up Thursday afternoon, some with dogs in tow.. the resort across the way had hundreds of bikes parked out front. We read an event schedule and learned that one of the hottest biker bands in the country would be playing at that resort and we decided to join in the fun and hang out with the bikers.

Al, looked sort of like a biker in his musle shirt, but his skin is so white and untanned that he jokingly told people he only "rides at night." One of the couples asked us where we were from and we said "Colorado" to which they replied..."did you ride or trailer down?" Our answer was...we Chevy vanned down!

***Authors Warning: Please do not read further or view if you are offended by scantily dressed biker girls at a biker party...I had to share a couple of pictures to give you an idea of what we stumbled into..but please don't show these to the kids or get the wrong idea...however, Alan is seriously talking about buying a Harley and learning to ride a motorcycle after his biker experience which I am not sure I understand what that is all about!*****

These people know how to party and are tons of fun...but we really didn't realize how wild they get until after we had been in the party tent for an hour or so waiting to hear the music. We noticed people gathered in one corner and walked over to see what was happening. Women were getting bodies painted....well, you get the idea. I just had to get some pictures, we listened to the band for awhile, the party was rocking when we went back to the condo, and believe it or not...it was only 8:30 in the evening...we had shrimp to cook so we left the wildest biker party in Panama City for an evening of Deal or No Deal and fish...are we getting old or what?

Our week in Panama City was restful, and fun and it was nice to stop moving for a couple of days and just relax. On Friday we drove up to Atlanta for a concert there. The following morning we headed out on the 1,200 mile drive to Boston where we have concerts next week. I hope all is well with everyone who reads this blog....we will be home later this month. I am looking forward to seeing New England.