Ladee's Travels

When you are staying in a place as remote as Death Valley, food options matter. A lot. At The Ranch at the Oasis, the convenience market and the main restaurant work together to make sure you are well covered, whether you want a sit-down meal, a quick bite, or just caffeine to get you moving. The main restaurant offers traditional sit-down service as well as a buffet that runs for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I tried all three, because when you are here for a week, curiosity and convenience tend to win. Each meal had a solid variety, enough choices to keep things interesting without feeling overwhelming. Breakfast was especially welcome after early mornings out in the field, and lunch and dinner were easy, no-planning-required solutions after long days of shooting and driving. That said, I have learned something about myself and buffets. I enjoy them, but I cannot do them all the time. A little of this, a little of that somehow turns into a very full plate, and before I know it, I am ...

  Discovering Paris One Bite at a Time! Hey friends! I’ve talked about this company, and several people have asked me for the website address so I decided I need to put this on my blog. Note that when you look at their website, they also have tours in Boston and New York City! If you’re heading to Europe and want to explore cities like a local while eating amazing food, I highly recommend checking out Devour Tours . I used them in Paris to explore the Marais, and it was an absolute blast! From hidden bakeries to quirky wine bars, their guides know all the secrets—and the stories are just as delicious as the food. The best part? They’re in other cities too! Barcelona, Rome, Lisbon—you name it. Each tour is thoughtfully curated to give you an authentic and fun experience. This isn’t an ad, just a genuine recommendation from someone who had an amazing time (and maybe ate a little too much). Go check out their website and book a tour for your next trip—you won’t regret it! Bon a...

A very special place next to the Lime Tree in Belgravia. It is beautiful with Christmas decorations. The food is always wonderful and I couldn't pass up the Lobster Bisque and the full Turkey dinner with all of the fixings. Creme Brûlée with a fig and plum compote topped of the meal.  Actually, seeing the staff again five and a half years after the last visit was delightful. The middle two were working tonight. What fun and giggles looking at this photo again.  Look back at 2011. There are three posts from the restaurant: http://ladeetravels.blogspot.co.uk/2011/05/london-ebury-restaurant-and-wine-bar.html?m=0 I love this place!! Prices given are in pounds.  At this time the exchange rate is 10 pounds = $12.35 US Dollar. Lobster Bisque was 9.00 pounds Roast Turkey Dinner was 17.50 pounds Red wine Cotes du Rhone was 7.50 pounds. Sparkling water (bottle) was 4.70 pounds. The optional service charge is listed as 12.5% but you are free to tip m...

Wandering through the markets and I found Belgian waffles and gluhwein! Must taste all of the different goodies!

Many courses tonight with Surf and Turf and grand finale Baked Alaska.

I am going to miss this!

Shrimp cocktail Skipped the soup course Duck with wonderful red cabbage Bombe for dessert.

The bus dropped us off at a well organized staging area near the old section of town and we began our walk.  The business signs are very interesting. I wish that I had started a photo collection earlier.  Wrapped chocolate in one of the store windows.  You can see the castle from this area.  I broke with the group and decided to stay in this section.  I had a bratwurst.  As it quickly got darker, I found a seat and table. I chatted with a grandmother and grandson in a comfortable "little German, little English" way.  And I started playing with my camera to take long exposures.  I had clicked and then forgot so this artistic gem is the result of picking up the camera while it was still working.  Haha.  Entertaining myself!  The lights on the castle soon came on and it was a beautiful scene above the town.  I was ready to return to the bus area so I made my way back through town, took a few photos al...

We walked in to the inner courtyard.  Some of the buildings look like they are livable ...  Some appear to be an outer shell.  We continued down a walkway to the "Tun".  It is the extremely large wine vat in the cellars of the Castle.  At first we thought that this was the big one.  But NO! Keep on walking.  The cellars are nice, have seating areas and a place to buy food and drink.  This is the large "tun".  It holds 58,573.8125 US Gallons.  130 oak trees were used to build it.  It is seldom used as a wine barrel these days, is mostly a tourist attraction, and can also be a dance floor since one was built on top of it.  We leave the building and look at a lookout.  A view of the river and the dam.  Time to return to the bus.  The tree has lights and likely looks very pretty lit.  Ahh, coblestones. Gotta love them.  At least they do not have puddles from the re...