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Wherever Books Are Sold!Boomer Travel. Food. Laughter. Breaking the Empty Nest Rules!
Okay, we’re not sure who the people are in the photos—but we’re uber-excited to be in the text!.. CHECK US OUT!
Pretty cool to be featured in one of America’s greatest newspapers, The Chicago Tribune! Okay, so we’re not sure who the people are in the photos—but we’re uber-excited to be in the text.
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David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com
While exploring Kingston, Ontario (the gateway to the 1000 Islands, yep, of salad dressing fame), we discovered that history, like beauty, can be in the eye of the beholder. Follow us as we gallivant through the coolest fort we’ve ever seen, eat at the safest restaurant in the world, unlearn what we learned in history class, and partake in a romantic, sunset dinner cruise through the 1000 Islands… CONTINUE READING
A big thanks to Ontario Travel and Visit Kingston for providing this historic adventure! As always, all opinions are our own.
While exploring Kingston, Ontario (the gateway to the 1000 Islands, yep, of the salad dressing fame), we discovered that history, like beauty, can be in the eye of the beholder.
We also found that historic perspective can change drastically just by stepping across a border.
In general, our culture shock is minimal when visiting Canada—sure they might add an “eh?” at the end of a sentence—but we certainly don’t feel like strangers in a strange land.
While that was again true on our recent journey and, as always, the people of Canada were overwhelmingly welcoming, there was a revelation or two that reminded us we were indeed foreigners.
Kingston began as a French trading post called Cataraqui, but was taken by the British in 1758 during the Seven Years’ War—or what we Americans from south of the border call the French and Indian War.
The Brits renamed Catarqui The King’s Town or King’s Town, in honor of King George III, then over time the name was shortened and the words melded together.
During the American Revolution, the settlement became a refuge for British Loyalists fleeing north and grew into an important military stronghold as a base for the Great Lakes British naval fleet.
By the war of 1812, the crown considered Kingston to be of prime military importance and built one of the most impressive fortresses we have ever seen, Fort Henry.
This is where we began to find that the Canadian version of events didn’t quite jibe with our memories from history class. During this war, the British (Canada was still British territory at that time) were concerned about protection of the St. Lawrence River and hastily built protection where the river met Lake Ontario.
After defeating the Americans, they replaced the cobbled-together fortifications with a formidable stone version to ward off any future attacks.
Wait, what? Defeated the Americans? Yup, we lost the war of 1812, but nobody told us in school.
At least that’s the Canadian take on things.
Actually, both perspectives can be correct. It can be argued that Canada won, in that they held off an attempt by the Americans to wrestle them away from the British and have them join the Union.
Or it can be said that the United States won, in that they defeated the British and remained independent.
It’s all in the eye of the beholder.
The Most Impressive Fort We’ve Ever Seen!
Our neighbors to the north remained pretty paranoid for the first part of the eighteen-hundreds, at least judging by the defenses built at Fort Henry (and we certainly understand why).
A moat and two huge walls, specially designed to allow strategically placed cannons in each corner to send scatter shot shrapnel ricocheting through the open area between them, protected the troops inside.
Hundreds of additional cannons covered every inch of water from six different locations along the coast and on the surrounding islands.
Our guide, fully decked out in authentic lieutenant’s regalia from the period, was rightfully proud of the fort’s history of never being attacked.
America was never crazy enough to try. It also helped that relations quickly improved over the latter half of the century.
Several-greats grandfathers of our guide had served in the British army at the base, and asking around we found that many of the employees had long family ties to the fort.
We followed our lieutenant (pronounced leff-tenant in these parts) inside for a look at what day-to-day life was like.
Surprisingly, many of the soldiers were married, and their wives and children lived with them inside the fort.
Fort life had all the hallmarks of a full community.
The accommodations were Spartan to say the least, unless of course one had the good fortune of being an officer.
And we do mean good fortune, as our lieutenant explained. The one and only way to become an officer was to buy your rank. No merit system involved.
The outpost was completely self-contained—it had to be, should a siege take place—so all of the necessities of fort life were handled in-house in a number of kitchens, bakeries, and workshops, all segregated by rank, of course.
For a farewell salute a fully bedecked artillery team rolled a ten-pounder into the parade ground in the center of the fort.
They loaded the cannon up, but only with one of the ten pounds of black powder she was designed to hold, and let her rip, not once, but twice!
Looking around at the gathered crowd, we had to come to the conclusion that the display was not only in honor of us, but first-rate none the less.
The Safest Restaurant on the Planet
After grabbing a bite at the Fort Henry’s Battery Bistro, which was without a doubt the safest we’ve ever felt while eating lunch…
(we feel like we’re not officially in Canada until we’d had poutine—a gloriously unhealthy dish consisting of french fries, gravy, and cheese curds),
…we took a quick spin through the campus of the Royal Military College of Canada.
The Royal West Point
As an offshoot of the fort, the college was founded in 1876.
This so-called West Point of Canada trains cadets for all branches of the military and is the only academy of its kind in the country.
Though our visit was in the dead of summer, we were regaled with tales of the college’s ice hockey team and their annual match with the United States Military Academy Black Knights in the annual West Point Weekend.
This series is the longest-running annual international sporting event in the world, going back to when General Douglas MacArthur suggested a game between the two schools in 1923.
Army may currently lead the Series by ten games, mostly on the strength of recent victories, but the spirits of the Paladins remain high.
So Much History!
Crossing the St. Lawrence into Kingston itself, we were drawn to the focal point of the city, the Historic City Hall.
Since Kingston was the capital of the new Province of Canada when construction began in 1841, the structure was designed to reflect the city’s prominence.
Unfortunately by the time it was completed in 1844, the government had moved to Montreal. Still, the building holds the honor of being designated a National Historic Site of Canada.
Directly across the street from the hall, Confederation Park seemed to be the hub of the town’s activity.
A former Kingston and Pembroke Railway station serves as the visitor information center, with the giant locomotive the Spirit of Sir John A standing alongside.
There’s even a replica for the kiddies!
Good Ol’ Sir John A
We would be hearing a lot more about Sir John A. MacDonald, Canada’s first Prime Minister, as our day went on—and as our journey across Ontario continued —beginning right away when we caught the hop on hop off Kingston Trolley Tour in front of the old steam engine.
The route took us past a couple of more Sir John A related sites, including his one-time home, the Bellevue House, hidden behind a grove of apple trees, and the St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church that he attended.
John A’s stay in Kingston may have been brief, but he certainly left his mark before moving on to lead the effort to create the Canada that we know and love today.
His spirit of tolerance and democracy certainly lives on.
Sunset Dinner on the Water
After passing through the campus of Queen’s University, established by a royal charter from Queen Victoria, and Kingston’s hopping shopping and entertainment district along Princess Street, we headed back to the waterfront and Confederation Park.
The park sits on the harbor, serving as the boarding spot for numerous ferries and tour boats, which worked out great for us since we were set to sail on the Island Star for their sunset dinner cruise.
We did our best to ignore the ominous sound of the description as a three-hour tour and boarded anyway.
After all, they didn’t repeat the phrase like the song it invoked—and the ship was not named the Minnow—so the possibility of getting stranded on an uncharted desert isle seemed more than reasonably remote.
None were uncharted, or desert for that matter, but we did get our first look at the chain of islands in the St. Lawrence River known as the 1000 Islands.
We wound our way through what seemed to be at least a 100 of the 1000 with the setting sun glinting off the water while munching of salmon and roast beef… and dessert.
As twilight faded, we pulled back into Kingston and walked along the waterfront to our room at the Residence Inn Water’s Edge, happy to have been introduced to a new friend in the North.
Even if we don’t see our history eye-to-eye, eh?
David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com
See all of our adventures in Canada!
P.S. Here’s the view from our room in the morning:
A big thanks to Ontario Travel and Visit Kingston for providing this historic adventure! As always, all opinions are our own.
While we can’t say that Estonia occupied a spot on our bucket list, we sure are glad that we checked it off anyway! You’ve GOT to love a country that sang its way to freedom, serves food you didn’t even know was edible and (in the past), used some freaky remedies to cure what ails ya… CONTINUE READING
A big thanks to Viking Ocean Cruises for inviting us along and providing this adventure through the Viking Homelands! Sweden, Finland, Russia, Estonia, Poland, Germany, Denmark, and Norway. As always, all opinions are our own.
While we can’t say that Estonia occupied a spot on our bucket list, we sure are glad that we checked it off anyway.
Starting with a drive through the modern business district of its newly-crowned European capital of Tallinn, we were immediately impressed.
The city has embraced this role and risen to the occasion as the center of one of the continent’s fastest growing economies.
The young country became independent a mere twenty-five years ago, yet it has jumped to the forefront with one of the world’s highest literacy rates and best access to the Internet.
Peter and Catherine’s Crib
Passing through downtown, we made way to our first stop and stepped back into Estonia’s past as a Russian territory.
Peter the Great liked this spot on the Baltic Sea enough to build a small—by czar standards—palace for his wife, Catherine I, in 1718.
The Kadriorg Palace was used as a summer residence for the royalty, but now it serves as a museum and focal point of the beautiful Kadriorg Park.
How to Sing Yourself to Freedom
From the palace, a short trip through the woods led to the Song Festival Grounds where every five years a huge singing extravaganza is held with choral groups from across the country.
The tradition of the Estonian Song Festival goes back to 1869, but has played an even more important role in history.
Believe it or not, songs helped to set Estonia free from Soviet control in what became known as the Singing Revolution.
Beginning in the nineteen-eighties, peaceful demonstrations—where thousands of citizens would defiantly sing banned songs—sprang up across the Baltic States.
After several years of these protests, the USSR gave in and Estonia declared independence on August 20, 1991.
One of the biggest musical gatherings of the movement took place on the Festival Grounds where hundreds of thousands of voices defiantly sang for freedom in an inspiring story of nonviolent rebellion.
The venue’s fame has also has attracted some of the world’s biggest stars like The Rolling Stones, Tina Turner, and Paul McCartney to perform concerts.
The Domiest Church in Tallinn
Leaving the middle aged rockers behind us, we moved on to the Middle Ages and stormed our way through the old city walls.
Beginning at the top, on Toompea, or Dome Hill, we stopped at the Church of St. Alexander Nevsky which put the dome in the name.
While St Alex’s may be the domiest, it is not the oldest church in Tallinn.
That honor goes to nearby St. Mary’s Cathedral.
Originally built as a Catholic church in 1229, it became Lutheran in 1561 and has been renovated and expanded many times through the centuries.
The old church is often referred to as the “tomb church,” because so many of the early parishioners are buried beneath the floor inside.
Lutheran churches are normally stark when it comes to decor. The odd St. Mary’s is coated with the entombed families’ coats of arms.
The View from the Top
Viewed from the hill, there are three prominent pinnacles that form the medieval skyline in the town below.
One of those spires doesn’t belong to a church, but rather to the Raekoda, or Town Hall dating all the way back to 1371.
Though it no longer serves as the seat of city, the structure still dominates the main square.
We headed down to the plaza, which is lined with restaurants, cafes, and bars, and looked for a spot to grab a bite of lunch.
Leave it to Your GypsyNesters to Ferret out the “Weird” Regional Food!
Estonian restaurants are known for offering interesting, perhaps even exotic, game on the menu and were not disappointed.
Among the many choices of oddities involving animals we have never dreamt of eating, we opted for bear dumplings and smoked beaver.
Neither is a new favorite, but also nowhere near the worst thing we have ever eaten and, on the bright side, we could count them as unexpected checks off the old bucket list.
The bear came wrapped in little ravioli-type dumplings swimming in broth. This helped to cover the strong flavor and kept it from being over bear-ing (ba-dum-CHING).
There were some unknown—albeit delicious—red berries and a dish of sour cream served alongside, which the waiter instructed us to use “as you wish,” so we did, in every possible combination.
Going all in with the condiments seemed to be the best way to take a bit of the growl out of the bear.
The beaver arrived on a wooden board (sans teeth marks as far as we could tell) served with a stout garlic sauce and a hearty black rye bread.
It took several bites of the dam builder to come up with a description, a sort of dense meat yet tender, and very smoky.
Luckily the garlic, which Tallinn is also known for, won the flavor battle hands down.
Here’s to Your (Relative) Health
Tucked away in one corner of the square we found an old pharmacy, the Raeapteek.
No one knows the exact date, but it is thought to have opened in 1415, which makes it one of the oldest continuously running pharmacies in Europe.
It even stayed in business through the communist years, when it was nationalized.
In addition to the modern pharmacy, there is a small museum on the first floor.
Just past the modern medicines we found medieval treatments like scorched hedgehog, mummy fragments, stallion hooves, and unicorn horn powder.
As time went on, dried deer penis, earthworms in oil, and wood louse infusion came onto the scene and became the medications of choice.
We decided not to ask about remedies for our bear breath or beaver fever.
Headed up again
Just off the square we duck into the medieval Katarina Käik, St. Catherine’s passage, leading to the ruins of St. Catherine’s Church that give the passage its name.
Along the wall there are several large, ancient tombstones that were moved from inside of the sanctuary.
Just as when we visited the amazing old wall around Rothenburg in Germany, of course we had to climb.
For a small fee, we were allowed to ascend the dark, steep, and head-banging steps up to the top for a walk along the ancient rampart.
There were also two defensive towers open for even higher climbing and stunning views across both the old and new sections of the city.
It was here that the skull really got to know the stone personally, but it was worth it for the view of St. Olaf’s Church.
Back between 1549 and 1625 it was thought to have been the tallest building in the world, but records were somewhat less than exact back then.
No matter, even after the steeple had to be rebuilt after at least ten lightning strikes it still tops out at over four-hundred feet high.
Blackheads? Heh.
From the wall, we went in search of the distinctive door of The Brotherhood of Blackheads.
After walking right by it a couple of times because it was open, we figured things out and a guy with a film crew that was using the building let us in for a look around.
Founded as a military organization, the Brotherhood became an association for unmarried merchants and ship owners.
It was a sort of minor league for the Great Guild, where if you did well in business, and got married, you could move up to the big team.
A Stout Lady Guards the City
The time had come to make our way back to the good ship Viking Star.
On the way we passed through the walls at the Great Coastal Gate and found it guarded by the whimsically named Fat Margaret fortification.
The five-hundred year old tower was meant to keep invaders at bay, but also to impress any visitors arriving by sea.
Going up the gangplank, we were struck by how our day had been filled with new experiences that we never expected.
Who knew a bucket list could contain all sorts of items we didn’t even know existed?
Tallinn was definitely one of those.
David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com
A big thanks to Viking Ocean Cruises for inviting us along and providing this adventure through the Viking Homelands! Sweden, Finland, Russia, Estonia, Poland, Germany, Denmark, and Norway. As always, all opinions are our own.
YOUR TURN: Were you in the dark about Estonia like us? Is it now on your bucket list? How about those bear dumplings?
So excited about this opportunity!
We’ve teamed up Humana with tips on kicking YOUR Generation Encore into high, healthy gear!
See our tips and tricks for staying healthy out on the road, what we carry with us to avoid disaster, and what we tote along onto airplanes to avoid eating junk food (and much more!).
Check out the SEVEN magazines you can catch us in… CONTINUE READING
We’ve teamed up Humana with tips on kicking YOUR Generation Encore into high, healthy gear with full page advertorial appearing in the August/September 2016 issues Real Simple, Cooking Light, Southern Living, Sunset, Coastal Living, Golf, and Money magazines! We were paid to appear and, as always, all opinions are our own.
My beloved Grandpa used to love the saying “health is wealth.”
As his caretaker while in my thirties, I was familiar with the phrase but never thought much about it.
Even when Grandpa would sweetly explain to me what the phrase meant to him and why I should take it to heart, I didn’t.
Sorry Grandpa, but I just didn’t get it.
I was young, energetic, and happily busy chasing three kids around. On top of running my own business and traveling to California as much as I could to help my stepdad care for my beautiful, dying mother.
Looking back at that time of my life, I’m not sure how I did it. David was out on the road for long, brutal stretches and the juggling got intense—it felt at times like there was not enough of me to go around.
I should have counted my blessings more. And my health was one of those blessings I rarely counted.
Now that I’m older and, hopefully, wiser (though I doubt I’ll ever reach Grandpa wise), I take eating right, staying active, and getting a good night’s sleep more seriously.
It’s simply impossible to keep up with the pace of my chosen lifestyle otherwise. Gone are those glory days of endless energy, and I’ve finally learned the importance of taking care of myself. I’m worthless to others otherwise.
Health IS wealth.
So, when Humana asked us to team up to help get the word out to Generation Encore (of which we are proud, card-carrying members—okay, there’s no card, but we’d carry one if there was!), we said HECK YEAH!
What an honor it is to share our story and tips in top magazines:
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Look for us when you pick up your copy of Real Simple, Cooking Light, Southern Living, Sunset, Coastal Living, Golf, and Money magazines this month!
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Stay healthy, my friends, so you can have encore adventures like this in Sicily:
Or this in Arizona:
This is YOUR time. Get up, get active, and have some fun!
Veronica, GypsyNester.com
YOUR TURN: How important is staying healthy as you navigate your encore years? Have we missed any important tips? Please share yours in the comment section!
I am no longer an eating-a-bug virgin.
I love sampling new food – the more authentic the better. But, from time to time we are faced with delicacies which may be too authentic.
Find out which of us tried it and who chickened out… CONTINUE READING and watch the video >>
I am no longer an eating-a-bug virgin.
I love sampling new foods – the more authentic the better. But, from time to time we are faced with delicacies which may be too authentic.
As we explored the city of Dalian, China we found many exotic and exciting foods, quite a few that were displayed in the restaurants alive.
These lively, moving menus worked well for the point-and-eat method we’ve developed when exploring areas where we don’t have a language in common with the residents.
After window shopping the fare in several establishments, David and I settled on one and sat down.
In no time, I was pointing to a plate of wiggling silkworms and there was no turning back.
We had been taunting each other ever since we found out in Beijing that people actually ate the buggers.
When the dish arrived, the smell alone brought about extended stall tactics.
The incredibly unpleasant aroma led me to trying the garnish first, asking every member of the staff how to go about ingesting the worms, bringing one right up to my lips and chickening out (by the way, they most decidedly do not taste like chicken), and utilizing every other excuse I could come up with to delay the inevitable.
Seriously, a medal for bravery might have been in order.
David had announced, as soon as he got a whiff of the bugs, that he was having none of it. But the gauntlet was down; there was no way I was letting him getting away with not trying the delicacy. I mocked him until he finally relented.
As soon as his teeth cracked the bug-like shell…
WATCH: I was shocked at the panic I saw in my eyes when I was editing this video! ONE of us actually ate a silkworm — and the other is a wuss.
Thanks to the incredible staff – even though they laughed at me – they were amazingly wonderful and the rest of the food we sampled was SO delicious.
As we bid farewell, their many hugs almost relieved the slightly queasy feeling I had in the pit of my stomach.
Veronica, GypsyNester.com
Click here to see more about our day in Dalian
See more of our adventures in China!
YOUR TURN: Would YOU try a silkworm? Or have I finally gone too far?
One of us ate it and the other is a wuss! See the entire fear-conquering episode >>
One of us ate it and the other is a wuss! See the entire fear-conquering episode >>
