The GypsyNesters

I’m Sick and Tired of the Moose-cuses!

I’m convinced it’s a conspiracy.

I’ve spent quite a bit of time in “moose”-laden territory over the past few years. In these areas, I’ve seen quite a few “moose.”

Startled looking heads mounted over fireplaces, taxidermic atrocities in front of campy places of business, bronzed statues in public squares, and souvenir store mugs, tees, and shot glasses with cartoon “moose” in a plethora of wacky situations giving all sorts of North Woodsy advice.

Never, EVER have I seen one in real life.

Until recently, I was a believer in the myth of the “moose,” but … CONTINUE READING >>

I’m convinced it’s a conspiracy. Or at least I was.

Here’s why:

I’ve spent quite a bit of time in “moose”-laden territory over the past few years. In these areas, I’ve seen quite a few “moose.”

Startled-looking heads mounted over blazing fireplaces, full-bodied taxidermed atrocities standing proud before campy places of business, and bronzed statues in public squares.

Souvenir store mugs, tees, and shot glasses emblazed with cartoon “moose” in a plethora of wacky situations bequeath all sorts of North Woodsy wisdom.

Never, EVER have I seen one in real life.

Moose head in Northern Ontario — See how fake looking they are?

Until recently, I was a believer in the myth of the “moose,” but now I realize that I’ve been hoodwinked by
a vast conspiracy.

Like the unicorn, snipe, mermaids, skunk apes and Altie, I believe the existence of moose is a massive hoax.

Think about it.

Moose are ridiculous looking. Even a Pegasus or a griffin carry characteristics seen in creatures that actually exist in nature. Frankly, I’d be less shocked to meet up with Medusa.

My theory on the origin of the moose myth is this:

Moose antler hockey stick rack — “Moose” antler hockey stick rack.

Canadians – being the wonderfully clever and playful people that they are – needed a way of entertaining themselves during the beautiful summer months when the onslaught of tourists invaded their country.

What could be more entertaining than sending a bunch of heat-avoiding folks from south-of-the-border on a wild moose chase? There’s a simple, elegant beauty to it all.

A moose bottle holder — Real world application for “moose”

Soon, a thriving industry developed. Fake heads for mounting, famous cartoons for watching, and trinkets to be sold. I’m fairly certain the continuation of the myth is what keeps many small towns afloat in the northern U.S. and Canada.

Because of this, I’ve had reservations about writing this post, I feel like I’m revealing a glimpse behind the magic curtain on a time-honored tradition, and possibly endangering the livelihood of many fine folks.

But I’m also really upset by all the times I’ve gotten my hopes up, only to hear the most ridiculous of Moose-cuses:

–It’s the wrong time of the day
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gone trudging though the wilderness on a tip from a Canadian, only to come back to civilization and have a different Canadian tell me that I was out there during the wrong time of day.

–It’s the wrong time of the year
We had made a trek to snowy Vermont on a lead from a New Yorker who had “just seen” a moose up there. Upon arrival, we were told by the owner of our hotel that moose just aren’t around that area in the winter.

–You just missed him
I have had more near-moose experiences than I can relate in one post. Someone’s kid or next-door neighbor has always just spotted one the hour before.

–There’s been too much rain this year
Apparently, moose hate mud.

– The new golf course has scared them all away
Ditto for golf, moose hate golfing.

– They are really hard to spot in the woods
Seriously? It seems I’ve simply not noticed the massive, goofy-faced, trees-for-antlers
creatures.

I’ve also had some pretty wild conversations:

– With a drunk woman with whom we were sharing a cab in Winter Park, Colorado
We were chatting about moose with the cabby, he was relating fables about all of the times he had almost hit a moose with his cab. When I mentioned that I don’t believe in moose, the drunk woman we were dropping off on our way to the train station WENT OFF ON ME!
Never discuss politics, religion or moose in Winter Park.

– With a dog sled musher in Whitefish Montana
Here’s where we learned that moose can swim. Yeah. Right.

– With a chip truck lady who fed us poutine in Northern Ontario

ME: If moose are real, how come I’ve never seen one in a zoo?

Chip Truck Lady: Come to think of it, neither have I. I don’t think they’d like being in a zoo.

ME: And TIGERS do?

Chip Truck Lady: I guess not. I wonder why that is?

Yeah. I wonder.

The Newfoundland Addendum (and New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island!)

The “moose” supposedly outnumber humans in
Gros Morne National Park,
so why didn’t we see one?

I was suckered back in to believing I might see a moose in Newfoundland – especially in Gros Morne National Park, where there is supposedly a 1.5 moose-to-human ratio.

Keeping uber-alert while driving the whole of the island, I spied moose fences in the western area, a sophisticated alert system in the central area and very scary looking warning signs in the National Park, but not a single sighting.

Just outside of the park, driving north, David suddenly yelled, “Look. LOOK! A moose!”BUT I may have stumbled on a clue.

I caught a fleeting glimpse of a massive creature standing off in the distance, stock still. Could I be wrong? Was that actually a moose? We immediately spun around, and turned back to get a closer look.

There was nothing there.

What I did see, however, may break this myth wide open.

Parked on the side of the road was a black SUV. Two men, sweating profusely, were hurriedly stuffing something into the back of the vehicle.

A moose suit perhaps?

The Norway Addendum (a “moose” by any other name…)

Sorry Norway, but I STILL doesn’t believe in moose!

At the Olympic Ski Jump museum in Oslo, I was made to believe there was a creature called an elg.

We traveled a huge expanse of Norway by train (all the way to above the Arctic circle in the wintertime!) after I saw this taxidermy-ed monstrosity.

Guess what? Didn’t see a one. I don’t believe in Elg, either.

The Alaska Addendum (or where I eat crow in a big way!)

I stand corrected. I apologize, I couldn’t have been more wrong. Moose exist.

It was less than a week upon our arrival in Anchorage that I spied my first moose while traveling along the Seward Highway south of town. AND he was swimming. I am now fully obsessed with moose, as demonstrated in our Instagram feed:

Veronica, GypsyNester.com

YOUR TURN: Are you a moose-myth conspirator or a disbeliever like me? Do you accept my humble apology?

Seen Any Good Movies Lately?

This is not one of our usual topics, but we’re a little discouraged.

We’re huge movie buffs and we’re finding it harder and harder to find movies that appeal to us (perhaps another get-off-my-lawn, curmudgeonly sign of aging?).

Our hope with this post is that we can all share… CONTINUE READING >>

Man, can we relate! Seen any good movies lately? — Man, can we relate! Seen any good movies recently?

This is not one of our usual topics, but we’re a little discouraged.

We’re huge movie buffs and we’re finding it harder and harder to find movies that appeal to us (perhaps another get-off-my-lawn, curmudgeonly sign of aging?).

Even though these days anyone can just make their own and use this movie maker online to create professional promo videos for your company.

Our hope with this post is that we can all share recommendations.

We are full-time travelers that spend much of our time outside the United States. One of our homecoming rituals after an overseas excursion has been catch up on the movies we missed. So we rent a ton of movies and lay up for a few days watching them and sleeping off the jetlag.

Upon returning from our latest trip to South America, there wasn’t anything in the movie rental machines that we wanted to see. We shouldn’t have been shocked – prior to our trip we were lamenting that there were no good flicks in the theater – common sense should have told us that a rental problem would soon arise.

To make our movie-Jonesing matters worse, it’s next to impossible to find anywhere to rent movies other than the box machines anymore. They have their upside – being able to pick up a movie in one town and drop it off in another is glorious – but the selection is pretty limited. The days of access to hundreds of movies with a Blockbuster card that we could use in almost every town are gone.

In the age of downloaded movies, we are at a disadvantage, internet access is wildly variable and we won’t be streaming hours of bandwidth gobbling video on our little 3G WIFI card. Our wireless bill would end up looking like the price tag for filming one of those blockbusters. If you’re in a similar position, doing a search for cable providers near me is a good thing to do, as it allows you to get a stable connection as well as a reliable cable package so you can access the movies you want, at any time, without limitation.

So we are left with the box machines or buying, usually from the discount bins, to fulfill our flix fix. On the upside, we have found that there are often gems hidden away in both of those places.

Here’s a couple we have found recently, please pass along any that you have discovered:

Carnage

Yeah, yeah we know what you’re thinking, but the name is very misleading. It’s based on the play God of Carnage (not making it better, are we?) and has amazing performances by Kate Winslet, Jodie Foster and Christoph Waltz. Just two couples trying to sort out an altercation between their young sons who end up finding that being civil isn’t any easier for them than it is for their kids.

A Perfect Family

Kathleen Turner is brilliant in this. The range of emotions she goes through in this film is staggering. A women who has successfully sheltered herself from everything that she doesn’t want to see
is blind sided by the real world pressing in on her. And somehow, it’s really, really funny.

Jeff, Who Lives at Home

We loved Susan Sarandon in this one. It deals with a lonely, single woman with two adult sons, one married and one that, well, lives at home. Jeff is a Boomerang “Kid” and his whole family is living the consequences. We liked this one because it felt real, yet has a magical undertone.

Bernie

Based on a truly weird true story, Jack Black (whodathunk?) and Shirley MacLaine deliver outstanding performances in this fact-is-stranger-than-fiction flick.

And a not-so-recent one:

Lars and the Real Girl

It’s amazing to us how few people know about this movie. Maybe because it must have been a marketing nightmare. Honestly, we’ve had so much trouble explaining to our friends and relatives how wonderfully funny, well-acted and touching this movie is once they find out (what seems to be) the plot. But trust us, the plot isn’t what it seems to be – at all. And you’ll love it so much that you’ll feel compelled to come right back here and thank us. It’s that good.

YOUR TURN: Have you seen any good movies lately?

David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com

Getting Pickled in Wawa, Canada

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Check out the pickle-mania at Young’s General Store! Young’s in Wawa, WAY up in Northern Ontario, Canada is quite… CONTINUE READING >>

Check out the pickle-mania at Young’s General Store!

Young’s in Wawa, WAY up in Northern Ontario, Canada is quite the attraction. Antiques, curios and memorabilia are intermingled with all sorts of olde timey products throughout the store. This makes for a way more than the average souvenir shop.

Perhaps the centerpiece is the giant pickle barrel by the front door. No way we could visit without fishing one of those babies out.

For more about beautiful, pristine Northern Ontario: https://www.gypsynester.com/ontario.htm

Visit our GypsyNester YouTube Channel!

Navel Gazing in Cusco, Peru

Dubbed the Navel of the World, Cusco is an amazing blend of the very-old and the not-as-old.

Join your GypsyNesters as we see the sights (and sights) – see ancient ruins, a street festival with an ornery llama, crossing guards that threaten you with whips and the weirdest rendition of The Last Supper you’ll ever experience.

At over 11,000 feet above sea level, flying in takes steely reserve and handling the altitude takes native remedies… CONTINUE READING >>

After one crazy approach and landing at one of the world’s highest commercial airports, we began our explorations of The Sacred Valley and the incredible sights (and sites) of the ancient Inca Empire in Cusco.

WATCH: The most amazing, insanely beautiful flight we’ve ever taken!

Once inside the airport we were introduced to a few treatments to counteract the high altitude. Seeing as how the salesperson at the OxiShot booth, where oxygen shots were supposed to boost our energy, was out cold we opted to give some of the local remedies a shot instead.

Coca leaves sit in a basket for the guests of our hotel.

The locals swear by the leaves of the coca plant, the plant that produces cocaine, as an antidote to the thin air.

We had heard about this remedy prior to our trip and were hesitant about trying it.

Veronica calls herself a sea-level gal, and not wanting to miss a thing while we were in high altitude, she overrode her reservations and took a chance.

Coca Tea in Peru at Posada del Inca in Yucay — The most common way to serve coca is in a tea. It’s everywhere.

Coca candy in Peru — Coca candy is another way to get your coca fix. We’re convinced it and the tea helped.

We started making iced tea for sightseeing, and we’d even taken to chewing the leaves, just like a local! The raw leaves were not tasty, and we learned to soak them first – otherwise the texture was awful.

Click here to learn how we dealt with altitude issues while in Peru

Cusco, Peru — It’s common to see the very-old & the not-as-old melded together.

Perked up and ready to rock, we stormed the city. Cusco has been the hub of all human activity in this region for centuries.

Not only as the capital of the empire but as the birthplace. Perhaps that is why they dubbed it the Navel of the World.

Around the year 1200 the small city-state of Cusco formed under the rule of Manco Cápac.

He can be considered the first Inca, or emperor, over the Quechua people.

Then in 1438 AD the Sapa (supreme) Inca (ruler) Pachacuti (world shaker) conquered huge portions of the surrounding area and organized it into four provinces and what we know as The Inca Empire, or Tahuantinsuyu in their Quechua language.

The Temple of the Sun, Cusco, Peru — The Temple of the Sun

Legend has it that Manco Cápac was sent to the earth by his father, the sun god Inti, and emerged from a cave carrying a golden staff. He was to build a Temple of the Sun on the spot where the staff sank into the earth, and that spot was none other than Cusco.

In fact that temple still stands, so of course we had to check it out.

Because of the incredible stone stacking abilities of the Quechua, the original walls of the Korikancha (Temple of the Sun) withstood two earthquakes that reduced the Convent of Santo Domingo that Spanish colonists built on top of them to rubble.

The convent was rebuilt, damaged again, and repaired to its current state as a museum.

The temple’s initial construction used the force of gravity to set the stones into each other, which strengthened the structure. Each piece was cut to fit exactly in place and distribute weight so as to hold everything in place without the use of mortar.

This gave the walls flexibility and they were also slanted slightly inward to each other using gravity to help negate the destructive force of any seismic shock.

Going from one temple to another, toward the center of the belly button, our next stop was the Plaza de Armas and the Cathedral of Santo Domingo.

As we walked around town, we noticed that many of the buildings in Cusco are built on top of the seemingly indestructible Quechua stone work walls.

Cusco is earthquake prone, and these foundations have held time and time again.

The buildings set atop have not fared as well.

Cusco Cathedral — Outside of the Cathedral of Santo Domingo.

Inside the cathedral we saw alters layered with insane amounts of silver, literally tons, but we were on a mission.

We had just one goal in mind, find the painting of The Last Supper where Jesus and the disciples are eating cuy.

That’s right, we heard there’s a guinea pig last supper going on in the Cathedral of Santo Domingo and we were not leaving without seeing it.

At the very back corner of the Cathedral we found the version of the classic scene, by Marcos Zapata, featuring a platter of cuy and bottles of chicha, the traditional corn beer.

No photos are allowed in the church, so we bought the postcard.

Click here to see how Guinea pig is served in The Sacred Valley

Back outside we noticed that this plaza is unique in that it is dominated by two churches because of a falling out between the Jesuits and Dominicans centuries ago.

Both were built directly on top of the palaces of former Inca rulers with stones taken from nearby Sacsayhuaman.

So we headed over to see Sacsayhuaman for ourselves.

David "models" the enormity of the stones at Sacsayhuaman — David “models” the enormity of the stones.

The ruins at Sacsayhuaman, pronounced very close to “sexy woman” (which proved easy to implant in our memory banks) are remarkable for the size of the stones.

Some of the blocks weigh in at around 200 tons and, as with every other site we have visited, they are expertly carved and placed.

The Sacsayhuaman ruins in Cusco, Peru — A chalkline grid shows the wonkiness of the placement of the gigantic stones.

Most of the site was destroyed by the Spanish after their conquest, and the stones removed to be used in constructing new buildings down below in the city of Cusco.

Now only the largest rocks remain.

We scrambled up to the top and found a fantastic view of the city.

Sadly, what we didn’t find were any remnants of the once splendid temples that used to stand atop Sacsayhuaman.

Only the foundations are left.

See more about the Sacsayhuaman site

Crossing guard in Cusco, Peru — “Respect the crosswalk” or you will be whipped.

Back down in town, wandering the streets for a little late afternoon shopping, we got quite a surprise.

Bizarre characters were patrolling several of the main thoroughfares, some even armed with whips!

Keeping our distance we decided to observe and attempt to ascertain just what it was they were up to.

After watching awhile, and translating the signs, we figured out that they out in force to discourage jaywalking… and put on quite a show.

Having avoided a confrontation, and perhaps a flogging, by respecting the crosswalk, we ducked into a little watering hole for some nerve calming refreshment.

Since 1908, when Ernesto Günther opened up the first non-corn beer brewery in Cusco, Cusqueña has been quenching the thirsts of folks high up in the Andes.

A bright, refreshing Pilsner, it certainly hit the spot and gave us the confidence to face crossing the street one more time.

Our morning began with a street food breakfast, a delicious avocado sandwich from a lovely vendor, while a huge procession in honor of St. Jerome was staging right in front of our hotel.

Bands were warming up, costumes getting last minute adjustments, and even some attempted llama coaxing to convince him to go along with the program.

The procession of feast of Corpus Christi in Cusco, Peru — The procession included bands, dancers…and very feisty llama…

St. Jerome being carried through the streets of Cusco, Peru — Then culminated with a huge likeness of the saint carried through the streets on the shoulders of a couple dozen men.

WATCH: The surprise procession in front of our hotel! The llama did NOT want to be involved!

Each year on the feast day of Corpus Christi the churches of Cusco all carry their patron saints through the streets to the cathedral in the main square.

There the huge gathering celebrates in a chaotic battle of the bands bedlam that brings the city to a standstill.

Then, on some unknown signal, everyone returns to their home parishes.

Their timing turned out to be perfect, since it was time for us to move on to our next destination as well.

Not that we are saints or anything.

David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com

Delve Deeper:
Click here to learn how we dealt with altitude issues while in Peru
Click to see all of our adventures in Peru!

Click here to see our full adventure with Road Scholar – a not-for-profit organization – through Ecuador, Peru, The Galapagos Islands, Machu Picchu and much, much more!

Religious Procession in Cusco Peru – complete with fiesty llama!

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The procession included bands, dancers…and very feisty llama, culminating with a huge likeness of… CONTINUE READING >>

A huge procession in honor of St. Jerome was staging right in front of our hotel. Bands were warming up, costumes getting last minute adjustments, and even some attempted llama coaxing to convince him to go along with the program.

The procession included bands, dancers…and very feisty llama, culminating with a huge likeness of the saint carried through the streets on the shoulders of a couple dozen men.

David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com

More about amazing Cusco, with ancient ruins, a street festival with an ornery llama, crossing guards that threaten you with whips and the weirdest rendition of The Last Supper you’ll ever experience: https://www.gypsynester.com/cusco.htm

Visit our GypsyNester YouTube Channel!

Expedition Train to Machu Picchu

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It’s an adventure unto itself! The breathtaking scenery through the Sacred Valley to Machu Picchu on The Expedition Train, the second highest railroad in the world, after… CONTINUE READING >>

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Glamour + Camping = Glamping on the California Coast

Your GypsyNesters take a Glamping adventure of a lifetime up California’s Pacific Coast Highway!

Follow us from Santa Monica to Santa Barbara to Beverly Hills – yes – Beverly Hills, as we discover what the Glamping Life is all about!… CONTINUE READING >>

A glamour yurt at El Capitan in Santa Barbara California — A glamour yurt in El Capitan Canyon in Santa Barbara, California.

About a year ago, we first saw the Toyota Venza boomerang kid commercial with the son whining about mom going to bed without making his dinner – only to find out that the ‘rents were out living their lives.

We thought: wow that is right up our alley. They are marketing this car directly at us.

We have giggled through all of the ensuing ads and their GypsyNesting tone, but it wasn’t until a few weeks ago that the Venza drove its way into our hearts.

A glamping cabin at El Capitan Canyon in Santa Barbara, California — Our glamping cabin in El Capitan Canyon.

That was when we got an e-mail out of the blue asking if we would be interested in going to California for a “glamping” event. Glamping is a sort of hybrid camping, glamour camping.

Not something we had heard of, but we are always up for something new. Toyota would pay our expenses and provide a brand new 2013 Venza while we romped and played up the west coast from Santa Monica to Santa Barbara. How could we say no to that?

Lowes, Santa Monica Pier

Next thing we knew we had tickets to L.A. booked for us, luxury hotels in Santa Monica and Beverly Hills reserved for our first and last nights, and a cabin at a premier glamping resort near Santa Barbara for the nights in between.

Upon landing at LAX, we were whisked to the Lowes Hotel on the beach right across from the Santa Monica Pier.

The lobby of Lowes, Santa Monica Pier — Palm trees INSIDE the Lowes Santa Monica.

Then, something magical happened. While we were checking in, we took a quick peek at Twitter and found a welcome tweet to each of the guests.

It was like we had made out the guest list ourselves! It was a veritable who’s who list of our Boomer Travel World: Donna Hull of My Itchy Travel Feet, David and Carol Porter of The Roaming Boomers, Jason Oliver Nixon of Sky Magazine and Wayne and Pat Dunlap of Unhook Now.

All people we have admired for quite awhile, but never had the chance to meet in real life!

This was going to be the best week ever.

Pacific Park, Santa Monica Pier — Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier.

Want to see more great pics and info on the Santa Monica Pier? Click here!

Santa Monica Beach from the pier — The view from the Santa Monica Pier.

Lobster at The Lobster, Santa Monica California

After a stroll along the surf and checking out the pier, we met our Toyota hosts, hugged our fellow boomers and walked over to The Lobster for an incredible seafood dinner.

When a restaurant is named The Lobster, it’s hardly necessary to look at a menu. The drawn butter flowed like wine… as did the wine.

More about The Lobster here!

Santa Monica Yacht Harbor Sign at Night — The Santa Monica Yacht Harbor sign right outside the door of The Lobster!

Want to see more great pics and info on the Santa Monica Pier? Click here!

Arriving like a rock star - Veronica is snapped by a photographer — Arriving like a rock star: Veronica is snapped by a photographer.

The next morning we got our introduction to the Venza.

Designed in California and built in Kentucky, it’s a nimble cross between SUV and sporty coupe that easily held everything we could need while looking good along the way.

After perusing all of the available colors, we picked one in an eye-catching metallic green called Cyprus Pearl.

The touch screen on the 2013 Toyota Venza

Our Pearl turned out to be a real gem, taking us up the Pacific Coast Highway in open-up-the-sunroof-and-turn-up-the-tunes California cruzin’ style.

We explored without a care because the onboard navigation always knew exactly how to get us where we were going.

It even had one of those newfangled stereo/cell phone/talking computer touch screens that was voice controlled so we could talk into it while driving. We messed with it a lot, even had some deep conversations.

Pearl knows the answers to almost everything, but not in a stuck up kind of way.

When we set out we were enticed by a photo contest – a scavenger hunt of sorts – where we were pitted against our fellow boomers to find the best locations along the way to shoot ourselves having fun with the Venza.

The gauntlet was dropped, and we headed up the coast – GypsyNester style – finding the wildest, wackiest and most ginormous stuff along the Pacific Coast Highway:

Cows on a beach house in Malibu! — Wait. What? There are COWS on top of this beach house in Malibu!

Huge taco guy in Malibu! — There’s always room for tacos! We found a ginormous guy on top of a restaurant in Malibu.

The Pacific Coast Highway has some lovely vistas.

Arrrrgh Matey! David gets his pirate on in Ventura Harbor.

Being our crazy competitive selves, we were the last to meet back up with the crew at the El Capitan Canyon Resort.

Deer wandering through our glamp site at El Capitan Canyon, Santa Barbara California

The Capitan knows how to put the glam in glamping. Yurts, tents and cabins with all of the creature comforts most any creature could crave.

All of this luxury, and we were still able to commune with nature as quail, deer, and even a coyote wandered through our campsites.

Veronica clearly misunderstood the concept of glamping! — Veronica clearly misunderstands the concept of Glamping! Too much glamour, not enough camping. OOPS! (channeling her inner Lucy!)

Dinner in the Barrel Room at Sanford Winery

That night we drove our Venza into the wine country of Santa Barbara County, to the Sanford Winery for an informative tour and decadent dinner in the barrel room with all of the aging vintages.

Veronica channels her inner Cleopatra at Sanford Winery — “Peel me a grape.” Veronica channels her inner Cleopatra.

In the morning, back at El Capitan Canyon, we hiked up a hill overlooking the ocean and fed some of the resident llamas.

Veronica feeds a llama at El Capitan Canyon Glamping

Biking in The Santa Ynez Mountains

Later in the day we took a drive up the steep, narrow, winding Camino Cielo to the top of La Cumbre Peak in The Santa Ynez Mountains.

Then mounted mountain bikes for a spectacular brake-burning ride all the way down to the sea some twenty miles and 4000 feet below.

Toyota: Oh what a feeling!

We were so invigorated we felt like performing a reenactment of the old Toyota “Oh, What a Feeling!” commercials in front of the Santa Barbara mission.

1, 2, 3, jump!

Freeze frame.

BBQ by campfire brought a pretty perfect day to a close. With all of the calories we burned that day, we would have settled for anything, but El Capital Canyon rolled out an amazing catered affair. Complete with s’mores.

The nice cozy bed in our cabin was much more welcoming that night than a sleeping bag in a pup tent would have been. Our days of “real” camping may be over.

SLS hotel beverly hills

As glamorous as the glamping may have been, things were about to step up another notch as the next day had us headed to Beverly Hills and the new SLS Hotel.

The Venza fit right in. Good thing for us, because if we had pulled up in BAMF we almost certainly would have been mistaken for The Clampetts.

In the white room of the SLS Beverly Hills — Your GypsyNesters trying our best to look aloof in the White Room at the SLS Hotel.

Luckily we had packed us some Sunday-go-to-meeting clothes so we could doll up properly for our dinner at one of L.A.’s trendiest new eateries, The Bazaar by José Andrés.

Chef Andrés creates some incredibly innovative dishes, all served tapas style so the table gets to partake together. The meal became an event as we sampled round after round of delicious tidbits (including liquid olives), great for conversation as well as culinary curiosity.

Veronica at the SLS Hotel, Beverly Hills, California

The next morning, exhausted by all the fun and glampour, we channelled our inner movie star, donned our SLS robes, and ordered up breakfast in bed.

Not certain that we quite fit in among The Glampous People, we found that as the week drew to a close, we were glad we said yes to giving it a go.

We spent the rest of the morning brainstorming how to fit our new friend Pearl into our suitcase.

WATCH:

David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com

YOUR TURN: Can you BELIEVE we got to do this? What would have been your favorite part? Is Glamping something you’d like to try?

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My theory on the origin of the moose myth is this:

But I’m also really upset by all the times I’ve gotten my hopes up, only to hear the most ridiculous of Moose-cuses:

I’ve also had some pretty wild conversations:

Just outside of the park, driving north, David suddenly yelled, “Look. LOOK! A moose!”BUT I may have stumbled on a clue.

Carnage

A Perfect Family

Jeff, Who Lives at Home

Bernie

Lars and the Real Girl