October 13, 2016. Walking Rochester

LOCATION:  Rochester, MN

WEATHER:  Frost on the pumpkins!  Cold in the morning, sunny. Highs in 50s

Today consisted of 3 long walks, totalling about 7 miles.  First I walked to the dentist.  Clean bill of health there, too.  Then, a stop in a coffee shop to kill time before an afternoon beauty shop appointment.  Hurray!  A haircut by my favorite hairdresser.  Then another hike via downtown back home.  On my way, I passed many beautiful trees....

People don't walk as much in the USA as in other countries, so people kept asking me if I wanted to catch a ride with them.  But, I enjoy walking, especially in crisp weather like today.

The Zumbro River flows through Rochester.  We think outdoor cafes should locate near the river.  

 

Back home, we invited a friend over for dinner, and sat outside in front of the firepit and and BBQ grill.

DINNER:  Grilled chicken and turkey thighs.  Pasta salad with artichokes, capers and peas.  

October 12, 2016. Mayo Clinic appointment day

YLOCATION:  Rochester, MN

WEATHER:  Much cooler.  Some rain.  Highs about 50

I had 3 appointments at Mayo Clinic.  They are so good to schedule the appointments one after the other for out-of-town patients.  One appointment was on the 16th floor of one of the Mayo buildings.  This is the view of the Peace Plaza below...

 

And this is one of Mayo's beautiful historical buildings.  

 

Mayo strives to be aesthetically pleasing to its patients.  In addition to the artwork, there are grand pianos scattered throughout the buildings.  Frequently, talented patients play and/or sing beautifully.  

  

After a clean bill of health, George met me downtown  to check out one of Rochester's new brewpubs. The restaurant scene has really improved since we left.

For dinner, we took our host Pat out to dinner at another new brewpub.  Many of our friends have raved about this new place.  The food and beers were very good and the service impeccable.  However, we were really turned off by some of the things they scrimped on....... George, per his normal process at a brewpub, asked to sample one of their beers before ordering.  They would not let him sample anything.  This rarely happens at a brewpub, and when it does, he walks out.  He stayed this time, but was not happy.  He then asked for hot sauce, and was told that it would be an additional $1 for a serving of Siriacha.    Then, I asked for Parmesan for the pizza.  Again, it was an additional $1.  George, by this time, aka Mr. Grumpy, asked how much catsup would be for his fries.  :(. 

October 11, 2016. Exploring downtown Rochester.

LOCATION:  Rochester, MN

WEATHER:  Beautiful. Sunny. High 75

We walked around downtown Rochester and around Mayo Clinic. Mayo has beautiful artwork....

This stained glass was made by a famous artist, Chiluly.  

We checked out progress on the renovation of the civic center.  The skyline of Rochester is quite impressive...mostly Mayo buildings.  Skyways connect the buildings so visitors don't have to walk in the snowy cold, in the winter months.

The pedestrian mall is an anchor for the downtown....

We had lunch in a new high-end Mexican restaurant with cool murals...

Then we walked to our friend Pat's house where we will stay for several nights.

DINNER:  Pizza delivered to the house.  We sat outside and ate it around her firepit.  Enjoying these last beautiful days of autumn.   

October 10, 2016. Back in Rochester, Minnesota!

IHHLOCATION:  Rochester, Minnesota

WEATHER:  Gorgeous sunny fall day. High about 70

We are back in Rochester, our last place of residence.  We lived here from 2000-2013.  Rochester is the best place we've ever lived, and Mayo Clinic was my favorite employer.

 

Mayo is America's largest non-profit healthcare organization, and won America's "Best hospital in the USA" designation.

We are here for Mayo Clinic annual checkups and to see our daughter and friends.  

We had appointments and blood work in the morning.  No more fasting!  

Mayo always does a very  nice job with seasonal landscaping.  

I had lunch with a former colleague who has just got into camping, too.  Great to compare notes.  Rochester has really grown in the last year, and I hardly recognized some sections of town.

Alexis took us shopping in her favorite charity shop.  I bought some new (used) clothes so I can toss some of my stained clothing that I've been wearing the last 8 months.  Everything was ridiculously cheap, plus they were having a 50% off sale.  What a bargain!

We went to one of my favorite Rochester restaurants, the Redwood Room for dinner.  Great food and service, and lovely to listen to the 2 guitarist/singers.  

October 9, 2016. On to Minnesota!

LOCATION:  Rochester, MN

WEATHER:  I think it was nice, but we were in an airport most of the day!

We enjoyed our last day with our daughter Meredith and her husband Gautham.  

Gautham took us to the Detroit airport.  Our 2:30 flight finally left at 6:00.  :-(.    We flew Spirit Airlines as an experiment.  Cheap tickets, but everything is an add-on.  Printing boarding at the airport is $2 each.  Carry-on bags $35-$100 each.  Checked bags $30-$200 each.  George jokingly asked how much change he should have on hand to pay for the toilet!

We took the Rochester shuttle to our downtown hotel.  Since we both have lab work tomorrow, we are fasting.  Saved lots of money on food and drinks at the airport!  

Our daughter Alexis and her partner Graham dropped by our hotel to watch the Trump/Hillary debate with us,  ugh!

October 8, 2016. Relaxing with daughter

LOCATION:  With daughter Meredith in Ferndale, Michigan

WEATHER:  Sunny and cool. High about 60

Meredith's husband returned early this morning from a business trip in California.  He took a "red-eye" flight so was very tired.  While he slept in the recliner, George read and Raja the dog protected the guys.

We went to the Detroit RV Show.  When we used to own a house, I always liked to go to open houses to check out other houses.  Now with an RV, I like to compare ours to others.  It was a massive show.  Didn't buy anything!

Back home, we did some odd jobs.  Meredith is harvesting her herbs for the fall, and made lots of pesto.

DINNER:  Consistent with her interest in cooking unusual foods, Meredith prepared Pique Macho for us, a Bolivian favorite made with cow tongue.  Really tender and spicy.

  

October 7, 2016. Last day of yard work

LOCATION:  With daughter in Ferndale, Michigan

WEATHER:  Another beautiful autumn day. Highs about 80

The mulch pile started in the morning fairly small...

Then we finished it!

I think all our efforts were worth it.  All the flowers are resting among the mulch...

The front yard looks tidy...

Hopefully the weeds will die under the mulch with their Round-up treatments.

In the afternoon, our friend Pat from Rochester and her friend came over.  Meredith fixed lots of yummy appetizers....Indian fry-ups, minty eggplant hummus on pitas, and Mexican grilled chicken. I servd Dukkah that I brought from Australia.

Great food and conversation!