Exploring Columbia

Some of the best presents are not ones that come in boxes. They are rather presents that you know took planning, preparation, and effort from the gift giver. Brian's godmother, Kathy, gave him one of the best dental school graduation presents. If Kathy is involved in something, you know it's going to have lots of creativity and lots of time and research on her part to make it perfect. She makes sure it is something special, just for you. This is one of her many talents! She gave Brian (and me) a package of things to see and do in Columbia. She researched the city and found all the hot spots, found out what was fun to do around town and even just outside of town. This was all presented in an envelope to him on graduation day. I couldn't believe how much she knew about Columbia! In Kathy's creative fashion she had a way of tying the entire package together.

First on the agenda was a card that read, "Chow Down," and boy did we! She gave us a gift certificate to a local restaurant called Motor Supply Company Bistro. Being foodies and all, we of course went to check this place out within the first few weeks of moving here, and it has easily become one of our favorite restaurants in town! How did Kathy know of such an outstanding, local place when she lives in Tampa?!? The menu at the restaurant is handwritten daily. Only the freshest, local ingredients will do. While I don't have a picture of our meals, I can assure you it is delicious and a must to try in Columbia. In fact, we have taken almost every person who has come to visit us to this restaurant! It never disappoints!

Next in the package, "Float Down." Float down the Congaree river of course! Columbia has 3 rivers that meet just west of downtown Columbia. There are great parks and sidewalks all along the river, but the best thing to do in warmer months is to float them! You can go by kayak or inner tube. We received a gift certificate to one of the local outdoor adventure guide companies called Get Your Gear On.
One of Brian's co-residents, Jessica, and her husband tagged along for the kayaking adventure.



It was such a beautiful day to be on the water. Brian and I may have tipped our boat over on the first very, very tiny "rapid" and lost our shoes. But we found them halfway down the river and clearly we survived! :)

Kayaking on the Congaree!



Next in the package was "Drink It Down." This involved an event held at the local zoo in the fall called Brew at the Zoo. It's a smaller scale beer festival that's held inside the zoo! While we didn't get the chance to work our schedules out for this specific event, we did get to tour the zoo.
The Riverbanks Zoo is fantastic! They have lots and lots of elephants, and my favorite....koala bears!!



Hello there Mr. Lion! I can't believe what a good close up shot we got of him.



Another great close up of the grizzly bear! Just hanging out watching the crowd.....



A playful little meerkat!



And finally, the grand finale........ "Pedal Down!"
There is a BMW manufacturing plant about 1.5 hours from Columbia. Brian owns a BMW and quite honestly, what guy doesn't like cars that go fast!? Brian received a one day pass to attend the BMW Driving Experience at their performance driving school. It's like a short version of what all BMW has to offer as far as performance driving classes. We also got to tour the plant and watch a BMW get put together from start to finish!



That's Brian teetering over the top of that hill on the off road course in the X3. They purposefully want you to balance on two wheels to show you that you won't tip over and show the excellent handling ability of the vehicle. I think his back wheel was at least 2 feet off the ground! Notice I am taking the pictures and not taking part in any "fast driving" or "off road" experience!



After the off road course, they got to take a few "hot laps" in and M5 and test drive several other models. Wanna see a hot lap? Click here. Brian looks so happy to be surrounded by so many fast cars!



If he decides to ever go back for more performance driving courses, he can take the cars through the track below with the standing water and fishtail all around that track! I wish I had the car sliding in motion, but you get the idea. :)



So that topped off our adventures of exploring our own town, Columbia. Sweet Kathy gave us such a thoughtful present and I can't thank her enough! We've had so much fun finding new places around the city, and she made our adventures so much easier and so much more fun!!! Thank you Kathy!

Chimney Rock

Before telling you about our day at Chimney Rock I must give a disclosure statement as follows: Mom, and any others who worry about our safety and hate balconies that hold you in with little more than a thin piece of metal, (Whitney) please know that we are all clearly safe and unharmed. We may have taken Gracie to elevations of almost 2,500 feet from which she could have jumped off a few ledges. Don't worry. We kept her on an extremely tight leash and she behaved perfectly!

Now on with our beautiful day at Chimney Rock State Park!
Brian's wish list of weekend trips from Columbia included a trip to drive down some of the Blue Ridge Parkway as we are only a few hours away. He wanted to see the fall foliage in its prime if possible. We did some research once we had a free weekend and found out we were just past the prime of the leaves changing on the part of the parkway close to us. Typical! I did some exploring into things to do just off the parkway and came across Chimney Rock and Lake Lure. We decided to check it out in hopes that we would have some scenic views and we were not disappointed. You can see for 75 miles from the top of the rock. It was a gorgeous day to go and just in time to catch the leaves before they changed completely! If this is the color of the leaves just past their prime stages, then I can only imagine what this view would be like at its peak!



This is Chimney Rock below with the flag on top and yes, that it is a staircase going to the rock with nothing below! On to the scary part. The park is completely dog friendly so we took Gracie along for the excursion. The downside to taking dogs is that four legged friends are not allowed on the elevator up to the rock. We thought it was no big deal as many took the stairs. Twenty-six flights of stairs later we made it to the lookout! Whew!



This is a view of Lake Lure from the rock.
A little piece of trivia about Lake Lure: Dirty Dancing was filmed here!



Gracie and I were happy to be on top of Chimney Rock! She's glad the stairmaster is over! Gracie wouldn't get too close to those railings!



Brian, my photographer and stair climbing motivator, at Chimney Rock. :)



A close-up of the view from atop Chimney Rock. This gives an idea of where we were standing in the photos above. It's breathtaking at an elevation of 2,280 feet!



In case that view is not enough for you, you can venture even further in the park to Exclamation Point! What does this mean? More stairs! This is another view along the next part of the trail to the point.



The view from Exclamation Point at an elevation of 2,480 feet! Such a gorgeous view of the rolling hills and mountains.



After our 586,789,342 steps back down to the main level at the park, we took a trail which leads to Hickory Nut Falls. This was more of leisurely stroll and not a vertical trail as the others were to the rock. I wish our photo could show you the true height of this waterfall, but it is close of 400 feet tall!



The bottom of Hickory Nut Falls.



We snapped a quick family photo at the bottom of the falls. Does this photo look familiar to anyone? :)



I know I've joked about the stairs and the hiking at the park, but I truly did enjoy our visit! I'm even glad we hiked the stairs with little Gracie instead of taking the easy way out on the elevator! I'm glad I wore my tennis shoes but almost wish I had worn some workout clothes for that hike! I'm so thankful for the time we have gotten to take exploring as our little family. This was the perfect weekend day trip.

Happy New Year!! Time for Resolutions!

So I'm usually not one to make New Years resolutions aside from the typical "eat healthier" pledge which never lasts past my birthday (which is in January) due to the abnormal amount of sweets I consume! For whatever reason, I've been thinking more this year about making changes....some big, some small. I've felt the need to share my resolutions via my blog to hold me accountable. That way I can truly track how well I've held to my promises! Here goes nothing!

1. I'll start with the obvious- BLOG more often!!! 2012 was a pretty sad year for me in the blog world. Here I am living in another state from most of my readers, and I've neglected to really show you anything we have done while living in Columbia! I plan to correct this problem this year and keep up with my virtual scrapbook.

2. This is so sad to admit, but my 2nd resolution is to floss more often. Let's be real honest here, floss period! Yes, I'm married to a dentist and I don't floss!! Isn't it horrible? I've got to fix this problem and develop a healthy habit of flossing. After all, I'll be marketing my pearly whites one day for Dr. B's practice so I better keep them in tip top shape now!

3. Learn to use our Nikon! I know a little bit about our camera and I know what most of the settings are called and how to adjust them, but I've just not yet grasped a true understanding of using the camera and when to make adjustments based on lighting, distance, the subject, etc. We have a couple of really great books that I plan to read to get started on this goal. We've had the camera for 2 years!! My procrastination stops now!

So there is my little list of goals for 2013. It may not seem like much, but if I can tweak my poor habits just slightly, then it'll hold me accountable and only mean better things for years to come! 

Do you make New Years resolutions? Do you have poor habits you want to try and change for 2013? 

Saturday in Savannah

A few weekends ago we took a little drive down to Savannah, Georgia for the day. We drove down early Saturday morning and arrived before lunchtime! We are going to be so spoiled by all these cities close to Columbia. We stayed in town for Saturday night in order to see the nightlife and enjoy a nice dinner. Our first stop was River Street. I loved walking along this cobblestone street and checking out all the shops and restaurants.



When I think of Savannah, I picture this. Every square and park is full of sidewalks shaded by cypress and oak trees. Doesn't the hanging spanish moss just make you think that time would move a little slower if you were here? It's so scenic and beautiful.



We were able to snap a quick photo down the shady pathway at Forsyth Park. If you look in the distance you can see the Forsyth Park Fountain which is a pretty famous landmark in Savannah.



On our walk back towards River Street, we stopped in The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist. It definitely reminded me of the church in Jackson Square in New Orleans. It was absolutely breathtaking inside.



After sightseeing and walking through at least half of Savannah's famous squares, we took some time to do a little shopping. Savannah Bee Company was by far my favorite place and mainly because of this eye-catching window display. Something about all the bottles is mesmerizing to me. It made me stop, stare, and smile every time we walked past the store on River Street. Inside you could taste and test all of their products made of honey. You wouldn't believe the things you can make out of honey! We picked up a bottle of the orange blossom honey and some cheese honey which will be used on a delicious cheese board one day. There is something to be said about marketing and packaging because I obviously had to have this larger, skinny bottle just like the window display even though there were smaller, more normal bottles available. They sucked me right in!!



And last but not least, no blog post about exploring a new city is complete without letting you know what delicious eats are available there! Even though we were only in Savannah a total of about 24 hours, we had the chance to eat at the following places:

• The Lady and Sons- I couldn't come to Savannah and not visit Paula Deen's claim to fame, y'all! :) I must admit....it was a bit of a tourist trap....especially the buffet. (Sorry Paula. I'm still a fan though!) We opted to order off the menu instead and had some pretty delicious stuff. The chicken salad sandwich was out of this world and Brian's crab stew was pretty tasty as well. We also didn't pass up dessert and ordered a slice of Gooey Butter Cake to share!
• River House Seafood- We ate a delicious seafood dinner here! Honestly it wouldn't be my top choice if we were to return to Savannah, but our entrees were pretty good. After all, we did head to Savannah last minute when it just so happened to be restaurant week = no reservations available! 
• Huey's- We went here for Sunday brunch before leaving town. Now this place was outstanding!! They serve mainly a cajun cuisine which means one thing....beignets. But we're not just talking any old powdered sugar beignet. We are talking beignets covered in hot homemade praline sauce. They can NOT be eaten any other way here! YUM!! We had every intention of taking a picture of this masterpiece when we ordered them. Once they arrived warm at our table, neither of us thought twice about the picture until there was only one bite left! They are that good!

I hope you enjoyed exploring Savannah with us. We have several more weekend trips to come including Charlotte, Myrtle Beach, Hilton Head, Greenville, Wilmington, Asheville, the Outer Banks.....just to name a few! 

Whit's New Place in the Windy City

I am in shock that it is almost September. Shocked! Where did the rest of summer go? While I am excited for the fall football season, I feel I need more summertime. I've still got to catch you up on my entire summer since our anniversary. In late June, Mom and I made a quick trip to Chicago to visit Whitney's new home in downtown Chicago! She moved into her new apartment the same weekend we moved to Columbia. We thought we'd be spending most of the trip by helping her decorate and organize her new place, but she was so excited about our arrival and hanging out with us that she already had everything mostly complete and put away. This left time to explore the city and have some much needed girl time.

Whitney lives a few blocks from this place, The Chicago Theatre. She lives right in the hustle and bustle of it all. (The sound of the L train is right outside her window to prove it. Whitney finds it soothing. I find it LOUD!)



Her apartment building is the Randolph Tower City Apartments and this is the adorable lobby! It is still in the renovation phases and the building has so much charm!



If the Perry girls are going to get together for a trip, you know we are going to find some delicious places to eat and drink! Mom had been scoping out this deep dish chocolate chip cookie sundae from Pizano's Pizza. It is baked for 10 minutes in a traditional Chicago deep dish pizza pan. Needless to say we all split this one and still couldn't put much of a dent in this delicious monster. The warm cookie crust was outstanding!



Whitney also took us to Orange for brunch on Saturday where we were able to sample "frushi". Don't be fooled, that is all sliced fruit and fruit flavored rice. No seafood involved. Pretty creative, huh? Definitely a fun experience and like nothing I have ever seen or tried before!



Orange also serves a pancake flight for brunch. We had a perfectly sized sampling of their silver dollar pancakes for the three of us to share.
Clockwise from top left:
1) Pancakes topped with blueberry sauce, diced mango, yogurt, and chopped pecans.
2) Strawberry cakes rolled and stuffed with homemade vanilla frosting, topped with sprinkles.
3) Chocolate cakes with strawberry sauce, whipped cream, toasted almonds, and pink sugar.
4) Pancakes with vanilla anglaise topped with whipped cream, strawberries, and chocolate sauce.
Which one looks to be your favorite?



We felt the need to walk off brunch, so we spent the afternoon exploring the Lincoln Park Zoo. It has to be one of the best zoos because it is free and open every day of the year. Can you imagine taking an afternoon run through the zoo everyday? Awesome! And clearly there is not a bad view of the Chicago skyline from the zoo! We got there a little late and several animal exhibits were already closed, but we had a beautiful sunset to enjoy over the city.



This lioness was still out to play and perched above this huge rock. She was clearly very close to the public which made me a little nervous! We even got to her her roar.



Thanks, Whitney, for another fabulous trip to Chicago. I can't wait to come back and visit soon!

Two Years!!

It's fitting for me to post about my second wedding anniversary.....one month (to the day) late! That's just the way my life is right now I suppose. We were busy traveling on our actual anniversary this year. Since we have moved to Columbia, we have so many weekend trips planned for this year. There are so many fun cities to explore all within a 2-3 hour drive from our home! We knew our first trip would have to be to Charleston!
We absolutely LOVED it as we were told that we would! We drove into town extremely early so we could use the extra day to explore. We fell in love with all the colorful homes and these cobblestone streets!


 


While in Charleston, we stayed at the Vendue Inn. This is more of a boutique hotel than a bed and breakfast. I was a little leery of a true bed and breakfast since we would be rookies to the experience. I know they are supposed to be fun, but I'm just not really one for conversation with strangers first thing in the morning! haha! I realize a true B&B may not be like that at all, but this inn gave us exactly what we were looking for! We received cooked-to-order breakfast each morning, an afternoon manager's reception with wine and cheese, delicious flavored waters available throughout the day, AND milk and cookies at bedtime. This was ALL included in the room rate!! Did I mention that connected to the inn is the The Rooftop Bar? SOLD!


This was our quaint little guest room. It was perfect that it was blue as I love blue, our wedding colors were light and dark blue, and it was our anniversary weekend. It was meant to be! :)





This is the famous "Rainbow Row" only a couple of blocks from our hotel.




For our anniversary dinner we dined at Husk. My sister had eaten here and strongly recommended it to us for dinner. It was so tasty! We had the best fried green tomatoes I have ever put in my mouth. They were served alongside homemade pimento cheese. Below is a picture of my entree. Delicious. I had Almaco Jack, Charleston Gold Rice "Risotto", Grilled Spring Courgettes (which I learned is a fancy way to say summer squash), and Marinated Heirloom Tomatoes. Those juicy red tomatoes were the sweetest and ripest tomatoes ever. Can you tell I may have a slight obsession with tomatoes? Oh, and to top off our dinner, we ordered a skillet of Bacon Cornbread. Seriously? Cornbread made with bacon grease and bacon bits throughout? Yes!! Wow, were we full!! But I couldn't celebrate the anniversary and not order a dessert! Below is the Lemon Pie in a Jar. It was the perfect lemony custard with an espresso mouse below. YUM!





Now Husk was clearly my favorite restaurant, but I can't mention traveling and not tell you about the other amazing places where we dined in Charleston.

• Cru Cafe - We went here for lunch, and this was my 2nd favorite eatery! The combinations of food on this menu are incredible and very unique! I would definitely suggest this place for a lunch spot as it is not as intimate for a nice dinner. It's very small and crowded.....just as you would envision a little cafe. 
• Hank's Seafood Restaurant - This was Brian's favorite! We went here for dinner, and this is definitely a great location if you are looking for an upscale dinner. He loved the She Crab Soup! I must admit, it was verrrrrry creamy!
• Poogan's Porch - A great place for low country cuisine.....lunch or dinner!

During the daytime in Charleston we took the opportunity to explore the beaches as well. To the north of Charleston is Sullivan's Island and the Isle of Palms. We were told by our bellman at the Vendue that they had the best burger place and BBQ joint in all of Charleston. He also said that the beach is more secluded. It was so relaxing!! I'd say it's a pretty empty beach for the middle of June, wouldn't you? If only I owned one of these beach homes.......

 


We opted to try the burger place, Poe's Tavern. That only means we will have to return one day to try out the best BBQ. Gosh! I hate that we have to return to the beach!! ;) Poe's Tavern was a great spot! Look at the fun sign Mr. Edgar Allen's face with the raven on his head. Love it! We learned that Edgar Allen Poe was stationed at Ft. Moultire which is on Sullivan's Island back in 1827, which is why the restaurant is respectively named after him. All the burgers on the menu are a tribute to his work. Our choices: The Pit & Pendulum and The Amontillado. Ohhh how it brought my back to high school!


 


The next beach day was spent at Folly Beach, just south of Charleston's downtown. It is known for its waves and has quite the surfer vibe. This is the Folly Beach Pier which holds many town events including Shagging on the Pier! My dad is begging us to learn to Shag dance while we are here in SC. I guess we will have to return to Folly as well!





That sums up our Charleston vacation. I would call it an overall success! I can't believe Brian and I have been married for 2 years now! It feels like I was just planning our wedding last week! Time truly does fly. I'm looking forward to number 3 a.k.a. "that year when we lived in South Carolina". I can't wait to see what our future holds!

Welcome to Columbia, SC - Famously Hot!

Welcome to Columbia, South Carolina --- our new home! We've moved here for Brian to complete a General Practice Residency (GPR) at Palmetto Health Richland. He is working at the hospital's dental clinic with five other residents. I've definitely enjoyed the company of his co-residents so far (and their significant others)!! I thought I'd share a few pics of the new home.....yes, a HOME!! It feels so great to have a home after two years of apartment living. There is definitely more work to put into the house than the apartment, but so worth it in the end. I've only got a couple of photos to share because some other rooms of the home are still not quite put together. I guess you'll just have to come visit us to get the complete tour!


 


This is the living room when you walk into the front door. Why, hello Gracie! :)


 


The guest bedroom.....with random photo equipment on the bed, sorry! It's welcome for visitors!!


 


The master bedroom and bathroom, which we are I am loving the double sinks!


 


And this is our backyard. It's fenced in for Gracie to play!





So this is our new place for the time being! We have one more bedroom which is our office space (it's atrocious right now). We also have a second bathroom for our guests. Hotel Ondocsin is booking up fast, so contact me to schedule your visit!!