Oh, the Wonders of Hotel Strasburg

If you've followed my blog, you might recall me mentioning the Hotel Strasburg as a convenient stopping place on our route from home to Bristol.  It's just the perfect distance to travel, particularly if we leave after Marty has driven home from work.  We generally arrive with just enough time to grab a quick dinner in the pub prior to heading to bed.

What makes this place so unique is its character, dog friendly policy and extremely reasonable price.
I'l be quite frank.  The place is old, built in 1902, and once serving as a military hospital.  But Marty and I get quite a kick out of the place,  and I don't think that there has been one trip where we haven't found something amusing.

At first, it was the lamps. I never saw such unusual and entertaining light fixtures.  I blogged about it several times, and I recall my good friend, JoAnn, finding the fixtures to be equally comical, so much so that she took the time to comment. (Made me feel happy knowing that someone else has been amused.)

Then it was the upgraded room which featured a bathroom door that was broken, and the terrible wi-fi connection that required me to sit out in the hall in order to get a connection.  One might wonder why we would continue to stay at this place, but I just have to say, there is an aura that we find to be inviting, and the staff is always so eager to please.  And, as I said, the price just can't be beat.

I always reserve through hotels.com, and despite the room photo displayed, the description always said "general" room, and we really never knew what to expect.  The last time, I reserved what was presented as a "king" bed.  The room ended up being a double bed.  As a matter of fact, I'm willing to bet that there isn't a king bed in the place.

So, this time, when I was reserving the room, I picked the least expensive room, which was featured as having two double beds.   I didn't need two beds.  I didn't expect two beds.  I just went for the cheapest price.  After all, we were really only sleeping overnight in the room.

So, you can imagine my surprise when we arrived and the girl behind the desk told me that she had given me a complimentary upgrade because there were no "general" rooms available with two beds.  I thanked her, took my key, and headed out to the Chandler building where we were directed.

Once inside, we opened the door to our room.

The decor certainly reflected what we had seen previously, but I will admit that this was the first time that we had seen a pink rug.

Note in the distance, there is a room with a twin bed.  The main bed was actually a queen, which was a surprise in itself.  But walking through that doorway, I was quite surprised to see that the twin bed shared a room with this

A whirlpool tub complete with a shower set up.  I suppose that one could just pop up out of bed, and jump right into the tub.  Definitely a first time experience for me.  

Just next door, was the remainder of the bathroom.

There was a second door in that room,  and I wanted to be sure that it did not lead elsewhere

No worries there

The doorknob popped right off.  I stuck it back in and made certain that the door could not be opened from the other side, particularly since I didn't know what was on the other side!

Of course,  the lamps didn't disappoint.  

That is one solid fixture from top to bottom.

But this time, there was something more noticeable than the lamps. It was the variety of wallpaper patterns throughout.

The bathroom was very busy.

The tub featured small roses and stripes

There were floral rose stripes

as well as large roses.

The only constant was the border which ran around the top of every room. 

Somehow, we managed to get out of there without getting crosseyed!

And as entertaining as the hotel Strasburg experience was, it pails in comparison with the fun that greeted us at our destination.   First stop: Bass Pro shop to buy some worms for fishing. 

Blackbird bakery for donuts.....just because.

And evening entertainment that included batman.

How's that for a fun 24 hours?

We'll just have to wait and see what the next 24 have in store for us!  I'll keep you posted.

Final Day of Fun!

We woke to beautiful blue skies, scattered with white puffy clouds, giving us the indication of yet another fabulous day at the beach.  

So, after some quick donut making, early in the day

we headed to the beach for our last day of fun.  Just look at that beautiful sky!

I was settled in my chair, enjoying the pelicans bopping about on the waves. 

when I noticed the gang all standing on the beach, gazing in my direction. Then, my granddaughter looked at me and exclaimed, "Gramma G!  Look behind you!  The sky is dark grey!"  

I hesitated, turned around, and sure enough, the skies looked pretty ominous.  

And, before we knew it, we were huddled under the canopy, listening to the raindrops pelting the canvas while these two took safe harbor under the umbrella

and their dad threw a towel over his head.   After all, this is the beach, and he was already wet, what were a few more raindrops?

The storm lasted about 20 minutes, then blew north, out of sight, leaving us an absolutely perfect day for its remainder!

And, these two certainly added to our enjoyment. 

After dinner, Amy and I managed to run down the street to capture the sunset.

Perfect!

And we ended the day with these two cuties giving their Pap Pap a fun Father's Day Card!

It just doesn't get any better than that!

The week flew by way too fast. But I can honestly say, that I enjoyed every waking moment to its fullest!   And, that's how it should be!  Special moments  that will bring a smile to my face for years to come.   And I hope that they brought a smile to your face as well!

A Full Day of Fun

Since the weather forecast predicted thunderstorms rolling in at 4:00 in the afternoon, Jim and the kids headed down to the beach early to make the most of the day on the sand.

First on the agenda:  Build a sand castle! By the time Gramma G made it to the beach, the construction was complete, and the crew was relaxing, just waiting for the waves to roll in.

High tide wasn't to hit for hours yet,  or so it seemed. 

Apparently the tide had its own plans yesterday.

which resulted in a sneak attack and a quick change of plans! (And a VERY wet towel!)

But it certainly made a fun wading pool!

Next on the agenda:  Build a sand sculpture.  Specifically:  BB-8. 

Now, those of you who know me well, know that I am not a fan of Star Wars.  I don't begrudge anyone else their fascination with the subject, but it's just not something that appeals to me.  So, when Amy told my grandson that they should build BB-8, I announced that I would be happy to help.

Are you impressed with my handiwork?

No worries if you aren't.  It didn't seem to get any oohs and ahhs from the rest of the gang here either.

But, this, of course, did:

The remainder of the day involved watching the tide wipe out the castle

as well as the construction of the "indoor" pool for the kids to enjoy.

Which they did.

Pap Pap tried his hand at some fishing, but came up empty handed.

And, we took a short walk down the beach to check out the sand building project that had relocated further south along the shore. 

You can see the pipe set up to shoot the sand along the dune.

The set up was just about the location where we had stayed last year.

We managed to get the little ones into the ocean, which they seemed to thoroughly enjoy, as the water was actually quite warm. 

And then, just around 4:00 pm, Marty spotted lightening in the distance, so we packed up our stuff and headed back to the house for yet another entertaining evening. 

The say a picture is worth a thousand words, and I couldn't agree more! 

In House Entertainment

No Sunshine on Thursday!  Just very grey skies.....as had been predicted by a local, who had assured Marty that the fishing conditions would change with the weather.  And guess what?

He was right!

Both Marty and Jim had success catching a Red Drum!   And Marty also caught a Sea Trout, but you are just going to have to take his word for that, as no photos exist to prove it. 

And the weather didn't stop us from heading down to the beach.  In fact, the cloudy skies kept the conditions quite comfortable, particularly for our feet, as the sand on previous days had been scorching hot!

So, it was the perfect weather for a running game on the beach.

And the cooler temperatures were perfect for babies!

As you can see by the smiles!  (I can't take credit for most of these photos, but as you can see, my daughter-in-law is quite accomplished at capturing the moment!) 

Dinner involved some GREAT helpers!

And lots of playtime as well!

Yep, another fabulous day, for sure!