Okay, for those who may not have seen the previous post about the Miami Renaissance Rum Festival, it is put on by Rob and Robin Burr. The usual date is in May or June as they also have a rum cruise this time of year. COVID changed all that and so they held their 12th annual Festival Sunday, Nov 14th. They’re still not certain of what 2022 will bring; hopefully a return to normal.

Although previous festivals were held in large venues with judged competitions, seminars, and entertainment, that did demand a much higher level of logistics and made it a two-day event. They moved to the Coral Gables Woman’s Club, an historic building with two open rooms for the vendors. There were more than 40 and most had multiple rums to taste. We generally only taste the aged rums and will have one or two drinks of the vendors who do a mixed drink. The small amount you get per rum does add up and no we don’t drive after. There is a hotel close by with a good Greek restaurant. We spent the night and we may Uber next year instead; plenty of time to decide.

The vendors come from different places; the ones you would expect such as Panama, Jamaica, Venezuela, then the surprising ones such as two from Louisiana. As the guy from Wildcat Brothers Distilling said, “We have lots of sugar cane.” This is from their website: “The story of Wildcat Brothers Distilling may be the most unorthodox tale this side of the Bayou. Set in fertile South Louisiana (“Cajun Country” as we like to call it), our story features two unlikely heroes: a former lawyer and Ph.D. behavioral scientist. Together, they embarked on a journey to help their fellow Acadians celebrate the joie de vivre with the very best French style rum. The result was Acadiana’s first distillery. Merging old-world recipes and modern techniques, our flavors harken back to the way the original Acadians would have crafted rum – with their own hands and local ingredients.” https://wildcatbrothers.com They were fun guys to talk to and their “Noir” run was good.

A bit more whimsical though was the lady in the Mardi Gras hat because they were with Roman Candy Rum Company. “In 1915, Sam Cortese began making and selling his hand-pulled molasses taffy from a wooden, mule-drawn wagon on the streets of New Orleans. The famous red and white wagon bearing the name “Roman Chewing Candy” is a true fixture of New Orleans tradition and still can be found in the streets today, clanging its bell and calling all to come to enjoy the hand-pulled chocolate, strawberry and vanilla taffy. Our rum is a tribute to Grandpa Sam and to New Orleans.” http://www.romancandyrum.com

The motel complex where I stay in Natchitoches is out on the I-49 exit where seven different motels are and multiple food and fuel options. I took an early morning walk through adjoining parking lots watching a variety of vehicles getting their start. Not surprisingly, there were several trucks with bass boats, plenty of 18-wheelers, and numerous classic cars parked as their events weren’t starting until later in the morning.

I met my high school friend and her husband for lunch at El Rio, a fairly new Mexican restaurant on the north edge of town away from downtown which was being closed off for the car show. It was a pleasant place, good food and they had tales of their recently completed (as is Wed) 4,000+ mile trip. They basically did the “Lonesome Dove Trail” going from Texas up into Montana, Dakotas, etc. Lots of photos to go through and her husband made detailed notes of places stopped, time between points and so forth. My friend’s daughter has now returned and is working in the library so we swung by to see her, then went to their place for coffee.

I made it over to Many about 3:00. Only two of my cousins were able to come around, but at times that’s better than the whole group as we were able to get all caught up. I did manage to get in before the downpour that lasted almost an hour. With just my aunt and I for dinner I drove her the 20 minutes to Toledo Bend Lake and the restaurant close to the big bridge. She had fried oysters and I did the catfish/shrimp combo. We talked for a while longer after we returned and then we had breakfast together this morning. My cousin who lives next door came over for a bit before I headed back to Minden. My brother and I went to lunch a bit ago and will leave for the “party” in half an hour.

Some emotional content. Day 2 was good. Checked out of the motel and verified will have room when return there tomorrow to meet up with sister, brother-in-law, and brother. Arrived at the assisted living facility and met the woman brought on to sit with Daddy from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., either three or four days a week. She works independently and has the right kind of personality for caring for older patients. Many of whom she has of course “lost” over the years. I would imagine she treats them all in the way she seems to treat Daddy. There were actually only a few faces I recognized from previous visits and the two other gentlemen that used to sit at the same table are no longer there. Okay, enough of that. Daddy was asleep in his chair in his room when I arrived and it took him a couple of minutes to “orient” after he woke up. Part of it was he didn’t know I was coming for a visit. I caught him up on everyone although did not tell him about the planned party tomorrow. I don’t think he would remember if he was told, however, I followed the request to keep it as a “surprise”. He did want me to go get catfish for lunch and we sat in the dining room where he also enjoyed the lemon pie on the regular menu as well. It turns out they have started serving catfish sometimes there, too. I didn’t stay as long as in previous visits because he was tired again after lunch and needed another nap.

The trip down to Natchitoches was easy and as I passed the small ranches (beef cattle, not dairy), there were Texas longhorns in one pasture. They are impressive animals. The annual classic car show is this weekend down on the riverfront and there were a few in the parking lot of the motel. Most will arrive today. I was here one year for it and people come from lots of different places. The first of my high school friends are redoing their kitchen and it will be really nice when they finish. The new granite countertops are in place, most of the tile for the backsplash, the fabulous new gas stove that also has an air fryer in the oven and the kitchen island is almost completed. We went to a new restaurant downtown; Mayeaux’s, which is supposed to have really good steaks. Although I was planning to try one, I the saw one of their redfish specialties. Despite the great seafood we get at home, redfish is not one of them. It was lightly fried then topped with a creamy sauce that included shrimp and crawfish. I mean, how would I pass that up? We went back to friends’ house for coffee and more conversation. They missed seeing Hubby and perhaps next year we’ll work the schedule to both come.

This was the long day, well – not as long as today will be – as a scheduling conflict meant we did extra “grandparent duty” instead of resetting into the hotel near the Kennedy Center. We did have a late morning business meeting, then discovered an interesting place not too far away. The Blue Iguana featured a mix of Southwest theme, yet a slight Cajun flair as well as standard fare. Good food, enjoyable ambience and of course there are lots of craft beers in the area. We came on into the city for yet another new experience as we are staying at the State Plaza Hotel very near the Kennedy Center. It’s sort of a “boutique” hotel which is also close to the Foggy Bottom Metro station. Unfortunately, they are only serving breakfast instead of the usual full service bistro with a bar. This affects us for tonight as well, but more of that tomorrow.

Anyway, we got semi-settled and returned to Falls Church for the experience of picking granddaughter up from school as they still don’t have enough drivers to resume bus service. There were no great academic first-grade achievements to report and we made it back to the condo for a round of “Minecraft” with Grandpa. Not that he’s skilled in the game, although he did manage to maneuver a bit with practice. We later were given a tour of the property – a short tour considering the size – then walked over for dinner at the nearby Dogfish Ale restaurant. Wood grilling is their signature in addition to craft beers even though I did opt for crab cake again. Hubby had salmon and we did take wood grilled pizza back for mom. Then it was ice cream at home followed by curling up on the sofa with Grandpa to read two books. The change into nightshirt came next with only a little while Mom made it home about 8:30 and bedtime. Son was still at tech rehearsal, not expected in for at least an hour.

Okay, it was a pleasant park we took granddaughter to while the kids went to see whatever that latest Marvel Comic movie is; apparently lots of great special effects. The Dogwood Tavern last night was very nice; the kind of place that has something for just about every taste. That included some Cajun dishes so Hubby had shrimp and grits. The sauce was excellent and he said the dish was delicious. I did a build-a-burger with blackening seasoning, bacon, caramelized onions and Monterey Jack cheese. Son did almost the same except smoky gouda. Daughter-in-law did a tuna poke bowl and granddaughter has basic grilled cheese. There was the warm brownie sundae shared for dessert. In a moment of amusement, granddaughter has at least temporarily become enamored of another nearby restaurant, The Beach Shack. Daughter-in-law thought it was too close to what we usually get, however, there is one difference. I think I have mentioned previously that despite great seafood around us, almost no one does crab cakes well. If it is one culinary items you can be assured of in this area, it’s crab cakes. We will, however, forgo key lime pie for dessert.

Tomorrow is going to be a bit tricky as we will be picking granddaughter up from school because mom has to work late and dad will be stuck at the Kennedy Center in tech rehearsal. We don’t mind of course although we were supposed to re-set to hotel near the Kennedy Center tomorrow so won’t be able to get there until pushing 10:00 p.m. Ah well, it’s for a worthy cause.

Okay, flight out of MIA had a few delays, but not too bad. Airport services are definitely better than last year although still not back to pre-COVID. The Centurion Lounge was open with less seating, although we did get settled. The lack of logic of course is the “social distancing” everywhere, then you sit in coach virtually shoulder-to-shoulder. Anyway, we meet the kids this evening for dinner and are taking granddaughter tomorrow so mommy and da can have a date day.

Hampton Inn for the first two nights is nice, also with some limits. Indoor pool is open though. Plan for tomorrow is take granddaughter to one of her favorite parks in morning, lunch wherever, then pool in afternoon. It will be me again so Hubby can relax with football. NASCAR X-Finity is on right now, Cup is tonight. With us dining early, he’ll get to watch the latter part of the race back here. We’re meeting the kids at a place we haven’t been to before, the Dogwood Tavern. Menu is not extensive, yet looks good and Hubby may have a hard time choosing. They have shrimp and grits which I suspect is the way he will go. Several really nice beers on tap to include a porter. Report to follow tomorrow.

On a more serious note, our route from the airport did bring us past the Pentagon, and as with MIA, there was a notable local and state police presence. Many of you who follow this blog know we were in D.C. on 9/11. Hubby was scheduled to go with a few others to the Pentagon that morning for a meeting. They were gathered before going over discussing what they would be presenting when word came in of the attacks. My sister was visiting from Houston and I was taking her to Baltimore for her flight home. We didn’t have the TV on or the radio in the car and so didn’t hear until we were on the way up and she called her office to check on something she was scheduled to do the next day. It took her three days I think it was to be able to arrange a flight back.