Wine and Spirits Travel

My friend Lynn and I slept well on our first night on the American Queen . We had a full day a head of us and we started with a quick breakfast at the Front Porch Café. One of the complimentary amenities of the cruise line was unlimited specialty coffees and we took full advantage preparing our lattes to taste with our eggs and pastries. The American Queen is all about conservation. Everyone was given a water bottle and there were water filling stations on every floor. There were no plastic water bottles available. Another thing available to all passengers at no charge were the hop on, hop off bus tours at every stop. It was nice to have the freedom to explore, with transportation that included taking my scooter on the bus, a guide telling us about the towns and attractions, and all admission fees paid by the American Queen Voyages. Our first experience with the tours was in Red Wing . I had never been to this Minnesota town before and I was looking forward to checking it out.

It was day three in Branson and I continued to enjoy this Missouri city with my friends Marsha, Brittany, and Amanda. Our first stop for the day was at an attraction new to the city this year, Bigfoot on the Strip.  We thought it would be a quick stop, but we soon realized there was so much to do (and eat) that it was fun for the day. Bigfoot, a joint adventure by three locals, who also happen to be in the food business (more below), is an adventure park with unique activities to keep kids and adults occupied and having fun. Brittany and Amanda took off for the maze immediately. It was nothing like you’d find at chuck E Cheese. This one required a lot of climbing and crawling, with stops in a tall water tower and the opportunity to jump onto a trampoline-like pit. Before checking out anything else, we stopped for lunch at Bigfoot’s food trucks, Big Ds BBQ and P arlor Pizza Wood Fired Pizza . It was a unique and delicious alternative to a snack bar.

Branson, Missouri has been on my list of places to visit in the Midwest for years. Since it was a bit of a drive (about seven hours) and there is a ton to see and do there, I wanted to make sure there was enough time. I planned the time and the crew for a perfect five days girls’ getaway, that would end with an extra-special birthday. Brittany has traveled with me many times, but this was my friend Marsha’s first adventure with us. Marsha and I had actually met on social media when I saw we had mutual friends and a very similar name. She’s Marsha Lynne and I’m Marcia Lynn. As we became closer, our friends started referring to us as ML1 and ML2. So, this was the first of many trips for ML^. We picked up Amanda in Alton, Illinois , and decided our lunch stop was going to be our favorite barbecue place in Missouri, SuperSmokers in Eureka. Their BBQ Nachos, corn chips topped with brisket, chicken, pulled pork, tomatoes, cheese, and baked beans, are not to be match

My road trip through the Midwest  had started nearly a week ago. I was now in one of my favorite cities with my mom. We had stayed at the Palmer House Hilton previously and I knew how much my mom loved it. I also always had a great time at this classic hotel. I called my friend, Ken Price, the hotel’s Director of Publicity, to arrange our stay. Every time I’ve been to Palmer House, Ken has fascinated me with stories of the hotel’s history. He has mentioned his “ History is Hott ” tour and I was finally able to work out a time to do it. After a good night’s sleep, we had a light breakfast and got ready to meet Ken. We were saving our appetite for lunch at the Palmer House’s Lockwood Restaurant, which is included with the History is Hott tour. Ken met us and we caught up over lunch before the rest of the people arrived for the tour. I had the delicious French Onion Soup while Mom enjoyed the salad with shaved pears, hazelnuts, and greens in a buttermil