Yes, Dear Readers, we're back! Agnes and I drove up to Pittsburgh for the weekend to visit my Father and my sister and her family, and to take a trip up to our cabin on the Allegheny for a bit of fun. Of course, there are pictures ...
We left early Saturday morning and made excellent time ... until traffic on the Pennsylvania Turnpike came to a dead stop about five miles short of the Donegal exit. This time the delay wasn't caused by the traditional endless construction*, but by - supposedly - a very serious accident. Oh, well ... it's not every day you can leave your parked car in the middle of the Turnpike and take a stroll ...
We finally got to Pittsburgh, having lost only an hour at the backup. Naturally, once traffic began moving, we saw not the least evidence of an accident anywhere.
We checked into our hotel, then went to see Dad. My sister Lisa and her family came over later, and we loaded up and went to dinner at the Hofbrauhaus on the waterfront. Naturally, my brother-in-law Ed and I had to make sure the beer was up to standard ...
... so that it was okay for Dad to sample, too ...
The entire menu was very tempting, but I had to have something you can't get just anyplace - the Schweinshaxe, or pork knuckle with sauerkraut and dumpling. It was every bit as big as it looks ...
Agnes and my sister Lisa shared an apple strudel for dessert. The sauce artistry was quite something!
We managed to get up the next morning and rendezvous at Dad's place, from where we left for Franklin, Pennsylvania, the Venango County seat and one of the nicest little towns anywhere. Dad loves to fish, and in 1965 he bought some land on the Allegheny River not far from Franklin, on which we built a small cabin to use as a family retreat and fishing camp. It's almost fifty years old now, and is one of our most treasured possessions. Agnes and I don't get there very often, as it's quite a drive for us, but my brother uses it quite a bit, and Lisa and Ed take Dad up as often as they can so that he can enjoy the place.
This is the view from the front porch ...
And the view downriver toward the old railroad bridge ...
Dad's famous "Fishmas Tree"...
My sister Lisa and niece Elena ...
I got pressed into duty to cook the chicken ...
In the meantime, Dad had the opportunity to visit with a lot of his old friends and neighbors who were up for the weekend, like Bob ...
and Victor ...
Ed and Elena also had to take Victor's new paddle boat out on the river to try it out ... not realizing that Titan expected to ride along, too ...
But then, of course, it all had to end.
Agnes and I drove back home today (thankfully, without any incidents on the Turnpike), and I finished the weekend by mowing the lawn (can you spell "boo, hiss"?).
So that's how I spent my weekend. Hope yours was safe and enjoyable as well.
And now, it's time for bed. I need my sleep so that I can go back to work tomorrow (Mike, that was your cue to make a snarky remark about retired people who don't worry about that 'work' stuff any more).
Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow.
Bilbo
* If you're from Pennsylvania, you know what I'm talking about!
Glad you had a great trip, other than the delay. You have a nice family, Bilbo.
ReplyDeleteToo bad it had to end with a mowing.
Have a great week!
I am all too familiar with all the places you were. Franklin county and that awful turnpike and the Donegal Exit. We had friends here from PA so I didn't make that horrific turnpike trip this year....yet.
ReplyDeleteLooks like you had a ball.
And my goodness those big mugs of beer. Holy cow those were huge like that plate of God knows what you were eating Bill.
I prefer Lisa and Agnes food. :-)