D'Vine Wine

A few weekends back, we found ourselves at D'Vine Wine Bar, a newer place just around the corner from us. I'm not sure why we've been driving all over town & hadn't tried this wine bar, but I'm glad we did! They have a smaller room that you can use for semi-private events.



They have a full meal menu as well as great accompaniments for sipping on wine. We enjoyed the cheese selection & thought they had a great range on the wine bottle prices.



We went pretty early in the afternoon & had the place to ourselves for quite a while. My other favorite thing is that they are open at noon most days & 2PM on Sundays.



I can only dream about the fall when the death heat is gone & we can sit outside again enjoying wine.



They don't have a full bar, but do serve beer for the non-wine drinkers and their selections of desserts was wonderful.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: The high today is only going to be 91- woohoo! We might venture downtown for the Houston Press Music Awards or the Intentional Jazz Festival or White Linen Nights in the Heights.

The Oasis Austin

Last weekend we grabbed my brother & sister and headed to Austin to explore. Our first stop was at The Oasis on Lake Travis.



They are famous for their layers of decking that provides awesome views of the sunset and all the partiers out on the lake.



I loved my years living in Austin during college & couldn't believe the kids hadn't been up there to do any sightseeing.



The lake was pretty quiet for a sunny Saturday, but there was still a crowd at Windy Point Park.



I tried explaining to them how the Colorado River, through 3 dams, formed the 3 Austin area lakes.



I was just blown away by how much The Oasis is growing. Way back when, it was a little local restaurant that was pretty simple & basic.



They are expanding and getting into the events (weddings!) and hotel area of things.



We jealously checked out all the amazing houses on the lake & schemed about how we might get our own one day.



It's so big and fancy now- I hardly recognize it :(



Like all of Austin- rampant construction and expansion. I'm kinda sad to see the little dive restaurant gone, but such is progress.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Looks like we are going to Belize for our anniversary! Sooooo excited about that ;)

Wicked, We're Wicked

A few weekends back we went to see the highly acclaimed Broadway show Wicked!




I'd been wanting to see it for a while & even had toyed with the idea of driving to New Orleans to catch the production. Luckily it came to Houston & I snapped up some tickets.



What can I say that hasn't already been said about Wicked? We LOVED it. It's funny and entertaining, the music is modern and enjoyable, the characters and costumes are amazing.

Now I want to go back and re-watch the Wizard of Oz with Glenda being the not-so-good witch.

We went to an early Sunday afternoon show with our friends & then out for dinner and drinks after the show- it was a perfect way to end the weekend.

One of the few shots I actually took with my camera- I didn't want to take any during the actual performance.

All in all, I highly recommend seeing this show if you get a chance, even if you aren't typically into musicals.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Doing my civic duty today and reporting downtown for jury duty this morning.

Wanaka Homestead

For our 2 nights in Wanaka, we stayed at the Wanaka Homestead, which is a nice B&B about 1 mile outside of downtown. It could be walking distance if you really wanted, but we usually drove to dinner or activities.



A nice large living area for relaxing and hanging out with other guests.



They have a lovely outdoor area with a picnic table & it also include a great hot tub, which we took advantage of one night.



The breakfast area- I remember breakfast being quite yummy here.



We booked the master bedroom, which was lovely. The whole facility is fairly new & the room was bright and big.



We enjoyed windows on 2 sides, plenty of space for our bags and free Internet.



The bathroom was pretty fun too- a big shower with two shower heads.



...and two basins provided plenty of space for us.



I did love the views out the window- the grounds were very lush & green, full of beautiful trees.



There was a great view of the mountains in the distance & we were treated to this wonderful sunset one night.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: We're headed to Pennsylvania today for a long, patriotic weekend!

Te Anau Lodge

We spent our night in Te Anau between the Doubtful Sound & Milford Sound at the Te Anau Lodge . Since there are no taxis & we'd left our car in Queenstown for the Real Journey's bus rides, we had to walk to this B&B- which is a pretty good hike out of town with luggage. The RJ bus would have dropped us off, but we wanted to grab lunch & didn't realize it was so far.



The really cool thing about this place is that it's a converted convent that sits on beautiful grounds, surrounded by the mountains.



I'm sure on warm, sunny days- it's great to lay in the grass, stare at the lake, dream about the mountains in the distance. We had to settle for rainy & moody for weather conditions.



We opted for the deluxe room & it was called the Cathedral Room after the mountains that could be viewed out the giant windows.



We sat in bed for a few hours catching up on photos & news, taking a relaxing nap and just listening to the rain as we enjoyed this view of Fiordland.



The furniture is older, but I think it fit right in with the decor of the entire place & the room was nice and spacious.



The bathroom had been fully renovated & was big and bright.



I loved that this place had such a history- the owner told us some great stories, but it was newly remodeled to have all the latest amenities.



Just a peek at one of the other rooms. The owners were SO incredibly nice & friendly. They answered all of our questions, helped us out with stuff in town & even offered to let us borrow their car since it was raining when we headed into town for our Glow Worm Cave Tour.



The dining room was a beautiful room with gorgeous stained glass & breakfast was a huge feast.



The reading room was a nice gathering area with great views & a place for guests to mingle with each other. I think they provided a computer and/or Internet access, light snacks, drinks & free wine! That's a recipe for success :)

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: USA advances in the World Cup...hip hip hooray!

Te Anau

After our overnight stay in Doutbful Sound, the Real Journey bus dropped us off in downtown Te Anau at the RJ center. This is the entirety of town that sits on the lake front.



Not even a 1-stoplight town- just a round-about! There are a few shops & restaurants to serve the hotels. It's mainly a stop off point between Milford & Doubtful Sounds.



We were starving by lunchtime, so we dropped into the first place we saw- Miles Better Pies, just on the main street. In addition to the adorable statue out front, they place had some terrific pies! The pies in NZ reminded me of a cross between a hot pocket & a stuffed pastry. We have them several times in various flavors on our trip- they are hot, tasty & usually finger foods.



On our way to the evening Glow Worm Cave Tour, we went to the Redcliff Cafe because it was highly recommended.



The inside is cozy & the waitstaff was excellent.



We sat outside on their porch & enjoyed listening to the rain on the roof. I don't have any pictures of the Glow Worm Caves, as cameras aren't allowed as the flash supposedly harmed the glow worms. They were pretty cool & very interesting to learn about. It's neat being inside a cave so deep & on a little boat ride. However, I'm not sure it's really all THAT exciting.



For dinner, I finally decided to try some venison steaks & they were quite yummy! I hadn't read about it, but heard great things about the Ata Whenau at the Fiordland Cinema in Te Anau. We didn't get a chance to see, but I really really wished we had done so. People said the short story & cinematography were spectacular & it was a great overview of the region.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: 3 week late, but my flooring for my office is finally being delivered today.