One of the fun things we like to do on trips is create our own traveling food crawl. We pick an item that we want to enjoy throughout the trip and sample it in as many places as possible. It’s a great way to take your time by stopping at interesting places along the way, stretch, chat with locals and get a snack. And it can all be done…20 steps at a time!

Key Lime Pie Crawl
On a trip down the Florida coast to Key West, we decided to sample Key Lime Pie. We had frozen Key Lime Pie. We had Key Lime Pie on a stick. We had Key Lime cookies. We had Key Lime fudge and taffy candy. Key Lime Pie with a graham crust. Key Lime Pie with a regular pie crust. Key Lime Pie with whipped cream spread on top or in dollops. We even picked up some free Key Limes to bring back home. There are shacks and stores along the route from Miami to Key West, with several more shops in Key West that boast the best Key Lime Pie. You decide! Fun Fact: While on a cruise last year, a friend (that’s you, Marc!) stated that he did not care for Key Lime pie. By the end of the cruise he was ordering it for dessert every night that it was on the menu!

Goulash Crawl
While in Europe a few years ago, one of our first stops was Melk Abbey. We decided to grab a quick lunch before our tour and ordered the goulaschesuppe! . It was served with a tasty roll. Hmm.. we said…what if we try different goulash recipes on this trip? That’s exactly what we did! Each was flavorful, but I think our favorite was the first one. As you can see, there are many variations of goulaschesuppe!

Fish & Chips Crawl
One of my favorite things is a good Haddock fish fry, which is only found in certain areas and restaurants. On a trip to Europe with a few days in London, we checked out a couple of places that offered Haddock fish and chips. Tasty! And just made me want to go back home for the hometown Haddock fish fry that I enjoyed on Fridays for years.

Kolaches Crawl
As new residents of the great state of Texas, we enjoyed this treat at Hruska’s initially. Then several times more as we traveled the state. These can either be sweet or savory. Both are delicious! I even made some recently!

Bratwurst with Sauerkraut
We first enjoyed this tasty sandwich in Europe at one of our first Christmas Markets. Since then, we have sampled it over and over again at other Christmas Markets. But, I have to tell you, none have tasted as good as that first one!

Cheese & Chocolate Crawl
Our latest idea for a food crawl will take place while we are in Zurich in March. We plan to visit as many cheese and chocolate shops as we can. What better place in the world to experience the diversity of cheese and chocolate than in Zurich?!

Take the time to stop and smell the roses,
no matter what else is happening.
— Karen Rosington

Hello 2020! We should all see this year more clearly…I hope! What’s in store for us for 2020, you ask? Well…

Viking River cruise – A much anticipated (for over a year!) Viking river cruise from Paris, France to the Swiss Alps in Zurich, Switzerland is planned for late March into April. Lots of great cities to visit. Our cruise pulls in to a port in Germany that I can trace my many great grandfather from according to information I’ve gained from My Heritage. We are definitely looking forward to seeing the Alps and sampling local Swiss chocolate and cheese on our own devised Food Challenge Travel Crawl. We are hoping the rivers are kind and we can pass with a minimum of busing on this river cruise.

Road trips – These are fun and last minute trips that we take depending on weather and Karen’s work schedule. We would like to head to a couple more small towns near us and also travel to the Jersey Shore in search of lighthouses.

Moving – On a recent cruise, we received an email that our lease was up for renewal. Lots to talk about. At this point, we’ve decided to sign on for another year, and stay put even though there are drawbacks to doing so. This may be the longest we’ve lived anywhere since Karen and I became roommates!

Health – My health is generally pretty good. Seems they are always trying new medicines and you know what that means…adjustment time and return doctor appointments. I have a sleep study scheduled and am interested in those test results. Other than that, I’m hoping for no repeats of last year’s excitement. Would be nice to be able to do something about my hip pain, but I still get by…20 steps at a time!

Karen’s birthday trip – We have a couple ideas in mind, but nothing has been booked at this time.

Australia/New Zealand – Just trying to save enough money for the 17+ hour’s flights so we can book in business class. I have enough trouble on a 6 hour domestic flight, so almost 3 times that is going to be tough in a cramped middle seat. But we hope we can swing this trip. It’s on the books, but we are not yet fully committed to taking it. We did meet a couple from New Zealand on our last cruise and they are excited to meet us and show us around, which could be a fun way to see more of the area, rather than take a bus excursion.

And, for now, that pretty much wraps up our plans for 2020. But stay tuned as this blog continues to develop with stories and pictures of our travels, near and far!