Sensory Overload, Part 1

Sitting in my hotel room in Wisconsin and having never been to any sort of automotive racing other than a few times as a teen watching the Demolition Derby at the local county fair, I really can't say I knew what to expect.

The whole thing was an experience like no other. Just taking in the four miles of road course tucked into the Wisconsin countryside with wooded areas scattered about, the setting was peaceful. Out of nowhere, the roar of a 1970's era racer would arrive followed promptly by a view of the car and it's pavement-focused driver. For the car buff, the photographer or even just the outdoorsy type, it's a bit of nirvana. If you happen to be a bit of all three like me, it's a bit of sensory overload. What to see, do and absorb first?

I started off by doing the track touring. It's an opportunity for those like me who wish they had a third of the mental connection the seasoned track drivers do with their automobiles. Despite having an experienced friend who in another life must be a driving instructor in my passenger seat, the first couple of laps were a little unnerving. The next thing I know, it's time to exit the track as the allotted 50 minutes or so had already zipped past, almost as fast as the blur of Ferrari's that had roared by me two laps ago. For some reason, I didn't mind so much being passed.

The rest of the first day my husband and I spent exploring the track and trying to stay warm and dry. Who knew that Mother Nature would bring weather so cool that it was challenging 104-year record low temperatures? Thankfully, the group we were with had rented several golf carts to get around the paddocks and various vantage points. I can't begin to imagine how they went to this event for years and didn't have any small transportation like the golf carts. Somehow they can't seem to remember how they did it either, other than to say they were smacking themselves for not renting the carts all those years prior.

Over the next two days, the weather improved and we would spend time roaming the track, watching the Morgans, the Ford GTs and GT40s, the Ferraris, Porsches and so many other fascinating cars make lap after lap around the track. There simply wasn't a bad vantage point. Race photographers didn't gather in one media area, they moved about various places around the track as did I with my once "big" lens that seemed to shrink in the presence of the pros and their monstrous lenses.

That was the "Road" of Road America, and I could go on for days about the collection of cars. Things I'd only read about and seen in photos were there for me to admire, photograph and admire some more. Car lovers beware, this place will take you in and not let go.

I might have been taken in by the sights, sounds and even smells, I didn't forget the tastes too. Those are up next...

From Boutique to Beef

I've come to a conclusion about boutique hotels; I'll be sticking to a true boutique and avoid the attempts by chain hotels to imitate the boutique style and experience.

A couple of weeks ago, my husband and I made a trip to Atlanta for the weekend. After hearing good things for a number of years about the W hotels chain, plus seeing their website touting their "Whatever, Whenever" service and trendy upscale style pushed us over the edge to give them a try. This was one case of a website with polish & ideals that don't translate over into the real world. Stepping off the elevators on our floor it went from all glittered t-shirts and uber-cool style to something that in its previous life was not the W Hotel. The Wow Suite we had booked didn't quite "WOW" us as we walked in, but the square footage was generous. Downsides we discovered quickly were the three light blubs that were out, the shower curtain that would blow in on your while you were taking a shower and the safe that wouldn't unlock. For the caliber of hotel this is presented to be, it should be walk-in shower and the amenities should be in fully functioning order. While we were there, we found the advertised "Whatever, Whenever" service was only available if "whatever" you wanted fit within their small parameters. Food in the restaurant was overpriced and I suspect not much more than heat & eat food service items; for the price, it was seriously lacking in quality. Having said that, it wasn't all disappointments. The room was incredibly quiet, which I value highly. The multiple views were pleasant, and the balcony would be more enjoyable if the city wasn't busy living up to it's Hot-lanta nickname. Mostly, I'm glad we got the room at a good rate.

Then there was the food. Oh my, was there ever the food! I'll start at the bottom of the barrel with Atlanta Fish Market, which by no means would normally be at the bottom of most barrels. With a very large selection of very fresh seafood, it was hard to decide what to eat. The most notable item we had was the buffalo shrimp appetizer. I'm not a buffalo-wing kind of gal, but this was good. Good enough to inspire ideas to take home and try later. I also had some of the best scallops here I've ever had; they're nothing like the rubber pucks most restaurants serve.

One of the most pleasant surprises of our trip was the Marietta Diner. (Thank you Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.) We went there for lunch and when I walked in the door I was in awe. The cakes! The minimum height requirement for a cake in that display case was at least 8" tall. That was the smallest of the cakes, and there were so many to choose from. For a pastry nut like me, it was like a slice of heaven (get it?) Anyway, carefully choosing my meal from the novel also known as a menu was challenging with that much variety. I stepped out of my usual health-conscious mode and ordered the Monte Cristo wrap, which was fantastic. Next up... "One slice of the Carmel cake, two forks please." The waiter returns with seven layers of goodness, that's seven real cake sized layers with icing and caramel between them all. The single slice arrived on its side, covering the entire dinner plate, and stood up at least 3 inches. Enormous. How one person could ever consume this much cake and not spend the next 24 hours in a sugar rush I do not know. In an effort to provide those who read my blog with a complete experience, my husband and I gave it our all and tried our best to eat the whole slice. We failed this time, but we both have vowed to return and make another run at that cake. I do believe it was the best cake I've ever eaten, and I have no doubt it was the largest.

That wasn't the only "best" I had while in Atlanta. I saw a number of reviews highly praising Rathbun's, a local hot spot. From their website, I found Rathbun's Steak. Now you're talking to me. I'm a true Ruth's Chris fan and place their fillet as the barrier to match or beat, and I finally found a steak that does it. For a true piece-of-beef that is fork tender, juicy and requires nothing else on the plate to interfere with it's simply delicious taste, this is the place to get it. Beyond the steak, the Asian meatball appetizer is impressively light in taste. The mashed potatoes were very good, but I'd have preferred the macaroni and cheese use a bit stronger of a cheese. The deserts were all exceptional, including the black-bottom creme brulee. Rathbun's Steak and Marietta Diner are two places I'd tell anyone visiting Atlanta to put on their priority list. Both are busy so be prepared to wait, and with Rathbun's Steak plan to make reservations a bit in advance.

On our way out of town, we made a stop at La Madeline's for Sunday brunch. It's one of those places everything I've tried is good, and the quiche is exceptional. It's fortunate there's not one closer to my hometown or I'd really struggle to not make it a part of my daily route.

One of the reasons we went to Atlanta was to participate in the Lexus Performance Driving Academy. While I do post on here about the roads and the food along the way, the vehicle that gets me there is important too. The class gave us time at the Atlanta Motor Speedway in a Lexus IS-F. It's a beautiful piece of machinery that handles even better than it looks. Driving it for the day was a real pleasure and loads of fun as we put it through it's paces around the road course and in the autocross. I have to give Lexus a lot of credit, any event I've attended of theirs has been put together very well. No details are forgotten, and they treat their attendees very well the entire time. There's none of that feeling like cattle being herded through long lines or a lackluster attitude from any of the staff that I've seen at a few too many events. They do a fantastic job and I would highly recommend their events to any car enthusiast.

Crossing the Atlantic

I just returned from what I expect will be my first of many trips to Europe. The whole experience can be summed up in one word: Wow. It's the little differences that I found most facinating, but there are plenty of big ones you can't miss either.

Let's start with the overview of the trip. Nine days with a group of three other women, taking a traveling view of Italy. Transportation would include plane, taxi, bus, metro, local train, Eurostar, water bus and the most often used mode would be walking, a lot of walking. Plans were to visit Rome, Pisa, Florence, Naples and Venice if time and energy allowed for them all.

Just getting there was entertaining. We took a direct flight from Chicago to Rome Fiumicino airport. We were able to get Business Class seats for the trip, which sounded great to me. Then I saw what that entailed... woah. First class on domestic flights pales in comparison to this. Going anywhere internationally, this is the way to travel. Each passenger has plenty of space and seats that have more adjustments than a Mercedes. Once in flight, the attendants provided the laptop-sized personal tv's that had a sizable selection of movies and currently running tv shows. Those came with your personal Bose noise-canceling headphones too. As a relatively frequent traveler, my husband discovered those a few years ago and we haven't had a flight without them since. But to have them provided, that was a surprise. Also each seat was equipped with a cigarette-lighter style power plug, so I arrived with my Ipod charged and ready to go after using it as much as I wanted on the flight. The 5 course meal provided on real china, with real silverware was actually good. I know, airline food... good? Rarely do the two go together, but in this case it was an accurate, if surprising, statement. But enough about the flight already...

On one hand, Rome is just another big city. However, the staggering amount of well preserved and documented history found in this city does change that a bit. Everywhere is history. Considering that "old" there takes on an entirely different meaning than we find in the USA, it really is something to see and simply absorb. After arriving in Rome about 10am, we checked our luggage at the hotel and went for a short stroll to see a few things. A few blocks from our hotel was the Colosseum. Just the sight of this massive structure was a wake-up call... "Yes, you really are looking at what you've previously only seen in photos." We would wait until the next day for a tour, but just to stand in the piazza and see it, the Arch of Constantine and the Roman Forum nearby was indescribable.

Some general observances I made very quickly about Rome proved themselves true over the days we were there. The cars fascinated me, probably a bit to the annoyance of my traveling companions. My own cars at home would seem ghastly and big in contrast with the city cars that populated the roman streets. Smart cars were everywhere, as well as all the small sized vehicle offerings from Fiat, Peugeot, Citroen, Mercedes, the occasional Ford and some I didn't recognize at all. The vast majority were models not sold in the US at all, and would be nearly laughed at on the street as looking like "toys." But at nearly $8 a gallon for gas, who can blame them for wanting the most fuel efficiency possible? Toss into the mix at least one scooter for every three cars on the road as well. With this crush of compact cars and 2 wheeled cheap transportation on the road, traffic was lunacy. Lanes? What lanes? Drivers simply drove wherever they wanted, the idea of lanes was merely a suggestion. Scooter riders were the real daredevils, splitting the suggested lanes at every opportunity, taking full advantage of their narrow size and ability to drive over most any obstacle in the way, including pedestrians. Traffic and the drivers there are simply insane. Maybe outside of the city center it's not that way, but inside, pandemonium rules the road.

I'll be posting more of the experience including a few pictures... coming soon!