Monday, September 12, 2011

(7) PA: the day before New York City

Nothing like working up a good appetite walking in Lackawanna State Park before going to dinner: All you can eat clam special. It was a fun day.
We went for a walk in the Lackawanna State Park. Under the canopy of the beautiful green tree tops you can walk for miles in the beautiful woods.


A spider web. I only learned the other day that a cobweb is an abandoned spider web.
Young deer are more tame as they are used to people visiting the park. This one surprisingly did not run off when we went closer. Instead he ran just a few feet off the road and then ran alongside us for a bit. This is the closest that I've ever been to a deer out in nature.
In America Smokey is a national symbol for fire safety.
You don't say...  (I simply couldn't resist (*wink*))
Guess what we were there to do...  This was my first time eating clams - no one seemed able to really explain what they were. Guess what I did? I googled it! haha
It would seem that clams belongs to the mussel family. I wasn't too far off. There is roughly 12 to 15 clams per serving with some warm, melted butter. The Americans sure l-o-v-e their butter... So what I've seen everyone else do is to remove all the meaty bits into the butter and then eat them from there with the fork. I got as far as three servings before I felt like I had enough. The boys each ate six servings.

There is no real way to say but the waitress seem to take longer and longer inbetween servings. Do you think that perhaps she was trying to slow us down? After all, the special only lasts for two hours (6 - 8pm). Surely the special is based on "someone can only eat that much, right?" After the sixth serving that turned out to be spot on.

Unfortunately either the clams, or something I ate earlier that day, didn't quite agree with me. Neither lunch nor the clams stuck around till morning; I whispered a secret to someone on the porcelein throne sometime during the night. Sadly I don't know who I whispered to. I didn't get a chance to look around. By morning they were gone anyway. Oh well... 
Guess what that is? Many of you might have wondered when on earth we're getting around to the New York City trip... Well, that is a small part of it from the highway heading into town with the bus. Next up: NEW YORK CITY!! YAAAAYYYYY!!! Be sure not to miss it!

4 comments:

  1. September 12, 2011 at 4:48 am
    Beautiful scenery. Great photos too. Nothing like spending a day with nature all around.God Bless You paul

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    1. September 12, 2011 at 2:42 pm
      I agree, Paul. When you stand there breathing clean air and surrounded with peaceful silence (except for sounds of nature) life makes sense for a while and God feels RIGHT there. I always find it so easy to talk to Him there.

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  2. September 12, 2011 at 4:48 pm
    Awesome photos! Next to the beach the forest is my fave place to be. Still and silent save for the natural inhabitants and the trees. The woodland has a magical appeal for me, and a time to be at peace, escape the concrete jungle and enjoy nature and its glory.

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    1. September 12, 2011 at 5:08 pm
      Thanks, Davie I have to agree: the ocean and the forest. Hopefully in October we'll be heading to the Rocky mountains in Colorado. Then I'll be able to tell if that is a third one added to my list However, I enjoy the rhythm of the city as much as I do the solace and depth of nature. One needs all things to keep a healthy balance, I think.

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