Mini Vacation

Bob wanted to go to a scale model convention at Warner Robbins AFB today.  It's about a four hour drive away.  In theory we could have hit the road about 5 this morning, been there when it opened at nine. spent a few hours there, and then driven the four hours home.

The heck with that.  We scooted out of work early yesterday, drove up, and found a motel about five minutes from the convention.  Which was at the Air Force museum--which was on the Air Force base.  We both felt a little nostalgic driving past the base--we both spent our formative years behind those chain-link fences.

I waited in the car while Bob checked into the motel--it took awhile, because he came out and said he had to chat up the Filipina desk clerk.  Bob, with his love of the Philippines, manages to find his homeys everywhere (side note: "homey" dates to the time of the Underground Railroad.  Escaped slaves who had left everything they had ever known were always so happy if they ever found anyone who had lived in the same town and knew the same people--someone from home). Gladys pointed us out to a Filipino restaurant--more homeys for Bob and an excellent dinner for both.  I had a pork kare kare--a soup with a peanut broth (rather like a pad Thai sauce), pork, eggplant and bok choy.  Delicious.  Bob enjoyed his pork ribs and fried rice, but kept stealing my soup as well.

We went to the convention this morning.  About a dozen vendors--small compared to the 200+ vendors at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival last month, but enough to please Bob and empty his wallet a bit.  There was also a model contest--Bob scoped out the competition this year and might enter something next year.  We (of course) had to wander around the museum and the static display of aircraft outside.  Bob took some pictures for Dad.

 Lunch after all this was at a Vietnamese restaurant.  I have heard of pho, but never tried it before--it's a soup.  The important part is the broth--then there are add-ins.  Now I know what people are talking about--I'm not sure what was in the broth, but it was amazing.  Bob had beef pho and I had seafood.  A nice touch is that you're given a plate of fresh herbage (cilantro, thai basil, bean sprouts, and a lime wedge) to add to the soup after your served, so they don't cook, just add perfume and crunch.      

                                                                 

And then home.  We were only gone about 30 hours, but it felt like a vacation.  We saw some new things, had a couple of good ethnic meals, and Bob even managed to get a few goodies to play with.