being this happy on a road trip is beyond me...

Yay! We finally made it to Ashland! First stop: Grilla Bites for a healthy, organic lunch. I had a delicious veggie burger on a focaccia bun. There are vegetarian options at EVERY restaurant in Ashland. Ahhhhhhh. Ironically, this is also the one place I could probably find grass-fed meat as well. But after being veggie for well over a year now, I pretty much prefer it.

Peer liked the cottage! He made himself at home right away with his trains.

I'm just realizing that I didn't finish telling you all about the rest of our first day in Ashland. After a yummy lunch at Grilla Bites, and before I even saw the cottage, I rushed off to the theatre to see Throne of Blood, a new play adapted from the Kurosawa film based on Macbeth. I never looked at the ticket that I rushed hastily right before lunch, and hurried off to the theatre to make what I thought was a 2pm curtain. Well, I was perplexed to arrive to an empty courtyard and a locked theatre door. Confused, I glanced at the marquee and realized that the show started at 1:30! I swear, in all my years as a theatregoer, I have NEVER done that before. The ushers and house manager were wonderful, seating me at the back (instead of the front-and-center seat I had bought. sniff) and I still thoroughly enjoyed the show. If you like Shakespeare's play and/or like Japanese film or Japanese noh theatre, I highly recommend this beautiful adaptation, directed by the adapter himself. Lovely piece of work.

That night Andy saw Merchant of Venice and later convinced me to see it too. A great way to start off a week of great theatre!

The beauties of Ashland! Where else can you have world-class theatre, a hippie-natural living culture, and frickin' deer?!


seen on a walk down the street...

Here are some shots of our cottage in Ashland. We started doing the cottage thing last year when we brought some friends up with us. This year we were by ourselves, but opted for a cottage again, only smaller. It was perfect! A cottage beats a B&B or hotel when you have a young child and your family needs space, privacy, and some level of noise tolerance. This one was a one-bedroom duplex and was the perfect size for the three of us. I cooked a couple of nice breakfasts at home, but the rest of the trip we mostly ate out.

Peer enjoyed setting up his trains and other toys to keep him occupied while at home.

Here's a shot from the outside. Isn't it cute? Peer and Andy enjoyed playing frisbee on the little lawn. And it wasn't on a busy street, either, so that makes a mommy feel good.

(this is not the end. click "older posts" to keep reading)