Elisa's Daily ScoopParting is Such Sweet SorrowHey there and Happy Saturday from Jackson, Wyoming! Today is my final day for my Yellowstone Road Trip. I'll be heading back to New York this afternoon with another amazing road trip under my belt!!  Dinner last night in Jackson, WY Tanya and I bid our farewells yesterday in Blackfoot, Idaho, after a fun day caravanning from West Yellowstone with stops in Idaho Falls and, of course, Blackfoot. Parting is such sweet sorrow, but before ya know it, we'll be together again!!  Idaho Falls   Our last day together (yesterday) was relatively mellow in terms of driving and sights. After an uneventful check out from The Wyndham Vacation Rental in West Yellowstone, we made our way to see Idaho Falls. Right in the middle of town, was this picturesque hamlet of waterfalls surrounded by the town roads.  After some photo ops of the Falls and of course, on the "Potato Bench," we got back in our cars and drove a little ways to Blackfoot, Idaho to visit the Idaho Potato Museum.   I had no idea what to expect from this little museum, but, boy was it cute! And very informative about all things Potato. Tanya is going to do a 15 Facts about Potatoes on her side today so take a gander --->>>--->>> While in the museum, my friend Denise texted me and asked me what I had learned from the museum. I told her that all potatoes originated in Peru and that when Francisco Pizarro conquered Peru in 1540, he brought them to Spain. Denise asked me how these tasty tubers became so synonymous with the Irish. I explained to her that after they were brought to Spain, they were introduced throughout Europe and Asia. Portuguese fisherman are actually the ones who brought the potato to Ireland. What was soon discovered was that potatoes were very adaptable to the land in Ireland and as a result, became their sole source of food until the Great Potato Famine in 1845, when one million people died. The Irish are credited with introducing "spud" to the United States.  Old Potato sack machine   Apparently, Denise did not realize just how brilliant her friend was and sarcastically called me "PBS" referring to Public Broadcast System's educational programming. (Actually, I was reading it right on the museum wall display and texted it to her lol) The "cousins" said goodbye in the parking lot of the museum as both Tanya and I had to go different ways. Lots of great pictures - Tanya took some great shots - check them out on her side! --->>>>---->>>>---->>>>  Bidding our Farewells till our next Cousin Trip The girls and I made it back to Jackson, Wyoming in under two hours. Would you believe it started snowing along the drive into Wyoming!! By the time, we made it to our hotel, it was just raining. We settled in after a yummy dinner at Noodle Kitchen across the street from The Wyoming Inn, where we were spending the night.
What a joy to have good wifi again!!! Oh, if only we had great internet in West Yellowstone, you would have been inundated with videos and endless photos! At this point, we will be uploading tons of photos and videos to our Cousins Yellowstone Road Trip page which we will link you to in the coming days. I'll be back with you tomorrow from home, back on Long Island! Here's to a super Saturday! -E xo | Tanya's Daily ScoopTime to go Home!Greetings to one and all from St. George, Utah! What a day on the road yesterday was! Whew! All the way from West Yellowstone, Montana to St. George, Utah - and from the time we left Blackfoot, Idaho and on until arriving in St. George at 12:30AM it was raining/pouring 95% of the time!!! While I am a HUGE fan of the rain...driving in the rain for over 8hrs is a totally different story! Please catch up with Elisa's side to read up on lots of the detail up until we parted ways at the Idaho Potato Museum. Check out pictures in both columns for the full picture of our day!  Gianna NOT waking up!  Idaho Falls with the Idaho Falls Idaho Temple in the background.  About to learn a bit about SPUDS  Our young potato farmers!  Saying Good Byes! (someone is gonna be rather embarrassed by this picture one day..)  Elisa and the girls pulling away Our car ride continued to Salt Lake City, where we met up with my friend Manny and he played tour guide for a few hours!  In front of the Utah State Capital  Interior - Utah State Capital  Me and my buddy Manny!  We found ANOTHER Buffalo!  Time for some goodies!  Car is full and we are hitting the road! Then after grabbing some goodies for the road and to take back home, I drove nearly another 5hrs to St. George. Upon our arrival, we were met by some of Manny's family at our hotel and we hung out gabbing away until the wee hours of the night (or as some may like to call it...early morning!) Am I crazy. Sure, some may think so! This morning we are gonna have breakfast with Manny and family, then back on the road we go... I've got a show to catch with Dave B. later tonight and I look forward to enjoying a lovely dinner at Crossroads Kitchen beforehand!  Another thing that I look forward to is NOT doing the driving on our Moab and Southwestern National Parks Road Trip that takes off in 6 days... Check out these 15 Fun Facts about Potatoes! 1. The Inca people of Peru were growing potatoes in the Andes Mountains as far back as 200 BC.  2. There are thousands of different potato varieties but not all are commercially available, popular ones include Russet, Yukon Gold, Kennebec, Desiree and Fingerling. 3. Potatoes were the first food to be grown in space. In 1996, potato plants were taken into space with the space shuttle Columbia. 4. The world’s largest potato was grown in the UK in 2010. It tipped the scales at 3.76 kilograms (8 lb 4 oz) – the weight of a newborn baby! 5. The potato is about 80% water and 20% solids. 6. The word potato comes from the Spanish word patata. 7. Although it shares the same name, the sweet potato is a root vegetable and only loosely related to the potato. 8. The sweet potato belongs in the same family as morning glories while the white potato belongs to the same group as tomatoes, tobacco, chile pepper, eggplant and the petunia. 9. Scots refused to eat potatoes for a time because they were not mentioned in the Bible. 10. Thomas Jefferson gets the credit for introducing “french fries” to America when he served them at a White House dinner. 11. The world’s largest potato chip crisp (on exhibit at the Potato Museum) was produced by the Pringle’s Company in Jackson, TN, in 1990. It measures 23″ x 14.5″.  The World's Largest Potato Chip! 12. During the 18th century, potatoes were served as a dessert, hot and salted, in a napkin. 13. China is currently the world's largest producer of potatoes. 14. Top 10 Producing States  15. Top 10 Export Market  And come back tomorrow for all of today's SCOOP, as well as finding out just how many miles we clocked on this FANTASTIC 12 day road trip! Time to hit the high road! -T |
