September 8, 2018 - 10 Mountain Bike Road Trip Mistakes and Tanya heads to the Tour de Tahoe

Elisa's Daily Scoop 
Covering Long Island & NYC Boroughs 
CURRENTLY IN:  GARDEN CITY, NY
​NEXT TRIP DEPARTS IN: 106 DAYS

10 Mountain Bike Road Trip Mistakes

Hello!  Wow, am I glad that I didn't have to wake up to an alarm today!  These 6am mornings are wearing me out!

In any case, we all made it through the first week of school unscathed!  Both kids have all their school supplies and are set for the first full week, starting Monday.

On to more fun and enjoyable things!!

As you probably know by now, Tanya is headed out this morning for the Tour de Tahoe.  I spoke to her briefly this morning while she was at the John Wayne Int'l Airport in Orange County.

I know that she is going to have lots to report with her usual amazing photos!  I'll keep you posted, as I'm not sure what her wifi will be like.

(photo credit: tahoesouth.com)

We've also got something else super exciting for your today - a Guest Blog!!

And how apropos!! Guest writer, Aletha Joseph Simon has written a wonderful article detailing some of the dangerous mistakes made when going on a mountain biking trip.

Take a read for yourself by clicking the link:
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10 Mountain Bike Road Trip Mistakes & Tips to Avoid Them

Today did not bring the best of weather - humid and cloudy.  But, you all know how much I love the rain, so maybe we'll get some later.

However, I was hoping for a bit of sunshine tomorrow to visit the Ferragosto on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx tomorrow.

You may remember, that I wrote about this in my article 15 Reasons to Visit the Bronx, back in June.

This annual celebration, which has a history dating back many centuries, recognizes the end of the harvest season, with a focus on enjoying the fruits of those labors.

For more than 15 years, the merchants of the Arthur Avenue/Belmont section of the Bronx have been celebrating the Italian tradition each Fall.

Tomorrow, September 9th from 12pm-6pm is the 2018 Ferragosto!  Me and my trio will be here to partake in the music, culture and of course, the greatest food!

I'll bring you photos, videos and a re-cap on Monday!

A HUGE SHOUT OUT TO COSETTE!!  For the second year in a row, she has won the ​LA County Fair's Photography contest!! What an achievement!!

The rest of my day is filled with weekend chores - food shopping, cleaning and getting in a work out!

Here's to a great Saturday!!
-E
xoxo

Tanya's Daily Scoop 
Covering the West Coast & the World
​CURRENTLY IN: THE AIRPORT
NEXT TRIP DEPARTS: TODAY

Headed to Tour de Tahoe

Good Day and Greetings from John Wayne Airport in good ol' Orange County, CA!

It's 5:30am and we are already through security and sitting at our gate waiting for our flight.

We are flying up to Sacramento and then driving up to Lake Tahoe. As far as I recall this will actually be my first time flying into SMF, being that we usually opt to fly into Reno (which is a bit closer to Tahoe). 

Once we arrive we'll be picking up our rental and making our way to the largest alpine lake in North America - LAKE TAHOE - which is at 6,225 ft and straddles the state line between California and Nevada.

Lake Tahoe (c)travelincousins.com

As you know we happen to be heading up to this beautiful place in the Sierra Nevadas in order to cycle in The Tour de Tahoe biking event that takes place tomorrow.  

Upon our arrival to Tahoe, we need to check in for our ride and pick up our (bike) rentals. The rest of the day will be at our leisure and hopefully being mentally and physically prepared for the ride and the many grueling climbs that it involves.

Well enough about that for now - because there will be plenty more about Tahoe for me to share with you guys tomorrow and on Monday.

Now before anything else I want to CONGRATULATE my beautiful and oh so talented daughter Cosette on her achievements as a budding photographer!!

My gal has entered the LA County Fair's Photography contest for the second year in row and she has come in FIRST PLACE in more than one catagory for the second year in a row!!! 

Me and my sweetie pie (c)travelincousins.com

At the LA County Fair photography contest there is a maximum of 4 entries (each in separate categories) and all entries must be taken within the past 12 months.

Cosette went ahead and entered the maximum 4 pictures and she came in first place for 2 of her photos and in second place for her other 2 entries! Each entry was a winner!!

Cosette and one of her entries (c)travelincousins.com

Serenity in Stillness (c)travelincousins.com

Cosette and another of her pics - Curiosity, Wonder and Love (c)travelincousins.com

Guardian of Knowledge (c)travelincousins.com

Times Change (c)travelincousins.com

We are all so proud of our girlie who definitely has a great eye and obviously takes some great photos!

You might in fact even recognize some of these locations from trips and vacations that we've traveled to and that I've share with you in the past 12 months:

Monkey's and MORE
from Honduras in July 2017

The Lovely Northern California Coast
from Mendocino in August 2017

It's Beginning to look a lot like CHRISTMAS
from NYC in December 2017
​
Finally Exploring MONO LAKE
from Mono Lake in January 2018

Well yesterday was quite a busy day (as per my usual) and it so happened to be a very short visit to the Fair - basically just to go and see Cosette's entries and to see how she did...

We seemed to all be okay with that. Since as I've mentioned before, we aren't exactly the fair going types. lol

But we were definitely a hungry bunch and decided to have dinner at the nearby Loving Hut - which happens to have a much different menu than all of the other worldwide Loving Hut Restaurants.

And impressed we were with the menu selection, service and healthy yet delicious food choices!

Vegan Steak Rolls in a Scallion Pancake (c)travelincousins.com

Vegan Quesadilla with Pineapple Salsa (c)travelincousins.com

Kung Pao (c)travelincousins.com

Cosette's Burger (c)travelincousins.com

Dave's Tacos (c)travelincousins.com

Dominic's Pasta dish (c)travelincousins.com

And with food this good, who could resist dessert?!

Not us! So the kids plowed into their Green Tea Ice Cream and Avocado Shake while I was busy engaged in conversation with the owner - I never had time to get a picture. lol

But when it came time to eat my chocolate cheezecake and try Dave's chocolate cake I made sure that the camera ate first and that I could share them with you.

​YUM!

Rich Chocolate Cake (c)travelincousins.com

Decadent Chocolate Cheezecake (c)travelincousins.com

That was pretty much our night. It was late enough that there was no traffic on the way back and the drive only took us about 35 minutes.

Dave and I needed to wrap things up and catch a few zzz's before our 4am wake up call this morning.

That's all for now folks. Catch ya back here from Tahoe tomorrow morning before our BIG ride!!
-Travelin' Tanya