Archive for "Travel"
Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport
Posted on June 30, 2015 by Ching under Travel.
I had to travel for work last week. It was my first time flying out of the Wichita airport since they started operating out of the new terminal. Grandma wanted to see some pictures of the new airport. Here you go, grandma!
There’s more food options now. There’s even a Dunkin’ Donuts. Don’t get too excited, though. It’s not as good as a real Dunkin’.
Here’s a short video clip of the new airport.
The new airport is awesome. Brian and I were impressed. We even like the new, four-level parking garage because it has neat feature that tells you how many spaces are left on each level. Although, I couldn’t help but wonder how soon our community will outgrow it. When we were there last week, the first three levels were completely full. Only the rooftop level had spaces available.
Inside it’s very modern. Brian always wants to be early for our flights. Now that we have a nice, shiny, new airport, I won’t mind getting there early and having to wait at the gate. Maybe. LOL. I’ll probably still mind but won’t mind it as much.
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Red Ginger
Posted on May 31, 2015 by Ching under Travel.
I missed posting photos of our lunch at Red Ginger. It was our final meal in Charlotte before heading home. Alex and Sunni were on different flights than me and David but our flights all left around the same time so the four of us were able to have one final lunch together and we were able to travel to the airport together.
I’m just glad that I ended up on the same flight as David even though I booked my flight much later and just picked the cheapest roundtrip fare I could find. LOL. It’s so much nicer to travel with someone. Layovers are so boring when you’re alone.
But I digress, here are the food pictures…
The food was good but all of these benihana type places tend to be very similar. I liked Red Ginger but it’s not really that cool since we have places just like these in Wichita. Several in fact. Would have liked to have tried another restaurant that’s different that what we have in Wichita but we just got tired of walking around and looking for a place to eat. Red Ginger seemed like a safe bet.
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NASCAR Hall of Fame
Posted on May 25, 2015 by Ching under Things to Do, Travel.
No trip to North Carolina is complete without checking out the NASCAR Hall of Fame. As luck would have it, the NASCAR Hall of Fame just happened to be right next to the my hotel and the convention center. It was super convenient. And, the conference organizers rented out the whole facility for the evening for our “special event” during CS Week.
The highlight of the event for me was definitely getting this photo with NASCAR legend Junior Johnson, who was there promoting Midnight Moon and signing autographs.
They were doing free tastings of Midnight Moon, handmade moonshine based on Junior Johnson’s family recipe. Despite all of the delicious varieties, I skipped the moonshine tasting in favor of getting a picture with Junior. I’m sure it’s delicious but Brian told me that it’s really strong and warned me to stay the away from it.
Here are a few more pictures from the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
I’m really glad I had the opportunity to attend this conference because I don’t know if I would have ever seen the NASCAR Hall of Fame otherwise (it wasn’t on the bucket list) and also it was a super duper fantastic conference. (I’m sure I’ve mentioned it several times already but one of my favorite TED speakers, Shawn Achor, was our keynote speaker on the second day.)
CS Week rented the whole facility for our “special event” so we were free to explore every inch of the museum. It was awesome! I think the look on my face in this photo pretty much sums it up.
This is a racing simulator like none other. You get into real cars and race other people. Alex and I didn’t want to stand in the long line so we skipped it.
I heard it was really fun, though.
There was also a pit crew simulation. They had two stations set up so that you could compete with another group to see who could do it faster.
Back on the main level, there was a bluegrass band.
There was also lots and lots of food. There were food stations and bars at every level of the museum so you didn’t have to hungry.
I was in sensory overload so I missed taking pictures of the rest of the food but I had to take a picture of this one. As if bread pudding weren’t decadent enough. They made theirs with Krispy Kreme donuts!
Alex and I got some souvenir photos.
I’m not a huge NASCAR fan but the NASCAR Hall of Fame is a really cool museum. There were so many interactive things on every level. I couldn’t take a picture of everything.
Brian was jealous about this part of the trip. I think he would have really enjoyed the NASCAR Hall of Fame. We may have to go back to he can experience it.
See you again soon, Charlotte!
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Blackfinn Ameripub
Posted on May 17, 2015 by Ching under Food and Drink, Travel.
On one of the nights our group walked to the EpiCentre in downtown Charlotte to find somewhere relatively inexpensive to eat. We were originally going to go to Fleming’s but it had four dollar signs next to its name on the restaurant list. We had to keep it three or under because some people ate at Ruth’s Chris Steak House and already blew the dinner budget. Yup. That happened the night before I arrived. I totally missed out!
To David’s credit, he did get one of our vendors to take us out to dinner one night. They must really like David because they took us to a fancy restaurant called the Capital Grille. The food and service was fantastic. It was a wonderful dinner.
Anyway, he tried to find a different vendor to take us out the next evening. No luck. That happens when you’re just window shopping I guess. Vendors only like to wine and dine you if you’re actually in the market for their product. Our other existing vendors were busy courting new customers. We were on our own.
We ended up at Blackfinn, a two dollar sign restaurant that’s conveniently located right as you arrive at the EpiCentre. Several people in our group wanted to check out Howl at the Moon, a piano bar in the same area so it was perfect.
Here are some pictures of our food…
I think these are the crab cakes.
Steak!
Meatloaf.
I had the grilled mahi, except I subbed spinach for broccoli because I love spinach.
I didn’t get a picture of the other plates because they were either duplicates or too far for me to reach. To check out the other foods, I guess you’ll just have to go to the restaurant. You won’t be disappointed. I promise.
Overall, I really liked Blackfinn. The food was good and the prices were reasonable. The menu is extensive so there’s something for everyone. Whether you’re a steak or seafood person or you just want plain ol’ chicken, you’ll find something on the menu that appeals to you. It’s great for large groups with different tastes. No one will end up starving.
They also have a great selection of starters, some of which are quite filling. Blackfinn is a great choice for if you just want to have appetizers and drinks. We got to try the crab cakes and ying-yang shrimp starters. Both were very good.
They have flatbread pizzas; all sorts of salads; pork, chicken, steak, and seafood entrées; sandwiches and burgers; pasta and noodle dishes; and they even allow you to order extra sides for sharing. The dessert options looked really good too, but we didn’t have any. No one was interested after all of the cheesecake and other desserts they were feeding us at the conference. LOL.
After dinner Sunni and I walked back to our respective hotels. I registered late and ended up the Hilton Charlotte Center City, while everyone else in our group got rooms at the Westin. I found out the next day that, since Howl at the Moon wasn’t open yet, the group ended up at the Tendril after party at Whisky River, where they had an open bar all night long. They said it was a great time; even better than the piano bar.
I was bummed about missing out at first but, after finding out that some of them stayed out until 2 AM, I didn’t feel as bad. I really wanted to be at breakfast early the next day to get a good seat for Shawn Achor’s keynote so there was no way I could hang. Walking back to the hotel right after dinner was a good call.
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Mimosa Grill
Posted on May 16, 2015 by Ching under Food and Drink, Travel.
Mimosa Grill was my favorite restaurant out of all the restaurants I got to try in downtown Charlotte. I think I liked it so much because the food is so fresh. Our server made it a point to tell us that the vegetables are all locally grown at least half a dozen times during our meal. It was almost comical.
Jokes aside, what I really liked best was the mimosa tea. It’s the most delicious non-alcoholic beverage I’ve had in a long time. I’ve had Arnold Palmer’s (half lemonade, half iced tea) before but their tea takes it up several notches. Chad liked it so much that he got multiple refills. I can’t pick on him too much about the refills because I did too. It was delicious. I wanted to go there again and again just for the mimosa tea.
I had the lobster mac and cheese. Not the best choice. That part of the meal was just okay. I prefer the one here at Wine Dive better. I though the mac and cheese was a tad greasy. The salad was great, though. Probably because the veggies are super fresh. The super delicious tea made up for the lackluster mac and cheese so I forgave them.
David had the sea bass.
Chad had crab cakes, which is what I wish I would have ordered. The crab cakes were piled on top of each other with fried green tomatoes sandwiched in between. He said they were just as scrumptious as they looked. After seeing his plate, I really wanted a do over.
Alex got a very healthy salad, which looked amazing also. I bet it was really good. You know, because the vegetables are super fresh, being locally grown and all. LOL.
I joke around but, truly, I really liked Mimosa Grill. The prices were reasonable and the food was delicious and I wish I could have bottled that mimosa tea and brought it back with me to Kansas. I tried to talk the group into eating there again on our final day in Charlotte but no one really wants to eat at the same place twice, no matter how great it is. Usually when you’re out of town, you want to try a bunch of different restaurants. Specially ones that you can’t find your hometown. Such is the case for me, anyway.
Although, Brian seemed really interested in the Nascar Hall of Fame so I see another trip to Charlotte in my future. See you soon, Mimosa Grill!
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